Arch Daily |
- OMA Set to Break Ground on Wilshire Boulevard Temple Expansion in Los Angeles
- OAT 2019 Open call: The Architecture of Degrowth
- Architecture in Black: A Selection of The Best Dark Interiors
- forte_forte milano / forte_forte
- forte_forte paris / forte_forte
- Weeping Willow Villa / Berania Office
- Meow Restaurant / E Studio
- EH House / andramatin
- AD Classics: SC Johnson Wax Research Tower / Frank Lloyd Wright
- HeFei Fei River Central Smart Garden Library / GEEDESIGN
- The Princess Precint / refresh*design
- Le Temps / DC. Design
- First Lessons House / Ray Dinh Architecture
- QÚBICA LOMAS / Colonnier y Asociados
- Spotlight: SANAA
- Foster + Partners and FR-EE's Mexico City Airport Cancelled Following Public Vote
- Charles Smith Wines Jet City / Olson Kunding
- KPMB Architects Designs Stacked Data Sciences Tower for Boston University
- RLD House / LR Arquitectura
- Sasaki Designs a Panda Reserve in Chengdu, China to Aid Wildlife Preservation
| OMA Set to Break Ground on Wilshire Boulevard Temple Expansion in Los Angeles Posted: 29 Oct 2018 09:30 PM PDT  Audrey Irmas Pavilion. Image Courtesy of OMA OMA will be breaking ground on their new design for Wilshire Boulevard Temple's expansion next month. The groundbreaking for the new Audrey Irmas Pavilion is scheduled for November 11. The $75-million project was designed by OMA partners Shohei Shigematsu and Rem Koolhaas. The three-story expansion will include space for the temple congregation, surrounding neighborhood and supportive services.  Audrey Irmas Pavilion. Image Courtesy of OMA The Temple's Audrey Irmas Pavilion will include a main event space, a smaller multi-purpose room, and a sunken garden designed by LA-based Mia Lehrer. The expansion features a sloping facade that angles away from the historic 1929 temple building. The facade features a series of openings that filter light and will guide visitors through the complex. Replacing a surface parking lot at the corner of Wilshire and Harvard Boulevards, the design was formed to reach out onto Wilshire Boulevard to formally create a new presence. The pavilion will be capped with a landscaped outdoor deck by Studio MLA.  Audrey Irmas Pavilion. Image Courtesy of OMA Having won a competition for the pavilion's design in 2015, the OMA scheme represents the firm's first commission from a religious institution and their first cultural building in California. Designed in collaboration with Gruen Associates, the project will interlock the main space, multi-purpose room and garden in a vertically stacked scheme to frame views. The Audrey Irmas Pavilion is scheduled for completion in 2020. News via Urbanize LA  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| OAT 2019 Open call: The Architecture of Degrowth Posted: 29 Oct 2018 09:30 PM PDT  Emily Allchurch, Grand Tour: In Search of Soane (after Gandy), 2012. The engine of contemporary architectural production, and the basis of societies around the world, is economic growth. Global political orthodoxy declares GDP growth is always good; that more is more. Throughout the last two centuries increased economic growth brought with it many measures of prosperity, but for many decades now the limits to growth have been visible on the horizon. Social equity, health and wellbeing, quality of life, happiness and other non-monetary measures of success are faltering while resource extraction, greenhouse gas emissions, waste and toxicity, temperatures, sea levels, extreme weather, and many such indicators of climate breakdown make clear daily that the time of this worldview is running out. The next Oslo Architecture Triennale will challenge the supremacy of economic growth and investigate the architecture of alternatives. The festival will explore the buildings, spaces and institutions of a new culture in which economic growth is no longer the basis of societies. The curators have launched this open call inviting architects, urban practitioners, activists, novelists, artists, researchers and citizens to explore the architecture of a new economy in which human and ecological flourishing matter most – the architecture of degrowth. Institutions of sharing During the ten-week programme of the Triennale, Oslo's National Museum of Architecture will undergo a transformation from a gallery of architecture past and present to a library of architectural futures. For centuries, libraries have provided the spatial infrastructure for sharing knowledge, ideas, stories and entertainment freely and widely. As such, libraries play a central role in breaking free from the growth paradigm. The Triennale library will comprise artefacts and installations exploring the architecture of degrowth from multiple perspectives. Drawings, models, materials, artefacts, devices and ideas will be collected and catalogued, and some made available to library members to borrow and use. The library will be a space to linger and learn, a repository of useful and beautiful objects exploring the architecture of a Degrowth economy to be critiqued, measured, studied and enjoyed. This open call invites individuals and multi-disciplinary teams to propose exhibitive, performative and physical submissions that explore the architecture of degrowth in the context of the new library's collections and facilities. Deadline: 19th November 2018. The deadline for submissions is Monday 19th November 1.00 PM Norway. Only digital applications will be accepted. Documents sent after the competition deadline will not be accepted as part of the application. Contributors may submit questions by email to opencall@oslotriennale.no until Monday 5th November. All questions and answers will be published on the website on Friday 9th November. Download the information related to this competition here.
