Belonging - Glenn Murcutt
Summary
TLDRThe transcript discusses the integration of Aboriginal wisdom into architecture, emphasizing 'touching the land lightly' and respecting the natural landscape. It explores the importance of movement, prospect and refuge in design, and the influence of Australia's flora and fauna on architectural aesthetics. The speaker advocates for buildings that complement life, not dominate it, and highlights the significance of simplicity with complexity in design, using the Boyd Education Center as an example of harmonious integration with nature.
Takeaways
- 🌳 The script emphasizes the importance of respecting and integrating with the natural landscape, as inspired by Aboriginal people's philosophy of 'touching the land lightly'.
- 🏡 The design of buildings should consider the natural movement patterns of the landscape, such as the paths used by Aboriginal people, to create harmony with the environment.
- 📏 Understanding the vertical and horizontal sections of a building is crucial for manipulating spaces to control light, wind, and views, akin to understanding the layers of an onion.
- 👀 The concepts of 'prospect' and 'refuge' in architecture allow for the balance of visibility and privacy, mirroring the way Aboriginal people used caves for both.
- 🔥 The Aboriginal 'fire stick' technique is highlighted as a form of sustainable farming that contributes to the resilience and renewal of the Australian landscape.
- 💧 In fire-prone areas, the script suggests using water features and inundation systems for fire protection, ensuring the safety of the structures.
- 🌿 The unique flora of Australia, with its thin leaves and dappled shade, influences the design of buildings, aiming for a clarity and legibility in structure that reflects the natural environment.
- 🎨 The Arthur Boyd Education Center was designed to complement the work of the artist, integrating with the landscape and providing a backdrop for life rather than demanding attention.
- 🖼 The building design should frame views like a painting, offering a seamless transition between the interior and the native landscape.
- 🎼 The architect is likened to a composer, with the building as the instrument that allows nature and occupants to interact, creating a harmonious living experience.
- 🍲 The script concludes with the idea that simplicity in architecture contains complexity, and that an architecture of necessity focuses on essential elements that serve multiple functions.
Q & A
What is the significance of the Aboriginal expression 'touch the land lightly' as mentioned by the architect?
-The expression 'touch the land lightly' reflects a philosophy of respecting and minimally impacting the natural environment, which the architect applies to their building designs, emphasizing harmony with the landscape and its existing features.
How did the architect discover the Aboriginal passage on the site?
-The architect discovered the Aboriginal passage between the rocks that led down into the valley while working on the site, revealing the importance of understanding the movement patterns through the landscape in their design process.
What is the importance of a building's section in architectural design according to the transcript?
-The section of a building, both vertical and horizontal, is crucial as it allows the architect to understand and manipulate spaces to control sunlight, wind, and views, which are essential for the building's functionality and aesthetic.
What is the concept of 'prospect and refuge' in architecture as described in the transcript?
-'Prospect and refuge' refers to the architectural concept of providing spaces where occupants can both look out into the landscape (prospect) and find sheltered areas where they can feel secure (refuge), enhancing the building's connection with its surroundings.
How did the architect integrate the Aboriginal approach to entering spaces into their design?
-The architect incorporated the Aboriginal method of entering spaces by sliding in on the edge rather than fronting, allowing for a more integrated and less formal approach to entering and experiencing the building.
What role did fire play in the landscape according to the architect's experience?
-Fire, through the Aboriginal practice of fire stick technology, played a significant role in renewing the landscape and promoting the growth of powerful eucalyptus trees that could withstand and require fire for seed dispersal.
How does the architect address the issue of fire in their designs in severe fire zones?
-The architect addresses fire issues by using non-flammable materials externally, ensuring a large water supply, and installing inundation systems to protect the house from potential fires.
What characteristics of the local flora influenced the architect's design approach?
-The local flora, with its thin leaves allowing more sunlight through, creating dappled shade, and revealing the structure of trees, influenced the architect's design approach, emphasizing clarity of structure and legibility in their buildings.
