Isolated BeachHut

I decided to go for a 4WD trek a couple of days ago in the hope of finding somewhere remote to have a dive, however instead I found an isolated fishermans hut overlooking the ocean.

The structure was nearly primitive in construction, reflecting how remote it was, and the simple requirements of its occasional occupants.

Local Microhouse

I went on a brief exploration of my sites immediate surrounding today only to find this little house. Set on a relatively small, but very nice block, this small building sits on a northern facing incline above a lovely little pond. Accordingly its northern facade is mostly glazed, unlike its southern front, which faces onto the driveway.

Surrounding the building are a couple of water tanks, a couple of dilapidated sheds (perhaps once chicken hutches) and an outdoor table and chairs, set under some shade on the left of the first image.

Microhouse views

These two photos are taken from the buildings front deck, at morning (approximately 8.30am) and at evening (approximately 9.00pm) respectively. These are the times I seem to use the deck the most, be it eating, reading or checking emails. I dont really use the deck much during the day, instead choosing to sit indoors with the door, windows or a combination of both open for views and fresh air.

I think this is primarily because the deck is not well sheltered from the high afternoon sun, which as I discovered yesterday (in an ill-fated reading expedition on the deck, reclining comfortably on a mattress) can be rather unforgiving.

Little Cob Cabin

Located on Mayne Island, British Columbia in Canada, this little cabin is primarily constructed of Cob, a mixture of sand, clay and straw. Cob is wet enough to mold, yet dry enough to build up without foundations while providing great thermal value.

The process of building with Cob is involving and labor intensive yet allows great freedom of form and expression, with walls no longer flat, and, more often than not, furniture built into the walls.

The use of materials, including Cob, ties the building to the landscape, and creates a bond between the built environment and its natural surroundings.

I found this building particularly interesting due to its odd form and scale, and the quality of internal light that it captures.

The full article is available here, and was found on the tinyhouseblog, a site which features numerous interesting projects, buildings, and ideas related, obviously, to tiny houses.

Camper Bike

I though I should include these images. These are from a set of nine photos which document this strange little building. The website also features an interesting shopping cart house, which is pretty novel, and a whole heap of van/camper drawings and paintings, less interesting.

The rest of the Camper Bike photos can be found here.

Thanks to Fi for sending me this link, way back in October 09.

Barry Lopez, Arctic Dreams

I have just finished reading Barry Lopez's study of the Far North, Arctic Dreams and found it thoroughly enjoyable. Lopez is a stunning writer, who seems to bridge the gap between the physical world around and the emotions and feelings that it evokes within us.

It reminded me of Gerald Durrells The Overladed Ark in the attention and significance it places on the lives and patterns of the animals and native people of a foreign land.

Lopez links us to a place through the stories he tells, making us feel as much a part of the landscape as the ice and the snow.

When describing a flock of 250,000 lesser snow geese at Thule Lake Lopez writes "What absorbs me in these birds, beyond their beautiful whiteness, their astounding numbers, the great vigor of their lives, is how adroitly each bird joins the larger flock or departs from it. And how each bird while it is a part of the flock seems part of something larger than itself. Another animal. .......... Their movements are endlessly attractive to the eye because of the tension they create between the extended parabolic lines of their flight and their abrupt but adroit movements, all of it in three dimensions". - Page 154 - 155.

The next book I intent to read is Henry D. Thoreau's Walden, the written record of his experiment in simple living.

Bushfire Threat

The recent bushfire south of St Helens was a possible threat to my microhouse (and site its currently located on) if the wind was to swing southwesterly this afternoon as predicted. As it happened, the wind did not come around, and the bushfire has continued burning towards Upper Scamander. I believe it is now mostly contained and no longer poses any real threat.

I have to admit that I wasnt really prepared had the wind turned as initially suspected and while I had the 4WD hooked upto the building I had no real idea what my plan would have

been, thus its probably for the best that things turned out the way they did.

Where to next?

I guess as some stage the question needs to be raised 'Where to next?'

The current plans involve staying at my current location until mid February, at which stage I intend to move back to Launceston in preparation for semester 1, 2010. I then plan to continue living in this building until easter or thereabouts, gauging how my experience changes under a different set of circumstances and requirements.

