Chassidic Discourse

on chanoukat habait

In this Chassidic discourse the use of building materials are explained with connection to building of the tabernacle and the construction of the temple. 

That is, it is explained that that world is composed of different realms. The inert (i.e. rock or mineral) the vegetation (i.e. plants, trees), the annimal and finally the Humans. Further what is apparently on a lower level in this world comes from a higher source in the parallel world and therefore making the mineral (the rock) a spiritual higher element that all others. This building material would therefore be apropriate for a certain type of building.

Another article explained the 3 basic needs of a person, food clothes and housing. It is explained that the food and clothing correspond to ones inner light and his dwelling is his outer light. The source of a house is higher than that of clothes and food because, using that some concept as above, all that is lower in this world comes from a higher source. Many such aspects are described. 

The Pattern Language
by Christopher Alexander

This book was extremely relevant in helping me to conceive a proper environment.

Through the study of statistics of human behavior, Christopher Alexander describes relevant solutions through the use of relevant patterns. Through an easy to read and well-organized clear planning process. I chose to examine what is said about town planning and organization. I can assume my site to be a little neighborhood that he assumes to have between 500-1000 people. 

He states: 

"Preserve country towns where they exist; and encourage the growth of new self contained towns, with populations between 500 and 10 000, entirely surrounded by open countryside and at least 10 miles from neighboring towns. Make it the regions collective concern to give each town the wherewithal it needs to build a base of local industry, so that these towns are not dormitories for people who work in other places, but real towns- able to sustain the whole of life."

He brings a relevant quote by a Nigerian Tribesman : 

"I conceive that land belongs for use to a vast family of which many are dead, few are living, and countless members are still unborn."

This can be perfectly related to the ideologies of the population of the chosen site. 

He discusses privacy and the different needs of people. Some need more privacy than others and shows how to balace out the planning. He states interesting facts about the design decision of the row houses. And how the major inconvenience of them would be solved with a few variations of long and thin units and identifies the importance of common land 

Organization of a house planning is related to how a family would interact. Also a house for couple would be different than a house for a familly or a house for a single person. He claims for example, that in a house for one person all items that are placed are for the bare necessity, and will be characteristically different from other houses. 

interesting studies of a place for the car and courtyards in the house. he explains what cam work and what can not. The organization of the house with the aspect of sunlight, vegetable gardens, composting bins would all be relevant to me.
 
 

Here are some of his examples in a house hold

These are examples of the organization of the space
 

Organization of a city

 

              Vegetable gardens             Composting chambers

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Building Dwelling Thinking 

What I understood from Building Dwelling Thinking is that man must realize that he is a mortal and dwell within this world. Heidegger raises issues about dwelling and how it is attained. He relates the words used for building and dwelling in German, to their appropriate meaning. And concludes that "building is really dwelling" and that "dwelling is the manner in which mortals are on earth" and finally that "Building as dwelling unfolds into the building that cultivates growing things and the building that erects buildings". 

He also states that "To dwell, to be set at peace, means to remain at peace within the free sphere that safeguards each thing in its nature. The fundamental character of dwelling is sparing and preserving." To me this can perfectly explain the concept of housing. How if you build an environment that is not imposing you create an environment where people truly can be free .

Another example he gives of a bridge that makes the river into a place and allows us mortals to cross the 2 opposites. 

" A bridge for example makes the river into a place and reveals its true essence by letting the two banks appear as opposites, thereby thematizing the crossing: the unveiling of the truth about the place becomes an attack against its essential characteristics."

This essay had some very strong and enticing ideas that filled me in with many philosophical questions which I will try to find answers though the current research. However, no answer will be apparently complete without the execution of the design. The sense of dwelling to me would be a strong reinforcement of the way of life intertwined within the design. 

This book gave me some outlook on how the development and planning of settlements in Israel is rooted in the attempt to "establish a national home for the Jewish people in Zion" . At the beginning of the statehood many well know architects were designing many agricultural settlements "around which the homes were built in a circular fashion", with the intention of future expansion. 

