CENTRE FOR INTERACTIVE RESEARCH ON SUSTAINABILITY AND REGENERATIVE DESIGN

ESPAÑOL

Most of the so-called sustainable or "green" buildings try to reduce their impact on the environment, both in its construction and maintenance. In simple words, it is about a building being "less bad", assuming that its existence would inevitably imply a negative environmental balance.
The concept of "Regenerative Design" takes a proactive approach and go beyond the traditional practice of sustainable design. The regenerative buildings not only reduce their energy consumption to zero but they collect, generate and distribute renewable resources to their surroundings, improving the environmental balance of the environment.

A remarkable example of this approach is the Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability or CIRS, erected at the University of British Columbia UBC in Vancouver, Canada, a project by Perkins + Will.

See location on Google Maps

The building statistics are impressive. For example, neither structural steel nor concrete were used during its construction, greatly reducing its environmental footprint. The total amount of water consumed by the building is collected from rainfall and all wastewater is recycled on site.

The main strategy to achieve a design with positive CO2 balance was the widespread use of wood, in particular a type of pine that, after being attacked by a beetle, suffers scars that make it unattractive to fine finishes or construction. Due to the climate change these beetles, which used to die in the cold weather, have managed to adapt and have experienced a population explosion, causing the death of vast quantities of pines, which wood  is usually rejected by the industry. This wood has been used both in the structure, finishes and furnishings of the CIRS, and provides an atmosphere of warmth throughout the building.

Wood is the most sustainable construction material, because it is a quickly renewable resource. From a structural point of view, the modern engineered materials such as glue-laminated timber have increased the hardness of wood so that they have a much greater structural capacity. 

Photo courtesy of CIRS

However, the abundant use of wood creates a fire hazard. In order to minimize it special insulators were created as well as  a sprinkler system, which is supplied from an underground cistern, which in turn collects rainwater.

Photo courtesy of CIRS

The façade accomodates a set of panels that support seasonal vegetation called the "living wall",  which provides shade in the summer and allows the passage of solar heat in the winter.

The garden is drip-irrigated using storm water and ultimately it ends in a groundwater aquifer.

The building is crossed diagonally by a path which includes the way of a pre-existing old road.

This allows to separate the glass corner like a glass triangle, which gives lightness to the composition of the building and houses an interesting solar water biofilter. This consists of a series of tanks with plants which naturally absorb and process the waterwaste generated in the bathrooms of the building. The processed water is used to irrigate both the living wall as well as the inner garden.

Another notable element on the facade are the photovoltaic panels on the east and south facades which cover part of the building's energy demand. The rest is collected from the excess energy of a nearby building and converted into energy in a small geothermal plant.

Inside, the building is organized around a large atrium, which provides generous natural lighting, while allowing natural ventilation without the need for air conditioning systems, using the chimney effect to  help circulate the air by convection. In turn, it exploits the building orientation to optimize its exposure to light.

On the ground floor there is an auditorium with capacity for 423 people, naturally lit by a lateral skylight located next to the indoor garden (in fact the garden is located over the roof of the auditorium).

The auditorium also used wood both in the structural beams and the finishes, as well as in some of the furniture.

If you look closely you can see the scars left by the beetles while they were burrowing the pine wood.

Due these features, the CIRS is recognized as one of the most innovative buildings in North America. In addition to its quality as an experimental regenerative building, is a facility that promotes the study and dissemination of new ideas for sustainable design.

SEE ALSO:
- SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE

• Visitor Center VanDusen Garden, Vancouver, Canada. (Perkins + Will)

With Professor Ronald Kellett, who kindly showed me around the building, explaining a lot of the information that I have included in this post

TADAO ANDO; THE MUSEUM OF WOOD

ESPAÑOL

In order to celebrate the day of the forests, a commemoration established by the emperor after the destruction of large forest areas during the Second World War, the renowned architect Tadao Ando was commissioned to design a museum complex in the midst of the forest of Mikata-gun, in Hyogo Prefecture. As part of Japan's environmental strategy, the project seeks to promote understanding, awareness and respect for nature.
The building is internationally known as the Museum of Wood (1994). However, the Japanese term Ki no Dendoo (木の殿堂) can be translated more like "Sanctuary Wood" (and boy, it is indeed a sanctuary because to get there it took me a whole pilgrimage).

