Siblings Ansh and Raghav Kumar started to build this homestay in Rishikesh, India in 2020. They remembered a picture of their childhood––a quaint home nestled among mountains, with a river flowing nearby and the sun smiling upon them. “It was during the pandemic that we began to question our state of living and being. Our … Read more
Ross and Kristin Ulibarri live in a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home in Valverde Commons, a senior co-housing community within walking distance of historic Taos Plaza in New Mexico. Its sculpted adobe-style exterior makes it look like a traditional Southwestern dwelling. The house has triple-glazed windows and air-tight insulation, so it rarely needs any heating beyond the … Read more
Solar Adobe: Energy, Ecology & Earthen Architecture by Albert Narath was published this year by the University of Minnesota Press and would be a fine addition to any architectural library. The book focuses on the history of earthen building, mainly in the United States, and primarily during the Twentieth Century. Much attention is placed on … Read more
The Daiku House in Berne, New York is a custom-crafted two-bedroom home on seven secluded acres that thoughtfully incorporates Japanese-inspired style and design. Built in 1982 by the home’s current and original owner who studied carpentry in Japan (“Daiku” translates to “carpenter” in Japanese), the two-story open-floor plan combines timber-frame construction with traditional techniques, hand-cut … Read more
Wood is inherently imprecise. Its grain reverses and swirls. Trauma and disease manifest in scars and knots. Instead of viewing these natural tendencies as liabilities, Achim Menges, an architect and professor at the University of Stuttgart in Germany, sees them as wood’s greatest assets. Menges and his team at the Institute for Computational Design and … Read more
Idaho Springs, Colorado plans to restore of the Powder House, which the mayor refers to as a “hidden gem” owned by the city for over 100 years The property is now set to become a city park. It was built in the 1880s and acquired by the city of Idaho Springs in a tax lien … Read more