However, at this stage I do not know where in Launceston I shall be siting the building, and as such am welcome to suggestions and any ideas and/or comments anyone may have.

Missing Link Micro Building

A micro building designed by Ric Thomas of Missing Link Cabins and Cottages is currently being constructed in Hobart. This Class 10 building (under the Building Code of Australia) has a footprint of 4.5 x 3m, consists of two levels and is constructed of prefabricated steel panels (walls, floor and roof).

Natural light is brought into the upper level through the large skylights, while the lower level opens out into the existing landscape.

Ric is passionate about micro buildings and designing simple and elegant building solutions, such as his own footing system and floor panel locking system. Furthermore panels are design to be easily movable by a maximum of 3 people, and fit legally onto a normal truck/trailer thus requiring no special equipment or permits.

Missing Link Cabins and Cottages currently have a website under construction, which I shall link to when available.

Thanks to Paul for all his help and for these brilliant photos (including the Tasmanian Tiger which was too good not to include), and to Ric of Missing Link.

New Location Photos

The new location is at the top of a northern facing incline and is well sheltered from the early morning sun, yet receives plenty of afternoon sun. It was chosen as it was the most clear and most level place on the site which still allowed solar access for the solar panels.

It overlooks the adjacent paddocks, the nearby creek and surrounding native bushland.

In addition to its views there is the constant screaming of yellow-tailed black cockatoos, laughter of kookaburras and, come nighttime, blood-curdelling screeches of possums fighting.

Again its an absolutely lovely location, not quite the beach, but magnificent in its own way and alot more secure.

Internal Set-up

Now that I have moved in and had the chance to live in this building for a while I thought I better share a new interior photo illustrating how the building works in practice.

This image pretty much sums it all up. From this image you can tell that approximately half of the utility wall is taken up with either the kitchen fittings, utensils or is acting as food storage. This could be arranged better by installing some drawers (for cutlery and cooling utensils - most likely under the sink) and some hooks (for pots, pans, and tea towels). I would suggest that these two alterations could be done relatively simply, and would considerably reduce the amount of space required.

Likewise the failure to include a fridge means than an esky is essential for any prolonged stay in this building, but even my modestly sized esky does not fit anywhere. Another issue, which I think I've touched on before is the lack of enclosed storage for things such as potatoes, or valuables.

This all sounds pretty negative, which it shouldn't as the kitchen does work really well as does the rest of the storage space, with spaces well sized for books, plants, tools, shoes and even camp chairs. For example I have one portion dedicated to my recyclables, one for books and one with a photo, vase and space for my keys, spare coins, phone and sunglasses.

Furthermore the amount of space provided is ample for my needs and maybe even too generous, especially if the kitchen space was made more efficient.

Hinkle Farm Shack

Jeffery Broadhurst of Broadhurst Architects designed this diminutive single-room home, a few hours from Washington D. C as a retreat for his family.It is built simply from off the shelf components which echoes the simplistic, near colonial, mode of living it represents.

Its simple planning consists of three rooms, a kitchen, closet and a larger living/bedroom which completely opens to the east onto a generously proportioned deck. The building is approximately 42m2, and is only accessible via 4wd over a long and winding track of stones and grass. It utilises this remoteness and the surrounding environment 'bringing the mountainside shack to new heights' - Christopher Kieran, Architectural Record.

Thanks to Loren for emailing this one to me.

Things will be changing.....

Now the bulk of my headaches are out of the way (touch wood) I intend to begin commentating more about actually living in the building and the processes, pragmatics and possibilities that it presents.

Levelling the Building

Although I positioned the building on the most level site available it was still on mildly uneven ground. Thus this morning I went to work adjusting the position of the building, which could be done in one of two ways; A - I could chock-up the low side of the building (nearly impossible as it would require raising it considerably higher than the stands allow), or B - I could dig in the higher side of the building, which is the direction I took.

This is considerably harder to actually do than describing it suggests, as most of the weight is taken by the buildings wheels, which are very difficult to dig under and even harder to raise off the ground. In addition to digging the wheels in, both support stands (front and back) must also be dug in. Again all these things sound simple, but cannot be done together, and required the utilisation of a car jack and several blocks of wood. Note: Car jacks, designed for 750KG become nearly impossible to operate when lifting the lions share of 2800KG.

