image taken from Shelter blog
Call it kooky and kitschy but Malcolm Wells thoughtful work continuous battled with the burden that most architects and designers succumb to, an attempt to mark the land in such a way as to claim it for humanity. Well's solutions weren't in any manner simplistic, nor did they rely heavily on futuristic technology to decrease mankind's burden on the careful ecological balance of existing and "living". Instead time honored traditions and understanding of the natural world (as well as the mechanics of buildings) were continuously questioned and explored in order to develop less energy intensive systems, ones that wouldn't scar the landscape but instead celebrate it.
In this age of "green roofs" and "vertical gardens" attempting to mix nature with buildings it is interesting to to note how the idea of the earth sheltered house, as explored in the 1970's is actually a contemporary take on ideas practiced by what is generally considered non-technology societies.
He will be missed.
books:
Labels: Cleve. Events, Environmental
# posted by Dru McKeown @
6:15 AM
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