Arch Daily |
- The Best Architecture of 2016
- Hubertus Pool / noa*
- Turnhalle Haiming / Almannai Fischer Architects + Harald Fuchshuber Engineer
- Headquarters Brand Loyalty / Voss Architecture
- Under One Roof / Kengo Kuma & Associates
- Overlapping House / VaSLab Architecture
- A Hutong Home Renovation / CAA
- Ambrose Treacy College Middle School Precinct / Fulton Trotter Architects
- Grimshaw Designs Masterplan and Start-up Incubator in Bristol
- Icaraí Apartment / CIAA
- Kengo Kuma’s Tokyo 2020 Olympic Stadium Begins Construction
- 56 Apartments in Nantes / PHD Architectes
- Raised Gardens of Sants in Barcelona / Sergi Godia + Ana Molino architects
- UNStudio + MDT-tex Erect Biomimetic Pavilion at the Amsterdam Light Festival
- Interview with Neil Durbach: “You Don't Want to do the Same Thing Again; You Want to do Better!"
- Casa Cabo de Vila / spaceworkers
- This Former Professional Skateboarder Is Now a Skate Park Architect
- Davis Brody Bond and Kieran Timberlake Unveil Designs for NYU Complex in New York
| Posted: 14 Dec 2016 03:30 AM PST
As 2016 comes to a close, we want to extend our sincerest thanks for your continued support during this past year; it has been our most inspiring and successful yet as we continue to connect to architects all over the world. On behalf of the entire ArchDaily team, we are very excited to share a special feature – 2016's most visited projects and articles. This selection features the most relevant and noteworthy content created and shared over the past 12 months. Here's to a wonderful, architecture-filled 2017!  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 14 Dec 2016 09:00 PM PST  © Alex Filz
 © Alex Filz From the architect. The Hotel Hubertus is located in Valdaora, at the foot of the famous ski and hiking area Kronplatz in the Puster Valley at an altitude of about 1350 m. The family establishment was generously enhanced and enlarged with 16 new suites, a new kitchen with restaurants and "Stuben", an entrance area with lobby, reception and wine cellar and a fitness and a relaxation room with panoramic terraces. The new 25 m long pool, functioning as a connector between old and new, underlines the essence of this comprehensive renovation and renewal project.  © Alex Filz By creating an unified, rhythmically alternating facade with native larch tree trunks noa* connects "old and new" in a consistent manner. The homogeneous appearance, following the natural topography of the area, creates the theatrical base for the design of the new, cantilevering pool, which thrones between the old and new accommodation wings, floating between heaven and earth…  © Alex Filz  Pool Section  © Alex Filz The new pool, which imposingly rests in-between the two accommodation wings, seems like a floating rock, come to rest at the site, overlooking the valley. The hidden edges of the pool, kept in anthracite-coloured stone, abolish the gap between pool and landscape, creating the impression of the water flowing into nothing, disappearing between pool and landscape. The pool metaphorically reminds of a mountain lake, nestled into the astonishing mountainscape of the UNESCO World Heritage site, the Dolomites...  © Alex Filz between heaven and earth ... The highlight of the project is the new sky pool, floating like a natural rock over the new accommodation wing. Without any visible boarders, a width of 5 m, a length of 25 m and a depth of 1,30 m the over 17 m cantilevering pool can be seen as completely unique. The position of the pool, which floats 12 m above the ground, at its extreme edge, gives the swimmer the feeling of floating – weightlessly between heaven and earth. This impression is further reinforces by the glass front and a glazed window on the bottom of the pool.  © Alex Filz Product Description. The hidden edges of the pool, kept in anthracite-coloured stone, abolish the gap between pool and landscape, creating the impression of the water flowing into nothing, disappearing between pool and landscape.  © Alex Filz  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Turnhalle Haiming / Almannai Fischer Architects + Harald Fuchshuber Engineer Posted: 14 Dec 2016 07:00 PM PST  © PK-Odessa
 © PK-Odessa From the architect. Haiming, a village with almost 2000 inhabitants lies at the meeting of the rivers Inn and Salzach. The natural environment of both rivers, their valleys and meadows, characterise the landscape of the Niedergern. Rare bird species nest and breed in the nature reserve "Unterer Inn" and numerous beavers do their work. In the west of the village, behind the cow pastures and the forests, you can see the smoky chimneys of the nearby industrial area with its refineries and chemical plants. The design for a new club sports hall for SV Haiming also results from a similar ambivalence of "values". Despite many built banalities the village centre is still intact. The urban setting of the new Sports Hall refers to this harmonious frame of reference. It follows the primacy of restraint and subordination. The play with banality actually is even the starting point of the design. Construction wise, but also on an architectural and formal level, the hall seems to be taken from the catalogue of local timber construction and precast factories.  © PK-Odessa It refers to the cheapest and ignoble means of joinery – to the galvanized gang nail plate and corresponding binder and wall systems. In the sense of a spatial framework – which it actually isn't – the roof construction creates the image of a filigrees surplus of supporting elements. On the other hand the posts, bars and diagonals are appropriated as large wall graphics. The breaking of the rule, as in the case of fat, sculptural-formed concrete beam on the inside of the south wall and the merely suspended prefabricates columns on the outside, are just as important as the rules and their formalisms themselves.  Section  1st Floor Plan  Section The direct catchy image of a structure vs. a sort of vagueness of what is truly load bearing and what is only an image of it. This ultimately results in a tension in contrasting pairs such as forced banality vs. a romantic scale on the outside and constructional pragmatism vs. "heroic" exaggerated construction on the inside.  © PK-Odessa Product Description. We wanted to fulfil the explicit wish to build the sports hall as cheap as possible. We tried to interpret this (restraining) fact as a design freedom. So with great pleasure but with extreme discipline at the same time we were searching for possibilities of undermining the standards of a common and usual sports halls. This is also the beauty, if the standard is not applicable, because then the building would be too expensive. Then one cannot fall back on it. If this had not been the case, the hall would probably look like many others. Therefore we have used a kind of transfer of technology by using a timber construction system that is usually not used for public buildings, but mainly for agriculture buildings or for discount stores such as Aldi or Lidl: the galvanized gang nail plate. This is the cheapest and ignoble means of joinery. And with their corresponding binder and wall systems we tried to create a kind of a spatial framework – which it actually isn´t – but the roof construction creates the image of a filigrees surplus of supporting elements. On the other hand the posts, bars and diagonals are appropriated as large wall graphics.  © PK-Odessa  © PK-Odessa We wanted to create the "feeling" both of an ideal or even heroic space and of a very functional even relaxed space – just for doing sports. So we admit that we tried to create a kind of sacred space dealing only with structure and light on the one hand … But we also tried to avoid the consequences of such a space and atmosphere. So the user should of course not be irretated in practicing sports. The sports hall therefore is a very robust space. We try to achieve this by the staging (Inszenierung) of the selected structure and, in particular, by the north wall with its polycarbonate elements in front of the structure and the light incident filtered through it into the hall. And on the other hand, by using very robust materials and simple details, and also by a culture of the raw / simple.  © PK-Odessa  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Headquarters Brand Loyalty / Voss Architecture Posted: 14 Dec 2016 06:00 PM PST  © Guido Erbring
 © Guido Erbring From the architect. The challenge in this project was the transformation from a dull, outdated office block to an inspiring and energizing meeting place, based on the ideas of our client, Brand Loyalty, a worldwide player in retail loyalty. The client had a distinguished view on the looks of an office; a professional but homely feel, combined with transparency and as many open areas as possible. Everything with a 'hospitality' feel to it.  © Voss architecture The office also functions as a meeting point and knowledge centre where employees from all over the world can update their skills. Thanks to a fully equipped auditorium and training rooms now seminars, workshops and training can be done in-house.  © Voss architecture During the transition the whole building is stripped and big atria are made to get more light into the heart of the building. In the main atrium, close to the entrance, a sculptural spiral staircase is designed. This eyecatcher, together with the submerged pool in the floor of the central lobby, immediately defines the special space you are entering. The atmosphere of the entrance area is designed after a hotel lobby, open and welcoming.  © Voss architecture The structural cores of the building were originally finished with gravel concrete. To fit in with the new warm and natural look and feel they are clad with dark, grooved wood. Thin enough to steam and bend around the round corners of the cores. This new finish really stands out in contrast with the natural stone floor on the ground floor and the white stucco walls and open staircase.  Section The restaurant on the ground floor is designed like a modern restaurant you find in the city. It has an open kitchen that serves a small menu every day where the employees can choose from. Around the kitchen there are several different areas you can eat and meet. They differ in type and form of seating and atmosphere, so everyone can find his or her favourite spot.  © Voss architecture  © Voss architecture On the other side of the entrance lobby a coffee bar / after work bar is designed. The walls here are finished in dark brown leather, that combined with the custom wooden furniture and elegant lighting creates a warm, comfortable atmosphere. Making this also a perfect meeting place during the day.  © Voss architecture Designing the actual office floors was a challenge. How to make an office that should not resemble an office? To create a warm, but at the same time still professional, look-and-feel we designed a lot of the furniture ourselves. The pantries, the build-in sideboards, but also all workplaces, finished in elms wood. Being able to do so gave us the opportunity to refine the overall design en atmosphere into the smallest details.  1st Floor Plan Now the office is in use our mission seems to be accomplished. The office really is an inspiring meeting place you wish you would never have to leave!  © Guido Erbring Product Description. An important element of interior design, that is easily overlooked, is lighting. In this project the lighting also needed to be sophisticated, modern, but still blend in with the overall atmosphere of hospitality and warmth. The Nimbus lighting appliances we used in the design really do this. They fit in, but at the same time also add a new dimension to the design. The Office Air lights are even integrated into the desks to create an environment where the lighting really part of the overall design and a natural element in the room.  © Guido Erbring  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Under One Roof / Kengo Kuma & Associates Posted: 14 Dec 2016 02:00 PM PST  © Joel Tettamanti
 © Michel Denance From the architect. The new campus for Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) is named Artlab, which consists of three programs – an Arts & Science Pavilion, a Technology & Information Gallery, and the Montreux Jazz Café. The three boxes are tucked under a grand pitched roof that stretches as long as 235m. Between each box, we designed an aperture area that generates two axes. The two lines help to marshal the ow of people and reorganize all the buildings in the campus.  © Michel Denance There is a Japanese saying, "living under one roof," which means various and different individuals get together and team up, and Artlab is exactly the architectural translation of this expression.  © Michel Denance  © Michel Denance For the structure and the exterior, we used timbers that are commonly found in Switzerland, in order to create space with local warmth. The wooden pillars are sandwiched with steel plates on both sides so that the space can be equally gentle and transparent. The roofing is in stone, which is based on the method applied in ordinary Swiss houses. The roof transfigures like origami according to the function underneath, and creates faces responding to light and shadow.  © Michel Denance Project description  Exploded Axonometric The given vast project site allowed us to locate and configure the pavilions in many ways. Finally we decided to gather the three required pavilions into one very thin and long building that, as a purposeful trace in the territory, thus transforming the site from being a dysfunctional void into a new public space within the campus.  © Michel Denance -The 240m long roof will provide shelter to the pedestrian ow from the north Esplanade plaza down South to the residences throughout the day.  © Michel Denance -The porches provided between the pavilions uni ed under the roof are connected one to the main street coming from the West side where main public parking areas are located, and the other to the new tree promenade from the East. Therefore, the porches will provide permeability through the building attracting and connecting these West and East sides of the campus.  © Michel Denance By transforming the site into a place where students, professors and visitors will comfortably pass by every day enjoying the new activities that will take place under this roof, we are con dent that this whole area will become an essential spot within the campus that will bring a more social and cultural dimension to the EPFL.  © Michel Denance Structure  © Michel Denance  Structural Frame  © Michel Denance  Structural Frame Schedule Façade  © Michel Denance  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Overlapping House / VaSLab Architecture Posted: 14 Dec 2016 12:00 PM PST  © Spaceshift Studio
