Placing Prefab
The Loblolly House by Kierantimberlake provocatively rethinks the pre-fabricated home in a way that attempts to reconcile the mass-customization capabilities of 21st century fabrication with more elemental aspects of place. […]
Author Archives: kaisalmela
Architecture as Scaffolding
The idea of architecture as a neutral framework or scaffolding has emerged at various time throughout history, particularly at times of significant technological or social change. The Crystal Palace, built […]
Cellophane House: Materials and Processes
While technology seems to be growing at an exponential rate while becoming increasingly inexpensive, the architecture and construction industries appear to be in a slow but steady decline. While overall […]
Built Into Bedrock
Architecture is often viewed as an art of permanence. Through the use of durable materials like stone, civilizations throughout history have produced works of architecture that have far outlived the […]
Fog: Architecture and Environment
Although not typically considered an architectural material, fog has the almost magical ability to alter our understanding of space and place, as well as call attention to the relationship between […]
Concrete Masonry Units
Pre-cast concrete blocks have been around since ancient Rome and survive today as perhaps the only remaining structural use of masonry in the globalized economies of the world. Concrete masonry […]
From Smartphone to Smarthouse
How can ever evolving digital technologies, which typically become outdated or obsolete within a matter of years or even months, be integrated effectively into architecture, a discipline known for its […]
Clothing and Architecture
Perhaps the most important performative function of a building, especially those in cold climates, is its insulation value. More often than not this important function is achieved through the most […]
Zinc: Cradle to Cradle
Metal has increasingly become the architectural material of choice for cladding institutional, commercial, and industrial buildings alike, due largely to its durability and functionality as a weather envelop, not to […]
Three Shades of Green
The Simma House, located in Egg, Austria and designed by the architect George Bechter, marries three approaches to sustainable design: the adaptive reuse of an existing structure, the nearly exclusive […]
Just Wood: Thermally Modified Timber
Wood as a building material has many virtues including its impressive strength to weigh ratio, relatively high insulating value, beautiful grain patterns, warm color, and soft tactility. However, despite these […]
Industry Focus: Steel
Steel has been one of the most widely used and celebrated architectural material for over 150 years. From the steel frame of the earliest skyscrapers, to the rebar that reenforces […]
The Ultimate Renewable Resource
No architectural material has been more widely used throughout history as straw. From African huts, to thatched roofs in Asia and Europe, to its use as insulation in Native American […]
Local Strategies in a Global World
This past Wednesday the UMN School of Architecture had the honor of hosting Mumbai based architect Rahul Mehrotra for a lecture on his architectural work and ideas. A major theme […]
Material Focus: Shou-sugi-ban
Shou-sugi-ban is the ancient Japanese technique of charring wood for use in building cladding. Paper is bound between two cedar planks which is set on-fire for several minutes before being […]
Material Strategies 
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