humble architecture
dea arimbawa
towards sustainability
dea arimbawa Cultural Context ARC6010 BA (Hons) Architecture at Birmingham City University Year 3 2020
contents
Introduction
1
20th century design
6
the seagram building
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sustainability and humility
14
vernacular architecture towards sustainability and humility
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dane village, edinburgh
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vernacular architecture in modern era
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vitsoe factory, leamington spa
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extrapolated architecture
38
conclusion
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44
figures list
references
46
bibliograohy
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appendix
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Sustainability? Humility?
1
Introduction
In the 21st Century with the fast pace of development and
changes in architecture and design have led to new architectural proposals have been built without a deep understanding of their impact towards nature, local heritage, culture and community. Buildings and urban plans are now simply trying to accommodate the high demand for urban development, itself directly caused by globalisation and urbanisation (Moos and Skaburskis, 2010). This fast and instant fashion resulted in buildings that are insensitive and inconsiderate to sustainability and humanity. This has brought architects to new challenges and setbacks in architecture and urban design, such as climate change. Cities and buildings have become unsustainable.
Unsustainable design in architecture and urban planning
means many buildings are built without considering its design process, construction and performance impacts, resulting in negative effects towards the environmental, economical and social aspects. These ‘starchitects’ of the 20th Century commonly focus solely on creating extravagant architectural designs (Berman, 2015), resulted in buildings with high embodied carbon footprint, energy consumption and a harmful influence toward their communities. Unsustainable architecture and urban design is a direct cause of climate change, in the U.K. for example, architecture and construction processes brought up to 40% of overall U.K.’s total carbon contributor (UKGBC, 2017), and therefore the public has demanded better and sustainable designs looking forwards the future. Fig. 1 The lost of sustainability and humility in modern cities
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To shift architecture’s current fashion towards the new
movement of sustainability. As the direct players, architects and designers have to be more sensitive. To be sensitive in architectural design processes means we have to be able to consider and reflect our designs impact towards climate change and sustainability and this will lead to sustainable design and better life quality for the local community. Bringing sensitivity when considering the surrounding context in architecture and design throughout the design process meaning architects have to be more modest, considerate and humble.
Kengo Kuma encourages architects to be more humble
(Plane Site, 2017). Which in architectural manners means architects have to be modest, respectful and down-to-earth during the design process and outcome that is considerate towards local context, community, environment, cultural heritage and economy.
Humility in this manner is
sustainability, to be able to cover every layer of sustainability not only towards the environment and climate change but also reaches other sustainability aspects such as economic and social factor. The difference of humility and sustainability lies where humility is more like an ideology or a mindset that architects should (or must!) have and is embraced in every step of design process from function, form, materiality, constructions and 3
building’s future impact. Fig. 2 Kengo Kuma, urges architects to be more humble
This ideology means to keep modesty in mind and focuses not on the style, formal and aesthetic of the output but sustainability and humility.
Strategic Definition
Preperation and Brief
Concept Design
Developed Design
Technical Design
Construction
Embraces Sustainability & Humility
Handover and Close Out
In Use
Fig. 3 RIBA Stages of work
Humility shares a similar approach to vernacular architec-
ture’s quality and characteristic. Vernacular architecture is humble architecture, it was not built with the aim of aesthetic or formality value to make a building. Vernacular was built from and for the community and it valued the local culture, functional need and sometimes religious aspect (Senosiain, 2003) without being overly ostentatious. It was typically built without the intention to be the landmark of a place of a city or for the ‘architects’ or ‘designers’ to be able to gain the ‘starchitect’ label. It simply was built to accommodate and meet the need for a function. What can architects reflect and extract from both ideologies of humility and vernacular architecture to learn from and adapts towards climate change?
In this essay, a critical analysis will be offered in relation to
how being humble architects will lead to a better and sustainable architectural design outcome and how designers can learn from vernacular architecture. Vernacular architecture shares similar design values of humility and sustainability. Through this essay case studies will be explored and investigated to understand how aspects of sustainability and humility in vernacular architecture can be applied by contemporary architects to learn and inspired by for a better contemporary architectural design.
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20th Century Designs
Through new and advance built technology, architects and
designers are competing against each other through their design work aiming to be the next starchitects. Starchitects are architects that are known through their architectural designs and innovation that are commonly big and extravagant. Their buildings are normally becomes the landmark of a city or a place and commonly designed with the focus of its style, aesthetic, function and extravagantness (Sklair, 2010). This has become the current fashion in architecture and design. Buildings that are output through a mind-set of starchitects might result in unsustainable buildings. Without considering sustainability aspect through architectural design process and focuses only on making something big lead architects to unsustainable building that has lost its sense of humanity. Buildings and cities are no longer built and shaped by the people, the buildings and cities have shaped us (Senosiain, 2003). Cities that are no longer built for and by the people and community will never be able to be ‘successful’ cities. Cities that were built by the understanding and focus on capitalism, business, economy and profit can never be a place that enhances interaction in the community. Only through interaction between the people and community, a city can grow to be a successful and sustainable city.