 © Spaceshift Studio From the architect. Overlapping House is located in Nakhonratchasima, Thailand, close to Khao Yai National Park, the 3rd largest park in Thailand with 300 kilo square meters. The area is famous for tropical seasonal forests and grasslands. This 1,351 sqm. vacation house is designed to be a weekend getaway for the house owner, Yuwalee Leenutapong and her family. It consists of 8 bedrooms, common area of living-dining-pantry, an onsen, and big balconies and outdoor terraces including the rooftop that overlooks the beautiful mountains.  © Spaceshift Studio  © Spaceshift Studio Inspired from the contour at the hillside site, the architect from Vaslab Architecture designs the floor levels and the mass-form of the house to overlap each other creating a number of different recreational spaces throughout the house. As the house sits on the top of the hill, the architect takes the design advantage to have its front façade facing north to see the best of the panoramic mountain views, which makes all the 8 bedrooms and the ground floor common space sharing the same views. The house main axis runs along the site contour in east-west direction and it gets also the good natural ventilation from the southwest. As seen from the exterior, one can see the two deviated masses interlock and overlap with each other. The overlapping characteristic of these 1st and 2nd levels creates a number of different shaded and sunny areas that are used for recreational spaces including the front all-day shaded terrace that can look out to see the mountain lines and the BBQ terrace that sits on the lower level.  © Spaceshift Studio  © Spaceshift Studio The house structure is post-beam reinforced concrete system with the mat foundation for the footing as the house is located on the rock mountain. The exterior finishes are bare-concrete and local mountain stones, designed to be harmonious with the site context. Teak wood is used to soften the masculine façade and it also continues outside-in to the interior spaces.  © Spaceshift Studio Not only that the deviated axis defines the exterior house form, the interior space and its functions are also defined by this deviated axis. For all the rooms and spaces are not in the symmetrical shapes, as seen in other general houses, that makes the function arrangement of the spaces quite challenging and more interesting. For the house interior, PHTAA Living Design, takes this challenging point and then designs the open-plan for the first floor common area where all the divided functional spaces are all connected in the big living space with no walls but each has its own boundary.  © Spaceshift Studio  1st Floor Plan  © Spaceshift Studio Product Description. The use of grey skim coat over the cast-in-place concrete and brick walls helps smoothing the exterior and interior finishes. It is also durable and sustainable for the weather in Nakhon Ratchasima.  © Spaceshift Studio  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| A Hutong Home Renovation / CAA Posted: 14 Dec 2016 11:00 AM PST  © Huo Cheng
 © Huo Cheng The project is situated at the main house in Qingping Hutong, Beijing; known locally as a da-za-yuan, which translates as "big messy courtyard shared by several houses". The owner's parents both live in the property, suffer from Alzheimer disease, which their mother being wheelchair bound. This meant that keeping the traditional Chinese courtyard house, exploring the concept of co-living between the young and elderly, and designing a comfortable home, all within a limited living space was the main objective. The project answers the questions which China has in accommodating an increasingly aging population.  Spatial Structure Analysis The plan was to construct an additional steel roof at the base whilst keeping the hutongs original wooden structure - with the new steel structure expanding the living space by allowing for a second floor. The architects resolved common poor lighting conditions found in traditional hutongs by increasing the size of the windows on the facade, incorporating louvers into staircases, and implementing a playful circular sky light into the kitchen. These design features not only add character to the new home, but allows for light to pour into the interior spaces from all angles.  © Huo Cheng Vibrant plants and greenery flow up from the courtyard floor in a "Z" like manner, and onto the kitchen rooftop that surrounds the skylight. The head of CAA, Liu Haowei describes this feature as "Old Beijing walking in the sky"  Outdoor Landscape Transformation The result is a project that follows CAA's core values; embracing the constrains of unique sites, and elegantly balancing between historic preservation and modern living. The Qingping Hutong House integrates light, openness and contemporary style into a limited space, creating a new hutong lifestyle for all.  © Huo Cheng  1F Plan  © Huo Cheng  2F Plan  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Ambrose Treacy College Middle School Precinct / Fulton Trotter Architects Posted: 14 Dec 2016 09:00 AM PST  © Alicia Taylor Photography
 © Alicia Taylor Photography From the architect. Fulton Trotter Architects has recently completed three new buildings as part of Ambrose Treacy College's ongoing masterplan.  © Alicia Taylor Photography Fulton Trotter Architects' have designed the school's masterplan to create a cohesive campus, yet with a distinct quality for each of the junior, middle and senior school precincts.  © Alicia Taylor Photography Accommodating 18 new learning spaces and ancillary spaces for years 9-10, the latest stage includes three new buildings:  © Alicia Taylor Photography Situated on a stunning 40-hectare campus overlooking the Brisbane River, the new buildings are designed maximize the connection and views to the river, whilst maximizing natural light and ventilation.  © Alicia Taylor Photography The buildings are sensitively woven around a number of significant trees on site, embracing these as a focal point. As a consequence, special roof and gutter systems were designed to reduce leaf litter to overcome a major problem of the site.  Plan 1 The external facades of banded brickwork feature 'box' and the 'arc' forms, acknowledging the Edmund Rice Building – the school's original, heritage listed, modernist brick building. Designed in the 1930's by Fulton Trotter Architects' founding partner, Charles Fulton, the Edmund Rice Building remains the focal point of the college campus.  © Alicia Taylor Photography The brickwork is complemented by an unashamed use of colour to excite the exterior facades. Colour and texture is continued internally, to create a bold and playful learning environment. The palate matures with the transition of precincts, from the junior to middle to senior classrooms.  © Alicia Taylor Photography The project also includes significant civil works, including interim upgrades to adjacent intersections; 95 new car parking bays and a new student drop off.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Grimshaw Designs Masterplan and Start-up Incubator in Bristol Posted: 14 Dec 2016 08:10 AM PST  Courtesy of Grimshaw Working with developer Skanska, Grimshaw has designed a master plan for Bristol Temple Square in Bristol, England, that will contain a new start-up incubator and co-working space known as Engine Shed 02. The development will serve as an activated public area linking the Bristol Temple Meads Railway Station and the city center. The masterplan unlocks a previously isolated site adjacent to the Temple Circus roundabout by creating a new walkway, the Brunel Mile, which prioritizes pedestrian and cyclist circulation through the area. A new public square along the path will also contribute to reinvigorating the neighborhood.  Courtesy of Grimshaw The scheme also calls for the renovation of the Grade II listed and long derelict George and Railway Hotel, transforming the building into a new office and co-working space with a modern 6-story addition. The adaptable, column-free building would contain over 43,000 square feet of floor space that could be configured to meet the needs of a variety of tenants, from start-ups to larger businesses. "Lower levels are designed to emulate a 'shed' through the use of profiled metal cladding and external structural steel elements. Responding to its context, the home for Engine Shed 02 celebrates the engineering legacy of Victorian architecture with its lower floors referencing features of the adjacent hotel, and its relatable scale ensures the scheme sits in harmony with its neighbour," explain the architects in a press release. The upper levels of the building will contrast with its industrial base, using patterned glass and screening elements to create a light-filled interior appropriate for businesses or studios. "The building for Engine Shed 02 and wider master plan for Bristol Temple Square are ambitious projects in an exciting new development," said Grimshaw Principal Andrew Byrne. "We relish the chance to provide considered architecture for a world renowned start-up incubator, and look forward to setting the benchmark for developments of this kind as Bristol continues its drive to be a leading tech and business hub." Planning applications for Engine Shed 02 have been submitted to the Bristol City Council following public consultation earlier this month. A full timetable for the project has yet to be revealed. News via Grimshaw.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 14 Dec 2016 07:00 AM PST  © Thiago Almeida
 © Thiago Almeida CI-AA practice made strategic interventions into this apartment interior to give the home a “young and dynamic character”.  Axonometric  Axonometric The Rio de Janeiro-based studio took advantage of the existent narrowness condition and explore it through its renovation of Apartment in Niterói.  © Thiago Almeida The original apartment configuration was quite clear: a long wall separating the sector of the rooms, from the social part and the kitchen. Our proposal for the renovation came from a basic premise: to explore the longitudinal axis of the apartment by creating a sequence of environments that allow us to subvert the original wall and to optimize spaces. The apartment issues prompted the project to focus on the following principles:  © Thiago Almeida -Spatial and functional readaptation in order to optimize spaces; -Program organization and distribution through a linear logic that promotes clear distinction between social areas [balcony, living room, dinning room, kitchen] from private areas [bedrooms, wc];  © Thiago Almeida -Concentration of infrastructures, equipment and storage into functional shelf, in order to free up space;  © Thiago Almeida -Selection of materials that reinforce the natural light of the overall spaces through the extensive use of white color in articulation with the color panels delimitating the different uses;  © Thiago Almeida ELEMENTOS DO ESPAÇO To maximize the functionality of the space a multifunctional shelf-wall was created inside the apartment. This intervention has the ability to define the spaces and to propose a new articulation of the two areas identified here - intimate and social. Thus, the intervention consists of the insertion of a large linear equipment that can completely transform the transition between the spaces. This transition before rigid and restrictive has become fluid and changeable, comprised of color panels and moving furniture allowing the integration of all spaces. In addition, the multifunctional shelf works also as the infrastructure to the extent that serves as support for technical installations - electrical, data, illumination, and hydraulic. The design and performance of this equipment has been carefully crafted, demanding production drawings of all its components, which were then assembled as a set of modules inside the apartment.  © Thiago Almeida The linear intervention was thought to create a unique living space, the large functional shelf, with its 11.8 meters long,(which concentrate equipment, bookshelf, storage, cooking area etc.) works simultaneously as a design piece and as an operating interior infrastructure to support the diverse and multiple actions of the social space. Mutable in its usage conditions, it allows various interactions and different hierarchies between spaces.  Diagram  Diagram Panels that open to reveal the WC and close to privatize the rooms, panels that open while cooking and close when the kitchen becomes an workspace, furniture that move to maximize social funcionality spaces according to the different moments.  © Thiago Almeida  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Kengo Kuma’s Tokyo 2020 Olympic Stadium Begins Construction Posted: 14 Dec 2016 06:00 AM PST  © Japan Sports Council / via Curbed Construction has begun on Kengo Kuma's design for the Tokyo 2020 National Olympic Stadium, a year after the scheme was selected to replace the original stadium design by Zaha Hadid Architects and three and a half years before the event's opening ceremony on July 24, 2020. The three-tiered, 80,000-seat wooden lattice stadium is estimated to cost $1.5 billion USD, more than the project's original $850 million budget but significantly less than the $2.1 billion estimated for ZHA's design prior to its scrapping.  © Japan Sports Council / via Curbed  © Japan Sports Council / via Curbed The stadium will be located on the site of Kenzo Tange's 1964 Tokyo Olympic Stadium, which was demolished last year to make way for the new structure. After ZHA's scheme was criticized for being out of scale, the redesign takes a lower profile with a sunken playing surface and a lightweight timber lattice structure inspired by Japanese temple architecture.  © Design Works and Construction Works of Taisei Corporation, Azusa Sekkei Co., Ltd. and Kengo Kuma and Associates JV／Courtesy of JSC / via Architecture of the Games You can read through the project's full saga, here, and check out new renderings of the project released by the Japan Sports Council, here. News via The Guardian, Architect's Journal.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 56 Apartments in Nantes / PHD Architectes Posted: 14 Dec 2016 05:00 AM PST  © Michel Denancé
