Organiconcrete
Concrete as a construction material has somewhat of an image problem, forever associated with brutalist highrises and dull utilitarian buildings. In the hands of artist and designer Omer Arbel, however, concrete has taken on a fresh, almost poetic expression. His experimentation with new ways of forming concrete has culminated in the creation of 75.9, a dramatically expressive house located on a farm not far from Vancouver.
The 740 square metre house is supported by ten trumpet-shaped concrete columns which also act as canopies to create intimacy in the cavernous living spaces within. The top of the trumpets are hollow and some are filled with earth, allowing trees to be planted on the roof terrace level.
These remarkable structures are created by pouring concrete into formers made of fabric draped over plywood ribs. It is the branch-like arrangement of the ribs and the way the fabric sags between them which gives the concrete an organically fluted form as well as a unique surface texture. The designer also pioneered a way of pouring the concrete in a slow continuous manner which lets it cure as it pours, thereby eliminating horizontal stress joints. This innovative approach enables the designer to exploit the free-flowing, plastic nature of concrete to make it look as if it had been shaped by nature.
The same method was used to construct elegantly curvaceous retaining walls around the windows on the outside of the building, with earth piled up to create gentle mounds rising from the fields to the roof line, creating the impression of a half sunken house punctuated by cave like entrances. It is indeed the designer's intention to make the house looks as if it had been built sympathetically around a freshly unearthed archeological ruin, a design which feels intriguingly timeless and forward-looking.
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Product Inspiration
Explore the look of rocks, stones and concrete at home with the Pebble Rubble Sofa from Moroso, the Temple Coffee Table from 101 Copenhagen and the Dice Concrete and Wood Storage system from Lyon Beton.
Dramatic double height ceilings call for dramatic suspension lights such as the Beautiful Mess from Karman, the Totem 4 from LZF and the Cannonball from DelightFULL.
For accessories with an industrial and organic touch try the Tornado Vase from Ghidini 1961, the Vaselot Vases and Candleholders from Atelier Polyhedre or the Concrete Woodprint Grey Wallpaper from NLXL.
