A modest proposal to banish ‘hellevations’

Abstract

No previous architectural impact has been quite as immediate and profound as that of global warming and CO2 generation on the formal composition of building envelopes and the resulting levels of amenity available to occupants. This essay therefore discusses the issue of transparency and opacity in terms of the appropriate relationship of window area to exterior surface, and the possibility of treating this as a dynamic, rather than static, compositional issue. The essay reflects upon the increasing reduction in the proportion of window-to-wall area in buildings across the world, and offers a modest proposal that might ameliorate this. The reduction in window area is most noticeable in low-cost new-build dwellings, which are becoming increasingly claustrophobic, and hence the historical analysis focuses on a comparison of sample domestic building types in Britain over four centuries. As an alternative, I argue here for larger window openings on all façades coupled with the use of insulated thermal shutters controlled by occupants by means of responsive mechanical systems. This aspect is explored through my proposal for a small dwelling in North London to be fitted with thermal/solar shutters. The house is intended as a research vehicle to test how thermal shutters can affect energy use and thermal comfort levels.