Anyways, were done now and it is as close to level as I think Ill be able to get it.

I guess the lesson here is that this style of building, when designed to be transportable, must accommodate uneven terrain.

Another day, Another move.....

Well, here we go again.

Today brutally started a 5.45am when I was woken by a bloke yelling 'hello, anyone in there? you do know your on private land......', this bloke was apparently the manager of the property my building was deposited on during the bungled robbery, and was evidentially none too happy. I discussed my situation with him, and informed him that as soon as the police had

visited, I was going to repair the damage caused, then hopefully relocate away from his property. He seemed mildly satisfied with my response, and continued on his way..... needless to say I returned to bed.

Later that morning I was visited by a couple of policemen, who were very nice, and even assisted me in the refitting of the deck to the rest of the building, a task that was going to be terribly difficult for one person alone. After they had left I returned to work repairing the other items of damage, before heading into St Helens where I purchased a new glass louver (which I later fitted) and organised a lift for the microhouse.

Everything seemed to be going so well as I returned and begun preparing my belongings and the building for relocation. At 4.30pm my lift arrived, a large tilt-tray tow truck. The truck would easily tow the building, however without a tow-ball we were in a bit of a pickle, and the building itself was wider than the tray, so again we were out of luck.

This left me again in a difficult position, not being able to leave the vehicle where it was, and not being able to move it. As a last ditch effort I returned to St Helens and borrowed my fathers old Toyota Land Cruiser. It's a fine vintage, and with over 470,000km's under its belt its definitely been around the block. Returning to the site I hitched the building on, took some photos, put the Cruiser into 4WD, and uttered some prayers. Initially I thought I was stuffed, the Crusier was screaming, and in top gear barely reaching 60KM/H, furthermore any incline caused a dramatic speed-loss, further adding to my worry, however slowly and steadily we crawled closer and closer to our destination, and just before dark we reached the property.

Now that we were here there was only one obstacle remaining.... the drive way.

The driveway is in fairly good condition for a mildly eroded gravel track, yet dips down to a small bridge over the creek, before rising again steeply to my intended site. This presented two serious problems; A - The creek sits in a valley, with slopes either way and there was a real chance of getting stuck at the bottom if I didnt make it to the other side. B - If I did make it to the top of the steep rise I would then have to content with a fairly difficult corner, and would probably have to limit my speed considerably.

After checking and rechecking the steep and very loose slope I finally decided to go for it, I had gotten this far and was not to be defeated. So down we roared, pushing the limits of 4th gear, vehicle screaming (approximately 30-35KM/H), building bouncing as we flew down to the creek, then up to the other side, lucking the corner, and achieving our goal.

We had finally made it.

Coastal Microhouse

I have often driven past this little building and would have to place it as one of my favourite buildings of all time. Its magnificently sited, overlooking 180 degrees of ocean, and seems to grow from and merge into the site. I couldn't imagine a nicer place to live or a nicer building to live in. Its use of materials and apparently simple planning create a building with real character, beauty and poetics. Just by looking at it, and driving past it I ponder the stories it has to tell, and the experiences it has to share.

Security and safety

Due to recent events I now feel unable to leave the building at its current location (or where it was originally) for fear of it being stolen, broken into or vandalised. Even if I was able to lock it so it was unmovable I am afraid that potential criminals would then break in and rob me, or failing that damage the building itself. This is particularly disappointing and is a real shame.

My intention is now to move the building to a safe location on private land, as soon as possible.

This is a real headache given the problems associated with moving the building, and the repairs which will need to be finished before removal.

I think an important aspect of home is the satisfaction of knowing that it is secure and safe, and that your possessions are also secure and safe. At the moment I feel none of the above, which is considerably difficult to handle.

Comano Cabin

The Comano Cottage, a weekend home, on Comano Island, Washington is slightly less than 110m2, yet has a commanding presence due to its garden wall which extends into the landscape.

It is timber framed and clad in Hardi Panels (Fibre cement panelling) externally and maple and cherry plywood internally.

