Earth Architecture

Eddy Residence

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 09:12:57 -0600

Michael and Lisa Eddy dreamt of living in a home that was designed to showcase their love of nature and appreciation for the environment around them in Colorado. Designed by JCL Architecture, their fantasy home made of rammed earth is characterized by a continuous trellis that greets you at the entry and leads you through the warmth of the house and out into the open backyard towards the landscape beyond. Aside from being beautiful, the house incorporates passive solar strategies and high thermal mass. Proper roof overhangs and southern exposure were calculated to allow maximum solar gain in the winter while minimizing heat gain in the summer. The thermal absorbent qualities of the rammed earth walls and dark stained concrete floors on both levels stabilize temperature swings from night to day and mitigate the need to run an air conditioning unit during the summer. These features are then further supported by a high-efficiency geothermal radiant floor heating system as well as soy-based insulation in the roof and walls.
[ inhabit ]

The San Isidro Labrador Chapel

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 17:28:29 -0600

The San Isidro Labrador Chapel is a collaborative effort of many people, the tangible demonstration of the cooperation of architects, engineers, craftsmen, peasants, creative people and students.

João Caeiro e Capurso Fulvio got together with Benito Guzman Canseco (President of the Consejo y Oaxaca Nopal Tuna, e Mayordomo de San Isidro in the years 2009-2010) to organize a series of courses to endorse people with the ability to build houses with noble materials from the region.

These courses, mostly hands-on, are addressed to people seeking to build their own houses, within a philosophy of low cost, high quality and contemporary design.

The first opportunity emerged in San Bartolo Coyopec, for the construction of a chapel for the saint patron of the cultivated fields, annually celebrated. The building was finished in may 2010.

Adobe Homes for All Climates

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 09:12:56 -0600

Adobe Homes for All Climates: Simple, Affordable, and Earthquake-Resistant Natural Building Techniques, by Lisa Schroder and Vince Ogletree, is ideal both for first-time do-it-yourselfers and for experienced adobe builders seeking to improve their craft. Drawing on the experience of more than fifty major adobe projects since 1993, Adobe Homes for All Climates describes Adobe Building Systems’ patented reinforcement and scaffolding systems, showing readers how to construct adobe homes more easily and safely, and with superior strength, durability, structural integrity, and aesthetic appeal, as compared to earthen homes of the past.

Yakhchal: Ancient Refrigerators

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 08:33:03 -0600

Yakhchal in Yazd Province

By 400 BC, Persian engineers had mastered the technique of storing ice in the middle of summer in the desert. The ice was brought in during the winters from nearby mountains in bulk amounts, and stored in a Yakhchal, or ice-pit. These ancient refrigerators were used primarily to store ice for use in the summer, as well as for food storage, in the hot, dry desert climate of Iran. The ice was also used to chill treats for royalty during hot summer days and to make faloodeh, the traditional Persian frozen dessert.

Aboveground, the structure is comprised of a large mud brick dome, often rising as tall as 60 feet tall. Below are large underground spaces, up to 5000m³, with a deep storage space. The space often had access to a Qanat, or wind catchand often contained a system of windcatchers that could easily bring temperatures inside the space down to frigid levels in summer days.

NimVar Yakhchal

Image Credit

Image Credit

Image Credit

The Yakhchal have thick mud brick walls that are up to two meters thick at the base, made out of a special mortar called sārooj, composed of sand, clay, egg whites, lime, goat hair, and ash in specific proportions, and which was resistant to heat transfer. This mixture was thought to be completely water impenetrable.

Meraji Yakhchal

The massive insulation and the continuous cooling waters that spiral down its side keep the ice stored there in winter frozen throughout the summer. These ice houses used in desert towns from antiquity have a trench at the bottom to catch what water does melt from the ice and allow it to refreeze during the cold desert nights. The ice is broken up and moved to caverns deep in the ground. As more water runs into the trench the process is repeated.

The twin ice-pits on Sirjan, Kerman Province, are surrounded by high walls and were constructed 108 years ago with mud-brick, the ice-pits are surrounded by high walls.

