Vernacular Building Traditions Research Articles

Change of shape, size and form related to traditional and new materials in Atoni buildings in Central Timor

This article is the second part of the analysis of the author´s field research, which was conducted in Timor in May 2004 in Maubesi, and in June 2011 near Soe and Nikiniki and Kefamenanu. The paper focuses on the region of Central Timor, settled by the Atoni Meto people, who live in round houses built on the ground. The house form and materials utilised differ somewhat in the higher regions of Central Timor and the lower-lying Eastern parts of Central Timor. The aim of this article is to explore how such building materials are utilised and whether they are or can be integrated into local vernacular building traditions. New materials are often used to imitate the more traditional ones, often incorporating structural details from the older technology and traditional materials which are copied. In other cases, new materials lead to a change in the appearance and structure of vernacular buildings. New materials already influencing the building due to their different, new properties, and designs are devised to adapt to these changes, which in the end result in an altered building. It appears that the highland regions of Central Timor near Soe and Nikiniki use a more conservative house design while in the region around Kefamenanu modern materials are more present in vernacular architecture. The use of concrete and corrugated iron to build lopos (traditional granaries and community buildings) is striking and has produced a new version of the traditional lopo.

Change of shape, size and form related to traditional and new materials in Atoni buildings in Central Timor

This article is the second part of the analysis of the author´s field research, which was conducted in Timor in May 2004 in Maubesi, and in June 2011 near Soe and Nikiniki and Kefamenanu. The paper focuses on the region of Central Timor, settled by the Atoni Meto people, who live in round houses built on the ground. The house form and materials utilised differ somewhat in the higher regions of Central Timor and the lower-lying Eastern parts of Central Timor. The aim of this article is to explore how such building materials are utilised and whether they are or can be integrated into local vernacular building traditions. New materials are often used to imitate the more traditional ones, often incorporating structural details from the older technology and traditional materials which are copied. In other cases, new materials lead to a change in the appearance and structure of vernacular buildings. New materials already influencing the building due to their different, new properties, and designs are devised to adapt to these changes, which in the end result in an altered building. It appears that the highland regions of Central Timor near Soe and Nikiniki use a more conservative house design while in the region around Kefamenanu modern materials are more present in vernacular architecture. The use of concrete and corrugated iron to build lopos (traditional granaries and community buildings) is striking and has produced a new version of the traditional lopo.

Significance of Traditional Materials and Their Substitution with Newly Available Materials

This article focuses on the region of Central Timor, settled by the Atoni Meto people, who live in round houses built on the ground. There seem to have developed local peculiarities in vernacular architecture, which require the use of wooden materials of different size, shape and state of processing. Changes in local vernacular architecture were also induced by the recent availability of modern materials such as bricks, concrete and corrugated iron. The aim of this article is to explore how such building materials are used and whether they are/ can be integrated into local vernacular building traditions. Fieldwork conatining architectural survey was conducted in Timor in May 2004 in Maubesi, and in June 2011 near Soe and Nikiniki (villages None, Supul and Boti) and Kefamenanu (among others the villages of Fafenesu, Maslete and Tamkessi). Some of the materials seem to have a strong effect on the layout or design of the buildings, whereas in other cases, such effects are far more subtle. In some cases, the new materials are used to imitate the more traditional ones, with astonishing results, and often incorporating structural details from the older technology and traditional materials which are copied. New materials already influence the building due to their different, new properties, and designs are devised to adapt to these changes, which in the end result in an altered building. In other cases, there is no compatibility at all, and old forms and designs are abandoned in favour of a new concept supported by new materials

Learning from Tradition: Vernacular Built Heritage of Madeira (Portugal), a Sustainable Proposal

