A Clever and Sustainable Architect's House
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- čas přidán 10. 08. 2022
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Welcome to UrbanLab, an architect's office located in the Bridgeport neighborhood of Chicago. Hidden behind the rusty surface of its Corten steel façade is a unique live/work building that holds a secret. It's built like a bridge that touches down on a large mound that holds the remains of the grocery store that was previously located on the site. This novel solution to a pretty standard problem is ecofriendly and provides an outdoor amenity useable by neighborhood institutions like restaurants growing vegetables. In this video, we take a tour of UrbanLab with with its founders Sarah Dunn and Martin Felsen to learn about these secrets and more lurking at 3309 South Morgan Avenue.
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Architecture with Stewart is a CZcams journey exploring architecture’s deep and enduring stories in all their bewildering glory. Weekly videos and occasional live events breakdown a wide range of topics related to the built environment in order to increase their general understanding and advocate their importance in shaping the world we inhabit.
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Stewart Hicks is an architectural design educator that leads studios and lecture courses as an Associate Professor in the School of Architecture at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He also serves as an Associate Dean in the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts and is the co-founder of the practice Design With Company. His work has earned awards such as the Architecture Record Design Vanguard Award or the Young Architect’s Forum Award and has been featured in exhibitions such as the Chicago Architecture Biennial and Design Miami, as well as at the V&A Museum and Tate Modern in London. His writings can be found in the co-authored book Misguided Tactics for Propriety Calibration, published with the Graham Foundation, as well as essays in MONU magazine, the AIA Journal Manifest, Log, bracket, and the guest-edited issue of MAS Context on the topic of character architecture.
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This house seems pretty divisive among you! I appreciate all the conversation and wanted to chime in with some context that didn't make it into the final cut of the video. Firstly, the building on the site before was condemned and mandated to be razed by the city. It was a single story 3000 sf building. The new house and office takes up the exact same square footage, just reconfigured. So, it doesn't make any more building than what was there originally. The zoning also requires there be commercial space along the street level. However, architects offices are not usually in storefronts with windows because there's lots of expensive computers and equipment. Its more like an office than retail. So, there is definitely a conflict there and this building presents an evolving solution. The facade is built so the panels be easily switched out and replaced with windows. That's in the works in the next year or so. It will not stay as a corten steel wall.
I lived in Bridgeport for 10 years and while the work Urban Lab does is interesting and useful, their office was perceived as something guarded and castle or prison like. It really had no relationship to the street nor the broader community outside of their own personal relationships (restaurants, politicians, etc.). The corten steel facade had little relationship to the character and context of the area - and I’m not necessarily advocating for a “replicate your neighbors facade” approach, but at least something that is in appropriate to the area. If you didn’t know who Urban Lab was, you’d think it was a shuttered factory. I think we do ourselves a disservice as Architects when we pretend like our buildings and designs do more for the surrounding social context than they actually do.
Saying the office is designed as a very public oriented space, and then putting a giant rusting metal wall on the sidewalk seems a little strange. Still a beautiful building
I live right around the corner from this building. (You can see my house in some of the drone shots.) I've always been really curious about it. I disagree that it integrates into the surrounding community, but it certainly is an interesting curiosity.
I like the idea and the inside of the building is charming. But the outside looks like an overgrown construction site and seems kind of unwelcoming.
I have a "living space" in my yard too. I always thought it was weeds, but now I know better. Thank you.
"They have immediate access to their back yard via the garage door". Show me the owners clambering up the garbage mound and pulling themselves up to their living room and I'm becoming a member.
I lived 3 doors down from here for years and was one of Felsen's architecture students. Everyone seems to draw issue with how cold the corten facade is relative to the streetscape - which is fair. In his lectures though he explains that this is partially a security measure thanks to how many shootings used to occur along Morgan St. It's nowhere near as bad as it used to be when this project was built but in my time living near here, it's clearly still an issue. I don't think we can fairly say that how fortress like this building is is fully a bad thing for when it was built. And factor in that the corten steel facade is more resilient against the frequent graffiti this project receives.
The inverted design orientation is basically a monument to seclusion. Looks less natural and more like an abandoned job site.
I don't know how hot it gets in Chicago but that backyard would get toasted without shade. More trees and an awareness for native grasses and shrubs would make it far more livable for animals too.
The idea of retaining demolition/construction debris on site is interesting. I’d want it to be more visually interesting than a grassy pile.
I would’ve liked another moment about the material that was buried in the mound & how they constructed it to be structural. That’s a unique & innovative idea but deserves more investigation for replication or duplication at other sites.
that was a very low density use of space in cities that are constantly being defined by their higher than suburbs density..... it's a 3 or 4 lot plot next to an actual apartment building that looks to serve 14 or so units/families.....
Beautiful architecture/interior with an interesting use of the demolished building repurposed as a landfill mound, but the landscaping is really a missed opportunity. They talk about how the mound helps facilitate water flow across the entire yard, but I feel like they could have incorporated more landscaping to really make full use of the land and mound. Namely, a bioswale and a small pond for some of that runoff would have been really cool and would visually flow well from the green roof and mound.
Fun building but the living space obviously doesn't have enough space for living... The counters are filled with tons of stuff-- imagine preparing any sort of food on that! Also, the whole thing is quite unwelcoming with the bare landscape. Missed opportunity for water spaces, living landscapes such as farm/gardens. If you've got this much space, I assume you must also have money to build something like that. It is just so much wasted space in a city that has an affordable housing crisis.
First thing I've noticed is that "wonderful" stupid front door which looks like it was designed to remove the fingers of the unwary or children. They may design all sorts of things but should not be allowed anywhere near doors. (Retired Architectural metal worker and designer speaking here)
I seem to be going against the general consensus here as I liked this construction. I like the no nonsense build. However, I do think the landscaping leaves a lot to be desired, as it is a long time after the initial construction. I noted the description of water reuse etc, so why was the owner using a hose to water the mound?
theres no way that second story garage door is in any way up to code lol
It's an interesting bulding, but I don't think dedensifying and urban lot like that is appropriate. I don't know what was there prior, but looking at the surrounding development, there could be 3 homes on that site.
I think a common error in site selection is to look for "the best place". This recognizes the strong place character of a site but ignores that it already is a good place, as is, and that building there will most likely degrade its place character.