#HTE

My biggest regret in life is not being able to spend more time on our content, and our Stories more specifically. I mean, an extraordinary amount of effort and research already goes into producing these articles, I’m sure most of you would be well aware of that, but I would love to be able to give each Story even more love. To workshop the titles, to go even deeper with some of the projects, present additional insights, ninja-fy the layout etc. Alas, the digital world is brutal and we simply have to keep moving. Plus I have to keep reminding myself not to overwhelm you with too much content, as there is only so much you can take in each day. Am I right or am I right? Thank you. I do love being right, you know.

But this random tangent is, of course, not the topic of today’s discussion. We are here to talk about serious architecture. Sliced architecture to be exact. What do I mean by that, I hear you ask? Well, this is the bit where I wish I could spend more time on working through the titles to nail the intent of each Story. Sliced architecture is an ode to skylights, primarily, but not just your regular, run-of-the-mill skylights. Puh-lease! When has regular anything been the topic of discussion around here? Exactly! So, no, I’m not talking about the kind of skylight you chuck on top of a building in hope of allowing more natural light into an interior. No sir.

Sliced Architecture takes into account the entire architectural envelope, where the architects have made careful incisions into solid volumes with precision, not unlike that of a surgeon. Specific, accurate, measured and quite deliberate.

Today we examine houses (and a handful of other building types such as churches and commercial spaces) which employ skylights to an extraordinary effect. These precise cuts into the architectural envelope are often coupled with vertical and angular slices that create truly three-dimensional openings towards the sky. So yes, not just skylights but also vertical glass panels, clearstory windows, angular and corner cutaways. All in the name of celebrating the beauty of natural light, creating interior spaces that come alive, awash with light and shadows, designed for human comfort and cumulative experience. The stuff true architectural poetry is made of.

See More ‘Stories on Design’ Curated by Yellowtrace.

Photography by Hiroshi Ueda.

+node in Hiroshima, Japan by UID Architects // This cantilevered timber house by Japanese studio UID Architects hovers 10 meters above the forest floor, with a space beneath that allows trees to grow up inside. Abundance of vertical and horizontal incisions within walls and ceilings brings the surrounding woodland to its inhabitants.

Read the full article about this project & see more images here.

Photography by Brett Boardman.

Jac house in Sydney’s inner west by panovscott // panovscott’s clients wanted a house that would allow them a proximate connection to the environment. The one that enabled an experience of their garden and the street, as well as the passing of the seasons and the time of day, to become an intrinsic part of their daily experience. The resulting house is outward looking, finely attuned to the prevailing characteristics established by the site.

Despite the generous size of the block, Jac house is relatively small, allowing the garden and the great Jacaranda to hold court. The windows that allow constant interactions with the context are huge in scale. In the great room, the space rises vertically via a void in the level above, expanding to the sky, but then also horizontally, allowing the experience of the full width of the land.

Read the full article about this project & see more images here.

Image courtesy of Skylab Architecture.

Hoke Residence in Portland, USA by Skylab Architecture // Conceived as an elegant and playful intersection of inside-out spaces, the Hoke Residence is an interplay between the vibrant outdoor environment and dramatic interior with its deftly angular details that provide framed views of the forest canopy. At once urban and wild, the residence sits in harmony with its location at the border of Portland and Forest Park.

Image courtesy of l’escaut architectures.

Atelier Pam & Jenny by l’escaut architectures // Completed in 2008, two thirds of this workshop for a graphic designer lies beneath the ground level, reminiscent of a ‘Hobbit’ house. The roof plane contains a hidden plywood-lined cut out that allows the light and spectacular views of the treetops above.

Image courtesy of Adam Richards Architects.

Ditchling Museum of Art & Craft by Adam Richards Architects // Located in the Ditchling village, Adam Richards Architects have designed and renovated a series of new and existing buildings and spaces that enter into a critical dialogue with the village and its history, the museum and its collection. The culmination of the museum is a gallery that houses the Stanhope Press, which is placed at the end of a bright, chapel-like space. New windows in this gallery give a final view from the press to the South Downs, invoking the unity of landscape, craft & ritual that so inspired the artists who came to Ditchling.

Read the full article about this project & see more images here.

Photography by Filip Dujardin.

Waasmunster House in Belgium by ONO architectuur // Located in the edges of a pine forest, ONO architectuur have utilised simple construction for this house designed on a limited budget. Capturing the pure essence of the materials, the house is created as a composition of commonplace components: concrete slabs, masonry blocks, timber roof, simple greenhouse glazing, drains designed as spouts, prefab concrete wall cladding, etc. However, it is in their composition that these banal components become interesting. Generous clearstory windows direct the views upwards towards the sky and surrounding pine tree canopies.

Photography by Xia Zhi.

Seashore Library in China by Vector Architects // From outside, it looks like a weathered rock that is pure and solid; but inside, it contains rich feelings and experiences. This cast-concrete library sits on a stretch of deserted beach facing the East China Sea topped by a curving ceiling. The cast in-situ concrete walls are imprinted with the grain of their timber formwork – influenced by the rippled markings left behind on the sand by the wind and water. Cunning slices in walls and ceilings highlight the wall textures, and animate the interior with light beams and cast shadows.

Photograpy by Nelson Kon.

Rio Bonito House in Brazil by Carla Juaçaba // This residence slash retreat sits within a nature preserve, situated in the Nova Friburgo mountains of the Rio Bonito hinterland. Two 1.1m thick stone walls support the four steel beams, upon which the floor and roof structure rest. The weight of the structure sits in contrast with the lightness of the interior volume, which is enhanced by two skylights that separate the upper story from the structural walls. On the back wall, the windows extend from floor to ceiling, providing vertical continuity for the horizontally placed skylights. So much YES right there!

Photography by Peter Clarke.

Balnarring Retreat by Branch Studio Architects // Balnarring Retreat is a purposefully Lo-Fi cabin that doesn’t require of you to sit and meditate in order to slow down and stop the rushing speed of the world. “The retreat embraces a low-tech aesthetic towards the operation of the building itself, fully embodying the idea of retreat and slowing down. Celebrating craftsmanship and integrity of materiality instead of technology,” said the architects.

The context of the site was an important aspect of the project. “The connection with place, in this case nature, is an important element… the relentless croak of the frogs, the mesmerising water reflections that dance on the ceiling, the ducks and other water birds paddling past and the dense greenery swaying in the breeze,” they said. In addition to embracing the breath-taking view of the lake it sits over, connection to nature is also addressed within the cabin’s shower cubicle. Perfect for blue sky thinking, no?

Read the full article about this project & see more images here.

Photography by Hertha Hurnaus.

CJ5 House in Vienna, Austria by Caramel Architekten // This house in Vienna has a long and narrow floorplan that measures 5 x 35 meters. An internal connection between the living levels and a central atrium garden is achieved via the means of large glazed cut-outs that open up vertically from the living area. An internal set of very spacious interlocking rooms is developed, despite the narrowness of the property.

Photography by Roger Frei.

Loft Conversion in Burgdorf, Switzerland by Freiluft // Through a slanted cut in the roof, light flows down the wall and into the once windowless attic, with the old timber roof truss celebrated in all its glory. Delicious.

Photography by Javier Callejas Sevilla.

Funeral Parlour in Murtas, Spain by Muñoz Miranda Architects // Two concave rooms, one public and one more private are united by the light, acting “as an ontological reflection of each space”. The midday sun forms an eclipse as continuous ring drawn together by direct and projected light, where land (material light projected onto the curved wall) and sky (immaterial direct light) engage in one particular moment of magic, releasing “the soul in its ascent to heaven”. Divine.

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