What was the design approach for the Arthur Boyd Education Center in relation to Boyd's artwork?
-The design approach for the Arthur Boyd Education Center aimed to be considerate of the quality of Boyd's work, ensuring that the building complemented the artist's vision and provided a suitable environment for his paintings.
How does the architect view the role of a building in relation to human life and nature?
-The architect views a building as a background to human life, allowing for comfort and relaxation, and as an environment where nature can be part of daily experience, enriching the occupants' lives and connecting them with the natural world.
What is the difference between simplicity and simplistic according to the architect?
-Simplicity, according to the architect, contains complexity and is the resolution of many elements working together, while simplistic lacks complexity and does not offer the same depth or multifunctionality.
Outlines
🏞️ Aboriginal Wisdom in Architecture
The speaker recounts an enlightening conversation with an architect from Western Australia about the Aboriginal expression of 'touching the land lightly,' which inspired a design approach that respects the natural landscape. The design process involved understanding the movement patterns of the Aboriginal people, the importance of the vertical and horizontal sections of a building for natural light and wind, and the concept of 'prospect and refuge' in architecture. The speaker also reflects on the Aboriginal people's relationship with the landscape, including their use of fire for farming and the resulting strong eucalyptus trees that are integral to the Australian ecosystem.
🔥 Fire, Flora, and Architectural Inspiration
This paragraph delves into the Aboriginal 'fire stick' technology and its impact on the Australian landscape, particularly the eucalyptus trees that thrive in post-fire environments. The speaker discusses the architectural implications of living in a fire-prone area, including the use of non-flammable materials and inundation systems for protection. The influence of the unique Australian flora, with its thin leaves allowing dappled sunlight, is highlighted, as well as the structural beauty and legibility found in the natural environment, which has inspired the speaker's architectural designs.
🎨 Integrating Art and Nature in Design
The speaker describes the design process for the Arthur Boyd Education Center, emphasizing the importance of creating a building that complements the work of the renowned Australian painter. The design aimed to retain the essence of Boyd's original vision while integrating sustainable features like water collection and waste management. The building's layout allows for views of the landscape, with the roof designed to frame the sky and provide a sense of immersion in nature. The speaker also discusses the importance of architecture that does not demand attention but rather serves as a backdrop to life, allowing for relaxation and a connection to the surrounding environment.
🎼 The Harmony of Architecture and Nature
In this paragraph, the speaker compares the role of an architect to that of a composer, with the building as the instrument through which nature and its occupants interact. The design of the house aims to create a space where nature can flourish, as evidenced by the presence of various species of frogs. The speaker values the integration of nature into daily life and the sensory experiences it provides. The concept of simplicity in architecture is also discussed, with the speaker advocating for designs that are both simple in form and rich in complexity, serving multiple functions and reflecting an 'architecture of necessity.'
🌿 The Essence of Architectural Design
The final paragraph focuses on the essential aspects of architecture, which include structure, materials, space, and life. The speaker emphasizes the importance of integrating the poetic and the rational in design, creating spaces that are not only functional but also resonate with the human spirit. The goal is to create buildings that allow people to appreciate and connect with nature, recognizing its importance for health, intelligence, and the well-being of future generations.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Aboriginal people
💡Eucalyptus forests
💡Section of a building
💡Prospect and refuge
💡Fire stick technology
💡Dappled shade
💡Legibility
💡Arthur Boyd Education Center
💡Simplicity
💡Architecture of necessity
Highlights
The concept of 'touching the land lightly' inspired by Aboriginal people's philosophy.
Importance of understanding the natural landscape, including rocks, eucalyptus forests, and Aboriginal pathways.
The significance of movement patterns in landscape design, influenced by Aboriginal pathways.
The analogy of an onion to explain the importance of vertical and horizontal sections in architecture.
The role of sunlight, wind, and light in manipulating architectural spaces.
The concepts of 'prospect' and 'refuge' in architectural design, drawing from Aboriginal practices.
The Aboriginal approach to entering spaces, favoring edges over direct center entries.
