A house of one's own

Last week, in the midst of running about doing paperwork and getting used to new bus and tube routes and their time tables, suddenly I had an hour with nothing to do. As I was in my old hood I decided to use that hour to go see an exhibition at the Fundación Canal (www.fundacioncanal.com) about contemporary sustainable architecture. Going to see it was the best idea I had all week!

The vision of twelve architects and studios involved was terribly stimulating and filled me with optimism for the future. Its not only that great minds are going "back to basics" and returning to ancient knowledge about using the natural flow of air, instead of airconditioning, to stabilize temperatures (something I've done in all my aircondition-free apartments to great success). Its that they are looking at old techniques in new ways. Think of the Roman's excellent use of hot water to heat their houses via an underground system, and transpose that to the 21st century with all its technological advances.

From the breathtaking garden covered buildings imagined by Emilio Ambasz, to Mario Cucinella's waterfront living complex 100K, their proposals sweep aside so much of what we see around us, after these decades of mindless building. Of all those on display I have only actually visited one of them. Barajas's Terminal 4, as created by Antonio Lamela. But maybe the most seductive from a purely sensual perspective is Richard Rodger's undulating wooden ceilings for the Wales National Assembly in Cardiff. Hair raising.

In another order of things is Norman Foster's (or should I say Sir Norman's?) work. Beginning with the Free University in Berlin. The sinewy contours of the library are an open invitation to study. From the looks of it, its cozy, almost womblike, and full of light. And then there is the scale, the sheer ambition of his Abu Dhabi project: Masdar City. Wonder what that CO2 free city will really end up looking like and how its inhabitants will interact with it.

On a much more personal scale, I'd choose one of David Kirkland's proposals for my own. His Headlands House is rich in curves and unexpected volumes that are flooded with natural light. It looks welcoming and well thought out for everyday living. And I really enjoy the "home spun" angle he has added by counting on local materials and craftsmen for its different components. If I could choose that would definitely be the kind of home I'd like to call my own.