Pinecone House

Photos

(Click each for a larger version)

Pinecone House photo #1
Pinecone House photo #2
Pinecone House photo #3

Citation of Merit

  • Studio Gang Architects
  • Architecture for Humanity
  • Division Residential
  • Location Biloxi, MS

Overview

The architects looked to the layered, protective structure of a pinecone to create a structure that can be tightly closed against hurricane-force winds or be opened wide to bask in ambient breezes. Design of the house was sponsored by Architecture for Humanity, for an east Biloxi neighborhood that was devastated in 2005 by the hurricanes Katrina and Rita. After the disaster, FEMA regulations stipulated that new homes have elevated floors that would not be damaged by surging tides. The design explores the ventilation possibilities that come with high roof trusses, breezeways, shutters and other features, and the intention of making the structure from prefabricated parts would make assembly fast and inexpensive, both facilitating the ongoing reconstruction effort in the hurricane-ravaged region. Jurors liked the way the architects "pushed their thesis as far as they could," fully probing the ways in which the archetypal pinecone structure could cue a building's design.