The noble vernacular

Abstract

In recent years many publications have appeared that stress the sustainable character of vernacular architecture, emphasising its ecological friendliness and appropriateness. Commonly this literature represents vernacular architecture as a more sustainable alternative, or predecessor, to conventional contemporary forms of architecture and their associations with excessive energy consumption, pollution and wasteful use of resources. This article aims to identify what may be learned from this relatively recent work in terms of the way in which it conceptualises and represents vernacular architecture. It reveals a vibrant and growing discourse that makes an important contribution to the field of vernacular architectural studies. It also shows, however, that the relative isolation of the discourse results in a number of short-comings that make our current understanding of the sustainability of vernacular traditions only a partial one. Arguing that the recent discourse replaces the complexity, plurality and dynamics of both vernacular architecture and the concept of sustainability by reductionist, essentialist and romanticist representations, the article calls for a holistic, integrated and critical approach that complements the study of the environmental qualities and performance of vernacular architecture with an examination of its social, political and economic aspects. The lessons that are to be found there are not so casually learned. Paul Oliver1