The Wales Institute for Sustainable Education

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 07:42:48 -0600

The Wales Institute for Sustainable Education (Wise), designed by architects Pat Borer and David Leais, uses "Basically plants and earth," to quote Borer. Also animals, as in addition to a timber frame, rammed earth walls and a coating of lime and hemp, it uses sheep's wool for thermal insulation. Wise is part of Cat, the Centre for Alternative Technology.
[ Architects Journal ]

Computer Modeling to Build Better Mud Bricks

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 07:39:45 -0600

Rammed earth and stabilized mud block or brick are cheap, easy to make, usually durable materials widely used for building homes and low-level structures, especially in developing countries. Despite their widespread use and long history, the structural properties of these materials are not well understood, so how they could be manufactured to better withstand destructive natural forces, such as earthquakes and weathering, remains a goal. Craig Foster, assistant professor of civil and materials engineering at the University of Illinois at Chicago, hopes a specially tailored set of computer models he is developing may provide the necessary answers. He has just won a three-year, $243,000 National Science Foundation grant to conduct the work.

Emerging Ghana

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 06:56:23 -0600

Enviu selected Emerging Ghana by Ana Morgado, João Caeiro, Lara Camilla Pinho, Maria de Paz Sequeira Braga and Maria de Carmo Caldeira, from Portugal, Mexico and Brazil, as the winner of the Open Source-House competition. The materials used are bamboo and dahoma, a local wood, for the modular and lightweight panels. These are held together with strong rammed earth walls. Due to the modular design, inside and outside spaces can be created depending on different needs and environments. Natural ventilation is archived throughout the building, due to the earth walls that keep the spaces cool and shaded areas.

Earth House by BCHO Architects

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 13:34:50 -0600

BCHO Architects have completed this house buried in the ground in Seoul, Korea to honour the late Korean poet Yoon Dong-joo.

The concrete-lined residence has two courtyards with earth floors, to which all rooms are connected.

The earth used for the walls is from the site excavation. Even though the viscosity of the existing earth was low, only minimal white cement and lime was used so the earth walls can return to the soil later.

Rammed Earth walls provide all the interior spatial divisions and the walls facing both courtyards.

Rammed-earth walls make use of the excavated earth while wood from a pine tree from the site is embedded in the concrete courtyard walls.

[ Read more from Dezeen ]

EARTHWORKS: International Summer School

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 08:13:38 -0600

EARTH WORKS: International Summer School will take place September 1st - 18th, 2010 in Gmunden, Upper Austria. Instructed by Martin Rauch and Anna Heringer, the aim of the summer program is to acquire intensive hands-on experience and to gain application-oriented knowledge in buiding with earth to associate this timeless material to innovative architecture. The central focus in to obtain practical experience and to learn by doing.

The program is jointly organized by BASEhabitat, the Technical University Munich , CRATerre-ENSAG and the UIA. Closing date for application: 28th of June 2010. For further information and online-application, please visit www.basehabitat.ufg.ac.at

How to Survive the Coming Bad Years

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 07:04:00 -0600

How to Survive the Coming Bad Years, 2008. Soil, straw, water, timber, lime and ceramic pipes. Attingham Park, Shropshire, UK. Commissioned by Meadow Arts for the exhibition Give Me Shelter

In an ancient woodland at the core of Attingham's vast 4,000 acre land, an immense clay structure rises through the trees like an oversized Dalek. Both alien and primeval, How to Survive the Coming Bad Years, by Heather and Ivan Morrison, is inspired by traditional rookeries found throughout the Middle East where in return for shelter, the birds provide squab to eat and guano to fertilise the land on which food is cultivated. Ivan and Heather Morison's huge lime covered cob sculpture suggests the vestige of an other worldly civilisation or perhaps a post-apocalyptic future. In this case the structure will provide a nesting environment for Attingham's bird-life, but in return they must give up a share of their young.

