Dan Phillips was an American designer and builder from
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. He was the founder and face of
Phoenix Commotion, a construction company established in 1997. Phoenix Commotion focuses on designing Eco-friendly homes for low-income individuals and families
[Mitchell, Stephanie. 29 September 2009. ‘Making Home more Sustainable’. Online Article. Oprah. Accessed on 26 October 2011, http://www.oprah.com/home/Making-Homes-More-Sustainable] such as struggling artists and single mothers.
[Thomson, Ann (Interviewer). “One’s Mans Trash is Another Mans House”. Online Video Clip. NBC News The TODAY Show Online. Accessed on 26 October 2011, http://www.nbcnews.com/id/26184891] The company’s goals include reducing
landfill
A landfill site, also known as a tip, dump, rubbish dump, garbage dump, or dumping ground, is a site for the disposal of waste materials. Landfill is the oldest and most common form of waste disposal, although the systematic burial of the waste ...
burdens through the use of excess and
recyclable
Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. The recovery of energy from waste materials is often included in this concept. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability to reacquire the p ...
materials; providing low-income housing through selection of cheap materials and labor; and allowing opportunities for the unemployed by training unskilled workers.
As a for-profit organization, Phoenix Commotion hopes to show the financial and ethical benefits of sustainable building and challenge current standard building codes and building methods, which favor the use of raw materials.
[Ferrell, Jeff. 2005. Salvage Operation: A study of Social Criminology. NYU Press pg 155]
Background
Phillips grew up in
Littleton, Colorado
Littleton is a home rule municipality city located in Arapahoe, Douglas, and Jefferson counties, Colorado, United States. Littleton is the county seat of Arapahoe County and is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistica ...
. He was the youngest of three children to George Phillips, a former lumber company owner and Phoebe, a homemaker (died in 1979).
[Lynch, Jason. 2005, March. Surreal Estate. People Magazine Vol. 57 No. 11. Article Online. Accessed on 26 October 2011 http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20136668,00.html] Phillips undertook a master's degree in dance at
Sam Houston State University
Sam Houston State University (SHSU or Sam) is a public university in Huntsville, Texas. It was founded in 1879 and is the third-oldest public college or university in Texas. It is one of the first normal schools west of the Mississippi River and ...
. In 1969 Dan Phillips married wife Marsha Phillips, a formal high school teacher,
they have two children Ian and Phoebe.
Previously Phillips worked as an intelligence officer in the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
, and as a college dance instructor (during the 1970s),
an antiques dealer/restorer (1983)
and an organized cryptogram puzzle maker.
In 1997 Phillips and his wife mortgaged their family home to establish the construction compan
Phoenix Commotion based from
Huntsville, Texas
Huntsville is a city in and the county seat of Walker County, Texas. The population was 45,941 as of the 2020 census. It is the center of the Huntsville micropolitan area. Huntsville is in the East Texas Piney Woods on Interstate 45 and home to ...
.
Phillips is a self-taught carpenter, electrician and plumber
and has no formal training in design or construction.
Phillips passed away on December 21, 2021 after a "long battle with cancer".
Phoenix Commotion
As of 2009 the company had constructed 14 homes in
Huntsville, Texas
Huntsville is a city in and the county seat of Walker County, Texas. The population was 45,941 as of the 2020 census. It is the center of the Huntsville micropolitan area. Huntsville is in the East Texas Piney Woods on Interstate 45 and home to ...
. They ensure all homes meet local building codes and are approved by qualified engineers, electricians and plumbers.
The staffs include unskilled laborers who are trained on site and encouraged to apply for higher paying jobs once sound skills are acquired. The home’s eventual residents also provide additional labor in the majority of projects as a way of saving costs during construction and post construction, as skills can assist in the future maintenance of the home.
Home designs are typically smaller home projects (240 square-feet per person),
[Barth, Linda. (2008, July). From Garbage to Glorious. Houston House and Home, pg 52] with preferred minimal landscaping techniques such as
xeriscaping
Xeriscaping is the process of Garden design, landscaping, or gardening, that reduces or eliminates the need for irrigation. It is promoted in regions that do not have accessible, plentiful, or reliable supplies of fresh water and has gained accep ...
and simplified interior features such as no carpet, vinyl, dishwasher, garbage disposer, trash compactor, separate dining room and large bedrooms. All features of the home opt for environmental alternatives such as tank-less water heaters and the toilet and washing machine being fed with rainwater from a
cistern
A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by t ...
.
Phoenix commotion is partnered with a certified non-profit organization called Living Paradigm, Houston. Living Paradigm with The Phoenix Fund, assists homesteaders financially start building their homes by serving as interim financing for land, building permits, construction materials that must be purchased new, such as structural lumber, plumbing and electrical supplies.
Payments on homes constructed range from $99 to $300 a month. In numerous cases homeowners have been unable to sustain payments, leading to the homes being lost to
foreclosure
Foreclosure is a legal process in which a lender attempts to recover the balance of a loan from a borrower who has stopped making payments to the lender by forcing the sale of the asset used as the collateral for the loan.
Formally, a mortg ...
and resold. The majority of potential buyers include middle-class individuals who value the homes unique design and energy efficiency.
Materials and Design Strategies
Phoenix Commotion homes are built from 70 - 80% of materials that have been recovered from other construction projects.