It features a kitchen, bathroom and large living space on the lower level, and a sleeping loft set above the kitchen and bathroom as the upper level. Two set of french doors open up the living space and "In the summer, you can open up the doors and the house becomes a covered pavilion" - Carlander, Architectural Record.

Maintaining a garden and creating privacy from neighbours was an important consideration, with the garden wall addressing the privacy issue, sheltering the garden and making the building appear larger than it in fact is.

Since this building construction in 1999 the firm responsible for its design, Vandeventer + Carlander Architects' have been awarded the 2006 AIA/Sunset Magazine Merit award, and in response to several requests have made the cabins plans available for purchase. Its now known as the C3 Cabin and plans costs $850 US (Approximately $920 AUD) . "The design of this cabin was premised on three goals. First, to provide the required spaces for an extended stay cabin within a minimal footprint. Second, provide a quality of space and abundant natural daylight typically not found in this size of structure. And, third, to allow for simplicity of construction and maintenance" - Vandeventer + Carlander Architects'.

Thankyou to Loren for providing this one, the full article is available here.

Settling in

Its seems odd to me that after just a couple of nights, and only a limited amount of time that I should feel comfortable, and at home in this building, yet thats exactly how I feel.

The question of why I feel this way is a challenging one, for which I have no answer.

Some observations thus far.

1. The building as a base.

Whatever Im doing, no matter where Im going..... Im always returning to this building. Tasks and journeys are not the end goal, instead the return is the goal. There is a degree of satisfaction and calm associated with getting home, whereby I recognise it as my place in the world, my sanctuary and my home.

2. Connection with the outdoors.

Regardless of what Im doing I seem to seek out a connection with the outside, and will seldom be inside without the large window or door open. I think it is the combination of views and ventilation, whereby the space feels larger due to the visual links to external objects, and the movement of air. Likewise the deck has become so important to me and could probably be doubled in size to accommodate all the different functions it seems to accommodate.

3. The loft ladder.

Im not quite sure how to remedy this issue but the ladder seems to make the space considerably smaller. When cooking it must be pushed aside for access to the sink and gas cooker, this then obstructs access to the food storage and esky. Likewise when accessing other items within the storage the ladder must be pushed in front of the kitchen. As such I am never sure of where a particular item is, which is ridiculous considering the size of the building. Furthermore, I am continually stepping around and moving the ladder, which again makes the space seem smaller than it actually is.

4. Indoor lighting.

Indoor lighting is generally pretty good, however there is not a light situated above the only integrated seat, meaning that to read (or do anything requiring task lighting) I am required to either move up to the loft (inconvenient for many reason including the difficulty of hauling things up, and its proximity to other things such as the kitchen) or place a camp chair in the middle of the space.

The Photos of Tuesday the 12th of January

Image 1 - Some of the Damage caused.

Image 2 - The rather large spring.

Image 3 - My hand after meeting with the giant spring.

Image 4 - The new site.

Image 5, 6 & 7 - Tuesday the 12th's sunset.

The Events of Tuesday the 12th of January

Well, where to start.

I was required for work in town the last couple of days and as such had to leave my portable microhouse unattended on-site. I was not entirely comfortable with the idea, yet it was necessary and I had to do it anyway.

Today I returned, excited to be coming home to it, and full of ideas and plan for the upcoming days. I was prepared to sand back and reseal the external pine timber work, affix flyscreens to the louvered windows, mow the lawns, and hopefully.... enjoy the location.

Well, after a couple of hours of driving I returned to find that the microhouse had been hijacked, and moved from its location to about 400metres up the track! The people responsible had also done considerable damage to the building while attempting to move it, which luckily seems to be contained to the deck. This included setting-off the brake-safe (which may mean my brakes will be locked on), snapping one of the recycled-plastic decking beams, bending the jockey-wheels handle (and also potentially damaging the jockey-wheel unit itself) and actually disconnecting the deck itself.

Now, the building is sited on an angle, bad for many reasons, and until I have the deck reconnected and in-place (a challenging task for one given its weight and size) it is dangerous and I have no way to re-siting the building.