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The image of a successful city really depends on the focus
of the city’s designer. If stakeholders, architects and urban planner focus on profit and capitalism, the image of the successful city is seen from its economic value. As Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1978) said the ‘jungle of straight lines’ (Senosiain, 2003) is the status quo of a successful city. This division has become a norm of the high-status symbol of a modern system that the western societies are aiming for. As Lewis Mumford said ‘the city has become a no man’s land’ (Aalto, 1978) city no longer a place for people and community, it simply a place for things.
The beginning of in-humane and unsustainable architec-
ture design can be seen from the pattern in modernist buildings. In the nineteenth century, moralists such as William Morris, John Ruskin and A.W.N Pugin views on modernism is that mechanization became the cause of the fall in all aspects of life, preliminary at the smallest and largest scale of design (Curtis, 1996). Modernists have never involved genuine culture of these mass productions. This is the starting point of buildings that are built purely based on the focus of gaining the most profit with the least cost. Essentially the trait of the Industrial Revolution, the start of modernism.
Followed from modernism, moving towards the 21st Centu-
ry, these have unprecedented ‘successful’ image of well-polished cities has become the current fashion in urban planning. Cities and buildings here are no longer considering their environmental and social impact towards the local community from their designs. 7
This trend has led architects to climate change and humanitarian crisis and poorer quality of life to the people in the community.
Fig. 4 Seagram building, New York
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A well-known city that was built in modernism era, the rise
of mass production and the fall of the sense of community is the New York City. Precisely Manhattan’s office skyscrapers and urban plan that were an outcome of the modernist and industrial revolution. One case study as an example is the Seagram (Fig. 4 & 5) office building that was designed by Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe. This office glass building was built in 1958 and was considered as one of New York City’s landmark (Perez, 2010). This building was built with the most advanced technology of its time it was claimed as the most suitable modern building. Now, with the change in the climate and the demand for better and sustainable designs, Seagram no longer fit in 21st Century design needs. Seagram was rated as low as 3% (Mehaffy and Salingaros, 2013) in the LEED’s building performance rating system with above 50% grade means that a building’s performance towards sustainability is better than similar building designs nationwide. To be rated 3% Seagram’s performance has no longer seen as fit, and those viewpoints are;
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Fig. 5 Seagram building New York City
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Fig. 6 Seagram’s deep and tight structure
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Fig. 7 No intended green spaces
1.
Energy Consumption
Seagram was indeed built with the most advanced building
technology in that era. Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe at that time thought that innovation inbuilt technology is the best-built system, e.g. curtain walls and concrete (Lambert, 2013), which is no longer the case in the 21st century. Seagram was built when energy resources were cheap and plentiful (Browning, 2013) and climate change’s impact on the environment are not massively seen yet. As time pass, technology has become better and more sustainable, Seagram’s energy performance has no longer considered as good, even the worse of its kind. High dependency towards artificial light with high electricity consumption has led Seagram to be one of the most unsustainable office building in New York (Rackard, 2013). 2.
Building’s Design
Seagram was built with a low floor-to-floor and tight col-
umn spacing that obstruct daylight and views which lead to highly dependent in artificial light. It was also built with a large single glazed floor to ceiling curtain wall (Perez, 2010) that allow cold air to leak during winter and resulted in high energy use in rising the temperature inside the building. Furthermore, Seagram was also designed with no integrated green space (Perez, 2010) and has a very low air quality. Therefore, in the aspect of sustainability in social and well-being of every user in the building are rated very low and no longer suitable for the community around the area.
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Seagram is only one of the example of many other build-
ings that no longer fit in the current era. For a better and sustainable design, many have suggested to tear down, retrofitting and renovating New York’s modernist skyscrapers (Rackard, 2013) to be more humble and sustainable. These buildings have outlived their lifespan and the public has demanded to move on from the modernist building and urban plan for a better and sustainable design for the future.
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Sustainability and Humility
Humility and sustainability shares similar traits. In fact, to
claim a building as a humble design, it only can be fully valid if the building incorporates sustainability and humility all through the design process. Humility and sustainability will not work without the other. To go in detail the characteristic of humility and sustainability, each aspect’s trait can be simplified to the following attribute.
Sustainability in architecture is commonly seen as how a
design or a building perform towards a site, whether it brings positive or negative environmental impact to the surrounding setting. Sustainability covers three basic principles (Achenza, 2016) and each of these principles has to be achieved for a building or urban design to be classed as a sustainable design. 1.
Sustainability in climatic-environmental
This aspect is the one that is commonly recognized in the
building environment. To achieve a sustainable design toward the climatic-environmental aspect can simply be said to design something that is respectful and responsible towards site context. Every design process has to be able to integrate a system that is not harming other elements of the site’s ecosystem (Achenza, 2016). From materiality, resources and designs have to be reflected, efficient and reduced of its impact on the climate. 14
2.
