Bale(d)

The building materials available in today's market will have to be banned, or at the very least taxed heavily, IF climate action is to be taken seriously. This project looks to vernacular building materials and insulation strategies as a vehicle for future design standards, techniques, and types. Vernacular, for this project, refers specifically to the adaptation of straw as a building material. Straw, typically found as insulation between standard wood framing, is used in this project as walls. However, due to its size and weight, CLT was introduced into the makeup of the wall. This created a tectonic relationship. The bales are stacked off-center to allow the CLT to act as a counterweight keeping the walls, and floors, up. This affords the interior of the proposed space to be carved out of the thickness of the straw bale. Thus true poche, meaning thick walls that can house building elements and people, is reintroduced back into the house type while at the same time providing an Rvalue more than substantial without the use of plastic material.