Mr. Giovane has enclosed an entire condominium in Brazil with a dry-stacked stone wall. He has worked with this method for decades. It took him about six months of work, but he stayed on site for almost a year because of the rainy weather. These walls are made without the use of any binding material, … Read more
Most bamboo species reach full height in three to five years compared to at least a decade for traditional timber, making it incredibly renewable. The fastest-growing bamboo species can grow up to 35 inches, or 91 centimeters, in a day! During its rapid growth phase, bamboo absorbs a lot of carbon dioxide and releases lots … Read more
When people see the castle that Jim Bishop built for the first time, the reaction is almost always the same: How can a single man build a giant castle all by himself? The answer lies in decades of manual labor, creativity, and stubbornness. It all began in 1969, when he built a first room on … Read more
Cob building is a method in which clay, sand, and plant fibers (usually straw) are mixed manually and molded directly in place. Unlike bricks, blocks, or concrete walls, cob doesn’t use forms, doesn’t require molding and allows for the creation of curved walls, niches, arches, built-in benches, round windows, and sculpted details. There are cob … Read more
Woodstock is a self-sufficient, private house in Belgium, conceived as a vessel anchored along the riverbank. The project embodies the core principles of architecture as a form of transition within the construction culture towards a regenerative and post-carbon world. The architects say, “We believe systemic change in architecture must be learned through making. Woodstock became … Read more
Barns provide a multi-purpose system of storage built to accommodate living things. Barns are houses for activities that involve humans, but are not built exclusively for them. Barns are storehouses that operate as supply infrastructure for crops. The annual cycle of grain crop production often entails specific rituals or agricultural rites— procedures that entangle human … Read more