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Given
that we continue to live with pressures that disconnect us from the sustenance
of the natural world, and of community, it makes sense to look for some ways to
strengthen these connections by our building practices. It is assumed that
a nature-based, or Earth-based approach to how we shelter ourselves is sustaining
and desirable.
Appropriate criteria can be developed in response to some questions that reflect
this basic assumption. Questions can be expected, to bring forth information through
intuition and through logic, which will point to an instinctive ordering of priorities…
At each level or stage, the process is grounded in observation and decision-making
that, once in place, informs subsequent choices. Once the fundamentals are "right,"
the design or plan will have a natural logic and integrity that cannot easily
be altered without starting over with a different set of basic assumptions. Everything
is connected in ways that are often overlooked. Some
NATURAL Questions 1.
In what ways does your home connect you to, or separate you from, nature, the
Earth? 2. How comfortably
does your home fit its setting, its site, in terms of shape and appearance, the
contours of the land, the landscape, and natural growth? Are there some ways nature
could help you out if the current fit is awkward? 3.
What kinds of materials were used to build your home? Where did they come from?
How much did/do they cost? What are the embedded costs? What skills were needed? 4.
What are some ways your home is responsive to the Sun, in terms of solar heating,
photovoltaic possibility, daylighting, sunrise, sunset, and sunny outdoor spaces?
5. To what extent is
your home energy-efficient in terms of insulation and tightness, consumption of
fuel, lighting and appliances, and the quality, size, and placement of doors and
windows? How efficiently is water used?
6. Does your home reflect a long-term
commitment to your community, in terms of closeness to work, nearness to shops,
and sharing with neighbors? 7.
What are some ways that your home reflects, or could reflect, your humanity, your
personality, your uniqueness, and your ideals? 8.
To what extent do the answers reflect a regard for the basic assumption of inescapable
environmental accountability implicit in the questions? 9.
What earth-based values or qualities emerge as desirable underpinnings
(a
foundation for the foundation) for home-building?
10.
What if we take some BALES OF STRAW and stack them like big bricks?
PYRAMIDS
ARE LONG-LASTING AND HARD TO TIP Stewart
Brand, in How Buildings Learn, suggests a useful way to categorize the fundamental
elements of a home as it is being planned…Designing from the ground up…EARTH-the
ultimate foundation…underlying everything…at the SITE-a particular place
in a particular bio-region…to develop a STRUCTURE-providing strong connection
and support…for the SKIN-which covers and shelters… and contains SPACE-that
embraces our lives… providing places both for SERVICES-that bring comfort
and convenience…and for the STUFF-that expresses our Selves … so that
our house will have SOUL, will be a home-and the design of our home will have
the timeless integrity of a pyramid…with a bedrock foundation…each stage
fully integrated in a natural order… long-lasting…hard to tip… What
has this got to do with building a home with bales of straw?
*
__soul__
_____stuff______
_______services_______
___________space____________
_________________skin__________________
___________________structure____________________
_________________________site___________________________
______________________________earth_______________________________
The
Earth is the BASE. Each element, as it is integrated into a project, can reinforce
a connection with this strong sustaining foundation. Integration is inescapable
if there is a regard for wholeness, and if there is the understanding that what
is being built is not merely on or in the Earth, but of and from the Earth, as
well…a profound connection…
What if we take some BALES OF STRAW and
stack them like big bricks?
YES,
BUT WHAT ABOUT BEAUTIFUL? WILL IT BE BEAUTIFUL? Whole-ness
is beautiful
From the beginning, look for beauty at each stage of the building
process, and in the behind-the-seen, as well as in the apparent, or seen. Deep
or timeless beauty derives from an integration of these seemingly unrelated aspects.