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| Architecture in Black: A Selection of The Best Dark Interiors Posted: 29 Oct 2018 09:00 PM PDT  © Daici Ano The use of light and shadow in architecture can have several nuances. The traditional Japanese culture stands out for working with spaces of dim light, kind of dull. On the other hand, modern architecture and minimalism work along with illuminating spaces through the use of white spaces and reflection of light as a recurring resource. Even so, black, dark spaces and minimalism also converse in the same language that provides new possibilities for lighting design and use of new materials. We now present you a selection of the best contemporary interior spaces that use black as the protagonist element, generating introspective but dramatic environments at the same time. KLOEM Hostel / IF (Integrated Field) © PanoramicStudio Yellow Submarine Coffee Tank / Secondfloor Architects © Ketsiree Wongwan The Olympic Pavilion / Asif Khan © Luke Hayes Hubba-to / Supermachine Studio © Wison Tungthunya Mystical Game / Feel Design Courtesy of Feel Design Toshiba Milano Salone / Dorell.Ghotmeh.Tane © Francesco Niki Takehiko Yan Ji You Flagship Store in K11 Guangzhou / Karv One Design © Guiheng Liao VUE Hotel / Ministry of Design © Edward Hendricks Mestizo Restaurant / Smiljan Radic Courtesy of Smiljan Radic ACE Cafe 751 / dEEP Architects Courtesy of dEEP House WW / K2A © Nicolas Schimp Sentralen / Atelier Oslo + KIMA Arkitektur © Lars Petter Pettersen MARS Case / OPEN Architecture © Qingshan Wu The VIPP Shelter / VIPP Courtesy of VIPP Jian Li Ju Theatre / More Design Office © Dirk Weiblen Filmax Cinema Hall / Arquitecturia + AMOO © José Hevia Cinema Center in Matadero de Legazpi / ch+qs arquitectos © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG Gabba Hey / CUAC arquitectura © Fernando Alda Floating Penthouse Berlin / Atelier Zafari © Werner Huthmacher Keep It Glassy 2 / Coordination Asia Courtesy of Coordination Asia NAVE / Smiljan Radic © Nico Saieh Siu Siu – Lab of Primitive Senses / DIVOOE ZEIN Architects Courtesy of DIVOOE ZEIN Architects Restaurant of Shade / NISHIZAWAARCHITECTS.jpg?1539204388 "© Hiroyuki OKI") © Hiroyuki OKI Wintergarden at the Northern Club / Fearon Hay Architects © Patrick Reynolds Guggenheim Museum Transformed by Ateliers Jean Nouvel Ellen Labenski © SRGF CLASS Cafe Buriram / Sake Architects © Chalermwat Wongchompoo  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| forte_forte milano / forte_forte Posted: 29 Oct 2018 08:00 PM PDT  © Paola Pansini
 © Paola Pansini Text description provided by the architects. Intimate, but not secretive. Private, in a way that invites to discover.  © Paola Pansini Just as the forte_forte collections erase the distance between the garment and the wearer, so the boutique blurs the line between public and private, between the selling space and the narrative environment. It welcomes and surrounds, halfway between discovery and dream, transmitting the warmth of the human touch, always palpable in the treatments and finishes, in the quest for sublime imperfection. The project, curated by robert vattilana and giada forte, is a harmony that comes from avoiding pre–established schemes. Furniture and solutions mingle in a liquid whole that incorporates signs, traces of travels, echoes of shares memories. The tone of the expression is light, deep and sincere.  © Paola Pansini The spatial story, rarefied and suspended, unveils behind the full–length white curtain that wraps the frontal window and part of the walls. The protagonists are the materials, harmonized in a multisensorial opus that stimulates sight as well as touch, and in which the italian–ness of the hand–made becomes an eulogy to imperfection. At the center is travertine marble, expressive rather than monumental, used in bas-relief, in open or closed grain, in crust or engraved with stripes, for walls, furnishing and, cut into large slabs dotted with colored mosaic glass, for the floor. The opaque serenity of the marble is brightened by the brass that, like a sign drawn freehand in space, lightly defines the elements of the display, with their organic profiles, the perimeter of the mirrors, the portholes and the silhouette of the comfortable changing rooms looking like compartments of a train. The chandelier at the entrance is brass, too. The journey takes a sensual turn as it merges with light: the transparent impalpability of the curtains, behind which lightboxes create lantern effects, alternates with the voluptuous density of the velvet, quilted with found buttons gathered along journeys and lining the walls of the dressing rooms. Pebbles create a mineral lace texture over the stairs. The dreamlike presence of the brass sculptural curtain on which the glass ampoules made by massimo lunardon capture the transience of thoughts and inspirations is mixed with the vegetal and domestic touch of the strelitzia plants that sprout from the travertine vase.  © Paola Pansini The architecture and the display of the products create a physical and metaphysical link between the space and the collections, letting the purity of the line and the poetic purity of the materials do all the talking. Private elements collected worldwide give the story a personal signature: a drawing of a woman by didier mahieu, a bitossi ceramic designed by aldo londi, a jar of glass test tubes bought in a market in los angeles, the plaster bust of a venus coming from a french foundry. Shells, corals and submarine elements underline the evanescent surreality of the atmosphere.  © Paola Pansini  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| forte_forte paris / forte_forte Posted: 29 Oct 2018 07:00 PM PDT  © danilo scarpati
 © danilo scarpati Text description provided by the architects. Each eye, a path. Emotional, timeless classicism, sculpted by hands and feelings. The space is conceived as a story told through materials that define atmospheres and sensations. As in a saga, the narration initiated with the milan boutique continues: the spirit is the same, the interpretation absorbs and shapes the genius loci.  © danilo scarpati The space, positioned slightly below street level, is delicate and welcoming, feminine yet strong. Doing more with less amplifies the emotional outcome of the project, curated by robert vattilana and giada forte. The narration starts from the sculptural staircase that functions as a threshold, a display, a seat and a support. A monolithic step made of pink onyx touches the floor, disclosing the storytelling. The space is permeated by the lyrical warmth of the imperfect human touch, which is always palpable in the treatments and finishes.  © danilo scarpati The feel of the hand–made gives everything presence and character. The balance of contrasting elements defines a harmony full of surprises, in which delicacy and assertiveness fade into one another.  Floor plan  © danilo scarpati Granite takes the leading role: on the floors, on the boiserie and in the furnishing elements. It is granite crossed with luminescent traces of quartz and with brass insertions, or laid in geometric patterns that warm up and morph the stone's masculine solidity. Pink onyx is a feminine and precious presence that punctuates the spatial discourse: a small table, a part of the cash desk, the entrance step.  © danilo scarpati The harmony of lines and curves, of gray and pink, of white and metal is a defining character. A curved wall covered with gold leaf hides and contains the warehouse area; the welcoming dressing rooms are closed by frosted brass hinged doors. Sofas and vases add a homely touch; plants are a presence that further enriches the layering of textures. Mirror triptychs, white full–length linen curtains, chandeliers wrapped around columns add further nuance. A solitary and abstract figurative presence is an emotional sculpture by franco–israeli artist achiam: it depicts the sinuous silhouette of a seated woman.  © danilo scarpati Brass is the calligraphic signature that harmonizes the story. Akin to a light freehand sign drawn in space, it defines the display elements, the shape of the mirrors, the portholes and the silhouette of the dressing rooms, the suspended shelf of the display cabinet.  © danilo scarpati The juxtaposition of materials is a play of light and density: the transparent impalpability of the curtains, behind which lightboxes create lantern effects, alternates with the voluptuous density of the capitonné velvet of the dressing rooms, the serenity of the granite with the metallic warmth of the brass and the firm delicacy of onyx. Ancient stones collected during a journey, small jade stones and an afghan stone stalactite look molded by time. The leather seats – light–colored and perforated like old gloves, studded like an ashlar – are an assertively classic presence.  © danilo scarpati The space mixes tangible echoes, from a touch of bauhaus time to jean prouvé and carlo scarpa, transforming them into suggestions and hints. One feels like entering a dreamy non–place, in which the known and the familiar obey a non–prescriptive logic. The point of view becomes a point of departure.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Weeping Willow Villa / Berania Office Posted: 29 Oct 2018 06:00 PM PDT  © Shaghayegh Namazkar, Mohammad Javad Niazy
 © Shaghayegh Namazkar, Mohammad Javad Niazy Text description provided by the architects. A 2000 square meter green garden which is located in Zibadasht region of Karaj and a cottage is placed in the center of the garden. The client intended to destroy it and generate a new mansion in more expanded infrastructure. The main problem which was visible in the status quo was the lack of space appropriate to his requirements. Moreover, as he loves nature and was not satisfied with this interrupted relationship between an inside of the cottage and the garden area, asked a design which makes a more integrated relationship with the garden. In some way that when they are inside of the home, can observe what happens outside of the home concurrently and can make memories of changing seasons.  © Shaghayegh Namazkar, Mohammad Javad Niazy  Ground Floor Plan  © Shaghayegh Namazkar, Mohammad Javad Niazy There were two weeping willow trees in front of the mansion which remind multitudinous memories. We decided despite making all changes according to their requirements, keep this part of landscape untouched to remain the sense of dependency in some parts of the design and connect them to their past. They asked to have a residential-recreational villa to live there with their two children and old parents. Besides, have enough space for celebration and weekend gatherings with family and friends. We had a nostalgic perspective on the issue. An Iranian family with gathering attitude and respect to traditions. Besides, the client's desire was broadened new horizons more than project issues and looking for new possibilities on a global scale.  © Shaghayegh Namazkar, Mohammad Javad Niazy The concrete white surface with fluid motion among spaces and smooth lines, observes locating in global scope while the brick warm core with detailed bricking and human scale alongside attending to Iranian architecture qualities like sunken gardens, porches, apertures lightings, presence of nature and water and etc., is searching for connection with Iranian contemporary geography. Structure and architecture are completely interlace with each other and indeed the structure of the project is the same as the concept of the project. The concrete surface has designed in some way that whilst responding to architecture concepts, serves the structure and stability of the building.  © Shaghayegh Namazkar, Mohammad Javad Niazy The western, northern walls and the wall on a cantilever which is attached to the base by fillet shape are indeed the shear wall of the project and have a structural function and for restrained the earthquake in three directions. Even the shear wall on the cantilever which does not reach the foundation has structural properties and has connected the roof and first floor. The Structural System has consisted of two parts: First part Waffle Slabs (non-persistent U-boot frames Method) has been used to maintain the delicacy of form and respond to a number of Spans. The second part which we used, was sheared wall to avoid making structural frames in order to use thinner columns and asymmetrical columns. Also in the concrete cantilever part which has minimum 4.6 meter and maximum 6-meter length and 8-meter width, the pre-stressed cables have been used in both sides.  Section 1  © Shaghayegh Namazkar, Mohammad Javad Niazy  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 29 Oct 2018 05:00 PM PDT  Multi-functional activity area. Image © Chao Zhang
 Main entrance. Image © Chao Zhang Text description provided by the architects. Meow Restaurant is a cat-themed cafe that explores the fun of space. The café is transformed from a red-wall warehouse built in the 1990s. With the location of Butterfield & Swire's Godowns & Wharf, which is popular among the citizens, the café is not only a place for fifty lovely cats, but also for cat lovers to have parties, enjoy meals and hold pet salon. Multi-functional activity area. Image © Chao Zhang With the concept of a sharing space for both people and cats, the challenge of this project is to keep balance between the spaces for the two users.  Cat's perspective of the terrace. Image © Chao Zhang All the scales and designs of the project are related to cats. In response to the "forest" as the client referred to, by using an abstract design method, E Studio uses blocks and platform devices to connect different spaces instead of illustrating a real forest.  Model Diagram The black block at the entrance indicates the tune inside. The pine wood buffer zone offers a space for shoes-changing and hands-washing.  Multi-functional activity area. Image © Chao Zhang The river, tree house and other natural features are expressed in a narrative way. Such like the terrace field in the middle of the first floor is designed in the cat's shape. This terrace is used as seats, instead of the traditional ones, to increase the interactions between people and cats, and to hold public activities. The ups and downs of the terrace field satisfy the different behaviors of the customers and cats.  