ORDOS 100 #38: Iwamoto Scott
This villa is located in plot #43 of the ORDOS project.
Architects: Iwamoto Scott Architecture
Location: Ordos, Inner Mongolia, China
Principals in Charge: Lisa Iwamoto & Craig Scott
Project team: Blake Altshuler, Keith Plymale, Magda Melo, Sean Canty, Ryan Golenberg, Christina Kaneva
Projects Assistants: Jason Chang, Manuel Diaz, Ashley Li, Alan Lu, Doron Serban, Wei Huang, John Kim
Design year: 2008
Construction year: 2009-2010
Curator: Ai Weiwei, Beijing, China
Client: Jiang Yuan Water Engineering Ltd, Inner Mongolia, China
Constructed Area: 1,000 sqm aprox
The design of Villa 043 derives from exploring certain formal/spatial/material preoccupations while engaging the pragmatic realities of the project brief. Some of Plot 043’s key site factors include substantial southerly and easterly views afforded by a raised elevation and sloping topography, as well as a high degree of exposure to adjacent public buildings and open spaces. Accordingly, Villa 043 aims to conflate two inverse spatial paradigms: the Chinese courtyard house, with its inward focus towards a central exterior space, offering sanctuary and protection; and the Western villa, with its outward orientation and potential to capture views to the surrounding landscape. During our first trip to China, we were also intrigued by the discovery in various built examples of an oblique spatiality that enriches an otherwise strict orthogonal order. Villa 043 melds and transforms these archetypal spatial concepts, evolving into an adaptational site-specific architecture.
Inspiration came as well from examples of landform and built form that merge together via the logic and materiality of masonry construction. The overall form of Villa 043 is conceived as a twisted stack of east-west oriented bricks, strategically carved out by exterior void spaces. The villa’s base geometry originates at the ground as a square footprint rotated five degrees off the recommended building footprint from the master plan by FAKE Design. This square then subtly shears counterclockwise toward the roof, resolving at the top as a parallelogram realigned with the site’s edges, and tilted in section to follow the site’s slope.
In response to the suggested use of local construction techniques, the villa’s structure is reinforced concrete, meeting local seismic requirements; and the exterior cladding material is variegated brickwork, offering a visual and tactile complexity, plus shelter from the frigid winds and snow of winter and the scorching heat and sandstorms of summer. The brick envelope’s coursing and bonding patterns adapt to the villa’s specific geometry. The technique of corbelling allows the brick to assume the supple geometries of ruled surfaces, while the bonding patterns vary according to the formal logic of the walls: the twisting south and north walls are clad with corbelled, stacked stretcher bond; whereas the vertical faces of the east and west facades receive staggered header bond, adapted to the walls’ five-degrees-off-vertical leaning edges.
Villa 043’s program is configured with large living room, dining, kitchens and study all located one level above entry, in a ‘piano nobile’ arrangement. At this raised height, views of the surrounding landscape are pulled in by the geometry of the house. The entry level contains small living room, bedrooms and the workers quarters and attaches to the garage. Each bedroom has direct southern exposure, while the master suite is distinguished through its position at the uppermost level. The pool, gym, sauna, home-theater and guest suite form the base of the villa and connect to an outdoor pool terrace to the east.
Vertical circulation wraps around the central void as a double helix that intertwines interior and exterior stairways, dynamically linking the villa’s major interior program with five interconnected exterior spaces: a central courtyard which connects all levels; a covered terrace positioned opposite the main entry to face the eastern view; a large south-facing terrace opening directly off the main living room, and forming a circuit of movement via access from the study; an open rooftop terrace above; and a small winter garden situated between dining and living rooms. These five exterior spaces also serve to bring sunlight and cross-ventilating breezes into and through the interior spaces of the villa.
Related articles:
23 comments »
I’m sorry… it’s ridiculous… is somebody trying to spend here too much money?
sigh…
This ORDOS crap is endless!!!!!!!!!!
As has been pointed out, its not “endless” — the featured Ordos designs will end after the 100 villas have been posted (although at this rate, by then perhaps the built ones will start to show up…). If you’re tired of it already, its quite simple: don’t look anymore.
This one isn’t all that bad. I love that they included process work, diagrams, models etc.
…and there will be 62 more…
Its a good design. I dont see too much wrong with it.
I’m enjoying all the diagrams and such. The architecture really is a product of it’s surroundings. The one thing that makes this design take a dive in my book is the rendered finishes. Something about that color and texture(both int. and ext.) just isn’t right. It reminds me of the kind of houses i grew up around that had that same cream brick that only old people lived in. Does it come in black? Personal preference on the finishes aside, I’d like to say that the form is great.
I really like this project, nice and clear diagrams and documentation of context. I agree with Troy about the finishes, they describe them so well but visually they aren’t there.
I really find the site model interesting with all of the individual houses. While attempting to achieve individuality, when you see them all together, it kind of looks cookie cutter.
Once Again Lisa Iwamoto making her students do the work and then putting her name on it. There is a reason why there is so much emphasis on diagrams and process, that’s what the poor kids are getting judged on with only one semester to complete the project at best.
Eric Glez, You clearly are a bitter and clueless individual: this project has nothing to do with her students or with her school; she mainly did not oversee the project, her partner did; there was not one student of professor Iwamoto’s on the project team; and maybe two former students among the 13 staff involved in the project, and neither of which did any of the diagrams — all of which pretty much makes your comment baseless slander (i.e. words that should probably be filtered off Arch Daily).
I don´t see where is the contemporary aproach. This is agressive. I wouldn´t be able to live in here.
Well ordos is again and again a superficial place.
