Traditional and Contemporary: Basic Geometry of Texas Barn Design
Conceptual sketch for a new home by Steve Chambers, AIA, that incorporates a restored 19th century timber frame Dutch barn into the designBecause barns are by their nature utilitarian structures, many present a contemporary appearance, with a basic geometry that is absent superficial adornment. Their resulting profiles are bold, particularly when juxtaposed with other buildings and create an interplay of slashing shadows throughout the day. When integrating historic barns with his newer designs, Texas architect Steve Chambers, works to remain sensitive to the original character of the early structure. “Our firm’s objective for the end result is to allow the original structure to ‘take center stage,’ rather than disguising it with distracting elements. The simple geometry and detail of the early Texas built environment is elegant and refreshing. The three-dimensional massing, planes, proportions, relationships and materials allow us to use these early Texas forms in our designs, regardless of our clients’ leanings toward traditional or modern residential architecture," says Steve Chambers, AIA.
Where adornments do occur on barns, they are often purposeful. Consequently, their simple geometry is easily connected, conjoined, and contrasted with either traditional or contemporary residential architecture. Successful barn conversions to residences require a respect for the integrity of the features that give these original structures their character. It’s tempting to impose clever devices in place of the earlier vocabulary of the structure. But, architects experienced in the vernacular from which barns derive their personality and sense of place, are able to keep the narrative of the design honest and authentic. “We keep what makes the barn ‘a barn’ and show how it originally worked as one,” says Chambers. “In our designs for new barns, we respect what the setting and topography of the land informs their design and that of a new adjoining ranch home to be.”
A "monitor" style 'Party Barn' for a second home on an East Texas lake provides extended entertainment and kitchen spaces for guests of the homeThroughout American history, farmers have built barns to shelter livestock and store their harvest. A vast variety of barn styles can be seen throughout the United States, each design adapted for unique weather conditions and cultural traditions. A steeply peaked roof, for example, is usually seen in regions with considerable snowfall, since the weight of snow stresses the roof and can collapse a barn.
In the hotter, more humid South, steeply pitched roofs capture heat. So while they’ll still have a slope to shed rain and snow, more southerly barns have variations for ventilation such as the airy ‘monitor’ barns that move air from floor to ceiling through the vents. American farmers also built their barns with aesthetics in mind. While barns are functional by design, appearances distinctive to a region provide identity to the regional farmlands on which they stand. Certain barn styles have become synonymous with particular parts of the country; they comprise an important portion of the historic built environment of an area’s agricultural past and often inspire present and future design decisions.
Dressage horse barn, located on ranch in West Texas, where dressage horses are bred and trained
In gallery below, L-R, are examples of basic barn geometry. First two photos are barns in Switzerland, where weather and snow dictate steeper roofs. Often, these homes are attached to barns, consolidating energy and reducing exposure to the elements for both ranchers and animals. The black and white sketches and photos are from the book, Pioneer Texas Buildings: A Geometry Lesson by Clovis Heimsath (University of Texas Press, 1968). They illustrate the forms that define the Texas regional vernacular. Next, the sketches and photos of barns designed by Texas architect, Steve Chambers AIA, located in East Texas, North Texas, and in the Hill Country. The final barn is the Ploughshare living classroom, where lessons in sustainable lifestyle, gardening and farming are taught at Homestead Heritage Village near Waco Texas.
PRINCIPLES OF UNIVERSAL DESIGN FACILITATE AGING-IN-PLACE
Our firm designed a bridge to enter the main living level, in this case the second floor, of this modern home in North DallasI can recall as a young boy my fascination with “automatic doors.” Stepping on those floor mats was the solution to taking my dad places in his wheelchair…I could keep pushing him, as doors ‘magically’ opened for us. I didn’t know the term Universal Design, yet I lived it. The concept is elegantly simple: creating environments and products usable by all people to the greatest extent possible, without need for adaptation or specialization. Its intent: to enhance the quality of life for all, regardless of age or ability. When I was six years old, I got a Universal Design education, firsthand. I am the product of early adoption of the concept. My dad was a 100% disabled WWII veteran and our home was designed for accessibility by the Dallas architect, Joe Gordon, in 1952. Our house was small in square footage, but seemed very open and was easy to live in by all of my family, including my father.
The main living and outdoor entertaining is designed to take place all on one level in this ranch home in Bosque County
The elegance of universal design resides in it being invisible and non-stigmatizing, which wasn’t always the case in institutional design. The design should be so intuitive that the interface with it is effortless. So, the next time you walk through an automatic door think “universal design at work.”
