Mariel Collard

Landscape and architecture
design | research | teaching

Paisaje y arquitectura
diseño | investigación | enseñanza



About



 
Selected work from 2020 and earlier
lives in this website. 

The Bali Studio 1
Hispanic/Latino Non-resident Alien
Trading on Terroir
Avocado Toast: A Natural History
For Holly
The Valley: A Journey
Umbral
Feria de las Culturas Amigas
Casa Mazatlán


Mariel Collard

Landscape and architecture
design, research, pedagogy.

Paisaje y arquitectura
diseño, investigación, enseñanza.


About
Contact



Avocado Toast: A Natural History

This research project* explores the monocrop landscape of Persea americana and its ‘migratory paths’ from Michoacán in Mexico into North American territories. 
It is estimated that the state of Michoacán grows about eight out of 10 avocados exported to the United States. The $4.8 Billion dollar industry expands through illegal logging by groups including drug cartels. The research investigates the history of this plant from its domestication origins to the current supply chains fueled by free-trade. It considers the land-use changes, the land tenure evolution, the certifications and conservation initiatives entangled in a recent massive deforestation process. This project explores the landscape systems in place and spatial implications of the growing demand in America for the Mexican so called “green gold.” It delaminates the ecological and political forces embeded in the possibility of an avocado toast in a restaurant in Manhattan.

*Originated from a broader group project supported by the Mexican Cities Initiative Fellowship.
2018-ongoing | Research