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THE arcHITEcTura

rEvIEw

HousEs


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dRMM on the move (p18) Studio Junction in Toronto (p30) Satoshi Shimotori in Niigata (p48)

JANUARY 2009 Volume CCXXV No 1343

HouSeS BY emeRGING ARCHITeCTS

VIeW

17 dRMM design an ingenious sliding house in East Anglia; Jrn Utzon remembered

CommeNT

28 The history o domestic architecture as seen by Corb and Loos has lessons or the uture

HouSeS BY emeRGING ARCHITeCTS

30 House, Toronto, Canada STUDIO JUNCTION

36 House, Bethnal Green, London CASSION CASTLE ARCHITECTS

40 Live/work studio, Pittsburgh , USA STUDIO DARC ARCHITECTS

44 House, Ljubljana, Slovenia DEKLEVA GREGORIC ARHITEKTI

48 House, Myoko City, Niigata, Japan SATOSHI SHIMOTORI

54 Garden pavilion meditation space, London PAUL ARCHER DESIGN

56 House, Innsbruck, Austria ARCHITEKT DANIEL FUEGENSCHUH

60 House, Saijo, Japan SUPPOSE DESIGN STUDIO

64 House, Hamburg, Germany KRAUS SCHOENBERG

66 House, Peneda-Gers, Portugal CORREIA RAGAZZI

72 House, Chiguayante, Chile PEZO VON ELLRICHSHAUSEN ARCHITECTS

74 House, Tarn et Garonne, France VICKY THORNTON, WITH JEF SMITH OF MELD

78 House, Lake District, Chile ALEJANDRO BEALS, CHRISTIAN BEALS and LORETO LYON

82 House, Columbia County, New York, USA DELLA VALLE BERNHEIMER

ReVIeWS

86 Niemeyer; Vanbrugh; antastic plastic; Connell Ward & Lucas

88 International Highrise Award goes to Foster + Partners; Browser; Diary

DelIGHT

90 Soane Museum, London, as captured by architectural photographer Richard Bryant

CoVeR

48 House, Myoko City, Niigata, Japan SATOSHI SHIMOTORI Photograph by Makoto Yoshida

THe ARCHITeCTuRAl

ReVIeWWINNeR o IBp moNTHlY

mAGAzINe o THe YeAR 2008

ouNDeD 1896

Emap Inorm, Greater London House,

Hampstead Road, London NW1 7EJ, UK

eDIToRIAl (s 25)

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ea Inr 2009


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viewdrmm house in east anglia moves with the times; jrn utzon remembered; the

architectural review wins the coveted ibp non-weekly magazine of the year award

under the editorship of paul finch; ar emerging architects exposed; peter cook in korea.

house proud

One conspicuous eature o our more sybaritic pre credit crunch age was the apparently inexhaustible

appetite or the private house as a liestyle statement, as a source o ree money, as a place to be

primped and pomaded and then traded in or something bigger and ashier. Magazine racks were

swamped by house porn as the seductions o buying, extending, remodelling or simply choosing the

right scatter cushions became a global obsession. It all looks very oolish now, the dizzying intoxication

o a patently unsustainable zeitgeist, but what we trust will emerge rom the wreckage is a saner, more

enlightened perspective that sees houses more as homes, permanent fxtures umbilically linked to people

and place, rather than mere liestyle trophies.

O course, hindsight is wonderul, but the house as an explicit maniestation o prestige and power

goes back to Palladios villas, the trophies o their age. And throughout history, it has unctioned as both

talisman and testing ground or architects and clients alike. Yet beyond the distractions o liestyle, when

an enlightened client meets the right architect, the repercussions can be truly historic. Where would

modern architecture be without the Villa Savoye or the Tugendhat, Schminke or Farnsworth houses? All

were calls to arms on a long hard road o experiment and discovery that not only changed the notion o

the house and how to live in it, but also had a much wider cultural resonance.

Yet despite social and cultural shits, the basic house design brie remains constant and perhaps

because it is so amiliar it can be imaginatively dissected and reormed, allowing architects to give ull vent

to their creativity. As this issue o new houses by a younger generation o designers shows, it is clear that

the house is still critical to the erment and crystallisation o architectural ideas. Many young architects

learn their trade through small domestic projects and in this the role o the enlightened client who iswilling to take a chance is still crucial. So it must be hoped that the current economic paralysis will not

completely sever what has become a crucial impetus to the development o the proession.

Yet above all, the house is an armature or the dynamics o amily lie. And, as we know, amilies grow

and change. As the AR editorial amily prepares to metaphorically leave home (this is the last issue the

current sta will work on as a unit) and the torch passes to a new generation, we fnd ourselves reecting

with pride and pleasure on past achievements. It has been a privilege to engage so intensely and or so

long with the global community o architecture. Thanks or a wonderul ride. the editors


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sliding house

Generally speaking, the sun moves, the house

doesnt. The response to dierent conditions

o heat and light is thereore to mask, shade or

close up the passive whole.Suppose, however, that it is the building that

moves rather than just the sun: how would you

arrange the rooms, the sequence o spaces, the

relationship o outside to inside? These were the

questions addressed in a brilliantly conceived

project, now delivered, or a home on a rural

site in eastern England; being England there

was a urther stimulus to the design imagination

in the orm o super-tight planning regulations

about what sort o building could be created.

The planning requirement was or a

vernacular arm building; the 28m linear

orm had a maximum possible width o 5.8m

and a height o 7.2m. Architect de RijkeMarsh Morgan, with much experience o

innovative timber construction at both big and

small scales, used the building dimensions to

produce three connected programmes, where

a 16m house and 7m annexe have a 5m garage

pulled o axis to orm a courtyard.

So ar, so static. However, the three

buildings are transormed by the addition o

a key ourth element: a 50-ton mobile roo

and wall enclosure running along the north-

south site axis on tracks recessed into a piled

concrete rat.

1

2


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3

1The house sits ona concrete raftincorporating therail track.2The off-axisgarage creates acourtyard ...

3... which closes upas the moveableexterior frameis repositioned.Natural, red andblack stained larchdistinguish thebuildings.


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This is an architectural coup de thtrewhich

is certainly unique in Britain and perhaps

anywhere. The appropriately named Sliding

House (designed or a builder/client, and

engineered by Michael Hadi Associates) does

not so much dey environmental conditions as

adjust to them in a way that suits the owner.

Alex de Rijke comments that the house oersradically variable spaces, extent o shelter,

sunlight and insulation. The dynamic change is

a physical phenomenon difcult to describe in

words or images. It is about the ability to vary

or connect the overall building composition

and character according to season, weather, or

a remote-controlled desire to delight. Cedric

Price would have loved it. NAT JACKSON

Architect

Rjk Mar Mra

Photographs

A. Rjk a R. R

upper floor

ground floor

each element is proportioned in relation to frame, window and wall sizes

4

5

the proposition explained

Garage

Main House

Glass living

Future pool

Sliding house

Railtracks

Guest annex

Roof terrace bathroom


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4, 5The glazed partof the main house,covered andexposed.6, 7Night shotsshowing thedramatic contrastin appearance

depending on theposition of thesliding housecarapace.

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7


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obituary

JRN UTZON 1918-2008

Jrn Utzon, who has died aged 90, was

almost the last o the giants o the north

whose sensibility was largely ormed in the

1930s, when Scandinavian idealism shone

bright against the dark clouds o the great

depression urther south. The tragic drama o

the Sydney Opera House overshadowed his

whole career, but, by 1956 when Utzon won

the competition, he had already started to

create a successul practice.

Like most Danish architects o his generation,

Utzon trained at the Royal Academy inCopenhagen. In 1940, Denmark was invaded

by the Nazis and, in 1942, he graduated, then

escaped to neutral Sweden, where he married

Lis Fenger: they remained together or the rest

o his lie. In Sweden, he began to become

part o the Nordic Modernist scene, spending

time in Alvar Aaltos oce in 1945. Several

years o entering competitions and building

private houses ollowed, but the rst important

breakthrough came in 1956 with the brick and

tile Kingo housing development at Helsingr.

It became well known throughout Europe as a

Jrn Utzon (left) unpacking the model for the Sydney Opera House. Photograph: Sydney Opera House Trust.

model or subsidised housing, with its single-

storey repetitive courts arranged reely on a

grassy site and each unit careully adjusted

to respond to light, views and privacy. Thescheme was ollowed by the tighter but

equally successul Fredensborg development;

there Utzon despatched one o his assistants

to careully note the passage o the sun on

each courtyard and adjust the boundary wall

heights to maximise its impact. Both schemes

are still highly regarded by their occupants,

and doubtless Utzon would have built up a

brilliant domestic practice had it not been or

the Opera House.

From the moment Eero Saarinen (who was

then working on the TWA terminal) arrived late

at the jury and rescued Utzons scheme rom

the rejects pile, the history o the Opera House

was as dramatic as its skyline. Its parti, with

white tiled roos foating over a heavy podium

containing most o the mechanical and services

elements, was derived rom several o Utzons

preoccupations, notably with clouds, and with

stepped platorms, which he had deeply admired

on a 1949 study trip to Yucatn in Mexico. The

roos have made Bennelong Point world amous

and have become an icon (in the best sense) o

the city and its harbour.