 © Sergio Grazia From the architect. This project starts from the center and is one of the most multi-purposed buildings the agency has ever undertaken: 56 apartments, a nursery school, a center for social reintegration and offices. It is in Nantes (western France), right in the middle of the historical old town, not far from the Beaux-Art museum. This very urbanized installation surrounds and highlights a wooded garden that has been preciously preserved.  © Sergio Grazia  Floor Plan  © Sergio Grazia The facilities are on the ground floor, and the entirely windowed outer walls are drawn with great precision along the street. They blend into the landscape in the depth of the inner garden and progressively embed into the slope to lodge their garden-roofs in the shade of the cedar trees. The tiered façades of the apartments stretch along the street. The building is split by two wide breaches along its top to provide neighbors with views of the inner landscape and residents triple exposures, extended by the angled loggias that overlook the street or garden. As well as views of the Saint-Clément church steeple and the nearby Jardin des Plantes. The contemporary architectural language is intentional with all of the outer walls decorated in horizontal metallic cladding and bands, between which are inserted shutters, louvers and stainless-steel panels with curtain-like folds. The garden at the building's center illustrates another conception of town-center density that is both generous and landscaped.  © Sergio Grazia  © Sergio Grazia Product Description. The contemporary architectural language is intentional: buildings are insulated by the exterior, all of the outer walls decorated in horizontal metallic cladding, sometimes in lacquered sheet metal, sometimes pleated in mirror stainless-steel, ensuring the facades durability, between which are inserted shutters, louvers and stainless-steel panels with curtain-like folds. Each element is set on a 1m wide and 2.20m high framework, wedged between the horizontal bands that ensure the C + D regulatory.  © Sergio Grazia These panels are complemented by sliding doors for loggias and accordion shutters, also in mirror stainless steel, in line with the glazed chassis of the rooms, and living rooms not protected by balconies.  © Sergio Grazia  © Michel Denancé These devices ensure the building thermal performance and allow everyone to control light and views, to preserve comfort and privacy.  © Sergio Grazia  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Raised Gardens of Sants in Barcelona / Sergi Godia + Ana Molino architects Posted: 14 Dec 2016 03:00 AM PST  © Adrià Goula
 © Adrià Goula From the architect. Throughout the past century, the line of train and metro tracks through the district of Sants (Barcelona) has been an open wound in its urban fabric, dividing the district into two virtually unconnected parts along an 800-metre section, from Plaza de Sants to calle Riera Blanca, creating the resulting urban dysfunctions in terms of acoustic pollution and deterioration of the surroundings.  © Adrià Goula In the year 2002 the city's administration decided to start up an urban renewal project for the Sants railway corridor. Having ruled out the option of putting it underground, it was decided to confine it inside a lightweight, transparent box for a good part of the section, with the roof being turned into an 800-metre-long raised and landscaped boulevard which would later be extended along the neighbouring municipalities as far as Cornellá, giving rise to a 5-km-long "green corridor".  Schema The structure that holds up the building/container is comprised of prefab concrete parts in a sequence on a diagonal which adopts the shape of a great Warren beam evoking the old railway bridges, leaving large empty triangles that lend themselves to glazing them over to allow a view of the train passing through the city, reducing its acoustic impact to a minimum. Not fully glazing the building allowed three great green inclines to be built which rise from the lowest levels right up to roof level. These embankments "anchor" the building into its setting allow the roof vegetation to spill down to the lateral streets and support pedestrian ramps that provide a "natural" access to the roof.  © Adrià Goula  © Adrià Goula  © Adrià Goula The building's roof dominates the surrounding streets in heights of between 4 and 12 metres and in consequence its gardens have been turned into a vantage point over the city. They start with a great umbraculum acting as a gateway into the gardens, which are structured along two linear routes: one in the north side of the roof, with a great deal of shade provided by the trees, and another one on the south side, which is permanently in sunlight. The intermediate space between the two routes is configured as the backbone of the gardens, based on the configuration of a complex artificial topography with high density of trees and rich plantings of shrubs and ground cover, chosen according to a highly selective colour palette. The elevations present in the topography, reinforced by the density and the strategic position of the tree groves, favour the creation of spaces in which the passers-by lose the feeling of being in a city and are immersed in a natural environment.  © Adrià Goula  Section  © Adrià Goula The most widely used types of trees are Tipuanas, Sophoras, Koelreuterias and Malus 'Evereste', characterised by their yellow and white flowers. The shrubs and ground cover have been distributed around the lawns, with Bulbine, red salvia, wild roses and Hedera Helix in the sunniest parts and Hedera Helix, Vinca, Gaura and Lantana in the more shaded areas.  © Adrià Goula  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| UNStudio + MDT-tex Erect Biomimetic Pavilion at the Amsterdam Light Festival Posted: 14 Dec 2016 02:15 AM PST  © Janus van den Eijnden UNStudio and textile manufacturer MDT-tex have completed the Eye_Beacon Pavilion for the Amsterdam Light Festival. Serving as a ticketing and information booth for event goers, the pavilion's design draws inspiration from the festival's 2017 theme of biomimicry, specifically the bioluminescent organisms of the deep sea world.  © Janus van den Eijnden "Similar to deep sea creatures that use bioluminescence to signal, attract and inform, the Eye_Beacon uses choreographed light sequences to alert visitors to its dual function as both a sculpture and an information point for the festival," said UNStudio's Ben van Berkel. "Along with the effect of the pavilion partially overhanging the Amstel River, the twist that connects the two halves of the structure emphasizes the crossing point between the land and water routes of the festival."  © Janus van den Eijnden  © Janus van den Eijnden Located along the western bank of the Amstel River by the 'Blauwbrug' bridge, the structure acts as the connecting point between the festival's 'Watercolour' canal route and 'Illuminade' land installations.  © Janus van den Eijnden The pavilion design consists of two cube forms connected by twisting surfaces, parametrically modeled to optimize the efficiency of fabrication and installation. The result is a system of 250 panels of unique dimensions constructed from tensile textile modules developed in partnership with MDT-tex. The panels are overlapped to reveal glimpses of the interior and to display focused LED projections, giving the pavilion a constantly changing composition of light and color.  © Janus van den Eijnden  Courtesy of UNStudio "The collaboration between UNStudio and MDT-tex, combined with the expertise that MDT-tex has built-up over the years, led to the development of new forms that required innovative and advanced textile engineering. The evolution of the form-finding and technical translation to contemporary future orientated sustainable materials marks the 'twist' within this outstanding partnership," said Markus Müller-Feist, Managing Director / Owner MDT-tex.  © Janus van den Eijnden Inspired by Ben van Berkel's dual function concept, the MDT-tex system has also been designed for use in future projects, including functions as lighting and water harvesting systems. You can see more installations from the Amsterdam Light Festival, here.  © Janus van den Eijnden Additional Credits: Lighting Supply and Installation: Zumtobel News via UNStudio.  © Janus van den Eijnden  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Interview with Neil Durbach: “You Don't Want to do the Same Thing Again; You Want to do Better!" Posted: 14 Dec 2016 01:30 AM PST  Holman House (2004). Image © Peter Bennetts Alongside Camilla Block and David Jaggers, Neil Durbach of Durbach Block Jaggers has carved out a unique place in Australian architecture. Known primarily for their carefully sculpted modernist houses, the firm's architecture is simultaneously rich in architectural references and thoroughly original. In this interview, the latest in Vladimir Belogolovsky's "City of Ideas" series, Durbach explains the true inspirations behind their work, why these inspirations have little to do with the public descriptions of their projects, and why for him, the intention of all of his architecture "is to win Corb's approval." Vladimir Belogolovsky: You came to Australia while the Sydney Opera House was still under construction. Does this mean you were here even before going to the US? Neil Durbach: Yes, I first came to Australia as an exchange student while still in high school. VB: So you have seen the Opera under construction then. How special was that? Did that building change anything in particular in you? ND: Well, at that time I wanted to be an artist. A friend took me on a boat to see it. It was kind of staggering... And I thought – you know, this is much more interesting than art. And I felt – maybe architecture is what I should pursue.  Brick Pit Ring (2005). Image © Kraig Carlstrom VB: Why did you think that architecture was more interesting than art? ND: I think it was its scale... It was so mysterious and overwhelmingly monumental... VB: You grew up in South Africa and it was not until you graduated from college that you came here to Sydney, right? ND: First, I went to the US. After my degree in South Africa in 1981, I started my Masters at the University of Berkeley. But I got bored, and realized that I could and wanted to immigrate to Australia, so I did. That's how I avoided the draft, and I never went back. Soon I started doing competitions. Harry Levine and I won a competition for the overseas passenger terminal at Circular Quay and then we won another one – for a new wing at Tusculum, home of Australian Institute of Architects' New South Wales Chapter. VB: When we first discussed the idea of interviewing you, you said, "I have nothing to say." Were you joking? ND: No. It has all been said. Architecture is something beyond words. Do you know what I mean?  Roslyn Street (2009). Image © Peter Bennetts VB: Sure, but you know why I am here, right? [Laughs.] This building where your studio is based here in Sydney, Roslyn Street, you designed it as an homage to Antoni Gaudi. Why is that? ND: Well... not actually. There are things you have to learn to do as an architect. There has to be an easy narrative to get past so many gate keepers. For the Holman House we used Picasso's The Bathers painting as a metaphor. But the truth is that this association came much later. It was an easy analogy and we realized a long time ago that to get past so many barriers you need a metaphor, an easy metaphor. If you say "Gaudi," everyone would say, "I love Gaudi." That's what we said to the council to get the approval.  Roslyn Street (2009). Image © Anthony Browell VB: And what did you say to the clients of the Holman House? Did you talk about the painting? ND: No, we talked about architecture only. We talked about houses designed by architects José Antonio Coderch and Jørn Utzon. But then people ask you, "What inspired you?" So you begin to think of quick and simple metaphors. For Canberra Gallery, it was Christo's Valley Curtain, for The UTS Science and Health Building it was a grove of trees, and for the Holman House it was The Bathers. I love this painting; its aesthetic qualities and the way it stretches, and folds, and moves towards the edge. I think it is important to think of ways of getting into your projects for other people. VB: You said about your studio, "We are a practice committed to search for the possibilities of architecture itself – its power and poetry; its pleasure and necessity." Out of all these words, it is the word pleasure that strikes me most. Do you think architecture is about providing pleasure? Do you see pleasure as perfection? Is that what you are after? ND: I do think that architecture is about a sense of joy and yes, pleasure. Perhaps these qualities are all on the soft side of architecture. And it could be provocative, of course, as in the case of the Melbourne-based architects, Ashton Raggatt McDougall. And I don't quite see architecture as the armchair of society. To me architecture should be about joy and a sense of happiness, and beauty. After all, as Stendhal said, "Beauty is nothing other than the promise of happiness." We need beauty. You know, I grew up in an incredibly boring, conservative, constrained middle-class environment. So when I looked at the images of Le Corbusier or Picasso, there was such an unbelievable sense of liberation through pleasure. I like this idea of pleasure achieved through making beautiful things. You look at Le Corbusier's work and it seems like changing the world was not that hard.  