Designing and Building for the Climate

Climate dictated the design for both La Maison Tropicale and Fort Nakhl. The two climates are very hot, and both designs minimize direct sunlight while still taking advantage of the air flow. However, the moisture content in the two climates is very different, and is taken into account in each design.

Congo rainforest. (Source)

Oman desert. (Source)

Heat is a major issue when designing in both the Congo and Oman. There are a few techniques commonly used to naturally cool interior areas, primarily through blocking the sun and harnessing the natural air flow. La Maison Tropicale uses a large roof overhang to reduce direct sunlight. The double roof structure allows for hot air to escape through the built in ventilation and sliding door panels encourage cross breezes as well.

Ventilation doors. (Source)

Fort Nakhl uses many of the same principles, but in a more primitive style. Tall walls block most of the sun light, and also reduce the amount of sand transfer to the interior. Hot air is removed through small windows near the ceilings, and cooler air is drawn in through the glassless windows lower down.

Illustrating the window placements. (Source)

Both La Maison Tropicale and Fort Nakhl are designed so that the cool night air will circulate through the bedrooms, and the rooms are elevated to access the cooler air. La Maison Tropicale sits on fifteen stilts that allow the fort to be erected on any tropical land formation while Fort Nakhl is strategically situated on a tall rock outcropping. Both of these accommodations place the buildings in plain sight.

La Maison Tropical viewed from below. (Source)

Fort Nakhl seen from below. (Source)

Although there are many similarities in how these buildings adapt to their climate, there are also radical differences. La Maison Tropicale is designed for a very humid climate. In response, high-moisture producing areas needed isolated access. For example, the washrooms had entrances from outside only, to reduce moisture transfer to the interior. Fort Nakhl, on the other hand, was constructed in an extremely arid climate, and needed to improve it's access to water as much as possible. The pure water that ran from the thermal springs was diverted into a channel through the lower portion of the fort.

Water through the lower portion of the fort. (Source)

The designs of both La Maison Tropicale and Fort Nakhl are completely climate responsive. They use similar techniques to reduce direct sunlight, and to maximize air flow. In an industrialized way, Prouvé reused many of the same techniques used in Fort Nakhl to cool the interior.

-Clara Walker

Information Citations:

Bourgeois, Jean-Louis and Pelos, Carol. Spectacular Vernacular. Salt Lake City: Gibbs M. Smith Peregrine Smith Books, 1983.

Hamilton, William L. "From Africa to Queens Waterfront, A Modernist Gem For Sale to the Highest Bidder" (2007).

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/16/nyregion/16house.html

(accessed January 5 2010).

King, Emily. "Grand Designs" (2007).

http://www.frieze.com/issue/article/grand_designs

(accessed January 5 2010).

Oliver, Paul. Encyclopedia of Vernacular Architecture of the World.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997.

"Prouve House for Design Museum at Tate Modern" (2008).

www.tate.org.uk/about/pressoffice/pressreleases/2008/14056.htm

(accessed January 5 2010).

Image Sources:

"Fort Nakhl" (image). Available from: Wandelen in Oman.

http://www.cs.otago.ac.nz/staffpriv/hans/stories/Oman.html

(accessed January 11 2010).

Huppatz, D.J. "Maison Tropicale Sliding Doors" (image). Available from: Critical Cities.

http://djhuppatz.blogspot.com/2007_05_01_archive.html

(accessed January 12 2010).

"Nakhl" (image). Available from: Oman, smells good to me.

http://www.igougo.com/journal-j38979-Oman-Oman_Smells_Good_to_Me.html

(accessed January 11 2010).

Nichols, Michael. "Congo River Rainforest" (image). Available from: Travel & Cultures.

http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/photos/photo_congo_congo.html

(accessed January 11 2010).

"Oman Desert" (image). Available from: lerochers.com.

http://www.lerochers.com/carnet-voyage/oman.html

(accessed January 11 2010).

"Outer walls of Nakhl" (image).

http://www.7is7.com/otto/travel/photos/20051019/oman_castle.html

(accessed January 11 2010).

Rain, Andy. "La Maison Tropicale ouside Tate Modern" (image). Available from: Art & Design Blog. http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/artblog/2008/feb/07/lamaisontropicaleisonehot

(accessed January 11 2010).