But, though Utzon thought that his roos o

tile-covered precast concrete elements would not

be hard to build, as they could be represented

as segments o the surace o a sphere, they

proved dicult to realise in practice; Ove

Arups structural team had to devote thousands

o design hours to sorting out the shells. Then

Bennelong Points bed-rock was ound to be

too riable to support the imposed loads, so a

huge concrete basement had to be constructed.Other problems accrued, principally a change

in the government o New South Wales rom

let to right in 1965. The incoming Liberal

party (which was never enthusiastic about

the project) was highly critical o delays and

cost overruns, and inserted a project manager

between architect and contractors. Political

rumours were spread that Utzon did not know

how to nish his own building.

Eectively sidelined, the architect let

Australia ater living there or three years. He

never returned. Local builders produced second-

rate interiors; the worlds architects protested

in vain. Gradually the immense importanceo the building or Australia was realised, and

though ocial conciliatory advances were

made over the years, Utzon remained distant.

Only in 2004 did the architect agree to working

on the building again. His son Jan eectively

represented him as changes were made to the

interiors to try to inuse them with Utzons

original intentions, and to allow or changes

in the organisation that had taken place in the

intervening our decades.

In 1971, he was proessor or a year at the

University o Hawaii, and during that time,

Wooden model showing the geometry of the roof shells for the Sydney Opera House . Photograph: RIBA Library.


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he designed Bagsvrd Church north o

Copenhagen (completed 1976). Here, he again

showed how he could mix diverse ideas to create

a unique and powerully numinous synthesis.

Shinto, Nordic, Hanseatic and Soanian

elements combine with inspiration taken direct

rom nature, like the orms o the amous light

inused ceiling, which Utzon claimed were

derived rom rolling cloud shapes seen rom a

Hawaiian beach. Few other twentieth-century

architects except perhaps Le Corbusier and

Aalto could have pulled o that conjunction

without descending to mess and kitsch.

Avoiding kitsch must have been even more

dicult when Utzon won the competition or

the Kuwait National Assembly building in

1972 (nished 1984). Here, overt elements o

Arabic architecture were incorporated. The

central shaded bazaar street, courtyards, the

rulers meeting hall are all ronted by a huge

shaded public piazza that presents a ormalront to the sea and has a great white precast

concrete roo that assumes a catenary curve

between the ront and the main building.

Oces and other smaller spaces are grouped

round courts arranged irregularly along the

central spine: memories o Helsingr and

Fredensborg are inevitable, and the plan

showed the potential o what became known

as Utzons additive architecture in which

similar units (oten courtyards) are assembled

irregularly to respond to site and programme.

Utzon used the principle in several brilliant

competition entries, but his designs were not

built. As i to emphasise his dreadul luck, the

Kuwait building was very severely damaged in

the rst Gul war.

In later years, his creative and emotional

lie was largely ocused on Majorca, where he

built two houses or his amily, Can Lis at Porto

Petro (1971), then Can Feliz at SHorta (1994).

The rst is a ew metres rom the edge o a

cli, so close that in winter salt spray is thrown

up over it. The plan is broken into individual

pavilions, each with its sometimes notionalplatorm or terrace. Inside, it seems cave-like,

riven rom the rock o the place, or Utzon

built it o the local limey sandstone, and told

the quarry to retain the marks o the circular

saw on the blocks to emphasise the nature

o the material. In the tall sitting room, our

apparently rameless windows are careully

angled to give a panorama o the sea, which

as Utzon used to say stretches unbroken rom

here to Arica.

When his health required retreat rom such

close contact with the sea, he built Can Feliz

on the lank o a mountain. It is brilliantly

sited on interlocking platorm terraces, andconjures up Delphi, with a steep dark green

slope plunging down to a ertile plain that runs

uninterrupted to the distant sea. Tiles that

recall the Kingo houses cover shallow roos,

and the whole complicated composition sits

calmly in the maquis. It has quiet echoes o

some o the irst private houses, welcoming,

open to nature and generous a itting

swan-song or a master o both the domestic

and the monumental who never lost his belie

in the power o architecture to serve and

enrich humani ty. PETER DAVEYShinto, Nordic and Soanian elements conjoin in the church at Bagsvrd, 1976. Photograph: RIBA Library.

Can Lis seaside house, Porto Petro, Majorca, 1973. Photograph: RIBA Library.


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The JOy Of lUNch

As the AR editors prepare to hand on the

responsibilities o making a ne monthly

international architectural magazine over to a

new team, we thought that readers might enjoy

this souvenir photograph o the old bunch doing

what they probably do best having lunch. This

photograph was taken in Venice 2006, as theeditors girded their loins to tackle the exhausting

business o making sense o the Architecture

Biennale during the press vernissage. Lunch that

day was on the agreeable isle o Burano at Da

Romanos, a historic Venetian institution run

by the Barbaro amily. Famous or its sh and

risotto (it does a truly exquisite risotto nero),

it also houses an impressive collection o local

art and or decades has been a rendezvous or

writers and artists.

Historically, lunch and journalists (even o

the architectural kind) used to go hand in hand.

During the ARs long tenure o its oces in

Queen Annes Gate, which ended in 1991,there was a ully stocked and primed bar in the

basement (the wonderul Bride o Denmark)

that catered or all sorts, including Le Corbusier

and Frank Lloyd Wright. Even during the

ARs subsequent exile in Clerkenwell, its sta

continued a distinguished tradition o wining

and dining architects, writers and each other.

It is noticeable, however, that lunch is now in

serious decline, even among the publishing classes.

Pettiogging managers driven by perormance

and cost targets regard it as a waste o time, but

it should be remembered that historically, lunch

was a means whereby the working classes could

escape their jobs and purchase an alcoholic

beverage. But lunch is not what it used to be.

Lets do lunch now means a Perrier and a

sandwich, a pale and depressing imitation o

things past. As W. C. Fields once remarked in the

lm You Cant Cheat an Honest Man Some weasel

took the cork out o my lunch. Yet ew things

can beat time spent in good company, with goodood and good wine. So heres to lunch. Salute!

AR TRiUmphs AT ibp

The AR has won the coveted Monthly Magazine

o the Year in the annual International Building

Press Awards. The Awards cover the UK based

architectural, engineering and construction titles

and competition is always intense. Commenting

on the AR, the judges elt that it demonstrated

that it is very ocused and beautiully presented

with a clear, excellent content. They were

particularly impressed with the issue on China

(July 2008). The magazine showed outstanding

creativity throughout and we love the use o ull

page photographs which wouldnt look out o

place in an art exhibition. The Awards were

presented at the end o November at a dinner at

Claridges in London. Editor Paul Finch did the

honours on behal o the AR team.

chARlOTTe ellis AU RevOiR

Charlotte Ellis who, with her husband Martin

Meade, ormed the Architectural Reviews Paris

correspondent died on 14 December. She trained

as an architect at the Regent Street Polytechnic

and worked in practice or several years, during

which time she wrote a book on architecture or

children one o the ew that has ever appeared.

Her ondness or writing caused her to apply tothe Architects Journal, or which she worked as

news editor or several years.

She was prone to making tough decisions

suddenly and quite unexpectedly let to marry

Martin, an architectural historian, who was

already teaching in Paris. They ormed an

impressive team, collaborating on books as well

as special issues o this magazine. On her own

account, she continued to write about a great

range o subjects or many magazines as well as

this one. Towards the end o her lie, she became

withdrawn, and successully took to translating

texts on architecture and related subjects.

She will be remembered by all who met heror her oten caustic wit and clarity o thought;

she had a very sharp way with pretension. It is

hard or all o us who loved her to realise that we

shall no longer hear her gravelly, tobacco inused

laughter as she pointed out posturing stupidity,

or her inectious joy in good details, witty plans

and well wrought buildings. P. D.

emeRGiNG ARchiTecTURe lecTURes

At the end o November, the AR Awards or

Emerging Architecture were presented at a

prizegiving ceremony at the RIBA in London,

ollowed by a dinner sponsored by Artemide.Winners were presented with their cheques

by Claudia Huge o Wilkhahn, one o the

Award sponsors. The AR is also grateul to

Buro Happold, the distinguished international

engineering consultancy, or their continuing

loyalty and generosity, which makes possible

not only the awards programme, but also an

associated exhibition and lecture series at the

RIBA. The lecture programme kicks o on 27

January with talks by Lopez Rivera rom Spain,

and SMAQ rom Germany. Details are on p16.

Or visit the RIBA website www.architecture.com

Lunch in Venice with the AR team. Clockwise: Lynne Jackson, Paul Raf tery (photographer), Catherine Slessor,Rob Gregory, Paul Finch, Francine Libessar t, Julia Dawson, Peter Davey (former editor) and Michael Hardaker.

AR Editor Paul Finch receives the award from LizPeace, CEO of the British Property Federation.


