Arch Daily |
- House in Florianópolis / Una Arquitetos
- The 4th Gymnasium / Paul de Ruiter Architects
- Monte Rosa Hut / Bearth & Deplazes Architekten
- House Renovation in Xirongxian Hutong / OEU-ChaO
- The Cutting Edge Pharmacy / KTX archiLAB
- Tsiaogou Teaching School Reading Room / SLOW Architects
- Glass Wall House / Klopf Architecture
- Peter Cook on How Drawing Enables Architects to Learn, Communicate and Experiment
- Thompson Exhibition Building / Centerbrook Architects and Planners
- World's Highest Bridge Opens to Traffic in Southwest China
- Hole 14 House / Javier Muñoz Menéndez
- The Spaniard Who Spent 50 Years Building a Cathedral With His Own Hands
- Coracera Castle Rehabilitation / Riaño+ arquitectos
- Sergei Tchoban: “We Cannot Avoid Looking At Architecture; Architecture Should Be Beautiful”
- MINIMOD Catuçaba / MAPA
- This Architect Fuses Art and Science by Hand Illustrating the Golden Ratio
- Architecture Documentaries To Watch In 2017
| House in Florianópolis / Una Arquitetos Posted: 29 Dec 2016 09:00 PM PST  © Bebete Viégas
 © Bebete Viégas This house is the second project we´ve made for friends (the first one was a house in Joinville, where they live). Located on the south part of the island, facing the sea, at Morro das Pedras beach, the site is in a condominium of small plots of land.  © Bebete Viégas  Details Axonometric  Courtesy of Una Arquitetos House is completely opened at ground floor level, as a shadow to outdoor activities. It extends towards the swimming pool area, shelters eating and hammocks rooms, connecting horizontally streets, garden and sea. Vertically, a double height hall connects both living rooms.  © Bebete Viégas All hydraulic installations are concentrated on the small masonry block. On the ground floor: laundry, woodstove, surf boards and beach equipment deposits. On the upper level, bathrooms and kitchen. This volume also contains a staircase that steers towards the facilities bellow, access level and bedrooms and living room above. This opaque construction protects house from strong west sun and from neighbours' views. Furthermore it is supports timber structure_ all of that made of garapeira wood.  Courtesy of Una Arquitetos The timber structure (15 tons) weighs less than 10% of total concrete volume (115 tons), even with an area 4 times larger. House was designed in pre-fabricated wood in order to induce less impact on the site and ensure quality and low cost of the work. Because of the distance, this assembly was also a strategy to ensure precision at work.  © Bebete Viégas Local builders made all production, pre-fabrication and assembling of structure. Conception of columns reinforces idea of a suspended house, reducing base points and concentrating foundations. This strategy further expands the terrace out.  Courtesy of Una Arquitetos Construction thought as assembly: timber floor in horizontal plans, metallic panels with insulating thermo-acoustic on the roof, plaster panels indoors, wooden window frames and glass as sealing.  Ground Floor Plan  First Floor Plan Entire upper volume is surrounded by a translucent plastic protection that resists salt air, stops excessive sun and south winds that carries sand, the same that forms dunes on the beach. This element allows the passage of controlled light and permanent ventilation. A horizontal tear in the eye level establishes a direct visual connection with the sea, a compliment to the horizon, as opposed to a small fold in the main facade of the plan. At night, light is reversed and the house exudes radiance, as a small beacon.  © Bebete Viégas  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The 4th Gymnasium / Paul de Ruiter Architects Posted: 29 Dec 2016 07:00 PM PST  © Sónia Arrepia
 © Sónia Arrepia From the architect. In the first climate-neutral district of Amsterdam, the Houthavens, Paul de Ruiter Architects designed the 4th Gymnasium. An energy neutral high school that accommodates about 800 students. With its colorful appearance and societal function, the school building serves as a herald for the further developments of this area. The architecture of the building is in line with the scale and size of the buildings in the area, to make sure the school is part of the 'community' in the Houthavens.  © Sónia Arrepia Cultural Focus in the Design  Section  Section Vibrant Appearance by a Playful Composition  © Sónia Arrepia Next to this entry, the school has two other entrances. The south side provides an entrance to the semi-underground bicycle shed. On the west side, near the schoolyard, is the main entrance. This entrance brings you to the heart of the building. It's the place where students meet during lunch, but it can also easily be converted into a theatre.  © Sónia Arrepia Learning Squares  © Sónia Arrepia  First Floor Plan  © Sónia Arrepia In order to achieve energy-neutrality we connected the school to the district heating of the Houthavens. In addition, concrete core conditioning is applied. The complex is isolated with high quality triple glazing and the required electricity is generated on the roof by means of solar panels. The 4th Gymnasium is a Clean Air School (Class B), which guarantees an optimal indoor climate. This has a positive impact on the health and academic performance of the pupils and the staff.  © Sónia Arrepia  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Monte Rosa Hut / Bearth & Deplazes Architekten Posted: 29 Dec 2016 06:00 PM PST  © Tonatiuh Ambrosetti
 © Tonatiuh Ambrosetti From the architect. Contemporary version of a medieval donjon: Five-story wood construction made from prefabricated frame elements. The isolated mountain location mandates the greatest possible self-sufficiency. The ambivalence between a sense of security and being exposed defines the building's structure: below are the communal areas with surrounding ribbon glazing, above the closed sleeping quarters. The cascading spiral stairway opens panorama views when ascending, follows the course of the sun, captures the solar irradiation, and distributes the warmth of the sun throughout the entire house.  © Tonatiuh Ambrosetti  Ground Floor  © Tonatiuh Ambrosetti  Section  © Tonatiuh Ambrosetti  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| House Renovation in Xirongxian Hutong / OEU-ChaO Posted: 29 Dec 2016 02:00 PM PST  © Zhi Cheng
 © Zhi Cheng The image of the urban area nearby Xirongxian Hutong seems like other places in second ring road of Beijing City. It is like a collection of typologies: towers; multistories residential districts; monumental buildings near Changan avenue; and also reserved hutongs and courtyards.  Before. Image © Zhi Cheng  Before. Image © Zhi Cheng At the city scale, it is difficult to tell the logic and relationships between those different urban landscapes. For the local people, they seem not worry about the vanishing of past experience or the relationship between daily life and memory. They also pay little attention to the public spaces outside buildings by the street, and to what the relationship is between public and private. "Isolation", this is also happening on the building scale.  © Zhi Cheng  Diagram  Interior. Image © Zhi Cheng This house is about 30 square meters, and sandwiched between 5 nearby houses. Most of the exterior walls become interior walls in between the different houses. The only door and window openings are on the south wall, where there is hardly any light or fresh air in the room. The place is isolated from outside world, this condition is bad especially for a such a tiny space.  Interior. Image © Zhi Cheng In the yard, a small building belonging to another neighboring family is located at the center, by the tree. Other things litter the places in the yard as well. Before the renovation, we can hardly tell that this is a yard and not a pathway.  Diagram  Diagram This 30 meter site with a small "yard" will be occupied by a young couple and their 6 year old boy. In order to respond to the "Isolation", a series of independent and easy to build units were introduced and cooperate with the original building system. They construct a gradation between public and private, outside and inside, build a path for light, wind, events and people's movement. Also, the cooperation between new elements and original building structures establish the connection between past and present.  © Zhi Cheng The first building unit is the porch, with a solar roof in the yard. The position of room door moved correspondingly. Places were created on the path where people would be going home from the outer street. An open lobby for changing clothes, a porch facing the tree for outside events in good weather. A transition space between house and yard.  