After documenting the damage I began work attempting to restore the deck to its original position, at which stage the giant spring, which ordinarily assists in supporting the heavy deck, jumped its tracks, catching my left hand again the underside if the deck where it was stuck for sometime. The force it had and pain it caused were comparable, and after a 45 minute; one-handed drive to the hospital, I was relieved to know that there was no broken bones or nerve damage, and all I required was some steri-strips to hold the hole it had torn closed.

I must now fix the damage caused, and re-site the building (with one hand) before I can begin any of the other tasks I was looking forward to doing. This is utterly disappointing and very, very frustrating.

I aim to visit the council tomorrow to determine if I was on crown-land as suspected, and probably also the police to discuss the situation with them. This is not how I wanted to spend the day, and again is just so upsetting and disappointing.

On a lighter note I have managed to fix the water pump and now enjoy the luxury of running water, however I cannot fully appreciate its wonder as I must keep the dressings on my hand completely dry.

Rural Studio: Narrow Margins

[Left: Narrow Margins Dwelling Prototype, Right: Typical low-cost Shack]

Rural Studio is a student-led US practice which aims to suggest new paradigms, and methods of doing things for marginalised and impoverished clients.

This particular project; Narrow Margins, is an ultra low-cost housing prototype, providing 'an easily replicable, low-maintenance, energy efficient alternative' to the substandard shacks or trailers typical of rural Alabama.

The dwellings can be produced for $20,000 US (approximately $21,000 AUD), and features an open plan layout and a double height living room. Above the bathroom is a sleeping loft, while the raised platform foundations can adapt to different terrain.

The project is very similar to the Castle project at the UTAS School of Architecture & Design, which shares a similar layout, budget and set of goals.

Thanks to Loren for this one, and for sending me a PDF with more information about the project, including an exploded projection and cost breakdown, available here.

24 Different Layouts In A Studio Apartment in Hong Kong

Gary Chang, a Hong Kong based architect has created and lives in a 104m2 apartment which utilises movable wall panels suspended from the ceiling. This has allowed full flexibility in the apartments spatial arrangement, and the potential of 24 different living configurations.

Hong Kong is the worlds most vertical city, with more people living or working above the 14th floor than anywhere else on earth. Mr Chang's design responds to this, providing a high-rise apartment with the flexibility and adaptability of a typical suburban dwelling.

The full article can be found on the mirage.studio.7 blog, and more photos can be found here.

Cheers to Paul K for email this one to me.

Were onsite!

After many delays, the project is finally underway.

Today saw the realisation of my plans to date, with the building being towed, slowly and carefully, from its previous location outside the University of Tasmania's School of

Architecture and Design, to its new home on Tasmania's east coast.

The journey took approximately four hours, and added unmeasurable delays and frustration to the

poor souls stuck behind us. I

noticed a couple of things on the journey:

1. The buildings weight is too far back and is unevenly distributed, which causes it to rock back and forth. Future iteration of this particular building model should consider the axles location and

weight distribution.

2. The bathroom door will require a latch to either

hold it open or closed during transit as it continued to open and close during cornering.

3. The installed indicator and brake lights are only 12v, which

seems curious as to tow the building (2.8 tonnes) requires a

fairly decent truck, which generally run 24v. This is another consideration which could inform future

iterations.

Upon reaching our destination we were faced with the challenging of siting the building, a task made more complex by the solar panels location and requirements, the uneven terrain, limited vehicular manoeuvrability and the desirable ocean views, which all seemed to be working again us. The resulting position seems

to work well, and while the building does not open directly to the ocean the smaller windows provide some

lovely snapshot views down the beach.

Once sited I went to work unpacking, and moving in (after having a swim of-course), which was a simple and fairly quick process. It wasn't until I had unpacked everything and sat down with a cup of tea that I realised just how much space there was. I could easy double my belongings and still have space storage space.

The storage shelves are brilliant, with my only complain being the lack of doors (dark place for potatoes, security for personal effects, wardrobe storage, etc.).

In other news everything seems to be going very well, powers working, lights are working, gas is working, and I think I may have figured out why the water pump is not working. I have not decided how to achieve hot water, however this is not a pressing issue as I can boil water and enjoy cold showers.