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Peter Cook

Finding encouragement in Korea.

As you leave the airport and head into town

on the long, well organised road, the rst clues

about South Korea are readily there: industrial

installations with rows o neat pipes sprout out o

hillsides and the equally well organised housing

blocks or warehouses. Even the older, denser stu

has a purposeul, Germanic air about it.

The original city o Seoul was a careully

considered location surrounded by big knobblyhills that remain treed and (relatively) unbuilt-

upon. Nowadays, this enormous city makes its

way through the valleys and has leaprogged over

the river to the south where evenness, order and

wide, wide thoroughares are the norm. But in

the north the usual signs o entrepreneurship

take over and the architecture becomes totally

variegated, with the usual combination o tacky

shops, smart shops, bits o apartment block

ghting or breath between institutional set-ups

that range rom dancing school to tyre depot to

dodgy eaterie to slick carpet shop ... we all know

it so well because (or most o us) this could be a

description o our own city.Then the pervasiveness o something-or-

other begins to hit you. What is it? Not a smell,

not a style, not even drabness nor monochromy

exactly. On refection it is about hue. OK, there

are colours on signs, there is grass and there are

bright lights, but overriding this is a sense o the

mushroom coloured general tone.

Despite the evidence o white buildings, brick

buildings and the international code o smart

grey cladding, the circumspection o mushroom-

beige begins to get at you. Especially since much

o it is tiled and decorated in Post-Modern

easyx. This must have conveniently tted the

bill during the mushrooming (pun intended) o

Seoul in the 70s and 80s. Only now is it being

oversailed by the commercial grey. Yet with

quietly coloured cars and taxis, plus hard winters,

you are reminded o the atmosphere that

surrounds those uncle or aunt-type people who

dress in unnoticeable herringbone tweed (or was

it fannel, or was it corduroy) with beige pullovers

and ever-so-sensible shoes.

Thats it: Seoul is nothing i not sensible.

It works hard and has achieved a societal and

economic miracle o the kind that we used tospeak o Germany in the 1960s and 1970s.

Then Raael Violy was brought in to give it a

much-needed dose o bravura: his Jongno Tower

has a giant open lozenge-shaped hoop that sits

in the air above a slabnscoop tower, much taller

than its surroundings. It eels slightly oily, like

a newly serviced motorbike engine, which must

be the eect o Violys masculine steel elements.

He never bores you but seems to assume (as he

does in the Tokyo Forum) that i things arent

massively scaled you might not notice them.

Which is a orm o populism I suppose, and it

has served him well o late. Conronted with it

here sets ones mind to pondering (not or the rst

time) upon the nature and role o scale or variety

in architecture.

As I write, I can turn away rom the keyboard

and get a stunning view rom our hotel towards

Tokyos Roppongi Hills area and that old

stalwart, the Tokyo Tower. The high-rises arent

particularly special (though at their eet there are

some gems i you know where to look). But this

tower knows how to play it more simplistically

than the motorbike. It is painted in big zones o

red and white. In act, its nothing much to write

home about but it is not a boring slab. Rather, it

looks like a big Meccano toy (kit No 8 with extra

spars, I recall). So now we can add in the question:is it enoughto just make a city out o slabs ?

Post-Modernism didnt solve the problem

by curving the odd standard plan plus ancy

articulations o entrances or corners that in

mushroom mode eel particularly sad and usty.

But then we entered the Insadong area beneath

and behind Violys tower an area ull o art

galleries and small enterprises that jump rom

chic to teak, rom authentic to kitsch but then

reveal a signicant number o good quality low-

rise buildings. The best being a delicate ramp

complex by Moongyu Choi that caresses a

series o boutiques and nishes with a path as a

contained garden.Armed with a new bookConsilient Mapping

nine probes for Architecture in Korea* one discovers that

there are some more young architects coming back

to Seoul rom the smarter American and British

Postgraduate courses: the crazy Hoon Moon, the

dextrous Junsung Kim and Hailim Suh, or Minsuk

Cho who makes marvellous swirling buildings, to

mention only a ew. Between them they suggest

that there is a spearhead o quality work that

just needs to move up rom the campuses and

the small, kooky corners and break through the

mushroom and the commercial grey.

In conversation, such Koreans are sensitive,

willing to listen and technically rather good,but have to somehow reassure the surrounding

culture that this sensitivity has value. Korea is

still a little nervous underneath its discipline:

it was surprising how many times the Japanese

occupation and the Korean war were mentioned

by the relatively young. The Demilitarised Zone

is just beyond the northern suburbs and the

architectural shadow o the internationally rated

Japanese neighbour is constantly sensed.

On the strength o this new work, however, it

neednt be.

*Kilyong Park: Space Group o Korea, 2007.

Moongyu Chois ramped complex ends with ...

Rafael Violys steely masculine Jongno Tower.

... a path as contained garden.


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The arrival o Max Risseladas revised edition o Raumplan Versus

Plan Libreon the ARs editorial desk was a serendipitous moment.

Coinciding with the time when we were considering the eature list

or this issue, Risseladas book reminded us how the single house

as one o the smallest units o architectural currency can

encapsulate the value and complexity o a complete architectural

oeuvre. In examining the work o Loos and Corbusier, the domestic

projects contained in Risseladas book are emblematic o themes

that inormed their entire careers. Similarly, in anticipation o uture

work, houses produced today may also contain truths and principles,

motivations and preoccupations that will endure and sustain an

entirely new generation o architects. From the entries we received

as part o the most recent AR Awards programme, todays young

architects are producing dwellings in abundance. O the 432 entries

received, almost 100 were houses. And while we have attempted to

produce an issue with a broad and representative global spread, it is

worth noting that nearly a third were rom Japan.

Raumplan versus Plan Libre: pursuit ofspatial equilibrium

In his updated and expanded version o the 1978 original,

Risseladas book looks anew at the domestic work o Adol Loos

and Le Corbusier, ranging rom the Strasser House (1919) to the

Last House (1932), and rom Maison Domino (1915) to Villa

Savoye (1932). With the benet o documentation unavailable at

the time o the original exhibition, this new edition devotes morespace to the origins and position o prototypes within their work;

the Wrelhaus on the one hand and the Domino rame and

Maison Citrohan, respectively on the other. Five scholarly essays

by commentators and our texts by the architects themselves rame

extensive documentation o 16 projects, all o which are described

in detail, illustrated with original photographs and most critically,

drawn in plan, allowing us to compare the spatial anatomy o one

with another.

Broadly speaking (and this statement in no way serves as an

alternative or reading the book in ull), readers are given a strong

sense o the principal dierence in how each architect perceived and

manipulated space, with Looss view o architecture being primarily

about designing a specic series and sequence o rooms rather than

building orms, seen in contrast to Le Corbusiers more ormulaicand purposeully replicable design methodology, summarised

in his celebrated Five Points. And, it is air to say, especially in

architectural education, that the preoccupations o Le Corbusier

have been easier to communicate, translate and adopt by subsequent

generations. Summarised in diagrams and explained in sound bites,

Le Corbusiers legacy has helped students around the world take

their rst tentative step on architectures long theoretical ladder.

By contrast, lessons rom Loos in relation to the ormation o his

puzzle-like tightly arranged interlocking cubes o space, require and

reward a ar more detailed level o scrutiny. Less practised in sel

promotion, Risselada describes how Loos did not publicise his plans

as pattern book types or ormulate an easily digestible Raumplan

theory. Instead it was his associates who constantly tried to ground

what Risselada describes as Looss oten-implicit design decisionsin some orm o recognisable design system, and it was Heinrich

Kulka and Zlatko Neumann who gave his work the theoretical

home truthsIn an issue devoted to a selection of houses from the 2008 AR Awards for Emerging Architecture, Loos and

Le Corbusier remind us how a study of architectures smallest unit of currency can teach valuable lessons.

basis we know today. When Loos spoke, however, he brought clarity

and insight, stating that, My work does not really have a ground

foor plan, rst foor or basement. It only has connected rooms,

annexes and terraces. Each room requires a particular height, the

dining room a dierent one rom the larder Rooms must then

be connected in such a way as to make the transition imperceptible,

and to eect it in a natural and ecient ashion.

Failing to convince contemporary clients o the merits o his

particular architectural position, he alluded to how his approach

was less immediately engaging (than perhaps Corbusiers) writing,

When I attempted to have a house exhibited in Stuttgart [at the

Weissenhosiedlung], I was turned down fat. I would have had

something to exhibit: the solution o how to arrange the living

rooms in three dimensions, not in the fat plane For that is the

great revolution in architecture: the three-dimensional rendering

Le Corbusier: Villa Stein-de Monzie, Garches, France 1927, first floor plan.

Cross section. The villa exemplifies Corbs Five Points of a New Architecture.


13/72

sequence, while simultaneously resolving the orm o the external

envelope in relation to its context, is a ne balancing act. Today

o course, protagonists o parametrics argue that logarithms and

mathematical processes provide the solution, as computer generated

sequences shake down the perect solution rom a gazillion

potential permutations. This is, o course, complete olly, as human

judgement will always make the decisive command, either through

the parameters prioritised by the computer programmer, or more

deliberately by someone overriding the morphing sequences to

choose a preerred composition at will, on purely aesthetic terms.

