The natural pavilion is located on the campus at Rice University
Architect Jesús Vassallo, along with a team of graduate students from Rice University, has successfully integrated a pavilion made of cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels into the Houston campus. The Johnson Owl Deck Pavilion serves as a demonstration of the material’s potential as a sustainable and carbon-negative building method, while also fulfilling a specific purpose.
Vassallo expressed the team’s intention to design a structure that truly showcases the structural behavior and aesthetic possibilities of CLT. While mass timber buildings have become increasingly prevalent, often relying on repetitive grids for economic efficiency, Vassallo believes that this approach fails to fully exploit the versatility of the material.
“We wanted to design a building that would be true to CLT’s structural behaviour and aesthetic potential,” said Vassallo. “Nowadays mass timber buildings are increasingly normative and based on repetitive grids that while efficient from an economic standpoint, do not do justice to the versatility of the material.”
Situated within Rice University’s Harris Gully Natural Area, a restored watershed that attracts a diverse range of bird species, the pavilion spans 1,000 square feet (92 square meters). It features eight rectangular columns topped with a single square, flat roof, deliberately presenting a simple and uncluttered appearance.
The columns and roof of the pavilion were constructed using CLT panels made from southern yellow pine in its purest form, highlighting the material’s assembly. Each column was strategically rotated at a different angle to provide privacy for bird watchers and other visitors to the pavilion.
Vassallo explained that from the interior, the varying angles of the columns create a camouflage effect, generating patterns of light and shadow that minimize the presence of people engaged in bird watching. From the exterior, the pavilion appears to be in a constant state of transformation as one moves around it.
Overall, the Johnson Owl Deck Pavilion stands as a testament to the potential of cross-laminated timber as a sustainable and environmentally friendly building material, while also serving as a functional and visually engaging addition to the Rice University campus.
