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December 23, 2003

«atalhˆyuk Video

Local workers make mud bricks, dry them in the sun, and shape them into the walls of the experimental neolithic house. Watch the streaming video. The video is part of an archeological study of «atalhˆyuk, a Neolithic town from 9,000 years ago, located in modern-day Turkey. «atalhˆyuk means ‘forked mound’ and refers to the site’s east and west mounds, which formed as centuries of townspeople tore down and rebuilt the settlement’s mud-brick houses. No one knows what the townspeople called their home 9,000 years ago.

December 13, 2003

Rammed Earth Tamper

We asked the pros what they use in the construction of rammed earth walls. The answer was the Jet-2T Sand Rammer Backfill Tamper. The rammer, traditionally used in foundries to compact sand for casting., is pneumatically powered and has a rubber butt, which is replaceable. The best deal we have found on the internet is at Southern Tool for $596.67.

December 12, 2003

Earth Room

The New York Earth Room, 1977, is the third Earth Room sculpture executed by artist Walter de Maria, the first being in Munich, Germany in 1968. The second was installed at the Hessisches Landesmuseum in Darmstadt, Germany in 1974. The first two works no longer exist. The New York Earth Room has been on long-term view to the public since 1980. This work was commissioned and is maintained by Dia Art Foundation and is an interior earth sculpture comprised of 250 cubic yards of earth (197 cubic meters) over 3,600 square feet of floor space (335 square meters) with a 22 inch depth of material (56 centimeters). The total weight of the sculpture is 280,000 lbs. (127,300 kilos).

December 12, 2003

Nader Khalili

Iranian born Nader Khalili, California architect/author is the world renowned Earth Architecture teacher and innovator, and author. He has been a licensed architect in the State of California since 1970, and has practiced both in the U.S. and abroad. Click here to visit Khalili’s website: Cal-Earth, The California Institute for Earth Art and Architecture.

His books, Ceramic Houses and Earth Architecture: How to Build Your Own and Racing Alone document his life of searching for a method to fire mud houses and turn them to stone by firing and glazing an entire building after it is constructed from clay-earth on site.

December 9, 2003

Los Angeles Greater Metropolitan Area Adobes

Among the Things to do in Los Angeles are visit the 103 adobe sites where adobe buildings once stood, or visit the 76 extant historic adobe structures listed by region below:

Los Angles County (12)
Orange County (10)
San Diego (17)
Santa Barbara (20)
Ventura (13)
Inland Empire (4)

December 9, 2003

The Architecture of Mud

The Architecture of Mud, a film by Caterina Borelli and Pamela Jerome, is shot in the Hadhramaut region in the south east of Yemen which well known for its mudbrick architecture. Throughout the centuries, the population has developed very sophisticated building techniques and created a unique architectural environment.

December 7, 2003

Mali

Brazilian photographer Jose Luis Berzal sends a link to a series of beautiful photos of adobe architecture from his recent trip to Mali.

December 7, 2003

ABCTerra

The Brazilian Association of Earth Builders – ABCTerra, established in 1997, is a non governmental organization whose goals are to disseminate, stimulate and promote the development of the architecture constructed of raw earth in Brazil.

Portugese language website. Translate at babelfish.

December 7, 2003

Rural Studio

The book, Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee and an Architecture of Decency documents several rammed earth structures designed and built by Auburn School of Architecture students in Hale County, Alabama.

December 7, 2003

Yazd 2003

The Ninth Conference on the Research and Protection of Unbaked Mud Monuments opened at Dowlatabad Garden and was attended by a number of world experts. Speaking at the inaugural ceremony, Head of Yazd province Cultural Heritage Department Seyed Mohammad Beheshti reiterated the importance of the unbaked mud monuments and the inherent complexities of the material.