Bamboo Wall House

Shuihuan, Badaling, China

Kengo Kuma & Associated : 2002

‘Bamboo is between the natural ambiguity, the important thing is the relationship with the landscape.’ Kuma K.

The thing that fascinates my about Kengo Kumas Bamboo Wall house is the relationship of spaces.  Rather than a solid wall Kuma uses the lightweight bamboo slats to form partitions in the house.  The bamboo slats are consistent throughout the design functioning as protection and frames for the environment.  This suggesting an easy transfer of light and breezes to flow from one side of the house to the other.

The Great (Bamboo) wall house is a structure formed primarily of glass and Chinese bamboo.  Built on rolling terrain, it has bamboo slats that can be partially opened/closed to control natural light and breezes.

Kengo Kuma speaks:

“I want to erase architecture”, writes Kengo Kuma, “that’s what I’ve always wanted to do and it’s unlikely I’ll never change my mind.”

“For the Great (Bamboo) wall the site is very close to the famous great wall, as the landscape was something like that our starting point was to preserve the original landscape. Usually people cuts around to create a flat land, but in my case as we are following the landscape and then the bottom of the building is like that shape. As for bamboo, bamboo is not a strong material that is the reason why we put a steel core into the bamboo and also we burned bamboo to make it yellow as green bamboo is very weak but if we burn it in the proper way we can create a strong bamboo, and that’s the secret”. Kuma K.

Bamboo is used in a manner of original form

Purpose: re-discover and re-express the true essence of Japanese architecture through bamboo as both structural and non-structual element. The reason for choosing bamboo was based on the fact that bamboo, as a piece of raw material, denies to be processed.  Bamboo is used in a manner of original form. Therefore, bamboo is a material and a product at the same time: It is a symbol and a reality at the same time. The project talks about disposition of the material (particles) rather than processing of the material that creates a piece of architecture. It is by coincidence that the particles of bamboo are positioned with some order in this case. These particles can easily retrieve their true essence once the order is scattered around as in a natural environment.

Reference List

http://www.designboom.com/eng/interview/kuma.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBoeWBdLOCA

http://www.gradientmagazine.com/2009/10/kengo-kuma-designs-the-great-bamboo-wall-house-in-china/

http://www.inhabitat.com/images/lotushouse-1.jpg

http://cubeme.com/blog/2009/10/23/great-bamboo-wall-by-kengo-kuma-associates/

http://www.soho-city.com/en/news/detail.asp?id=21612&cid=12

http://www.egodesign.ca/en/article_print.php?article_id=137

http://int.kateigaho.com/mar04/architect-kuma.html

http://www.architectureweek.com/2006/0517/environment_1-2.html

http://www.materialicious.com/2009/10/kengo-kuma-designs-the-great-bamboo-wall-house-in-china.html

http://www.archilab.org/public/2000/catalog/kengo/kengoen.htm