Plan The second building unit is the double-slope roof gallery. It can also be defined as the enlarged building facade. First, it maximize the lighting area. Beside it the chimney and air system are also introduced on the gallary roof. This prevents unexpected damage to the original structure and roof system.  © Zhi Cheng The most importantly, The new spaces created are the two long tables constructed based on the window from the outside to inside. When the window is opened, people might sitting around the table in good weather, events might happen here. Since there is limited area in the room, the table places some daily events out in the yard.  © Zhi Cheng The third building unit is children room. It includes small flats on second floor, a ladder, and a lighting roof. The flats divided the space into two independent rooms: one for the parents, one for the child.  © Zhi Cheng The sunroof window faces the north to improve the air and lighting conditions. It establishes a route for wind going though from south to north. The height of space is raised allowing for the new structure to grow through the original roof.  © Zhi Cheng The three new building units all worked well within the old structure. At the same time, the differences between new and old are obvious. Wood and steel, heavy and light, dark and bright colors, no unnecessary additional structure.  Model The principle of the plan arrangement is to place all assistant spaces and furnitures on the perimeter in order to maximize the size of the central open plan.  Interior. Image © Zhi Cheng  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The Cutting Edge Pharmacy / KTX archiLAB Posted: 29 Dec 2016 12:00 PM PST  © Stirling Elmendorf
 © Stirling Elmendorf In Japan, two major types of pharmacies can be found. The first is the drug store, or what can be described as retail pharmacies. This type offers services related to basic medicines as well as parapharmaceutical products. The second type is the dispensing pharmacies, usually related to a nearby clinic or hospital. In this type of pharmacies, the products are prepared in the backyard after the customer presents prescription issued by his doctor. Once prepared, the pharmacist has to explain to the customer about the prescription.  © Stirling Elmendorf This dispensing pharmacy is located nearby a general hospital and owned by its president. The Idea behind this pharmacy is to promote the hospital by giving it a new image as it is subject to a strong competitiveness.  © Stirling Elmendorf The starting point of this design was to question the criteria that customers use to select a pharmacy, beside the geographical location. What would make a pharmacy better than another one? The purpose of visiting a pharmacy is the same, purchasing medicines and seeking healing.  © Stirling Elmendorf The keyword for medical related design is healing, commonly associated with peaceful nature. Subsequently, this type of design traditionally tries to incorporate natural elements like trees, green walls and flowers.  Floor Plan Nature is undoubtedly a source of healing, nonetheless, the simple fact of coming to a medical institution lays on the trust that the patient puts on modern medicine. The more advanced medicine is the more trustworthy it becomes; true peace of mind is reached when the medical care is at its "Cutting Edge".  © Stirling Elmendorf The pharmacy is situated along one of the most important streets in the region. The façade is totally glazed and contoured by protracted sharp edges. The edges are also projected into the minimalist white interior demarcated by a black cross. The vertical line of the cross is the gate towards the backyard where the prescriptions are prepared. The horizontal line is a console for exhibiting key products. The entrance is on the left side of the building in the direction of the hospital liberating the glazed façade from unnecessary additional lines. This minimalistic space designed in clean straight lines and enhanced with indirect lighting slits creates the High-Tech sharp image that the patient expects from an advanced medical care.  © Stirling Elmendorf Additionally to the appearance, the quality of service is a major criterion for selecting a dispensing pharmacy, and this is not without affecting the design. Traditionally, the patient handles his prescription at the reception counter; the pharmacist will then prepare the medicines in the backyard whilst the patient is sitting in the waiting space. Once done, the patient will be called again to the counter to get explanations about the prescription. This pharmacy differs in that the patient will not be called to the counter again. Instead, the pharmacist will meet him at his waiting space furnished in chairs and tables. These small attentions can make a big difference by providing an image of High Quality services inducing the process of healing.  © Stirling Elmendorf Product Description. While selecting the materials, we were focused on the sharp image we wanted to give to the building. The choice of Takiron metallic panels helped much for creating this image; these seamless and thin panels are also mat, a reflective panel would make the joints easily recognized, while a mat one seems more integrated.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Tsiaogou Teaching School Reading Room / SLOW Architects Posted: 29 Dec 2016 11:00 AM PST  © Rao Fu
 © Rao Fu From the architect. Tsiaogou teaching school locates in Song County of Luoyang City, Henan province and has 49 students and 4 teachers. The school has no reading room so that the 320 books they currently have are scattered in all the classroom. This project will add a new reading room and supply more books. All the current and new books will be put in the reading room for all the students to borrow.  © Rao Fu The campus is pretty tight. there's no empty classroom can be transformed into reading room and the playground cannot be occupied as well to make sure the children have enough space for outdoor activities. So the school planned to use the corner of the fencing wall adjacent to the teaching building as the site for the new reading room.  Floor Plan When we visited the site and saw the beautiful big cedar, we decided that the reading room shouldn't crouch in the corner. Instead, it should be treated as a cottage underneath the tree umbrella.  © Rao Fu The final design uses a fanlike shape to form a space surrounding the cedar. In front of the reading room, we set a exterior wood terrace of 8m in diameter. Together with the big tree umbrella, this terrace become a comfortable semi-exterior space where children could leisurely sit and enjoy their reading, or watch the games on the play ground of their classmates. The shape of the reading room doesn't occupy the corner of the teaching building ,so that the window of the office is not blocked and the small parterre is reserved. We also put doors on the backside of the reading room from which children can go to the small parterre. This design makes the reading room not just a functional room, but also an interesting connection between indoor and outdoor activities that reconstructs the entire space of the campus.  © Rao Fu We make the reading room slightly lower than normal height. The height of the inner side of the slopping roof is only 1.8m and relatively tight for adults. We hope to make the children feel that this is special for them through this detail. We exposed the structural grid in interior to use as bookshelves.  © Rao Fu Because the site locates in mountain area, wood structure is selected to make the transportation and construction easier. To ensure the thermal performance, we didn't use too much glass openings, but introduce skylight to make the interior brighter, and solar system for lighting. The uses of these facilities is also an introduction of sustainable technologies to the children besides functional consideration.  © Rao Fu During the construction process, we already heard from the school that the children were very curious about the new reading room and often came to see the construction site. Now the reading room is open and becomes a beloved place of the children. On the blackboard beside the reading room, we found that the children call it big sailboat that is their imagination of it. We hope that the wood cottage under the huge tree umbrella could become a beautiful memory of their childhood.  © Rao Fu  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Glass Wall House / Klopf Architecture Posted: 29 Dec 2016 09:00 AM PST  © Mariko Reed