The challenges in our built environments are manmade—the design sets up the “handicap” that comes from having to deal with obstacles the design creates, when there is no consideration for universality.
Hard surface flooring facilitates maneuvering through this modern home, designed for "aging in place"7 Principles of Universal Design
Equitable Use - The design does not disadvantage or stigmatize any group of users and is marketable to people with diverse abilities.
Flexibility in Use - The design accommodates a wide range of individual preferences (i.e., L/R handed) and abilities; provides choice in methods of use.
Simple and Intuitive Use - Use of the design is easy to understand, regardless of the user’s experience, knowledge, language skills, visual acuity, muscle strength, or current concentration level. Good universal design emphasizes simplicity.
Perceptible Information – The design communicates necessary information effectively to the user, regardless of ambient conditions or the user’s sensory abilities. It uses pictures, audible, or tactile methods.
Tolerance for Error – The design minimizes hazards and the adverse consequences from accidents or unintended fatigue. Elements most often used in the home should be the most accessible, or incorporate fail-safe features.
Low Physical Effort – The design can be used efficiently and comfortably and with a minimum of fatigue.
Appropriate Size and Space - The appropriate size and space is provided for approach, reach, manipulation, and use, regardless of the user’s body size, posture, or mobility level.
CHALLENGES FOR THE AGING POPULATION THAT CAN BE SOLVED BY UNIVERSAL DESIGN
Romoving the reducer strips between the various floor materials in this Texas Regional home creates ease in moving from room-to-room
The concepts of Aging-in-Place and Universal Design are linked together. A home with Universal Design features is set up for the spectrum of life and is an environment which will accommodate all of its stages.
The challenges of aging fall into these broad categories: functional decline, complications from disease and medications, and the need to accommodate in-home caregivers. The list below includes some, but not all, of the design considerations for Aging-in-Place. For a complete program that accommodates your individual needs it is best to consult with a professional familiar with Universal Design, when undertaking the construction of a new home
*Adapt main floor of the home for one level living: no-step entry; bathroom, bedroom, kitchen and laundry on main floor; no curbs at shower entry.
*Install hand-held shower heads and grab bars. These are some of the least expensive changes you can make and are a great help to those with balance problems.
*Use lever handles on doors and plumbing fixtures. Hand strength can be an issue with all ages–using a simple lever eliminates the struggle with operating doorknobs and faucets
*Use “comfort height” toilets, countertops, light switches, thermostats: many people suffer from osteoporosis, arthritis, or temporary injuries and find it hard to stand up from a normal height toilet; lowered countertops and switches allow for operation from a wheelchair or a sitting position.
*36″ wide doors throughout the home. Doorways are often too narrow for walkers and wheelchairs, or someone carrying packages. Widening all of them is a plus for all ages and activities.
*Make room for knee space below countertops, work spaces, and sinks.
Curbless roll-in shower*Instead of defining each space for a specific use, prepare the space for flexible use and multiple routines. Something simple, like a built-in seat in the shower, illustrates this principle. Some clients want the controls to the left and others want them on the right. What if they need to bathe the dog in the shower? Options that call for a space that is less defined, into which one can stand, lean, place, or remove a chair, offer maximum flexibility. A built-in shower seat defines how the space is used. But, an open shower allows the space to be less-defined, offering more maneuvering, alternative uses, and varied routines. Two can use the space simultaneously, whether for a shared shower or by a client and caregiver. Prepare for the unknown by maximizing the ways rooms and spaces can be used in multiple ways.
*Lighting/Daylighting (maximum use of direct and reflected light, supplementing conventional lighting): use windows, transoms, clerestories, and skylights to allow direct and reflected light into a home, which enhances mood and learning, mitigating the effects of reduced visual acuity while at the same time reducing energy usage.
*Temperature. Many older adults do not have good circulation and require more warmth in their homes. Better insulation and designing for increased solar heating in the winter reduces the need for high energy usage.
*Non-slip floor materials: tiles with textured surfaces and low-pile carpets.
*Level floors without reducer strips where there is a change in floor materials.
*Ramps and rails
*Computerized ubiquitous monitoring systems, as well as other assistive devices.