Handmade Houses & Other Buildings: The World of Vernacular Architecture

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Sun, 16 May 2010 22:36:42 -0600

Vernacular architecture, by its very nature, is built from local materials that are readily to hand and is thus defined by the geology and ecology of the region and by local climatic conditions. Constructed by the community using traditional tools, these structures are highly practical, energy-efficient, and blend with the landscape. They carry many of the attributes that we are now seeking in green architecture as we struggle to adapt our built environment to the demands and concerns of the climate-change era. Handmade Houses & Other Buildings: The World of Vernacular Architecture looks at everyday structures all over the world, from whatever wood, grass, earth or stone that was to hand, in ways that offered practical solutions to the challenges of climate or terrain. Based on immemorial principles, but highly relevant to our newly found environmental concerns, these buildings show the simple and satisfying ways in which humans have worked out how to live and live well, in harmony with their surroundings.

Bio-Engineered Sand Brick

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Thu, 13 May 2010 19:32:12 -0600

The winner of the 2010 Metropolis Next Generation Design Competition proposes a radical alternative to the common brick: don’t bake the brick; grow it. In a lab at the American University of Sharjah, in the United Arab Emirates, Ginger Krieg Dosier, an assistant architecture professor, sprouts building blocks from sand, common bacteria, calcium chloride, and urea (yes, the stuff in your pee). The process, known as microbial-induced calcite precipitation, or MICP, uses the microbes on sand to bind the grains together like glue with a chain of chemical reactions. The resulting mass resembles sandstone but, depending on how it’s made, can reproduce the strength of fired-clay brick or even marble. If Dosier’s biomanufactured masonry replaced each new brick on the planet, it would reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by at least 800 million tons a year. “We’re running out of all of our energy sources,” she said in March in a phone interview from the United Arab Emirates. “Four hundred trees are burned to make 25,000 bricks. It’s a consumption issue, and honestly, it’s starting to scare me.” Read more...

Earth Architecture—The Book: NOW IN PAPERBACK

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Tue, 11 May 2010 09:07:56 -0600

The groundbreaking survey Earth Architecture is now available in a paperback edition. Only a few copies of the hardcover collectors edition are still available, but going fast. Buy Earth Architecture if you live in the following countries::

[ U.S. | Japan | Germany | U.K. | France | Canada | Australia ]

Read what others say about Earth Architecture:

Trois Séminaires Thématiques Autour de l'Architecture de Terre

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Wed, 12 May 2010 20:52:31 -0600

Grands Ateliers, Villefontaine, Isère: 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 mai 2010. Trois séminaires thématiques autour de l'architecture de terre organisés par Le laboratoire CRAterre - ENSAG Dans le cadre du 8e festival des architectures de terre "Grains d’Isère 2010" et de la Chaire Unesco Architectures de terre, cultures constructives et développement durable.

1- Sciences de la matière et du matériau (17 et 18 mai 2010)
Comportement du matériau terre saturé d’eau à l’état de pâte (17 mai 2010)
Comportement thermique et hygrométrique du matériau et des constructions en terre (18 mai 2010)
2- Patrimoine et développement local - Défis et opportunités de la conservation du patrimoine pour le développement (19 et 20 mai 2010)
3- Cultures constructives locales et amélioration de l'habitat (21 et 22 mai 2010)

Ces 3 séminaires auront lieu aux Grands Ateliers à Villefontaine (www.lesgrandsateliers.fr) et s'inscrivent dans la perspective de la concrétisation de la "Cité de la Construction Durable". Ils s’articulent autour de présentations, suivies de discussions et de travaux de synthèse. Présentations, programmes détaillés et fiche d'inscription ci-joints. informations : craterre@grenoble.archi.fr / 04 76 69 83 35

9th International Earth Architecture Photography Competition

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Tue, 11 May 2010 08:34:27 -0600

The Centro di Documentazione sulle Case di Terra is hosting the 9th International Earth Architecture Photography Competition with the theme "Le case di terra paesaggio di architettura".

