3. Of Pyramids and Fire

In animal space there are activities, instinctive behaviour and the context; a space in which the animals, including humans play out their lives. It is with these two parameters of context and activities that Darwin places his theory of natural selection: species adapt and physically adjust to their environment. This adaption is also done through a manipulation of the environment: through the construction of enclosures to provide for protection as well as physically comfortable space. In the jungle we can find pyramids that go beyond the basic constructions that provide shelter. These monumental structures are symbolic spaces expressing humanity’s desire to overcome the limitations of their context, to reach beyond themselves. In the dense Guatemalan jungle, standing on top of one of those great Mayan edifice, Tikal 1, a layered space unfolds beneath. We can see the jungle with its spatial hierarchy that can be read in a similar way as Abraham Maslow defined his hypothesis of the Hierarchy of Needs. Going further back in time, humanities’ conscious use of fire is investigated as the way it has been used to control the context in space and time. The creation of this man-controlled bubble of heat and light could be considered as that very moment when architecture was born.