Instead o eliminating the production o inecient spatial and ormal

compositions, in the wrong hands, parametric design tools ampliy

bad judgement, particularly o those who prioritise one pressure

over the other, resulting in sensational distortions that when actually

measured in plan and section produce fabby, weak and inecient

designs that are riddled with meaningless and useless interstitial

space. By contrast, exemplary tightly resolved three-dimensional

assemblages, such as those produced by Loos, only emerge when all

pressures, internal and external, are equalised. And, while it is not or

one moment being suggested that Corbusiers domestic architecture

was fabby, weak or inecient, there are clear dierences between

each architects attitudes to space, with contemporary projects such

as the Mller House (1928) and Villa Stein (1927) sitting at opposite

ends o the spatial spectrum.

Illustrative o broader themes, it is widely accepted that thehistory o domestic architecture traces moves across a wide range

o building types. As such, we can imagine, perhaps, how Loos

may have gone on to build had his career and output more closely

ollowed that o Corbusier. In consideration o their peers, tracing

the evolution o key houses also reveals how others were developing

their approach, as or example in the case o Mies van der Rohes

dramatic shit in his pursuit o spatial equilibrium, between or

example the Wol and Tugendhat houses (1927 and 1928), where

it could be argued that he moved rom Raumplan to Plan Libre in

less than a year.

I then it is possible or the history o domestic architecture

to encapsulate such proound architectural moments, we should

look harder or emerging trends in the design o homes today.

As such, we hope this small representative selection will go someway to illustrate some key issues that may infuence the buildings

o the uture. ROB GREGORY

Raumplan versus Plan Libre. Adolf Loos / Le Corbusier. Edited by Max Risselada, published Uitgeverij010, Rotterdam, 2008All plans are to t he same sc ale.

comment

o the plan! He concluded, Beore Immanuel Kant, mankind was

unable to think in terms o space, and architects were orced to

make the toilet as high as the drawing room.

The house: summarising architectures ultimate challenge

When presented with two such contrasting attitudes to thecomposition o domestic interiors we are reminded how the pursuit

o equilibrium between the internal and external pressures that

buildings experience represents the architects ultimate challenge.

Throughout history, regardless o style, optimising the needs

o a collection o internal spaces in relation to use and spatial

Cross section. Columns and walls blur into Loosian differentiated screens.

Adolf Lo os: Mller House, Vienna, Austria, 1928, first floor plan.

Mies van der Rohe: Wolf House, Gubin, Poland, 1927. Tugendhat House, Brno, Czech Republic, 1928.


14/72

| 1

internal lifeAn inventive courtyard house in Toronto suggests a paradigm for inner-city living.


15/72

House, ToronTo, Canada

Architect

sTudio JunCTion

th couyd hous, m

d hsoc dwg yp, s

gv sh d ob ws

pojc o my hom

tooo. is chcs, h youg

pshp o Sudo Juco,

p hs chyp

hous om o ub s

mxd us, dus

ghbouhood, d dog

so suggs w possbs o

-cy vg . th oucom

s hmc gm o hous

h gy us bck o

s suoudgs, d s

wds, o ch .

Wh coud b gud h

hs ppoch gvs vy

bck o h pubc m, dos

s o h possby o

cvsd (d cvsg) my

h cy, d h

h bgs wh , h h

h mo pdcb p

o subub gh d -cy

bdom.

a h co o h schm s

od wo-soy coco

whous, whch hs b

cugy cu, covd d

xdd. a w sudo pvo

s s o h oh sd o h

og budg, py cosg

1The courtyard, whichforms the fulcrum ofthe house, and thenew studio pavilion.


16/72

| 1

ground floor plan (scale approx 1:125)

long section

location plan

first floor

exploded projection

1 2 3 4 5 6

7

7

8 9

g, s couyd,

h physc d symboc k

bw od d w. Pd

wh o Jps mp

whos chgg og mksh pssg o h ssos,

hs mos Z-k spc

oms h ucum d ocus

o h modg. Op o

h sky, h couyd s

m, oudoo oom o py,

xo d g.

Wh h x cd s

oy bk (hough cpg

ps pdy sbshg

sog g m), h

m s ud, op d

1 studio2 courtyard3 living4 kitchen5 dining6 ofce7 bedroom8 bath/laundry9 terrace

10 laneway


Architect

sTudio JunCTion


17/72

2

3

2Converted from aformer warehouse,the house turnsinwards fromthe street andsurroundings.3Upper level terrace.


18/72

| 1


Architect

sTudio JunCTion

4

5

sp. Cocvd s

ss o hozo s, h

op p goud oo cos

vg, dg d kch spcs,

wh doub-hgh hom oc

o d. Ss o gzd sdg

doos m vss

d ow og vws hough

hous, sudo d couyd.

i summ hy how

op, so sd d ousdbcom o . th mo p v

upp oo cos bdooms

o h coup d h wo

chd, d ogd

bhoom/udy oom whch

ops o o upp c,

cd by cug og sc

ou o h og whous.

Gzg o h oh sd o

h c cs s csoy,

bgg gh dow hough h

doub-hgh voum o h

hom oc d o h vg

spc bow. nu gh s so

cpud d cod by h

couyd d skyghs. a wk

hough h hous s

bw gh d shd, op

d covd, doos d ou.

a md p o ms

xpsss h pyu push

d pu bw xo d

o. Coc bock sh ghbouhood vcu

d sds h o sghy

oo xoy, cyssg

h budgs oshp wh

s suoudgs. By cos,

mb cddg dos

oy d hum hbo;

wh h xsg whous

hs b cu d scoopd ou,

h vods d wh mb.

tmb hs h wmh,

d hs s spd houghou

h o h om o

w d cg ps, wdow

ms d uu.

th chcs suggs h

hs yp o couyd hous

coud b dy dpd o

oh ub coxs,

spcy md-bock o

wy ss, wh ug

wds hs obvous ogc. i

noh amc, wh s mogoousy zod moposs,

h o ough cv

cobuos o h db

bou how pop mgh v

cy cs, so hs doy

xcud hous s wcom

d ghd spcuo. C. S.

Architect

Sudo Juco, tooo

Photographs

a phoogphs by rob focc p om

o 2 whch s by P t


19/72

4Main living, diningand kitchen space,with double-heighthome office.5Timber denotes awarm interiorit y.6Childrens bedroom.7Sliding glass doorsdissolve space,unifying courtyardand house.

6

7


20/72

| 1

living in a boxComplexity and contradiction in an urban alley.

House, BetHnal Green, london

Architect

Cassion Castle arCHiteCts

1

as demstrted the Mrch

2006 ssue f The archtectur

Reew, ld hs ecme

rch d ferte pce fr

the crefu sert f

ctemprry prte hmes.

Css Cste archtects

eted ths emer trdt

wth ths e/wrk stud

cted ery cstred

ste dustr eywy tht

rus pre t beth gree

Rd est ld.

Desed fr tw dustr

desers wh wted pce

f sctury whch they

cud escpe the ust cty,

t e d wrk, the ud

deertey mmses ews

ut. apper retey

rrw frm the wdth f f

fcde, the prperty eteds

thruh the prty w t

ccess t esset mezze

stre spce. Ths ws theprcp terrs t rem

ce d cutter free, dd

t the strk ctrst etwee

sde d ut.

i sect, the m dy

f the premses rres

stud d spces tw

terck l-shped frms.

o the rud fr, ccessed

drecty frm the ey, s the

stud wth ts stepped sect.

H e ths s the

edrm, wth mre mted

hedrm, d e ths, the secd fr, s the

spce; the y spce wth

ew thruh re se

spect zed scree tht es

ccess t rrw eter

rf terrce.

Frm the ey, the crsp

ss fcde ws cceed


21/72

2

1Pristine and ramshackle,sitting cheek by jowl.2The live/work unitpresents a boldintervention in the grittyterrace.


22/72

| 1

House, BetHnal Green,

london

Architect

Cassion Castle arCHiteCts

long section ground level plan

first floor (mazzanine) level plan

second floor, roof terrace plan

3

4

1

2

3

4

5

s fre ject weded

t the est terrce, t

prde d cuterpt t

the dsheeed eywy. nt

r the retes f ctet,

hweer, ths eet d refed

due-heht erhs

mre rust f scree, set

ck frm the ud e t

frm shty mre prtected

threshd etwee puc d

prte rems. Cted t

fy-pster pt, the ture

f ths eemet remds us f

the retes f ur fe, d

f the srt f t ess d

jutps ts tht cme t

mke ctes ke ld such

rt pces f cmpety d

ctrdct. R. g.

Architect

Css Cste archtects, ld

Photographs

Keth Ce

1 workspace2 bedroom3 store4 living space5 roof terrace


23/72

3On the second floor,the living space hasrooflights to therear ...4... and a large glazedscreen to the front,giving onto a narrowbut useful roofterrace.5The ground floorworkspace is alsolit at the rear, and

open to bedroommezzanine above.

