Would Concrete Desolation Row Fare Any Better in a Forest?

Would Concrete Desolation Row Fare Any Better in a Forest?

From Paleo-Future (link) are images of a failed futuristic housing project.

"CanikPhotos has a great collection of photos from Taiwan of a housing development that was never completed. The set is called Desolation Row and has a companion set called Desolation Row Redux. Interestingly, a falling out between the business partners led to the development never being finalized."

This interests me because the design is very tree house like (similar to the soviet era building mentioned here) in that there is a central concrete column with the housing pods attached radially like branches. It also seems to represent another attempt at the "build first and landscape later" approach to achieve a look of harmonious integration of home and nature.

I find it not-so-surprising that the development failed. Sometimes Will and Ego can drive the construction of what seems to be a good idea, but in isolation, these motivations often fail. Building a structure that dominates the area and then attempting to patch it up with landscaping after to make it all more friendly and livable doesn't often work. Notice how barren the land is around these buildings. Its just an incongruent design for the space and intention.

Now, what if these pods were somehow lofted into the boughs of some large trees in an otherwise natural area? The same basic design would have had a completely different outcome because, in part, it would have been forced to accommodate the environment. Not to say that couldn't fail, too, but at least it would have been less of a sterile blight on the landscape if it had.

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New Zealand Treehouse

New Zealand Treehouse

My sister, Dee, is travelling around New Zealand and documenting her journey on a blog (www.dee-in-new-zee.blogspot.com).

In her latest entry, she found an awesome little tree house north of Kaikoura. I get an honourable mention because she knows I like such things!

So, time for a critique: First off this is really a stilt supported cabin made to look like a tree house. But the aesthetics are so good that I'm willing to give it the thumbs up on 'treehouse' status.

This is an interesting approach to treehouse building, and one that I've had many people consult me on lately. Build the structure securely on posts, and then landscape around the base with fast growing shrubs and trees that will then envelop the structure and provide the desired look.

This is appealing for some because it emphasizes the architectural design of the house. This way the builder can make the structure exactly as they want, since the trees and vegetation accommodate the building rather than the other way around.

One of the most difficult things about building a tree house in a tree is the planning and design involved in working around irregular tree trunk placement and branches. Basically, the form of the trees impose their will on the design possibilities. Stilts simplify this process immensely, however, also limit the height of the structure and are also subject to bylaws and regulations that a true treehouse can often avoid.

Yet, the thing I like best about this particular design is the mix of modern and rustic. The slats on the side are awesome -- found drift wood -- and the contrast with the roof overhang, and sharp clean glass window lines, is very nice.

For more information on this treehouse resort see later posting: Kaikoura Treehouse Resort in New Zealand

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My Brain: A Comic of Treehouse Neurobiology

My Brain: A Comic of Treehouse Neurobiology

This comic is from the site xkcd.com and was discovered and sent to me by my friend Legion.

It says it all about how I'm wired.

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Book Review: Treehouse Chronicles

Book Review: Treehouse Chronicles

Treehouse Chronicles: One Man's Dream of Life Aloft

Publisher: TMC Books

Site: Treehouse Chronicles

“Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.”

-- Henry David Thoreau

Book Review:

Treehouse Chronicles is a book of self-reflection written by a man who comes to understand himself via the realization of his childhood dream: a treehouse. This is one particular path, and although other people will find their own way to manifest meaning in their life, most will regard the tale with awe and envy: a 300 square foot, 2 story, wooden structure weighing in at 6000 pounds suspended from a single tree. If this sounds amazing to you – and you’ve experienced your own “acute adult onset adolescence” – then reading about the challenges of building a tree house on this scale is an ideal way to inspire you to go out and discover what you’re really made of.

To the uninitiated, building a tree house seems like an undertaking for any average construction enthusiast – a couple of weekends worth of work, some wrangling, getting it all up in the tree, and voilá: a tree house. However, speaking from my own experience, a whole constellation of personal content comes into a project like this. Usually these issues are best described as disillusionment with the default reality (possibly triggered by a dull life in the monoculture suburbs) and a persistent, life-long, child-like enthusiasm for outlandish creations. And, incidentally, these motivations always conflict with the practical engineering requirements involved in a project like this. And that tension makes this story interesting and suspenseful.

This book can be viewed as a diagnostic manual and comprehensive how-to resource for building your dreams. Treehouse Chronicles provides excellent technical information and illustrated structural drawings that are an inspiration to behold. And, the book also contains an honest and compelling narrative about the personal factors related to such a project such as the intangible rewards that come from its completion. It is much, much more than just a book about saws, nails, and trees – it is about the balance of forces that define a person: Relationship with nature, other people, and the self-actualization of dreams. And, I’m glad to report, the book delivers in all these ways.

This would be a good time to introduce the author of the book, and the builder of the tree house, Peter Lewis. His tale starts with being disillusioned with life in suburbia, lost in the imposed structure of cookie-cutter homogeneity, and a pivotal moment that made him opt to move his family across the country for something unknown. Along the way he rediscovers the value of family, friends, a self-directed life, and the pursuit of dreams.

While reading this book I got the feeling that I was eves dropping in a dialogue between Henry David Thoreau and Norm Abram (from the New Yankee Workshop television show). The book philosophizes around some significant issues in our modern life and then anchors these abstract concepts with hard examples from the building process at hand that day. For Lewis, it seems that philosophy and woodwork are two pursuits that, when traveled in parallel, lead him to find his true self.

I like how optimism runs through the narrative as Lewis demonstrates that we are in a unique position in history, a very fortunate one actually, in our freedom to realize our dreams. Today’s world provides a wealth of tools, access to information, and the personal freedom to challenge the default assumptions about happiness and success. You and I are free to ditch the consumer model of material wealth and go out to create our own vision of it.

Granted, not everyone defines utopia as a tree house in Maine, but there are lessons and insights here that are universal: Self-empowerment, confidence to pursue a dream, improvisation around challenges, and how to deal with fear of the unknown. You could read this book and substitute any number of life goals and the basic recipe is the same: It is about the process, and the people you inspire along the way, that matter in achieving the end result. Chasing a dream requires one to learn how to enjoy the little rewards found in each moment, it’s not about the resale value of what’s left over when you’re done.

And, the nice thing about Lewis’s particular dream is that it’s possible for him to walk out into his backyard, crawl up a staircase, and retreat into it for a nap anytime he likes.

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