Today�s architecture of single-family new construction seems to be diverging into two distinct trends at very opposite ends of the spectrum. No longer built are the modest, post WWII single-family homes that many of us grew up in. Instead we are seeing the rise of McMansions, starter-castles, monster houses, or mega-homes. The total disregard for adhering to the architectural style in older neighborhoods in pursuit of a statement of individual wealth, expressed in terms of house size, is perceived by many as just plain rude. The generally abhorred McMansion has somehow become a demanded trend and has reached the point of inducing municipal regulations limiting the percentage of lot size that can be devoted to building.  The newly immerging hot ticket, though not nearly as prevalent as McMansions, is the building of ecoconscious, sustainable housing, also known as �green� homes. With an all-encompassing philosophy of earth friendliness, these homes incorporate everything from recycled materials to renewable energy.  The philosophy and design can add significantly to overall first costs, but savings over time and an increasing demand are bringing prices down. These �eco homes� may have the best of intentions but are often difficult to assess in terms of energy efficiency and eventual payback of these first costs. As every building is designed specifically for the site and climate, the prediction of energy use can only be a reasonable approximation, subject to a myriad of factors.

A third alternative, albeit a radical approach, is the adaptation of a philosophy of extreme eco-design embracing efficient material use, minimal site impact, energy efficiency, biomimetics, ephemerals, and lifestyle. Extreme eco-design takes the philosophy of earth friendliness to the ultimate degree, the most efficient and most earth friendly possible design that can be achieved.

Efficient material use can be achieved in many ways. Recycling materials from existing structures or teardowns is efficient in material use, but can be time consuming and labor intensive, and is subject to availability. It is an approach that can add character and charm through the reuse of materials that would otherwise be too expensive or otherwise unobtainable today and is thereby construed as cost-effective. Another approach is to just simply use less. A smaller less complicated dwelling with an open floor plan, can reduce material use significantly.  Site alteration, whether intentional or unintentional, has many implications. Denuding of vegetation, and the consequential erosion and run-off, is not earth friendly. If a site is selected for its proximity to nature, the despoiling of the site is indeed counter-productive. Pre-fabrication can preclude the necessity of massive site alteration, as the whole structure can be fabricated elsewhere, and quickly assembled on site. Ideally, however, a design that utilizes a philosophy of a small footprint is the most effective strategy. It can expand the possible locations for a building, and allow a building to fit into its surroundings.

            Taking this to the extreme, why have any foundation at all? Ephemerals in architecture are somewhat radical, but not illogical. Our time on this earth is ephemeral, temporary. To protect us from the elements, a shelter or structure does not need to last for millennia. It is merely an extension of our brief existence. Smaller, lighter, and with a figurative and literal small footprint, the ephemeral structure embodies the epitome of earth friendliness. As a temporary structure, the additional cost and disruption of the site with a permanent foundation is avoided. The ephemeral shelter sits on a minimal, floating, temporary foundation. And, as a mobile creature, this shelter can easily be dismantled and moved.  The concept and philosophy of a small footprint can be seen in nature. A single trunk, securely anchored with an extensive root system, supports the giant canopy of a tree. As a model, there can be no better source than nature. The architecture of plants today is the culmination of millions of years of evolution- and only the successful strategies surround us today. Biomimicry, or the imitation of strategies of the natural world, has become a fundamental tenet of good design, and a driving force of innovation.

Clearly, the most pervasive element promoting this extreme eco-structure model is lifestyle. A mobile, free, and non-materialistic individual is an ideal, not a reality. It is an imaginary model born of the stark realities of modern life- stable, family oriented, career minded existences in established, mortgaged homes. Yet, the desire, and ideal, still exists. Perhaps a niche for this small, ephemeral, pre-fabricated, eco-friendly, and escapist structural ideal exists as well.

One such structure that adheres to all the criteria of the extreme eco-structure is the hooch- a concept and reality for a select group of my clients and myself. The hooch, (the name derives from the Japanese word �uchi�, meaning dwelling) has become a fun, though minor enterprise since the original hooch was built in 1997- as the master bedroom of our home in Puerto Rico. Originally designed to utilize and exploit the structural qualities of bamboo, it proved itself worthy after surviving intact a category three hurricane- winds greater than 120 mph.

The flexibility of the bamboo, and the resiliency of the design, was vindicated in one, awesome night.  A move to a rented home in Ashland prompted a unanimous family nostalgia for the hooch- a place that we all enjoyed. The ephemeral, small footprint hooch was born in concept, and reality, in our backyard. Pre-fabricated, supported on a single point foundation, and balanced with cables to the surrounding trees, the new hooch soon hosted sleep-outs and parties with an occupancy rate requiring family member reservations a week in advance.  The design was documented, and subsequent hooches have been built from L.A. to Eugene.

The ephemeral quality of the hooch was demonstrated last year, upon purchasing our new home.  The hooch was dismantled, moved, and reassembled in our new backyard in a matter of days. It stands in a grove of Douglas fir trees, with a killer view of Mt. Ashland. The hooch continues to serve as the master bedroom, as the parents sleep out 9 months of the year. Kid sleep outs, parties, and occasional daytime respites from the box on the ground (our mortgaged house) verify its utility, and add a mystical, adventurous quality to our backyard escapes.

Other hooches enjoy sites much more exotic- the banks of the Long Tom River in Eugene, overlooking a man-made pond in a canyon in Sonoma County, and our new, completely self-sufficient hooch- with another killer view of the Caribbean ocean. Equipped with a 12-volt solar photovoltaic, solar hot water, a full kitchenette, and a �hoochette� bathroom with flush toilet, the new hooch was the culmination of a desire to build the ultimate eco-structure. The crowning achievement is the use of bamboo poles harvested from our very own bamboo groves, planted by myself. The fast growing and renewable nature of bamboo is demonstrated in an eco-friendly hooch. Now, more than a year later, I have an even greater inventory of bamboo for more hooches, to support my eccentricity.  Though extreme eco-architecture may not be a solution to a thoroughly sustainable building industry, it certainly provides an ideal. It is a model of ideas and concepts that beg to be assimilated. The hooch is merely an example of where the philosophy can lead, though for those lucky enough to experience it, the hooch becomes an integral/ necessary part of their existence. Rise above it all, in a hooch.