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The concept:
The Aerie is a beautiful sail-like structure that is made head to toe of Eastern white cedar. This 10-by-11-foot self-contained room with sweeping 17-foot ceilings even has a second-floor loft big enough to fit a queen-sized bed. All natural. All wood. All green. In summer, you can immerse yourself in nature with the aerie fully open. Yet when it matters, be sheltered from inclement weather.
Simple, smart and small, aerieLOFT’s designer, Martin Liefhebber, says it’s really a lean-to with mosquito screens that happens to come with a few extra comforts, like a composting toilet, a clean-burning EPA-certified wood stove, a simple rainwater catchment system and an outdoor passive solar shower.
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The release:
It was first introduced during the 2009 ‘Green Living Show’ where it was well received by the public. The structure serves as an extra room or ‘bunkie’ located in either cottage country or a forested backyard. With solar panels for electricity, rain water harvesting, and white cedar rain water column / compost toilet, the assemblage becomes ‘off-the-grid’.
The Green Living Show is Toronto’s largest green consumer show dedicated to educating the public about easy and workable solutions for leading a more sustainable lifestyle. Visitors can shop the wide variety of exhibitor booths while gathering information and inspiration from a diverse selection of demonstrations, presentations, and activities. |
The award:
An elite group of Ontario’s leading architects, engineers, and project teams were presented with Wood Design Awards on Thursday, November 5, 2009 at the 9th annual Wood WORKS! awards celebration.
Presented to Breathe Architects, the Commercial Wood Design Award honours the creators of new projects that push the limits of wood design in structures that demonstrate excellence in the use of wood.
“We are thrilled to see more design professionals specifying wood in a wider variety of building types,” said Marianne Berube, Wood WORKS! Ontario’s Executive Director. “Wood is chosen for its structural strength, beauty, lower cost, and significant environmental attributes,” said Berube. “People are beginning to understand that wood is the world’s only major renewable building material and that building with wood from sustainably managed forests, like those in Ontario, is an environmentally responsible choice. Using wood reduces greenhouse gasses, decreases energy consumption, and helps fight climate change.”
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Winner 2009 WoodWorks!
Design Competition
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