Goya, a Thai tower in Phang Nga, offers more than meets the eye. At first glance, it is a flurry of sunset-coloured towers that cascade towards the sky, stopping at different heights. This alone is enough to grab a passerby’s attention, yet its material make-up is what is truly striking: elephant dung.
Explore a Thai tower made from elephant waste
Humans’ use of animal dung to build is nothing new – it dates back millennia to the dawn of animal domestication – but here’s a contemporary take. Architect and artist Boonserm Premthada (his acclaimed Elephant World project won Best Sanctuary in the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2021) began the project by looking at what elephants left behind – their waste comprises grass, leaves, and fruit. Elephant dung has been used to make paper, fertiliser, insect repellent, and even coffee (undigested coffee beans that have passed through the elephant’s system make for a smooth flavour, apparently – the resulting Black Ivory Coffee is the world's rarest and most expensive).
Turning the animal’s waste into bricks allows it to be more than a construction material; it becomes a symbolic nod to the connections between animal, earth, human, and architecture. Each elephant-dung brick is handmade, baked in sunlight, and measures 33cm in diameter and 5cm in thickness. The tower took a year to complete.
The bricks are produced in five colours, mimicking the pattern of a Rocket Lolly. They're then threaded onto a central steel rod and stacked to create a pattern. Upon entry, visitors can climb the stairs and see the cylindrical columns rise around them as they venture through the curved walkways, getting views of the landscape beyond.
The tower's context is central to the project. In southern Thailand, elephants and people have lived alongside one another, shaping the forests and settlements. Today, elephants remain deeply embedded in the identity of places such as Phang Nga. In the heart of the region is a limestone mountain, shaped like a reclining elephant. Titled Khao Chang (or Elephant Mountain), it’s where, according to local legend, a male elephant fell and turned to stone.
A new local landmark rooted in elephant lore and heritage, Goya Tower is named after a female elephant born in the area, and stands at the entrance to Matalay, an extensive resort project there.
Goya offers a beautiful, contemporary example of how buildings can be created to be deeply in tune with the people, environment, and community in an architectural circle of life.
