A piece we drafted in the Spring gives relevance to our approach to maximise design for our clients however always maintaining due regard for the natural environment. The Blog post can be found at the following link:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/environmentalism-vs-built-environment-jane-blakeley-riba?trk=mp-author-card
It reads as follows:
Environmentalism vs the Built Environment
jane blakeley RIBA
principal architect at JFA Architect RIBA
By Architect Jane Blakeley/Jane Faulkner Architects RIBA
A tight balance needs to be preserved between satisfying the Island’s economic prosperity and its natural environment, says RIBA-qualified Architect and former Junior Vice President of the Association of Jersey Architects, Jane Blakeley
OUR media news seems awash with comments about protection of the environment, global warming and what we could do about it. But what is actually being done? And what is being done locally?
Another question: how relevant is ‘environmentalism’ to the work of an architect?
Let's get the formalities aside first. A seven year architect training, brave new world ideology, and i'm armed with information - time to put studies into practice. However....
The RIBA 2005 Code of Conduct in fact advocates at point 3.2: ‘Members should be aware of the environmental impact of their work.’ So these questions are all too relevant.
I have practiced as an architect in Jersey since the mid 1990s, throughout that time the question of environmentalism vs the built environment notably affects the approach of architects locally. I am principally a house architect, my work covering a multitude of project types and styles, and sizes and location, i've also dabbled in commercial interior work fitting new found interior ideas into whacky old buildings, environmental regen-projects in themselves, and also like to look at the preservation of quality buildings that Jo public loves and savours, putting energy into preservation and even listing.
The reality - the legislation
In its protection of the environment, the Jersey Island Plan does in fact have a strong holistic approach and stance.
It includes a high level of legislative detail, the building byelaws protecting against CO₂ emissions in particular. Yes as architects we are governed by Planning Law when sketching and designing our buildings,in turn seemingly protecting the environment, at times without even realising we're in fact 'wearing a green hat'. As a result the Planning system has gone a long way to achieving this protection. Within my own work i try to emphasize projects that in some way 'blend' with their surroundings. Instigated a little by having a number of projects in protected Green zone, so it becomes automatic, the Planning system is strict in what is permitted here. As architects we are creative designers: the challenge is setting this against the restraints in law that governs the impact on the natural and built environments.
By comparison, architects are in fact like sculptors in the one sense, different in another: but they go one stage further and apply legislation. Then design reviews to the solution of the design challenges, but one step more checking how appropriate they are to the site - after all every site is not an Eiffel Tower or a Bilbao art gallery which monumentally 'stick out' for arts sake.
*this and below image courtesy of fellow Channel Island architect, Jamie Falla
There is a general consensus that contemporary design should reflect a spirit of the age, and in some finite subtle way is the real trick to pull off: to translate this into a building design that suits the site with consideration of its context. Of course architects are often working on old buildings, dictating more of a specific approach, so restoration of something old contrasts with the design of something new in a 21st century extension.
Capturing then the palette of 21st century design, including more open-plan and lighter buildings, natural daylight and larger areas of glass. This is afforded by advanced technology, also meeting CO₂ emission targets but with large panes of glass. This is a big step forward from the small incy windows of
our mediaeval forefathers' homes, a contentedness then with just a roof over their heads these days we have much higher more ephemeral expectations, fashions change, so why not change our homes perhaps each five or ten years. And so it goes on. As we are embracing new concepts, we form a strong contrast to the previous generations and centuries of design. Of my own projects I employ this contemporary 'feel' where possible.With house projects, this is all too relevant for personal living spaces. The issues of comfort, view and ‘healthy house’ applies to shape the home more and more, away from our everyday in a demanding modern world, to then achieve ultimate personal design solutions. In fact life is that fast we almost forget it, caught up in the speed of the everyday. So more reason to find peace and tranquility in our personal spaces and homes.
Works of mine have included: the feasibility for a bunker conversion into a house, a community housing scheme with corner shop facility and landscaped gardens, and farm regeneration studies. My focus with house projects has included works entailing the smallest interior details to the other end of the spectrum with large sprawling homes. A strong element to my works is project landscaping to link the outside environment with the interior, bringing the outside in, and vice verse. And more recently, energy saving ideas and ecological focus. If i'm to be frank i am focusing on more of 'light clinical' phase at the moment, a focus on minimalist design, though remain committed to this not jarring with the eye, and environment, particularily where this approach maybe an external finish.
These projects indicate my interest and focus in regeneration and sustainability. Again our forefathers did this naturally, you didn't throw away in those days, you reused, and 'recycling of buildings' and building materials was the norm. Knitting building projects with the environment was generally how they designed, often with a community focus separate to individual dwellings, by example each Parish having a centre with a Parish Hall, church and community hall, and often a public house (or Pub) was also included forming a small hamlet and cluster of community focused buildings that blend with each other. It's interesting to consider the essence of what our forefathers intended, probably the result from their farming occupation and its direct connection with the land and hence the environment. This is a sympathetic approach, a 'preserve the environment we are one' as opposed to a more commercial modern approach that considers the commercial value and a more independent design ethos of 'i have a right to impress my vision'. This i find intriguing.
The whole subject of how much our Island’s environment, built and natural, needs focus comes at a key time in Jersey's history, when we are on the cusp of an immigration chapter, for example. This may well dictate the future vision of the Island. Consideration of a tight balance being preserved between satisfying our Island’s economic prosperity and its natural environment is none moreso crucial with the finite space remaining, and finite natural environment.
It is almost a corny subject. But in 2016 choices need to be made and a balance preserved. Preserving this balance is the ‘bug bear’, politically, both now and for the future.
