Wendy Green spent most of her life in suburban New Jersey spending long days as a yoga teacher, so when she turned 50, she sold her house and used the proceeds to buy remote land in the Andes. In her new homestead, she built an all-wood, tall and narrow, home, installed solar, a gravity-fed water … Read more
The Luum Temple in Tulum, Mexico is a pioneering example of what happens when traditional wisdom meets modern engineering. It is designed to stand against hurricane winds and significant seismic forces. The structural system has five intersecting hyperbolic paraboloids made of bamboo arches and split bamboo beams. Due to bamboo’s lightweight nature, particular attention must … Read more
Lola Ben-Alon sloshes water into a tray of dirt and plunges her fingers into the muck. She smears it between her hands to see if it cakes on her skin, then mashes it into a sticky lump. “You need to know how much clay is in the soil,” she says. “That’s the first criterion for … Read more
The use of trunks or branches of trees in their entirety can accentuate their innate mechanical properties for structural stability. By embracing the grain structure and longitudinal fibers of timber, these wood pieces demonstrate strong mechanical resistance. Some engineering companies, such as Whole Trees, and architectural research institutes, such as the Architectural Association postgraduate program … Read more
CLEZOL is a Rwandan construction company that specialized in rammed earth and compressed stabilized earth blocks. The company was created by three Rwandan civil engineers who worked on the construction project of Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture, before they came up with the idea to create their own company. “As the world is focusing on … Read more
Fusing local heritage and contemporary spatial dynamics, Casa De Mi Luna nestles into the scenic landscape of a nature reserve in the Czech Republic. Designed by Martin Zizka of Studio Circle Growth, the residence provides an idyllic retreat for an Argentinian-Czech family seeking respite from the bustle of Prague. The space blends with the region’s … Read more