Big on barkitecture
The “Big Dogs” in the building industry these
days are hip to recycling. Celebrating that theme, in conjunction with Santa
Barbara’s annual Big Dog Parade, the first American Institute of Architects
Barkitecture Design Competition and silent auction received some creative and
diverse entries.
The competition was sponsored by the Santa
Barbara Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
“The use of recycled materials is what made it
interesting,” said Damon Gregory of Santa Ynez, Construction Academy teacher at
Santa Barbara City College and a board member of the American Institute of
Architects and Contractors Association.
“All of the entries were very individual; none
were the same at all. All the materials that our team used were from
construction leftovers or scrap piles completely,” said Gregory.
Santa Barbara AIA members were paired with
members of the Santa Barbara Contractors Association to create the “green”
doghouses that were displayed at the annual Big Dog Parade in Santa Barbara
June 7, as well as the following week, June 13-14, at the Built Green Expo and
Conference at City College. The doghouses were sold through a silent auction to
raise money for local charities.
The six teams were: Conceptual Motion and
Cunningham-Parris Construction, Inc., RPM Robert Peale Mehl Architect and Allen
Associates, Cearnal Andrulaitus Architecture Interior Design and Sky Line
Construction, Harrison Design Associates and KM Custom Builders Inc., Neuman
Mendro Andrulaitus Architects and Weidl Construction, and the Design/Build SBCC
Student Team, which consisted of teachers at Santa Barbara City College in the
construction academy and several students.
Los Olivos Architect Rob Mehl’s design
featured radiased corners to accommodate the curled position of a dog lying
down.
Other design features included a sod roof with
a serpentine slope to deflect run-off, and a slatted floor for air circulation
made from Brazilian hardwood scraps.
Shannon Scott Design contributed, too, with
interior design aspects including a framed photo of Indy’s “family,” a dog bed
made out of old jeans, and a sign with the Japanese symbol for “Friend.” John
Mathews of Allen Associates added many more “green” touches during construction
— a “growler” window made from a recycled beer growler, a set of old
castors from Neilsen’s Lumber’s junk bin, and a roof built from bender board
remnants, which are made out of recycled plastic — for double-whammy
recycling at its best.
Their team’s doghouse also featured recycled
old oak flooring, recycled screws and hardware, and siding made from bamboo, a
very fast-growing renewable resource. Hayward Lumber of Goleta donated Forest
Stewardship Council-certified lumber for the frame. The exterior was finished
with water-soy-based sealer and the interior with low-volatile compound paint.
Associate director of AIA Santa Barbara
Chapter Juliet Crowder, who works for Phillips Metsch Sweeney Moore Architects,
said, “most people walking by the display at the Big Dog Parade said that they
were nicer than their own house! Hopefully, these will be purchased for more
money in the future, they have a lot of work in them!”
Winners will be “officially” announced during
Architectural Appreciation Week, and then displayed on AIA flags on State
Street in Santa Barbara the week of July 7-18.
The silent auction raised $1,120 and will be
donated to the Dog Adoption Welfare Group (DAWG), the Teddy Bear Cancer
Foundation, The Breast Cancer Resource Center, and the Architectural Foundation
of Santa Barbara. One doghouse is still for sale.
Tallying votes was not done by counting
wagging tails but by human judges on the basis of use of recycled materials,
design creativity and quality of craftsmanship. The overall design competition
winner in all three categories was the RPM/Allen Associates team.
The judges’ comments were, “The family picture
is a nice touch! Also liked the recycled denim bedding.”
Best use of recycled materials went to
Design/Build/SBCC, for “Ingenious water-bowl filling feature!”
The design creativity award went to Neuman
Mendro Andrulaitus Architects/Weidl Construction, and the judges comments were,
“Sculptural quality is great.
“Provides roost for the cat, too!”
The quality craftsmanship award went to
Harrison Design Associates for the “best use of natural light.”
Honorable mentions went to Cearnal
Andrulatirus Architecture/Skye Line, “Solartoonish! Straight out of toontown!
Like the clerestory and the PV system!” and Conceptual Motion/Cunningham Parris
Construction Inc, with the comment, “Dog silhouette gets doggy brownie points!
Can double as a stunt ramp for the kids. Seems cozy!”
What better way to test your building skills and recycling knowledge to
the utmost but by creating a recycled architectural wonder for man’s best
friend? And support local charities to boot? Woof.