Housing for Rural Sustainable Futures (Group Research)
As global population rises, the nature and quality of future housing provision will become increasingly important in terms of how and where we live, along with existing and emerging technologies that will increasingly impact our future living environments.
The Old School House in Cottown, Perthshire, has been widely regarded as one of the finest examples of a lowland vernacular earth-walled and thatch roofed structure in Scotland. The National Trust who owns the site approached MacroMicro Studio in the hope of identifying alternative and viable forms of enablement to ensure the continuing existence of the school house.
The School House is a relic from a lost local vernacular once widespread throughout the Carse of Gowrie, and provides a catalyst for thinking and conceptualising alternative theoretical models for new sustainable approaches to regionally responsive housing developments. Situated between the extremes of the city and the rural, this primary research project represents a specific model for investigation into the physical, social, political, economic and environmental considerations relating to dwelling in a Scottish context.
MicroMacro Studio consisted of six students who worked collaboratively carrying out initial research and analysis. Produced in pairs three master plan proposals were created driven by research themes, and within each masterplan, specific areas were identified to develop individually. Group analysis identified three common issues which are fundamental drivers to the provision of an alternative architectural solution for rural housing: sustainability, affordability and identity. The aim of this study, using the enablement of Cottown Schoolhouse as a test bed, was to utilise through contextual analysis the strengths of mass-market developer led housing and provide alternatives which address its failings.
The proposal has been developed in collaboration with industry stakeholders and specialist consultants to address the broader requirements of the Scottish context in terms of sustainability, low energy use, material resources, high quality living spaces and the competitive market place. Through study of the individual and collective, public and private, ownership and identity, more appropriate alternatives to mass-market housing are proposed. Density studies identified the current capacity of the developer model, setting the benchmark against which new proposals are tested.
The proposal investigates alternative spatial and community forms based on urban densities whilst maintaining overall numbers of units, with the objective of intensifying the reading of landscape by creating polarities between built form and open space. The formal propositions use different scenarios based around alternative forms of sustainable rural living practices, structured landscape and new ‘rural housing’ types which are a direct response to the particular and peculiar rural context of the Carse of Gowrie.