Boundary and skin
Facade
housingretailofficepublic building
The outer face of a building, especially the one facing the street. It brings together walls, windows, doors and shading elements in a single composition.
What it solves
It filters sun, rain, noise and views. It is also the face the building offers the city, so in the tropics a good facade stops heat before it gets in.
Today
Design each facade according to its orientation, since east and west faces need more protection than north and south ones. The ground floor gains a lot if it opens to the street with doors, windows and activity.
Common mistake
Repeating the same facade on all four orientations or covering it in unshaded glass.
Tomorrow
Renovating the existing facade instead of demolishing saves material and preserves the memory of the street. A new layer of shade, plants or insulation can change the indoor climate without touching the structure.
Where it comes from
- 1Italian language Italy, recorded in English since 1656
The word comes from facciata, derived from faccia, face, because the building is thought of as a face toward the street. - 2Georgian architecture England, 18th century
It was common to give old houses a fashionable new facade, with the old interior left intact behind it. - 3Spanish Baroque Santiago de Compostela, Spain, Baroque
The Churrigueresque facade of the cathedral wraps and protects the much older Portico of Glory.
Masters
- Charles Correa Kanchanjunga Apartments, Mumbai, India, 1983
He cuts away the corners of the tower with double-height terrace gardens that protect from the sun and the monsoon. He takes the idea of the veranda of traditional houses up into the air. - Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal Transformation of 530 dwellings in Grand Parc, Bordeaux, France, 2017
They add a new facade of winter gardens and balconies to existing buildings instead of demolishing them. Each dwelling gains about 30 square meters connected to the rooms by large glass doors.
Appears in the routes
See also
Also in Boundary and skin
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.