This message has been cross posted to the following Discussion Forums: Residential Knowledge Community and Committee on the Environment .
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Back in the 60s-70s we saw some horrifying science projects masquerading as houses that were among the first American "green homes". Building scientists aren't known for their aesthetic choices. Since then we've been desperately trying to find an aesthetic or form that functions without all the ugly, so we lean on the past.
The builders have led the charge with the traditionalist approach and they just simply use some awful traditional plan book design and cram this fundamentally bad envelope full of green gadgets, so they can check off their certification list and pat themselves on the back for spending lots of money on unnecessary gadgets, not to mention wasting energy for a look. A gable roof will never protect a double hung window from solar heat gain. A window with an operator at the bottom doesn't evacuate heat very well, seeing how heat rises. Many fundamental forms of the past simply don't function very well.
We Architects are still fascinated with our glass boxes. Can anyone tell me how many green gadgets does it take to get a Platinum LEED certification when 90% of the envelope is made of glass? Sunshades, coatings, mechanical louvers, ventilation systems, etc. all completely necessary just to obtain a look. A more intelligently thought out envelope eliminates all of these gadgets! Glass makes a terrible envelope choice, yet every time I pick up a magazine I see certified LEED buildings mostly made of glass. Advertisements seem to promote this fundamentally dysfunctional look as the look of sustainability. Just check out your 20th final issue of Arch Record.
Builders and Architects can't let go of the looks we like from the past. Few of us seem to be developing a new aesthetic that speaks of OUR time period and OUR needs as the humans that broke the Earth. Why aren't we developing an aesthetic that functions? Something that looks like it works, yet works as good as it looks. All forms function whether intended or not, so why intentionally create dysfunctional forms? This is like proposing a deficit reduction plan that begins with borrowing more money, causing even more deficit before saving the first dime.
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Eric Rawlings AIA
Owner
Rawlings Design, Inc.
Decatur GA
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