The archipelago of Madeira (Portugal), of volcanic origin and situated in the intraplate region of the African plate, was formed during the Miocene and seats in a full oceanic domain. Since the settlement of the island (15th century), several destructive landslides have happened. In the Island of Madeira, housing is an important expression of the action of man over nature, thus creating a harmonious landscape between the built and its surroundings. In response to the accentuated Topography, terraced platforms appeared to soften this inclination. Vernacular building traditions are repeatedly cited in the academic literature as exemplary models of environmental practice. Therefore, research that addresses the vernacular traditions of the Island of Madeira may emphasize its potential for continuity and viability for maintenance and rehabilitation. Sustainability is indissolubly linked to vernacular architecture and the lessons learned from this architecture of the past can teach us which knowledge to apply in the future. The demand for sustainable buildings with minimal environmental impact is increasing, thus leading the construction industry to adopt new technologies for building design. Achieved for generations, this architecture shows us the art of a population in the construction. The rural housing of Madeira revealed itself as a wise design, where the masters of the craft created a perfect communion between the space, utility, comfort and the volumetric balance, thus creating a new artificial element that connects perfectly with the natural space. Passive strategies have been used around the world for centuries. In the last decades, inhabitants became dependent on mechanical systems with rising economic and environmental impacts. Learning from the past to understand how houses evolved to respond to the surrounding environment is important. The analysis of the local vernacular dwellings will provide insight into well-adapted popular solutions to deal with the local climatic conditions in order to promote responsive passive building technologies and a sustainable proposal is also presented.

EXAMINING THE THERMAL PERFORMANCE OF OLD INDIGENOUS ARCHITECTURE OF KOLKATA TO ATTAIN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Urbanization is a global phenomenon that needs to take up serious sustainable approaches in this time when rapid global warming is looming large on the earth. Like other science and technology domains, architecture is also taking up various sustainable approaches so that the urban built environment harms nature the least. Building design has become energy conscious and various rating systems have come to the forefront. However, another domain has remained largely unexplored in the aging urban centres of India where the old indigenous architecture of these cities has not been examined for their climate responsiveness. These indigenous architectures have evolved from the local vernacular building traditions, and thus synthesizes two aspects in them – they are climate responsive as well as functionally suited to their urban requirements. This paper examines the old indigenous residential architecture of Kolkata, the third largest urban centre in India after Delhi and Mumbai, by comparing them with the new residential buildings of the city and thus tries to find out to what extent they are better performing in the warm and humid climate of the city.

Type-planning a Fenno-Swedish identity. The housing association for the Swedish speaking areas of Finland and the ideal rural home between 1938 and 1969

Better housing for the rural population was an important part ofthe Finnish housing discussion in the 20th century. Between 1938 and 1969, Bostadsföreningen för svenska Finland (The housing association for the Swedish speaking areas of Finland) promoted rational housingfor the Fenno-Swedish minority. The construction of a collective identityfor a minority through dwelling ideals is the main focus of the article.Methods as identity process theory and perspectives on architecture and nationalism are used to interpret the material. Specific questions relate to how modernist architecture became a symbol when constructing an identity for a non-homogeneous minority. The housing association viewed modernist housing as a solution to a political and ideologicalproblem. With efficient homes, Fenno-Swedish farmers were less inclined to sell their homesteads to Finnish speakers and move to the cities, where they were assimilated into the Finnish culture. Mobility wasperceived as a threat to the minority, since it led to a loss of voters in areas of political importance. Modernist architecture combined with aesthetics from the vernacular building tradition were used to make thefarmers proud of their ancestral homes, willing to stay, securing theideological home of the Fenno-Swedes.

Accumulation of residual energy of an experimental stove after burning

Engineers, architects and designers increasingly rely on mathematical constructs incorporated into civil engineering programs to explain physical and mechanical phenomena. A low thermal diffusivity represents a material’s ability to slow down the rate of heat transfer due to heat absorption and storage, so that high thermal masses are desirable. The thermal inertia of the earth structures in general is an under-researched topic, especially regarding their unique ability to delay and attenuate temperature responses. The paper uses a high temperature difference example, in the form of an experimental stove, to highlight the benefits of a thermal mass. Countries such as Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia are known for their ornate historical masonry stoves that grace many stately houses, castles and palaces. They were stoked once or twice daily and radiated heat constantly during the winter months. This guild developed and thrived until the advent of modern HVAC systems in the 20th century. The paper sets out to monitor the temperature difference produced by stoking and firing a simplified experimental stove and analyses the decrease in temperature until it approaches a fixed room temperature. Temperature and heat flux are then observed to determine the total residual heat energy after burning, and the results are discussed in the conclusion. Inspired by these sound principles, based on lessons from the vernacular building traditions that have been used for centuries, the output of this work could be used in future to design an appropriate amount of the thermal mass to maximize thermal efficiency in fireplaces and stoves and as a precedent for a synergetic combination of the thermal mass and renewable energy sources.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.ct.68.1.15006