The impact of Aboriginal 'fire stick' technology on landscape renewal and eucalyptus strength.
The design of buildings in fire zones, incorporating water supply and inundation systems for protection.
The unique characteristics of Australian flora, such as thin leaves allowing dappled sunlight.
The influence of flora on architectural design, emphasizing clarity and legibility of structure.
The design of the Arthur Boyd Education Center, integrating with the native landscape.
The importance of designing buildings that complement the work of artists, like Arthur Boyd.
Sustainability in architecture, including water collection and waste management.
The desire for buildings to recede into the background, allowing life to take center stage.
The concept of framing views in architecture, akin to framing a painting.
The role of architecture as a 'composer', with nature and occupants as the 'orchestra' and 'audience'.
The distinction between simplicity and being simplistic in architectural design.
The integration of complexity within simplicity, achieving multifunctional design elements.
The essential role of nature in architecture for human health, intelligence, and spirit.
The poetic and rational junction in architecture, emphasizing the importance of essential issues.
Transcripts
it came to me from an architect in Western Australia who said to me did
you know the expression by the Aboriginal people you must touch the land lightly
now I hadn't heard of this he said well I just want to mention that
to you because I think that the buildings you're doing working with that as an idea
in this particular site beautiful rocks coming down the hillside remarkable eucalyptus forests
whole range of trees that are so beautiful large trees but we did soon discovered that
between these rocks was a passage where the Aboriginal people used to come and
be able to get down into the valley to negotiate the escarpment and be able
to move through this the site and letting down into the valley and so the house then
we started to realize the importance of a pattern of movement through the landscape
the critical thing in designing is to understand the section of a building for example if you take
an onion the vegetable onion and you cut it horizontally all of a sudden you saved a lot
of rings but you don't quite know what's happening with those rings and you look at
it vertically when you cut it vertically you can see what's happening so to take an onion
and cut it vertically and horizontally you understand what the vegetables about when
you take architecture and you cut it vertically and horizontally you understand what it's about
now that vertical section and horizontal section allows you to start manipulating their spaces in
a way that is inclusive of bringing sunlight in of bringing windy or bring light in or excluding it
so the important thing is to start thinking about prospect and refuge in architecture that ability
to look out for prospect not quite sure how far you can see out or what it lies beyond with
prospect is part of the unknown associated with the unknown is the importance of Refuge to take
refuge to be able to sit and have your back into a corner to be able to look out into the landscape
and then all of a sudden I realized that the Aboriginal people in the caves I had
experienced up in northern Australia also had prospect and refuge and the Aboriginal people
never came up from the bottom they always came around the edge and moved in into the
space this way so you never entered fronting as we often do in the formal way of European
when you think of many buildings like town halls and civic buildings they're all entered
on the center line of the buildings the Aboriginal people always came slid in on
the edge and so you can enter the house and take refuge or continue on into the landscape
one of the things that is devastating to to most of us in this country is the power of the fire of
course a flaw has developed through the occupation of Aboriginal people here for 5060 thousand years
the fire stick technology where they burnt all the time - actually was also not only renewing
but it was a form of farming and it made very powerful the eucalypt that was able to not only
withstand fire but required a fire to actually pop the seeds out and under bare ground that was burnt
and those seeds would crack open and often rain would follow within the next week or two and so
you got bring you all over the floor so renewal is also a very important part of our landscape
and when I'm in a very severe fire zone I have very little flammable material external I will
always have a huge water supply and in the house we've installed what I call an inundation system
Wheatland had the sprinklers going the house is towhead in water the fire can come around and the
house 90% certainly would be saved the other thing about our flora is that because of the stresses in
the landscape in other words the rainfall combined with the heat with the floor has developed
in a way that you get very thin leaves now the consequence of that of course is that there is
more Sun that comes through so you get a dappled shade it's a very very beautiful luminous shade
and the who are coming through on to the trunk what that does is gives eligibility the other
thing is that with many of our trees the leaves themselves are high as a canopy you don't get
leaves close to the ground so it reveals the structure so that structure represents to me a
