{"id":10267,"date":"2015-10-26T16:25:43","date_gmt":"2015-10-26T05:25:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wp.architecture.com.au\/news-media\/?p=10267"},"modified":"2015-10-27T16:03:37","modified_gmt":"2015-10-27T05:03:37","slug":"edg-october-feature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.architecture.com.au\/news-media\/edg-october-feature\/","title":{"rendered":"EDG October feature"},"content":{"rendered":"

Peter Stutchbury \u2013 Gold Medal talk in review<\/strong><\/p>\n

Firmly placed in the tradition of climate responsive design, the 2015 Gold medallist, Peter Stutchbury, is approaching the end of\u00a0an almost sold out tour of the Australian capital cities. Like Glenn Murcutt, Stutchbury is a keen observer of plants, climate and site.<\/p>\n

\u2018You wouldn\u2019t camp in a place susceptible to drainage problems<\/em>\u2019. He describes the form of the desert plants and the honesty of the PNG log houses. Stutchbury camps out on the site of a project to study its micro-climate firsthand, ultimately informing his design response.<\/p>\n

Observations of the Mt. Albert micro-climate informed the natural ventilation response for the Deepwater Woolshed \u2013 a shearing shed designed to provide a thermally comfortable range for its occupants to work in, replacing the old hot shed that was not working. \u2018Architecture is about comfort<\/em>\u2019.<\/p>\n

A connection to nature is a common theme explored throughout the projects, demonstrated in reflections of the sky in strategically placed pools of water and the extension of spatial functions such as the kitchen and dining areas to the outside, thereby reducing the floor area and material usage of the projects. In other projects, the site itself becomes a component of the built form – such as the building into a cliff face providing integral thermal mass for a NSW home.<\/p>\n

An anecdote of a Newcastle University project highlighted the need for the ongoing education of building users when natural ventilation systems are implemented as a design strategy. Stutchbury related how the university approached him with a plan to retrospectively introduce air-conditioning to a building designed by his practice. On visiting the building, Stutchbury demonstrated the operation of some high louvres that had otherwise been shut in place unused, thereby circumventing the intended natural ventilation strategy. The need to install air-conditioning was subsequently abandoned through the correct operational use of this feature.<\/p>\n

Peter Stutchbury’s final Gold Medal talk will be held in Sydney on\u00a0Thursday 19 November 6:00pm<\/strong>, details here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For those who were unable to attend the talk, a link to the Melbourne talk can be found here<\/a><\/p>\n

Whilst we may not all have the privilege (or dedication!) to camp out on a potential project site, we can refresh and equip our knowledge. This free climate design wizard http:\/\/www.designingforclimate.com.au\/<\/a> helps you design ecologically sustainable buildings for the unique climatic conditions of specific locations across Australia. The following EDG notes pick up on some of the themes explored by Stutchbury in his 2015 gold medal talk:<\/p>\n