Vernacular Values Research Articles

INFLUENCE OF CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGY ON THE THERMAL PERFORMANCE OF VERNACULAR HOUSING

The canton of Zapotillo, located in the south of Ecuador, has a hot climate that has led the population to use endemic materials in the construction of their homes. These materials provide a comfortable indoor environment for the inhabitants, with earth, wood and stone being the main structural components of traditional houses. These vernacular houses represent years of empirical research and testing by local builders who have developed unique construction techniques. However, these houses have been overshadowed by new architectural typologies that use modern materials and construction systems with lower thermal performance. In the current landscape of Zapotillo, remains of the first settlements in the area can be found, blending into the overall landscape with contemporary constructions. Therefore, the aim of this research is to analyze the bioclimatic performance of vernacular houses in the canton, focusing on the technical and constructional study of selected cases, seeking to identify parameters that contribute to indoor comfort in relation to local climatic conditions. The research visualizes the energy characteristics of vernacular housing, highlighting the solar protection provided by the use of portals and terraces, as well as the comfort of the raw earth construction system to mitigate the effects of high temperatures during periods of extreme heat. The energy analysis programs Revit Insight, Rhinoceros, Grasshopper and Lady Bug tools are used to measure these variables, with the ultimate aim of rescuing vernacular values and adapting them to new projects, thereby revaluing the concept of traditional Zapotillo housing.

UPAYA PENINGKATAN CITRA KAWASAN WISATA BUDAYA PADA SANGGRALOKA SEKAR WILIS PONOROGO

Sanggraloka Sekar Wilis merupakan nama sebuah kawasan wisata yang terletak di desa Kesugihan Kecamatan Pulung, Ponorogo. Dengan lokasi tapak di lereng gunung Wilis, dilatar belakangi perbukitan, memberikan panorama alam yang indah, didukung dengan berbagai macam pepohohan sebagai peneduh serta adanya sumber air bersih yang dimanfaatkan menjadi sebuah kolam renang keluarga. Adanya beberapa fasilitas bermain anak, serta bumi perkemahan, menjadikan tempat ini banyak dikunjungi oleh masyarakat sekitar. Meski terdapat bangunan Pendopo dengan style Joglo Panoragan pada kawasan ini, namun citra kawasan yang mencerminkan seni budaya Ponorogo, belum tesedia secara memadai. Atraksi budaya seperti pagelaran tari Reog Ponorogo, dilakukan pada ruang terbuka yang masih cukup luas. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk melakukan upaya meningkatkan citra kawasan sebagai wisata budaya, melalui eksplorasi elemen-elemen arsitektur sehingga mampu meningkatkan citra kawasan dengan mengangkat nilai-nilai tradisi-kelokalan (vernacular). Penelitian kualitatif ini menggunakan metode analisis secara diskriptif melalui observasi lapangan dan indepth interview. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa penggunaan arsitektur vernacular pada penyelesaian bangunannya, dapat peningkatan citra kawasan wisata, sehingga memperkuat identitas budaya Ponorogo.

In praise of light and shadows

The interaction of light and shadow has always fascinated architects, and even more so since Le Corbusier’s famous quote from 1923, published in Vers une Architecture, in which he describes architecture as “the learned game, correct and magnificent, of forms assembled in the light”. This game, which thus motivated the painters of Purism and Cubism – among whom Le Corbusier would come to be included – contributed in great part to the definition of the aesthetic ideals of the artistic avant-garde in the West in the first half of the 20th century. Associated with the purity of crystal, with the idea of total transparency, and with the blurring of the boundaries between the interior and the exterior, this very same game served as the conceptual premise of (and later as a critical challenge to) the architecture of the Modern Movement. The counterpoint to the purist and crystalline impetus of modernism would emerge, and indeed one of many, by way of “In Praise of Shadows”, a reference to the book written in 1933 by Junichiro Tanizaki. In this work, the author examines how Oriental culture (in contrast with Western culture) has always sought to shield the interior space from the invasion of light and from exterior views by use of trees, porches, patios, shutters, and translucent sliding doors or dividers (the Japanese shôji). It is not by accident that many of these traditional elements would once again come to be adopted by Western architecture from the late 1950s onward in its search for vernacular values deriving from a broad variety of cultures. Having studied in these seminal years of critical review of the Modern Movement and coinciding with the publication of the Survey on Regional Architecture in Portugal – (Inquérito à Arquitetura Popular em Portugal) (1955-1961), the young architect Álvaro Siza learned from Fernando Távora – his former teacher and mentor – to appreciate not only the effect of light on forms (Távora himself admitted to being an avid admirer of Le Corbusier), but also to stroll about the shadows in traditional habitats (Távora would gather important teachings from Japanese architecture during his grand tour in 1960 and filtering it through another great influence of his: Frank Lloyd Wright). These different “phantom-characters” would come to also occupy the imagination of the young Siza, and to them he added references to Alvar Aalto, Bruno Taut or Adolf Loos, at the moment of considering the relationship between the individual and the collective space, between the domestic and the monumental scale, between the window and the city. The photographic work of Mark Durden and João Leal focusing on Álvaro Siza’s work in Porto – now published by Scopio Newspaper – goes in search of not only this same game of shadows upon the target surfaces of the façades and the interiors of the buildings but also the multiplicity of transparencies and penumbras that unfold through their ample glazed windows. [...]