Holman House (2004). Image © Peter Bennetts VB: You also said that you are "aiming for clarity of intent and joyfulness of form." Could you talk about the importance of form to you and is "iconic" a particular quality that you try to achieve in your work? ND: There is a painting by Cézanne called The Hanged Man's House. My mother had a poster of this painting at home. It was an ordinary house but the fact that it was called The Hanged Man's House turned it from something very ordinary to something unbelievably iconic. For me, it was a painting with a very powerful meaning. I realized that iconic may not be about what something looks like but about what it means. So an icon could be something that makes you connect in a certain way. Iconic is something transcendent; it opens a door into... subliminal. VB: But your houses, for example, are named after your clients. So if we were to call them iconic it is because of how they look. They are visual icons. ND: Maybe… And it is difficult for icons to sustain themselves. You know how Corb said that his Ronchamp roof was inspired by an upside down crab shell. But you know, it was not really that. That was a decoy. Nothing is so easy. And just because something is different and memorable does not make it an icon. Or it could turn into a bad icon. It has to have some richness, complexity, depth, and subtlety. You can't just flip a turtle on its back and call it an icon.  Commonwealth Place (2002). Image © Anthony Browell VB: But your metaphors are purposely simplistic. ND: Just to hook the initial interest because, you know, generally architecture is not that interesting to Australians. Architecture to Australians is about as interesting as surfing is to people in Iceland. VB: Not in general. It becomes interesting when architecture itself is interesting. Are you interested in defining your own voice in architecture? ND: I think our work has become connected with an image of our practice. But it would be futile and pointless to aim for that.  Holman House (2004). Image © Anthony Browell VB: Let's talk about some of your inspirations, such as Le Corbusier. ND: I have seen many good buildings by great architects and sometimes I would become obsessed about some of them. But often what happens is that certain buildings flare up, but eventually, they seem to just – fade away. But there is something different about Corb. Look at his La Tourette, Ronchamp, or even his tiny Cabanon in Roquebrune. His buildings become richer and richer with time. The work is persistently present. His work is sustainable on every level. It is absolutely brilliant and it gets endlessly better. Perhaps that's because he was so keenly tuned to making architecture itself; there was this incredibly deep sense of architecture itself, somewhat independent of function. Of course, Kahn, Aalto, Asplund, and Mies had some of that, but to me, Corb was unique. It is as if all architectures were channeled through him. Everything he touched was made into something rich and transformative. He is endlessly fascinating and intriguing to me. VB: Discussing architecture you mentioned such words as cool not being the same as beautiful and you contrasted such terms as trendy, hip, and sugary to beautiful. What words would you use to describe architecture that you really like? ND: I think people particularly like certain buildings when its intention creeps up slowly on you... The same is with people. Someone said – you may ride in an elevator 10 times with the same person and one day you hear him or her speak, and you suddenly fall in love with the character. You discover something so compelling, something not evident at first, something quite personal and beautiful. For example, SANAA just won the new addition to the Art Gallery of New South Wales. If you think about their work, it has richness, complexity, subtlety. Ryue Nishizawa's Teshima Art Museum in Japan is just staggering, breathtaking. And you may see all the drawings and photos but all that is nothing until you go and visit it. That's an extraordinary talent.  Roslyn Street (2009). Image © Peter Bennetts VB: You know, Joshua Prince-Ramus told me he likes SANAA's work the most. I said, how can you like something that's so completely the opposite of what you do? And he said, "How can I do something so irrational? That's not who I am." He said some of their work is pure shape, and some spaces are not accessible. So my question to him was – how can you so stubbornly follow your mind and not listen to your heart? ND: Sure, it says something about consistency and fear of change... Waldo Emerson, an American poet and champion of individualism said, "Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." But look at Rem Koolhaas' work; he has a very fluid way of thinking. He said once that he always tries to escape what he calls an "architectural ghetto." In a funny way, this is how we started here. Everybody was doing boxes, and as light as possible. But because I was an immigrant, I said, I am never going to really be like them. So why not do the complete opposite? Meaning, as heavy as possible. VB: You think your work is heavy; in what way? ND: You know how architecture here seems to be all constructed, put together, and assembled out of parts? So I said, we are going to carve things. We will carve spaces out of solids. That's what I mean by heavy. Our buildings are sculpted.  North Bondi Surf Life Saving Club (2013). Image © John Gollings VB: Do you like when your projects are described as "quirky" and "playful?" ND: No, because it implies that our work is frivolous. But we work unbelievably hard here. For us, architecture is serious play. It is not silly. Of course, we try to be playful, but we are very serious while doing it. I am hesitant about picking particular words because then it would imply that we have a style. But that's what is fascinating about architects such as Asplund and Utzon... They didn't have a style. You know, Asplund never looked at his old drawings. He never detailed anything the same way. So even if he had to do the same detail again he was forced to think about it from the beginning, which led to new discoveries. VB: Is that how you work? You never look at your own old drawings? ND: We try to... That's the nature of our approach. Georges Braque kept working on his collages slowly and steadily, perfecting them slowly. And then there is Picasso who just went through it; he just kept exploring and never stopped. There are different ways, but here we like going forward.  Commonwealth Place (2002). Image © John Gollings VB: I think now is a good time to ask you – what is the intention of your work? ND: That's easy. The intention is to win Corb's approval. VB: How did you achieve the final form of the Holman House? What is your typical process? ND: We always work in models, and with this house, we have done many models. Each one is different. It is all based on a kind on non-judgement – from one thing to the next. We work very quickly. We start with anything and then we build all these tiny models, one after another. They point somewhere. Sometimes you start with something that you think about for a long time… Sometimes it is just a stumbling of things… The final form becomes a hybrid of many things and ideas. Sometimes it is completely chaotic… And we often feel insecure about the result or the next step… And traumatized… Because you don't want to do the same thing again. You want to do better.  Holman House (2004). Image © Brett Boardman VB: But what in the world was driving you? Why did it need to be so original? ND: The very fact that we wanted to build something that we had not done before, is that good enough? We wanted to climb to another height, that's all. We are constantly doubtful and we try to be critical. We want it to be the best it can be.  