 © Mariko Reed From the architect. Klopf Architecture, Arterra Landscape Architects and Henry Calvert of Calvert Ventures Designed and built a new warm, modern, Eichler-inspired, open, indoor-outdoor home on a deeper-than-usual San Mateo Highlands property where an original Eichler house had burned to the ground.  © Mariko Reed The owners wanted multi-generational living and larger spaces than the original home offered, but all parties agreed that the house should respect the neighborhood and blend in stylistically with the other Eichlers. At first the Klopf team considered re-using what little was left of the original home and expanding on it. But after discussions with the owner and builder, all parties agreed that the last few remaining elements of the house were not practical to re-use, so Klopf Architecture designed a new home that pushes the Eichler approach in new directions.  © Mariko Reed One disadvantage of Eichler production homes is that the house designs were not optimized for each specific lot. A new custom home offered the team a chance to start over. In this case, a longer house that opens up sideways to the south fit the lot better than the original square-ish house that used to open to the rear (west). Accordingly, the Klopf team designed an L-shaped "bar" house with a large glass wall with large sliding glass doors that faces sideways instead of to the rear like a typical Eichler. This glass wall opens to a pool and landscaped yard designed by Arterra Landscape Architects.  Floor Plan Driving by the house, one might assume at first glance it is an Eichler because of the horizontality, the overhanging flat roof eaves, the dark gray vertical siding, and orange solid panel front door, but the house is designed for the 21st Century and is not meant to be a "Likeler." You won't see any posts and beams in this home. Instead, the ceiling decking is a western red cedar that covers over all the beams. Like Eichlers, this cedar runs continuously from inside to out, enhancing the indoor / outdoor feeling of the house, but unlike Eichlers it conceals a cavity for lighting, wiring, and insulation. Ceilings are higher, rooms are larger and more open, the master bathroom is light-filled and more generous, with a separate tub and shower and a separate toilet compartment, and there is plenty of storage. The garage even easily fits two of today's vehicles with room to spare.  © Mariko Reed A massive 49-foot by 12-foot wall of glass and the continuity of materials from inside to outside enhance the inside-outside living concept, so the owners and their guests can flow freely from house to pool deck to BBQ to pool and back.  © Mariko Reed During construction in the rough framing stage, Klopf thought the front of the house appeared too tall even though the house had looked right in the design renderings (probably because the house is uphill from the street). So Klopf Architecture paid the framer to change the roofline from how we had designed it to be lower along the front, allowing the home to blend in better with the neighborhood. One project goal was for people driving up the street to pass the home without immediately noticing there is an "imposter" on this lot, and making that change was essential to achieve that goal. This 2,606 square foot, 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom Eichler-inspired new house is located in San Mateo in the heart of the Silicon Valley.  © Mariko Reed Product Description. Accordingly, the Klopf team designed an L-shaped "bar" house with a large glass wall with large sliding glass doors that faces sideways instead of to the rear like a typical Eichler. This glass wall opens to a pool and landscaped yard designed by Arterra Landscape Architects.  © Mariko Reed You won't see any posts and beams in this home. Instead, the ceiling decking is a western red cedar that covers over all the beams. Like Eichlers, this cedar runs continuously from inside to out, enhancing the indoor / outdoor feeling of the house, but unlike Eichlers it conceals a cavity for lighting, wiring, and insulation. A massive 49-foot by 12-foot wall of glass and the continuity of materials from inside to outside enhance the inside-outside living concept, so the owners and their guests can flow freely from house to pool deck to BBQ to pool and back.  © Mariko Reed  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Peter Cook on How Drawing Enables Architects to Learn, Communicate and Experiment Posted: 29 Dec 2016 08:00 AM PST
In connection with the exhibition "Peter Cook. Retrospective" currently on view at the Museum for Architectural Drawing in Berlin, the Tchoban Foundation has released a video of the architect discussing the importance of drawing in the architectural world. Cook compares drawing to new computer-based techniques, arguing that while software can do amazing things (including being instrumental in realizing his own Kunsthaus Gratz), drawing allows the architect to learn, communicate and experiment in a way that is irreplaceable. Watch the teaser to the Tchoban Foundation's video above, or read on for the full discussion. Cook cemented his place in architecture's firmament in the 1960s with the architectural drawings and media collages he created as part of Archigram, creating some of the most recognizable and influential "paper architecture" in the history of the profession. However, despite being best known for these early works, Cook has continued to explore architectural ideas in his drawings throughout his career. The exhibition at the Tchoban Foundation's Museum for Architectural Drawing is on view until February 12th, and showcases the evolution of this these ideas from start to finish.
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| Thompson Exhibition Building / Centerbrook Architects and Planners Posted: 29 Dec 2016 07:00 AM PST  © Jeff Goldberg
 © Jeff Goldberg The Thompson Exhibition Building was designed for Mystic Seaport, Museum of America and the Sea, as a keynote building for the 19-acre riverfront campus. The project's mission was to transform the north end of the Seaport to greatly enhance the quality of exhibition space and to offer a more robust year-round experience for visitors.  © Jeff Goldberg The building is located where the Seaport's previous indoor-oriented exhibit spaces were concentrated, and forms the new Donald C. McGraw Gallery Quadrangle. This sociable greensward, with a panoramic view of the Mystic River, provides an appealing venue for activities ranging from outdoor concerts to impromptu picnics.  Site Plan In addition to a 5,000-square- foot exhibition gallery with a high ceiling for displaying boats, the building features visitor reception and events space, a retail shop, a café and outdoor terraces overlooking the Mystic River. Energy-efficient components and geothermal heating and cooling are also incorporated in the design.  © Jeff Goldberg The flexible exhibition space features soaring ceilings and demountable walls to accommodate objects of varying size and installations of all types, from watercraft to priceless works of fine art and gallery-based educational programs. A riverfront gathering room graces the west side of the building and can be reconfigured for conferences, additional gallery space, or educational programs, adding to the new building's versatility.  © ESTO Photographics The Thompson Exhibition Building incorporates a wraparound deck that allows visitors to enjoy the riverside setting and serve as a covered overlook to the Quadrangle green.  Section  Section Overall, the building stands for what we came to regard as "the geometry of the sea" – the spiral shape of sea life, the kinetic movement of ocean swells, the crash of waves on the shore, the billow of sails, and the faring of wooden hulls. Wood was the ideal material for these purposes because it can economically enclose a large clear-span space while forming complex organic geometries.  © Jeff Goldberg The intention overall was a wooden structured volume that would suggest a hull's interior architecture. To support a long porch along the north edge of a new quadrangle, wooden columns and struts give the effect of sailing vessels' masts and spars. Railing cables and turnbuckles provide detail around the deck to conjure ship's rigging.  © ESTO Photographics For the building's structure, curved glued-laminated wood ribs were utilized to imply a sailing ship's top timbers, the curving members that delineate a hull's shape. Wood purlins between the ribs bring to mind planking that forms the skin of a hull. Douglas Fir was specified for the glued-laminated structural members as it was the species New England ship builders preferred after the Civil War once the western forests had been opened up.  