Nader Khalili
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Nader Khalili is an Iranian born architect, writer, and humanitarian who received his philosophy and architectural education in Iran, Turkey, and the United States. In 1970 he was licensed by the State of California and has practiced architecture in the U.S. and around the world. Khalili is known for his innovation into the Geltaftan Earth-and-Fire System known as Ceramic Houses and the Earthbag Construction technique called Super Adobe. He has been involved with Earth Architecture and Third World Development since 1975, and is a U.N. consultant for Earth Architecture. Khalili began his work on traditional, emergency, and transitional shelters in 1975 when an experience he had listening to his son pushed him to pursue his dreams. He had taken his boy to the park and he had started playing and racing with the other children there but wasn’t as fast. He told his dad that he “Wanted to race alone”. Khalili thought a lot about this and realized that if you are always racing other people will never reach your own capacity or potential. The moment affected him so much that he closed his office that had been building skyscrapers in the U.S. and Iran, and bought a motor cycle and went off into the desert. There he worked with people on their ideas and dreams and fired his first ceramic house. He developed his Super Adobe system in 1984, in response to a NASA call for designs for human settlements on the Moon and Mars. The project had been completely theoretical until the Persian Gulf War when refugees were sent into Iran. When this occurred Khalili partnered with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and applied his research to emergency shelters. In 1991 he founded the California Institute of Earth Art and Architecture, (Cal-Earth) where he now teaches his Super Adobe building technique. Although Khalili’s work received mixed support in his native country, arguably due to social paradigms and political unrest, he has become a prominent American leader on the value of ethically based architecture, where the needs of the homeless are considered above all else. Here is a quote from Nader Khalili on the CalEarth website addressing his purpose for earth bag construction and his goals for the building technique. “There is a Sustainable Solution to Human Shelter, based on Timeless Materials (earth, water, air and fire) and Timeless Principles (arches, vaults and domes). Every man and woman should be able to build a shelter for his or her family with these universal elements, almost anywhere on the earth and other planets. Theseprinciples, interpreted into the simplest form of building technology have created emergency shelter which can become permanent houses, and which have passed strict tests and building codes. Since 1975 we have been dedicated to researching and developing this low-cost, self-help, eco-friendly technology which can resist disasters, and to offer it to humanity. The only missing link is to educate humans how to use these timeless techniques, developed at Cal-Earth Institute (www.calearth.org), to fit their own culture and environment.” Khalili has written 4 books on his techniques, philosophy of Architecture, and a book of translated poetry from Rumi, the poet he considers instrumental in his design inspiration: Racing Alone, Ceramic Houses and Earth Architecture: How to Build Your Own, Earth and Fire, Sidewalks on the Moon, Rumi, Fountain of Fire
Awards
In 1984, Khalili received the award for “Excellence in Technology” from the California Council of the American Institute of Architects (CCAIA) for his innovation of the Ceramic House System. In 1987 he received a Certificate of Special Recognition from the U.N. International Year of Shelter for the Homeless and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for his project “Housing for the Homeless: Research and Education”. In 2004 Khalili won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture for Super Adobe.
Bibliography
Khalili, Nader. "Nader Khalili." Cal-Earth. 19 Jan. 2007 <http://www.calearth.org/khalili.htm>.
Katauskas, Ted. "Dirt-Cheap Houses from Elemental Materials." Architecture Week. Aug. 1998. 19 Jan. 2007 <http://www.architectureweek.com/2000/0517/ building_1-1.html>.
Husain, Yasha. "Space-Friendly Architecture: Meet Nader Khalili." Space.com. 17 Nov. 2000. 19 Jan. 2007 <http://www.space.com/peopleinterviews/khalili_profile.html>.
Sinclair, Cameron, and Kate Stohr. "Super Adobe." Design Like You Give a Damn. Ed. Diana Murphy, Adrian Crabbs, and Cory Reynolds. Ney York: Distributed Art Publishers, Inc., 2006. 104-13.
Kellogg, Stuart, and James Quigg. "Good Earth." Daily Press. 18 Dec. 2005. Freedom Communications, Inc. 22 Jan. 2007 <http://www.vvdailypress.com/2005/113489280061585.html>.
Alternative Construction: Contemporary Natural Building Methods. Ed. Lynne Elizabeth and Cassandra Adams. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2000.
Hunter, Kaki, and Donald Kiffmeyer. Earthbag Building. Gabriola Island, BC: New Society Publishers, 2004. Kennedy, Joseph F. "Building With Earthbags." Natural Building Colloquium.
NetWorks Productions. 14 Feb. 2007 <http://www.networkearth.org/naturalbuilding/earthbags.html>.
Aga Khan Development Network. "The Aga Khan Award for Architecture 2004." Sandbag Shelter Prototypes, various locations. 14 Feb. 2007 <http://www.akdn.org/agency/akaa/ninthcycle/page_03txt.htm>.
The Green Building Program. "Earth Construction." Sustainable Building Sourcebook. 2006. 14 Feb. 2007 <http://www.austinenergy.com/ Energy%20Efficiency/Programs/Green%20Building/Sourcebook/earthConstruction.htm>.
NBRC. "NBRC Misc. Photos." NBRC: Other Super Adobe Buildings. 10 Dec. 1997. 14 Feb. 2007 <http://users.pstel.net/goshawk/other.htm>. CCD. "CS05__Cal-Earth SuperAdobe." Combating Crisis with Design. 20 Sept. 2006. 14 Feb. 2007 <http://combatingcrisiswithdesign.blogspot.com/2006/09/cs05cal-earth-superadobe.html>.
American Institute of Architects. A Conversation with Nader Khalili. 2004. 14 Feb. 2007 <http://www.aia.org/nwsltr_print.cfm?pagename=aiaj_a_20051201_khalili>.
