Introduction by Buckminster Fuller. Text by Syeus Mottel. Interview by Ben Estes.
A story of the ’70s: when six New York ex-gangsters met Buckminster Fuller and built a geodesic dome
In 1970 a meeting took place in an empty loft on the Lower East Side of Manhattan between R. Buckminster Fuller, the revolutionary architect and inventor of the geodesic dome, and six ex-gang members who called themselves “CHARAS.” After a few hours, they found themselves having an earnest and important conversation, and the young men of CHARAS decided to begin implementing Bucky’s ideas. They wanted to create a program that would develop a sense of community autonomy, reclaim public space and give their lives a newfound sense of purpose. Following a period of intensive study of solid geometry, spherical trigonometry and principles of dome building, all led by Michael Ben-Eli, CHARAS constructed a geodesic dome on a vacant lot in the shadow of the Manhattan Bridge.
Originally published in 1973 and now published in an expanded edition, Charas: The Improbable Dome Builders is an intimate portrait in pictures and words of these dynamic young men and their community. The first half chronicles the trials and tribulations of building the dome, their intensive training, search for funding, accidental fires, holiday potlucks and Bucky visiting to see their incredible work. The second half contains interviews with the members of CHARAS and their friends, sharing personal stories of their time on the streets, as gang leaders, drug addicts, serving time in prison and finding a new sense of self and community through the applied philosophies of Buckminster Fuller. This edition also includes a new interview with Michael Ben-Eli looking back on the project four decades later.
Featured image is reproduced from 'Charas: The Improbable Dome Builders.'
PRAISE AND REVIEWS
Artforum
The premise of Syeus Mottel’s delightful, disorienting CHARAS: The Improbable Dome Builders is the stuff of retro-futurist fantasy.
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In 1970, R. Buckminster Fuller was approached by six former NYC gang members who wanted to build a geodesic dome. Their idea: to "get into the country, put up a few of these domes, and start living away from the congested streets in contact with nature," according to Fuller. Within four months, the group, which called itself CHARAS, had acquired spherical trigonometry. They worked together to construct a geodesic dome on a vacant lot below the Manhattan Bridge. "Instead of knocking other people down, with the false idea that 'somebody's got to die so that I can live,'" Fuller wrote in 1973, "the kids and the gangs in the streets of New York are coming spontaneously aware—literate and confident—that there is enough to go around for everybody—that it's got to be you and me. The movement is in the streets, and it is wonderful news for humanity. The people I see in CHARAS are beautiful people, and their work is the best news I know." continue to blog
FORMAT: Pbk, 6.75 x 9.5 in. / 240 pgs / 150 b&w. LIST PRICE: U.S. $27.00 LIST PRICE: CANADA $37 ISBN: 9781945711053 PUBLISHER: Pioneer Works Press/The Song Cave AVAILABLE: 2/27/2018 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Active AVAILABILITY: Out of stock TERRITORY: NA ONLY
Published by Pioneer Works Press/The Song Cave. Introduction by Buckminster Fuller. Text by Syeus Mottel. Interview by Ben Estes.
A story of the ’70s: when six New York ex-gangsters met Buckminster Fuller and built a geodesic dome
In 1970 a meeting took place in an empty loft on the Lower East Side of Manhattan between R. Buckminster Fuller, the revolutionary architect and inventor of the geodesic dome, and six ex-gang members who called themselves “CHARAS.” After a few hours, they found themselves having an earnest and important conversation, and the young men of CHARAS decided to begin implementing Bucky’s ideas. They wanted to create a program that would develop a sense of community autonomy, reclaim public space and give their lives a newfound sense of purpose. Following a period of intensive study of solid geometry, spherical trigonometry and principles of dome building, all led by Michael Ben-Eli, CHARAS constructed a geodesic dome on a vacant lot in the shadow of the Manhattan Bridge.
Originally published in 1973 and now published in an expanded edition, Charas: The Improbable Dome Builders is an intimate portrait in pictures and words of these dynamic young men and their community. The first half chronicles the trials and tribulations of building the dome, their intensive training, search for funding, accidental fires, holiday potlucks and Bucky visiting to see their incredible work. The second half contains interviews with the members of CHARAS and their friends, sharing personal stories of their time on the streets, as gang leaders, drug addicts, serving time in prison and finding a new sense of self and community through the applied philosophies of Buckminster Fuller. This edition also includes a new interview with Michael Ben-Eli looking back on the project four decades later.