Axonometric The building's overall form was also designed to recall natural phenomena, too, like a wind-driven wave crashing onto the shore. On its interior, the curled the structural ribs at either end inward all the way down to the floor to suggest the spiraling vertebrae of marine creatures.  © Jeff Goldberg  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| World's Highest Bridge Opens to Traffic in Southwest China Posted: 29 Dec 2016 06:00 AM PST  Image <a href='http://www.indialivetoday.com/beipanjiang-worlds-highest-bridge-inaugurated-in-china/87276.html'>via India Live Today</a> Today China inaugurated the world's highest bridge, opening the new crossing to traffic after the structure was completed in September, reports China Central Television (CCTV). Crossing the Nizhu river canyon at 565 meters above water level the Beipanjiang bridge spans 1,341 meters to connect the provinces of Yunnan and Guizhou in the Southwest of the country. The 4-lane bridge is part of a network of new highways around Yunnan and Guizhou that allow access across rugged terrain that was previously largely inaccessible.  A rendering of the bridge showing its height above the Nizhu river. Image Image <a href='http://www.highestbridges.com/wiki/index.php?title=Beipanjiang_Bridge_Duge'>via highestbridges.com</a> Costing around 1 billion yuan (US$144 million), construction of the bridge began in 2013, and had to be carefully designed to deal with the extreme wind conditions caused by the Beipanjiang Valley. "Where to place the bridge piers was a problem," explained Liu Bo, deputy chief engineer of CCCC Highway Consultants, to CCTV. "The gorge here is over 500 meters deep, so how are we going to design the structure of the bridge to deal with the strong wind field problem?'' In recent years, China has become a hot-spot for record-breaking bridges. The mountainous terrain in the western regions of the country has recently given rise to the world's longest and highest glass-bottomed bridge, the world's first all-glass suspension bridge, and the world's longest glass skywalk, all of which enable tourists to take in the dramatic landscape. News via CCTV, India Live Today and highestbridges.com  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Hole 14 House / Javier Muñoz Menéndez Posted: 29 Dec 2016 05:00 AM PST  © David Cervera
 © David Cervera For this project we had the opportunity to work on an irregularly shaped, 1,708 square meter plot, with 21 trees, in an exclusive golf club development in the north of the city of Merida.  © David Cervera In common with our previous projects, the challenge -which also constitutes one of our firm beliefs- was to respect the existing trees, as they are tenants which have more right to continue living there than the new habitants.  © David Cervera  Ground Floor Plan  © David Cervera The house is fragmented in order to respect all the trees on the property. A white volume contains all the house’s services and is supported by the stone walls that frame the entrance. A main entrance –an open, gardened space- has two trees and creates a hallway before you reach the house itself. The circulation continues when entering the public space that consists of the living room, dining room and kitchen, which is also shaded by two other trees.  © David Cervera The house has three volumes and two intermediate patios which contain the existing trees. The first volume combines the entrance and top-floor services; the second includes the double-height public areas; and the third boasts the main living area and open-air swimming pool on the ground floor, while the bedrooms and terrace are located on the top floor.  © David Cervera From the moment you enter the house, each space you pass through offers spectacular views of the golf course.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The Spaniard Who Spent 50 Years Building a Cathedral With His Own Hands Posted: 29 Dec 2016 04:00 AM PST  © Flickr user: santiago lopez-pastor, licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0 A huge cathedral with tall towers and a magnificent dome rises slowly in the municipality of Mejorada del Campo, 20 kilometers from Madrid. It seems like a common occurrence, but it is not. The building has been under construction for 50 years - brick by brick - by one man: Justo Gallego Martínez, farmer, ex-monk and a self-taught architect of 91 years of age. Learn about his life's work (literally) after the break. Without any previous knowledge of architecture or any experience in the construction industry, Martínez has spent five decades collecting garbage and leftover building materials to build the 50 x 25-meter surface structure with a 60-meter high tower.  © Wikipedia user: Dirección General de Turismo, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 After working as a farmer and bullfighter, Martínez spent eight years in a Trappist monastery - the Cistercian convent in Santa María de Huerta - which he was forced to abandon when he was struck by tuberculosis in 1961. In honor of the Virgin Mary, he began the construction of a chapel that he describes as his great act of faith. The former monk says that if it wasn't for his faith he would never have had the strength to try to build a cathedral.  © Flickr user: santiago lopez-pastor, licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0 Despite the skepticism of the inhabitants of the city, Don Justo - as the neighbors call him - has managed to progress the construction considerably without using even a crane, his only help was from some friendly workers. The process began without any kind of permission - because he was sure he would not get it - the plot of land is 4740 square meters inherited from his parents that today is worth more than one million euros.  © Flickr user: santiago lopez-pastor, licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0 The Cathedral The large columns of the structure are made from empty oil drums, while the lining of one of the domes is made of discarded food tubes. The arches are tires from trucks and buses, the rest of the building consists of woods and bricks collected from other demolished works. He has received gifts such as iron doors and glass cutouts to close the openings. Its design inspiration comes from St. Peter's Basilica, with its huge central dome in sight, in addition to inspiration from European castles and churches.  © Flickr user: gmalon, licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0 Some years ago Martínez told the BBC: "When I see what I have created, I am overwhelmed and I thank the Lord. If I could live my life again, I would like to build this same cathedral but twice as big, because, to me, this is an act of faith."  Los planos. Image © Richard Morley The church has never received permission to be build and although it may never be worshipable in it, the authorities have allowed it to go ahead as it has become a tourist attraction for the city. Recently, Martínez has received donations from German organizations and advertising sponsorship from the energy drink Aquarius, who paid him 40 thousand euros to tell his inspiring story, as well as organizing a campaign to raise funds through text messages. The building has been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and Justo Gallego Martínez has been interviewed by the world's largest television networks. News Via: Daily Mail UK, BBC  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Coracera Castle Rehabilitation / Riaño+ arquitectos Posted: 29 Dec 2016 03:00 AM PST  Courtesy of Riaño+ arquitectos
