Just What Is Organic Architecture, and What Can It Do for You?
Take a fresh look at how Organic Architecture can harmonise your living spaces with nature ... and boost your health at the same time
Andrew Boyne
2 August 2014
Houzz Contributor.
I run a small architectural practice that specialises in custom homes and holiday homes throughout the South-West of Western Australia. I love sailing, surfing and hiking in the outdoors, all of which influence my approach to design. I am a proud Western Australian and am passionate about architecture that reflects the landscape and the people of this special part of the world.
Houzz Contributor.
I run a small architectural practice that specialises in custom... More
We know that our environments have an impact on our moods, and that buildings themselves play a major role, but how can we change the way we build our homes to help improve our sense of wellbeing?
There is growing evidence that suggests being cooped up in buildings is bad for our health, and that providing connections to the exterior environment has positive health outcomes. In a 2001 study, views of nature from the home were even shown to provide a longer-lasting positive impact on happiness than increases in wealth.
Improving the connection between the interior and the exterior of a building is the driving force behind the Organic Architecture movement started by Frank Lloyd Wright in the early 1900s and is integral to work completed by contemporary Organic architects. Take a closer look at how this style of architecture could work for you…
There is growing evidence that suggests being cooped up in buildings is bad for our health, and that providing connections to the exterior environment has positive health outcomes. In a 2001 study, views of nature from the home were even shown to provide a longer-lasting positive impact on happiness than increases in wealth.
Improving the connection between the interior and the exterior of a building is the driving force behind the Organic Architecture movement started by Frank Lloyd Wright in the early 1900s and is integral to work completed by contemporary Organic architects. Take a closer look at how this style of architecture could work for you…
It’s all in the geometry
Organic architecture is almost always governed by a strict set of geometric patterns that run through all scales of the building. These patterns will exist in the overall plan right down to the cabinetry and the door handles. Patterns help us understand the world. They allow us to predict the weather, anticipate a valley over a mountain, and know when the next train is to arrive. People understand their environment when it is governed by patterns, and a home built from patterns will be comprehensible and comfortable.
Here, Bart Prince’s Scherger/Kolberg Residence in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is arranged around a radial floor plan. Walls and the roof framing members extend to a central point helping to create a comprehensible pattern.
Organic architecture is almost always governed by a strict set of geometric patterns that run through all scales of the building. These patterns will exist in the overall plan right down to the cabinetry and the door handles. Patterns help us understand the world. They allow us to predict the weather, anticipate a valley over a mountain, and know when the next train is to arrive. People understand their environment when it is governed by patterns, and a home built from patterns will be comprehensible and comfortable.
Here, Bart Prince’s Scherger/Kolberg Residence in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is arranged around a radial floor plan. Walls and the roof framing members extend to a central point helping to create a comprehensible pattern.
Materials from nature
To blend an interior space with the external environment, Organic architecture utilises local natural materials to finish the home. Organic homes usually incorporate local stone and timber. Where large, artificially smooth surfaces are used, they are usually broken up with patterns to introduce textures that give the building a natural feel.
Here, Bruce Goff’s Ford Residence in Aurora, Illinois, uses local materials, including coal, which was quarried nearby. The coal stones which are expressed on both the interior and exterior connect the house back to the geology of the area.
To blend an interior space with the external environment, Organic architecture utilises local natural materials to finish the home. Organic homes usually incorporate local stone and timber. Where large, artificially smooth surfaces are used, they are usually broken up with patterns to introduce textures that give the building a natural feel.
Here, Bruce Goff’s Ford Residence in Aurora, Illinois, uses local materials, including coal, which was quarried nearby. The coal stones which are expressed on both the interior and exterior connect the house back to the geology of the area.
Harmonising the masses
Organic architecture usually incorporates a combination of heavy massive objects and more ephemeral lightweight structures.The mass objects are used to tie a building into its site like a trunk does to a tree, while a lightweight canopy often provides shelter which does not feel constrained by massive walls, and is free and open.