CALENDAR:
Entry deadline: 30/06/2010
Judges meeting: 07/08/2010
Announcement of results: 31/08/2010 on the Internet page: www.casediterra.it
Works exhibition: dal/from 18/09/2010 al/to 30/09/2010 presso il / in the CED Terra Casalincontrada
Opening: 18/09/2010
Prize-giving: 18/09/2010

JURY:
President of jury:
Mr Maurizio Morandi - University of Firenze

Jury
Mrs Concetta Di Luzio - Mayor of Casalincontrada
Mrs Stefania Giardinelli - Terrae onlus Association
Mrs Gaia Bollini - Città della terra cruda National Association
Mr Gianni Ortolano – Member of Fotoclub Chieti

TEMPORARY JUDGES:
Mr Gabriele Esposito – Associazione Terrae onlus
Mrs Caterina Buccione - Associazione Terrae onlus

PRIZES: FIXED SUBJECT: “RAW EARTH ARCHITECTURAL STRUCTURES” One single section: B/W and Colour
1° Classificato/1st prize winner: Euro 515,00
2° Classificato/2nd prize winner: Euro 260,00
3° Classificato/3rd prize winner: Euro 130,00
To the five outstanding photographs: a book on earthen architecture

SPECIAL PRIZES
- To the best photograph on new earthen architectural structures;
- To the best photograph on earthen architectural structures in the Abruzzo Region;
- To the best photo of earthen architecture in Italy;
- To the best photo of earthen architecture in the world;
- Special prizes for schools.

PRESENTATION
The 9th International Photo Competition on “Earthen architectures: landscapes of architectures” is an initiative of the Municipality of Casalincontrada, in the Italian province of Chieti and the Documentation Centre on Earth Architectures, Terrae onlus Association The “rediscovery” of the knowledge linked to earthen architecture recomposed in images, like tiles of a mosaic made of people, things, material and places. Images that could be interpreted as “surviving structures” or “new scenarios”, as well as architectures of the territory, memories and situations.

For more information visit the competition website.

Abey Smallcombe

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Fri, 07 May 2010 21:05:06 -0600

Cob Visitor Facility, Eden Project

Abey Smallcombe is a collaboration between artists Jackie Abey and Jill Smallcombe. Their craft is working with cob, earth plasters and other natural beautiful, sustainable materials. They have successfully carried out a number of large and smaller scale commissions for, the Eden Project, Somerset College of Arts and Technology, The Devon Guild of Craftsmen, Met Office, National Trust, Sustrans Cycle Paths. They have also exhibited nationally, taught all age groups, lectured internationally and researched earth structures in Europe, USA, India, Africa and Australia.

Weddle Gilmore Rammed Earth

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Fri, 07 May 2010 20:33:08 -0600

Weddle Gilmore Black Rock Studio has developed a specialty in trailheads over its 10 years in business. The architecture firm has designed this building type for several municipalities near its Scottsdale, Arizona, base, and it has realized three for Scottsdale’s McDowell Sonoran Preserve alone.

The Gateway to the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, Scottsdale, Arizona

The Gateway was designed to celebrate the entry and passage into the 36,400 acre McDowell Sonoran Preserve while minimizing the impact on the native desert. The Gateway is the point of access to over 45 miles of trails within the McDowell Sonoran Preserve for hiking, bicycling, and equestrian enjoyment. The project site design achieved the complete preservation of the existing network of arroyos and minimized earthwork alterations of the natural habitat. The building walls are made of rammed earth, recalling a tradition of indigenous desert building while meeting all of the performance requirements of modern use. The roof is covered in native desert cobble so that it blends into the desert when observed from the mountain trails to the east. The Gateway incorporates numerous strategies for resource conservation. An 18 KW solar system generates as much solar electricity as the Gateway consumes to realize a ‘net zero’ of energy consumption. Up to 60,000 gallons of rainwater is harvested through roof collection and storage in an underground cistern–providing 100% of the water needed for landscape irrigation.

