Mark Terra-Salomão | Looking Out Week 6

For Looking Out Week 6, I thought it'd be appropriate to take a look at a project that, much like many of our bath house projects, combines concrete masonry units (CMUs) and wood.

This is a small shed for drying firewood constructed in Paesana, Italy, by StudioErrante Architteture.

The CMU walls were part of a previous shed. They were essentially used as a foundation for the new wooden structure. The outer wood planks are offset so as to let in the air required for drying firewood.

The shed also serves as a workshop and "refuge," and includes a small niche on its street-facing south facade that serves as a seat for people AND animals.

Moral of the story: No matter how hard you try, your first commission will always be a dog house.

I think ArchDaily provides a better description for this little gem than I ever could: "Details are basic. Definitions are literal. Reinforced concrete is used for base and wall. Wood for almost everything else: laminated wood for structure, burned chestnut for skin and roof, untreated chestnut for frames, plywood for inserts and niche, an old trunk became a step. A poor quality iron frame defines the door. In the end it's only a wall, a box with a niche, a door and its window, two pivots, a step and a handle. Almost nothing else."

For more information: http://www.archdaily.com/390343/wood-and-the-dog-studioerrante-architetture/.