great legibility so in my architecture there's a clarity of structure is order within their
structure there's a legibility in the structure and so the flora has been very important to me
and they great strength from coming out of the ground and to the delicacy pages trees are both
powerful in their visual structure and delicate in their flora in the leaf pattern and the flowers
extremely delicate and so it influenced me very powerfully in the architecture
at the Opera anyone Boyd Education Center that my wife Wendy learn and younger architect original
lock we designed we worked on that together and when I arrived on the site Boyd had already built
two new buildings and the combination of the three buildings produced a little complex when
we designed the new complex we wanted to retain the general feeling of Boyd's arrival as he
always had experienced the three houses and that the new building would reveal itself eventually
the important thing was that the Arthur Boyd was one of the great painters of Australia
and from the outset in the design process we recognized the importance
of designing a building that needed to be considerate with the quality of Boyd work
the Boyd Center is required to have compassion for 32 people it has to collect its own water
it has to manage its own waste the building stretches out along the landscape and what
we wanted to achieve that roof lifting up and a 45-degree angle cutting out into it
on the miter which allowed beautiful views to the east you lift it up to reveal the sky let
the ground drop down in front of you so again designing reveal elements in the landscape
I also believe that a building shouldn't think such that it's
demanding your attention the building should be the background to your life it should
allow your life to be comfortable in a sense of being able to relax
and remove from the stresses and so I love architecture that's strong but also quiet
and if you look at Boyd paintings Boyd was very much into two places he was at one place which
is the native landscape that he loved and he loved the rural landscape and so he lived in
Australia for five months a year and he lived in England in the countryside for five months
a year so the void Center is designed so that when you walk along the excess
Way is thrust one spark into the native landscape then you come to another framed
area is the cultivated landscape so he bought a property in Australia they've had both as well
and the bear would have accommodation that where you you are framing the view so at
every bed level there is a window so the kids can look just sit there and look after the view and
you'll see there's a frame around it so your framing the views like you frame a painting
the houses and the buildings I'm working on many people look at them as is if they just
object in the landscape think for a moment about a composer in music the composer visualizes in
hearing what the composition is going to be a conductor will put an orchestra together to
perform that work and there will be a further interpretation on it by the conductor with the
orchestra and there's the audience to listen to this beautiful work now what I'm trying to
achieve is not a dissimilar thing the architect I believe can be the composer the instrument is
the building that allows nature to enter the environment and the occupants of the audience
I love that as a notion taking a little too far at the moment in this house where the
frogs are so loud that you can't sleep but it's fantastic to think that I have created
a place here for nature to start develop in the most phenomenal way there are three to
four different types of frogs now in here that are extraordinary and the sounds are amazing
sounds or you hear the black cockatoo or you get the Whitman or you see the features I think
this is incredibly important that we actually have nature as part of our daily experience
a good grip is
there is a very big difference between the words simplicity and simplistic
simplicity contains complexity simplicity is the other face of complexity for example if
you make a beautiful stock in cooking it comes from all the flavors of the food boil down to
a cupful that is the most beautiful simplicity but it's very complex and so simplicity is the
other face of complexity simplistic has no complexity so in understanding simplicity
one needs to understand how one can bring like a beautiful stock that complexity into a resolution
where something is working to act three ways or four ways for example those blames not only
give you the collection of the wins but because they're facing east they also give you bounced
light they also give the privacy but those blades also frame the view in other words
bringing the design right down to the essence of what's necessary an architecture of necessity
it's about structure it's about materials it's about how you put them together it's
about space it's about life it's about really important issues for the human
spirit to be able to appreciate nature to fill the qualities of nature breathe up
the importance of nature to our health to our intelligence to the importance of a child these
are really important issues for a species this is actually essential stuff and I'm interested
in what is essential and out of essential I'd love to think that you structure the junction
of the poetic and the rational they must come together not separately and must be together
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