Toward a Hybrid City: “Inter-building” with Mass Timber

The climate crisis is an invitation to imagine more meaningful ways of living in a resilient environment. The necessary optimization of resources is a chance to rediscover the benefits of an ancient material that is renewable, low-carbon and biophilic: timber, the ideal material to harmonize the human habitat with biodiversity. Vinciane Albrecht, co-founder of OulipO architecture studio, will present award-winning mass timber projects designed by her partner Anne Carcelen in France. Through examples of new constructions, modular buildings, gut renovations, and extensive additions of existing structures, Albrecht will demonstrate how timber allows targeted interventions within the existing building fabric. With its high strength-to-weight ratio and off-site, dry construction process, mass timber allows to densify while minimizing both carbon and ground footprints. Join us to embark on the journey of timber architecture for a pathway toward the hybrid city.

Speakers:
Vinciane Albrecht, Co-founder, OulipO
Eric Harvan, Associate, Buro Happold

About the Speakers:
Vinciane Albrecht is co-founder with Anne Carcelen of OulipO, a transatlantic think tank and architecture studio based in Paris and New York City. Her dedication to mass timber architecture was induced and has been fed by Anne’s longtime experience in building with wood in France. For over 15 years, they have innovated to design buildings both low carbon and cost competitive while offering the people a resilient, healthy and inspiring environment. Having moved from Paris to NYC in 2014, her unique expertise combines European excellence in sustainable construction with informed experience in the American context. In 2022, she launched OulipO in NYC to inspire the use of mass timber on this side of the Atlantic. She was invited to write articles and talk at conferences like the 2023 annual NYSAFAH conference and the 2024 United Nations conference about decarbonization. OulipO was selected by NYSERDA to assist their mission for the next four years.

Eric Harvan is an Associate at Buro Happold in the New York Structures team. Harvan has over 12 years of experience covering structural design and project management, with a focus on working with teams and clients to achieve the design intent elegantly and efficiently. Harvan’s projects cover many fields, including lab and office, high-end residential, institutional, healthcare, hospitality, and renovation. He recently delivered Carnegie Mellon University’s Scaife Hall, which will provide a new vibration-sensitive labs, modern and flexible classrooms, and public spaces that facilitate formal and informal collaborations. He has used his experience leading the design of Amy Gutmann Hall at the University of Pennsylvania to educate clients, designers, and others about the benefits and challenges of mass timber, and to promote mass timber’s use as a sustainable building material.