I’ll live in it!
Quiet difficult to built though
Jose, at least give a few reasons why you couldn’t live in this house. I think Archdaily should have a minimum comment posting length of at least 50 words…
And to Eric Glez and gmlgrl, I’d say that it doesn’t matter who did it, as long as it’s good design. If it’s good design or not is up to the beholder, however versed in the architectural understanding that individual might be. It only really matters how the place feels when you’re inside it. Architects should present their work as if their clients have already been to the building.
Somebody tell me why most of a so called modern architecture cannot be “normal”?
Why architects don’t respect neighbourhood, local traditions and harmony with the surroundings?
Why an architectural design must be strange or outrageous to draw attention to be called “good”?
Why “art” takes over functionality and common sense doesn’t count much anymore?
What happened to an old and good design school developed by FLW?
When will we get that people belong to the ground, not to the sky or underground? That we need to live and work in functionally comfortable and healthy spaces with natural (and clean) light, air, water and verdure?
Is better time coming any time soon?
Bo Lucky, your ranting on about “modern architecture being ‘normal’…respecting neighborhoods…harmony with the surroundings…art taking over functionality…the need for healthy spaces…light, air, water, verdure…FLW”, etc. seems incredibly odd and out of place here.
First off, what exactly is desirable about “normal” in this instance? If you want “normal”, there is plenty of crappy normal modern architecture covering the earth (far more than abnormal, unfortunately). “Normal” goes against the whole idea of Ordos 100 anyway, which for better or worse assumes 100 artful and unique villas to be sold speculatively (essentially architecture with a capital A, architecture as art or for art collectors), as part of the new art-based community they’re trying to develop.
Then, aside from the fact that this particular design looks to be all about bringing in light and air, some response to local typology, site, climate and views, proposing local building materials, is arguably a pretty functionally-driven design out of the villas presented thus far, the immediate “neighborhood” and “surroundings” at this site for Ordos 100 consist of sand dunes, a couple of brand new public buildings and art studios, and ultimately 99 other wacky villas.
Lastly, the “design school” your beloved FLW did start is still churning out dreadfully formulaic, mediocre copies five decades after his death.
So maybe on top of your many yearning questions, you can add: “Why am I asking so many misguided, misdirected and unanswerable questions?”.
It’s is a very original concept, a clear investigation and a good outcome.
The money was obviously no problem.
This is not a easy design. People worked long on this project without getting loose on the beginning idea. (is that proper english? I have no idea)
I agree with Bothands, nice essay
bothands… My yearning :) questions were initially posted in The Glass Tower by Eric Owen Moss Architects comments section (may be they would be more understandable then) but due to some kind of a “moderation hiccups” they ended up with ORDOS 100 #38. I don’t think the questions are misguided, misdirected and unanswerable as they reflect concerns of many architects… even those currently viewing archdaily posts. It is scary to see how increasingly important role politics and big money play in architectural business. And “normal” is not equivalent to “crappy”… not to me at least. So if you cannot address these issues, live them alone…
Well Bo if that was the case, I apologize for responding to your questions that in fact were unintentionally “misdirected” to the wrong project. I do agree normal doesn’t have to equal crappy, but when “modern” is involved it often does.
Not interested in your egos, let it go.
Now lets talk about the project.
It looked hideous at first, but after reading the description it at least dares to try and work with a solid range of ideas.
I’m not sure what it would be like to live in it, but its certainly better than a lot of the other things we have seen.
I think the problem here is that the exciting views are internal, but I guess thats the point.
The issue seems to be how the windows are articulated on the facade. The courtyard elevations are handled well,
then it decends into a ghery-ish scheme externally with mundane square windows in a typical/familiar style. These detract us from the monumentality, especially at the entry.
Its probably far more considered and detailed than other Ordos projects, but I think that showing driveways, boring fences etc in this arena may detract from the good aspects.
You guys really do buy that diagram crap?
Those inner patio and Palladio references aren’t “really” present in the proposed design.
That void in the middle isn’t a “patio” (courtyard for the non spanish speakers) It’s more a duct chase, It will get sun only at 12 m and thats it, too small in proportion to the footprint and on top of that its like 3 stories high.
And as for the palladio reference, they punched out windows in the exterior walls, and 2 areas with floor-ceiling glass, wow….how clever…windows in a wall, who knew!
I think what’s interesting, but it gets lost in all that twisting, is the “ascending spiral” scheme, that’s what should had been the main concept, wrapping an ascending spiral around a real “patio”.
my 2 cents.
sullka: The “diagram crap” you refer to in this project is something you’re arguably misreading to support your claims. Void space in the design is not limited to a central “patio”, but includes other habitable exterior spaces that branch off this organizational central space. As the architects say, these exterior spaces include the covered east-facing terrace, the open south facing terrace, and the roof terrace. One diagram speaks to this directly.
They also don’t “reference Paladio” per se (though they show the Villa Rotunda), but rather claim to “conflate the inverse spatial paradigms” of the Western villa’s outward focus to the landscape together and the Chinese courtyard house’s inward focus. This has to do with the complexity of the void space as much as with window types. Had they wrapped the spiral circulation around a “real patio” as you suggest, and left it at that, you’d have the standard hierarchy and purity of a central courtyard, and not the site specificity and spatial complexity they’re obviously shooting for. I’d also argue the spiral doesn’t get lost in “all the twisting” as you claim, but the twist actually registers and reiterates the spiral. You seem to prefer a purity and clarity that the architects simply aren’t interested in; so in saying “what should have been the main concept”, you must mean ‘what would have been’ YOUR main concept had it been your project.