Student Thesis: The Ordinary Phenomenon

NOTE, THIS POST IS EDITED BY NEITHER THE AUTHOR OF THIS THESIS PROJECT NOR ANYBODY OF MERIT WHATSOEVER, AND THIS WRITER WILL THEREFORE USE IT AS YET ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO FLAUNT HIS SELF-PROCLAIMED RIGHTEOUS ANGER AND CYNICISM. HERE FOR THE FULL THESIS AS INTENDED BY THE STUDENT (SANS BELLIGERENT CRITICISM). 

-BRANDED CONSUMER

 

Ah, suburbia. Designs here respond mainly to one thing alone: "curb appeal": How 'nice' does this home appear from all the folks driving their SUVs on the street? The homes rarely respond to anything beyond this.
Things that have driven architecture since its beginning - sun, wind, water, materials - can be forgotten about. Why bother trying to keep out the hot summer sun when you can just pump an insulated box full of A/C?  

The following image is an assessment of a suburban dwelling, designed by a firm that I once worked for. I've found 7 things that are bastardizations of once legitimate design choices simply to boost the house's "curb appeal".

 

1- Possibly the most unnecessary columns I've ever seen. Aside from serving no structural function whatsoever, they become something to dodge while pulling your SUV out of that 2-car garage.

2- Fake stone, 2 inches thick, affectionately referred to as 'lick and stick' by those unfortunate enough to be installing it.

3- Louvers once played an important role in the removal of excess heat. This one is for decoration.

4- A little 'pent roof' might be a shading device to keep out the hot summer sun while admitting the warmth of the winter sun. Here, somehow I doubt it.

5- Shutters? For keeping out the wind? Think again - These shutters don't move.

6- Gas fireplaces don't need chimneys.

7- This porch looks so small that it must be unusable... but maybe I'm just bitter.

I'm sure there are more.

This is the kind of environmental obliviousness that this student's thesis brings under consideration. The student analyzes this trend in the most extreme circumstances: high risk areas of DROUGHT, SEA LEVEL FLUX, and SEISMIC ACTIVITY. The student states that her ultimate purpose is to create a home, a place of comfort and peace of mind amidst these three high risk areas. The designs should be symbiotic in their relation to the surrounding site, be shaped fundamentally by the geological and celestial site conditions, and implement technology as an aid to the design rather than a crutch. In the end, as with species, the designs that will last are the designs that are adaptable, thus transforming an environmental disaster into an Ordinary Phenomenon. Let's take a look:

DROUGHT

The design objectives for this high risk area:

• Water collection, through fog condensation, rain harvesting, and diurnal condensation.
• The creation of shade through solar orientations 
• Response to possibilities of flash floods and dust storms
• Help in remediation of desertification through irrigation and recharging of the water table
• Create a modifiable unit for a nomadic desert culture.

 The student performed numerous studies (above) in response to solar orientations, wind directions, possibilities of dust storms and fluctuations in wind patterns, in the attempt to find the highest performing model. One model was selected for further development.

What results is a reassessment of a vernacular home, responding to extreme site conditions as well as social conditions and the comfort of the individual. I don't know if I see suburbia adopting these kinds of strategies anytime soon, but we can hope... we can hope.

HERE  for the full thesis.