The differences between the Jewish and non-Jewish settlements was also briefly discussed. The units that were designed for the growing population is described. Many problems in the developments were discussed and some low cost opportunities were discussed. This book is a bit outdated for my present research, although much can be learned in recognizing the errors in the structures that were built.

This book is about the basic things in people's lives. The question of "how we house ourselves, how we learn, how we keep healthy." This book is a study of where people like to be, what environment they create for themselves. It is also a critic of the way housing is being planners with no relation to people, only to the costs. 
The fact that planners have to plan the places bothers the author? He is also against the high cost of housing. How the cost are disproportionably high. He gives various different scenarios of families and how they relate to their dwellings. 

This book examines different surveys and tries to predict trough planning. Population trends affecting housing were looked at. Interesting…. but not really relevant.

This book is a compilation of different essays about identity in housing. In this book Duncan brings "a common social-psychological perspective to bear on the study of house and its relation to the self and the nature of social order."
"The house is seen as symbolizing group values, as simply a shelter which has little to do with one's self concept " but to others, where individualism is a dominant ideology, the house is intimately bound to the individual's self-concept, reflecting his personality, social status or accomplishments."
Rapoport says, "The house although an important element in the environment, varies from society to society in degree of importance as an indicator of identity. In many societies the house does not appear to serve as a strong indicator of identity, and other elements of the settlement system serve this purpose." 
"What environmental elements are used as indicators of identity?" Relationship between identity, social structure and housing. Rapoport raises some interesting point about how some cultures lost there identities when they moved out of their traditional homes and started to live in a more 'modern' way. For example, the Bororo and the Dogon. He shows how the culture of the people is reflected in their dwellings. For example in the Bedouin tent, the space organization reflects the separation of the sexes, and the dispersed settlement pattern organized by tribes and extended families. He also notes that according to the western way, dwellings indicate statue, and according to the older traditional group, the dwelling depends on membership in a tight group. When one deals with a group identity, individual identity is lost. What is identity? "The unchanging nature of something under varying aspects." The social units. Different examples of types of dwellings that were used to communicate identity. "For most groups the dwelling is very central-most time is spent in it. 

This book clearly describes different aspect of what affects the form of a house in different cultures.

Housing is looked at as the founding element in the design of a city. Different examples of cities were discussed. For example, the Preston cottages, the tenements, etc… For me it was important to see how the different housing units created different urban form. Different examples for different climates were discussed as possibilities for courtyard houses.

This book, that deals mostly with american culture, expresses the social, psychological implications of physical cues.  the quality of materials used in a building, the level of maintenance...
How the body responds to its environment.  the symbol of the 'home' is discussed. 
the ideal home is described in subjectivity.  In some cultures the home is a symbol of status. 
Privacy is discussed and many cases are sited. Personalization of a space is also an important concept.  the meaning of personalization and its affect on behavior. for example a more personalized interior increases one's feeling of security. 

 
 

This is a research done by an urban planning Mcgill student. The issue of postmodern housing was related to housing theories. The issue of dwelling was discussed. From this book I got the example of the Hudertwasser house in Vienna.

Affordabe Single Family Housing

This book helped me study different techniques in reducing cost of housing and keeping efficient.  Examples of different clusters were shown.  plans of small lot homes were given.  this booked also has some useful numbers for  minimum living areas, and some very typical residential plans. 
 

This book was a compilation of different essays on city planning. Also a survey of many well designed American towns. This book was very helpful and gave me many insights in good planning, that is, the different housing and where they are placed, how everything is at a max. Of 5 minute walk from the center (therefore activity). It would be nice to try to rearrange the planning of the settlement but I don't thing that would be possible. But this book was still useful even at a much smaller scale.

The Modern Courtyard House
Dancan Macintosh

There is a very clear analysis of the social meaning of a courtyard house in the introduction.  in hot and dry climates, the courtyards are kept small and are overshadowed by the high walls.  They also encourage cross ventilation. 
This book is a well of interesting examples of different north american courtyard houses. 
the author also raises the problems that might occur from this type of housing such as that the outwards views should still remain important and other social issues.