Climate Resilience ● Spatial Design ● Design Research
“We bent our heads to the blast,” they said, “and it passed over us. You stood stiff and stubborn till you could stand no longer.”
— The Oak and The Reed, Aesop Fable
The house is conceived to sustain violent wind and streams during hurricanes and surges. Made of pins, bolts, I-beams and steel cables, its structure flexes like a dynamic truss. During a strong blow, it adapts instead of resisting. This concept is illustrated by the famous fable “The Oak and the Reed” where an oak and a reed fights against a windy storm. The oak stands still and gets uprooted while the reed bends effortlessly and survives.
The house is raised by two meters to create an inhabitable shaded outdoor space where residents could park their cars, hang a hammock and barbecue. The new type of meeting space provides continuity for New Orleans’ tradition of conviviality while responding to new requirements for sustainability.
Porches and interior spaces intermingle on the first and second floors to accommodate living components. A central shaft is left open for air circulation to keep the house cool and ventilated. All windows can be hermetically shut to protect the interior spaces during hurricanes.
'Le chêne,' pronounced [leuh-sheh-n' means oak tree in French, my native language.