Review: African Vernacular Architecture Data Base, by Jon Sojkowski

Jon Sojkowski, creator African Vernacular Architecture Data Base http://www.africavernaculararchitecture.com The African Vernacular Architecture Data Base, an online project initiated and maintained by architect Jon Sojkowski, is an important and welcome new source of information about vernacular building practices in Africa. Conceived as a visual database of building types categorized by location, it includes photographs submitted by numerous contributors. Although sparsely annotated and lacking a comprehensive scientific methodology, this online project is an important contribution to the field of architectural history and will prove valuable to practicing architects and social scientists interested in the vernacular building traditions of Africa. Sojkowski, a registered architect based in Beaufort, South Carolina, began collecting images of vernacular architecture in Africa in 1997–98 while he was serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Zambia. During his time in that Southern African country, he found few resources to help him understand the wealth of native building traditions across the continent, which he hoped to integrate into his design courses at Copperbelt University in Kitwe. Sojkowski, who also goes by the nom de plume Jon Twingi, began assembling a visual database of Zambian vernacular architecture, using photographs he took as he traveled the country. He collected this work in the online database Zambia Vernacular Architecture (http://www.zambiaarchitecture.com), which …

Performative Wood: Physically Programming the Responsive Architecture of the HygroScope and HygroSkin Projects

In today's race for ever more ‘intelligent’ materials, wood, with its long association with craft and vernacular building traditions, is all too often overlooked. But upon closer examination it reveals a spectrum of properties that constitute a smart rather than an outdated material. Based on its moisture‐sensitive characteristics, Guest‐Editor Achim Menges, Director of the Institute for Computational Design (ICD) at the University of Stuttgart, and Steffen Reichert, Research Associate at the ICD, have developed a number of groundbreaking weather‐responsive systems. These integrate the function of sensor, motor and responsive components in strikingly simple wood elements. They demonstrate the material's capacity to replace machines and to unfold a truly ecologically embedded architecture by tapping into the abundant flows and energies of the environment.

The houses of Louis Kahn

Louis Kahn (1901--1974), one of the most important architects of the postwar period, is widely admired for his great monumental works, including the Kimbell Art Museum, the Salk Institute, and the National Assembly Complex in Bangladesh. However, the importance of his houses has been largely overlooked. This beautiful book is the first to look at Kahn's nine major private houses. Beginning with his earliest encounters with Modernism in the late 1920s and continuing through his iconic work of the 1960s and 1970s, the authors trace the evolution of the architect's thinking, which began and matured through his design of houses and their interiors, a process inspired by his interactions with clients and his admiration for vernacular building traditions. Richly illustrated with new and period photographs and original drawings, as well as previously unpublished materials from personal interviews, archives, and Kahn's own writings, The Houses of Louis Kahn shows how his ideas about domestic spaces challenged conventions, much like his major public commissions, and were developed into one of the most remarkable expressions of the American house.

Modern Architecture and the Mediterranean: Vernacular Dialogues and Contested Identities

‘Tradition [ . . . ] does not disappear, but changes appearance,’ stated the 1926 manifesto of the Gruppo Sette, a cohort of Italian Rationalist architects who called for a modern architecture that used new materials and technologies, yet respected the built heritage of the Mediterranean (p. 54). Removed from the polemics of its original context, this observation also characterizes the premise of a recent anthology edited by Jean-François Lejeune and Michelangelo Sabatino, Modern Architecture and the Mediterranean: to establish the critical role traditional buildings in the Mediterranean played in shaping the designs, theories, and experiences of modernist architects from the 1920s to the 1970s. The twelve international contributors to this volume consider the Mediterranean in the broadest sense: they examine the modern legacy of the region’s vernacular building traditions across its three neighbouring continents—Europe, Africa, and Asia. Using this pan-regional approach, Lejeune and Sabatino present the first overview of the diverse lessons modern architects learned from Mediterranean countries, which thus far have been considered in monographic or national cases, if at all. In its focus on the rediscovery and appropriation of local farmhouses and peasant abodes among protagonists of the modern movement in architecture, this anthology offers an alternative genealogy to the classical tradition of the Mediterranean, which has long been the focus of scholarly attention. More broadly, this collection of essays contributes to the increasing number of scholarly books and exhibitions that re-chart the history of modernism across national and cultural borders, to uncover both the shared and unique traditions that have inspired creative artists since the nineteenth century.1