Wave board and block relationship. Image © Chao Zhang Basing on the habit of cats, which is enjoying the height, the designer insert a tree house on the upper level to build a platform where customers could enjoy a comprehensive view. The unique pitched ceiling could satisfy both of the customers' and the cats' behaviors. One could take a break or enjoy a coffee inside the tree house, or just sit and overlook what is happening downstairs and enjoy every minute with cats.  Tree house. Image © Chao Zhang  Tree house. Image © Chao Zhang The original steel-structured second floor was transformed into a dining space. There, the form of the desk vividly illustrates the stream of the forest, and the stainless steel board on the wall imitate the water ripple. The second floor enables the customers to enjoy a more comfortable and free atmosphere, where different dinning spaces are organized, and the unique visual effect contributes to an unconventional experience with cats.  Circle bar. Image © Chao Zhang  Dining area. Image © Chao Zhang In the exploration and development of café, the Meow Restaurant designed by E Studio reveals a modern "Cat Forest" without using any of the real trees. By applying this unique and innovative design concept, the Meow Restaurant welcomes everyone to enjoy a wonderful time with cats.  Exterior detail. Image © Chao Zhang  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 29 Oct 2018 04:00 PM PDT  © Mario Wibowo
 © Mario Wibowo Text description provided by the architects. Situated in Bandung's hillside area, the EH Residence is designed to be a weekend villa for a mother and her children. This 3-bedroom villa is completed with several gathering areas that are connected with one open balcony. Within the site, this villa is designed to be a node of activities that are secluded by the thick pine trees. The residence closed up its own from the main road and opens itself up through the row of glass, towards the descending parts of the hills and the view of the city, in the southern part of the site.  © Mario Wibowo  Lower Floor Plan  © Mario Wibowo  Upper Floor Plan  © Mario Wibowo Bandung's cool climate is balanced with the use of shingle wood on the roof, teak wood in the interior and Ironwood in the balcony area. Aside from thermal considerations, atmosphere selection was also chosen to provide the comfort and sense of warmth in the villa, where the family would gather and rest. Different floor levels reflected the degree of privacy needed. The ground floor of the residence has all the answer to service needs and bedrooms, completed with windows that overlook the view on the south.  © Mario Wibowo While on the first floor has a semi-outdoor balcony, living area, dining area and reading lounge in the mezzanine. This row of areas is separated with a fireplace and sliding glass doors that would be opened daily and connected with a large, long balcony that stretches along the side of the residence. The composition of the mansard roof was developed through constructions and new architectural details, an approach to the locality of the context that is elaborated with new technological novelty. Not only creating a more voluminous space with the fractured form of the roof, but a skylight was also introduced to welcome the sun through the wooden ceiling.  © Mario Wibowo  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| AD Classics: SC Johnson Wax Research Tower / Frank Lloyd Wright Posted: 29 Oct 2018 03:00 PM PDT  © Ezra Stoller/Esto This article was originally published on September 8,2014. To read the stories behind other celebrated architecture projects, visit our AD Classics section. A corporate commitment to innovation combined with Wright's penchant for visionary design, yielded a pioneering yet challenged structure. An expansion of the company headquarters adjacent to the Wright-designed Administration Building from a decade earlier, the tower design expanded on the architect's visions for modern workspace and biomimetic structural systems. Floor slabs cantilever from a reinforced concrete "taproot" core, and bands of brick and crystalline glass tubes enclose laboratory spaces. Reverently maintained yet mostly unused by the SC Johnson company today, the tower can be considered either form pursued at the expense of function or a daring architectural accomplishment.  View of research tower and administrative building. Image © Ezra Stoller/Esto Ten years after the completion of the SC Johnson Administration building, construction began on the Research and Development Tower. The company required laboratories for their emerging research and development department. Despite trials during construction and maintenance of the Administration Building, third generation leader Herbert Fisk Johnson and Wright formed a close relationship, facilitating unprecedented design freedom for the architect. Johnson anticipated a building "in which beauty and function are so spectacularly combined, [that it] will prove an inspiration to the men and women who work in it."  Preliminary perspective view in which tower tapers towards the base For Wright, the Johnson Buildings represent a break from the Prairie style, infusing aesthetics from streamline modern into his materially rich and light driven vocabulary.  View of bridge connection from administration building to tower. Image © Ezra Stoller/Esto Connected to the Administration Building by a bridge, the Research Tower rises 153 feet above ground and bores 54 feet underground. The headquarters are located in Racine amidst wax and paint factories, movie houses, stores and homes. Because the urban site lacks the natural context Wright so valued, visual and physical connections to the context are minimal. The main entry for the tower is located near the carport, under the building. After taking a cylindrical elevator to the second level, a slender bridge sheathed in an arch of glass tubes leads the way across to laboratory spaces. © Ezra Stoller/Esto  Section and Elevation The compact, tightly-coiled vertical mass rises in contradistinction to the expansive horizontality of the administration building. Unlike the cavernous Great Workroom, the minimal floor plates and low floor-to-floor distance in the tower create a compressed space. The administration building, with its impenetrable brick, sequesters workers within a grand hypostyle hall. The ratio of solid to translucent inverts as the largely blank brick faces of the administration building give way to large crystalline bands in the tower.  The illuminated tower at night. . Image © SC Johnson Yet both buildings are cut off from the outside world and articulate the façade as independent wrappers of the structure. Although the predominantly glass walls admit ample light and serve as a glowing beacon at night, the tube construction distorts vision from inside and out. For building occupants, the exterior world amounts to indistinguishable shifting colors and masses.  First Level Plan  Second Level Plan  Third Level Plan By leaving the first floor of the tower eroded, Wright reveals the singularity of the tower's structural support. Second and third floor offices as well as a roof terrace hover on dendriform columns.  