There is an overdose of concrete, steel and glass in the construction industry, especially in third world countries. The basic theory of Colombian architect Simón Vélez is that architecture must be more vegetarian.
Vélez is recognised worldwide for his work using guadua, a type of bamboo native to Colombia. His best known structures range from temporary pavilions, to permanent bridges, commercial and residential buildings.
Guadua is native to Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela, but is found across Central and South America, and the Caribbean. Typically, it is a material widely used in construction within poorer communities in the tropics. It’s used as a raw construction material (often used as scaffolding and as a vertical support), a fuel within the bio-energy industry, as a plywood, laminate, flooring fabric, in furniture and as a primary material in buildings and structures.
Compared to trees, this species of bamboo has a rapid growth rate and a higher productivity. Its daily growth rate can reach 21cm in height, so it can reach its maximum height of between 15 and 30 meters in the first six months of growth. It is ready for harvest after four to five years. This growth is rarely surpassed by the native timber species of the region.
Further advantages of cultivating guadua are that it stabilises soil from erosion, has a natural resistances to earthquakes, and is an efficient absorber of CO2.
Simón Vélez aims to raise the use of this material, from its associations of only being used within poorer communities, to being widely accepted as a material used within high end architecture. The architect first came to international attention with his two-story, circular guadua pavilion at Expo Hanover 2000 for zero-emissions research organisation ZERI Foundation. He has since worked on guadua projects all over the world.
Here are some of the projects in Latin America and further afield:
For examples of how guadua has been used in design and construction within Latin America view the article Inteligencias Colectivas: an open source database of local construction techniques from around the world
Further Information
Simon Vélez Architects is a design-build firm based in Bogotá, Colombia, with a specialty in tropical architecture. The firm is mostly known for their pioneering work with natural materials, in particular guadua. Major works include the Nomadic Museum, Zocalo de la Ciudad de Mexico in 2008, Contemplation Bamboo Pavilion, Arles, France in 2018
www.simonvelez.net
*Main article image is of Símon Vélez’s Temple Without Religion, Cartagena, Colombia. ©BBC World Service Flickr C.C., 2009