Lost Dog Wash Trailhead, Scottsdale, Arizona

On the perimeter of the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, the Lost Dog Wash Trailhead is an example of commitment to environment through its preservation of native habitat, choice of sustainable building materials, and natural resource conservation. The structures are nested into the landscape and incorporate materials that blend with the natural desert environment. The rammed earth walls of the structures utilize earth material that was excavated during foundation construction. The trailhead restrooms incorporate a composting system which minimizes water consumption and saves approximately 200,000 gallons of water annually over a conventional system.

Gray water and rainwater harvesting provides 75,000 gallons of water a year for landscape irrigation. Solar power is provided to the trailhead facilities by a roof integrated 3,000 watt solar electric array that allows the trailhead to be completely self-sufficient and independent of the electric grid.

Terres, d’Afrique et d’Ailleurs

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 12:13:46 -0600

The 2nd Pan African Cultural Festival in Algiers, Algeria includes an exhibit and symposium entitled Terres, d’Afrique et d’Ailleurs, sponsored by the Algerian Ministry of culture and curated by architect Yasmine Terkhi, which facilitated the participation of 19 artisans from 5 countries (Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Niger, Ghana, Nigeria, Algeria) who prepared wall panels in earth using indigenous techniques and motifs from the communities they represented. Invited speakers to the symposium include Ronald Rael, Hubert Gillaud, Hugo Houben, Salma Damluji, Marcello Cortes, Laetitia Fontaine and many other internationally renowned experts in the field of earth architecture.

Vote For Earth

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 22:16:42 -0600
Abari has entered the Dell Social Innovation Competition, which operates like a business-plan competition, awarding seed funding directly to the student-led venture that best meets the judges’ criteria. Vote for their project, which seeks establish a center to design and build/prefabricate houses, schools, toilets, furniture etc. out of bamboo and earth. The center will promote traditional (and dying) construction skills by mobilizing community members and appropriating locally available materials like bamboo and earth to build modern ecological, economical and beautiful infrastructure for individuals or communities.

Registration is easy and takes 20 seconds. Vote!

X Seminario Iberoamericano de Arquitectura y Construcción con Tierra

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 09:25:20 -0600

X Seminario Iberoamericano de Arquitectura y Construcción con Tierra Salto (Uruguay) del 8 al 13 de noviembre de 2010. Tematicas del seminario: Diseño contemporáneo de las arquitecturas de tierra, innovaciones en los componentes constructivos, capacitación y transferencia de las tecnologías y arquitectura de tierra en el contexto del desarrollo sostenible. Auquellos interesados en presentar un trabajo pueden enviar un resumen extendido del articulo de ponencia y/o el resumen de un póster gráfico, hasta el día 14 de mayo de 2010. Todos los resúmenes serán evaluados por la Comisión Científica. Más información del programa, cronograma, actividades e instructivos para la presentación de ponencias en www.siacoturuguay.blogspot.com

Organizan: Universidad de la República (UDELAR) - Regional Norte, Sede Salto (UDELAR)
Auspicia: PROTERRA
Apoyo institucional: Universidad Tecnológica Nacional (UTN - Argentina)
Adhieren: Centro Universitario de la Regional Este (CURE - UDELAR) - Fronterra - Celebratierra - Embajada de México en Uruguay - Intendencia de la Ciudad de Salto

Rammed Earth Stove

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 22:46:05 -0600

Further Improved Rammed Earth Stoves, or F.I.R.E.S., are promoted by the East Africa Trust as a way to improve self-sufficiency and sustainability in Malawi, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Mozambique and beyond.

The stove is an improvement on an earlier mud design, refined byTristan Cooper MSc., CEO of the East Africa Trust. Plans to construct the formwork are available here. Read more at Rammed Earth is for Everyone.

Radiolara Pavilion

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 21:17:50 -0700

In a small shed on an industrial park near Pisa is a machine that can print buildings. The machine itself looks like a prototype for the automotive industry. Four columns independently support a frame with a single armature on it. Driven by CAD software installed on a dust-covered computer terminal, the armature moves just millimetres above a pile of sand, expressing a magnesium-based solution from hundreds of nozzles on its lower side. It makes four passes. The layer dries and Enrico Dini recalibrates the armature frame. The system deposits the sand and then inorganic binding ink. The exercise is repeated. The millennia-long process of laying down sedimentary rock is accelerated into a day. A building emerges.