 Courtesy of Riaño+ arquitectos La Coracera Castle, in San Martin de Valdeiglesias, was declared Historic Heritage Site by the Comunidad de Madrid. It was built in the mid-1400s by Don Alvaro de Luna, Constable of Castile and favorite of King John II. Today it is part private and part public property. In order to revitalize it, it was planned to transform it into a multiple use space, to hold exhibitions, lectures, chamber concerts and activities relevant to its potential use as a Museum of Wine of Madrid.  Site Plan A basic project was developed with the aim to set the standards to follow in the future restoration, protecting its lands, the nearby surroundings and the areas that could spoil the views from the fortress. The final goal was to turn it into a prime touristic and cultural facility, beyond local and regional limits. A project of this scale, financed with public funds, required very distinctive phases.  Courtesy of Riaño+ arquitectos The keep is the outstanding volume of the castle, with a virtually square floor plan and three turrets on the east wall. The average width of the walls is more than 3 meters. Its height, from the ground to the upper terrace is around 20 meters.  Courtesy of Riaño+ arquitectos The previous state was the product of a renovation implemented 60 years ago. It had a ground floor transformed into a wine cellar, with an access through an entrance from the same period, before the first courtyard and on the south façade. This ground level had a solid brick barrel vault completely plastered. Por razones defensivas, las entradas se fijaron en huecos elevados. El primero por el muro de poniente, For defensive purposes, the entrances were in high positions. The first one was on the west wall and the access was through a removable ladder that could be withdrawn in times of danger. The second was on the northeast cube, at the first floor level, and it connected with the so-called “albarrana” tower through a drawbridge. al que debía accederse mediante escalera desmontable, que permitiera su retirada en momentos de peligro. El segundo por el hueco situado en el cubo nordeste y nivel de planta primera, que mediante puente levadizo conecta con la llamada torre albarrana.  Courtesy of Riaño+ arquitectos The two noble floors are reached trough the stairs along the south flank. Halfway there is a small landing from which there is access to the “chemin de ronde” on one side and to the first floor on the other. On this level is what must have been the main hall, probably divided in several rooms. Following the stairs, through a flight of overhang steps of an uncertain date, we arrive to the upper room. This vaulted second floor, which combines medieval openings and more recent ones, had important water damages on the cracks along the curved surface. On this level there is a staircase inside the central turret that leads to the rooftop. The curved hall where it finished is one of the most atrocious interventions implemented in the 1940s, with poorly made mullioned windows along its perimeter, which had to be corrected with less picturesque proportions.  Sections The solution for the former wine cellar is remarkable. Now it is a sample and wine tasting room with independent access from the outside. A metal structure, that reminds of the old metal wine racks still present in some homes, was designed a separate piece of furniture, set apart from the walls, to allow a full view of the vaulted room. The ceiling was used for a small lecture hall, with an entrance from the “plaza de armas”.  Courtesy of Riaño+ arquitectos The stone structure is not covered when its quality and authenticity deserve it. It was cleaned and repointed with a finish similar to that of the exterior walls. A similar criterion was applied to the brick arches and vaults which, against some theories, were never un-plastered and even it they were, its state of superficial deterioration did not allow its recovery.  Courtesy of Riaño+ arquitectos Las fábricas pétreas, se dejan vistas, siempre que su calidad y autenticidad lo aconsejen, limpias y rejuntadas con acabado similar al de los paños exteriores. Los arcos y abovedados de ladrillo pasan por un criterio similar, definiendo un revoco para las dos bóvedas de cañón, que en contra de algunas teorías, debe decirse que nunca estuvieron vistas, y aunque así hubiese sido, su estado de deterioro superficial no permite la recuperación. Los huecos exteriores se cerraron con perfilería de acero inoxidable, tratada al chorro de arena, siempre practicables y con sección de mínimo impacto que permita la completa percepción del hueco medieval. Las dos salas principales quedan directamente conectadas por escalera de caracol metálica con tablero continúo de madera curvada en barandilla. A todo esto se accede por una nueva escalera exterior de peldañeado metálico, envuelta en dos planos paralelos de chapón de acero corten.  Courtesy of Riaño+ arquitectos The exterior openings were closed with stainless steel profile, sandblasted, always accessible and with a minimum impact section to allow the full perception of the medieval opening. The two main halls are directly connected by a spiral staircase with a solid curved wood frame as a banister. The access to this whole area is through a new exterior staircase with metal steps, wrapped in two parallel COR-TEN steel plates.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Sergei Tchoban: “We Cannot Avoid Looking At Architecture; Architecture Should Be Beautiful” Posted: 29 Dec 2016 01:30 AM PST  Music- & Lifestyle Hotel nhow, 2010, Berlin. Image © Thomas Spier After receiving his education at the Repin Institute for Painting, Sculpture and Architecture in St. Petersburg, Sergei Tchoban moved to Germany at the age of 30. He now runs parallel practices in both Berlin and Moscow, after becoming managing partner of nps tchoban voss in 2003 and co-founding SPEECH with Sergey Kuznetsov in 2006. In 2009, the Tchoban Foundation was formed in Berlin to celebrate the lost art of drawing through exhibitions and publications. The Foundation's Museum for Architectural Drawing was built in Berlin in 2013 to Tchoban's design. In this latest interview for his "City of Ideas" series, Vladimir Belogolovsky spoke to Tchoban during their recent meeting in Paris about architectural identities, inspirations, the architect's fanatical passion for drawing, and such intangibles as beauty.  Benois House, 2008, Saint Petersburg. Image © Roland Halbe Vladimir Belogolovsky: How would you define the main objectives of your architecture and what are your goals? Sergei Tchoban: In my passion for architecture, I am guided primarily by cities and urban mise-en-scène situations that I enjoy most, and the ones that I really like, I immediately try to capture on paper. More so, my drawings typically are finished compositions, unlike quick sketches that most architects do on their trips. I have a very straightforward attitude toward architecture. I always ask one simple question – would I want to draw one of my own projects or my colleagues' projects? This criterion may be frivolous, but, in fact, it is quite rigorous. In my projects, I try to go beyond the boundaries of the accustomed Modernist minimalism, which is based on producing a particular perfection of the architectural detail, but does not quite reach that atmospheric environment, which we admire in our favorite cities. VB: What are those cities that you refer to as your favorite? ST: I think many of us will name Paris, Venice, Rome, or St. Petersburg, my hometown.  Granatny 6, 2010, Moscow. Image © Aleksey Naroditsky VB: All of these cities are historical. Is there a hidden message in your choices? ST: Well, I also like London and Milan where contemporaneity plays an important and contrasting role in its dialogue with historical fabric. There are numerous theories about Modernist and contemporary architecture, but we rarely reflect on what role this architecture may play in the totality of a historical city. In its most acute manifestations, contemporary architecture tends to contrast greatly with its surroundings – either by having a complex geometry or assuming an ascetic character. In my opinion, however, there should not be that much of this strong contrast. That's why I prefer contemporary architecture that features richness of details. I am also concerned about how new architecture is built in young cities without historical layers. Can we create an organic composition or orchestra, so to speak, by relying only on uncompromisingly modern architecture? What I am saying is that we may come up with an orchestra made up of just instruments of a particular range, such as percussion. But I see architecture as something more varied. To achieve this diversity it is important to pay attention to surfaces and details.  