Sustainability in socio-economic
In the socio-economic aspect of sustainability, we are en-
couraged to create an architectural design that is not fully dependent on external factors. Such as production process, optimizing local material and to work with communal efforts (Mileto, 2014). This approach allows a building that able to rely on the local resources and more sustainable in the long term by reducing the reliant on outside factors. This will also lead to an increase and boost the economic rate of the surrounding building context also to promote local activities. 3.
Sustainability in socio-cultural
Sustainability in socio-cultural means to produces designs
that engages in the local cultural heritage and to be sensitive towards the site’s typology and climate. This sustainability aspect in addiction includes also using and transforming local recourses such as material and services that the local holds (Achenza, 2016). To also considering collective memory of local heritage and integrating it in design that is transferred in the building’s culture. By possessing this aspect into an architectural project will impact into the increasing number of social cohesion and interactive social engagement.
Sustainability in every basic aspect trying to be humble
and respectful toward the site’s environment and the local community. As mentioned before, humility in architecture and design shares the same trait as sustainability but in a clearer and 15
straight-forward manner or an ideology.
Environment
Sustainable Social
Economy
Fig. 8 Sustainability 3 aspects
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First, the scale of the project has to be efficient and
non-aggressive. Sometimes architects and urban planners were given an open brief and massive budget for a project and it seems to be an opportunity where they can do big and innovative things. Occasionally this resulted in a design where function follows its form (Sullivan, 1896) which lead to an unsustainable outcome. This lead to unnecessary waste toward the use of space and energy. By keeping humility in mind and to be humble towards an environment, this problem can be avoided. Second, the materiality of the design can or need to be humble. Modernist architects and urban planners have been inconsiderate towards the locality of a material (Senosiain, 2013), followed by the uprising technology which allows building materials to be chosen without considering the site’s climate. For example, air conditioning allows buildings to be built with any type of material in the tropical country without it being intensively warm throughout the year, but this resulted in building with high annual energy consume and embodied carbon footprint. To be humble in terms of materiality, the practice of using local material and recourses not only is better for the ecosystem of the site but also the local community and heritage will be applied in the building and urban designs. Third, similar characteristic as sustainability is to be respectful towards the climate. Keeping humility in every step of the design process allows architects and designers to promotes a better and more environmentally friendly design. Considering potential impact of every process in the design that will lead towards the context and local community will prevent design outcome that is not respectful towards the site. 17
Four th, to be respectful and sensitive towards the com-
munity and local heritage. Designs that capable of including and embracing local heritage and community allows the building or urban plan to be beneficial towards the cultural context (Achenza, 2016). This does not mean the building has to be or inspired by local vernacular designs but to simply bringing the aspect of the local community to the outcome.
Environtment
Scale
Humility
Community
Materiality
Fig. 9 Humility 4 aspects
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Both sustainability and humility have to be able to incorporate the natural aspect of a specific site to achieve a more appropriate living condition for the people. In architecture and urban design, to be able to work with nature not against it (Pallister, 2014) allows the design outcome to be more successful than the one who didn’t. Even the humblest of nature’s designs would offer us conditions more suitable for human satisfaction (Stewart, 1998). Successful design in this manner does not only covers environmental, social and cultural aspects of a place but also integrate profit and economic drivers of the city that is a direct cause from a better and more sustainable quality of life of the community and people.
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The ideal should be, in the near future, to reintegrate science, technology, and humanism, restoring a balanced relationship with nature and reducing the strains on natural resources (Senosiain, 2003).
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Vernacular Architecture towards Sustainability and Humility in the 21st Century
As mentioned, in the current architecture and design focus
is to keep developing new technology and systems to be more sustainable and humble. In reality, there are great precedents from ancient architectures that are fit in those traits as it was developed not following its current fashion and nearly immutable since it serves its purpose to perfection (Rudodsky, 1964). It only built from the social need of a community and altered towards specific climate, geography, political and religious condition as it welcomes natural surroundings and terrain to work within (Achenza, 2016). These are architecture built without architects, built based only on function and needs, the vernacular architecture. Vernacular architecture was produced not by intellectuals and specialist but by the continuing of activities from people that share the common heritage and community experience (Rudodsky, 2013), ‘It is almost a natural product’ where ‘human do not impose, they adjust’ (Senosiain, 2003). This means sharing the same characteristic of what a building can be considered as humble and sustainable. To understand deeper how sustainable and humble vernacular architecture are, a case study will be analysed.
We take British vernacular architecture as a case study,
where most of them have been listed as one of Britain’s cultural heritage buildings. One of the examples of British vernacular architecture is located in Dean Village, Edinburgh. Implying in figure 10, Dean Village is not only one of Edinburgh’s local cultural heritage (EWH, n.d.) but also one of the most popular tourist destinations.
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Fig. 10 Dean Village, Edinburgh
There are aspects of this vernacular architecture that is
considered as sustainable and humble through its function, material and design. 1. Function This building was built not excessively but to fit into the need for a function/dwelling. The form follows its function so there are no wasted space, material or energy on external things. It was merely built based on the local’s community needs and emerging local cultural heritage (Fig. 11).