TOURISM ARCHITECTURE AS A THREAT TO HERITAGE IDENTITY IN THE VALLEYS OF THE HIGH ATLAS IN MOROCCO

Abstract. Despite being a major activity in the economy of the pre-Sahara valley of the High Atlas in Morocco, tourism can also threaten the conservation of the identity values of the architectural heritage of the region. The adaptation of many traditional buildings for tourist use or the construction of new accommodation incorporating traditional language into their structure or decorative repertoire does not always help to strengthen the vernacular values of original architecture. The starting point of this research is the typological definition of this architecture, mostly in aspects relating to the symbolic and ornamental elements of traditional dwellings in the valleys of the Dadès and of the Mgoun, its main tributary. The processes of evolution and transformation from the second half of the 20th century are then described, along with the risks from the tourist boom which has been affecting the region in recent years. In order to study this phenomenon twelve examples of tourist accommodation were selected to analyse the formal language and decorative resources used, in terms of heritage, but also from the perspective of the reinterpretation of architectural symbols in the context of acculturation. This theory considers dynamic cultural exchanges between tourism and the receiving society to be positive.

A Lesson from Vernacular Architecture in Nigeria

Contemporary architecture has its roots from the vernacular. Every cultural group in the world has its own form of vernacular though the approach may vary from place to place and from people to people. Vernacular architecture has many values which are relevant to contemporary architecture today. This paper looks at vernacular architecture in Nigeria as practised by two ethnic groups who have varying climatic, religious and socio-cultural practices. The approaches to architecture by these two groups, i.e. the Hausas and Igbos, are looked at with the intention of finding positive values in the vernacular which can be applied to the contemporary. One of such values as seen in this paper is the harmony of traditional building materials with nature. Local building materials are able to meet housing needs without having a detrimental effect on the environment. More emphasis should therefore be given to local building materials in the building industry today. The paper concludes by stating that for contemporary architecture to adequately meet the needs of man today, vernacular values which apply to the cultural and climatic needs of such places should be selected and imbibed.

The Dry Construction Systems on the Rehabilitation of Built Heritage

The dry construction techniques, widely used in past centuries have seen a renewed interest in the last few years. This is due to different reasons such as the new user’s needs for high quality at low cost, the shortage of traditional skilled labor, the need to reduce delivery times and the rising costs of initiating a fabrication plant. Dry construction methods regard the building site as the place of assembly. The quality of the finish products, are guaranteed by a factory controlled production process and reduction to a minimum of on-site work. The building, designed by “unconnected boxes” becomes an “active machine”, capable of ensuring maximum performance for the user. Finally the design of an “open building system” also consists of a set of rules to allow creation of various solutions. The complexity of this modus operandi increases progressively if the intervention is carried out in small historic centres. Therefore, this research aims at presenting a method of work that uses dry construction systems and that has been developed to intervene in the historic contexts damaged by the earthquake that struck the Abruzzo region on April 6, 2009. This method develops a process that aimes at the rehabilitation of the buildings but also at improving their energy behavior while respecting, at the same time, the vernacular values. It is based on a “case by case” approach that starts from an analysis of the context and its local construction techniques, taking into account the peculiarities of each location. The results of this method have been applied to a small village located in the province of L'Aquila called Santa Maria del Ponte.

