After formally studying architectural history for many years and constantly reading books on architecture, it is great to come across architects that I have not heard of, architects who have not made the mainstream but have a body of work that is quite inspirational and refreshing.
Recently I stumbled across the work of British born Laurie Baker (1917-2007), who practiced during the height of modernism but found his own path and produced contextural organic and energy efficient architecture.
Although he was a humanitarian living and working in India, he produced a set of ‘Architectural Principals’ that strikes accord with many of the methods and principals that I like to apply within my own local context. Below I have attached his Architectual Principals from a website dedicated to him and his work http://www.lauriebaker.net/
While it is fantastic that the general public is developing an awareness of sustainability in architecture, it can be frustrating to see companies behind the greenwash promoting ”cutting edge” ideas and methodologies that have been tried and tested principals for some time. Finding Laurie Baker’s work demonstrates that sustainability has long been a part of good design, something that many architects throughout New Zealand and been achieving and tring to promote for some time.