Here, Robert Oshatz’s Chenequa residence consists of a number of separate roof forms that pinwheel around a central stone-clad elevator core. The core anchors the roof to the ground, while the roof appears to float in the air. The roof also extends through the glazing line helping to bring the outside in.
Organic architecture usually incorporates a combination of heavy massive objects and more ephemeral lightweight structures.The mass objects are used to tie a building into its site like a trunk does to a tree, while a lightweight canopy often provides shelter which does not feel constrained by massive walls, and is free and open.
Here, Robert Oshatz’s Chenequa residence consists of a number of separate roof forms that pinwheel around a central stone-clad elevator core. The core anchors the roof to the ground, while the roof appears to float in the air. The roof also extends through the glazing line helping to bring the outside in.
Using glass for flow
Glass is a critical medium for Organic architecture. Carefully designed windows allow the interior and external spaces to flow freely between each other with the enclosure of the space being prominent. To achieve this, Organic architects usually ensure that window frames are hidden, and materials run unhindered through the glazing line.
Fay Jones, who worked in Arkansas, used mitred corner glazing to dissolve the definition of the interior space in this home. He also used stone that ran through the glazing so there was never a clear barrier between the spaces. To further the effect Jones planted interior gardens that appeared to grow in from the external environment. By using a careful approach to glass, the boundaries between the interior and exterior spaces are dissolved.
Discover ways to connect indoor and outdoor areas
Glass is a critical medium for Organic architecture. Carefully designed windows allow the interior and external spaces to flow freely between each other with the enclosure of the space being prominent. To achieve this, Organic architects usually ensure that window frames are hidden, and materials run unhindered through the glazing line.
Fay Jones, who worked in Arkansas, used mitred corner glazing to dissolve the definition of the interior space in this home. He also used stone that ran through the glazing so there was never a clear barrier between the spaces. To further the effect Jones planted interior gardens that appeared to grow in from the external environment. By using a careful approach to glass, the boundaries between the interior and exterior spaces are dissolved.
Discover ways to connect indoor and outdoor areas
Working within the site
Tying a building down into its site is critical in ensuring that it belongs in its location. Frank Lloyd Wright said that a building should be “of the hill and not on the hill”, and so organic architecture should appear to grow from its site. By eliminating the distinction between the site and the building, the outdoor environment is invited into the home.
Here, Bruce Goff’s Eugene Bavinger House in Norman, Oklahoma, emerges from the earth as a stone wall which spirals inwards and upwards. As it reaches towards the sky the roof appears to lift off and begin to fly on its own. The stone wall, which was constructed from locally sourced stone, is built in a dry stack arrangement to ensure it appears as a natural element. This spiral wall moves in and out of glazing lines and runs through the interior.
Tying a building down into its site is critical in ensuring that it belongs in its location. Frank Lloyd Wright said that a building should be “of the hill and not on the hill”, and so organic architecture should appear to grow from its site. By eliminating the distinction between the site and the building, the outdoor environment is invited into the home.
Here, Bruce Goff’s Eugene Bavinger House in Norman, Oklahoma, emerges from the earth as a stone wall which spirals inwards and upwards. As it reaches towards the sky the roof appears to lift off and begin to fly on its own. The stone wall, which was constructed from locally sourced stone, is built in a dry stack arrangement to ensure it appears as a natural element. This spiral wall moves in and out of glazing lines and runs through the interior.
Today, architects such as Robert Oshatz and Bart Prince, and Eddie Jones, create buildings in the Organic tradition that forge a harmony with their environments that is seldom achieved by contemporary designers. Their work is idiosyncratic and highly individualised, but so too are their sites and their clients. By following the concepts developed by Organic architects, contemporary designers are developing homes that allow their inhabitants to connect with the environment around them. In an increasingly urbanised world, and one with significant trouble with wellbeing and mental health, Organic architecture provides a road map for healthier buildings.
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Wonderful article, thanks!