Home Sweet Home

The family living space needs to be versatile enough to be put to a variety of uses: it should be a sociable gathering place; a peaceful retreat for relaxation; and also a happy setting for special events, such as anniversaries and parties. The changing seasons bring different rhythms and moods, and our living spaces should harmonize closely with them. In 19th-century Russia, large country houses contained separate summer and winter apartments, and in Scandinavia and Germany it is still common practice for affluent city people to migrate to their summer apartments or houses in the countryside, just like people in hot climates would move from the stifling summer heat of the valleys to the cooler mountain locations. This practice is reflected throughout the Western world in the growing popularity of second, or weekend, homes and retreats. Even if such options are not open to all of us today, we can still adapt our living areas to be more flexible and responsive to climate.

This traditional living room in Santa Fe, New Mexico illustrates how the best of a vernacular style can be combined with new design ideas to create an adaptable living area. The focal point is the corner hearth, where a circular seating platform becomes the natural gathering area and, on winter nights, a warm and intimate room enclosed by heavy curtains or folding doors. Beyond, on the sun-facing side, is a new, semi-circular sunspace, which is light and airy and acts as a transition between the private inner room and the outside garden — a feature enhanced with plenty of indoor plants. The roof canopy shields the inner room

from the high angle of the summer sun, while the solid insulated floor of the sunspace acts as a solar collector that releases heat into the room on cold winter nights. Double-glazed solar windows, with top and bottom vents to regulate the temperature, are insulated with outside shutters or interior padded blinds that prevent the heat from escaping in winter; in summer, through-ventilation from front to back keeps the interior cool.

Thick, solid adobe walls are moulded into flowing curves, platforms, and alcoves that, with old timber beams, avoid rigid, straight angles. The earthy hues of the adobe form a natural background for bright rugs and cushions and local pottery.

The hearth is at the heart of this natural living space, but here the fireplace has been fitted with a high-performance combustion stove. This feature increases output via conducted heat vents, and complete combustion and filters minimize emission of pollutants. The adobe walls, left untreated or finished with nontoxic, water- based paints, allow the room to “breathe” and assist natural diffusive ventilation and heat transfer. The timber ceiling,like the walls, absorbs and releases moisture naturally and further helps to regulate room climate. Clay quarry floor tiles have been laid on a thick concrete and rock base that acts as a solar heat store, insulated to retain the heat and release it as required. The adaptability of the tile surface makes it cool underfoot in summer, warm in winter. Underfloor hot-water pipes, heated by the stove, can boost space heating if this should become necessary.

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