SESSION 4 Building structure

Place small rooms

Stair (if needed)

Building structure as a whole

Beam pattern in each room

... Definition of a center The evolution of a design in your mind's eye, through centers

The small-house design process has five main phases Session 1: Set garden position, house position, and living room Session 2: Define house volume and the inside of the living room Session 3: Place walls, entrance, roof: the substance of the building Session 4: Establish building structure Session 5: Fix outdoor spaces, doors, windows and ornament Each of these phases is long enough for a single session. You should complete a session, then have a rest, before you start another session. Session 4: Establish building structure Steps Action Notes Step 4a What are the minor rooms attached to the main room? Can you make a list of them? Make a list of minor centers that will be placed around the major centers of the house. Step 4b Is there a two story part of the house? If so, you must ask yourself where you want the stair, and what shaped volume it will occupy. Make thre stair a positive three dimensional volume which is simple, rectangular, and beautiful to experience. Step 4c Can you now make a simple syncopated grid to serve as the structural grid of the house? Make structural bays each of which is a center, in its own right. They do not all need to be equal in dimension, but they should be parallel. The asymmetrical grid will be the pattern of the house. Step 4d If any room is to have visible beams, try to imagine, as if you were standing in the room, a beautiful pattern of beams which wil make a nice ceiling. Make each ceiling a positive center with a beautiful design. This completes Session 4 Back to session 3 Go to session 5