The House of Cards / Architecture W

Aug 2009

By Amber P — Filed under: Houses , Architecture W, USA

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The HOC is a schematic design for a small (2,000sf) house in Portland, OR. Architecture W design exploration began with using children’s wood blocks to explore simple concepts of space and light and shade, whilst concurrently thinking of Mies’ experimental Brick and Concrete houses. The project builds upon the modern movement’s legacy of an architecture built on an honest expression of material, structure, and strong ties to the landscape. The House of Cards uses the building blocks of architecture; using plan and section to explore the interplay of volumes and spaces, both inside and out.

The House of Cards uses structural solid wood panels, one of the most renewable materials taking the least amount of energy to produce, to provide the interior and exterior finish, moisture protection, insulation, and structure. Stacking the panels organically, the concept frames views into the landscape or bends the panels onto themselves, reaching out to enclose portions of the landscape while embracing the interplay of shadow and light. With no distinction between interior or exterior walls, the design strategy allows creative interpretation of space, volume, and architectural expression while incorporating passive strategies of cross ventilation, shade, and thermal mass.

With a designed life span of over 100 years, the wood panels form a lasting structure in which the glass and energy systems which can be replaced and updated as newer, more efficient technologies come online. The site design uses native foliage to reinforce the architectural connection to the landscape while collecting and storing all water through a series of bioswale terraces.

Cite:
P , Amber . "The House of Cards / Architecture W" 18 Aug 2009. ArchDaily. Accessed 10 Feb 2012. <http://www.archdaily.com/32194>

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adrian says:

cool video, but it dosen’t tell anything

# August 18, 2009 at 14:00

Elizabeth says:

Delightful concept, enjoyed the video and photos. Thanks!

# August 18, 2009 at 15:07

Dan says:

agreed, I feel like I haven’t learned anything about the house. But cool animation!

# August 18, 2009 at 15:12

MATTHEW says:

always interested in houses without doors…really. Hope you get to build this thing…

# August 18, 2009 at 15:20

ARCHmonster says:

The plans are a joke. A LOT of wasted space. Concept is neat, but when you actually make this into a house, the sleekness of the plans with vanish and it will no longer make sense.

# August 18, 2009 at 16:53

Dustin says:

Exterior renders? the floorplans do have a lot of waisted space and I made a very similar house as my first design studio project years ago. I liked the stop motion video though, maybe they could have spent a little more effort on the design.

# August 18, 2009 at 17:28

Anthony DeVito says: