01-05-2011, 04:48 PM
Wow thanks for posting Roger Dean's link and for all the other cool links.
Some friends of mine have a home that looks a little similar to Roger's work, but instead of being built on land it was actually carved out from the land. The previous owner and builder found a small sandstone hill on the property and so he went to work carving into the soft stone. The place was semi underground with sky lights and a few small windows. There were several rooms, with wonderful arched openings, seats carved out of walls and a pedestal for the bed carved right from the hill. From the outside you could barely make out the windows and so the only real visible part was the descending stairs to the door.
My friends have another place nearby and go there to hang out on special occasions. There are challenges in terms of functionality there but you have to admit its super cool. Wish I had a photo to post.
Personally I really think a lot of architects overlook the connection to the actual land the building is going to be sitting on. That's my bent I guess, but it seems to me if a house could really just be built the same way anywhere then you're not paying attention to the land. When it does happen that the building responds to the place and the landscape is integrated you really feel it. To me anyway, it makes a huge difference in how comfortable it is to be there.
Thanks for the cool posts and interesting discussion.
Some friends of mine have a home that looks a little similar to Roger's work, but instead of being built on land it was actually carved out from the land. The previous owner and builder found a small sandstone hill on the property and so he went to work carving into the soft stone. The place was semi underground with sky lights and a few small windows. There were several rooms, with wonderful arched openings, seats carved out of walls and a pedestal for the bed carved right from the hill. From the outside you could barely make out the windows and so the only real visible part was the descending stairs to the door.
My friends have another place nearby and go there to hang out on special occasions. There are challenges in terms of functionality there but you have to admit its super cool. Wish I had a photo to post.
Personally I really think a lot of architects overlook the connection to the actual land the building is going to be sitting on. That's my bent I guess, but it seems to me if a house could really just be built the same way anywhere then you're not paying attention to the land. When it does happen that the building responds to the place and the landscape is integrated you really feel it. To me anyway, it makes a huge difference in how comfortable it is to be there.
Thanks for the cool posts and interesting discussion.
Uluhe Design
Native Landscape Design
uluhedesign@yahoo.com
Native Landscape Design
uluhedesign@yahoo.com