Measure House is a speculative architectural design created in 2017. It is proposed to be primarily made of adobe mud, along with some concrete and steel, located in the decommissioned granite quarry, Dean Quarry, on the Lizard Peninsula in southern Cornwall in the UK. The maritime climate here, influenced by the Gulf Stream, results in an average temperature two degrees higher than inland.
As global temperatures rise due to climate change and ice in the North Pole melts, the Gulf Stream could be dramatically affected. Freshwater from melting glaciers may disrupt the current’s cycle, leading to hotter summers and colder winters across Cornwall and northern Europe.
A key aspect of Measure House is its emphasis on seeking to highlight changes to the gulf stream and climate change in two ways. Firstly, through it’s framing of the movement of the sun, where the behaviour of shadows enhances occupants’ experiences. This occurs in the main atrium, angled to face the morning sun, where shadows from the large, gridded outer shell fluctuate throughout the day. The design includes a large shield wall on the southeastern face, acting as a canvas for light and shadow. The interplay of sunlight and shadow would create a dynamic environment, with shadows intensifying in summer and diminishing in winter. If shadows become stronger in winter, it may indicate increased sunlight, possibly pointing to rising temperatures or climate change effects.
Secondly Measure House aims to create a visceral awareness of changes to the Gulf Stream and climate change among its occupants by creating varying conditions of comfort and discomfort, primarily by providing a distinct range of differing internal temperatures. In the Bunker Room, with two-meter-thick cob walls, temperatures remain cool, making occupants acutely aware of the heat outside on hot days. Conversely, the Felt Room, at the opposite end of the building, allows for a more embodied awareness with the environment by allowing climate and weather to bleed unmediated into the room directly affecting the building’s internal temperature.
The juxtaposition of these contrasting rooms enables occupants to choose their preferred environment, fostering awareness of changing environmental and climatic conditions. This design aims to critique the habitual use of automated and mechanical temperature control used in buildings which tend to provide universal and regularised internal environments regardless of the external environments and climatic conditions of where they are located.
Project by Matthew Butcher
Assisted by Sam Coulton, Emma De Haan and Elin Soderburgh