Vernacular traditions in Norwegian jewelry design - Past, present, future

Living in an era of globalization, the capability of communicating identity has become of greater importance than ever. This has increased our estimation of the vernacular, which represents an expression of a national or local identity. In Norway the vernacular tradition in silver jewelry is particularly strong. It has played an important role not only locally, but also in the constantly changing relation with the outside world, in accordance with the societal situation. It should therefore constitute a reliable indicator of how our country relates to the present process of globalization. The aim of the paper is to throw light on the relation between Norway’s role on the global scene and the use of the vernacular tradition in the development of jewelry design in general. It consists of a historical exploration that leads up to a discussion the present and future situation. Today there is a cleft between consumer behavior and avant-garde practice. In accordance with the global situation and Norway’s geopolitical situation of existing in the outskirts of political and economic decisions, the situation is characterized by a variety of practices, and by a slow acceptance of the vernacular values in the world of avant-garde practitioners.

What can we learn from Malay vernacular houses?

Today, the contemporary residential design has been promoted in cities without concerns of the essence of vernacular houses. Recent studies declare that the quality of contemporary residential spaces is often poorly linked to traditions and value of each region. In view of the rapid modernization of Malaysia, the kampong houses as Malay vernacular built environments have been replaced by modern residential design. Thus, several aspects of kampong which embody major vernacular values are lost. Accordingly, many Malay inhabitants still prefer to live in houses that are based on their own traditions. This is because quality of housing as one of the fundamental factors in enhancing the quality of life is not fully in line with their daily lifestyle and local environmental characteristics. Hence, the congruency among local daily functions, environmental characteristics of region, and vernacular functional spatial features is perceived as a substantial principle for enhancing the quality of life. The study theorizes that the aforementioned congruity must be considered during the contemporary residential design in order to address the actual needs of users for enhancing their quality of life. In this line, theoretical analysis concludes that among all identified values, privacy and optimal use of space are the significant social values while natural ventilation is the most significant environmental value extracted from the analysis of Malay houses.

Traditional music and the anatomy of the festival network between Yugoslavian cultural politics and vernacular values

As official policies in the post-war Yugoslavia were oriented towards economy, mainly tied to towns, rural areas were focused on agriculture to a large extent, as it had been before. However, the Party was determined to revive villages, being of the opinion that life in those areas should be purified from ?primitivism? so that it could be set to a higher level concerning issues of education, political structure, local organization and cultural life. Since people in villages felt determined to maintain their local culture, customs and music, the State officials had to find ways to articulate uncanny social behaviors. At the time, folklore and vernacular creative impulse in Serbia was sustained as a ?hard cultural form? that by accident or on purpose converted into ?soft cultural form? through a wide range of festival activities in Yugoslavia. This significant turn permitted ?relatively easy separation of embodied performance from meaning and value, and relatively successful transformation at each level? (Appadurai 1996: 90). The discussion of this paper intends to form a dialogue on the transformation of social structure and politics, which gradually led to severe changes in the areas of traditional musical practice.

Voice, place and genre in popular song performance1

Earlier sociolinguistic studies have conceptualised popular song as a field of phonological variation where singers do or do not maintain features of their national or regional accents in singing. The present paper explores a wider agenda for the sociolinguistics of popular song, theorised as a diverse field of performance organised according to genre. Following initiatives in the sociology of popular music (particularly Simon Frith's research), voice is interpreted as the repertoire of meaning‐making options available to performers. Voice subsumes dialect indexicality, but also the management of singer identity and singer‐audience relations through the performance of lyrics, rhythmic and bodily modalities. Place is understood as the specific socio‐cultural contexts that are explicitly or implicitly voiced, including contexts of performance and reception. By performing within or against generically structured stylistic norms, performers construct and disseminate different vernacular values and identities. Live tracks from three different, broadly‐defined genres are considered in detail – classic rock and roll (Chuck Berry'sMaybellene), folk/country (James Taylor'sCopperline), and punk rock (the Sex Pistols’Johnny B. Goode).