Hall Lobby Bedroom Bath Living
Fig. 11 Floor Plan, where function follows form
River
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2. Materiality and Building Performance
Edinburgh’s natural resources as
buildings material are stone, turf and Fig. 12 Function
wood (Brunskill, 2000). The locality of the material allows the building to have the least embodied carbon since there is an unnecessary need for external material to be built. Through the construction process, it also requires as low as 0% reliant towards fossil fuel energy resources since it only needed local handcraft and carpenter skills to build. 3. Humility
From materiality, form and func-
tion, this case study is certainly humFig. 13 Materiality Fig. 14 Humble Design
ble. It fits in aspects of humility, from scale that was built only based on the need. Materiality that supports the local community and sustains local economy since it uses local’s goods and services and perfectly able to hold the need of a dwelling from its form.
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Without doubt, vernacular architecture is sustainable and
humble, that is why many contemporary architects and designers start realizing the value of humility and environmental friendliness of vernacular architecture. A popular perception of vernacular architecture in modern architectural style to be often seen as the lost answer towards a more humane and sustainable design as its might be the most sensitive piece of architecture that were built only from the local knowledge towards its layout, form and material which relates to native climatic and geological condition (Mileto, 2014)
Often enough through different professional and academic
literature describes vernacular architecture as if it has no flaws and perfectly adapts to specific climate and context (e.g. Rasulo, 2003; Vellinga, 2013; Frey 2010) this led to a common misinterpretation of the truth about vernacular architecture in the 21st century (Asquith, 2006). If vernacular architecture were able to achieve a very well performance, why was it left behind? (Mileto, 2014)
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To take vernacular architecture purely as it is and built vernacular architecture in this contemporary modern era, there are a few aspects that will no longer allow vernacular architecture to be fitted into the modern sustainable design. The changing world
From the start of 21st century, the changing economy and
globalization lead to the major challenge to house billions of people (Moos, 2010) in the same planet as it was before in the era of vernacular architecture. The need for a building to accommodate people in a city with lesser space resulting in high-rise buildings as the only method to cope. As Kengo Kuma describes ‘High rise buildings, to me they are symbols of the 20th century where people needed to expand cities.’ (Great Big Story, 2019) In this case instant and high capacities form of a dwelling is needed. Of course, this led to the loss of humility and sustainability but in reality cities are solely trying to manage.
However, vernacular architecture’s typical characteristics
are small, keeping its geographical surrounding, tradition and culture (Senosiain, 2003) will no longer able to hold the current demand for housing. Depending on the region and specific site’s need, vernacular architectures simply no longer appropriate and relevant to the current fashion demand. For example, as widely recognized, vernacular architecture’s eccentricity that relates closely to sustainability with its use of locally sourced material. 27
Without a doubt, vernacular architecture are sustainable
and humble as it not only has a low embodied carbon, it also includes a sense of local community and cultural heritage. In reality, the economy has changes, the availability of those materials may no longer accessible and plentiful as it was before (Mileto, 2014). Take timber in instance, there’s simply fewer trees or source of material that are available or as cheap as it was before in certain places, where the source of material might be replaced for agriculture purposes. Even if there are obtainable resources, they’ve commonly become too expensive to use (Asquith, 2006). Technological bias
Not to be completely ignorant towards certain aspects that
were mentioned before in this essay, but to be completely unbiased towards the reality of vernacular architecture in the 21st Century, might not all sustainable. For centuries, builders or architects who built and design dwelling for human have always been learning from their previous ancestors. The same thing in the contemporary architecture, where it can be said that modernism did not work in terms of sustainability and humility designs (Senosiain, 2003, Curtis, 1996, & Gehl, 2013). Therefore, architects learn to solve the problem and learn from their mistakes. The learning outcome from previous mistakes allows human to continue to develop towards a better living standard. In vernacular architecture, their standard of living only fits their certain era.
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Most vernacular architectures that are still in use as dwellings or houses, which are usually found in developing countries, do not meet the modern health and safety, air quality or hygiene standard (Anderson, 2005). It might be still suitable to be called a sustainable dwelling in terms of its building’s performance, but does it what modern society and community want?
The building performance stereotypes of vernacular ar-
chitecture are most of the time misleading and misinterpreted (Asquith, 2006 & Mileto, 2014). The studies and experiments of vernacular architecture often focus solely on the technological, environmental and its performance on the provided environmental condition. Which indeed lead to inhabitants to live comfortably and sustainably (Mileto, 2014) but another aspect of sustainability such as recent social and economic culture is not very easy to experiment on and to be classified as sustainable especially in the changing world. People’s trend and an image of a ‘successful’ life is most of the time modern and new, which an aspect that usually leads to the loss of local heritage and culture but humans and the modern community’s need it might not be vernacular architecture.