Core plan A compact trunk-like core of conjoined tubes provides all building services to support lab spaces: restrooms, circulation, supply and return air, electricity, water, illuminating gas, compressed air, carbon dioxide or nitrogen, steam and direct and alternating electric current. The tower form minimized the length of utility distribution distances in comparison to a conventional low building.  View of tower during construction. Image © SC Johnson In section, each slab attenuates towards the façade, reflecting the diminishing shear and moment forces of the cantilever while also echoing the shape of the dendriform column capitals. The building alternates between smaller circular floors and square floors with filleted edges that extend all the way to the enclosure.  View of double height laboratory spaces. Image © SC Johnson The residual space becomes double height volume, connecting two floors. The slab edge turns up to form a brick clad reinforced concrete knee wall. These 4 feet, 11 ½ inch tall solid walls coordinate with the casework that rings the perimeter. Wright worked closely with scientists on the installation of furnishings within labs.  © Ezra Stoller/Esto Because every other floor is a mezzanine set back from the exterior wall, Pyrex tubes span the height of two floors between brick spandrels. The resulting oversized scale further abstracts the reading from the exterior. When lighting conditions reveal the silhouette of the intermediate floor plate, the tower appears as a crystalline mechanic apparatus. The Pyrex tubes are held to aluminum stanchions with wire, and an inner plate of glass lines the exterior. Leaks caused by the failure of the neoprene gaskets between tubes were a persistent issue until a new sealant was developed. The Research Tower received wide coverage and positive reviews both during design and after completion. Architecture as well as general interest and business publications featured the building, as did two MOMA exhibits during the 1950s. However, building occupants gave a more mixed review. The vertical nature of the tower all but precluded casual interaction, and a slow elevator discouraged stopping in on all but the most immediate colleagues. In addition, the extremely low ceiling height adjacent to the core conflicted with equipment use. As the number of employees and heat producing equipment increased over the years, the building became difficult to heat and cool. The glass tube walls leaked but were "capable of creating a gorgeous visual effect."  View of the small round elevator. Image © Ezra Stoller/Esto In 1982, SC Johnson opened another facility to house its expanding research department. The tower was all but abandoned due to safety concerns – evacuating in the event of an emergency would be difficult with only one tiny staircase. Yet the SC Johnson company has painstakingly maintained Wright's vision and details. In 2013 the tower underwent renovations, replacing over 21,000 bricks and 5,800 Pyrex tubes. Three levels of the fifteen are currently in use as office and exhibit space. Because upgrades to meet building code would compromise Wright's design, the company has no plans to convert remaining floors into usable office space. Starting in May 2014, the tower was opened again to public tours.  The topping-out ceremony of the Tower on October 15, 1949. Jake Stocker, the construction supervisor, is on the right.. Image © SC Johnson The Research Tower, along with the Administration Building, is on the National Register of Historic Places. For more information or to read about the nearby schedule a visit to the tower. Sources Lipman, Johnathan. Intro by Kenneth Frampton. Frank Lloyd Wright and the Johnson Wax buildings. New York: Rizzoli: 1986. Siry, Josepth. "Frank Lloyd Wright's innovative approach to environmental control in his buildings for the S.C. Johnson Company." Construction history: journal of the Construction History Group 28, no. 1 (2013):141-164
 Bernstein, Fred A. "A Masterpiece, With Shortcomings." Architectural Record. April 21, 2014. Accessed at http://archrecord.construction.com/news/2014/04/140421-A-Masterpiece-With-Problems.asp  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| HeFei Fei River Central Smart Garden Library / GEEDESIGN Posted: 29 Oct 2018 02:00 PM PDT  © Shengliang Su
 © Shengliang Su  © Shengliang Su Text description provided by the architects. This project is located above the development axis of the HeFei Financial Business Central, along the South Fei River. This is an ideal location, giving the project tremendous possibilities for future development. By reconstructing the mixed-use building, we hope to redefine the architecture and landscape, as well as interior design and user interaction, thus reflecting the essence of contemporary cosmopolitan lifestyle.  © Shengliang Su In the preliminary design phase of HeFei Smart Garden Library, rejuvenation of project peripherals in order to provide an ideal living space was the essential objective. Through rational layout, complex space optimization, the façade presented meets the modern populace's need for communal space. From this foundation, we placed utmost attention to the project's spatial design, and achieved maximum estate rejuvenation.  © Shengliang Su  Courtesy of GEEDESIGN  © Shengliang Su In the initial design of the library, starting from a cube, we created a curved interface as the main structure through reducing and overlapping of the cube using different construction techniques, ingeniously adapting to the surrounding environment, expressing its gentle and unique individuality simultaneously. We are building a floating island, but not a lonely island. The interweaving influence of the city square, the city main road and green landscape (on the library) will bring a different experience for the public.  © Shengliang Su From a distance, the colour, tone and volume changes with the angles, making the whole building intriguing and flexible. The city square extends out into the core library complex, attracting crowds to partake in activities. The facade facing the water body creates a soft floating cantilever-like reflection, while the façade facing the city highway impresses with it's steady and spacious feel.  © Shengliang Su  © Shengliang Su The confluence of black, grey and white accentuates the intense sense of sculpture impression, while the brown embellishments provide warmth. The interspersed glass and flow of water disperses any possible dullness. Water is light and attractive; glass connects the indoor and outdoor spaces, inviting both light and shade, space and time. Regardless of day or night, natural or manmade, the traversing light gives this sculptural building a sense of spatial transparency and dreamlike reality, akin to a floating island within the city.  © Shengliang Su  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The Princess Precint / refresh*design Posted: 29 Oct 2018 01:00 PM PDT  © Cathy Schusler
