Timbrel Vaults

 Timbrel Vaults

o The Timbrel vault is also known as a "masonry vault","Catalan vault", "tiled vault", "laminated vault",

"flat vault" and "layered vault" (derived from Spanish, French, Italian and Catalonian descriptions).

o

o Method of producing arches, domes, vaults etc from masonry units (bricks, tiles etc.)

o

o First described as being a lightweight and inexpensive method of construction compared to traditional

stone vaulting. When compared to traditional stone vaulting, tile vaulting uses much less material and

can be built much more quickly.

o

o Timbrel vaulting differs substantially from the Roman method of arch building, which relies on

gravity.A Roman vault consists of a single layer of thick, wedge-shaped stones. Masonry vault is self-

supporting Minimal or no formwork

o Developed by Moorish builders near Valencia, Spain, though it quickly spread to become common

throughout the Mediterranean region.

o

o Built up unit by unit.

o One layer of bricks

o Each unit bonded to the previous one unit until it forms a continuous surface.

o Mortar is 2 parts quick lime, 1 part cement and 4 parts sand.

o Bad for the skin

o “Hot Bricks”. Dried in the sun so they suck in the mortar.

o Tiled version

o Santa Maria del Mar and the Santa Maria del Pi, both churches in Barcelona

 Cathedral of Gerona the widest gothic nave in Europe

 At the end of 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, the timbrel vault was rediscovered by the

Catalonian architects of the Modernisme movement. Crypt of the Colonia Guell

 Aymerich Amat i Jover in Terrassa, a textile factory built by Lluís Moncunill i Parellada

 Celler Cooperatiu de Pinell de Brai by Cèsar Martinell

 Ordinary Construction. Strong floors for storage

o School of Sagrada Familia

o

o Guastavino Vault. Most masterpieces of Catalan vaulting, however, are in the United States.

Guastavinos imported it.

 Rafael Guastavino, born in Valencia in 1842, improved the centuries-old technique and renamed it

"cohesive construction". Traditional mortar with rapidly hardening Portland cement,

o Enabled him to build vaults 3 to 5 times wider than the typical size of traditional Timbrel arching.

 Came to the US in 1880

 Worked for 50 years

 More than 1000 domes, ceilings, vaults and stairs

 Ellis Island – Immigration

 Oyster Bar in Grand Central

 New York City Hall Subway Station.

 National Museum of Natural History’s Baird auditorium

 Manhattan Municipal Building

 Bridgemarket, under Queensboro Bridge

 Brooklyn Bridge station entrance,

 Boston public library

o Popular because it was economic

 Less materials

 Mostly possible with low wage workers and cheap labor.

 Improves of the efficiency of the Catalan vault

 Workers simply stood on the work of the day before.

o Advantages

o Self-weight and corresponding horizontal thrust values are reduced.

o Fireproof

o Resistant to vermin

o Sound insulating

o Flood resistant

o Rising labour costs and the arrival of steel and concrete building methods rendered the technique

virtually obsolete.

 Timbrel Vault Ballet School In Cuba

 1961 to 1965.

 Building materials were scarce, and labour was plentiful,

 The knowledge was delivered by a former mason of Antoni Gaudí.

Mapungubwe Interpretation Center

 The Limpopo Valley may be one of the most remote and isolated places in South Africa.

o Peter Rich Architects,

 Limpopo and Shashe Rivers.

 Ceremonial center of the Mapungubwe civilization

 The rocky landscape is a result of geological events that reshaped the area.

o Building focused on its integration into the natural landscape of the park.

o Situated on the side of a mesa.



o Provides a clear understanding of the importance of Mapungubwe in this region.

o The use of vaulting and other ‘forms found in nature’ inspired by the dramatic landscape avoids any overt

references to any potentially controversial tribal vernacular (the area has many contesting land claims

between different tribal groups).

o Triangle defines the route through the building to the top of the hill

 From

o The conceptual vault design.

o Ten free-form vaults,

o The largest of which spans 14.5 meters

o One year from design to completion



o Total area 2750 square meters. 30,000 sq ft

o Program just laid on the site

o Museum,

o Exhibits

o Artefacts

o History and social organization of the kingdom

o A sacred place dedicated to remains

o Offices for SANParks

o Amphitheatre

o Carin vault and walkway

o Reflecting pool

o Light through oculus

 Made from a series of vaulted forms

 Minimal impact with the “scared” ground

 Covered in sandstone

o Avoided large earthworks

o Another stone hill

 Structural system

o 700 year old vaulting system from the Med

o Made of thin non-fired stabilized earth

o Earth tiles are used instead of fired clay tiles.

o a simple hand press to manufacture tiles of sufficient strength for vaulting.

 Built from the soil of the site. It's not only sustainable, but also beautiful.

o Demonstration of the possibilities of integrating architectural, social, engineering and environmental ideals.

The first tile vaults built in Southern Africa were a series of small test vaults to teach local laborer the

bricklaying technique. The Department of Environment and Tourism (DEAT) provided funding to

SANParks for poverty relief, meaning a certain percentage of jobs had to be created for unskilled,

unemployed labourers.

o Train unemployed women to produce earth brick.

