While the architect and his wife tended to family and household labours in Kemptville in Eastern Ontario, the job site advanced in a different way than they had assumed.
Frank the mason and his hearty mates completed erecting Bob studio in the eastern wing along with the adjoining greenhouse and mechanical room.
As Linda was taking key pictures of the exterior this weekend, the architect described to her the strong solar aspects of the building: the large window expanse and massive wall structure offering key solar gain to the dwelling; photovoltaic panels at upper window height providing electrical power aesthetically integrated into the south facade design; hot water solar panels situated into the window system of the greenhouse tending to the home's hot water needs.
Rain water storage is a consideration in a hot, dry weather system of the county so a modern day cistern is planned in the floor of the greenhouse that follows the length of the architect's studio in the southeast wing.
Here in this greenhouse, the couple will have opportunities to start vegetable seedlings in early spring, begin hand grafting grape root stocks if they wish and winter perennials for pleasure and culinary enjoyment.
In the summer when gardening is taken to the great outdoors, the cistern will serve to provide water to essential kitchen herbs near the house, hair washing and other household non potable water uses.
Rain water collection will fill this receptical in early spring during the country's rainy season.
As the architect's wife sat taking job site notes, she glanced to the 8 inch cement blocks but realized that the size of the wall would grow to 20 inches adding super insulation to maintain coolness in the summer and warmth in the winter layered onto the exterior of the building.
These massive walls harken to the Scottish stone masons who built all along the shores of Lake Ontario and the Rideau Canal fine examples of Georgian vernacular homes for the United Empire Loyalists in the late eighteenth century. The graceful proportions of the facade, central plan and formal window divisions and of course the massive walls are also features of our twenty-first century farmhouse.
The construction site ended with a look at the artist's studio looking through the north window. It was also remarkable that the adjoining space enclosed their front entrance with a stair running of course to the second floor. The architect's respectful nod to the formal central plan of the traditional Georgian design was clear and they both enjoyed it.