 © Cathy Schusler Text description provided by the architects. The 'Princess Precinct' is a rare surviving example of terrace houses constructed in the 1860s in one of Brisbane's oldest suburbs. the building is listed as local heritage with the Brisbane city council, which provided a significant design challenge on top of the client's brief.  © Cathy Schusler  Ground Floor Plan and Elevation  © Cathy Schusler Petrie terrace itself is a major road in the suburb, so turning the residences into contemporary commercial tenancies seemed logical. All layers of the building had been peeled back to its original condition and a structurally glazed façade was added instead. Together with lifestyle graphics this minimalist façade provides privacy to the inside during the day but offers exposure in the evening when the lights are turned on.  © Cathy Schusler The design joins all front yards to one communal space and includes benches and tables to encourage social interaction of the tenants and the local community which has resulted in a cross-pollination between all tenants including a gallery and the existing café next door.  © Cathy Schusler  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 29 Oct 2018 12:00 PM PDT  Interior Upstairs Void. Image © Zhi Xia
 Front View. Image © Zhi Xia Text description provided by the architects. Le Temps Pâtisserie is a popular dessert shop in Fuzhou which has been operated for several years. "LE TEMPS" are French words, with the meaning of "time". The shop owner chose this name because she hoped that both pleasure of enjoying desserts and profound memories could be permanently preserved in spite of passage of time.  Side View. Image © Zhi Xia Rebirth  Interior. Image © Zhi Xia  Interior Elevation. Image © Zhi Xia As described in Bible, "God said, Let there be light. And there was light." Light is the prerequisite for us to perceive the world, which can also comfort our mind. The design team introduced full natural lights into the space and kept large area of the walls in white. In this way, daylight penetrates the windows, falls on the black bar counter and creates fascinating interactions of lights and shadows, thereby forming a unique environment completely different from the outside, making people calm and relaxed.  Bar. Image © Zhi Xia Through integrating new design elements into the old building, designers gave it a rebirth. Injected with vitality, the shop provides people with abundant and delightful experience.  Interior Guest Seat. Image © Zhi Xia Less is More  Interior Staircase. Image © Zhi Xia The shop owner is particular about details. As she said, "Each kind of dessert has its own cooking rules. A tiny difference in ingredients may lead to different tastes. As for a dessert shop, the interior space serves essential function and plays a key role. Therefore, great importance should be attached to its design and details."  Interior Guest Seat. Image © Zhi Xia However, she and designers agreed that dessert was the priority for the shop. So the space was designed in a minimalist style with white, gray and black as major hues, keeping a low profile to highlight desserts. In this way, the interior design doesn't "steal the show", but sets off desserts and embodies the brand concept.  Interior Upstairs Corridor. Image © Zhi Xia For the spatial structure design, the design team also applied the concept of "Less is more". There were some columns with uneven surface in the original space. After much deliberation, the team decided to dismantle these columns, thus creating a "clean" space without any superfluous structure.  Interior Upstairs Void Bridview. Image © Zhi Xia Fun  Interior Guest Seat. Image © Zhi Xia The long and relatively narrow hallway was designed with no decoration. Such "blank leaving" design leaves room for imagination. The large French window brings full natural lights into the space and enables customers to enjoy the outdoor view whether in the daytime or at night.  Interior Upstairs Corridor. Image © Zhi Xia Sitting by the window, enjoying beautiful outside view as well as tasting yummy and delicate desserts, people can have a wonderful time in Le Temps Pâtisserie. A heaven of sweets makes the time spent here sweet.  Interior Upstairs Black Box. Image © Zhi Xia  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| First Lessons House / Ray Dinh Architecture Posted: 29 Oct 2018 10:00 AM PDT  © Peter Bennetts
 © Peter Bennetts Text description provided by the architects. The beauty of this project is the site itself, which overlooks the Portsea Lagoon and Wildlife Reserve. First Lessons House sits low amongst the existing myrtle and tea-trees, at the back corner of the site.  © Peter Bennetts Like many architect's first project's, this one came through family. The owners wanted "a house that allows for as much outdoor space as possible, and opens up to the garden". The challenge was to retain the native bush character of the landscape, while meeting the clients brief.  Site Plan On a square block, the L-shaped house is carefully sited to take advantage of the northern sun, tree canopy shade, existing contours, prevailing winds and views to the lagoon. Charred blackbutt, concrete and corrugated iron were chosen as robust, earthy materials that are softened by the natural light and landscape.  © Peter Bennetts To balance budget and brief, the entire roof and back of the house is made of standard timber frame and corrugated cladding. The costs were then focused on detail of the northern elevation and the view. Large sliding doors disappear behind walls to offer an uninterrupted view and seamless transition to the garden. On rainy days, the doors can be left open to allow the house to breathe, and the familiar sound of rain on a tin roof can be heard. Over these doors, high windows with charred timber battens filter the northern sun and highlight views to the treetops. In winter, the warm concrete floor is the favoured spot for the cat to lie in the dappled light.  © Peter Bennetts The deck is an extension of the open plan living area, and the fireplace is the focal point of the indoor / outdoor living spaces. From Spring to Autumn, most dinners are outside between the Kitchen and BBQ. Cool nights are spent beside the comfort of the fire, watching the tea tree brush spark up the flames and listening to the calls of the nature reserve birds.  © Peter Bennetts A shortcut through the garden is the best route to the Rumpus Room, which is located far from parents and at the end of the L-shaped plan.  © Peter Bennetts The clients envisioned the house becoming a central meeting point to be shared and borrowed by family and friends. A place for retreat, for BBQs and celebrations of all sorts.  © Peter Bennetts Elsewhere on the site, the garage houses surf boards, wetsuits, tools, gardening equipment and the band equipment, but no cars yet. The water tanks, services, clothesline and wood pile live behind the house to the south. Beyond the carport is an outdoor shower and bench seat, under the entry timber batten pergola. The blackbutt front door and battens are a warm contrast to the charred timber.  © Peter Bennetts First Lessons House is an attempt to get the basics right, and to create a house that responds to its context and the owner's daily habits.  © Peter Bennetts  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| QÚBICA LOMAS / Colonnier y Asociados Posted: 29 Oct 2018 09:00 AM PDT  © Agustín Garza