5


24/72

| 1 1

It wl be inaccate t

ame gitt ban inill

nl exit in Epe. A ti

pject emntate, te

Ameican acitect ae al

pcing wk tat attain

ientit tg te laeing

pe- an pt-intial m

expein. Ti pject

exple w a egin pat

can inlence te m an e

a vacant cit plt, lcate

souThsIdE sTorEysLive/work urban infll in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Live / WorkStudio,

PittSburgh, uSA

Architect

StudiodArC ArChiteCtS


25/72

1From street, theacade is presentedas a series o layers,alluding to thecomplex layering ounctions in this parto the city.2To the rear, a moresolid completecomposition presents amore domestic ace. 2


26/72

| 1

Live / WorkStudio,

PittSburgh, uSA

Architect

StudiodArC

ArChiteCtS

long section

3In the studio, aworkspace aestheti cis established withexposed compositebeams.4Domestic spaces,such as kitchen anddining rooms, have amore conventionalaesthetic with linedwalls and so its.5A generous rooterrace is provided.

6

witin Pittbg itic

st sie neigb.

hiticall knwn it

pctin teel an gla,

te plt i inlence b bt

eiential an intial

cale, an in epne mixe

te langage metic

an intial acitecte.

Tanming n eac level,

tee intei capte tee

niqe apect elating t teet,

neigb an lancape.

Bilt a me an ti,

living, wking, ining, cking

an leeping pace it between

expe blck wk pat wall,

an a linea ce n alng

ne pat wall, cntaining tai,

kitcen an anita pviin.

In te ti, panning between

pat wall, expe cmpite

beam give te pace an intial

aetetic tat itingie

wkplace m me, aemaining metic pace ave

cnventinal plate ft.

Te acitect al peak a

tanitin m nt t back,

ecibing w a eie ee

lae n te acae tanm

int meting me li an

fnie at te back r. G.

Architect

ti ArC acitect, Pittbg

1 entrance2 garage3 dining area4 kitchen5 living room6 garden7 studio8 void9 master bedroom suite

10 roof terrace11 green roof

ground loor, entrance level plan

irst loor plan

roo terrace plan

11

78

9

1

23

4

5

10


27/72

3

4 5


28/72

| 1

small wonderThis weekend house in historic Ljubljana is a neat essay in shrink to ft.

House, LjubLjana, sLovenia

Architect

DekLeva GreGoric arHitekti

1

2at 43 q (but th

iz g tui t i

l), thi cpct ig

iv up t it th XXs

Hu. at ft ight, it k ik

th xci i Jp

chitctu bi, but i

ctuy thu i

Tky, i th svi cpit

ljubj. stig th ap

th Bk, svi i pvig

t b upiigy ti i

yug chitct thihu by aj dkv Ti

Ggic h f

ivtiv by thi y.

Th it i i th hitic

ct ljubj, i

ighbuh tht uig th

mi ag uppi by

ty ith h puc.

It tight, ub tix i

hu ith big pitch ,

ch ith g tip g,

i ptct , ith


29/72

3

1The tiny house iswrapped in a ta ut skino ibre cement panels.2Main living space.3The house is anabstraction o itshistoric neighbours.


30/72

| 1

House, LjubLjana, sLovenia

Architect

DekLeva GreGoric arHitekti

ground loor plan (scale approx 1:125)

irst loor

cross section

4

4

3

2

1

7

6

5

th ccpyig pcipti

th hck th . Th

tk dkv Ggic

t hh ivig, pig

iig ucti it xt

vu, it tight ii

ictt by c buiig

guti. I t ivi

th uu u hiy h bi,

th hu i cup h

uuy i i th cutyi

t city pi--t.

a th hu c th,

th chg t big i

ict iict uight it

th gu . Th chitct

tt ut ith cvti

pitch , th tuctu

igiy b b, but

by kikig ckig th

pf ighty, th ttic pc

i p up hbitti

pig , y

gz ight t th ight

pu i, pig it

th gu thugh th

tic vi.

I it utty pi gty,

th hu i cy

btct i it hitic

ighbu. a cip

pvi, ith c

i tut ki fb ct

p ty it ith uh

gzig. Th xp fxig bt

vy it hi wg

Pt spk i Vi, t

y v th ap, but th

i ctpy

bity city i th

xp cct ,

butiuy bk, tzz

k uc gy t

cpt. Th tic i cuptu

1 entrance2 bathroom3 kitchen/dining4 living5 terrace6 storage7 bedroom


31/72

6

5

4Staircase void brings lightdown into the ground loor.5The staircase itsel is a minimalist, steelplate concertina.6Interiors are simple and sober.

but pcipitu, igiuy

bict t pt

tht zig-zg th upp

ik pic pp

ccti. Yt it ipig

vy ighty th pciu pc

thi ip ightuy

ub pi--t. C. s.

Architect

dkv Ggic ahitkti, ljubj


32/72

| 1

LIGHT SHAFTSSculptural light shafts illuminate this house in a Japanese mountain resort.

House, Myoko City, Niigata, JapaN

Architect

satosHi sHiMotori


33/72

1The house is a response toMyoko Citys intensely snowyclimate. The pitched roofthrows off snow.


34/72

| 1


35/72

This house or a young couple

in Myoko City is an intriguing

response to local climate

conditions. Myoko City lies in

Niigata Preecture, on the north-

west coast o Honshu, Japans

largest island. It is a well known

mountain ski town, with abundant

snow in winter (up to 14m) as

moisture is swept in rom the

Sea o Japan and cooled by the

surrounding peaks. In winter,

skiers ock to its steep slopes

(as they have been doing since

the 1930s; Myoko is one o the

worlds oldest ski resorts), and

in summer its temperate climate

provides welcome reuge rom

the hot, humid cities. The aim olocal architect Satoshi Shimotori

was to provide a snug, light-flled,

low maintenance dwelling, that

could withstand the exigencies o

such a demanding climate.

From the outside, the

house appears quite plain and

unremarkable, a perect square

topped with a big pitched roo,

designed to throw o any build

up o snow. With its unassuming,

grey ribbed cladding it does not

seem much like a dwelling and

could perhaps pass or a smallwarehouse or industrial unit.

Inside, however, it is something

else entirely.

To bring light into the deep,

square plan, a quartet o

skylights are cut into the roo

plane. Not unusual in itsel, but

the skylights are extrapolated

downwards in three dimensions

into a series o angular shats,

enclosed by semi transparent

membranes. So natural light is

intensiied and channelled by

the shats and the membranesbecome cool, luminous suraces,

resembling Japanese shoji

(rice paper) screens traditionally

used to screen and diuse

light. The shats are also quasi

sculptural intrusions, helping to

deine space, yet as they

are gauzily transparent, you can

see through them. Some are

even colonised by greenery to

create small conservatories or

winter gardens.

House, Myoko City,

Niigata, JapaN

Architect

satosHi sHiMotori

2Angular shafts enclosed bysemi-translucent membranesbring light from roof openingsdown into the interior.


36/72

| 1

mezzanine level

first floor


cross sectionexploded projection

House, Myoko City,

Niigata, JapaN

Architect

satosHi sHiMotori site plan

The house is essentially a large,

single storey volume, raised up

hal a level on a rat oundation,with a garage and workroom

at ground level. Perorated by

the skylight shats, the pitched

roo orms a generously high

ceiling. Beneath this artifcial sky,

various unctions are arranged in

a loose network o semi enclosed

spaces. Like giant chess pieces,

urniture is used to divide up the

main volume, creating intimate

enclaves or traditional tatami

rooms and sleeping quarters.

Within the main volume there

are stairs leading to storage lots,sleeping platorms, study and

work spaces, so the house is ull

o twists and turns, incident and

intrigue. Yet it is the quality o

light that defnes the architecture,

as the membrane shats capture

and diuse the suns radiance, like

bolts rom heaven itsel. C. S.

Architect

Satoshi Shimotori Architects, Myoko City

Photographs

1, Koichi Torimura; 2, 3, Makoto Yoshida


37/72

3Furniture is arranged likechess pieces around themain volume.


38/72

| 1

1

2

1When viewed fromhouse, meditationpavilion sitslike an abstractcomposition.2Within the pavil ioncourtyard, justenough privacy isachieved.3Internally, finejoinery includesfold down desk and

bed.


39/72

plan

isometric projection

cross section

Gardenpavilion,

meditationspace, london

Architect

paul archer desiGn

3

13 4

6

2

5

7

Tis elegat wite garde

pailio, built at te ed of a

log ad arrow sout Lodo

terrace plot, was coceied

as a place i wic te cliet

could retreat ad meditate.

Iward lookig ad calmly

detailed, space is ecessarily

iward lookig eld betwee

four outer stoe walls, oe of

wic folds oer to form te

roof. Ispired by Jorge Oteizas

Empty Box wit Large Aperture

(1958), te arcitect cotried

to create a degree of spatial

ambiguity troug te gaps tat

exist betwee plaes. Like te

sculpture itself, te pailio as

its ow uity ad compositioal

clarity, makig o distictio

betwee plit edge or wall.