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Maybe there are better options
Sustainability is not merely a new trend, for years archi-
tects and designers have realized the impact of climate change and the importance to change and improve our unsustainable lifestyle. As mentioned modern, buildings were built in the era where they were cheap and plenty of fossil fuel as energy resources and rely heavily on it but now it all need a change. Buildings need to be more sensitive of their impact towards environment in every stage of the design process, and in the 21st century many architects and designers that understand and applies sustainability and humility into their architectural projects.
Fig. 15 Vitsoe Factory, Leamington Spa
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One case study of a contemporary architectural building that applies and understands the importance of sustainability in their design and process is the Vitsoe Factory. Located in Leamington Spa, England. Vitsoe factory was designed and constructed in 2017 with the most advanced modern technology and technique to achieve a sustainable outcome. Vitsoe’s awareness of sustainability and humility values are applied in every stage of the design process, construction and future implications of the building’s use and created in design that beautifully crafted and sensitive towards environmental context.
In the case of how sustainable Vitsoe is, a deep analysis of
their company’s production and building construction can be seen on Appendix 1 which was examined against the newest released framework by the World Green Building Council as a guideline to sustainable building designs.
Vitsoe, without doubt, covers sustainability aspect towards
their design and building’s performance. On the other hand, Vitsoe’s approach to humility was not reached in a straightforward manner but still covers humility’s aspect in their design. The first part of humility where Vitsoe Factory achieves is even with the high economic demand of architecture and design, Vitsoe still succeeds to produce a humble building. Modern buildings commonly focuses on profits ask it was following the demands of its stakeholders and resulting in putting aside humility and sustainability on their design.
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Fig. 16 Vitsoe Factory, Interior and daylight strategy
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Instead as a modern building, Vitsoe was built from the importance of meeting both economic values and sustainability (Vitsoe, 2019). One example that can be seen through Vitsoe Factory that it was designed to fit into any changes in the future. The timber-framed structure of Vitsoe Factory allows the company to add and reduce spaces to fit the current need of the factory. May be seen as a simple gesture and highly profitable but at the same time, it minimizes environmental and climate impact from the building to the context. They managed to implicate the abstract quality of modernism and at the same time able to stay humble and sustainable towards the different field of their journey as a company.
Second, Vitsoe uses modern technology and techniques to
be more humble. Advance technology in modernist architecture usually has embodied a great negative impact on the environment with a high carbon footprint. Oppositely, Vitsoe manipulates advanced technology that does not obstruct the environment but work alongside with nature to produce new technology and techniques that is better and sustainable for the modern architecture to learn from. One of the case how Vitsoe able to starch technology to its advance is by using Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) in their structural plan (Fig. 17) which is a new material that is used in the building environment. LVL roof beams span the full 25 meters width of the factory, this is not only a sustainable and renewable resources material but also able to span in greater length as good or even better than a usual concrete modernist structural system. 33
Fig. 17 Vitsoe Factory, LVL building structure
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Vitsoe Factory is certainly not vernacular nor inspired and
reflecting any local British vernacular architecture aspects, but it is undoubtedly both sustainable and humble. It proves that in the contemporary architecture industry, the progress towards better and sustainable designs are improving. The advantage that the Vitsoe factory has laid in its nature as a company. Vitsoe, have the aim and design core that allows its goods and services to be as sustainable and humble as it might be (Vitsoe, 2019). In reality, not all modern and contemporary clients have the same focus and aim as Vitsoe.
The nature of modernism that still faces tectonic mishaps
which commonly caused due to initial financial constrain or maybe ignorant, sometimes both, (Porteous, 2002) is nevertheless a big factor for a modernist building to be not as sustainable as Vitsoe. Vitsoe Factory was built with a high budget coming from their supporting loyal clients which allow them to be built with renewable material (LVL) that is undoubtedly expensive and with its company design principles (Vitsoe, 2019), they manage to naturally carried to a more sustainable outcome than other modernist projects. It can be said that Vitsoe factory successfulness as a green contemporary came effortlessly than other modernist projects that do not have sustainable design core to its name. Not to say that it is hard or impossible to achieve sustainable and humble architecture design but the reality of the modern built environment makes it cheaper and easier to be ignorant and unsustainable.
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Fig. 18 Vitsoe Factory Exterior
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Extrapolated Architecture
As analysed, vernacular architecture is sustainable and
humble but with the changing world and the increase in the need of a dwelling, vernacular architecture simply could not meet the need. Then again, more humble and sustainable architectural designs are still required. What current architects and designers are trying to create is to combine both vernacular and contemporary architecture. Extrapolated architecture is when a contemporary architecture is created with local vernacular aspects. This type of architecture tried to be as humble and sustainable as possible while still trying to meet the necessity of a dwelling. Many starchitects started to take action and understanding the importance of a humble and sustainable design while meeting contemporary need. One extrapolated architecture is a newly built 2020 Japan’s Olympic Stadium by architect Kengo Kuma. Located in Tokyo the stadium reflects Kuma’s understanding of the importance of sustainability in not just the environmental aspect but also humility (Great Big Story, 2019).