 Fabrication sequence

 Fast setting gypsum mortar

 Thin tiles assembled with mortar gypsum

 Minimal concrete

 Double curved structure that used little formwork

 Geometrical guide work only to define the shape

 The rapid set of the mortar and the structural shape allows the mason to span between guide

 A typical vault is 3-4 layers of tile thick with the first layer bonded by gypsum mortar and subsequent layers with

Portland cement.

 The client, SANParks, managed the process of tile-making in the year prior to construction of the vaults using

government poverty-relief funding, while the guide work carpentry and vault masonry construction was managed by

the general contractor. In both construction processes low income, low skilled and unemployed local labour was

used.



o Lowers cost and reduces embodied energy.

o The proposal used about 85% local materials. Small (15%) quantities of carbon rich materials were used

when compared to the 40% (concrete) -100% (steel) of a conventional solution

o By using thin tile vaults instead of reinforced concrete at Mapungubwe, we saved an estimated 9 m3 of

steel, resulting in a savings of almost 120,000 kg CO2 emissions for manufacture alone.

o Using local earth bricks instead of fired clay saved the energy that would have been used to fire over

200,000 tiles.

o Significant amounts of CO2 were saved by radically limiting transportation of materials.

o Labor intensive construction reduced polluting machinery (sourced from afar) with small format

construction methods that have minimal impact on the surrounding environment.



 The Centre's heavy weight and exposed construction has significant passive environmental benefits.



o Thermal conductivity is low

o Delayed thermal mass allows structure to radiate heat at night and cold during the day.

o Here the exposed, thick construction absorbs thermal shock and acts as a radiant surface, transmitting the

‘coolth’ from the nighttime ambient temperatures over the day.

 The vaulted forms allow natural light to penetrate the building deeply, reducing energy expenditure.

 The technology avoids the potential large embodied energy of a conventional solution in such a remote site by using

predominantly local materials.

 Except for the cement added to the earth to give the strength of the tile and used in the mortar layers between the

tiles, all materials (earth, sand, gravel and stones) came from within a few kilometers of the building site.

P01.6 Masonry Medlock

Scheduled: Feb 22, 2022 at 9:30 AM to 10:45 AM

Duerinckx Residence is a refurbishment and extension of an existing house the Windsor

District of Phoenix, Arizona for clients Michael and Cristin Duerinckx

The project incorporates the use of “weeping mortar” CMU from the original house which was

popular in suburban houses of the southern states during the 70s. The overall form inflects the

language of the existing wing to the west by drawing in the curve of the road to the east,

minimizing the eaves detail and removing the brick support to the corner window. The project

aims to “manner” the normative forms and details of the original house.

Duerinckx Residence was constructed by 180 Degrees Inc. and with thanks to Matt Salenger of

Colab Studio.

1. Consider how cement is produced.

2. Consider how concrete is produced.

3. Who are the architects from any of the three block buildings presented in the last lecture.

4. CMU means Concrete Masonry Unit

5. The CMU's actual dimensions used in the Medlock project are 7 5/8" x 3 5/8" x 15 5/8".

However, it is more commonly described in whole inches i.e. 8"x 4" x 16" as a nominal

dimension. This is the geometry of the grid taking into account the mortar.

6. The dimension of a mortar joint is 3/8"

7. The sill height of Medlock project is 24"

8. 6 layers of CMU are used to reach the sill height.

9. 15.5 CMU units in length were used to form one layer of the curved wall of the Medlock

project.

10. The Medlock project uses weeping mortar style. Think about how it is made.

11. How do you make “bond beam.”

12. The openings between the blocks beneath the pitch of the roof provide ventilation, cool

attic and allow better airflow.

13. Discuss how the effectiveness of the scouring pad set within the openings beneath the

pitch of the roof of the Medlock project were tested.

Discussion & Seminar

Scheduled: Feb 24, 2022 at 9:30 AM to 10:45 AM

P01.7 Chinese Masonry - Wang Shu/Standard Architecture

Scheduled: Mar 01, 2022 at 9:30 AM to 10:45 AM

This lecture explores brick/stone/terracotta recycling in new Asian architecture. It explores the

idea of memory and how the durability of masonry can recall elements of the past.

A dilemma that faces architects of many “developing nations” is the rapid replacement of

traditional skilled labor with standardized building technology, most often resulting in the

homogenization of building materials, systems, and construction methods not to mention social

and environmental strategies. In contract to this celebration of the irregular and of imperfection

speaks of the craftsman. We are beginning to see this in new Asian architecture.

The lecture begins with a look at older European projects that set a precedent for these

building.

We will then explore two projects in China by emerging architects that reject this sense of

standardization by using traditional masonry construction.

First architects is are the Chinese partners Wang Shu and Lu Wenyu , founders of Amateur

Architecture Studio, and the recipient of the 2012 Pritzker Prize.