Glazed slidig screes (i

bot ertical ad orizotal

plaes) ad silk curtais create

furter opportuity to exploit

te otio of spatial ambiguity,

i respose to te actiities

of te cliet ad te seasoal

ariatio of te leafy suburba

cotext. Iterally, a sigle ru

of joiery cotais ecessary

storage ad furiture, icludig

a fold dow table ad double

bed. Expertly executed i detail

ad balaced i its compositio,

tis work exteds Paul Arcers

reputatio for te sort of

ioatie bespoke desig

tat led to ictory i te

Architects JournalSmall Projects

Award i 2007. R. G.

Architect

Paul Arcer Desig, Lodo

Photographs

Will Pryce

nEW hAvEnPaul Archer Designs south London retreat.

1 sliding roofight2 wet room3 old down desk4 old down bed5 curtain cabinet6 terrace/courtyard7 wonderwall


40/72

| 1

House, Innsbruck, AustrIA

Architect

ArcHItekt DAnIel FgenscHuH


41/72

The client fr this detached

huse in Innsbruck, Austria,

as s happy ith their ne

hme they rte a letter f

gratitude t the architect. This

is nt the first time that timid

Tyrlean Daniel Fgenschuh has

received such a letter. Mdest

in character (and similarly

reserved in his architectural

expressin), letter riting

seems t be smething he

actively encurages, enabling

architect and client t learn

mre frm their ptentially

testing relatinship. Entitled,

Thughts abut ur ne hme,

the client makes special mentin

f the central hall, [that]

nt nly gives access t the

childrens rms and the secnd

flr, but als is a place t play

music and relax.

Characterised by unadrned

hite alls, the building haseches f Adlf Ls Mller

Huse, ith its stepped prfile

and the tense relatinship

that exists beteen its near

symmetrical frm and mix

f aligned and misaligned

apertures f varying size.

Mre significantly, hever, the

spatial cmpsitin in clearly

influenced by the Lsian

Raumplan, as Fgenschuh

extends the Austrian traditin

f nt simply designing in plan,

sectin r elevatin alne.In this and ther huses,

the architect des nt simply

wRITEHoMEMore Raumplan

than free-plan, Austrian

traditions endure.

1Seen against the Innsbrucklandscape, Fgenschuhshouse is reminiscent of AdolfLoos Mller House.


42/72

| 1

second floor, penthouse

first floor, childrens floor

ground floor plan, garden, terrace and living

basement and garagelong section

short section

House, Innsbruck,AustrIA

Architect

ArcHItekt DAnIel

FgenscHuH

2

3

set spaces n the grund, first

r secnd flrs. Instead he

prvides cntiguus, cntinual

spaces, rms, anterms,

and terraces linked by stairs

f varying rientatin, scale

and enclsure. Nt limiting

himself t dmestic prjects,Fgenschuh is currently rking

n the realisatin f the first

UN building in Mntegagr, a

prject he n in cmpetitin.

with rk f such sphisticated

maturity, Fgenschuh can very

reasnably be described as

being ne t atch. R. G.

Architect

Architekt Daniel Fgenschuh, Innsbruck

Photographs

Lukas Schaller


43/72

2Stepped in section,the exterior only givessubtle indications ofits intricate internal

planning.3On ground floor,entrance hall sitsbetween double-heightstair wall and window.4On first floor, stairchanges orientation andlanding becomes room.5Penthouse opens ontoextensive terrace.6Dining room windowsits on axis withground floor entrance.Furniture screens livingroom/snug.

54

6


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| 1

space oddityTraditional pit dwellings and sci-f combine in a Japanese suburb.

evn b nrul l

Jn nr, h hu

n h uburb sj r

hv hl rm rn

m mnn. a brng,

j blk rm, brul wn

h , h h

h mul ngm blk

n Space Odyssey. Bu h h

uburb, n -. an r rm

bng uur, h rm ull

nr b rnl Jn

wllng, whh r rl

xv n h grun.

th br w r ml

hm r ul n hr

hr hlrn. th , whh

w rmrl n n l,

rn h rh wh

h run r n

bj bulng, bu l r

h u hw rrv h

un rv. th lun

w nk h hu hl lvl

wn n h grun, n uh l rm h xvn

r rv brm run

h rmr h . th

brm rm vul n hl

brrr n wll vnull b

gr vr bm kn

grh grn.

th unkn lvl mmunl

n n ln, nnng lvng,

khn n nng r. Wll

r ull glz, h rml

ruur hung h w fr

brm bv r

hvr vr h grun. (in ur h rnr

b ngulr lumn m f

l l.) on h r fr,

h mr brm nj

1The house is partly sunkinto the ground, withthe excavated earthorming a protectiveberm around the site.2From another planet the house in itssuburban context.3The main living space iscontained in the partlysunken lower loor.

1

2


45/72

3

House, saijo, japan

Architect

suppose Design office


46/72

| 1

House, saijo, japan

Architect

suppose Design office

lower ground loor plan (scale approx 1:200)

cross section irst loor

second loor

4

31

7

5

4 6

2

rr, whh n n

h rm. Bu h m

rkng rrv r h

hlrn brm h

h hu, whr h wll r

u n nvrg n klgh h

ul hv bn nv b

Jm turrll.

th ur w fr r

nn b n xqul

mnml l r,

unnumbr, uull h

n Jn hu, b h

lur hnrl. (Nr hr

n rn run h nrl

1 entrance2 living/dining/kitchen3 wc4 bathroom5 master bedroom6 dressing area7 childrens bedroom

4Childrens bedroom atthe top o the house.5Main bedroom andstaircase void.6Living and dining area.A certain level oprivacy is preserved bythe grass berm.


47/72

6

7

r v.) th r lnkng

grun n r fr (l mnu

hnrl) r mr ll r

n m mbr, bu l

nl nl whrm whn

hr bulk.

thugh h rhur

lnl rl n h l

rrngmn h kn wrlg , h b h

h rh n h m lvbl

wllng. Hwvr, h bn

ml brn u n h g

vr h r, bh Jn

rh n hr ln m

rmnl mr nr n

h m mlu hn hr

Wrn unrr. c. s.

Architect

su dgn o, Hrhm


48/72

| 1

1

7

1

3

42

66

5

8

9

Set in subub o Hmbug, thismil house o oung couple

n thei two chilen shows how

moest, low-cost, low-eneg

builing cn lso be volumeticll

inventive. The mil wnte

house which elt like unie

spce, but woul lso povie

iniviul occupnts with eeom

n pivc.

The builing is ivie into

two foos. The lowe foo is

the communl mil spce, with

living, woking, kitchen n ining

es contine in single, openpln volume. This is ptill

sunk into the goun, but is lso

extensivel glze, so enjoing

iect views into the gen. The

uppe level consists o iniviul

ooms nge oun mtic

centl lightwell which is ptl

line with books. Beooms,

bthooms, essing ooms n

chilens plooms ll equie

ieent ceiling heights n these

stggee volumes poject own

House, Hamburg, germany

Architect

Kraus scHnberg

cross section looking south

1 entrance2 central lightwell3 guest wc4 master bedroom5 dressing room6 childrens bedroom7 bathroom8 living area9 storage/services

into the lowe communl foo.Wlls n foos o the iniviul

uppe ooms e constucte

om pebicte, CNC-cut

timbe pnels, so the opque,

cellul uppe level ppes to

fot ove the lighte, glze bse.

The ieent spces om n

mtue o the socil n

pcticl nmics o mil lie.

This mtue lso gives the

inhbitnts licence to evise new

eltionships between ooms n

unctions. Ech mil membe

oms pt o gete whole, nso it is with this house. C. S.

Architect

Kus Schnbeg, Lonon

Photographs

Ion Minescu

aMILy rIENdLyTogether but apart this house refects the dynamics o its occupants.

cross section looking north

lower ground loor plan (scale approx 1:200)

irst loor

N


49/72

1The opaque upper levelloats over the glazed,partially sunken base.2Living area, overlooked bychildrens bedroom.3Staircase linking the twoloors.4The central lightwell.5Detail o library wall.6Upper volumesproject into the mainliving space.

2 4

5

6

3


50/72

| 1

Te oigins of te commission

fo tis stiking weekend ouse

date back to 2003, wen te

clients, Mic and Eduado Pinto

Feeia came acoss a site wile

wate-skiing in te Peneda-Ges

National Pak. Founded in 1971,

Peneda-Ges is Potugals only

national pak and te countys

oldest potected aea.

Located in te not, nea

Baga and abutting te Spanis

bode, te pak enjoys a

mild, wet climate and its lus

vegetation is teaded toug

wit ives and dams. It is te

pefect spot fo a weekend

eteat, but building in suc a

potected aea bings its own

callenges. Any site ad to be

rAISINGThE BArThis weekend retreat is a simple pavilion in the forest.

