Last Thursday I took a group of students to see a domed house for and by a local architect (Pat Stanigar), as part of the precedent study for the final generator project in studio (structure). The 30 ft geodesic dome was completed in 2004, on the site of a previous dome (c.1984) that was burnt to the ground in 2002. The project is aptly titled the Phoenix.

The dome is made from a prefabricated kit of parts that provides the basic structure. It is a based on a hexagonal unit that is cyclically layered to a closed loop. The building is faced with insitu concrete with fiberglass additives to prevent hairline cracks.

The purity of the dome is broken by climatic considerations to deal with the tropical environment. Most notable are the angled protrusions below the equator of the dome. These triangular elements allow cooler air into the structure and can be shut during storms.

The interior of the Phoenix is spartan, walls are finished timber between the main structure and painted concrete floors. The kitchen is defined by two pods used for storage, and two counters - one longer than the other used for washing and cooking.

Two additional structures were later added (never included within the circa 1980s scheme) and provide the services and were meant to be crustacean inversions to the rigid structure of the dome.

you can see more via my flickr set