2030

One of the biggest topics in architecture at the moment is sustainability. No longer a fringe topic but a shift towards headline consideration. It can be considered a valid item in the discussion points of design, no longer arbitrary or invalid in inclusion. Today there are great shifts to making it mainstream because the impact going forward can be great in making a difference, a positive difference. Sustainable Architecture is an important part of society going forward into the future.

Residential housing is one of the biggest contributors to green house gases. Going green is a consideration by designers and builders in concepts being developed and built right now, many homes now have included environmental considerations. What's more important is that consumers are now savvy and enlightened, making conscious decisions about being energy efficient and environmentally responsible.

There are many movements pushing the cause to make change and one in particular is Architecture 2030. The initiative to make all new buildings and renovations carbon neutral by 2030. An inspiring target for sustainable architecture.

Take a look at the video to find out more.

Metropolis- Urban Architecture that's moving!

Metropolis by Rob Carter - Last 3 minutes from Rob Carter on Vimeo.

Ever evolving and changing is the world we live in. As clearly demonstrated in my previous post- Nail House. Progress will push at the boundaries of our environments and change them into a new domain. External factors such as economic, social and cultural forces move simultaneously creating permutations to the hardscape that surrounds us. Building form and density push in all directions according to ever shifting parameters.

Whilst going about our lives we often don't notice the changes. If we do notice the small changes, we see them as incremental and perhaps insignificant. On the other hand if viewed over time- well that's something different altogether.

Take a look at the video by Rob Carter- it's amazing! its fantastic portrayal of Urban Design playing out as animation truly shows the effect Architecture and it's built form can have on our modern day Metropolis.

Nail House (lonely House)

It shows a lonely figure. This Nail House is truly surrounded. (love the homage to the movie UP)

A sense of attachment can happen with just about anything, so when we see the homes labeled Nail House in China, it may start to explain the reasons why these homes find themselves in these peculiar situations. What makes it more extraordinary is the context they find themselves in. The background represents progress in time whilst the homes themselves remain staunch in defiant determination. They shout "I'm not going anywhere". Its the last stand, the defiant stance against urban development.

The owners obvious attachment to their homes edges on the side of cuckoo because of the situation they find themselves in as a result of saying no to progress. I can begin to have empathy for their plights. They must love where they live, it must have a history that is personal and it may represent many things dear to them. Perhaps it represents family, or maybe it represents an achievement in their lives. They probably worked hard to be where they are and have the home that they live in. What remains intriguing about their situation is that even though the sense of place or environment has changed they still desire to live in their house.

Most houses will have a natural lifespan of usefulness, essentially this is about 30 years. A lifecycle of effective use-after that it's initial intent may no longer be appropriate. They will often be modified, remodelled, extended or even destroyed to make way for a new one. The macro environment might have diversified and changed as a result of population growth or economic shifts.

Truly an urban island being created here.

The attachment that we all can have to a home can vary and I guess in today's throwaway society the importance of home and house can have less importance to what it may of had in years gone by. Some people like to change their homes as often as they change their cars. There will however be some who will find a home that will resonate and signify a place of importance- a significance even greater than it's external pressures!

Talk about being close to the Highway.

TV House

TV House

People source inspiration from all sorts of places and sometimes inspiration happens unknowingly whilst unaware. Most of us sit down at some point in the week to watch television. A favorite TV show or movie, be it a comedy, drama or an informative documentary.

There have been many shows on TV that have the majority of their storyline take place within a home, the perfect backdrop to help us as the viewer relate.

I've watched many shows where the house or interior living area has become synonymous with the show itself. As a young child there were shows for me that stood out for their point of difference- in that they did not look like the home I lived in. An early example would the The Brady Bunch. The Brady house looked different to mine and had a room I had never heard of, a Den. Here Mike Brady, who just happened to be an architect, seemed to spend much of his time giving out discipline and words of wisdom to his children. It was a big room with a drawing table, couch and fireplace- all with a manly flavour. This would just be one of many examples where TV would form part of the informal dialogue of reference to housing and the types it can represent.

Brady Bunch House- Mike Brady's Den

The all time favourite home of TV for me would be the apartment of Frasier- that chimney, it somehow seemed to sum up Frasier himself- a perfect match of character and architecture. Sophisticated interior referenced with designer furniture, an eclectic intellectual ensemble. I wonder how many replications of that fireplace exist as a result of that show?

TV House- Frasier's Living Room

If you've ever wanted to see more of that TV house you vaguely remember take a look at the Hooked On House website, it might just be there.

The Simpsons- Homer Simpson's House

Or if you want to see some fabulous hand drawn floor plans of well known and loved TV shows check out the drawings of Inaki Aliste Lizarralde.

What's your favorite tv house? Let us know in the comments section below.