PUBLIC MARKS with tags shou-sugi-ban & yakisugi

Shou-sugi-ban 焼杉板, or burnt sugi board is a Japanese technique of creating timber cladding that should last over 80 years. Sugi is known as Japanese cedar, Instead of sugi, our wood species are Belinga. Old traditional Japanese houses use shou-sugi-ban for their external timber cladding, although rarely used now (replaced by manmade plastic or composite). The sugi was burnt to resist rot and fire. Supposedly it’s difficult for something already burnt to a charcoal finish to catch fire again.  - The Decking Network forum January 19th, 2011

Shou-sugi-ban is the ancient Japanese technique of burning Sugi, or Japanese Cypress, for use as a siding on the exterior of buildings.The first reason to do so was to protect against fire.It also turned out to make it more durable. The technique is still used on places like Naoshima, in Japan. The Japanese architect Terunobu Fujimori made some beautiful projects this way and inspired many of us.

Sometimes you have to take two steps backwards to take one step forward, which is essentially what the owners of the Hunsett Mill house did. The problem? The original residence for the keeper of Hunsett Mill in the historic Norfolk Broads National Park became a private residence in 1900, and over the course of the 20th century, the house had suffered five piecemeal extensions. Each new extension was meant to alleviate a lack of space, but the current family was still in need of large open living spaces.

Shou-sugi-ban is the ancient Japanese technique of burning Sugi, or Japanese Cypress, for use as a siding on the exterior of buildings.The first reason to do so was to protect against fire.It also turned out to make it more durable. The technique is still used on places like Naoshima, in Japan. The Japanese architect Terunobu Fujimori made some beautiful projects this way and inspired many of us.

Terunobu Fujimori, uses charred Cedar wood to create the most beautiful projects that are exercises in playful experimentation and sophisticated craft. The cedar boards have been treated with an ancient Japanese technique that seals the wood against rain and rot.

L’extérieur est réalisé en pin carbonisé d’après la technologie japonaise Shou Sugi Ban. Cette procédé permet d’obtenir une couche carbonée qui protège le bois  contre les champignons et les microbes.

the prescott passive house by studio 804 is the product of eight months of research, experimentation, design, and construction by the architecture studio’s sixteen graduate students at the university of kansas.  located in kansas city, kansas, the single-family home is designed to both LEED platinum and passive house standards.

The Prescott Passivhaus is a single-family, low-energy residence located in Kansas City, Kansas. This unique house is designed for the affordable-housing market as a spec house that will sell to qualified buyers, those with an annual income of no more than eighty percent of the target Area Median Income (AMI). Designed to exceed both Passivhaus and LEED Platinum standards, the residence uses minimal energy through affordable passive means. The home is located in the Prescott neighborhood which, despite being just minutes from downtown Kansas City, remains a neighborhood in transition not unlike the rest of the derelict urban core that typifies the city.

A quick way to burn sugi siding for a house in Okayama Prefecture, where shou-sugi-ban (焼杉板) is still quite common.  The method used is different from the method that was used to burn the cedar for our house.  Take tree planks and tie into a triangle. Place on top of the fire for one minute, turn over and burn for another minute. Remove from fire, extinguish flames with water, untie the planks, and water it down. It’ll be much clearer if you watch the video. From the TV show Dramatic Before After (大改造！！劇的ビフォーアフター).

“Experiment” is not something you want to hear when building your house. I’m not sure what I thought when the architect told me he would like to “experiment” with the exterior siding material. But what he proposed was compelling enough to give it a shot.

This year’s project marks the sixth residence built in Kansas City, KS by Studio 804 and has posed some interesting challenges. In light of the country’s current economic situation, affordability has become a crucial issue in American housing, and thus something we are taking very seriously. In pursuing sustainability, cost is often a prohibiting factor, pushing us towards a focus on passive design strategies. In addition to pursuing LEED Platinum Certification, Studio 804 aims to achieve Passive House Certification this year as well. A system that began in Germany, Passive House seeks to reduce building energy consumption for heating and cooling by 90%. The heating load is drastically reduced by means of a super-insulated, virtually airtight building shell, broad Southern exposure and an energy recovery ventilator that provides constant fresh air and even distribution of heat.

High design and Far East tradition intersect with the dark, dramatic Japanese siding produced by a process called shou-sugi-ban.