Rammed earth walls

Rammed earth is an ancient method of construction that is increasingly looked upon with favor by architects owing to its sustainability credentials. A visually expressive building material, it is both environmentally-friendly and resilient. Rammed earth is made up of compressed layers of raw materials, including sand, gravel, clay, and a stabilizer. The warm colors and textures of rammed earth typically harmonize with a building’s natural surroundings in an aesthetically appealing manner. Rammed earth construction is often labor intensive. Walls are normally constructed in situ using wooden formwork molds — the earth mixture is added in repeated layers that are rammed by hand or with a pneumatic press. As a result, the walls ar... More

Arkylab, a Mexico-based firm, spatially brings together the smell of coffee, textures of the earth walls, and wooden and metal envelope in visual synthesis with the surrounding vegetation in this coffee shop project in Aguascalientes. Paulina Ojeda Located in the northern part of the city, the 250sqm space deploys an architectural program that spreads over two levels housing a speciality cafe. The cafe entrance is marked by a rammed earth wall that encloses all the elements of that level while directing the users towards the central interior space. A small perimeter garden surrounds the space, detaching it from the outside and creating an enjoyable introverted space while the west facade equips the service areas. Paulina Oje... More

32° East Arts Centre is Kampala’s first purpose-built community arts space and the new home of 32° East | Ugandan Arts Trust. Located in Kabalagala, a central neighborhood in Kampala, the centre is a creative hub for the city’s artist community: it provides a welcoming, inspiring, and nurturing space — a place where artists can work and socialize. The arts centre was designed by London-based New Makers Bureau in collaboration with Kampala-based Localworks. New Makers Bureau places a great emphasis on architecture that is craft-led and low in embodied carbon; Localworks is a multidisciplinary design and build studio specializing in ecological architecture. Timothy Latim 32° East Arts Centre is a buildi... More

Mexican architecture firm RIMA Design Group has completed a design-build project for an arts center consisting of several connected structures made from rammed earth. The earthen walls step in relation to the site’s sloping topography, and were made using soil extracted from the ground on which they stand. There are few materials as contextual as rammed earth. The use of local soils can yield structures that carry the colors and textures of a place and appear as natural extensions of their sites. Yet, as raw as constructing with earth may seem, it is a technically complex and labor-intensive process, often restricted to certain climates, soil conditions, and buildings of limited heights and uses. The desert-like southern Baja Peni... More

The Panyaden International School in Thailand identifies academic excellence along with closeness to nature as its key trademarks. Following these principles, Chiangmai Life Architects (CLA) undertook the design of several new buildings for the school that integrate natural building materials with contemporary design and modern engineering knowledge. Markus Roselieb The new buildings comprise a science lab core in addition to a new music centre. CLA specified natural materials including bamboo structure, rammed earth and adobe bricks in organic design forms that help to integrate the new buildings with their surroundings. Markus Roselieb The new science centre consists of 3 lab rooms, for chemistry, physics and biology respectiv... More