House Langenzipen, 2006, Saint Petersburg. Image © Bernhard Kroll VB: In one of your interviews, you said, "I would set the following main goal before contemporary architects: without literally imitating artistic techniques of the past there should be a real desire to achieve the level of complexity, which was characteristic to historical architecture and yet the gains of Modernism should not be lost." Why do you think new architecture is less complex than historical architecture? ST: Historical architecture is more complex in terms of its surfaces. Buildings are perceived from different perspectives. From afar, they are recognized as silhouettes and forms. From history, we know cupolas, spires, minarets, and other prominent features that assumed special roles in the structure of a city. But a city is not just a panorama. Any city is whatever opens up from the level of a pedestrian who perceives it from their own height. From this perspective, the city is experienced on the level of details, and it is historical architecture that is much more saturated with details and has more complex surfaces than contemporary architecture offers. This complexity is not translated well into our times. That's why we often get disappointed, when we come closer to a contemporary building, which by means of its form may be quite complex. The skin of such building is not as interesting as its form might have suggested and promised from a distance. Of course, there are exceptions, but if we are talking about mass, contextual architecture, then it loses to historical examples as far as its attention to details. Furthermore, when we discuss such details we also should not forget about different climate conditions. Cities in the south can afford to have more minimalist buildings than in the north. I, for the most part, work in northern cities where a dim light and frequent rain or snow don't go well with the minimalist approach. People miss the detailed language, complexity of materials, and rich texture of buildings from the past. And if we examine the latest tendencies we will see that architects have been paying more attention to these issues lately. There are many new buildings which use textured brick laid in complex patterns. There has been an ongoing investigation in this direction. And today we see fewer examples of openly ascetic Modernism integrated into historical surroundings. Architects are trying to bring more artistry and plasticity into contextual architecture with the use of layered materials and complex patterns.  Seasons Ensemble, 2013, Saint Petersburg. Image © Aleksey Naroditsky VB: To give some reference, which architects from any historical period do you admire most and could you name some of their buildings that you particularly enjoy? ST: I love spending time in Vienna where I enjoy visiting buildings by Otto Wagner. I love the duality of Adolf Loos' famous Ornament and Crime manifesto despite the fact that he used marble's natural pattern as ornament. His architecture teaches me one thing – there can be no buildings without details. You can't deny that our eye demands complexity. We look at a tree and take pleasure in observing its leaves – that is a fact.  Hamburger Hof, 2010, Berlin. Image © Roland Halbe VB: You were educated in Russia and spent most of your professional life in Germany. Now that you've been practicing in both circumstances for many years do you see significant differences in how architecture is done in these countries? ST: In Russia, there is less preoccupation with self-expression and search for a unique individualistic path. VB: Do you think there is a strong preoccupation with self-expression in Germany? ST: Sure. You can always distinguish German projects from non-German. Just as we can easily distinguish Italian Baroque from French, right?  Tuchfabrik, 2016, Berlin. Image © Werner Huthmacher VB: What makes German architecture German? ST: Dryness, accuracy in the details, respect for context, the refusal to use deliberately extravagant forms. VB: Is this approach championed in academia? ST: I don't think so. But it is in the air there. Countries are different. The world is not global. VB: Do you think of yourself more as a German architect or Russian? ST: In Germany, I work for the German environment and in Russia for the Russian one. How can you design in the same way in Germany and Russia?  Actor Galaxy, 2015, Sotchi. Image © Aleksey Naroditsky VB: When one looks at your projects what often stands out are such features as deep, battened up cantilevers, and a striving to be elevated high up. Where do you derive your inspirations for this imagery? ST: My work is divided into two distinctly different groups – contextual with buildings that fit naturally into their surroundings and landmarks, which can be much higher, go over their neighbors, even crisscross with them. Such buildings are situated in a more complex dialogue with their environment. It is this theme of juxtaposing different layers – historical and geometric – that is the most urgent in architecture.  Living Levels, 2015, Berlin. Image © Roland Halbe VB: And yet, where do your images come from? ST: They emerge out of my drawings. I travel a lot and I spend a lot of time drawing. I am interested in traditional mise-en-scène situations in historical cities, details of individual buildings, and contrasts occurring when historical and contemporary layers overlap. These drawings come naturally into my projects. For me a city is like a play in a theater and my buildings perform different roles. There are ordinary buildings and extraordinary ones that perform leading roles. Architects should also know well how to design ordinary buildings. There must be a hierarchy of roles. Not all roles should be leading.  Museum for Architectural Drawing, 2013, Berlin. Image © Roland Halbe VB: Where did the idea of forming and building a new Museum for Architectural Drawing, that you started in Berlin a few years ago, come from? ST: In my opinion a drawing should be a key to the understanding of architecture – what is there to like or dislike, where do architects' ideas come from, how do these ideas make it to paper, and what is important in this process. The Museum is a collaborative project with my former partner at SPEECH, Sergey Kuznetsov who is now the chief architect of Moscow. The museum mainly invites other collections from museums and foundations where architectural graphics is buried in archives and is rarely put on display. So far, we presented original drawings by Piranesi from Sir John Soane's Museum in London, drawings from the Albertina in Vienna, the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and now we are working on another exhibition with the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. We also exhibited personal shows of such architects as Peter Cook, Lebbeus Woods, and Alexander Brodsky. We present architecture drawn on paper in all its forms. I am a passionate draftsman and I believe that an architectural drawing is an autonomous work of art.  Museum for Architectural Drawing, 2013, Berlin. Image © Roland Halbe VB: You initiated and curated numerous exhibitions and twice presented Russia in Architecture Biennales in Venice. What do you like about playing a role of a curator? What can an architect learn from being a curator? ST: I love curating exhibitions. For example, now I am designing a space for a very special exhibition of over 40 works from the Vatican, including such masterpieces as by Rafael, Caravaggio, and Perugino. We are working on this show together with the architect from Moscow, Agniya Sterligova. I am interested in creating closed spaces, which let you be immersed in a unique atmosphere.  Museum for Rural Labour, 2015, Zvizzhi. Image © Dmitry Chebanenko VB: Could I say that these exhibitions for you are a sort of laboratory where you derive ideas for your architectural projects? ST: The opposite is true. Some of my unrealized dreams in architecture emerged in my exhibition projects. For example, I always loved drawing spherical and helispherical spaces. I finally realized this idea of a pantheon built as a dome in my exhibition project for the Russian Pavilion at the 13th Venice Architecture Biennale in 2012. In that project, I fused fantasies of such architects as Ledoux and Boullée, and realized a dream project of a person entering an ideal space, a sphere.  Russian Pavilion at the 13 th Biennale in Venice, 2012. Image © Patricia Parinejad VB: I have known you for a long time and read many of your texts and interviews. Would you agree that one word that you use more often than others is beauty? ST: I agree. VB: Yet, it is also true that this term, "beauty," is hardly used by architects nowadays and it is also avoided by most artists. ST: There is a difference. We are free not to look at paintings, but we cannot avoid looking at architecture; architecture should be beautiful. I associate beauty with such notions as tension, complexity, contradiction – all of these characteristics. Moreover, such a definition as contrasting harmony also impresses me a lot, since the harmony of contradictions and not only similarities could be nowadays considered as beauty. All of this is part of the search for an attractive artistic gesture.  Seasons Ensemble, 2013, Saint Petersburg. Image © Aleksey Naroditsky VB: Drawing is one of your main passions. What do you think about when you draw? ST: I'm always thinking and talking about the combination and contrast, as well as the coexistence of different elements of the environment. I'm asking myself how to transmit it into graphics. This is endlessly fascinating and I am very passionate about drawing.  The White, 2016, Berlin. Image © Werner Huthmacher 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 |
