The Architect’s Newspaper Reports on ACAW 2024
SOURCE: The Architect’s Newspaper
AUTHOR: Trevor Schillaci
DATE: August 26, 2024
With its ninth year now completed, the Architectural Ceramic Assembles Workshop (ACAW) continued to highlight the versatile potential of terra cotta in sustainable architecture. The 2024 workshop showcased prototypes that explore terra cotta’s applications in water management, evaporative cooling, coastal resiliency, and as modular seating. ACAW is hosted by Boston Valley Terra Cotta, in collaboration with the University of Buffalo and Carnegie Mellon University.
From the article:
“The past decade has witnessed a new revival of architectural terra cotta. In addition to renewed interest in its artistic properties, architects are increasingly attracted to the material’s low embodied carbon, fueled by concern over worsening climate change.
This year’s week-long event emphasized the urgency of action. Climate focused front-and-center at the event’s two keynotes … as well as in discussions between assembly sessions. This demonstrates the seriousness with which architects, engineers, and students regard climate change, and how, increasingly, advocacy is considered a professional responsibility.”
Team Behnisch Architekten developed a shingled façade that exploits the evaporative cooling effect.
Team Touzet Studio designed a façade system that directs and repurposes storm water into a planter.
Laura Rygielski, CEO of Boston Valley, emphasized the need to advance these innovations into real-world applications. Terra cotta has grown in importance within sustainable design, as a promising material for addressing the climate change challenges that arise with high-performance façades.
“You hear this from people who have been repeated [ACAW] attendees, that there is a need to take [the prototypes] to the next step,” said Rygielski. “In the future, that’s the kind of thing that we would like to see—making that innovation a reality.”
Read more about what The Architect’s Newspaper had to say about our event here.
Header images: LEFT – Prototype by Team Arup, ACAW 2024. RIGHT – Prototype by Team Make Architects, ACAW 2024.
