adobeisnotsoftware

Happy Earth Day! 🧱 🌱

💃 #mondaymotivation

Learn sustainable building by doing!! ⁣ Join us May 15–17 for a hands-on Adobe Horno Building workshop with Ben Loescher of @adobeisnotsoftware . Together we’ll build a fully functional earthen oven from the ground up, working with simple, site-based materials and time-tested techniques.⁣ ⁣ Earthen ovens are inexpensive, durable, and create a kind of heat you just can’t replicate in a conventional kitchen. You’ll leave with the knowledge to build your own, using materials that may already be in your yard.⁣ ⁣ This workshop is ideal for bakers, builders, DIYers, and anyone curious about working with earth. It also serves as an introduction to adobe construction, cob, and natural plasters.⁣ ⁣ May 15–17, 2026⁣ 9am – 4pm⁣ $445⁣ ⁣ Link in bio to register.⁣ ⁣

#mondaymotivation 🙌

Ben joins Frances Yang of Arup and Anthony Dente of Verdant Structural Engineers to discuss advocacy at the 2026 West Coast Natural Building Conference next Friday, April 10th, hosted by Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The conference’s theme, Tradition and Innovation, will cover topics including building codes, technical research, practical tips/techniques, and bio-regional resilience. In partnership with the California Straw Building Association (CASBA) and Cal Poly SLO Architecture Department. Join us and celebrate CASBA’s 30th anniversary! See the link in bio to register. @arupamericas @calpolyarch @verdantstructural @cali_straw_building_assoc

Build an earthen oven with us! There are a few spaces still available for our 3-day earthen oven (horno) building workshop in collaboration with @yuccavalleymaterial May 15–17 | 9 am – 4 pm⠀ ⠀ Spots are limited. Link in bio to register.

Ummmm @adobe can we talk? 🥺👉👈

April is Adobe Month at DESERTRADE! Our free workshop on April 4 with Ben Loescher is currently at capacity, but we’re excited to continue our April series with additional workshops drawing on Adobeisnotsoftware curriculum. Reserve your spot now by emailing [email protected]. Adobe Brick Making Workshops Saturdays April 11, 18, and 25 | 12–4 PM with Eric Linnert These sessions offer a meaningful opportunity to deepen your understanding of adobe construction while directly supporting our residency. The afternoon will explore: ▫️Adobe Overview ▫️Soil Recap ▫️Tools + Safety ▫️Mixing Adobe ▫️Forming Bricks ▫️Drying + Curing A suggested donation of $50 per workshop helps sustain this ongoing series. Your contribution enables DESERTRADE to advance the restoration of our four artist bungalows, expand our seasonal workshops and public presentations, and sustain the daily care and labor that make this work possible. We look forward to gathering with you—to shape bricks from soil, to learn from the land, and to build something enduring together. Enrollment is limited to 20 participants. Ages 14 and up are welcome. Get ready to get dirty. Snacks and beverages will be provided.

𝘈𝘋𝘖𝘉𝘌𝘐𝘚𝘕𝘖𝘛𝘚𝘖𝘍𝘛𝘞𝘈𝘙𝘌 with Ben Loescher Saturday, April 4 | 12–4 PM | SOLD OUT!!!! This special workshop is offered free of charge, made possible through generous grant support from the @paac29palms - Over the course of four immersive hours, participants will be introduced to the foundations of adobe block making and earthen construction. Drawing from the 𝘈𝘋𝘖𝘉𝘌𝘐𝘚𝘕𝘖𝘛𝘚𝘖𝘍𝘛𝘞𝘈𝘙𝘌 curriculum, the afternoon will explore: ▫️Soil selection + testing ▫️Water resistance + stabilization ▫️Adobe forms + block making ▫️Garden Wall Foundations ▫️Adobe Brick Laying Techniques ▫️and more The workshop will be led by Ben Loescher, joined by assistants Eric Linnert and Lucy Lloyd. Together, they will guide participants through both the practical and poetic dimensions of building with earth—where technique meets intuition, and material meets memory. This is an in-person workshop. No prior experience is required. Enrollment is limited to 16 participants. Ages 14 and up are welcome. ----------------------------------------------------- We’re equally excited to continue our April series with additional Adobe Brick Making Workshops: Saturdays April 11, 18, and 25 | 12–4 PM Led by Eric Linnert These sessions offer a meaningful opportunity to deepen your understanding of adobe construction while directly supporting our residency. Drawing from the 𝘈𝘋𝘖𝘉𝘌𝘐𝘚𝘕𝘖𝘛𝘚𝘖𝘍𝘛𝘞𝘈𝘙𝘌 curriculum, the afternoon will explore: ▫️Adobe Overview ▫️Soil Recap ▫️Tools + Safety ▫️Mixing Adobe ▫️Forming Bricks ▫️Drying + Curing A suggested donation of $50 per workshop helps sustain this ongoing series. Your contribution enables DESERTRADE to advance the restoration of our four artist bungalows, expand our seasonal workshops and public presentations, and sustain the daily care and labor that make this work possible. We look forward to gathering with you—to shape bricks from soil, to learn from the land, and to build something enduring together. Enrollment is limited to 20 participants. Ages 14 and up are welcome. Get ready to get dirty. Snacks and beverages will be provided. Reserve at [email protected].

⁣🌵 Build with the earth. Learn by doing. 🌵⠀ ⠀ This spring, we’re offering two hands-on adobe workshops with our collaborators @adobeisnotsoftware – designed for curious beginners, builders, artists, and anyone interested in natural materials and climate-responsive design.⠀ ⠀ ⠀ Intro to Adobe, April 26 | 9 am – 1 pm⠀ ⠀ A four-hour, hands-on crash course in adobe blocks, soil testing, and earthen construction basics ⁣with Eric Linnert and Lucy Lloyd. Fees: $95⠀ ⠀ ⠀ Adobe Horno Building, May 15–17 | 9 am – 4 pm⠀ ⠀ Build a working earthen oven from the ground up and learn techniques you can take home and use anywhere, with Ben Loescher. Fees: $445⠀ ⠀ ⠀ Both workshops are tactile, immersive, and rooted in place-based knowledge – perfect for DIYers, designers, and the earth-curious alike.⠀ ⠀ ⠀ Spots are limited. Link in bio to register.⠀ ⠀ ⠀ @exploringeric #frankenthalerclimateinitiative

Ben Loescher and Lucy Lloyd of Los Angeles–based architecture firm @terrain.la_ join Architectural Record’s DESIGN:ED podcast to discuss their process of upcycling buildings, challenging standard building conventions, and the studio’s championing of adobe block construction through its advocacy arm and education offshoot, @adobeisnotsoftware . . @archrecordmag @terrain.la_ @adobeisnotsoftware #architecture #architect #adobeindesign #adobearchitecture #architecturepodcast

Ben Loescher and Lucy Lloyd of Adobeisnotsoftware (and @terrain.la_ ) chatted with @archrecordmag ’s @designed.podcast about our championing of adobe block construction, as well as Terrain’s process of upcycling buildings and challenging standard building conventions. Link in bio!