| Posted: 29 Dec 2016 01:00 AM PST  © Leonardo Finotti
 © Fazenda Catuçaba | E. Rengade From the architect. Living in Remote Landscapes MINIMOD CATUÇABA is a primitive retreat with a contemporary reinterpretation, which more than an object aims to become an every-remote-landscape experience.  © Leonardo Finotti MINIMOD presents an alternative to traditional construction: based on prefab plug&play logics, it incorporates the benefits that a newly-born industry has to offer. Quiet but not shy, its unique-in-Brazil CLT Wood-Technology combines industrialized products`efficiency and new technologies` sustainability with the sensitivity of the natural material par excellence.  © Leonardo Finotti MINIMOD exploration started in 2009 and still goes on. It`s very first prototype was constructed in Porto Alegre and installed near a lake in the southern wild landscapes. Happily, since then, quite a lot of new places have been explored. Both projects here presented belong to a new MINIMOD generation which inquires the idyllic Fazenda Catuçaba.  Isometric This old Fazenda is located in the east of São Paulo Estate surrounded by a chain of coastal mountains. With undulating landscapes and dense vegetation, its captivating views invites to be explored.  © Leonardo Finotti  Floor Plan  © Leonardo Finotti Catuçaba`s MINIMODs move away from the old central house and seek the perfect terrain for being introduced. On top of a hill, on the edge of a small pond, near a stream or on the bottom of a valley; each adapts to its new landscapes to empower them.  © Leonardo Finotti Both MINIMOD Catuçaba have been built in a factory in an industrial town near São Paulo metropolis. They were transported separated by modules for over 150km, before being installed on site with the help of crane trucks.  © Fazenda Catuçaba | E. Rengade  Floor Plan  © Leonardo Finotti Geographically, this two MINIMOD Catuçaba first units are located in different places 1.000m away from each other. So they adopt different spatial configurations as a response for each situation.  © Leonardo Finotti The first one, is located in a strategic position on top of a hill, taking a cross disposition on plan. Thus, each space of the shelter looks at a different cardinal point permitting a circular experience of the surrounding nature: dawn, day, sunset and night.  © Leonardo Finotti The second one, it`s placed turning their backs to the road and opening itself to a small pond in the south of the fazenda, the retreat is hidden among the vegetation of the place. Using the same amount of modules that the cross, but organized in a linear way, it stays parallel to the hill slope which integrates through an expansion deck.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| This Architect Fuses Art and Science by Hand Illustrating the Golden Ratio Posted: 29 Dec 2016 12:00 AM PST  Courtesy of Rafael Araujo Rafael Araujo is a Venezuelan architect and illustrator who at the age of fifteen began to observe intelligent patterns in nature, giving rise to his interest in the golden ratio located in our natural environment. The artist's illustrations give his ability to represent the mathematical brilliance of the natural world, inciting the reunion of humans with nature. Illustrations that seem to come from a technological team, are made entirely by hand, mixing mathematical perfection with the artistic performance of Araujo. Most of us observe a simple butterfly flutter, the artist visualizes a complex mathematical framework that regulates movements subtle flight.  Courtesy of Rafael Araujo Through the application of growth patterns governed by golden ratio's geometric formulas, the secrets of carefully detailed designs of natural spirals, sequences and proportions unfolds.  Courtesy of Rafael Araujo Butterflies, sea shells, leaves, and snails, frame the lines of construction that stand out from this mathematical picture. Through this meticulous work, which can take up to 100 hours to complete a single composition, we are able to observe the application of golden ratio that traces the pi number throughout our environment, repetitively, over and over again, with designs which clearly gravitate around this mathematical framework.  Courtesy of Rafael Araujo Rafael Araujo has presented at CNN World, Wired Magazine, WWF, and exhibited at Stanford University and many other prestigious galleries.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Architecture Documentaries To Watch In 2017 Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:00 PM PST Following our favorite Architecture Documentaries to Watch in 2015, our top 40 Architecture Docs to Watch in 2014, and our choice 30 Architecture Docs to Watch in 2013, we're looking ahead to 2017! Our latest round up presents a collection of the most critically acclaimed, popular and often under-represented films and documentaries that provoke, intrigue, inform and beguile. From biopics of Eero Saarinen, Frei Otto and Laurie Baker, to presentations of Chinese "palaces" and the architecture of Africa, Cambodia and India, these are our top picks. Links to watch or pay-to-stream the documentaries presented have been provided where available. In some cases, the films have been embedded in this article. Building Africa: Architecture of a Continent / BBC60 minutes (2005) / Narrated by David Adjaye This BBC film, which originally aired in 2005, is a journey from the "eerily beautiful" mud buildings of Mali to Italian dictator Benito Mussolini's experiment in Modernism in the State of Eritrea. Narrated by British architect David Adjaye, the film poetically untangles the cultural and imperial influences which have shaped African architecture over centuries of vernacular, colonial and post-independence architecture. From Rwanda to Ghana and South Africa, Building Africa has increasing relevance even over a decade since it was first shown.  Courtesy of BBC Life is a Blow [A vida é um sopro] / Fabiano Maciel2010 / Brazilian (English Subtitles) This is the story of the great late Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer – his architecture, his passion for the opposite sex, his political turmoil and struggles, and his extraordinary biography. Filmed for almost a decade—from 1998 to 2007—Life is a Blow features appearances from the likes of José Saramago (Portuguese writer and recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature), Ferreira Gullar (a Brazilian poet, playwright, essayist and art critic) and Chico Buarque (a Brazilian singer-songwriter).  The Human Scale / Andreas Dalsgaard77 minutes (2012) / English/Danish This film sets out to "question our assumptions about Modernity" by exploring what happens when architects, urbanists and designers put people into the center of their equations. The Danish architect Jan Gehl has systematically studied human behavior in cities for four decades. Using his methods, thoughts and conclusions as a starting point the film takes the viewer to Melbourne, Dhaka, New York, Chongqing and Christchurch – all of which are now being inspired by Gehl's work and by the progressive developments in Copenhagen as a result of it. The Man Next Door [El hombre de al lado] / Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat110 minutes (2010) / Spanish (English Subtitles) Leonardo, the protagonist of The Man Next Door, is noted as "a distinguished and important industrial designer" who lives with his wife Ana, his daughter Lola, and their maid Elba. The house they live in is the only villa that Le Corbusier built in the Americas – in La Plata, Argentina. One morning, the film outlines, the routine tranquility of Leonardo's house is interrupted by the loud noise generated by construction work beginning next door. A neighbor, Víctor, has decided to build an illegal window between the two homes – a decision which begins to obsess Leonardo until, one day, "a fortuitous event presents a controversial solution to the problem." Block by Block: The Men Who Built India's Tallest Building / Landmarc Films23 minutes (2013) / English This is a short documentary film about the life of a unique team of Indian construction