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Humility
A function of a stadium in its nature holds a high capacity
of almost 80,000 people (Lynch, 2016). This big-scale project was able to be humble even in its character, Kuma was able to build the stadium to be as low as possible to reduce the use of materiality. At the same time to still able to hold the needed volume. Building’s design and materiality
This stadium was heavily referenced on Japan’s vernacular
architecture a 1,300 year old Gujunoto Pagoda at Horyuji temple in Karuga (Hilburg, 2019). This allows local cultural heritage to be embraced in a contemporary and big project, to not only promote but also to conserving Japan’s heritage. The building’s structural systems are a mix with concrete and mainly larch and cedarwood that support its steel roof which was locally sourced.
Kuma’s understanding of the importance of reflecting hu-
mility and sustainability guided the birth of a piece of architecture, that is for sure sustainable and humble but also able to achieve an amazing star architecture piece. This proves that being humble does not always lead onto a result of an ordinary building, that some might say monotonous and dull, but to be considerate and humble allows architects to explore various forms without sacrifising the conservation of the environment and communities.
Fig. 19 Japan 2020 Olympic Stadium by Kengo Kuma
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Conclusion
Without doubt architects and designers plays a direct role
in the wellness of a community and people, since architecture is where the act of living takes place. So architecture should always prioritises people, community, and its well-being. This brought us to understand the importance of a better and sustainable design, not just environmentally but also socially. Architects should not go back to our unsustainable cities and buildings, we should learn to improve and adapt to contemporary need. In conclusion, sustainability and humility both are important factors to be taken into consideration towards a better future in architecture and design. Sustainability is humility, in architecture and design we might have lost them at one point from the fading of vernacular architecture but as humans, we learn from our mistake and to move forward with that knowledge to sustainable and humble design. Vernacular might not have to always be embraced in every contemporary project but the main lesson in vernacular architecture is to understand and embrace the value and importance of local context and its cultural heritage.
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Figures
Figure 1, Author Figure 2, Author, adapted from Pallister (2014) Figure 3, Author, adapted from Architecture (2019) Figure 4, Author, adapted from Perez, A. (2010) Figure 5, Author, adapted from Perez, A. (2010) Figure 6, Author, adapted from Perez, A. (2010) Figure 7, Author, adapted from Perez, A. (2010) Figure 8, Author Figure 9, Author Figure 10, Author Figure 11, Author, adapted from Johnston, C. (2003) Figure 12, Author Figure 13, Author Figure 14, Author Figure 15, Author Figure 16, Author Figure 17, Author Figure 18, Author Figure 19, Author, adapted from Hilburg, J (2019)
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Aalto, A. (1978) 1898-1976. London. Helsonki Achenza, M (2016) Architectural sustainability - a new inspiration. Serbian Architectural Journal, 8. pp. 167–178. Available at http://saj.rs/wp-content/up-
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Bergman, D. (2012) Sustainable Design, Critical Guide. New York, Princeton Architectural Press Brunskill, R.W. (1971) Vernacular Architecture. London: Trinity Press. Buckley, F.H. (2005) The Morality of Laughter. Michigan: University of Michigan Press. Ouroussoff, N. (2007) Let the ‘Starchitects’ Work All the Angles. The New York Times, 16 Dec. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/16/weekinreview/16ouroussoff.html [Accessed 20 Jan 2020] Deviren. A.S and Tabb, P.J. (2013) The Greening of Architecture: A Critical History and Survey of Contemporary Sustainable Architecture and Urban Design (Design Research in Architecture). England: Ashgate Publishing Frampton, K. (2007) Modern Architecture, A Critical History. 4th edn. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd. Glancey, J. (2013) Modern Architecture, the Structure that Shaped the Modern World. 4th edn. London: Goodman An Harris, R. (2008) Discovering Timber-Framed Buildings. USA: Bloomsbury Harris, J & Williams, R.J., eds. (2010) Regenerating Culture and Society. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press & Tate Liverpool. Heath, K.W. (2009) Vernacular architecture and regional design: cultural process and environmental response. Oxford: Architectural. Hartman, H. (2012) Is Sustainability just another ‘ism’. Architectural Design, vol 82(4). Hyde, R. (2007) The environmental brief : pathways for green design. Abingdon, Oxon: Taylor and Francis. Jones, P. (2018) The Icon Project: Architecture, Cities and Capitalist Globalization. The British Journal of Sociology, 70(1), 395–408. Available at: http://dx.doi. org/10.1111/1468-4446.12617 [Accessed 20 Jan 2020] Keitsch, M. (2012). Sustainable Architecture, Design and Housing. Sustainable Development, 20(3), 141–145. Available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/sd.1530 [Accessed 20 Jan 2020] Klimek, A. (2013). The Emergence of the ‘Starchitect’ Category. In The Emergence of the ‘Starchitect’ Category. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. Available From: brill<https://doi.org/10.1163/9781848882546_007> [Accessed 16 Jan 2020] Kuma, K. & Architectural Association (Great Britain) (2008) Anti-object: the dissolution and disintegration of architecture. London: Architectural Association.
