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Sala House
1981 to 1983Three-story tower, 20 feet by 20 feet in plan on each floor, on a wooded, sloping site. The interior structure of the house is wood post and beam with pine panelling and hand-painted surfaces, and the exterior is a red and gray concrete wall. Terraces and gardens are a prime feature.
The 1,200 square feet house includes accommodations for a couple and their two children; a farm-house kitchen --the largest room of the house, a small living room, a study and two bedrooms with their bathrooms. An entrance elongated deck accommodates two parking spaces.
Contents
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Sala House: Ornaments on the east and south facing walls of the house
1982
White precast concrete ornaments embedded in the rose colored concrete walls; secured on the formwork during the concrete pouring. A series of small ornaments spaced in equal intervals in the rose perimeter concrete band running on top of the windows; ...
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Sala House: Concrete bracket and its formwork
1982
Low-cost formwork for concrete brackets to support a bay window, made by attaching to the concrete formwork styrofoam fillers with the negative shape of the bracket.
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Sala House: Wooden post and beam, load bearing structural frame combined with red and grey cast concrete exterior walls
1982
Timber frame and concrete combination system: the vertical loads are taken by the interior post-and-beam system system, where columns and beams are simply pinned together by invinsible steel pins. All shear forces are taken by a one and a half ...
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Sala House: Topographic Survey Drawing
04/09/1981
Survey of the site, titled “Plat of Cerrito Hill”.
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Sala House: Topographic Survey Drawing
3 3rd version
17/10/1981
Three versions of the topographic survey, titled “Plat of Cerrito Hill”, with tree locations, existing road and outline of the plot; their variation regards the size and location of trees.
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Sala House: Sketch of house location
01/10/1981
Architect’s initial rough sketch indicating the location of the house on the survey drawing.
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Sala House: Agreement
04/07/1981
5-page signed, design services agreement between Mr. and Mrs. Andre Sala and the Center for Environmental Structure for their house design which is to include accommodations for themselves and their two children. Total area required is approximately 1,200 sq². ft. ...
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Sala House: Construction Contract for the house of Mr. and Mrs. Sala
1 1) Signed contract
07/06/1982
17-page signed construction contract between the owners Mr. and Mrs. Andre Sala and the Contractor Center for Environmental Structure for the purpose of building a three story house according to the plans prepared by the Center for Environmental Structure; there ...
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Sala House: Cover Application - Residential; Application to the City of Albany for Use Permit and Design Review
01/04/1982
Draft Application Form partly completed; with deadlines and expected cost noted in handwriting.
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Berryessa House & Sala House: Receipt of sales
15/09/1982
Sale of timber items for the Lighty & Sala houses, to be delivered on job sites.
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Sala House: Design decisions made during construction
01/01/1982
8-page list of design decisions made during construction, presented in groups under the following titles: Parking Deck, Lower Terrace, Exterior-General, Interior-General, Ground Floor Fireplace, Fireplace Alcove, Pantry, Farmhouse Kitchen & Stairs, Second Floor Entrance, Bathroom, Kid’s Bedroom, Stairs, Laundry Room ...
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Sala House: Photographs of drawings
01/01/1981
Photograph of Stephanie’s color sketch for her house, as the child envisioned it.
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Sala House: Photographs of drawings
01/01/1982
Ground Floor Plan with special features of interior and exterior elements, as fireplace, floor design, terraces and stairs.
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Sala House: Photographs of drawings
01/01/1982
East, South and North elevations of the house with the detail of exterior wall ornament.
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References
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The Unfolding of Public Space and Gardens as Positive Space
Outdoor space is positive when it is shaped just as a room is shaped. It has a contained character, it is bounded by walls, fences, natural vegetation, enclosure of some kind. It looks into other positive spaces, some larger, some ...
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Geometry and Fifteen Fundamental Properties
Christopher Alexander recognized the importance of the geometry of centers and for years he was looking for the common structural features among buildings, paintings, streets, carpets, doors, windows, etc. which have "life" and "wholeness". He identified fifteen structural features which ...
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Design and Construction is one Integrated Making Process
The design process of a project and its construction process are united into one continuous and intertwined making process, unfolding in a step-by-step sequence. Design ends together with the completion of the construction process. "Making" is a conception of the ...
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A Pattern Language
1977
“A Pattern Language” is the second volume of “The Center for Environmental Structure Series” on architecture published by Oxford University Press. You can use this book to design a house for yourself with your family; you can use it to ...
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The Nature of Order - An Essay on the Art of Building and the Nature of the Universe.
Book Two - The Process of Creating Life
2002
“The Process of Creating Life”, the second volume of “The Nature of Order” series presents a dynamic theory of living structure. It begins with an analysis of transformations, which occur in nature, and the distinction between structure-preserving transformations, responsible for ...
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The Nature of Order - An Essay on the Art of Building and the Nature of the Universe.
Book Three - A Vision of a Living World
2005
“A Vision of a Living World”, the third volume of “The Nature of Order” series, presents, for the first time, a full spectrum of Alexander’s and CES built and unbuilt works. The book describes hundreds of buildings, plans, neighborhoods, drawings, ...
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Lecture on "The Nature of Order", given during Fall 1991
14/11/1991
Cassette tape of the nineteenth Fall semester lecture by Christopher Alexander on “Actual Making & Construction Details”, part of a series of lectures on “The Nature of Order”; the duration of the lecture is about one hour and twenty minutes.
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The Center for Environmental Structure: Portfolio of Projects
01/01/1989
Presentation of sixteen projects developed by The Center for Environmental Structure until 1989. 75-page portfolio with Part One “Completed Projects”, Part Two “Current Projects”, concluding with “Additional Projects”. The projects included are: 1) The Linz Cafe, 2) The Sala House, ...
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Sala House: Heavy timber structural frame, combined with concrete exterior walls - Photographs
01/08/1982
Photograph of the ground floor timber framework, in which an aperiodic grid starts to appear, continued similarly in the other floors.
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Sala House: Terrazzo floor detail - Photographs of mock-up
01/08/1982
Photograph of a mock-up for the terrazzo floor, painted on wood.
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Sala House: Terrazzo floor pattern details - Photographs of drawings
01/01/1982
Photograph of two pencil early sketches by Christopher Alexander for pattern studies of the terrazzo floor.
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