A research on historical and cultural buildings in iranian vernacular architecture

The need for preserving historical constructions is not only a cultural requirement, but also an economical and developmental demand. In addition to their historical interest, cultural heritage buildings and landscapes are valuable because they contribute significantly to the economy by providing key attractions at a time when tourism and leisure are major industries. Herein, the great Iranian tradition is as yet little known in the West and there is much to be learnt both from it and the building techniques which are integral with it. Meanwhile, not only is the Iranian vernacular building tradition itself still alive, but there is much to be gained from the knowledge of a highly developed technology which makes such ingenious use of natural resources without the consumption of additional power.
 This article is a study of the artisanship involved in the construction of the mud brick vernacular architecture of Iran, and the cultural aspects of a traditional architecture that incorporates an understanding of buildings that date back centuries. Expanding the existing knowledge of these earthen heritage properties, examining their behaviour in the local climate and explaining their current condition in order to express the need for the preservation of traditional artisanship as part of a sustainable conservation future are the other prominent concerns of this work. Among different Iranian Vernacular constructions, Ice-houses, cisterns, water-mills and wind-catchers are the subject of the main body of this article. La necessitat de conserver les construccions històriques no és només un requeriment de tipus cultural, sinó també de tipus econòmic. Addicionalment al seu interès històric, el patrimoni cultural edificat i paisatgístic, és valuós en tant que contribueix significativament a l’economia al proveir d’elements que enriqueixen l’atractiu dels llocs en una època en la qual el turisme i l’oci s’han convertit en una indústria rellevant. Tot i això, la gran tradició d’edificació vernacular iraniana és encara poc coneguda a occident i ofereix bastants elements per descobrir que es deriven dels aspectes culturals i de les tècniques edificatòries. No només es tracta d’una tradició edificatòria encara viva, sinó també d’una font de coneixement en relació a l’ús dels recursos naturals y la reducció del consum energètic. En aquest article s’estudia el procés artesanal de construcció amb embans de fang en la tradició vernacular iraniana, el qual permet entendre les citades edificacions en el seu context cultural d’una tradició que es remunta segles endarrere. D’aquesta manera s¡expandeix el coneixement existent sobre aquestes edificacions amb terra, al temps que s’examina el seu comportament front el seu clima local, i que permet recolzar la idea de la seva preservació legal. Entre altres, l’article analitza diferents edificacions vernaculars, tals com pous de neu i gel, cisternes, molins d’aigua i sistemes de ventilació passius. La necesidad de conservar las construcciones históricas no es sólo un requerimiento de tipo cultural, sino también de tipo económico. Adicionalmente a su interés histórico, el patrimonio cultural edificado y paisajístico, es valioso en tanto cuanto contribuye significativamente a la economía al proveer de elementos que enriquecen el atractivo de los lugares en una época en la cual el turismo y el ocio se han convertido en una industria relevante. A pesar de ello, la gran tradición de edificación vernácula iraní es aún poco conocida en occidente, y ofrece bastantes elementos por descubrir que se derivan de los aspectos culturales y de las técnicas edificatorias. No solo se trata de una tradición edificatoria aún viva, sino también de una fuente de conocimiento en relación al uso de los recursos naturales y la reducción del consumo energético. En este artículo se estudia el proceso artesanal de construcción con tabiques de barro en la tradición vernácula iraní, el cual permite entender a dichas edificaciones en su contexto cultural de una tradición que se remonta siglos atrás. De esta manera se expande el conocimiento existente sobre esas edificaciones en tierra, al tiempo que se examina su comportamiento ante su clima local, y permite apoyar la idea de su preservación integral. Entre otras, el artículo analiza diferentes edificaciones vernáculas, tales como pozos de nieve e hielo, cisternas, molinos de agua y sistemas de ventilación pasivos.