This should do me for now, as the purpose of inhabiting this building is not to solely to blog, however I must again thank my driver for the brilliant job he has done, delivering the building in one piece despite the challenging condition.

Updated plans

This morning I have met with the truck driver who has agreed to tow the building. He was able to inspect the buildings, and I was luckily able to answer his questions regarding its height, width, weight, registration, and lighting set-up.

We have organised a very reasonable price for the task, and will be meeting at the building tomorrow morning at 9.00am to move it to its first location.

I also returned to the building last night and did a lot of the cleaning tasks, and sealed the battery hatch. I had intended to vacuum the place as well, but could not get the power to work (although the lights were working fine). Thus today I intend to purchase, connect and test the gas, test the water pump, get the power working, vacuum and begin moving some items in.

Interior Photos

Image 1 - View of the Utility/Kitchen space and front door.

Image 2 - View from sleeping loft across to the storage loft.

Image 3 - Utility/Kitchen space and ladder to upper level lofts.

Image 4 - View of the sleeping loft above the bathroom.

Image 5 - View from the front door looking along bench seat to the main window.

Key Collection & First Inspection

Today I picked up the keys. This has allowed me to take some interior photos (prior to actually moving-in) and assess the buildings condition. There are a number of details which will need my attention including sealing the battery (for the solar power system) storage hatch, retreating pine where used externally, purchasing and connecting the gas (cooking only), replacing a missing glass louver and an array of general tasks, such as vacuuming and cleaning. At this stage I will also be considering how to heat water for the shower unit and possible outdoor arrangements, including the potential for designing an awning and outdoors table.

Generally however the building is in excellent condition and pretty much ready for occupation.

Ill upload todays images shortly, and will aim to add more once I've moved-in and made the space my own.

Annotated Bibliography: Merleau-Ponty - Phenomenology of Perception.

Merleau-Ponty, Maurice. Phenomenology of Perception (Routledge, Great Britian, 2008).

Within the Phenomenology of Perception Maurice Merleau-Ponty argues the inadequacies of traditional empiricism and rationalism in the description of perceptual phenomenology.

Perception ultimately deal with the assignment of meaning to the external world, the overlapping of human consciousness with the conditions of existence.

He describes the body not as a geometric object but as a spatiality of situation structured by the determination of consciousness through perceptions and perceptions through consciousness.

“It is well known that a poem, though it has superficial meaning translatable into prose, leads, in the reads mind, a further existence which makes it a poem. Just as the spoken word is significant not only through the medium of individual words, but also that of accent, intonation, gesture and facial expression, and as these additional meanings no longer reveal the speakers thoughts but the source of his thoughts and his fundamental manner of being, so poetry, which is perhaps accidentally narrative and in that way informative, is essentially a variety of existence”. – Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Phenomenology of Perception, Page 174.

Part three of the book is particularly good and contains the chapters on cogito, temporality and freedom, while other chapters of interest include The Phenomenal Field, The Body as Expression, and Speech, Sense Experience and the chapter on Space.

Admittedly, this is a particularly difficult book to read, and while I enjoyed the challenge of reading it I cannot claim to have grasped its full depth.

Merleau-Ponty references: Husserl, Koffka, Sartre, Kant, Descartes and Scheler, among others.

Merleau-Ponty is cited by: Many authors and theorists, including Stephen Holl, Malpas, Heidegger, Giddens, Tilley and Casey.

Keywords: Perception, phenomenology, consciousness, existentialism, philosophy, body and object.

Small Building, Big Picture.

This lovely message is on the temporary construction fencing surrounding the new Pixel Building in Melbourne. The Pixel Building was designed by Studio 505 and aims to be Australia's first carbon-neutral office building. The building is due to be completed by March 2010 and the green technologies used include "an ozone-free absorption heat pump chiller, a grass roof covering to filter rainwater and insulate the building, a reed-bed system to filter grey water and shade the windows, individually controlled workstations to circulate fresh air through a raised roof, and concrete ceiling slabs to provide radiant cooling with minimal energy use" - Architectural Review.

The full article is available here.

I will refrain from sharing my personal views on the project and its appearance.

Thanks to Fiona for the photo.