Aging-in-Place Neighborhoods. Look for these features when seeking a location for your home: town centers and shops within walking distance; housing of different types to accommodate families of varying sizes/circumstances; multi-generational; porches on homes; narrow pedestrian-friendly streets; proximity to transit/bus lines; mix-use (commerce and residential)
The rehabilitation community calls for a paradigm shift in which “disability” is a function of interaction between the environment and the user rather than a condition of the user alone. Good, functional and easy interaction has and always will be a standard of good design. If you are designing for people, Aging-in-Place design is already a part of what you do. It’s just another aspect of the program for good design.
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Aging in Place as Sustainable Living: Part One
Conceptual sketch for a sustainable/universal design home: single level, daylighting, high efficiency features, independent living wing separated by dogtrot porch, large porches that encourage outside living activities"We want this to be our last home and we want it to work for us, as we age."
The beginning of a three-part series inspired by a Leadership Texas Conference on Health and Wellness:
Part 1: What is 'Aging in Place'
Part 2: Aging factors that impact design
Part 3: How good design can support 'Aging in Place'
OVERVIEW OF AGING IN PLACE
Our architectural firm is hearing the statement above more frequently than ever before from clients. After some demographic and marketing research,we determined that this is not just our trend; it’s a paradigm shift in housing needs for the entire U.S., which we noticed a number of years ago from our clients. If you want your current home or the one you will design in the future to be flexible for your continuous use, an understanding of the phenomena of “aging in place” and Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORC) is important (in Part 3).
Dallas home, a sustainable/universal design in collaboration with HKS, Inc., has main living area on one level; guest area on second level; large doors and openings; hard floor surfaces for ease in maneuvering; floors and porches at same level with minimum thresholds
Findings from The Stanford Center on Longevity
Longevity is not just about the elderly. Young people today are the first in human history who can — with reasonable certainty — anticipate very long lives. Changes in life span and shifts in population demographics affect people’s lives at all ages. The implications are profound, and there is no single problem or solution. There needs to be a national conversation about long life because of the economic, employment, and resource allocations are beginning to result in stresses throughout our society.
The Stanford Center on Longevity is asking the same questions that we, as architects, are posing to our clients when they discuss their new designs with us:
1. When our clients undertake new designs, how can we prepare their homes for continuous use as their needs change with family size and age?
2. What kind of neighborhood infrastructure is necessary to support young adults so that they can reach old age physically fit, mentally sharp and financially secure?
3. What do our older clients who will also live far longer than the role models who preceded them need in their new or retro-fitted designs?
4. How can we as architects assist our clients who want to ‘age in place’ and stay in their homes in comfort and security?
Trends to Follow for Aging in Place
“Aging in place” refers to living where you have lived for years, typically not in a health care environment, using products, services, and conveniences which allow you to remain in your home as circumstances change. In other words, you continue to live in the home of your choice safely and independently as you get older.
Aging in place is more than being in an environment of choice as one gets older, it means home; a place for emotional and functional needs to be met. A foundation where family histories are created and rich memories have been woven from shared experiences.
Home contains a lifetime of cherished objects that support identity and delight the senses. It’s also community and those daily rituals and comfortable patterns you’ve come to love. You want to stay where you already live.
You’ve Got Options as you Age
Low maintenance design and landscaping on single levelThe essence of home is to feel safe in an environment where you have the ability to control and enjoy your experiences. However, aging can lead to the reduction in physical abilities and loss of “environmental competence”–or the ability to get around, see obstacles, and conduct your daily routine. Later in life the home you love can become difficult to live in, even unsafe.
The good news is that with a growing number of housing modification options: care giving, assistive technologies, aging in place tips, and green strategies, the home may actually serve to maintain independence by compensating for reduced functioning–as well as help the environment for future generations. The better news is that if you start with a new design that considers your future needs from the beginning as a young adult, taking into account the principles of universal design, not only do have a good real estate investment, you can stay ‘in place’ as long as you desire. With all the concerns about where Mom and Dad should spend their retirement years, often the last option explored is perhaps the simplest: to stay right at home. After all, if the comforts of home also provide the comforts you need in old age, within affordable, convenient and familiar surroundings, then why should it be necessary to leave?
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reports modification for aging-in-place is the fastest growing segment of the residential industry. The NAHB in collaboration with AARP developed the Certified Aging-in-Place Specialists (CAPS) program to meet the increasing demand by seniors and baby boomers for barrier-free living environments. Architects have been required for years to understand accessibility and ‘universal design,' as these are basic licensing requirements.