The Vernacular Moment

Kevin D. Murphy reexamines the introduction of European modern architecture in New England during the late 1920s and 1930s. Emphasizing the importance of regional vernacular forms to the reformulation and popularization of modernism, The Vernacular Moment: Eleanor Raymond, Walter Gropius, and New England Modernism between the Wars also highlights Raymond's pioneering role in this process. A decade before Gropius associated modernism with New England's vernacular building tradition in the choice of materials for his own house in Lincoln, Massachusetts (1938), the design of the Cambridge School of Architecture (1928), to which Raymond contributed, had brought together modernism with both industrial and domestic vernacular idioms. Closely analyzing the architecture and written statements of Gropius and Raymond, the article explores how the architects grounded their modernism in tradition and created well-publicized buildings that served their pedagogic purposes.

Vernacular architecture: questions of comfort and practicability

A paradoxical situation exists where vernacular building traditions are in a state of decline and are being replaced by modern counterparts, but they are repeatedly cited in the academic literature as exemplary models of environmental practice. This paradox is examined through research on whether vernacular passive cooling systems in the hot and dry climates of present-day Iran are practicable for the provision of comfortable indoor temperatures. Investigating their technical thermal performance as well as user perceptions and behaviour, positive and negative attributes of the cooling systems are identified. If conclusions about the long-term viability of vernacular buildings are to be drawn, then social, cultural, economic and environmental attributes need to be taken into consideration. Despite rather widespread and persistent assumptions, vernacular building traditions are not necessarily able to survive and the choices made by local people regarding the continuation or abandonment of specific traditions are influenced by a variety of cultural and practical factors. This substantiates the necessity of an integrated and holistic approach that engages with these variables in order to acquire a better understanding of the conditions for the survival of vernacular traditions. Le fait que les traditions architecturales vernaculaires se trouvent dans un état de déclin et sont remplacées par leurs équivalents modernes, alors même qu'elles sont citées à maintes reprises dans la littérature universitaire comme des modèles exemplaires de pratique environnementale, constitue une situation paradoxale. Ce paradoxe est étudié au travers de recherches visant à déterminer si les systèmes de refroidissement passif vernaculaires sous les climats chauds et secs de l'Iran d'aujourd'hui peuvent être mis en pratique pour assurer des températures intérieures confortables. L’étude de leurs performances thermiques techniques aussi bien que des perceptions et du comportement des utilisateurs permet d'identifier les attributs positifs et négatifs des systèmes de refroidissement. S'il faut tirer des conclusions concernant la viabilité à long terme des bâtiments vernaculaires, il est alors nécessaire de prendre en considération les attributs sociaux, culturels, économiques et environnementaux. En dépit de présomptions plutôt répandues et tenaces, les traditions architecturales vernaculaires ne sont pas nécessairement capables de survivre et les choix opérés par les populations locales quant à la poursuite ou l'abandon de traditions spécifiques sont influencés par divers facteurs culturels et pratiques. Ceci confirme la nécessité d'une approche intégrée et holistique qui, par ces variables, incite à acquérir une meilleure compréhension des conditions propres à assurer la survie des traditions vernaculaires. Mots clés: confort adaptatif, performances des bâtiments, attentes, traditions locales, occupants, refroidissement passif, architecture vernaculaire, Iran

An Overview of Some Vernacular Techniques in Iranian Sustainable Architecture in Reference to Cisterns and Ice Houses

The great Iranian tradition is as yet little known in the West and there is much to be learnt both from it and the building techniques which are integral with it. Meanwhile, Not only is the Iranian vernacular building tradition itself still alive, but there is much to be gained from the knowledge of a highly developed technology which makes such ingenious use of natural resources without the consumption of additional power. This article is a study of the craftsmanship involved in the construction of the mud brick vernacular architecture of Iran, and the cultural aspects of a traditional architecture which incorporates an understanding of buildings which dates back centuries. Expanding the existing knowledge of these earthen heritage properties, examining their behaviour in the local climate and explaining their current condition in order to express the need for the preservation of traditional craftsmanship as part of a sustainable conservation future are the other prominent concerns of this work. Among different Iranian Vernacular constructions, Ice-houses and cisterns are the subject of the main body of this article.