This is not a superficial matter of dressing up something plain with a surface
of traditional aesthetic qualities. The process of integration makes it impossible
to separate "skin deep" from "what's inside". Inside and outside
are inseparable, and the integrity deriving from this regard for wholeness, is
beautiful. Each element or detail, in doing its "job", also contributes
at the same time, in some way, to wholeness. Again, "…when you build
something you cannot merely build that thing in isolation, but must also repair
the world around it, and within it, so that the larger world at that one place
becomes more coherent, and more whole, and the thing which you make takes its
place in the web of nature, as you make it." (Christopher Alexander, A Pattern
Language) "Hole"-ness
and Harmony contribute to beauty
Awareness of the importance of "left-over",
"in-between", "negative", or "empty" space that
exists around or between actual things (which can be thought of as "positive"
shapes) is one of the basic perceptual skills that enable artists to do what they
do. It is easily learnable and should be fundamental to any approach to beautiful
design. Part of its power derives from the fact that cognitive functions are shut
down while perceptual capabilities are activated. There is also a metaphorical
quality that might even be regarded literally-the perception of the connectedness
of all things through the "emptiness" that embraces all.
Another
thing an artist understands instinctively is that the natural human inclination
to seek harmony and beauty lies partly in striking an intuitive balance between
the repetition of visual elements and variation. Too much repetition is dull,
boring, to the eye of the beholder, while too much variety leaves a chaotic discomforting
appearance. Sustainability
and Integrity as Beauty
Humans will gradually eventually find themselves
living sustainably. We can get there by developing an attitude which respects
the natural world, or we can be forced there by Earth's response to our experiments
with what is unsustainable. There is no simple set of rules to follow, or things
one should do. It means thinking on several overlapping planes in order to instinctively
integrate human activity into the web of nature. Our efforts gain power and efficiency
and meaning as we attach elements of support and layers of purpose to them. It
is not hard to perceive how a building material that is chosen out of regard for
many criteria will be Better than one reflecting only a few. The more functions
and positive qualities a building element has, the more power and meaning there
will be.
Intrinsic beauty and integrity flow from the density that develops
in this way. WHAT
IF WE TAKE SOME BALES OF STRAW…?
explore-observe-organize-imagine-integrate-facilitate-
create…evaluate…celebrate…the
possibility
A
Process Pyramid-from the ground up
*
__celebration__
evaluation __________creation_________ Integration-facilitation _______________imagination________________ observation-organization
_____________________exploration_____________________ nature ________________________________Earth________________________________ Creation
A Process for Designing and Building ( or other human activity ) Exploration-looking
around-"beginner's mind"-nature's sources and resources
WHAT ARE
THE POSSIBILITIES-ALL THINGS CONSIDERED
Observation-looking carefully-to develop
awareness-paying attention to nature
ONE EYE ON THE DETAILS, ONE ON THE WHOLE,
ONE ON ALL ELSE
Organization-looking at- understanding patterns and relationships-
PRIORITIES-HOW POSSIBILITIES RELATE TO WHAT IS
Imagination-looking to-picture-intuitive
information, creative solutions
PICTURING NEW POSSIBILITIES-PROBLEM-SOLVING
Facilitation-creation-looking how-to make things-creativity, skills, empowerment
DOING
IT IN COOPERATION WITH NATURE
Integration-looking for-fit-what is man-made
takes its place in the web of nature
DOING IT WITH INTEGRITY-ON-GOING PROCESS
Communication-looking
outward-building community-sharing experience
COOPERATION
Evaluation-looking
over-meaning-is it sustaining?-sharing experience
FEEDBACK-WHAT ARE THE COSTS?
BENEFITS?
Celebration-look out!-acknowledgment, appreciation, affirmation-MOVIN'
IN!
A
STRAWBALE RESPONSE
What
if we take some bales of straw and consider their suitability as a building material
in light of criteria distilled from careful observation and common sense…?
The
Uncommon Sense of a house of STRAW…
…minimally
processed,
not far removed from its natural form,
natural product of biological
activity,
non-toxic, bio-degradable …inexpensive
with minimal embedded costs
available from local sources
contributing
to the local farming economy …can
be installed quickly
without special skills or experience
making it ideal
for owner-builders
and for a community "house-raising"
empowerment
opportunity--personal and social …"waste
as food"-use an agricultural by-product
as a substantial contributor to
high quality shelter while
reducing the need for consumption of other "costlier"
materials …outstanding
insulation value-warmth and coolth
long-term implications for comfort without
consumption …timeless
beauty…hand-crafted surfaces,
deeply recessed windows, in its integrity | 