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Bamboo Forest House by Roewu Architecture

By Eric Meunier

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London-based studio Roewu Architecture has completed the Bamboo Forest House, a vacation house in eastern Taiwan.

Located in a dense urban area and confined on two sides by blank party walls the house must gain all its light and air from the street while maintaining privacy and security.

Designed to accommodate an extended family, the house has an unusual exterior with its bamboo screen.

Bamboo Forest House by Roewu Architecture:

“Located in a dense urban area and confined on two sides by blank party-walls the house must gain all its light and air from the street while maintaining privacy within. It was also essential to maintain security while windows are left open for natural ventilation. The narrow and elongated plot was addressed by placing a series of solid volumes along the length of the site, allowing void spaces in between to create continuity for light and air. A bamboo screen wraps around the house creating a buffer between the street and private life within.

On entering the house the experience is akin to being surrounded by an organic forest. Sun light, air and shadows filter through the bamboo poles into the spaces within. The mood and quality of the spaces changes during the course of a day and shifts with the changing seasons. In winter, a Karaoke Lounge and Spa on the second floor, form a focal point for bathing or singing. During summer, the roof deck with its variably patterned sun-shade system and surrounding bamboo, invites cooling breezes and becomes the family’s favourite spot for outdoor living.

Taiwan is a country that is just beginning to be concerned about global warming and this project proposes a model for more sustainable development that fits with the climate and local lifestyles. The main source of energy consumption in Taiwanese buildings is air-conditioning during the long hot and humid summer months. By introducing several double and triple-height void spaces that penetrate through the heart of the house and open to the roof the whole house is naturally ventilated even though 2 sides of the site are party/ lot-line walls where no openings were allowed. This openness, however brings security risks and the screen developed here by ROEWU addresses this with a radical updating of the conventional Taiwanese window screen. The new screen also proposes a new use for highly sustainable fast-growing, locally-sourced bamboo which is little used in construction at the moment.

The design of the bamboo screen is an example of ROEWU’s research into the combination of hi-tech digital techniques with lo-tech fabrication. Using a detailed 3D model produced by the office in London, precise descriptions of every component were provided to the fabricators in Taiwan, who followed a series of quite simple step-by-step instructions to assemble the complex whole. A unique concealed fixing was also developed so that the bamboo poles appear to float in the air. The result is a dynamic dancing array; A unique form which combines digital calculation with an organic materiality. During the day, as the sun passes overhead, the bamboo screen catches the light in many different ways creating changing effects both inside and out.”

Photos by: Marc Gerritsen
Source: Architizer

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About Eric Meunier

Currently the Owner and Chief Executive of HODYO Design, Eric Meunier's expertise in the design industry spreads over 20 years. He was the driving force behind HomeDSGN's early success, founding this website in 2011. Today, he loves to channel his passion for design into remodeling houses and transforming interior spaces with his keen eye for detail and architectural finesse. Learn more about HomeDSGN's Editorial Process.

2 thoughts on “Bamboo Forest House by Roewu Architecture”

  1. Algunos piensan que colocar bambú (guadua) en la fachada o sembrar pasto en la cubierta es suficiente para hacer un proyecto “sostenible”, en este caso esa “piel” de antefachada, sin ningun efecto bio-climatico es más anecdotica que práctica y el costo ecológico de usarla más bien es negativo….

    Some believe that placing bamboo (guadua) on the front or planting grass on the cover is enough to make a project “sustainable” in this case the “skin ” antefachada, without any bio-climatic effect is more anecdotal than practical and environmental cost of using more negative ….

    Francisco Pardo Téllez
    Arquitecto, Colombia

    Reply
  2. This design and home structure is absolutely amazing. Designs like this truly fascinate me. Now if only every home in the US could have an amazing design like this.

    Reply

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