Preserved epiphytes as an archaeological resource in pre-industrial vernacular buildings

The vernacular building tradition is an established source of information about historic woodlands and woodland management in Britain. We build on this resource by recognizing the information content derived from the tree-dwelling epiphyte communities of lichens and mosses, which are preserved on the bark of historic wooden building materials. We report on a first analysis of preserved epiphytes identified from six regions across lowland England. Seventy-eight vernacular buildings were surveyed for the presence of bark and preserved epiphytes. We demonstrate three novel and important findings: the prevalence of bark, substantial preservation of epiphytes, and their application as an archaeological tool for the reconstruction of historic environments. Future analyses will build on epiphyte species composition and abundance data to examine changes in historic environments across lowland England.

Ancient vernacular architecture: characteristics categorization and energy performance evaluation

Building has significant impacts on the environment and natural resources. The emerging world energy and environment challenges demand a substantial revolution of building design philosophies, strategies, technologies, and construction methods. Vernacular architectures, built by people whose design decisions are influenced by traditions in their culture, have been gleaned through a long period of trial and error and the ingenuity of local builders who possess specific knowledge about their place on the planet, and thus are valuable in promoting climate-specific passive building technologies to modern buildings. This study introduced an approach to categorizing distinct vernacular regions and evaluating energy performance of ancient vernacular homes as well as identifying optimal constructions using vernacular building techniques. The research conducted an extensive computer energy modeling for a number of representative ancient vernacular architectural characteristics observed for different climatic regions. The vernacular test subjects were compared against those established according to the International Energy Conservation Code and those generated by the optimization software. The simulation results of the energy models suggest that considering traditions seen in ancient vernacular architecture as an approach to improving building energy performance is a worthwhile endeavor and a scientific guidance can help enhance the performance. The study indicates that, although many vernacular dwells exist in the world, it is challenging (but desired) to package vernacular architecture traditions and quantitative design knowledge to modern building designers. This project is the first part of a much larger project that intends to create a knowledge base of vernacular building traditions that will include information about not only the energy performance of traditional building techniques, but also address areas of cost, material availability and cultural traditions.

Constructing Identity and Tradition

In an increasingly globalized world, national governments appropriate vernacular building traditions to support national identity-building political agendas. In England the neo-traditional house has become an established feature of suburban architecture. This is not, however, as is often assumed, indicative of the nostalgia of the consumer. Rather, neo-traditionalism is the result of planning policies introduced by the government to preserve regional architectural identities and maintain a visual “Englishness” in the built environment. These policies have, in turn, been undermined by the nationwide standardization of “traditional” designs by national house-building companies.

Architecture and Identity on the Edge of Empire: The Early Domestic Architecture of Scottish Settlers in Nova Scotia, Canada, 1800–1850

In the early nineteenth century thousands of Scots emigrated to Nova Scotia, Canada, settling there principally in Pictou and Antigonish Counties. This article considers the transformation of the domestic architecture of emigrants from the Scottish Highlands, from earth and random-rubble-walled ‘black houses’ to Classically ornamented and proportioned timber-framed houses. It demonstrates that, in contrast to the transferable traditions of Lowland Scottish settlers, virtually no element of the Scottish Highland vernacular building tradition was established in Nova Scotia, and that Scottish Highland emigrants adopted a new architecture with near total uniformity. These changes in architectural practice are described here in some detail, and then interpreted as indicators of changed social practice within the immigrant Highland community.

The Architects of Christ Church Library

Architecture in Oxford between the Civil War and the early Georgian period presents a fascinating picture of great stylistic change and originality, as vernacular building traditions largely inherited from the Gothic of the Middle Ages were superseded by new design philosophies derived from Renaissance interpretations of classical architecture. The new architecture was driven by an increasingly élite and academic taste, largely dependent upon expensive foreign books and even more costly foreign travel, and necessitated fundamental changes to the established building practices of the colleges, which had hitherto relied largely on local master masons for both construction and design. As architecture ‘was something outside the ken of the average Oxford don’, knowledgeable men, especially those who had travelled abroad and seen modern buildings, became important arbiters of taste, and often drifted into architecture as a result. The first and most famous Oxford man to take this path was Christopher Wren of Wadham College in the 1660s, but he was followed a generation later by Henry Aldrich, Dean of Christ Church, after whose death in 1710 the mantle passed to George Clarke of All Souls College. It is with the significance of the latter two men’s activities at Christ Church that we will presently be concerned.