Richard Neutra and the history of the vertical louvered solar control system
| Author(s): |
Clifton Fordham
|
|---|---|
| Medium: | conference paper |
| Language(s): | English |
| Conference: | 6th International Congress on Construction History (6ICCH 2018), July 9-13, 2018, Brussels, Belgium |
| Published in: | Building Knowledge, Constructing Histories [2 vols.] |
| Page(s): | 637-642 |
| Year: | 2018 |
| Abstract: | Solar control strategies involving exterior shading devices were commonly utilized by architects practicing in America immediately after World War II. By the mid-fifties as central air-conditioning became the default for larger buildings, architects largely abandoned form based solar-control strategies in lieu of window treatments for light control. This paper traces the development, in which Richard Neutra is a central figure, of an innovative movable vertical louver shading system that controlled heat gain and regulated glare. The system which was both ornamental and functional is largely unknown to current building design professionals. Early versions of the system were manually adjusted, and the mature system automated and linked to sensors. The last of the buildings to contain the system in the United States before its disappearance in before 1970 were rare examples of high-tech kinetic architecture. A limited revival of the system has resulted from a renewed interest in solar control outside of the building envelope. |
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data sheet - Reference-ID
10078222 - Published on:
15/09/2018 - Last updated on:
05/03/2019
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