The new material (inorganic binder + sand or mineral dust) has been subjected to traction, compression and bending tests. The results have been extraordinary and the artificial sandstone features excellent resistance properties. Effectively this process returns any type of sand or mineral dust back to its original compact stone state.

The binder transforms any kind of sand or marble dust into a stone-like material (i.e. a mineral with microcrystalline characteristics) with a resistance and traction superior to portland cement, to a point where there is no need to use iron to reinforce the structure. This artificial stone is chemically one hundred percent environmentally friendly.

The process is four times faster than conventional building, costs a third to a half as much as using Portland cement, creates little waste and is better for the environment. But its chief selling point may simply be that it makes creating Gaudiesque, curvy structures simple.

Read more at [ Blueprint Magazine | Dezeen | Previously ]

Musgum Architecture

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 20:34:47 -0700

The Musgum, an ethnic group in far north province in Cameroon, create their tall conical dwellings from compressed sun-dried mud. Called Cases Obos, the profile of the structure is that of a catenary arch— the ideal mathematical form to bear a maximum weight  with minimal material.

The relief pattern on the surface is a built-in scaffolding that can support the body to allow for maintenance of the structure by the re-application of mud to the surface.

Read more at Designboom.com

research.terra

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 20:05:07 -0700
research.terra is a multi-language website intended to serve as a tool for the community of both researchers and others interested in the subject of earth construction. It will allow one to follow the research work that has been, or is being carried out, all over the world. The main goal is to create a database that will be updated regularly, containing some basic information regarding the research, such as the title and the direct link for the work (if available online).

The Mud Tub

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 06:05:07 -0700

The Mud Tub, by Tom Gerhardt, is an experimental organic interface that allows people to control a computer while playing in the mud. By sloshing, squishing, pulling, punching, etc, in a tub of mud (yes, wet dirt), users control games, simulators, and expressive tools; interacting with a computer in a new, completely organic, way. Born out of a motivation to close the gap between our bodies and the digital world, the Mud Tub frees the traditional computer interaction model of it’s rigidity, allowing humans to use their highly developed sense of touch, and creative thinking skills in a more natural way.

Could building architecture with mud coincide control 3D printers producing earth buildings while being powered by the mud itself?

Here, Matt Parker's Lumarca and Tom Gerhardt's Mud Tub join forces to make some cool interactions happen.

Watertower Skyscraper

nospam@example.com (Ronald Rael) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:17:06 -0700

The conflict over water and land in Sudan has created political unrest for decades. However, in 2007, scientists from Boston University discovered and underground  lake in the region of Darfur, Sudan. This lake is tenth biggest lake in the world (31, 000 m2)  and would have great potential in resolving the conflict if managed correctly. Addressing this water issue, Polish architect Hugon Kowalski from H3AR Architect and Design  recently proposed a building that allows access to underground waters through the application  of water pumps. The form of the building was inspired by a water tower and also by the symbol of the African savanna—the baobab. The building houses water pumps, a treatment plant but  also a hospital, a school and a food storage center. This building is meant to provoke economical development but also stimulate cultural exchange and the coexistence of the three different religions and languages in Sudan.

The building walls are constructed using compressed dry stacked clay bricks, made on site  using a rough mixture of earth, cement and water. The bricks would be baked in the hot  sun, thus, requiring no extra energy and limiting the environmental impact of the materials.  The choice of using this technology represents the desire to introduce alternative and  sustainable technologies within a context that is tied to standardized though not always  optimal building practice.

Two water circulation processes would be in place. First set of extracted water is meant  to heat or cool the building, and is accessible to the users. Second, set of extracted water is used for the building itself (i.e. kitchen, toilets).

More at designboom.com