Cities keep growing, and with them our dependence on heavy materials. Concrete, stone and asphalt cannot soak up water and let it go again. They also take in a lot of heat, give it back slowly over many hours and offer almost no shade. One result is that cities get warmer than the land around them. Forests and natural landscapes absorb water and slowly evaporate it, which cools the air, while paved city surfaces have lost most of that ability. Too little shade, too little water to take up the heat and too much heavy material together cause what is called the urban heat island effect. That effect was the starting point for this experimental project.
The brief was to design a building that does as much as possible to reduce the urban heat island effect. We looked at form, technology and planting as tools, searching for solutions that fit the site and its surroundings. The building had to reduce the heat island effect, work together with its program and use contemporary craftsmanship.
