Articles by José Tomás Franco

By recognizing and analyzing the multiple architectural possibilities of bamboo—a construction material mostly native to warm and tropical areas—the following questions arise: How can we take advantage of its qualities and enhance its use in colder climates? Such regions necessarily require a certain level of thermal isolation in walls, floors, and roofs—but for these climates, we can combine bamboo with materials that complement it.

A simple stone gateway marks the entrance to the house. The gateway frames three young block palms surrounded by a corridor of green that cascades down the land. Sunlight pours into this east-facing slope in the morning when there is still a touch of dew on the leaves, and in late afternoon the lost fingers of golden light angle down through the fronds. A stone pathway winds along the contours of this terraced garden. Pathways branch off the main stone path to left and right at intervals along the contours, leading to two delicate multi-level structures, perched like birds that have nestling into the slope. The curving leaf-shape roofs sweep low around the sides, and under them you can see a glimpse of glass which reflects the green of the garden, and white curtains flowing. These are the private bedrooms, and at the front of each is a private balcony pointing east towards the valley.

With the objective of developing new solutions to the societal challenges of tomorrow, the RISING Architecture Week 2017—held in Aarhus, Denmark, between the 11th and 15th of September—consisted of a series of events, exhibitions, and the RISING Exchange Conference, focuses on how architecture and construction can help to rethink existing paradigms.

With the objective of developing new solutions to the societal challenges of tomorrow, the RISING Architecture Week 2017—held in Aarhus, Denmark, between the 11th and 15th of September—consisted of a series of events, exhibitions, and the RISING Exchange Conference, focuses on how architecture and construction can help to rethink existing paradigms.

Seeking to connect the traditions of carpentry and the prefabrication industry, Chilean practice abarca+palma have developed a modular house proposal made up of 10 different types of module, capable of forming 5 different house layouts.

Do Architects Learn Enough About Construction and Materials? We asked this question to spark a discussion among our readers, and the number of responses on our sites in English and Spanish was overwhelming.

Do Architects Learn Enough About Construction and Materials? We asked this question to spark a discussion among our readers, and the number of responses on our sites in English and Spanish was overwhelming.

This property is located in the midst of an oak tree forest and therefore it wasn’t possible to free some of the land for landscaping which determined the site of the house and how it related with the exterior. 

Designed by architect Rafael Iglesia for the home of the Del Grande family in Rosario, Argentina, this staircase is the result of a system of counteracting forces. The structure’s wooden elements are held in place only by the friction and pressure that is produced between the pieces of wood that make up the system.

In response to the overwhelming growth of cities and neighborhoods in China, architects from Atelier Archmixing’s Shanghai office, have developed a series of proposals that seek to return value to sensitive interior spaces and improve the user’s quality of life through design.