Con-Structure Matters: Adobe
Matter plays an essential role in our experience of architectural design. More than that, the constructive, building physics, and structural properties of building materials are intrinsically part of the design process and the final quality of the architectural form.
In this studio, you will explore how architectural design can develop from a deep understanding of its building materials. The link between material properties and your personal generation of architectural design will be investigated in a self-chosen test-case design project.
You will learn to develop material-driven design and to create your own architectural language and design strategies.
This year, the studio focuses on adobe – a sustainable and low-cost material made by sun-drying a mixture of earth, water, and organic matter. You will learn about this material through case-studies and literature review, but also gain direct experience by making and building with adobe in a one-week hands-on workshop in the Netherlands (March 2026). The workshop links theoretical understanding with practical experience and is funded by the Erasmus+ project Crafting Clay.
To be successful in this studio, you need to have a solid understanding of materials, structural behavior, and general building technology.
Detailed Project Description:
In this studio, Con-Structure Matters: Adobe, students explore how architectural form can emerge from a deep understanding of building materials. The focus is on how the constructive, building physics, and structural properties of materials influence design decisions. In this material-driven approach, students learn to develop their own architectural language and design strategies by reflecting on their design process.
This edition of the studio centres on adobe – a low-cost, sustainable building material made by sun-drying a mixture of earth, water, and organic matter such as straw or dung.
The studio includes a one-week (funded) hands-on workshop, where students will learn to work with adobe by making and building with it themselves – linking theoretical understanding with practical experience.
(This studio is closely connected to the studio “Adapt, on Continuity in Building” by sharing studio topics, tutoring and reviews).
Linking Matter and Architecture
Matter is an important aspect of our experience of architectural design. Even more, the constructive, building physics and structural properties of building materials are intrinsically part of the design process and the final quality of the architectural form. For example, stacked bricks can form load-bearing walls with acoustic, thermal, and aesthetic qualities. In addition, the structural compression properties of a brick and the principle of stacking incite the creation of arches and shells as architectural elements.
Similarly, wood consists of fibres, which lead to direction-dependent (anisotropic) properties of strength, deformation, shrinking, and swelling. This determines how to construct wooden architecture and its detailing.
This link between material properties and the form-finding and construction of architectural design, can be traced in many building materials, such as rammed earth, steel, bio-based materials, concrete, adobe, and bamboo.
In this studio, the student investigates adobe as a building material, and develops a personal link between its material properties and the generation of architectural design. This link is investigated in a test-case design project in which the student has the autonomy to select its programme and context, and are encouraged to add personal themes (e.g., regenerative design, climate change, multicultural society, reuse, and social sustainability).
Studio context
This studio instigates students to develop and broadly explore their personal approach to designing.
For students to thrive in this studio, they must possess a solid understanding of material properties, structural behaviour, and general building technology. This foundational understanding is crucial for conducting meaningful material investigations and pushing the boundaries of architectural design.
Semester 1: five meetings with lectures, introduction, and start-up of the dissertation project. During this semester the students work in collaboration on the exploration of the material adobe and its use as a building material in architectural design.
Semester 2: includes weekly to biweekly tutoring sessions (as needed), three project reviews, and a one-week mandatory material workshop in the Netherlands (March 2026). This workshop is funded by the Erasmus+ project Crafting Clay and covers the costs of student’s accommodation, travel, workshop materials, and tutoring. (Students are only required to contribute €100 for food).
In addition, several online lectures will be provided on the topic.
Expected output:
A manuscript (1) presenting the developed link between material properties and design generation. This work explains the developed design strategies of the student to create adobe architecture. In addition, at least one test-case design project (2) is presented with plans and details.
References/Further reading:
Addis, B., 2007. Building: 3000 Years of Design Engineering and Construction. London: Phaidon Press.
Arup, O., 1970. The Key Speech.
Balmond, C., 2002. Informal. Munich: Prestel.
Charleson, A., 2005. Structure as Architecture: A Source Book for Architects and Structural Engineers. Oxford, MA: Architectural Press.
Ching, F.D., Onouye, B.S., and Zuberbuhler, D., 2009. Building Structures Illustrated: Patterns, Systems, and Design. Hoboken: Wiley.
Conzett, J., 2006. Structure as Space: Engineering and Architecture in the Works of Jörg Conzett. London: AA Publications.
Deplazes, A., ed., 2005. Constructing Architecture: Materials, Processes, Structures. Basel: Birkhäuser.
Engel, H. and Rapson, R., 1967. Tragsysteme, Structure Systems. Stuttgart: Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt.
Gordon, J.E., 1978. Structures, or, Why things don’t fall down. London: Penguin Books.
Hunt, T., 2003. Tony Hunt’s Structures Notebook. 2nd ed. Oxford: Architectural Press.
Iorio, A. and Co, F.D., 2011. Jurg Conzett, Gianfranco Bronzini Patrick Gartmann: forme di strutture/ Forms of Structures. Bilingual edition. Milano: Mondadori Electa.
Luyten, L., 2022. Structure as (primary) generator of architectural design: a study of a master dissertation studio. Architecture, Structures and Construction, 2, 129–143.
Macaulay, D., 1981. Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction. Boston: Sandpiper.
Workshop: Adobe Brick – Research, New Design And Prospects For Use In Modern Construction – idaaf architects [online], 2025. Available from: https://idaafarchitects.com/en/workshop-adobe-brick-research-new-design-and-prospects-for-use-in-modern-construction/ [Accessed 24 May 2025].
Macdonald, A.J., 2001. Structure and Architecture. 2 edition. Oxford: Routledge.
McHenry, P.G., 1985. Adobe: Build It Yourself, Revised Edition. Tucson, Ariz: University of Arizona Press.
McHenry, P.G., 1989. Adobe and Rammed Earth Buildings: Design and Construction. University of Arizona Press.
Meister, U., Rist-Stadelmann, C., and Spaan, M., eds., 2019. Crafting the Façade: Stone, Brick, Wood. Zürich: Park Books.
Muttoni, A., 2011. The Art of Structures. Lausanne: EPFL Press.
Rael, R., 2009. Earth Architecture. New York: Princeton Architectural Press.
Rice, P., 1996. An Engineer Imagines. 2nd ed. London: Ellipsis.
Sandaker, B.N., 2008. On span and space: exploring structures in architecture. Abingdon: Routledge.
Sandaker, B.N., Eggen, A.P., and Cruvellier, M.R., 2011. The structural basis of architecture. 2nd ed. Oxon: Taylor & Francis.
Schodek, D.L. and Bechthold, M., 2014. Structures. 7th ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education.
Stedman, M. and Stedman, W., 2016. Adobe Architecture: A Simple Guide with Plans for Building with Earth. S.l.: Sunstone Press.
Strauven, I. and Ney, L., 2005. Ney & Partners Freedom of form finding. Antwerpen: Vlaams Architectuurinstituut.
Zalewski, W. and Allen, E., 1998. Shaping structures: statics. Wiley.
Images:
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