Everything old is new again with Bark House Style: Sustainable Designs From Nature. Resurrected from a practice begun in North Carolina in the 1800’s and discontinued in the 1940’s after a tragic blight from Asia, designing with bark shingles is again the epitome of sustainable design. Bark requires no toxic chemical treatments, can be harvested locally, and can live again for a century or more in the form of a premium building material with little added energy use. Rustic, refined, natural organic, unique, sophisticated, timeless, long lasting — bark shingle are the material of choice for many architects, builders, and homeowners today, They appear in a breathtaking range of projects from mountain to sea-side, resort lodges and inns to shopping centers, sports venues and more —and mix well with a range of other building materials, including stone, log, glass, wrought iron, copper, and more. And no matter what variety of rustic styling you prefer — Adirondack, Cowboy, Craftsman Rustic Revival, Shingle, Modern Rustic — bark used in remodeling can act as a visually pleasing architectural tool to bridge the gaps between old and new.
Chris McCurry and her husband, Marty McCurry, originated modern poplar bark shingle manufacturing. She is a pioneer in today’s indoor-outdoor bark house design and a building industry professional. They founded Highland Craftsmen to bring a little-known building material back into general use, and now have installations of their bark in thirty-seven states and several locations overseas.
Nan Chase writes about architecture and landscape design from her home in western North Carolina. She is the author of Asheville: A History, published in 2007, and her work has also appeared in the New York Times, Smithsonian, Fine Gardening, Architectural Record, and Southern Living.
Bark House Style: Sustainable Designs From Nature
By Chris McCurry and Nan Chase
Principal photography by Todd Bush
81/2 x 10 in, 160 pages, 150 photographs
Little House in the City
By Marc Vassallo
Published by Taunton Press
9 x 11.2 in, 224 pages
The Cabin: Inspiration for the Classic American Getaway
By Dale Mulfinger and Susan E. Davis
Published by Taunton Press
9.5 x 10 in, 256 pages