Beyond its environmental connotations, the museum pays homage to the culture of wood in its various manifestations in the world. It is a space for reflection, more than just a space for the exhibition of objects.




The concept of the volume stands out for its simplicity: set on top of a hill, a truncated cone of 46 m in diameter housing a void cylinder  inside, emerges from the woods like a volcano in the middle of a green sea.


The conical shape is dramatically bisected by a long pedestrian bridge that goes into the forest, ending in a small cubic viewpoint that has been rotated 45 degrees.

The Pritzker Prize laureate has been widely recognized for his work in concrete, but in the Sanctuary Wood Ando demostrates that he is equally skilled in working with wood., in the same way as he previously did in the Japanese Pavilion at the World Expo in Seville.

Japan Pavilion at the Expo in Seville, designed by Tadao Ando, ​​was the closest reference to the museum of wood.
Photos courtesy of Philip Jodidio

The interior is a large exhibition space that unfolds along a spiral ramp, full of long columns of wood, about 18 meters high. The shape of the roof truss inevitably evokes Japanese temples and shrines in Kyoto, Nara and Tokyo

Kasuga Temple in Nara.

However, beyond a mere formal symbolism, Ando uses the complicated roof structure to provide the interior of an interesting game of light and shadow. The light helps to foster that sense of solemnity and respect that a sanctuary inspires.

 "The light sparkles coincide with the proximity of their extinction: the object appears and takes shape in the edge between the luminosity  and the dark", he says.

The game of light and the woodworking are a reference to Japanese traditional architecture.
Photo C. Zeballos

The exhibition contains a number of items related to the craft of wood: stunning  models of historical houses, photographs, a collection of woodworking tools in the world, ancient works in wood, a fully equipped media room and even crafts made by children and adults in the museum workshops.



Also, for the delight of architectural pilgrims, there is an exhibition showing sketches made by the architect during the design of the museum.

Sketch of the museum by Tadao Ando

It is obvious that the purpose of the building is not hosting internationally renowned work, like most museums, but has rather an educational nature and form of community outreach. Artistically, however, the continent is more attractive than the content.


The central crater of 20 m in diameter, animated by the cheerful sound of water flowing from numerous fountains, splashing on a stone base, was conceived as the point where the "sky and water metaphorically meet".


To make evident this union, a concrete bridge crosses the cone, allowing the visitors to feel amid a solemn emptiness, inside and at the same time outside the space, with the sky in their head, the wooden tongue and groove around them, the fountains at their feet and the forests on the horizon.

Attention to detail and simplicity, tradition and modernity, openness and intimacy, nature and artificiality, light and shadow are binomials resolved with sobriety, humility and expertise in this iconic building.

SEE ALSO:
- OTHER WORKS BY TADAO ANDO.

• Chapel in Mt. Rokko, Kobe, Japan. (1985-86)
• Church of the Light, Osaka, Japan. (1988-89)
• Church on Water, Tomomu, Japan. (1988)
• Garden of Fine Arts, Kyoto, Japan. (1990)
• hhstyle.com/Casa/Limited, Tokyo, Japan. (2005)
• National Library of Children's Literature. Tokyo, Japan (2002)
• Omotesando Hills, Tokyo, Japan. (1996-2006)
• Time's I & II, Kyoto, Japan. (1983-91)

TODAI JI TEMPLE: THE GREAT BUDDHA OF NARA

ESPAÑOL

Before the eighth century AD, the capitals in Japan were temporary settlements that used to be were transferred after the death of the emperor. After Buddhism was introduced to Japan and as a sign of the power of Yamato clan, the first major was founded in 710capital under the name of Heijo-kyou (the castle-capital of Peace) by Emperor Shomu, until in 794, when it was moved to Kyoto. Heijo-kyo, which was founded in the likeness of the Chinese capital of Ch'ang , occuping an area of 5.9 km from east to west and 4.8 km from south to north, and hosted a number of important buildings for the court and religious elite.

Layout of the ancient capital Heijo-kyou

That city, now called Nara (200.000 inhabitants), is a small but pleasant town, with parks and temples, surrounded by forested mountains and crossed by two rivers.

Its most famous treasure is the Todai-ji, the Great Temple of the East, which is the world's largest single wooden roof structure, that houses the largest statue of Buddha made of bronze in the planet.

