(-) + (+) = ?

Sobriety

If we wish to establish sobriety as a guiding principle, we first need to agree on the meaning of this term and the values it represents.

“Sobriety” (from the Latin sobrietas, ebrietas (drunkenness) preceded by the prefix se (apart, with“ut))”conveys the ideas of abstinence, control, and "less": in our case, less energy, less carbon and so less matter, less transportation of materials, less ceiling height, less glass, and so forth. Factors that fundamentally challenge the quality of use. There is a huge contradiction at play here, that we can perhaps resolve by taking a dialectical approach.

After all, who would choose to live in a smaller home with lower ceilings, no outdoor space, and fewer windows? This type of dwelling, which lacks quality of use, is likely to be one of the 3,085,000 dwellings estimated[1] to be vacant in France in 2021...

Everything hinges on the complicated pursuit of achieving the finest balance between sobriety, which demands doing less, and quality of use, which requires doing more.

Quantity and Quality

These questions are rooted in the geometry, the morphology of buildings. How can we define the morphological invariants of quality in order to then work out how to achieve sobriety from the best?

This would enable us to seek material sobriety without having to reduce the quantity of material. Behind the question of the quantity of material, there are other primordial questions, such as ceiling height, the number of windows, and the thickness of the facade that allows self-protection from the sun.

If we do away with all of this, we achieve sobriety, but not efficiency. Consequently, it’s important to take precautions, because as soon as the concept of sobriety raises its head, you can bet someone will come up with a sobriety label linked to an indicator. So a value of 110 will be considered mediocre, but if it is pushed down to 80, it will be considered satisfactory. Careful though because the calculation methodology is no guarantee of efficiency. Quantities will have to be reduced as mandatory, because when carbon assessments or sobriety assessments are carried out, it will be a matter of quantity multiplied by quality. Yet in the environmental field, pertinent indicators are dual quantity/quality indicators. Sometimes it’s more appropriate not to reduce quantities, but to increase quality so that the quantity x quality equation is the best, without having to reduce quantities.

Obviously, the notion of sobriety evolves over time: what works today isn’t necessarily how sobriety—or indeed quality—will be perceived in the future. We have found that the matter of reversibility, i.e., the ability for a property to change state or usage, sometimes requires us to do more in the here and now. At the Paris Haussmann* exhibition, for example, we demonstrated that the question of reversibility for the typical Haussmann tenement building was primarily answered with the most empty space and the most material: it has very high ceilings, for example, so it can house accommodation as well as offices; it has cross ventilation and the blocks are dotted with numerous “ventilation shafts” (small and large courtyards, etc.) so it’s quite well suited to heatwaves, and so on.

So, while nowadays “more” can be regarded as wasteful, it’s vital we consider the balance between the quantity of resources/effort deployed and the benefits gained in order for our operations to achieve an outcome that is both desirable and sustainable.

*Paris Haussmann, City Model, Pavillon de l’Arsenal, 2017, Guest scientific curators: LAN - Benoit Jallon and Umberto Napolitano and Atelier Franck Boutté

[1] INSEE study on housing in France, January 2021