 © Agustín Garza Text description provided by the architects. Qubica Lomas is conceived as a high quality and efficient office space targeted for small high-level companies, which due to internal growth or the desire of upgrading their own infrastructure are migrating their headquarters from the surrounding antique residences.  © Agustín Garza The building is located at the intersection of Volcan, Montes Urales and Arboleda streets, along one of the most valued corporate locations in Mexico City. Because of the previously described migration of office tenants, this neighborhood has been shifting its vocation. New buildings meant for office spaces are being built in lots where two or more houses previously existed. In fact, some of these houses were already being used as office spaces because their size wasn’t any more functional for residential use.  Localization The main idea was to sculpt a black stone and glass block which references obsidian, so common in Mexican handcrafts. The cutouts are used to create private and semipublic terraces along the plot, these elements resemble the context’s scale and create a strong sculptural composition that defines the character and identity of the building.  © Agustín Garza Materials, sober and monochromatic, accentuate the formal assembly and highlight the existing and new vegetation which surrounds and merges into the project.  © Agustín Garza The ground floor and the courtyards that surround the property are meant to be as much permeable to enhance commercial interaction at pedestrian level. Terraces and green patios become extensions of the interior areas creating a dynamic relationship between the building and the city.  © Agustín Garza Typical floor plans are regular with a central core. Terraces in diverse sizes and orientations give tenants the possibility to enjoy delighting views, as well as varied outdoor environments.  Transversal Section The top floor was conceived as a communal sky garden for the building’s tenants meant for different occupations, both leisure and semi-public events can take place in this space. Thus, in its entirety, Qubica Lomas is conceived as a building whose interior blends with the outside, with the intent to enhance quality of life for its occupants as well as the surrounding urban fabric.  © Agustín Garza  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 29 Oct 2018 08:00 AM PDT _Dean_Kaufman.jpg?1477582154 "Grace Farms / SANAA. Image © Dean Kaufman") Grace Farms / SANAA. Image © Dean Kaufman Founded in 1995 by architects Kazuyo Sejima (born 29 October 1956) and Ryue Nishizawa (born 7 February 1966), SANAA is world-renowned for its white, light buildings grounded in the architects' Japanese cultural origins. Despite the white exteriors, their architecture is far from modernist; the constant incorporation of ambiguity and doubt in SANAA's buildings is refreshing and playful, taking the reflective properties of glass and brightness of white to a new level.  Courtesy of SANAA Before founding SANAA, Sejima graduated with a Masters Degree in architecture from Japan Women's University in 1981, going on to work at Toyo Ito and Associates before establishing Kazuyo Sejima and Associates in 1987. Sejima was subsequently named the Japan Institute of Architects' Young Architect of the Year in 1992. Nishizawa was hired to work at Kazyuo Sejima and Associates after graduating from Yokohama National University in 1990, and together they founded SANAA in 1995. Two years later, Nishizawa founded Ryue Nishizawa and Associates, and as such the architects describe SANAA as being made up of three firms, coming together to discuss and critique ideas.  Louvre Lens / SANAA. Image © Julien Lanoo The two architects were the second to win the Pritzker Prize as a duo, in 2010. Capturing what SANAA's architecture represents, the Pritzker jury stated that "they explore like few others the phenomenal properties of space, lightness, transparency and materiality to create a subtle synthesis." Sejima has also commented on the firm's consistent use of the color white as a method to avoid a hierarchy in their architecture, bringing light everywhere instead of being intensified in certain spaces. Their democratic diffusion and circulation of light also reflects on their aim to create feelings of continuity and community in public spaces, evident in Grace Farms, which won the Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize for 2014/2015. .jpg?1477582137 "New Museum / SANAA. Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu") New Museum / SANAA. Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu This layered translucence and unclear boundaries between spaces can be seen in many of their famous works, including the Louvre-Lens Museum, completed in 2012; the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, completed in 2007; and the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa, Japan. These public areas also demonstrate SANAA's ability to construct spaces that people can enjoy together, while still taking part in individual programs.  The 2009 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion / SANAA. Image © Iwan Baan Check out more completed works by SANAA as well as the individual firms of Sejima and Nishizawa in the thumbnails below, as well as more coverage on the firm after those: SANAA's Grace Farms Wins the 2014/2015 Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize Kazuyo Sejima Explains the Influence of Light and the Color White in SANAA's Work Iwan Baan on Light and the Louvre Lens Cloud-Shaped Pavilion is SANAA's Latest Work in Naoshima Kazuyo Sejima's Sumida Hokusai Museum in Tokyo Photographed by Laurian Ghinitoiu SANAA's Zollverein School of Management and Design Photographed by Laurian Ghinitoiu The Berlage Archive: Kazuyo Sejima (2002) Watch SANAA's Grace Farms Come to Life in this Time Lapse Video: Shibaura House by Kazuyo Sejima Video: Teshima Art Museum / Office of Ryue Nishizawa SANAA Selected to Design Hungary's New National Gallery - Ludwig Museum How Chilean Architects Are Helping Realize Ryue Nishizawa's Curving Concrete Cliffside House  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Foster + Partners and FR-EE's Mexico City Airport Cancelled Following Public Vote Posted: 29 Oct 2018 07:30 AM PDT  via aeropuerto.gob.mx Following his election a few months ago, the current president-elect of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, announced that a referendum would be held to determine whether or not the government should proceed with the Foster + Partners and FR-EE's proposed 13 billion dollar project for the International Airport of the Mexico City.
Making good on his campaign promise, a public vote on the project's fate was held from 25-28 October, asking citizens to answer the following question: Given the saturation of the International Airport of Mexico City, which option do you think will be best for the country? The two options given to voters were:
Only 1 million people voted (the country's population is approximately 131 million). 311,132 participants voted for the new airport (the Texcoco option) and 748,335 voted to refurbish the existing airport. Despite this low turnout - less than 1% - the vote is purported to be binding. So far no official statements have been made by Foster + Partners or FR-EE. However, Fernando Romero, the founder of FR-EE, shared a tweet written by Juan Pablo Castañon, President of the Business Coordinating Council (translated below).