Todai-ji temple.

See location on Google Maps.

Before arriving at the Todai-ji, we went through a large park populated by deer. Legend says that many deities traveled mounted on white deer, so these animals are revered as divine messengers and bearers of good luck.

The Todai-ji is placed, according to Feng Shui or Chinese geomancy, north of the complex. The complex, begun in 745 by Emperor Shomu, consists of several structures.

Old perspective showing the Todai-ji temple.
Source: Nara Prefecture Library.

Reconstruction of the original temple in the period Heijo kyou, between two pagodas.
Source: Introduction to Japanese Architecture. Drawing: Tan Hong Yew.

NANDAI-MON (GREAT SOUTH GATE)

This majestic portico, 20 m high, dates from 1199 and is used to enter the compound, separating it from the worldly life. It leads to a processional access to a courtyard, which used to receivethousands of pilgrims and Buddhist monks. The original porch was made in Indian style, and this 2/3 version of the original dates from 962, after the original was partially destroyed by a typhoon.

I've always found fascinating the way these huge wooden structures are assembled in a building system which is as effective as intricate. The technique, imported from China, has evolved with differences depending on the time and place where it was applied, but mantaining the samebasic essence.

In the case of the Nandai mon, the 6 x 3 columns structure rests on stone bases, without foundation. These piles are joint through a mesh of wooden beams. The eaves system is based on pieces of wood that are assembled like a puzzle, allowing the roof to be separated from the structure by several meters. It also allows the corners to achieve a slight curvature, characteristic of pagodas, especially in China.

The following video shows an animation of this construction system.

Naidaimon or Great South Gate.
Animation Carlos Zeballos

After passing through the portico, we found the Kairo, a road which is in also the symmetry axis of the complex. To the right of the Kairo is a pond, as it was customary to place a pond south of the temples.

Chuu-Mon (Central Gateway)

Aligned to the Kairo is the mon Chuu, the central portal which precedes a more private domain of the temple. On each side of this gate, there are large wooden figures representing the kings of protecting the temple, as it was in the case of the Nandai-mon.

Aerial view of the Todai-ji

BIG LANTERN

Between the Central Gate and the temple itself, aligned with the Kairo, there is a large octagonal, almost 5 meters high lantern, that was made of bronze in 752, with engravings representing divine beings such as lions and playing musical instruments.

Daibutsu Den

In the middle of the courtyard stands the imposing main temple, the Daibutsuden. This huge wooden structure (56 * 50 * 50 m) houses the statue of Buddha.


The huge image is 15 m high (the tallest indoor Buddha statue in the world) and it was originally covered with gold by Emperor Shomu. Unfortunately, fires, earthquakes and other disasters removed the golden layer, also damaging parts of the original structure.


The statue sits in a mudra position, with his right hand raised, which means he has the power to grant wishes. The hand is so big that five monks can stand on it. Accompanying the Buddha, there are huge images of other deities and protector kings .

In the back of the temple one of the columns contains a hole about 50 cm. which is about the same size of the nostril of a statue of Buddha. The Japanese believe that if one is able to cross the column through that hole, he/she has a guaranteed place in heaven of Buddha, and for that reason many people try to pass across it. It is not uncommon to see someone trapped in the middle of the column, getting aid by some generous volunteers who would try to pull you out (as it was my case). At least I am saved from hell...


Leaving the Daibutsuden, is the spire that used to crowned an ancient pagoda, showing close a delicate work of art that is meant to be seen only by the gods.

Nearby, in a temple called Shoru, is one of Japan's oldest bells, cast in bronze. The great bell of nearly 5 m (which unlike the West is tolled by a large bamboo on the side) produces a deep sound and can be heard from great distances.


The important historical legacy of this ancient capital, considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site, can be seen in many other areas in Nara, which I hope to comment on other future occasions. Until then.

SEE ALSO

JAPANESE TRADITIONAL ARCHITECTURE

• Itsukushima Jinja, Miyajima, Japan (1148)
• Kinkakuji, Golden Pavilion, Kyoto, Japan. (1397).
• Ginkaku ji, Silver Pavilion, Kyoto, Japan. (1474)
• Kiyomizu dera, Kyoto, Japan (780-798)