Dapur Naga, located within the lush tropical environment of Bali, serves as a communal kitchen and dining space, capable of hosting more than 50 people. The main conceptual inspiration for Dapur Naga came from the graceful form of a whirling Sufi skirt, reflected in the building’s undulating roof. The roof is designed to capture stunning … Read more
Tavs Jorgensen of the Centre for Print Research in England has created a method of extruding cob into brick shapes that can be stacked in interlocking patterns. The process involves pushing different samples of cob through 3D-printed extrusion molds known as dies. Cob is made by combining subsoil, water and fibrous materials such as straw. … Read more
Some birds’ nests are cup-shaped, some have domes, others have been likened to apartment complexes. How do birds build their nurseries? Captain Cook collected a hummingbird nest during his trip to Brazil. That nest, just 6 cm (2.4 inches) high was in the fork of two branches, camouflaged with lichen, lined with fluffy seeds and … Read more
On a rural farm near Bear Lake, Michigan, builder Thomas Hirsch and architectural designer Ellis Wills Begley are embracing sustainable methods by incorporating materials like straw-clay insulation, black locust wood, and foamed glass aggregate. The studio they are building is in a circular form because round shapes are inherently natural and create a sense of … Read more
Cempedak is an island hotel built in Indonesia entirely of bamboo, recycled teak and rubber wood and topped with grass-thatched roofs. There are no walls, not even in the second-floor bedroom and shower, in order to catch the sea breezes and be lulled to sleep by the lapping sea. The architects converted the conceptual drawings … Read more
Students at the University of Stuttgart in Germany have developed a hybrid flax fibre/cross-laminated timber (CLT) roof for a prototype pavilion in Germany which enables column-free spans and demonstrates the structural application of a bio-based alternative to timber. This system forms the wave-like roof of an experimental building designed for a garden show on the … Read more