According to El Financiero, there is speculation that the cancellation of the New International Airport for Mexico City may open the door for Mexico to be taken to international courts. Moisés Kalach, coordinator of the Strategic Neurological Advisory Board, stated that this is one of the conclusions of a study carried out by private initiative. Following the vote, the current president-elect publicly endorsed the Santa Lucia project (the refurbishment option, listed first in the public vote), pointing out that the current airport will be improved and the Toluca Airport will be reactivated.  Proposal for refurbishing the Santa Lucía air base. Image © Grupo Riobó
See more about the Santa Lucía project, headed up by Grupo Riobó, here.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Charles Smith Wines Jet City / Olson Kunding Posted: 29 Oct 2018 07:00 AM PDT  © Nic Lehoux
 © Nic Lehoux Text description provided by the architects. Originally a Dr. Pepper bottling plant and later a recycling center, the design of Charles Smith Wines Jet City preserves as much of its hard-won industrial patina as possible, while opening up the building to the surrounding Seattle neighborhood, the runways of Boeing Field, and dramatic views of Mt. Rainier. On top of the building, nearly seven-foot-tall letters wrap the building in billboard fashion, announcing "Charles Smith Wines Jet City."  © Nic Lehoux The former 32,000 square-foot building is composed of two structures, a two-floor office building and a contiguous open-structure steel truss warehouse. Together, they provide space for everything from grape crush to barrel storage and bottling, to tasting rooms and sales. The transformation of this 1960s era building involved the removal of a portion of the exterior street-side façade replacing it with a 19x60-foot span of windows, opening the building up to the neighborhood and views.  © Nic Lehoux Once through the twenty-foot-tall steel entry door, visitors have the choice of two tasting rooms. The rustic, entry-level lounge features polished concrete floors, exposed wood joists, sliding black steel wall panels, wood cocktail tables made from laminated salvaged 6 x 6's, and a bar made of stacked, salvaged wood.  © Kevin Scott "With wine, we talk so much about the 'terroir,' about the soil in which the grapes grow," Smith said. "In the same sense, I wanted Jet City to be connected to the fabric of Georgetown, to celebrate that proud history of manufacturing and aviation in our region. Wine has a history just like Georgetown. It's the past, it's now, it's forever."  © Nic Lehoux A plate-steel staircase inserted into the original structure connects the first-floor lounge to the expansive second-floor tasting room. The winery's second story effectively captures an early 1960s aviation vibe with its original wood floor planks, white tuck-and-roll upholstered perimeter seating, and center stage powder-blue Lucite-topped bar on wheels. This tasting room overlooks the runways of Boeing Field and provides dramatic views of Mt. Rainier, while a second set of interior windows allows guests to view the winemaking process.  © Nic Lehoux  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| KPMB Architects Designs Stacked Data Sciences Tower for Boston University Posted: 29 Oct 2018 06:00 AM PDT  Data Sciences Center. Image Courtesy of KPMB Architects KPMB Architects have released a design to construct a 17-floor tower for Boston University's new Data Sciences Center. Located on the university's main Charles River campus, the project will become the tallest building at the university. The vertical design was made to bring together the mathematics, computer science and statistics departments under one roof. Overlooking the Boston skyline and the Charles River, the stacked design will become a new landmark for Boston University.  Data Sciences Center. Image Courtesy of KPMB Architects In spring 2013, the University's leadership team held a design competition to "find an architect that would make a statement," says Robert A. Brown, BU president. They selected Toronto-based KPMB Architects to construct a building that would "mark the dynamic change in the University and talk about the century we're in"—one driven by computational and data sciences. Boston University invited a range of architects to submit for the design, including Safdie Architects, KPMB, Kohn Pedersen Fox, Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, and Elkus Manfredi Architects. KPMB's tower design was created with building spaces that "spiral" around an interior atrium for spontaneous encounters.  Data Sciences Center. Image Courtesy of KPMB Architects  Data Sciences Center. Image Courtesy of KPMB Architects The tower project will rise with a 4-story podium topped by 13 floors, each floor slightly off center from the one below it .The design includes proposed interconnected collaboration terraces that form a ramp connecting the ground and second floors. Other floors feature terraces, event spaces, and cafés. The ground floor is designed to be a public space, incorporating informal lobby spaces and general-purpose classrooms, as well as BU's Early Childhood Learning Lab. The second floor would house the BUild and the BU SPARK! programs, as well as additional classroom, collaboration, and study spaces. Following an approval process with the city of Boston that could take up to a year, the project could begin site preparation, including drilling test geothermal wells, in spring 2019. The team anticipates full construction to be under way in fall 2019.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 29 Oct 2018 05:00 AM PDT  © Horacio Virissimo
 © Horacio Virissimo Text description provided by the architects. The reflexive analysis of the personal needs that a dwelling must satisfy enables the project to simplify the functions in free volumes in order to promote an inclusive and flexible family dynamic. In this case, the project focuses on the residual spaces that emerge between the volumes that contain the necessary functions for the house. Equally important, these spaces offer flexibility by performing as extensions of the volumes and in turn regulate temperature.  © Horacio Virissimo  Ground Floor Plan  © Horacio Virissimo Functionally, the project revolves around a central nucleus presented as a void, with the purpose of generating an interior microclimate capable of regulating temperature and providing mutual respect between the areas. The project is distributed in three levels. The basement contains service and storage areas. The ground level is designed to ensure family integration and to promote social uses, both protected by the central void.  © Horacio Virissimo On the upper level, the front block contains the main bedroom, separated by the central space from the secondary bedrooms located in the back block. This enables individuals to find privacy within the family. Lastly, the project seeks to procure family interaction through a flexible dynamic towards residual spaces, in such a way that the project can continue to satisfy the family needs through time.
 Section A  © Horacio Virissimo  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Sasaki Designs a Panda Reserve in Chengdu, China to Aid Wildlife Preservation Posted: 29 Oct 2018 04:00 AM PDT  Courtesy of Sasaki Sasaki has unveiled images of their proposed Chengdu Panda Reserve in China, intended to aid wildlife preservation efforts of the Chinese cultural icon. The masterplan for the reserve represents the launch of "China's increasing communication, collaboration, and awareness of its pioneering strategies to protect the species and its native habitat." With only 1,800 left in the wild, the giant panda is one of the most vulnerable species on earth, and are native to only one region in the world: an area of western China near Chengdu. As one of the fastest-growing cities in the world, Chengdu's rapid urbanization will yield to a 69-square-kilometer reserve, providing a framework for the protection of endangered species worldwide.  Courtesy of Sasaki Sasaki's plan focuses on "conservation, education, and research with the ultimate objective of improving [the pandas'] ability to thrive in the wild." The three sites which comprise the reserve are organized by their primary functions, as well as the levels of human interaction and disturbance.  Courtesy of Sasaki The first site is located near the airport, designed for visitors on a brief stay seeking to catch a glimpse of conservation efforts. Envisioned as a "gateway to the city," the Longquanshan Panda Village" will provide an overview of the region's history, food, and wildlife, including the prized native panda."  Courtesy of Sasaki The second site, named the "Beihu Panda Park," build upon the existing visitor experience by providing an urban education center for those seeking a more immersive experience. Linked to the city by public transit, the area will introduce the 20 million annual visitors to the daily lives of the pandas, their habitat, and ongoing research efforts to protect them.  Courtesy of Sasaki The third and most remote area, named the Dujiangyan Panda Wilderness, focuses on breeding techniques and assimilation into the wild. Research will focus on pre-release training "to acclimate juvenile pandas born in captivity prior to final release into the wild.  Courtesy of Sasaki
 Courtesy of Sasaki News via: Sasaki  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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