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6010 Critical Study in Architecture Dea Arimbawa, Pei Lee, Iletutunimoba Awosika, Oana Halapciuc, Gavinder Kandola
Since architecture and construction process produced 30% of UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s total carbon emission, sustainability in the industry is the major focus. Since then, a framework is published to help arhitects and others as a guideline to achieve net zero carbon emission on buildings. To understand sustainability in architecture , we visit the one claimed sustainable building in Royal Leamington Spa which is the Vitsoe Factory. From the study visit and research we came up with a hypothesis to critically analyse the sustainibility of Vitsoe Factory.
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Appendix 1
Should the WORLD be more like
?
Methodology Primary Research Site Visit, Interviews during site visit and observations.
Secondary Research Collecting informations from websites, such as digimap, vitsoe.com, the booklet, etc.
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620 Chair & 621 Desk
Vitsoe was founded by Niels Vitsoe. Vitsoe it self is a furniture making company that sells high quality and long lasting furnitures. In 2017 they outgrew their office in London and decided to move to Leamington Spa.
606 Shelving System
Vitsoe History
Context Before, Vitsoe was located in London. As the company grew larger, the then outgrew the expense and congestion of London. Leamington Spa is located only half a mile away from Midland Oak, an area that are often used as an area of distribution by multiple distribution companies. They are also located only 40 miles away from the nearest container terminals. The Leamington Spa branch location also located by the nearest train station with a direct line to Marylebone Vitsoe shop. They are also on the near buses stop and the national cycle route.
Site
Public Buildings
Private Buildings Figure Ground Diagram
Context
Location
Train Station
Interview
O: Hello and thank you for welcoming us today to visit Vitsoe! Can you describe what it’s like to work here in this factory? How do you get materials, what is the course of the materials and what happens when you receive them? M: Hello and I am glad you came! I don’t know exactly how or all the details about the materials course for our furniture. All I know is that we order strictly materials that we need to use. The producers send them to us and we store them each in the correct department, so that they are used in a useful way. We do not like to waste so everything we receive we use to produce the furniture. We do not accept waste in here.. O: Can you explain how this factory is organised, where are the offices, the showrooms and the work place? M: Sure! So, the offices from the entrance are moving in the new space where the glass is, if you can see? And here (left, where the main entrance is) is just a small showroom. Where the clients come in and we will speak about the systems (furniture system). So, yeah, we use the system example everywhere in the building. As you can see (on the right how you enter into the factory) here is the packing area. We assembly here everything and send the orders everywhere. O: So you are an international brand? M: Yes! Very international. This is one of the reason why we moved here. Because when we were in London based we had just a small place and we couldn’t got this sort of space in London, so we moved here. D: I was going to mention that you moved from. London to West Midlands. How does that help you in term of cutting the carbon emission that happens when the distance is too long from the suppliers? M: Yeah, I just going to say that (laughing), em, they had picked this area because now we are very close to our suppliers, maybe 10-15 miles at least, so the company tried to build something big enough to accommodate all the materials needed and stock fit in and also to have all our suppliers closer. So we try to find suppliers very local. So yeah, again this sort of space we couldn’t build it in London. D: Sure! What about the workers, how the workers are feeling here? Especially, when we speaking about the light. I am looking at the roof design and you have a lot of light coming through. M: Yeah...I mean how do you guys feel like? Like would you guys like to come and work in here? All: Yeah, sure, totally! M: Because is so bright in here, I mean yeah is raining 99,9% of the time, but, you know, when the sun is out, and by the way we can open the windows sometimes, is like an open space is a lot of light coming through is the open space idea that help us.
T: Do you have solar panels on the roof? M: Yes, we have solar on the roof, and the windows are north facing which means we get a lot of natural light and effective light as well. We have also underfloor heating, so we don’t actually heat the building and is about 19 degrees in here all year round. Also we are using waste coconut skin to make our structure for the system chairs. Only two people know how to make this coconut structure, so they ever get sick at the same time... well no chairs (laughing). O: So, you bring every material in this space (in the middle area of the building)? M: Em, yes, so everything that we need it come in here, so gets delivered here, and that where it is come in this two big rooms (modular rooms), so some workers have their materials place somewhere in the reception space, other workers have their materials here, but basically everything comes in here first and everyone come here and they will find what they need. Everything in term of materials, that came in this space will be distribute to the correct department to be used. T: Everything you design is made manually? M: Yeah, so we do the plastic sheeting in here (in the middle left wing of the building), we have two machine technicians, so yeah, we do everything in here planning, the design, everything is based in this building. O: What happens when something is breaking? M: Hm, the system do break sometimes, but we repair it and use it again. O: So, you are reusing everything? M: As much as possible! And we also encourage our costumers to recycle everything. O: Okay, so because you distribute all the materials for the system furniture to your customers, sometimes the system could broke? What do you do then? M: If they get it broken, and sometimes is happened that, they can send it back and we repair it if is reusable. If is completely broken we can’t do anything else, and we usually send the broken materials back to our suppliers. T: What is 606 system about? M: Yeah...so 606 system is relating with the year when design for the system slightly change (1960). I am in the planning team we are planning these 606 systems for our customers. They email us with all the measurements that we need to know (walls measurements etc.) and we customise. So we have 606 Universal Shelving System (1960), 620 Chair Programme (1962), 621 Table (1962).
