Matter and surface
Floor
housing school retail public space
It is the surface people walk on inside and around the building. It consists of a visible finish on a firm base.
What it solves
It separates people from ground moisture, withstands daily use and is easy to clean. In the tropics a cool, washable floor well separated from ground moisture is best.
Today
Choose the finish according to the use and the moisture of the place. Give a slight slope toward drains in wet areas and place a damp-proof barrier under the slab.
Common mistake
Laying a smooth, glossy floor on outdoor verandas that get wet with the rain.
Tomorrow
Floors that can be lifted and relaid reduce rubble in each renovation. A firm, matte floor that is not slippery when wet is the best fall prevention for older people and young children.
Fact A tatami mat measures about 1.65 square meters, and in Japan the size of a room is expressed in number of tatamis.
Where it comes from
- 1Neolithic Anatolia Çayönü, Turkey, around 9000 to 8000 BC
Floors of burnt lime and clay dyed with ochre and polished, which archaeologists call terrazzo. - 2Japan Japan, from the Heian period to the 17th century
Rush mats over rice straw (tatami) went from being a seat for the nobility to covering entire rooms in every house. - 3Venice Italy, 18th century
Paving of marble fragments in mortar, then polished, gave rise to modern terrazzo. - 4Josephine adobe house San José, Costa Rica, early 19th century
Depending on the family’s means, the floor was of square brick, boards or rammed mud.
Masters
- Roberto Burle Marx Copacabana promenade, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1970
He designs the promenade paving with a mosaic of black basalt and white limestone in waves that evoke the sea. He shows that a public floor can give identity to an entire city.
Appears in the routes
See also
Also in Matter and surface
Diagrams and texts by LDB Arquitectura. They are shared under the CC BY 4.0 license, which allows them to be used and adapted with credit to the source.