From the architect. Among the pines trees, a stone plateau is drawn to a scale that can no longer be understood as a courtyard. The space embraces a wide area of trees.
The more open side of the house creates a water tank through the connection of geometries. A space that embraces its context is created through this closed extension.
“OK, let me see your list.” I was fresh out of architecture school and working on my first project as a designer. It was one week before our design Development Deadline. The project manager asked me to draw up a list of remaining design issues.
“Here are the ten things I have left,” I said as I handed over the list. “It was hard to prioritize them. They’re all really important.” I was fortunate to be working with an experienced project manager who, in addition to being extremely patient with me, saw it as her responsibility to mold and shape green architecture graduates into fully functioning architects. Not an easy task…
“So you’re telling me that designing custom coat hooks is as important as fine-tuning the proportions of the massing?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Well… I mean… no. Not when you put it that way…” I stammered.
“And,” she continued, “do you really think the restroom tile pattern will bring as much to the project as finishing the design of the entrance lobby?”
“No, but…”
She held up her hand to save me any further embarrassment. “We have one week left. I want you to pick out the two issues from the list that will bring the most impact to the project. And then work on ONLY those two issues. Nothing else matters.”
“So no custom coat hooks?” I asked incredulously.
Instead of a sharp rebuke, she chuckled and said “A big part of your job as designer is to identify the parts of the project that are most important to the design. The parts that will make or break the project. And then you need to focus on those areas relentlessly. Everything else is just a distraction. Like your coat hooks.”
“OK, I understand… only the two most important things” I replied and headed back to my desk.
So I quickly got over my wounded pride, rolled up my sleeves and got to work. The project didn’t win any design awards but the client was extremely happy with the results and hired us to do another project soon after.
Though I didn’t know it at the time, this was my first introduction to the 80/20 rule.
In 1896, an Italian economist named Vilfredo Pareto published a paper that showed 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the people. Pareto looked at other countries and found that this 80/20 distribution of wealth was extremely consistent.
Fast forward to 1941. A management consultant by the name of Joseph Juran discovered Pareto’s research and applied it to quality issues. Much like Pareto, Juran found that the 80/20 distribution held true. In Juran’s case, he discovered that 80% of quality problems were caused by 20% of the issues. Juran called this phenomenon “the vital few and the trivial many.” It is also known as the Pareto Principle or the 80/20 rule.
The 80/20 rule states that 80% of your results in any activity will come from just 20% of your effort. Essentially, there are certain actions you do (your 20%) that account for most of your success and happiness (your 80%). While the numbers aren’t always exactly 80/20, what’s important to understand is the lopsided ratio of effort to results.
So how do we apply this to architecture and design?
Take a look at your own work and see if you can identify an 80/20 distribution of results to effort. For example, in a given day, 80% of your work is probably completed in just 20% of the time. Or 80% of your design time is spent on just 20% of the building.
Here are some other suggestions for applying the 80/20 rule:
If 80% of your firm’s work comes from 20% of your clients then cultivate those relationships.
If 80% of RFIs come from 20% of the building then focus your documentation on those areas.
If 80% of your marketing photographs are taken in 20% of the building then apply more design effort to these areas.
The trick with the 80/20 rule is identifying the 20% that really matters and focusing on those areas because they are the ones that drive your results. In my case, it was my project manager who helped me identify the 2 design issues out of the 10 on my list that would bring the most impact to the project.
It’s easy to get caught up in the minutia of our various tasks and lose sight of what really matters. Likewise, it’s easy to treat all the tasks on your list as having equal importance. Don’t fall for the hard work paradox. Instead, take a critical look at what you’re doing and focus relentlessly on those few things that really matter. Do this and you’ll super-charge your productivity.
From the architect. La Roca house is a refuge located in Jose Ignacio Point, a fishing village 80 km north of Punta del Este on the Atlantic.
Plan 0
Plan 1
Plan 2
The site presents a double slope along its length and width, terminating in rocks and the ruins of the foundation of a pre-existing building which now forms a natural garden of succulents.
The program considers a principal volume for social spaces, and another for the residences that results in two boxes of the same height which generate two patios in the voids that the boxes leave between and under themselves. The master bedroom is located in the residential volume with panoramic views of the surroundings.
Elevation
Sketch
Elevation
La Roca House is defined through a sequence of spaces, almost square in plan, in which run entering from the most public to the most intimate, crossing terraces, patios, exterior, intermediate and interior spaces and arriving finally to the master bedroom.
In winter the gallery space captures heat, but in the summer, the master bedroom acts as a chimney for the convection of rising warm air creating ventilation that eliminates the need for air conditioning.
