|
Design
concept
Why
choose concrete?
What
makes this house special?
Why
would you live in a concrete house?
How
it all goes together
Environmental
features
Could
you buy one of these now?
Historical
or theoretical precedents
What
are the implications for the future of housing?
About
the Architects
Design
concept
Designed by Peter Poulet and Michael Harvey of the NSW Government
Architect’s Office (GAO), the Concrete House celebrates concrete
as an honest and robust material.
The design utilises readily-available components to create a solid
mass of curvilinear concrete shells on the south side of the house
and curtain-like enclosures to the north side that open up for ventilation
and light.
In the tradition of the ‘pavilion’, the house interfaces
with the surrounding landscape: the relationship between inside
and outside is ambiguous. The curtain-like screens can be opened
up for summer outdoor living, or closed to create a feeling of warmth
and enclosure that only the thick massing of concrete can provide.
Why choose
concrete?
Concrete’s inherent thermal mass and its ability to be cast
into curvilinear forms is incorporated to provide appropriate comfort
conditions and a series of enclosed spaces in the house. A “green
roof” further improves thermal performance.
By using readily available and transportable components this house
is affordable, quick to construct, and doesn’t rely on highly
specialised skilled labour. Concrete is a robust and durable material
requiring very little maintenance.
What makes this house special?
The Concrete House challenges us to consider the use of pre-existing
concrete components as an innovative and environmentally appropriate
material.
In this open-plan, free-flowing design, the relationship between
built elements and the surrounding landscape is explored and how
people might live in the future is a key question being contemplated.
The design of the Concrete House highlights people’s relationships
with the landscape, the natural environment and the weather.
Why
would you live in a concrete house?
Living in this house would be a commitment to living sustainably,
using renewable energy, harvesting rainwater and minimising waste.
The concrete shell structure empowers occupants to personalise their
dwelling, as it is robust enough to undergo many changes. The curved
walls inspire creativity. For example, you could paint the curved
walls to any colour or pattern, both inside and outside. Or you
could line the interiors with silk, leather, stone or timber to
give a warm, inviting interior or leave the walls bare for a minimalist
look.
How it all goes
together:
Bianco Walling precast the roof and floor panels in South Australia
and Humes precast the pipes in Sydney.
Multiplex provide a lifting crane on site as the house will weigh
92 tons!
The floor panels sit on beams bolted to screw piles or are placed
directly on a firm base; the precast pipes are then craned into
preset positions and the roof panels are placed on top. Gravity
keeps the building together! All this takes less than a day to assemble.
The landscaped roof garden, folding doors, skylights, photovoltaic
cells, plumbing, power connections and furniture are then installed
on site.
Environmental
features
• Just as with the Clay House, Concrete’s inherent thermal
mass is used to keep the house cool in summer and warm in winter
• A garden on the roof further enhances thermal massing, and
its subsurface wetland cell is used to recycle greywater for toilet
flushing and irrigation, dramatically reducing potable (drinkable)
water use
• Rain water storage is integrated into the design using the
precast concrete columns - almost any volume of water could be stored
using this simple method
• AAA rated water fixtures and a waterless composting toilet
further reduce water use.
• Appropriate levels of sun shading and solar penetration are
provided by opening up the house to a northerly orientation
• Cross flow ventilation – the whole house can be opened
up to take advantage of cool breezes and outdoor living
• A solar hot water system and photovoltaic cells for power
generation can be installed on the roof
• Concrete has a very long shelf- life. The Pantheon in Rome,
which is made of concrete, is nearly 1,900 years old! Lifecycle
assessments of concrete show that it is an environmentally sustainable,
durable and robust material.
Could you
buy one of these now?
The Concrete House demonstrates the use of precast concrete elements,
which are readily available on the market.
This is a repeatable, adaptable design - almost any configuration
could be made using these simple concrete components. And you could
add or remove modules at any time.
Historical
or theoretical precedents
The use of pre-made cylindrical components in the Concrete House
is a direct reference to Japanese architect Shigeru Ban and his
architecture of cardboard cylinders (only this house uses concrete
cylinders instead). Shigeru Ban also designed a “Curtain
Wall” house in Tokyo 1995. The house has an outer skin
of just two elements: transparent glass panels and white fabric
curtains. When the curtains are retracted, the house appears almost
naked in the middle of Tokyo.
Another prominent Japanese architect, Tadao
Ando, has revolutionised the use of concrete in architecture.
His works such as ‘Church of the Light’ led to Ando winning
the prestigious Pritzker
Prize for Architecture in 1995.
Other references for the design of the Concrete House range from
the modernist pavilions of Mies van der
Rohe and Philip Johnson to the interplay of inside and outside
seen in the work of Sydney architect Richard
Leplastrier as well as much traditional
Japanese architecture. All these precedents heighten the connection
between people and their environment which in turn is a direct call
to pursue a sustainable way of life.
The openness of the planning and the potential to expand and contract
the Concrete House design to suit a variety of social groupings,
weather conditions and environments will ensure that it will be
relevant to future generations.
What are the
implications for the future of housing?
Houses of the future will be more flexible to allow for a variety
of social conjunctions. House plans will be ambiguous enough to
allow for people to decide how to use space and make place. Houses
will be environmentally sustainable. Construction will be quick
and not require specialised labour. Houses will encourage a positive
interaction between people and the natural environment.
About the Architects –
NSW
Government Architects Office
Peter Poulet is Design Director of the Government Architects Design
Directorate. Michael Harvey is a leading Design Architect in the
group.
The NSW Government Architect is Chris Johnson, who is also the director
of the YBE2004 Secretariat for New South Wales.
|