workers who are building the nation's tallest building: the Palais Royale in Mumbai. It asks what happens to construction workers when they migrate from other parts of the country to the major metropoli. How are they housed? What are their living conditions? How do they work together as a team? According to Landmarc Films, "the objective is to make others realize the grave atrocities and unfair [and] inhumane treatment of the people who build our homes so humbly, providing them with a benchmark to follow." Built on Narrow Land / Malachi Conolly64 minutes (2013) / English Built on Narrow Land captures a particular moment in Cape Cod when "the spirit of European Modern architecture inspired a group of bohemian designers (professionals and amateurs both) to build houses that married principles of the Bauhaus to the centuries-old local architecture of seaside New England." In 1959 however, with the establishment of the Cape Cod National Seashore, the future of these houses were unexpectedly put at risk. This film "documents an period in the history of Modern Architecture through the lens of one of the most beautiful places in the world." Within Formal Cities / Abe Drechsler, Brian Gaudio2016 / English Within Formal Cities is a film about the role of design in addressing the global housing crisis – no small ambition. "By 2050," the directors argue, "one fourth of the global population will live in informal settlements. Many people," they continue, "will lack adequate housing and infrastructure." Five South American cities serve as studies: Lima, Santiago, São Paulo, Rio De Janeiro, and Bogotá. Here the filmmakers visited projects and interviewed over thirty designers, government officials, and residents in order to put together the most complete of picture of where things are, and where things are headed, to date. Uncommon Sense: The Life and Architecture of Laurie Baker / Vineet RadhakrishnanForthcoming Release / English Laurence Wilfred Baker (known as Laurie Baker) was a renowned British-born Indian architect and humanitarian. Alongside that, he was also an accomplished cartoonist, artist and innovative designer. Among other professions, he was also an architect. He once said: I think I am subconsciously often strongly influenced by nature, and much of nature's 'structural work' is not straight or square. A tall reed of grass in a windy, wild terrain is a long cylinder or a hollow tube; tree trunks and stems of plants that carry fruit and leaves are usually cylindrical and not square. Curves are there to take stresses and strains and to stand up to all sorts of external forces. On top if it all, they look good and beautiful and are infinitely more elegant than straight lines of steel and concrete." You can follow updates about the film's forthcoming release, here. The Man Who Built Cambodia / Christopher RompreForthcoming Release / English This is a film exploring the life and work of Vann Molyvann, an architect whose projects "came to represent a new identity for a country emerging from independence, and whose incredible story encompasses Cambodia's turbulent journey as a modern nation." In Cambodia's post-independence period, Molyvann was at the center of a building renaissance, and developed a distinctive architectural style—known as New Khmer Architecture—that, according to the film, "completely changed the face of Cambodia." Narrated by Matt Dillon, the film studies Molyvann's "lifelong engagement with the identity of the Khmer people, and his attempt to create a unique architectural style that gives modern expression to that identity." The Land of Many Palaces [宫殿之城] / Adam James Smith, Song Ting60 Minutes (2016) / English In Ordos, China, thousands of farmers are being relocated into a new city under a government plan to modernize the region. The Land of Many Palaces follows a government official whose job is to convince these farmers that their lives will be better off in the city, and a farmer in one of the last remaining villages in the region who is pressured to move. The film "explores a process that will take shape on an enormous scale across China, since the central government announced plans to relocate 250,000,000 farmers to cities across the nation over the next twenty years." You can stream the film, here. Frei Otto: Spanning the Future / Simon K. Chiu, Michael Paglia, Joshua V. Hassel2015 / English Frei Otto: Spanning the Future is a documentary about the life and work of German architect and engineer Frei Otto – 2015 Laureate of the Pritzker Prize for Architecture. He "laid the foundation for contemporary lightweight architecture," and his ideas remain fascinating today – decades after he first revealed them. still awe inspiring decades after he revealed them. In one of the final interviews given before his death, Otto explains how "coming of age in the years surrounding the Second World War influenced his work in tensile architecture." The film, in its own words, "takes architecture fans on a journey through a history of architecture that inspires the world of tomorrow." The Destruction of Memory / Tim Slade2016 / English This is a film about "the war against culture, and the battle to save it." Over the past century cultural destruction has wrought catastrophic results across the globe – and these have been increasing in frequency. "In Syria and Iraq, the 'cradle of civilization'," for example, "millennia of culture are being destroyed. The push to protect, salvage and rebuild has moved in step with the destruction." Based on a book of the same name by Robert Bevan, The Destruction of Memory "tells the whole story—looking not just at the ongoing actions of Daesh (ISIS) and at other contemporary situations—revealing the decisions of the past that allowed the issue to remain hidden in the shadows for so many years." Find out more, here. Second Nature: A Documentary Film About Janne Saario / Yves Marchon18 Minutes (2010) / English Second Nature is a 20 minute-long documentary film on budding Finnish landscape architect and skateboarder Janne Saario. It provides "a glimpse of Saario's thoughts and dreams, which float between design, art and skateboarding." Through this lens, it also reveals "the important concurrence of post-industrial areas, sustainable concepts and natural environments, and unfolds the demanding obligation, towards today's generation and those to come, to create positive and inspiring local communities." Eero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future / Peter Rosen70 Minutes (2016) / English "A renewed interest is emerging in mid-20th Century architects and artists, who exploded the comfortable constraints of the past to create a robust and daring Modernist America." Eero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future examines the life of an architectural giant who, in the words of Peter Rosen, "envisioned the future." He also died young, aged only 51, leaving behind a body of pioneering work that still informs and inspires architects and designers to this day. The Complete Living Architectures Collection / Bêka and Lemoine10 Films / English Renowned architectural filmmakers Bêka and Lemoine have, over the course of the Living Architectures project, developed films about and in collaboration with the likes of the Barbican in London, the Fondazione Prada, La Biennale di Venezia, Frank Gehry, Bjarke Ingels, the City of Bordeaux, the Arc en Rêve centre d'architecture, and more. Their goal in this has always been to "democratize the highbrow language of architectural criticism. [...] Free speech on the topic of architecture," Bêka has said, "is not the exclusive property of experts." This year they have released two DVD box-sets of their entire œuvre, which was acquired by New York's Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in 2016. Find out more, here.
Alvar Aalto: Technology and Nature / Ywe Jalander59 minutes (1996) / English While a little dated in format, Alvar Aalto: Technology and Nature is particularly interesting to watch in a time period almost 'beyond' mechanisation. Filmed in Finland, Italy, Germany and the USA, this documentary analyses Alvar Aalto's "uniquely successful resolution of the demands and possibilities created by new technology and construction materials with the need to make his buildings sympathetic both to their users and to their natural surroundings." You can stream the film, here. Architecture Documentaries To Watch In 2015 40 Architecture Docs to Watch In 2014 The 30 Architecture Docs To Watch In 2013  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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