Introducing Architectural Tectonics

Exploring the Intersection of Design and Construction

Chad Schwartz

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9781317564041
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Architecture
• Subtopic: Méthodes et matériel d'architecture

Introducing Architectural Tectonics is an exploration of the poetics of construction. Tectonic theory is an integrative philosophy examining the relationships formed between design, construction, and space while creating or experiencing a work of architecture. In this text, author Chad Schwartz presents an introductory investigation into tectonic theory, subdividing it into distinct concepts in order to make it accessible to beginning and advanced students alike.

The book centers on the tectonic analysis of twenty contemporary works of architecture located in eleven countries including Germany, Italy, United States, Chile, Japan, Bangladesh, Spain, and Australia and designed by such notable architects as Tadao Ando, Herzog & de Meuron, Kengo Kuma, Olson Kundig, and Peter Zumthor. Although similarities do exist between the projects, their distinctly different characteristics – location and climate, context, size, program, construction methods – and range of interpretations of tectonic expression provide the most significant lessons of the book, helping you to understand tectonic theory. Written in clear, accessible language, these investigations examine the poetic creation of architecture, showing you lessons and concepts that you can integrate into your own work, whether studying in a university classroom or practicing in a professional office.

PROJECTS

01
Loblolly House

KieranTimberlake Associates

Chapter co-written with Aaron Neal

Firm Brief¹

Stephen Kieran and James Timberlake were educated at the University of Pennsylvania. After graduating, they worked together in the office of Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown before starting their own firm – KieranTimberlake Associates – in 1984. Here, they explore new ways of looking at architecture by utilizing Building Information Modeling (BIM) paired with new fabrication and construction techniques. KieranTimberlake not only fulfill their client’s needs, but also strive to evolve the field of architecture. Each of their projects integrates into its character three design philosophies: provocation, research, and environmental sustainability. The firm has been acknowledged numerous times for their work, most prominently with the 2008 American Institute of Architects’ Firm Award. Additionally, both Kieran and Timberlake complement their professional work with teaching appointments – currently at the University of Pennsylvania – that give them the opportunity to continue their explorations with future generations of practitioners.

taylor island, maryland, united state
gps / not provided for residence program / weekend residence completed / 2006 area / 204 m2 [2,200 ft2]

01.1
Vicinity map

01.2
Loblolly House from the shoreline

Project Brief

Loblolly House was inspired by the childhood urge to build tree houses. An effort to bring back the magic of a house in the trees – one that requires climbing up to gain a view – Loblolly House appeals to a primal instinct about how we inhabit space. It also represents a home that is uniquely integrated with its setting among the tall loblolly pines from which it takes its name.²

Loblolly House is a weekend retreat for Kieran and his family. Located on the Chesapeake Bay, it is perched between the shoreline and a dense forest of native Loblolly Pines (Figure 01.2). Approaching from the east, the house emerges from the trees, elevated off the ground on piles. It is divided into two units – the main residence and a guest wing – connected by a bridge. An entrance walkway leads through a stand of bamboo to a staircase that ascends to entrances on both floors of the house (Figures 01.3 and 01.4). The lower floor of the main residence contains the master bedroom and bath while the main living space occupies the upper floor (Figure 01.5). The guest wing contains bedrooms on both floors along with an internal stair and service space.

Loblolly House reinvents the process of constructing architecture. After researching manufacturing industries, KieranTimberlake designed a prefabrication system that drastically reduces a building’s construction time frame. It contains two tightly integrated work flows: one for components manufactured off site and another for site-specific construction. The firm proposes that this system offers a more sustainable way of developing the built environment as the industry moves forward in the coming years.³

Tectonic Principles

Precedent

Architectural construction practices have not changed significantly over the past century. Manufacturing fields, such as automotive, shipbuilding, and aerospace, however, have thrived due in part to their ability to progressively adapt to change. Kieran and Timberlake’s Refabricating Architecture presents the firm’s research into these industries and calls for a re-evaluation of the practices currently used to design and construct buildings. Manufacturing industries favor nonhierarchical over linear processes primarily because nonhierarchical processes allow for more time to perfect each part and for higher quality control prior to the assembly of the finished product (Figure 01.6). Kieran and Timberlake argue that the building industry would be wise to learn from and adapt some of these practices.⁴

Loblolly House served as a testing ground for adapting industrial practices to architectural production. Most of the house’s components were manufactured off site and shipped to the site for assembly. This process places significant emphasis on the quality of the joints between materials, components, and systems. It serves as a direct link to the philosophies of Bötticher, Semper, and later Frascari who all called for careful consideration when joining materials and assemblies. The fabrication of components in an off-site facility allowed for higher quality control with far fewer connections made on site where tolerances are much greater and the construction practices are more imprecise.⁵

01.3
Floor plans

01.4
Building section

01.5
Main living space

01.6
Chart of working processes

Anatomy

This new conceptualization of building required KieranTimberlake to create a new system for categorizing building components. The model serves as a departure from traditional building nomenclature and from Semper’s four elements. The system consists of scaffold, cartridges, blocks, fixtures, furnishings, equipment, and site work (Figure 01.7). Site work performs a similar role to that of Semper’s earthwork. It is the manipulation of the site to prepare it for inhabitation. In the Loblolly House, the site work consists of driven piles that serve as an elevated ground plane while anchoring the building to the earth. The scaffold is the structure of the building and rests on the pile foundation. Cartridges are pre-manufactured panels that attach to the scaffold. They enclose and define the space of the building as a primary component of the cladding system. These elements are essentially hung in the scaffold, a procedure that is reminiscent of Semper’s beliefs about the hanging of woven mats. Also attached to the system are the blocks, which are small, complex spaces (like bathrooms) that require the interrelationship of many trades and are constructed more economically off site. Fixtures, furnishings, and equipment are additions to the building’s primary structure. These elements create the quality of the living environment through the regulation of comfort level and the creation of an interior finish palate.

Tectonic

There are now and have always been two basic ways of lifting and supporting architectural elements above the earth: frames and walls. Frames are capable of transferring loads from great heights through joined members that extend do...