House, Peneda-Gers, PortuGal

Architect

Correia raGazzi


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1


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| 1

House, Peneda-Gers, PortuGal

Architect

Correia raGazzi

long section

1 (previous pages)Poised on anoutcrop, the long,low bar of thehouse literallytouches theground lightly.2

The lightweightpavilion in theforest has manyModernistantecedents.


53/72

cross section through living room

8Internally, allgalleries leadfrom the longgallery thatterminates axis.9Shifts inplan occurthroughout thegallery, withopenity in plan.the gallerythegallery, with,with

cross section through kitchen

2

distubed as little as possible,

and concete was te only

pemissible building mateial,

because of te wet conditions

and te isk of soil eosion.

Te clients selected te youngpatnesip of Gaa Coeia

(a potg of Eduado Souto

de Moua) and Italian robeto

ragazzi to design tei bolt

ole. Toug ouses often fom

te bulk of a young pactices

wokload, tis was te fist

dwelling tat te Poto-based

duo ad tuned tei ands

to. Te cosen site is tickly

wooded and ovelooks te

Cvado rive.

Into tis bucolic setting

Coeia ragazzi place a long, low

concete ba, its stak simplicity

and aw mateiality damatically

countepointing natue in

te best taditions of teModenist pavilion in te woods.

Pecipitously poised on te edge

of a iveside outcop, te ba

cantileves off into space, tus

minimising its pysical intusion

on te landscape. Its glazed end

affods commanding vistas ove

te ive, but te sides ae also

inset wit sliding glass doos

tat give on to a teace paved

wit Potuguese ganite on its

sout edge.


54/72

| 1

House, Peneda-Gers,

PortuGal

Architect

Correia raGazzi

3

Planning is logical and

linea, wit bedooms and

batooms at one end, and

dining and cooking spaces at

te ote ovelooking te

ive. In between is te main

open plan living aea. Te

footpint is a mee 60sqm,

but no space is wasted, and

its spatial fluidity contives to

make te ouse seem moe

geneously popotioned tan

its dimensions suggest. Intenal

walls ae lined wit sandwic

panels of insulation mateial and

bicwood, wic tempe te

awness and coldness of

te concete.

A sepaate pavilion estoed

fom te uins of an oiginal

ganite boty is set at a disceet

emove fom te ouse. Tis is

used fo soweing, canging

and stoing wate-skiing gea,

wit a guest suite above.Te constuction was

patly inspied by tecniques

of boat building, in wic skin

and suppots become a unified

1 entrance2 living3 kitchen4 dining5 bathroom6 bedroom7 patio8 store/guest quarters

3Dining space overlookingthe river.4Living room opens up onto a patio.


55/72


4

N

8

1

234 5

6

6

7

stuctual entity. Using te

walls as cantileve beams was

not viable in tis case, so te

building is effectively suppoted

and ancoed by its tick floo

slab. Walls, oof and intenal

patitions elp to bace and

stiffen te box-like stuctue.

As a kind of man-made vessel

standed in te wildeness te

ouse also alludes to many

Modenist antecedents, butits acitects ae paticulaly

dawn to compaisons wit

te Casa Malapate, in wic

natue and acitectue ave

a obust ecipocity and te

ouse becomes a stage set fo a

ealty, edonistic lifestyle. C. S.

Architect

Coeia ragazzi Aquitectos, Poto

Photographs

2, 4, Juan rodigues

3, Luis Feeia Alves


56/72

| 1

chilean labyrinthA complex, labyrinthine plan is crowned and

illuminated by a prismatic roofscape.

House,

CHiguayante,

CHile

Architect

PezoVon

ellriCHsHausen

arCHiteCts isometric projection

1

2

ts m ous cgu,

sm ow sou o Sgo,

ks do hsp

oo o po d gms

ougou dwg.

isd o o g oud,

sm os, op

o sk, povdg pv oss

o g d g o dvdu

ooms. t ous s s o

sm m, d w dwg

ps og omsd.

t suoudgs k

woodd, w u s, pms,

d us. O pu

g pm dm

ps po x o

, s u oms

p o ous.

rooms gd

dp p, w som uos

doug up, u pp

ommo do c

u . Sps ss

u, u s dg

o fud oo, w

gzd ws o pos

oogpg uxpd

oug vws. ts pod,

gm

gs sosg

ompx oosp o 14 -

d, ud psms,

oppd skg. ex

ws wppd p

o m sgs, w gvs

ous sg uou

ps d ssss

s s . c. S.

Architect

Pzo vo esus as,

copo

1 main entrance2 garage3 living4 kitchen5 patio6 dining7 staff quarters8 master bedroom9 dressing room

10 bedroom

ground floor plan(scale approx 1:250)

8 510 10 10

5

105

9

5 3 5

10

65

6

54 5 7

2

51

3


57/72

3

1The roofscape of thehouse is a series oftruncated prisms.2Patios encourageviews through thelabyrinthine plan.3Each prismatic roof istopped by a skylight.


58/72

| 1

Stuted the Tr et Groe

rego of south-west Fre,

o the rdge of steeply

slopg vlley, ths house uses

forml dstorto d sptl

ompresso to rg terl

d exterl fores to tese

equlrum. Lokg to vews

to d from key vtge pots,

d otrollg routes d

spets ross pl d seto,

the rhtets hve produed

uldg where slts d

hmfers, d ps d tuks,

ome to heve fgure of

led eetrty.

Despte ts rust mterlty,

form d detl the uldg

hs plple tutess tht

mplfes the dretess of the

House, TarneT

Garonne, France

Architect

Vicky THornTon,

wiTH JeF smiTHoF

meLD

baLancinG acTThornton and Smith fnd ormal and spatial

equilibrium in south-west France.


59/72


60/72

| 1

House, TarneT

Garonne, France

Architect

Vicky THornTon,

wiTH JeF smiTHoF meLD

1 (previous pages)External view rom west.2The principal living space is

clad in OSB, with phenolicply used or joinery elements.Elsewhere OSB is painted todistinguish more private spacesrom those shared with guests.3The north-westerly viewrom living room provides aspectacular backdrop.

reltoshp etwee sde d

out; e tht where rooflght

sts ove str to releve the

pressure of ostrto pl d seto, or where

deep set pertures frme

hose vews.

complemetg the degree

of omplexty permtted

form, sprt of smplty hs

presded over the rhtets

orgsto of futos d

hoe of mterls, wth the

house expressed s two dstt

rhteto elemets; tmer

ox otg lvg spes

d mster sute, sttg ove

d tleverg over rule

lmestoe se tht ots

guest rooms d prtllyured pottery workshop.

addg to the tutess of the

uldgs rss, terlly the

m volumes of the house re

led OSb; move tht sees

sgle mterl strethed ross

the spes, tkg the shorter

dste etwee two pots

to gve terors osstey

d uty. Exterlly, verulr

mterls d elemets exted

ths prgmt tttude wth

the use of tmer shuttered

wdows d glvsed steel

doors trsposed from lol

frm uldgs. Here thoughthere s rel refemet, s

tmer shutters lose flush to

otue the ord o ord

rhythm of the hestut lddg,

d sldg steel srees etly

hg over pertures the

rule from etly oeled

rollg ger. i ths house, pose

d preso resde.

Architect

Vky Thorto, wth Jef Smth of

MELD, Lodo

2


61/72

site plan

N

upper (entrance) level plan

lower ground loor plan

long section

3


62/72

| 1

House, Lake District, cHiLe

Architects

aLejanDro BeaLs, cHristian BeaLs,

Loreto Lyon

twin peeksConjoined twins, of the rural variety.

Locad o La Ruaco, ouh

Chl, o lar orm cra a

dlghul our bdroom hom. A

gular h logad

clour ar comorary characr; arro uggg

c lag, doubl hgh

rcallg h aal rooro

o Corb U modul, ad

rmag a gl larg

arur, od rcarouly o

h rdg o h 36m lo o

xlo ug la v. wh

combd, hovr, omhg

mor rg ha, o oly

o xral orm, h como

lhou rcallg ha o h

rgo agrculural buldg, bu

alo rally, a rlaoh

b volum add o

o h xrc o movg

b, ag hrough oroccuyg y ac.

O h lor lvl h lvg

ad dg room ar a ral

clour ha brdg rag,

addg aal comlxy. whl

h lvg room achord o h

rly acad, h dg room

hdra o hlr h h

arly rag, urroudd o

hr d by a ao hr you

could mag a dlghul braa

bg rvd.