The requests of my parents when they were alive was that they live in their home until the end of their lives. They got to do it, because their home was designed by an architect who understood universal design--my dad was a disabled veteran of WWII. We all deserve to live in dignity and safety in our homes, until the end of lives, if this is what we want. Steve Chambers, AIA
TEDxSMU DISRUPTION 2011: OUR BREAKFAST WITH JAUME AND MAYA
"Transcendence," an ice sculpture installation by Shane Pennington opened the TEDxSMU conference We attended the 2011 TEDxSMU DISRUPTION* conference, held this week at the Wyly Theater in downtown Dallas. The astonishing variety of speakers sparked discussions about the positive connotations of disruption: the epiphanies, the moments of moral obligation to initiate change, and the transcendent nature of art, how it stirs the soul to engage with what is vulnerable and fragile on the earth and in its people.
We had the pleasure of hosting one of the speakers and a voice for the world’s most ‘at risk’ children, Maja Ajmera, founder of the The Global Fund for Children and an author of children’s books**. But, the most transcendent moment for us came while having breakfast with Maya, another speaker, sculptor Jaume Plensa, his wife, Laura Medina, and their host, architect Betsy del Monte of The Beck Group. As we talked about the business of making art and how artists create objects or work that give a form to our souls, Jaume interrupted with the statement, “what is important are not the things we make--it’s how we orient ourselves to the world."
His message to us is this: we build our lives, one 
"Nuria" and "Irma" by Jaume Plensa seem tp contain the landscape in their heads at teh Yorkshire Sculpture Park interaction at a time. And just as cells slowly associate with one another, eventually arriving at a construction of a single unique body, so do we create meaning in our associations with people. Eventually, positive change in our communities and society as a whole disrupts the inertia to maintain the status quo, wherever we may be. Maya and Jaume are creating a dialogue at rapid speed, interrupting ‘business as usual, re-shaping the world as we’ve come to accept it. They refuse to settle. And they inspired us to disrupt our comfort in order to create more beauty and comfort for others.
• *to break a circuit
• ** for every book you purchase on Maya’s website, a book will be sent to a child in a school supported by the Global Fund
"Clouds 365" by Jaume Plensa rests on the pavilion to greet visitors at the door to the Meadows Museum at SMU
Video of Crown Fountain by Jaume Plensa in Chicago:
Sustainable Community in Texas Hill Country: A Review by Steve Chambers, AIA
Waterwheel that powers the mill and turns the antique French millstone to grind grains into flourA small community near the Texas town of Elm Mott is a worthwhile trip ‘down the road on 35,’ whether you are a professional needing advice on sustainable farming or building practices, or a family seeking fun in an idyllic educational setting. Homemade pastries and lunch at an affordable price is a surprise bonus. Work and craft are practiced as art in this Hill Country setting.
We have a strong personal relationship with and regard for the Heritage Homestead Community. They don’t just talk about sustainability they live it. We re-visited them recently to taste what’s new and to photograph the setting and craft making. Heritage Village continues to hone their trades and message to “make well what needs making.” After watching cheeses being formed, flour being milled, pastries being baked, and iron being wrought for home furnishings, we left there re-invigorated, remembering that carefulcraftsmanship is actually a cutting-edge idea needed to balance the leanings toward a high-output quantity-based society. Heritage is leading the way ‘back to the future’ in the creation of sustainable communities that really work by growing food and producing usable goods. They engage the natural resources of family, community, and the earth to demonstrate exemplary stewardship of it all.
Antique log home, reclaimed and restored by Heritage Restorations
Heritage Restorations locates, dismantles, restores, and re-erects 18th and 19th century timber frame barns, hand-hewn log cabins, gristmills, and other historic buildings worldwide. Their time-tested, handcrafted structures are then finished with modern, innovative, energy-efficient designs and materials. The completed structures result in uniquely beautiful homes, guesthouses, and ranches. In addition to the sustainable practice of preserving the ‘embodied energy’ of older structures, Heritage Construction builds new homes with unparalleled craftsmanship and integrity, in the tradition of a bygone era when quality, not quantity, was the standard in our country’s built environment. The Heritage community of craftsmen has assisted Stephen B. Chambers Architects, Inc. with these services for many years.