Circulation and Spatial Analysis
Office Spaces
Mixed Use
Work Spaces
Bicycle
Tectonic Analysis
The vision of the Vitsœ’s building was to be “a clear, simple, elegant design which reflects Vitsœ’s product”. A vision well accomplished. The choice of materials work cohesively to replicatethe ideals of the companies products. he choice of LVL which provides the simplistic look within the building as well as being structrally capable to carry out the buildings functional needs and form as well as need of flexibility of space, the choice of plate glass being used to provide abundance of light into the building and the enforcing of the polished concrete floor pertaining maximising lighting. Cast Plate Glass
1. LVL Column 2. 280mm chamfered beech LVL with routed service channel 3. 35mm plywood cover 4. Shear wall 5. Slab edge protection : Galvanised steel cast into concrete slab 6. Neoprene slip to base of ply 7. Closed cellnsulation 8. Path of underfloor heating 9. 500 gauge seperating layer 10. 50mm insulation 11. DPM flexible waterproofing 12. Stanilised ground
2
Polished Concrete Floor Stain-Resistant Improved Reflectivity and Ambient Lighting Increase Slip Resistance Less Maintenance Leed Friendly Reduced Tire Wear
1
4 5 6
3
12
7
8
9
10
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Framework
The framework is a guideline to achieve net zero carbon in architecture and construction process, published by the Green Building Council. Our aim is to assess Vitsoe Factory building if it meets the standard based on the framework. The framework contain 5 different steps, which are; 1. Establish Net Zero Carbon Scope 2. Reduce Constructon Impacts 3. Reduce Operational Energy Use 4. Increase Renewable Energy Supply 5. Offset any Remaining Carbon
1. Establish Net Zero Carbon Scope
Developer Provide a strategic location
Close to the proximity of suppliers Affordable land cost compared to London
Build less for future expansion Installing solar panels save electricity Responsible for the maintenance of the factory
Contractor Time management Done building in 23 days Monitoring the carbon emission during construction
Establish Net Zero Carbon Scope
Manufacturing materials for construction that are easily obtainable
2. Reduce Construction Impacts Locally sourced material As we went to visit the site, we interviewed one of the
employee on Vitsoe. She mentioned that the material of the building are locally sourced within 15 miles radius from Royal Leamington Spa. So that reduced the carbon footprint for the transportation from the construction process.
Fast construction proces The main material of the building as mentioned before is made from beech laminate-veneer-lumber (LVL) that are manufactured off-site. So the construction process only takes 23 days to build. That reduce the carbon footprint, energy resouces and the man-power cost.
Leamington Spa, United Kingdom
Designer Provide design decisions
Let sufficient daylight enter with huge windows and a sawtooth roof Concrete flooring finished with a polished gloss surface
Developed a structure inspired by products sold from Vitsoe
3. Reduced Operational Energy Use Maximised Daylighting. Sawtooth roof maximising usage of light during working hours, therefore having practically no dependency on power consuming lighting for building to be functional. Artificial Lighting. Used very minimally in the building. Sole use is to highlight and give character to the permormance space as well as to be used when its dark outside. Open Plan Versatile space: Enables for all areas within to building to utilise natural source of light and shared ventilation. Meaning all spaces could have a change in function and still be sufficient to use without needing additional running power.
4. Increase Renewable Energy Supply
On the opposite side of the skylights, Solar panels are placed. These create a clean flow of renewable energy that is used within the building and absorbs more sunlight as the reflected rays from the skylights are more likely to be absorbed by the solar panels directly opposite the skylight.
5. Offset Any Remaining Carbon Connect back to Nature
Connecting the humans with the natural world. The building is locating in a area surrounding “ridge-andfurrow landscape, but wasn’t chosen just for the natural view but also for the rainwater and the soften road noice. On the north side of the building is a pond that provides a habitat for wildlife, Foundry Forest overlooking this pond.
Planning for Change
”A building’s services have to change more quickly than its structure. The first floor plan room has space to accommodate future battery storage to allow the building to store solar-generated electricity for overnight use-and offer the potential to become self-sufficient.”
Healthy Users
There is so many evidences that artificial heating and lighting are causing humans’ immune system to weaken. Vitsoe’s building is created to “expose its occupants to changing temperature and day-length. Intentionally it is warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter. Moreover, its size and layout ensure that much-needed exercise is gained simply from the daily routine, which includes everyone stopping to share food together.”