[Dan Phillips: Creative Houses for Reclaimed Stuff. TedxHouston. Filmed October 2010. Posted online November 2010. TED TALKS. Accessed on 26 October 2011, http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_phillips_creative_houses_from_reclaimed_stuff.html] The home's design specifics depend on the materials and resources available at the time.
Phillips used discipline, orderly design and the concept of
repetition
Repetition may refer to:
* Repetition (rhetorical device), repeating a word within a short space of words
*Repetition (bodybuilding), a single cycle of lifting and lowering a weight in strength training
*Working title for the 1985 slasher film '' ...
to create
pattern
A pattern is a regularity in the world, in human-made design, or in abstract ideas. As such, the elements of a pattern repeat in a predictable manner. A geometric pattern is a kind of pattern formed of geometric shapes and typically repeated l ...
and unity to resolve designs and avoid a ‘bodged’ aesthetic.
Phillips also used building methods from third world countries as inspiration for his projects.
Huntsville
Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in th ...
City Officials supported the local company in 2004 by opening Trash into Plowshares (TIP),
a drop off warehouse for surplus materials from builders, demolition crews and building product manufactures.
The arrangement is tax deductible for contributors as supplies are used exclusively by charitable groups or for low-income housing. Other local towns including
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
and
Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
are setting up similar systems and engaging in discussions to learn new recycling techniques and applications.
Recycled materials that have been used in previous projects include:
*Plywood
*Mismatched bricks
*Ceramic Tiles
*Shattered mirrors
*Bottle butts
*Wine corks
*Old DVDs
*Bones
*License plates
*Crystal platters
*Cans
Projects
Victorian House
Victorian House was the first house built by Phoenix Commotion. The home is inspired by the
"Painted Ladies" of San Francisco.
[Unknown. ‘Projects: Victorian’. 2010. Phoenix Commotion. Accessed 26 October 2011 http://www.phoenixcommotion.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&layout=item&id=41&Itemid=28&lang=en] Features salvaged materials such as the double front door and the entire kitchen, including appliances. Some features in the home are constructed from organic materials, for example, hickory nuts, chicken eggs functioning as architectural buttons on the corbel for the turret,
and a bathtub made from recycled wood.
Tree House
The Tree House is built in a
Bois d'arc tree thirty-five feet above Huntsville's Town Creek in
Huntsville, Texas
Huntsville is a city in and the county seat of Walker County, Texas. The population was 45,941 as of the 2020 census. It is the center of the Huntsville micropolitan area. Huntsville is in the East Texas Piney Woods on Interstate 45 and home to ...
. The tree house space has a multipurpose function. It was designed with many proposals in mind, being an attachment to the main house, a rent-able studio for artists. The ceiling is covered with discarded frame samples from a frame shop. It includes high electrical capacity for sculptors, mirrors for dancers, windows bringing in natural light for painters, and a sink.
[Unknown. ‘Projects: Tree House’. 2010. Phoenix Commotion. Accessed 26 October 2011 http://www.phoenixcommotion.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&layout=item&id=33&Itemid=20&lang=en]
Budweiser House
The construction of the Budweiser House was based on the American
‘Budweiser Beer’. The external facade of the house has been produced based on the color scheme and the pattern of the beer bottle. The bathroom walls encapsulate a circular design stemming from the bathtub, just like bubbles that surface in a beer, and the tap handles for the bath are made from beer taps.
Media
Phoenix Commotion has featured internationally on programs such as
TED Talks
TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...
International, Associated French Press, Japan – Muri, Italy Home Wellness, Germany – TV, Ireland – The Eco Ezine and China Beijing News.
See also
*
John Dewey
John Dewey (; October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the f ...
*
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his ...
*
Ecological restoration
Restoration ecology is the scientific study supporting the practice of ecological restoration, which is the practice of renewing and restoring degraded, damaged, or destroyed ecosystems and habitats in the environment by active human interrupt ...
*
Ecological design
Ecological design or ecodesign is an approach to designing products and services that gives special consideration to the environmental impacts of a product over its entire lifecycle. Sim Van der Ryn and Stuart Cowan define it as "any form of de ...
*
Sustainable design
Environmentally sustainable design (also called environmentally conscious design, eco-design, etc.) is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment, and services to comply with the principles of ecological sustainability ...
*
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is building done outside any academic tradition, and without professional guidance. This category encompasses a wide range and variety of building types, with differing methods of construction, from around the world, bo ...
*
Tiny house movement
The tiny-house movement (also known as the small house movement) is an architectural and social movement that advocates for downsizing living spaces, simplifying, and essentially "living with less."Ford, Jasmine, and Lilia Gomz-Lanier. Family an ...
*
Alternative housing
Alternative housing is a category of domicile structures that are built or designed outside of the mainstream norm e.g., town homes, single family homes and apartment complexes. In modern days, alternative housing commonly takes the form of tiny ...
External Reading
*John Dewey. 1959. ''Art as Experience''. Capricorn Books, New York
*Friedrich Nietzsche.1883. ''The Birth of Tragedy''. Penguin Classics Books (Penguin edition 1993)
*Larry Haun. 2008. ''Habitat for Humanity: How to Build a House, Revised and Updated''. The Taunton Press Inc, Newtown CT
*Ferrell, Jeff. 2005. ''Salvage Operation: A study of Social Criminology''. NYU Press, New York
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Dan
People from Huntsville, Texas
Year of birth missing (living people)
People from Littleton, Colorado
American designers