The vernacular matters of American literature

Introduction: Vernacular Adventures Vernacular Scholarship Vernacular Voices Vernacular Values Conclusion: Transformative Comparisons

Vernacular values in public housing

The crisis in modern architecture in the middle of the twentieth century brought about a reaction to total Utopian solutions and ideas and the realization of the importance of ‘place’ and identity. These notions found expression, among others, in a renewed interest in vernacular construction. Vernacular construction is evolutionary and contains key, a priori, aspects of identity and place. As such it constituted a focus of attention and gained special exposure and popularity after the exhibition ‘Architecture without Architects’, held in MoMA, New York in 1964. As a result of this attention, the patio, that external room constituting the heart of the house in the Middle East, in the Mediterranean basin and in the Far East, gained architectural significance. At the same time it found a place in modern housing in the Western world.

The Sagebrush Bohemian: Mark Twain in California by Nigey Lennon, and: Getting to be Mark Twain by Jeffrey Steinbrink (review)

REVIEWS Lennon, Nigey. The Sagebrush Bohemian: Mark Twain in California. New York: Paragon House, 1990. 203 pp. Cloth: $19.95. Steinbrink, Jeffrey. Getting to be Mark Twain. Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 1991. 221 pp. Cloth: $22.50. Here are two recent books that demonstrate the power and influence already achieved by the extant body of scholarship and criticism on Mark Twain, but in quite different ways. Both testify to the value of gathering manuscripts in such collections as the Mark Twain Papers at the University of California—Berkeley, and even more to the presently ascendant authority of popular biographical approaches to Twain. More accurately, these responses address the Twain/Clemens personality division, since the dominant force here is clearly Justin Kaplan's Mr. Clemens and Mark Twain (1966). Once this bipolar heritage has been duly noted, the reader goes on to find Lennon and Steinbrink exploring its implications in highly individualized ways. Lennon, a self-described victim of "delirium Clemens," stands by her man with a passionate defense of his Western phase against all opposing views. To us, she complains, "Kaplan's premise was that Samuel Clemens and Mark Twain were two distinctly different personalities, and that Clemens adopted the Twain persona to compensate for serious character deficiencies. It was a mean-spirited thesis, but the worst thing about Mr. Clemens and Mark Twain was its urbane disregard for anything about Twain, or Clemens, that contradicted Kaplan's notion of his subject's unsavory nature" (p. xvi). Lennon claims that Kaplan's book "told nothing about half of his [Twain's] life and mistreated the facts pertinent to the other half." Surely her "native Californian" pride has been wounded, and here she counterattacks with vigor. In essence, Lennon's Western portrait insists on the primacy of "political terms" (rather than psychological) in defining the authentic Twain. Readers may not agree, although her extension of the general thesis offered earlier by Philip Foner in Mark Twain: Social Critic (1958) seems both timely and usable. In attempting to explain the burden undertaken by Lennon's engaging volume, I can do no better than to quote again from the preface: "my point is that Twain, coming of age on the Western frontier, was molded into a political animal by a confluence of specifically Western experiences. And just as he received that Western imprint on his own personality, so did he pass it on to the generations of American writers who followed him" (p. xvii). Can any environmentalist pass by without stopping? Although less anecdotal in method, Jeffrey Steinbrink accepts the premise that reading alone will never capture the complex figure of Twain, which owes its nature to both the West and East. For Twain was always a talker and listener, perhaps even more than a writer. Here, I must confess that Steinbrink's vision makes me yearn for a video disc to supplement the case he makes on paper alone: "it may strike some readers as paradoxical that my deepest debt of gratitude to . . . distinguished Twain scholars has nothing to do with conventional scholarship: their shared confidence in the power of vernacular values and the vitality of vernacular language bolstered my own determination that this be not a book for scholars only, but one intended for readers of many dispositions who have an abiding curiosity about Mark Twain" (p. xii). Aside from this emphatic attention to the power of vernacular, Steinbrink's approach builds on standard biographical treatments (especially those of Kaplan and Hamlin Hill); but he uses old and new evidence with his own refining purpose in 226Reviews view: to prove that the years 1867—1871 provided watershed experiences in the making of the Mark Twain we recognize today. In a sense then, "this book begins where Huck ends," with a thirty-three-year-old Clemens on the verge of literary and cultural celebrity. Of course the steps by which Clemens comes of age are intricate; and in these pages, at least a part of his journey is expertly traced from Elmira to Buffalo to Hartford. Steinbrink knows this territory and its people (such as Abel Fairbanks and Jervis Langdon)—all the visible markers encountered along the way. Better yet, he...

Vernacular Values and Education

Vernacular Values and Education