The sustainable lifestyle can best be summarized by a way of thinking that architects often term ‘The Seven R’s:’
Respect what came before you
Receive, borrow the best of what is already there
Reduce to the smallest you need
Restore to a better state than you found it
Reuse what you can
Recycle by use in same manner or new way
Remember to share what you learn with others
Restored antique barn 'classroom' where sustaianable living lectures and demostrations are heldAs the final step in a sustainable lifestyle dictates, Heritage remembers to share what they learn. A belief they espouse is that, with assistance, everyone can achieve some level of self-sufficiency. Ploughshare is the public education program that teaches people how to establish sustainable farms and communities. Through their onsite classes and on-the-road speaking engagements, they transmit their vision to rediscover and perpetuate knowledge about basic crafts and skills that founded this country (socially, spiritually, and materially). Sustainable communities of this kind can be created and serve to act in the best interest of their citizens. Their mission states that “we can’t live in the past, but we can preserve the values and traditions that have enduring worth. By teaching some of these lost arts, both of life and work, people discover a more direct, satisfying, and relational way to provide for their essential needs. The model they use is craft, defined by the Heritage Community as “the art of work built with quality, consideration, and love.” The philosophy is simple, really. Don’t place things that are still vital on the shelf. Maintain what still works by “planting and re-planting” heirloom ideas and values. The proof is in the fruits of their labors. The homes they build and restore are of the highest quality, as are their milled grains, homemade food products, furniture, pottery, woven fabrics, cheeses, honey, soaps and candles. The honor and integrity with which they conduct every business transaction is the grounding sustainable principle that nurtures all other standards of ‘living green.’
(Photo legend: top left-water wheel that powers grist mill; top right-restored antique log home; Ploughshare 'classroom' in restored timber frame barn; below: cheeses on aging racks; Caleb with wrought iron roses; Steve discussing blacksmithing with Caleb; one of many scenic trails; gift shop selling handmade itmes in a restored 18th century timber frame barn; Steve inside the grist mill with antique French millstones; one of the award-winning Brazos Valley Cheeses wrapped in fig leaves; pastries cabinet in the deli; side view of timber frame cafe serving homemade lunches, cheese, and pastries.)
Finished cheese on racks in 'cheese cave" in various stages of the curing process
Caleb with wrought iron roses made in the forge
Steve discussing the forging process and custom design of hardware in homes for his residential clients
One of the many rustic trails through the Heritage property 
Vintage barn used as gift shop for products made by Heritage craftsmen and craftswomen
Steve next to antique French millstone housed in mill powered by water and used to grind grains grown at Heritage
One of the award-winning Brazos Valley cheeses wrapped in fig leaves, made by Rebeccah and sold onsite at the Heritage deli
Heritage deli homemade pastries baked daily with flour milled onsite
Side view of the deli/cafe housed in an antique log cabin structure restored by Heritage craftsmen and builders
Telluride: Renewal and Reinvention, Sustainable Living
An English variety of alpine lupine, Russell HybridParis may be the City of Light, but in the late 19th century Telluride was called the City of Lights. This remote Colorado village was the first town in the world to have electric streetlamps and enjoy widespread use of household power. Now, the town is once again on the forefront of technological innovation. The Telluride Science Research Center (TSRC) is shepherding a project to combine solar and hydrogen power. In a nutshell, the goal is to use the sun's energy to inexpensively split water into hydrogen and oxygen. The resultant hydrogen can be stored and used to fuel vehicles, planes, and homes. This alternative energy source may even replace fossil fuels.
Unaware of this flurry of scientific activity, we leisurely walk the streets of a sleepy municipality that awaits its summer bluegrass music and film festivals. The sun here is indeed powerful. Our group of six applies copious swaths of sunscreen across exposed body parts. But the kind of illumination that we notice as we stroll the streets in summer are the beautiful flowers that stipple and freckle the rustic landscape.
It makes perfect sense to us. If you live in a harsh climate eight months of the year and the other four are a continuous spring, it's a good idea to make the outdoors another room of your home to renew your spirits. Most of the long-timers here surround their homes with pocket-sized gardens under the cover of towering spruce, willows, and aspen trees. There are few lawns; the landscaping tends to be the consummate 'rock garden' with exotic lupine, columbine, poppies, and bachelor buttons alongside native plants with fanciful names like bunny brush, junegrass, beardtongue, and tufted hair. The resulting effect on tourists like us is wonderment. That the people survive the harshness of alpine winters is astonishing enough, but the plants render us silent with reverence that such hardy folk possess the hope to presume spring can happen again and again. Telluride, a model of nature and man, renewing and reinventing.
