Two Materials and Stories of their Spaces

The material and the way of putting it in place are the defining factors in creating architecture. The various specific properties of each material generate different structural possibilities and give rise to spaces with different features and atmospheres. Space, which cannot be dissociated from the atmosphere (to which light, sound, texture, smell and the dimensions of space also contribute), arises from The material and the way of laying it with the help of the structure or from the building of the structure with the help of the material – the relations between the two (material and structure) are so strong that one cannot work without the other.

The present study outlines the story of two materials used in a similar way (by pouring in layers), but which create two radically different spaces in terms of atmosphere. Two experimental competition projects constitute the basis of this study: an exposed concrete project (a proposal for a neo-Protestant church on Labirint Street in Bucharest) and a rammed earth project (a proposal for a social housing unit in Banat).