And bow-wow to you too…

And we thought Hound Dog was an Elvis song!

• From @lloyd.kahn’s Instagram

My friends Jonathan and Dobree Greene sent me photos of these magnificent art works:

“BOOTHBAY, Maine — Something wicked has taken over the woods at the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens… something wicked awesome!

Five mythical trolls have taken up residence in the forest at the Botanical Gardens—tucked in the woods and hidden on paths that force visitors to go hunting for the friendly giants just to catch a glimpse of them all.

The father of the trolls is a Danish artist, Thomas Dambo, who considers himself a recycled art activist. Dambo spent the last several weeks creating five, 20-foot-tall sculptures made completely from recycled materials, most of which were found nearby Boothbay.

“I like to think that I write modern folklore stories about the current issues of the world,” explained Dambo, who is trying to share a message of conservation.

For him, they represent the yin and yang of nature.

“If you don’t treat nature nice, then nature will stand up and roar and blow your house over. But if you’re treating nature really, really good, it will provide everything you need,” Dambo said.

He has made a career creating trolls made of trash all around the world.

–Beth McEvoy (NEWS CENTER Maine)”

www.mainegardens.org/events-exhibits/giant-trolls

There are still places available for this ambitious internship, building a 20m² dome. Registrations must be in by June 30.

This will be the only course this year.

Cordially,
Jean Soum

Details: alphazomes.org/stages.html

Photo by Nin Solis – Living Inside
Article by Anna Bisazza

Deep in the Mexican countryside of Valle de Bravo — a lush escape about two hours’ drive from Mexico City — Emiliano Garcia and Helene Carlo found the perfect spot to build an eco home. Partners in life and in ASPJ, a Mexican architecture and landscape design studio, the couple had a burning question: can we build more sustainably and cheaper, and in a way that can be widely copied?

The main structural element is a concrete cube that supports the rest of the house.

“It was important for us to prove its feasibility and to be able to make our structure replicable, not only a one-of-a-kind,” says Garcia. The couple are keen for this type of building to become the rule rather than the exception.

La Lomita is named for its hilltop position, from where it looks out on to the picturesque surrounding mountains from its secluded spot, and is accessed by a small dirt road. The structure is distinguished by an unusual single arched roof and an open facade with corrugated metal finishing that loosely evokes the image of an aircraft hangar, but there are many other experimental features meticulously planned by Garcia and Carlo that are not immediately obvious.

“Being able to take weight off the building, bringing it to half of what it would normally be in a conventional build, was a really successful outcome,” says Garcia. The main structural element is a concrete cube that encloses two bathrooms and the staircase. It supports the rest of the house, which is built primarily in wood. “This means we’re not intervening heavily in the foundation by digging deep into the ground and building concrete slab layers. Here, we managed to separate the house from the ground, only attaching it to the necessary structural points.”

A second critical aspect for Garcia and Carlo was the traceability of materials and controlling as much as possible their impact on the environment. To build the columns, floors and walls — which amounts to 70% of the house — they used recycled laminated wood made from boxes for the transport of car parts in Volkswagen and Audi factories. “This is FSC-certified wood from Europe and we’re giving it a second use as OSB [oriented strand board], a material that is gaining popularity these days.”

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/jun/25/ready-to-soar-inside-a-dramatic-eco-home-in-mexico

Hi Lloyd, here are some photos and text of the truck camper build.

The camper is built on a 2005 Mazda B2500 with a custom tipper bed, handy for parking on slopes and being able to level the camper. The framing is all 2×2 Douglas fir from a local sawmill here is southwest Scotland. I wanted to keep it fairly simple with no added complications such as electricity or plumbing, bare bones, and functional.

There is a single bed/sofa in the back that folds out to a double, and that’s it. Storage is under the bed and above the cab. The exterior cladding is tongue-and-groove which has been stained and distressed, then sealed up with three coats of yacht varnish. The trims are all Douglas fir. The frame is insulated with 25mm of rigid insulation. The roof is EPDM rubber, which is cheap, easy to install, and very lightweight. All in all, I estimate it to weigh roughly 150 kilos. Build time was roughly 80 hours and materials came in at just under £1000.

This sort of camper was inspired by my time in Canada and the Rolling Homes book by Lloyd. They are unusual over here in Scotland so it’s quite a head-turner and I get a lot of interest when I’m out in it. It is helpful that it also doubles as a spare room for visitors when it is not on the truck.

Instagram: @snugg_fit

Many thanks for the inspiration.
All the best
Lewis