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Celebration of Design Home
SPEAKERS:  Peter Shankman  |  David Rodriguez & Billy Ware  |  Matt Nardella   |  Angela Merola  |  Steve Nobel  |  Marcela Abadi Rhoads

Matt Nardella

AIA LEED

Matt is a LEED accredited architect practicing in Illinois and California, and principal architect of moss (www.moss-design.com). He is a member of the AIA and NCARB, with over twelve years of residential, civic, commercial, and institutional design experience. He received his Bachelor of Architecture degree from the Newschool of Architecture in San Diego, California. Matt understands the urban environment and how to sustain it as a community for all living things. He regularly devotes time volunteering for several local environmental organizations, including the Foresight Design Initiative and Openlands Project as a volunteer Treekeeper. Matt lectures on several topics, including sustainable design practices, alternative building materials, navigating the permitting process, and accessibility.

Matt seeks to produce energy efficient, unique, and sustainable architecture and design by merging straightforward methodologies of architectural design and theory with the realities of construction, building codes, and real estate development.

Moss is committed to establishing meaningful, long-term relationships based on communication, education, trust, and mutual respect. Mutual respect is all encompassing for the client, the community, and equally important – our natural surroundings. We believe that successful design provides a solid connectivity with nature while responding to client needs, desires, and their vision of a comfortable, livable, and functional environment. This allows us to create site specific and sustainable architecture.

Seminar Information

Sustainable Architecture, the Environment, and Alternative Materials

Water and energy consumption fuel our current lifestyle. Misuse of these precious resources, specifically in buildings and development, have led to widespread environmental degradation and adversely impacted our overall biodiversity. If thoughtful, sustainable architecture and design practices are implemented we could begin on a positive path toward a more fulfilling, responsible lifestyle while creating a smaller environmental footprint. This discussion will center on how designing in harmony with the environment, instead of against it, can put us in better touch with our surroundings, and improve our long term health. In addition, we will also discuss how employing permaculture design techniques can lead to improvements in all aspects of design including local food production and community involvement.

Permacutlure is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystemswhich have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter, and other material needs in a sustainable way.

Local food production is a movement that moss is spearheading with permaculture design practices and is currently designing the learning, edible garden and green spaces at Saint Monica Academy on Chicago’s northwest side. The project includes the introduction of new bioswales, high albedo driving surfaces, edible perennial landscaping, greenhouses, and an urban farm all in the context of an elementary school.

Additionally, we will discuss the importance of using renewable materials in construction as shown in a case study for a strawbale building constructed in Borrego Springs, California for the Anza-Borrego State Park department of archaeology that was designed by the presenter. Strawbale is one of many alternative insulators that can be incorporated into Southern climate design and construction with ease. Other materials, bound for the scrap heap, can also be successfully incorporated into building design. We will show examples of the use of reclaimed materials, such as barn wood for wall cladding, interior doors repurposed as windows, glass block as counters, and metal ductwork as light fixtures, to name a few. Lastly, we will present a conceptual multi- family residential project that merges permaculture design techniques, sustainable architecture, and on site food production around a functional open space courtyard.

As an extension program, we will discuss several of our, in-progress experimental architectural research projects. These architectural experiments are focused on reintroducing productive, public open space to the urban realm that can be used for multiple purposes (ie energy production, water reclamation or filtration, food production and transportation). These projects include a commandeering of on-street parking for common, public space, a mushroom based water run-off filtration system, and a food- based transportation system.