Section
The roofs of the boxes are succulent gardens that work to improve the thermal quality while at the same time integrating the architecture with the landscape.
Model
Gray water from the house is recycled for the irrigation of these gardens. The materiality consists of Ipe and exposed concrete with the idea that from the rocks emerges two volumes, lifted up on feet, integrated into the site as elements as radical as the landscape itself.
First Prize Winning Proposal "U-CAN" by I-Ting Chuang, Jing-Yao Lin, Takanori Kodama, Yu Han Wu. Image Courtesy of Bee Breeders
Through their international architecture competitions, Bee Breeders give young architects and designers the platform to question the social and political role of architecture. Their latest competition, a Cannabis Bank without a specified site, was an open-ended question into the role and relevance of the increasingly normalised substance. The judges selected three winners and six honorable mentions, all of which presented ideas that open up the discourse around cannabis and its integration into the built environment.
As the architecture of cannabis still remains undefined territory, it has historically been associated with refits of other building types such as tea houses, cafes, public houses or pharmacies. This ambiguity left the field open for entrants to be as fantastic and progressive as they desired, with respect to the impact of the program on their social context. The judges commented that the most successful projects presented a, “consideration of individual experience — medicinal, psychological, and spiritual; sensitive accommodation in space and circulation for both the intimate and social; clearly defined context and locale; and innovation of an undefined spatial, tectonic, and architectural typology.”
FIRST PRIZE WINNER – U-CAN
First Prize Winning Proposal "U-CAN" by I-Ting Chuang, Jing-Yao Lin, Takanori Kodama, Yu Han Wu. Image Courtesy of Bee Breeders
U-CAN distributes cannabis dispensaries across rooftops in Taiwan, in the ad hoc additions which are typically constructed by residents without permission from their local government. This draws a parallel between the illegality but social acceptance of these structures and the growing acceptance of cannabis, suggesting a sense of collectivity and cohesion that is above the law. The scheme sees private consultation rooms littered across the rooftops, marked by illuminated chimneys to reaffirm the peaceful presence of cannabis in the city. The scheme “plays the social and political ambiguities against each other” and comments on the prevalence of marginalised activities that take place far above ground level.
Read the full interview with the first prize winning team here.
SECOND PRIZE WINNER – CANNALEONIC BANK
Second Prize Winning Proposal "CANNALEONIC BANK" by Albert Pla, Joan Pau Albertí and Héctor Durán. Image Courtesy of Bee Breeders
Albert Pla, Joan Pau Albertí and Héctor Durán | Spain
The second place proposal is situated in the medical research park of Barcelona, Spain, and was praised by the judges for its contextual relevance and political commentary. The sites adjacency to the beach presents a playful dichotomy of the medical and recreational aspects of cannabis. The external skin is covered in informational pamphlets, presenting a literal wall of information buffering the external from the protected interior. The interior houses a series of loosely organized rectilinear volumes, which open up to a central courtyard which functions as the key social gathering space. The recognizable silhouette of the curvilinear floating roof and regular base form an iconic building that can be readily identified and attributed to its cause.
Read an interview with the second prize winners here.
THIRD PRIZE WINNER – CANNABIS RIVER CRUISE
Third Prize Winning Proposal "CANNABIS RIVER CRUISE" by Sheehan Wachter and Cruz Crawford. Image Courtesy of Bee Breeders
The third place proposal takes the unassigned typology of cannabis architecture and marries it to the architecture of river boats. Acknowledging the historical importance of steamboats in the advancement of society, the boat brings with it new ideas and substances from outside of the known and accepted realm. Just as passenger boats evolved to places of great social extravagance, with their ball rooms and luxurious dining rooms, this project suggests that cannabis too can transgress from mere cargo to something of worth and prestige. The design sees the traditional program of the passenger boat subverted, with the great hall becoming “an intimate and other worldly meditative space for the use of medicinal Cannabis.”
Read an interview with the third prize winners here.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Pierre Shi Thach, Kevin Ting-Yu Huang and Daniel Xu Fetcho
Liliana Szulakowska
Elżbieta Komendacka
Teruaki Hara, Sai Hu and Marija Sassine
Charles Jones, Robert Mosby, Matt Decotiis and Jill Thompson
Miroslav Stafi, Julia Azamatova and Nikita Petrov
For more information on each of the winners and honorable mentions, check out the competition website.
