COB & SALSA | COB INTENSIVE WORKSHOP IN PORTUGAL

COURSE DETAILS

Cob is a very inclusive, organic, and creative earthen building technique that allows us to shape walls freely, working with curves very easily. In this way, we can sculpt a house, turning it into a collective work of art.

In this workshop, we will dive into this technique to build a unique Cob Sauna for Majuma Valley! It is going to be an organic-shaped building, with a reciprocal green roof and an outdoor Tadelakt shower, in this way you are going to be able to learn about cob essentials, reciprocal roof structures and different plastering techniques such as earthen plasters, lime and tadelakt! Besides all this, we are having some Salsa Classes going on in some of the evenings, so we can all gather to have some fun, dance and connect!

The 3-weeks intensive workshop will be divided into 3 modules, starting the 25th of September with a welcome dinner and the workshop introduction. There are some days off in between, to make sure you have time to rest, connect and explore!

MODULE 1 – Cob Walls 
25th of September to 6th of October

In the first module, we will start right away pouring an earthen floor in the ready build stone foundations that are going to be prepared before the workshop. Once our floor is in, door frames will be placed, so we can start with the cob walls!

Alongside the hands-on work, we’ll dive into the core principles of earthen building. You’ll be introduced to different natural building techniques and explore clay soil as the essential ingredient of cob building. We will also talk about site selection and the importance of a good design while building with earthen techniques. Through practical exercises, you’ll learn how to test and analyze soils, developing the ability to understand, select, and work with materials from your own land. We will start the practice of Cob by building the walls. During this process, lots of wall insertions will happen: windows, niches, shelves, and more.

To finalize, we will make this building unique, by sculpting and customizing it. We will have the natural builder and mud artist Alyshia, from the UK, that will be guiding the building artistic design and bringing all her experience in sculpturing with cob to make this sauna look stunningly beautiful!

The intention of this module is to give you a strong foundation in earthen building: understanding its benefits, learning how to read and stabilize clay soils, preparing the cob mix, and how to build with confidence: step by step, layer by layer.

MODULE 2 – Reciprocal Roof and Green Vernacular Roof
7th to 12ve of October

In the second module, we’ll implement a reciprocal roof structure, understanding how to design and build one, and the many possibilities that you can achieve with this type of structures. This week, we will step out of the mud to interact with wood, understanding how this material works and what can we achieve.

During the work of the roof, sculpting the walls will continue, so there will be time and space for you to explore this creative aspect of cob building.

We will bring the roof to life with a green, living layer. You’ll learn how to design and build a vernacular green roof, understanding the materials, layering systems, and techniques needed to create a resilient and beautiful living cover.

MODULE 3 – Natural Finishes: Earth, Lime and Tadelakt!
13th to 18th of October

In the final module we’ll dive into natural finishes for earthen buildings: earthen and lime plasters and Tadelakt.

You’ll learn how to design, test, and apply both earthen and lime plasters: understanding their composition, additives, and techniques. Using local soils and aggregates, we’ll create our own plaster recipes and apply them to the walls, bringing the structure to its final form with rich textures and natural earthen colors.

We will have the master plasterer Matilde, a chilean friend based in Portugal, which will be guiding us into the world of Tadelakt, sharing with us all her knowledge and sympathy to make this experience even better!

We will have a Tadelakt Party and Graduation on saturday 17th, and finish the workshop on Sunday 18th with a farewell lunch.

During your stay, you’ll be immersed in the beautiful atmosphere of Majuma Valley! Alongside our course, we are going to have Salsa Classes organized by Nick and Roos in some of the evenings, movie nights and some surprise activities!

We’ll be sharing delicious meals as one big community, creating plenty of opportunities to connect, exchange ideas, and build meaningful relationships. Bring your ideas and projects so we have time to explore them and help!