So that's vernacular architecture: homes with local culture, materials, and tradition running through them. So what's contemporary vernacular architecture? Simply put: they're vernacular homes built in the present day that takes plenty of inspiration from vernacular styles and materials.
Vernacular architecture sticks to principles of energy efficiency and making use of raw materials and resources which are in close proximity to the site. These structures are based on the native ideas of how buildings can be effectively designed as well as how to take advantage of local materials and resources.
Chaumiere, France
A chaumiere or a traditional French cottage has quite a distinctive style, owing to its unique thatched roof.
The roof is topped with a clay bed where iris is planted; its roots in turn help mesh together reed ends in the thatch.
The iris in colorful flowers, and the cottages against a vast meander, makes it look like a scene straight from a fairy .
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Cuckoo House, Vietnam
This breezy brick wrapped building in Vietnam gets its name because it mimics a cuckoo clock.
The design uses locally found clay bricks to tie the structure into the vernacular, while the semi-circular punctures give the space a contemporary edge.
Natural ventilation, semi-open courtyards, and gusty passages help beat the heat all year round.
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Great Mosque, Mali
The Great Mosque in the small African adobe-built town of Djenne is the largest mud-brick building in the world.
The mud used for the adobe bricks and plaster used throughout the city comes from the Niger river and is usually mixed with rice husks and fermented till it becomes tough and resistant to the rain.
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Mediterranean Buildings
One of the most distinct elements of Mediterranean buildings is the use of clay tiles on the roof.
These tiles, which are originally manufactured from terracotta and hail from ancient Greece over 4000 years ago, are still used frequently as they help keep out rain and shield the building from the sun.
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Mud Homes, Saudi Arabia
Pictured below is the home of a resident of the Asir province of the Arabian Highlands.
This particular house is a modern version of traditional Asir clay and silt homes with an inner courtyard.
The clay walls rest on a stone layer, built-in layers, and allowing stone slabs to protrude.
These slates help cascade the perennial rainfall away from the.
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Muweco Hotel, China
The vaulted roof of this resort is a striking element against the Lou Fu Shan mountain range, evoking the feeling of being nestled under a big tent rather than inside a building.
Timber and cork planks as well as local river stones used in the construction of some parts of the building depicts an unambiguous relationship between the space and surro.
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Nurnberg House, Ecuador
The Nurnberg house in Ecuador is located between the Daule valley and river, and though its main intension is to portray vernacular characteristics, it also allows clear visual and perceptive communication with nature.
The roof system, as a reinterpretation of the vernacular pitch roof, overhangs on one side above the other, allowing easy wind flow.
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Trulli, Southern Italy
Although they gravitate more towards vernacular style rather than contemporary, Italian Trulli drystone homes are nonetheless modern-looking architectural masterpieces.
Its roofs are built with two layers, an inner skin of limestone voussoirs capped by a closing stone, and outer skin of slabs to shed the rain.
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Wadden Sea Centre, Denmark
It’s extremely sleek, long profile that almost merges into the sea’s horizon gives the Wadden Sea Centre a minimalist and modern feel at first glance.
Up close, however, with its thatched roof and thermowood façade, the perfect culmination of contemporary style and vernacular elements – all in harmony with the surrounding nature – is evident.