This proposal for a concrete chapel by Joaquim Portela Arquitetos is designed to reach up towards the sky from its site in the Swiss Alps (+ slideshow). (more…)
Beachyhead is a residential project designed by Saota in 2014. It is located in Plettenberg Bay, South Africa. Beachyhead by Saota: “The clients approached SAOTA to design a family holiday home that responded to the site, especially the views. They wanted a relaxing, yet elegant home that would be comfortable when entertaining many guests whilst also feeling intimate and cosy when it’s only one or two of them in the..
New York designer Alissia Melka-Teichroew has added a tea set featuring a perforated sugar spoon to the collection of 3D-printed homeware brand Othr (+ slideshow). (more…)
From the architect. Last 16th April, Chaplin’s World, a museum dedicated to Charlie Chaplin, was inaugurated after more than 2 years of construction. Conceived by the IttenBrechbühl SA of ce and realised by the general contractor HRS Real Estate SA, the project integrates a new large-scale building that is both sober and modern as well as the restoration and transformation of the Manoir de Ban and its outbuildings in a preserved rural environment.
The universe in which Charles Chaplin lived during his exile in Switzerland was composed of a mansion (The Manoir de Ban), the outbuildings and agricultural buildings. With the new Musée Chaplin, an additional complex, the Studio, is now being added. It is subtly integrated into its unique environment and revalues the existing elements.
Set up as a continuation of the garage, this new half-buried two-storey building houses the cinematographic universe of the artist, actor and director over more than 1350 m2. Five volumes interlock to form a streamlined and sober building. Realised
in pre-cast concrete slabs, the mineral facades play the part of a background in the landscape. The shadows of the surrounding cherry trees are projected onto the facades of this simple volume, as if it were a cinema screen. By its simplicity, the building pays homage to the site and to the existing buildings.
Inside the volume, a multimedia scenography makes it possible for visitors to nd out about the cinematographic heritage of Chaplin from different perspectives. The entrance is located on an open, bright and airy overhang. It opens out onto a cinema theatre which transposes visitors into the secret universe of Chaplin’s work. The screen then rises to reveal an emblematic street with a Hollywood air which invites visitors to wander through spaces producing the films of Chaplin. At the end of this path on both floors of the building, the visitor comes up from the basement into a light, glass space opening out onto the restaurant.
Ground Plan
The Manoir de Ban or Chaplin’s house
Registered with the Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National Significance, the Manoir de Ban, of neo-classical style, was built in 1840 by the Vevey architect Philippe Franel, author, among other things, of the Château de l’Aile and the hôtel des Trois Couronnes in Vevey.
In collaboration with the Monument and Site service of the Canton of Vaud, it has been completely restored and renovated by the IttenBrechbühl Of ce architects and HRS company.Many artisans have contributed towards the restoration of the slate roof, the replacement of the molasse door and window frames, the enhancement and preservation of the vaulted cellars and the restoration of the building’s original colours. Environmental and security upgrades were necessary to make the building accessible to the general public. Today, the ground floor and the first floor house the areas devoted to the private life of Chaplin including the reconstruction of the artist’s and his family’s private rooms. The attic has been transformed into one single large reception area.
In this same spirit of conservation, the facades of the farm and the garage have been entirely renovated and restored, but the interior spaces have been completely remodelled. The old farm accommodates the of ces in the “housing” part and the restaurant in the “working part”. An adjoining terrace makes it possible to accommodate more than 200 people. The ticket of ce and shop are situated in the constructed area of the old garage.
The facades of these two buildings have been repainted according to the romantic trend at the time they were built. In order to obtain a clean and noble aspect, the materials have been completely reproduced in trompe-l’oeil on a roughcast or paint base. This technique has the advantage of concealing all the defects which the original materials could show.
The maintenance of the park is also continued in the spirit of Chaplin. He liked flowers and planted rare species in the garden. The garden therefore always invites a walk which, because of the splendid view of the mountains, constitutes an unparalleled experience. The transformation of the site into a museum also entailed important access infrastructure work in order to harmoniously integrate the new institution into the local urban fabric: redevelopment of highway access, new pedestrian precinct, cycle path, drop off area and parking for motor bikes, bicycles and coaches, and access to some 230 car parking spaces on the site.
After being banned from staying in the USA in 1952, Chaplin settles in Switzerland with his family. He moves into the Manoir de Ban in Corsier-sur-Vevey, above Lake Geneva. He will spend the rest of his life there until his death on Christmas Day 1977.
In the nineties, after the death of their mother Oona, the children bequeath all the property of the Manoir de Ban to the musée Chaplin Foundation so that a museum will be built in tribute to their father. Following 16 long years of study and work, a building permit was granted in 2009 and finally after 2 years of construction, the museum opened its doors to the public on 17th April, 2016.
