KER[NOW]
Set against a speculative future where Cornwall reclaims its independence, KER[NOW] explores how architecture can empower cultural identity through the revitalisation of the Cornish language, Kernowek. Anchored within the framework of a pilot “lithium community” at the historic Geevor Tin Mine, the project proposes a new civic typology: a language repository embedded in the landscape, where architecture becomes both a tool for memory and a symbol of cultural resurgence.
Drawing from Cornwall’s Celtic traditions, the design weaves together five thematic repositories (Live, Write, Perform, Hear, Artefact) each offering immersive spatial experiences tied to linguistic rediscovery. These spaces enable users to engage emotionally and intellectually with Kernowek through sound, text, myth, and performance. The architecture itself treats space as carved mass, emerging from the landscape like a contemporary menhir and using locally quarried granite to symbolise permanence and cultural rootedness. Its dramatic cliffside site invites visitors to journey through a series of interconnected paths and elevations, echoing the fragmented revival of the language across Cornwall.
By merging language, landscape, and identity, KER[NOW] proposes a bold vision of architectural activism: one that honours cultural specificity while enabling collective empowerment in a post-colonial Cornwall.