UTS Thomas St Building (2014). Image © Darren Bradley VLADIMIR BELOGOLOVSKY is the founder of the New York-based non-profit Curatorial Project. Trained as an architect at Cooper Union in New York, he has written five books, including Conversations with Architects in the Age of Celebrity (DOM, 2015), Harry Seidler: LIFEWORK (Rizzoli, 2014), and Soviet Modernism: 1955-1985 (TATLIN, 2010). Among his numerous exhibitions: Anthony Ames: Object-Type Landscapes at Casa Curutchet, La Plata, Argentina (2015); Colombia: Transformed (American Tour, 2013-15); Harry Seidler: Painting Toward Architecture (world tour since 2012); and Chess Game for Russian Pavilion at the 11th Venice Architecture Biennale (2008). Belogolovsky is the American correspondent for Berlin-based architectural journal SPEECH and he has lectured at universities and museums in more than 20 countries. Belogolovsky's column, City of Ideas, introduces ArchDaily's readers to his latest and ongoing conversations with the most innovative architects from around the world. These intimate discussions are a part of the curator's upcoming exhibition with the same title which premiered at the University of Sydney in June 2016. The City of Ideas exhibition will travel to venues around the world to explore ever-evolving content and design.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Casa Cabo de Vila / spaceworkers Posted: 14 Dec 2016 01:00 AM PST  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG
 © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG From the architect. Cabo de vila is a house for a young couple that wanted a house that doesn't look like a regular house. When we first meet the place for the house, the approach to the location give us the central mote for the project. We wanted a shape that can fill the void left by the valley and at the same time we wanted this new shape to embrace and reflects the surrounding green areas giving its users a special perspective on the landscape.  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG  Ground Floor Plan  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG The proposed volume materializes its shape through two concrete slabs with its concave sides, allowing a light glass and wood wall to unroll between them, which in a positive and negative game let the interior of the house communicate with the exterior.  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG Inside, the house reflects the way of living of his owners. The central courtyard welcomes anyone who enters the house and organizes all the common spaces around it like a no end space. Here, there are no barriers between the different spaces, only an organic geometry that establishes hierarchies between them and that allows mutual visual contact. The private spaces of the house are hidden behind a curtain wall that surrounds the courtyard as well as the garage and the service areas. Like in the common areas the main bedroom is a fluid space without doors, where the hierarchy of the relations between the closet the bathroom and the sleeping area shapes the space.  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG With raw materials inside and outside, the house establish a perfect connection with the surroundings ready to grow hold with the nature.  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| This Former Professional Skateboarder Is Now a Skate Park Architect Posted: 14 Dec 2016 12:00 AM PST After a career as a professional skateboarder, Helsinki-based Janne Saario has become one of few landscape architects in the world with a practice devoted completely to designing skate parks for young people. Saario's designs—all of which are located in Europe—diverge from the typical brutalist stereotypes of concrete skate park masses, and rather, are site-specific and heavily influenced by their natural surroundings. "Young people are our hope and future," says Saario. "And by offering beautiful and meaningful surroundings to grow, like wonderful skate parks, we can make a positive change on their picture of the world and future behavior." Learn more about the skateboarder-turned-architect by watching the Time Magazine video, above. News via: Time Magazine.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Davis Brody Bond and Kieran Timberlake Unveil Designs for NYU Complex in New York Posted: 13 Dec 2016 10:00 PM PST The architectural team comprised of Davis Brody Bond and Kieran Timberlake has unveiled its newest updates on the design for 181 Mercer, a 735,000-square-foot complex for New York University that will replace a 35-year-old gym facility and become NYU's largest classroom building, as well as a space for performing arts, athletics, and students and faculty housing.  © llustration: studioAMD The design, which features a slimmer massing and 20% less gross square footage than permitted by the City approvals process, focuses on transparency, lightness, and connection, in an effort to contrast with the bunker-like character of its predecessor—Cole's Sports Center—and to make Mercer Street itself more engaging. Through the addition of 60 new classrooms, 20 music instruction rooms, and a variety of study spaces, NYU will accommodate a growing need for properly sized and equipped academic spaces, thus allowing for other buildings to create more laboratories, as a part of a long-range effort to support the sciences. Additionally, the space will feature three new theaters, an orchestral ensemble room, ten performing arts classrooms, and 50 individual practice rooms, giving "young performing artists in Tisch and Steinhardt practice, rehearsal, and performance spaces in keeping with programs of NYU's caliber."
 © llustration: studioAMD In lieu of a traditional university "quad," the second floor of 181 Mercer will become a "Commons" space that will encourage casual interactions between different disciplines and activities for students and faculty alike. The building will also include housing for approximately 420 freshmen, 30 to 60 faculty apartments, and an athletics facility with spaces dedicated to various sports and the capability of hosting up to 2,700 people for assemblies. Because the building will be used for such varying programs, separate entrances for classrooms, athletics, residences, and theaters will work to control traffic flow and optimize user interactions. Moreover, the first-floor atrium will be accessible to neighbors, with a dedicated room for local community users.  © llustration: studioAMD With a transparent façade of floor-to-ceiling windows, the building aims to save energy by admitting natural light. Similarly, sustainability was kept in mind for the design of an outdoor greenway, green roofs to moderate water runoff and naturally cool the building and a connection to NYU's co-generation plant. Overall, 181 Mercer will pursue LEED v4 Silver at a minimum and is targeting a Gold rating. Demolition on the existing Cole's gym began in October of 2016. Construction of the new building is slated to begin in February 2017, and be finished in 2021. Learn more about 181 Mercer through interactive floor plans, here. News via: New York University.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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