In thier work the conflict between technology and labor, tradition and progress, the local and the

global, is expressed perhaps most poignantly in Amateur Architecture’s Ningbo History

Museum, in which the rubble of ancient Chinese villages is used to clad a modern concrete

structure that houses a museum of Chinese history. While an incredibly moving and powerful

statement, the writing is literally on the wall: we are witnessing the death of a material culture.

The second is the River Terminal and Visitor Centre - Linzhi, Tibet, China by

Standardarchitecture + Zhaoyang Architects

This building is set on the Mirui Road which is a tourist road that meets Highway 318

connecting Tibet and Sichuan province. This road meanders southwards along the Niyang

River and the Brahmaptra Canyon whose specific terrain and landscape can be enjoyed from

the road. It is positioned on a path which connects the river with several villages in the Tibetan

region of Linzhi. It demonstrates the “architectural” credo of the Standardarchitecture studio to

work with the local native lithic culture.

Introduction Lewerentz + Pikionis

1. Sigmund Lewerentz early example of this idea. Church of St Peter, Klippan,

2. Consider how this was a celebration of the irregular and imperfection speaks of the

craftsman.

3. Dimitris Pikionis (1887-1968). Restoration of Saint Dimitrios Loumbardhiaris church.

4. Discuss how Dimitri Pikionis integrated the remains of the ancient habitations that were

on the site how he added marble and ceramic decorative themes t.

Ningbo Historic Museum Wang Shu.

1. Ningbu preceded by earlier projects where the past and present simultaneously present.

2. Tiled Garden in the Venice Biennale

3. Consider how Materials that come from the demolition of existing building for a new

campus and 600,000 tiles shipped to Venice

4. Discuss Hangzhou China Academy, Art Dawry Museum uses traditional Chinese forms –

Not historicist

5. Ningbo Historic Museum

6. In what ways does Ningbo Historic Museum Building contrast to the endless high rise of

Ningbo – for example the building is: Low, dark and unreflective

7. How is it part of a system of recycled materials and research in particular craftsman

understanding of unpredictable materials.

8. Consider the study of “5 scattered houses” and residents who will knock down old

houses and compensated by the government.

9. Why does Wang Shu talk about “time” and how is building as a reminder of time and

memory

10. Ningbo Historic Museum gathered tiles from demolished houses to make the new city of

Ningbo.

11. Elements include

a Terracotta Roof Tiles,

b Horizontal Ashlar

c Stacked Peddles

d Horizontal block

e Vertical block

f Concave Brick

g Ashlar Masonry

12. Discuss the Wapan method of rebuilding after frequent typhoons

13. The façade system of Ningbo and the Wapan masonry are reinforced with linear

concrete ledges

14. Discuss issues of compressive strength of the Wapan (low) and why it required concrete

ledges integrated into the façade at 3m intervals.

15. Cataloging and arranging recycled elements

16. Consider why everything was built off scaffolding

17. Discuss how Wapan acts as a weather barrier

18. Why doesn't the Wapan continue on concrete panels emerge on panels

19. How is bamboo used as formwork on the incline planes

Niyang River Visitor Center

1. Niyang River Visitor Center is by Standardarchitecture + Zhaoyang Architects

2. River Terminal and Visitor Centre - Linzhi, Tibet, China,

3. Set on a path which connects the river with several villages in the Tibetan region of

Linzhi

4. This project connects “architectural” credo of the Standardarchitecture studio with the

local native lithic culture. Lithic - of the nature of or relating to stone.

5. Ticket office and bathrooms nighttime shelter for local travelers not able to leave

because of bad weather.

6. Central courtyard connects four openings, responding to the orientations and circulation

7. The “carving” accommodates three major interior functions- a ticket office, a dressing

room for rafting and toilet. Why is this spatial “carving” or “stereotomic” appropriate to the

materials?

8. Consider how the project revitalizes traditional stone architecture without bowing to the

picturesque. For example the use of local materials and Granite stone collected in the

vicinity

9. Consider how the simple volumes are made to create deep openings allow sunlight to

penetrate from different angles and create constantly changing perceptions of cpolor.

Local culture of highly colored pigments obtained with natural powders. Color transitions

highlight the geometric transitions incumbent in the space.

10. These techniques reflect the Tibetan vernacular but are not “picturesque”. Color is a

crucial element of Tibetan visual culture.

11. From morning to dusk, the sunshine changes its direction and altitude angle, penetrating

through the different openings.

12. Consider the construction - 600mm thick load-bearing wall is erected with 400mm thick

walls at both sides of the openings which work as buttresses. This arrangement helps

the overall structural stability and the sense of depth to the walls.

13. Forming the spanned openings. Bigger spans are made from several small logs bonded

together with steel angles to support the stone. This creates an almost invisible supporsupportt

for the opening.

14. The roof is unique to i.e. - A 150mm thick layer of Aga clay covers the waterproof

membrane. Aga clay is a vernacular waterproofing material which stiffens when

tampered with water and works as another layer of waterproofing and heat insulation.

15. Its plasticity allows gutters to be shaped. Roof drainage is well organized with these

gutters and channel steel scuppers.