The wheels of creativity were definitely turning for Matthew Grogono when his thoughts began centring around the idea of designing a new style of geodesic dome.
鈥淚 have a thing for geodesic domes. They are like the ones you see in the Expo 鈥�67 photographs (in Montreal),鈥� Grogono, who helped design and build three such domes for the Caribou Carnival winter festival well over 20 years ago, said.
He said this new type of dome architecture is 鈥渋ncredibly strong鈥� and long-lasting.
As president of Old Town Glassworks in Yellowknife, Grogono is known for his innovative art made from repurposed glass, as well as his bicycle repair workshop
business. Both ventures are an example of his belief that one person鈥檚 waste need not go to waste but instead can be transformed into unique pieces of art or repaired to once again become functional.
Wood and wheels
Grogono named it the Littlewood Geodesic Dome after the Littlewood family from Spruce Grove, Alta., who sold him an original dome kit 25 years ago. The new dome is made from 600 bicycle wheels and is 30-feet in diameter with a 15-foot ceiling.
And he said he had no difficulty in acquiring such a large number of wheels for his project, because like magic when he is not at home, the wheels arrive 鈥渂y the
迟谤耻肠办濒辞补诲鈥�.
鈥淎s an experiment, we first started building one with bicycle wheels and discovered that it's possible to make an igloo-type structure out of bicycle wheels that are very, very strong and lightweight,鈥� Grogono said.
A long-time collaboration with his friend, Wade Carpenter, plus other like-minded friends got the project off the ground and taking shape. Now completed, the distinctive dome, made from recycled bicycle wheels and two-by-four triangular wooden frames, is large enough to hold about 40 people inside its innovative design.
And with exceptional acoustics plus impressive esthetics, Grogono said it is a great venue for music events.
鈥淭hey are one of, if not, the strongest known human-created architectural structures. If you were to take a dome like the one we have and make it with all 26-inch wheels and assemble them perfectly, the dome could carry the weight of two pickup trucks.鈥�
Grogono said his interest in the geodesic dome style of structure stemmed from learning about Buckminster Fuller, an architect and designer who pioneered its design and who created the Expo 鈥�67 dome now known as the Montreal Biosphere, which has since been transformed into a museum dedicated to the environment.
Shelter from the storm
Being forward thinking, Grogono also has larger ideas for such a sturdy structure.
鈥淭he reason why we got involved in the first place, partly, was that bicycles are being thrown away by the millions,鈥� he said, noting that by searching for surplus bicycles on the Internet, videos of areas the size of Albertan wheatfields appear 鈥� filled with stacked-up, discarded bicycles. 鈥淚n China, there are more registered drivers than there are adults in America. And if they also are driving cars, then we may have more erratic weather patterns. If we have more erratic weather patterns, we might need more emergency shelters.
鈥淪o my question is, can you make an emergency shelter out of bicycle wheels? So we made one 10 times larger, and it is very strong and very attractive. And
Buckminster Fuller - I'm very fond of him because I discovered that he, too, is a dyslexic - there's a certain way of thinking that leads to (creating) a certain kind of spherical-shaped, efficient geodesic dome-type structure,鈥� he added.
鈥淚f it proves out to be a sustainable, usable structure shelter for everyone, and if we can teach the Girl Guides and the Boy Scouts how to take a bunch of broken bicycles and make a headquarters for their next office, why not? They could do it around the world.鈥�
Dome of distinction
Grogono said he has already submitted this one-of-a-kind accomplishment to Guinness World Records to be recognized as 鈥渢he world鈥檚 first geodesic dome constructed from recycled bicycle wheels and 2x4 framing.鈥�
The structure sits between two 1940s log cabins below Pilot鈥檚 Monument in Old Town, where it is used for special occasions, such as musical events.
鈥淲e have people trailing up here every day looking at it,鈥� he said of its popularity, noting that it highlights the creativity of the Yellowknife community and its role in 鈥減ioneering sustainable architectural innovation on a global stage.鈥�
