"Across the Loess Plateau, families have long shaped dwellings by digging rectangular courtyards roughly six meters into the ground. Rooms carved laterally from the earthen walls form a ring of vaulted chambers around an open void. The arrangement preserves the cultural importance of courtyard living while leaving the surrounding ground surface available for agriculture."
"The thermal mass of the earth maintains stable interior conditions through summer heat and winter cold. Even as concrete houses and factories appear above ground across the region, underground homes remain in seasonal use. The Underground House of the Future builds upon this relationship between land and habitation."
"Extreme rainfall in 2021 brought flooding across the region, overwhelming drainage systems that had served the underground villages for generations. Walls collapsed and many houses were abandoned after the storms. The Underground House of the Future explores how this long-standing architectural system can respond to shifting climate patterns."
The Underground House of the Future, located in Zhangbian Township on the Loess Plateau in Henan Province, represents a contemporary adaptation of the centuries-old 'dikengyuan' dwelling. Designed by University of Hong Kong professors and built with student volunteers and local masons, the project combines traditional construction techniques with modern innovations including large-scale 3D printing. The dikengyuan is an underground courtyard house excavated directly into loess soil, with rooms arranged in a ring around a central open courtyard. This design preserves agricultural land on the surface while maintaining stable interior temperatures through the earth's thermal mass. Recent climate pressures, including extreme rainfall and flooding in 2021, have threatened these traditional structures, necessitating adaptive redesign to ensure their continued viability in rural communities.
#underground-architecture #climate-adaptation #traditional-housing-modernization #loess-plateau-china #sustainable-design
Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine
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