63/72


64/72

| 1

1 (previous pages)From the west, the two linearforms combine to form afamiliar silhouette.2From the north, a bridgeconnects bedroom suite tonearby wood.3The living room is doubleheight, accessed from entrancehall on a half landing andoverlooked by stair gallery.

ground level plan upper level plan

exploded isometric

long section

2

3

2

1

7

6

5

4

8

9

88

9

9

8

O h ur lvl, ac

b rag orm a

cocg our bdroom h

o grou vod; o ovr

h ao ha glazd o hr

d, h ohr cocg o h

lvg room hr h hou

rcal ar locad. th

add mor o h co,

rovdg a cod rac

ha xlo h grou

oograhy, lag ovr h

lor foor o h mor d

ma rra o h orh. By

cora h lor lvl acc

m h hou o broadd

a grad, addg o h dg

ovrall muldd. D

hr axal o, h dual orm

ora comlly h roud,

h ach ac addrg cc

orao uroully, gag

ha h archc dcrb a

omum raor h h

ladca; h ur ar

oard a ood o myrl r

ad auochhoou buh, ad

o ach d hrough carul

arragm o crd

og ha ram v,

lcom lgh, or rovd

hlrd rac. exdg

local rado, h rucur

ha b had-crad ,

ad acad ar clad rad

ha comlm urad

rcovrd mao ad ulmo ood

ud rally. R. G.

Architects

Aljadro Bal, Chra Bal,

Loro Lyo, saago

1 garage2 entrance hall3 living room4 dining room5 patio6 kitchen7 laundry8 bedroom9 bathroom


65/72

House, Lake District, cHiLe

Architects

aLejanDro BeaLs, cHristian BeaLs,

Loreto Lyon

3


66/72

| 1 2

1


67/72

spare changeDella Valle Bernheimer, tracking the passage of time.

House, Columbia County,

new york, usa

Architect

Della Valle bernHeimersection through bedrooms, kitchen and living room

plan

4

3

1The corrugated box hasbeen modelled to thesouth to enable angledrooflights to track thepassing sun.2To the north, thebuildings sparinglydetailed form isunmodelled.3A 24-foot bookcaseextends through livingspaces.4In dining room, westerlylight falls on spine wall.

2

1 7 6 5

3

4

2

1

T itt otio o ti

ou w mbitiou, oivd tim-tki dvi to

it dy-to-dy viomtl

d mu t

tomtio o ul

mily ov mot, y, d

dd. To t dito, it w

t tutu tiki om d

ommitmt to il iil

mtil tt md it dititiv

i it l.

situtd o woodd ix-

lot i t hudo Vlly

(two ou ot o nw Yok

city), itl ombiovtiol omtmtlid

wit mo otmoy

o otiuity, t oud

oo livi oom i d

oud 24-oot lo bookl.

I ol d ot ou, it i

od tt t i ooity

o t wll will bi d o

imtio to t . Fut

imtio om om t bold

ul oo om tt oitt

ooit to tk t ol t

1 bedroom2 bathroom3 library4 ofce5 living room6 dining room7 kitchen

tou t dy; tly moi

lit to omy bkt it kit, d wtly ut

to illumit vi ml i

t dii oom. suoti t

itt ittio tt ti

i iml box ltd by t

u, ulik t odd outly

oo li, t otly oo li

mi itt. Futmo, i

ki wit t mtoil

moti o ou--timi, t

olou d txtu o vtilly

u outd o will

ov t y, to odu

dlitully if ti. r. g.

Architect

Dll Vll Bim, nw Yok

Photographs

rid B potoy


68/72

| 1

boy from brazil

NIEMEYER, CURVES OF

IRREVERENCE

By Styliane Philippou. London: Yale University

Press. 2008. $65, 35

Decades beore his 100th birthday last year,

Oscar Niemeyer had achieved cult status in

Brazil and won countless international awards.

His UK reputation was sealed with the delightul

pavilion he imagined or Londons Serpentine

Gallery in 2005. I interviewed Oscar, as he

is aectionately known in Brazil, just ater his

receipt o the RIBA Gold Medal exactly 10

years ago. Already then, the reception area in

his Rio de Janeiro oce was overfowing with

monographs. To mark his centenary, several

more books have been published.

Styliane Philippous tome whose title is a

retake on Niemeyers 2000 memoir The Curvesof Time is not just another coee table book

o voluptuous photographs (many taken by the

author). Philippous mission is to set Niemeyers

work in its cultural and socio-political context,

which she does exhaustively. For anyone

interested not only in Niemeyer but in Brazil

generally, there is riveting material here.

Philippou has travelled Brazil ar and wide: we

see Portinaris blue and white ceramic murals

on Rios Ministry o Education and Culture

Building (1936-44 with Le Corbusier and others)

contrasted with Portuguese colonial tilework in

the north-easts colonial Baroque churches and

the patterning o brises-soleil harking backto ornamental screens o vernacular colonial

architecture in Minas Gerais.

O course, Philippou covers the amiliar

ground o Niemeyers greatest works the

1947 Pampulha complex in Belo Horizonte,

his early houses and oce buildings, Brasilia

and its monuments, his work abroad during the

countrys military dictatorship, the Museum o

Contemporary Art in Niteri, and the lesser

ones, too. Along the way we learn ascinating

tidbits. Her description o So Paulos Parque

Latino Americana includes commentary on the

sad state o public space in this car-dominated

city o almost 20 million, and the revealing actthat So Paulo has 210 heliports compared

with New Yorks 10. She concludes with the

Serpentine, yet one wishes she had tantalised us

with hints o Niemeyers ongoing work on the

Niteri waterront and in Spain.

Niemeyers treatment within the international

architectural press is meticulously documented

I counted at least eight reerences to this journal,

among many others. Philippou conronts head

on the conventional criticisms that Oscar is a

tired master, whose buildings are grand gestures

oten dicult to inhabit and anti-urban.

reviews

Where this book disappoints and drastically

is with its convoluted argument (and complicated

writing style). Even or the acionado, its heavy

going. The author concludes her 386 pages thus:

The sustained radicalisation o the eroticized

topical other represents the dreaded thorn that

has not yet been removed rom the work o the

centenarian radical architect Oscar Niemeyer.

This reers to Oscars repeated mention o the

emale nude as a source o inspiration witness

the line drawings which greeted visitors who

climbed the Serpentine Pavilion ramp. Hence,

the irreverence o the title.

Surely this is too simple. We hear little in

the book o such infuences as the structural

challenges o working with concrete or the

impact o his trips to Europe the Old World as

he liked to call it.

Until Paulo Mendes da Rocha won the

Pritzker two years ago, Niemeyer was the

only Brazilian architect widely recognisedabroad, despite the countrys lively and prolic

architectural community. A more interesting

conclusion would have told us something about

Niemeyers infuence within his own country

beyond the cult. Some might say that is not

a tting tribute to an acknowledged master. Yet

the next generation should not have to wait to

step into the limelight. HATTIE HARTMAN

the bard of architecture

SIR JOHN VANBRUGH:STORYTELLER

IN STONE

By Vaughan Hart. New Haven & London: YaleUniversity Press. 2008. 35

The researches o twentieth-century scholars

established the dates and actual details o

Vanbrughs masterpieces like Castle Howard,

Seaton Delaval, and garden buildings at Stowe.

It is thus now open to Vaughan Hart to interpret

the meaning o his buildings as a storyteller

in stone, a brilliant interpretation which links

him to the world o literature including Dryden

and Swit, as well as to music, heraldry and

politics. Hart sees Vanbrughs buildings as an

architectural expression o the Discourse on Epic

Poetry by his riend and collaborator, Dryden, whocould praise Homer and Versailles together.

Fascinating links are drawn between

Vanbrughs plays and his garden design: as

his plays spoke o the conceits twists and turns

o everyday lie so these garden elements were

navigated through twisting paths. We also have

the rst complete account o his handling o

the Classical orders, inspired by the theories o

Serlio on the relation o the Doric, Ionic and

Corinthian orders to the dierent aspects o the

male and emale characters and roles. In this

context, Hart explains Vanbrughs claim that

one could read the Duke o Marlborough in

Story at Blenheim Palace.

As both herald and architect, Vanbrugh knew

that since antiquity, the display o heraldry and

the use o the allantica architectural language,

particularly the column, were both signs o status

on a acade, though Vanbrughs own townhouse,

Goose-Pie House, Whitehall, was criticised by

the Tory Swit as a pretentious ailure in both

architecture and heraldry, puncturing the claim

o the Whig Vanbrugh to a dynastic house.

Following the recent discovery that Vanbrugh

visited India and drew Mogul mausolea, Hart

compares the pinnacled skyline o Blenheim to

the Taj Mahal. Another stimulating parallel is

between Vanbrughs theatrical use o open stone

screens as in the hall at Grimsthorpe to those

partly hiding the medieval chapel at the chateau

o Vincennes which he would have seen when

imprisoned there in 1691-92: such experiences

partly explain his desire to give his buildings whathe called Something o the Castle Air. Hart

nally agrees with Soane in 1809 that Vanbrugh

was the Shakespeare o architects.

DAVID WATKIN

period piece

FANTASTIC PLASTIC

By Susan Mossman. London: Black Dog

Publishing, 2008. 24.95.

Sometimes you read a book and you are let

wondering more what it tells you about design

publishing in general than about that specicbook itsel. Fantastic Plastic is a good place to

ponder these things. It is a clear, well illustrated,

careully designed history o plastic materials o

all types rom earliest times up to the present,

emphasising the rich variety o many types

o substance. A

Documents

Architectural Review 200901