Arch Daily |
- Alberto Kalach: 'We Have Been Deforesting for Hundreds of Years & We Have Not Given Ourselves the Task of Recovering It'
- 10 Renowned Brazilian Projects by International Architects
- Villa-VR / YTAA - Youssef Tohme Architects and Associates
- Administrative Building Textilverband / Behet Bondzio Lin Architekten
- CTN House / Brengues Le Pavec architectes
- China Museum Of Design Bauhaus Collection / Álvaro Siza + Carlos Castanheira
- Wooden Cube Villa / White Cube Atelier
- AD Classics: Thorncrown Chapel / E. Fay Jones
- Breathing Houses / ROEWU
- Binary House / Christopher Polly Architect
- Wuhan Tencent R&D Center / IDEAL
- Tirrases Human Development Center / Luis Diego Barahona
- Cultural Production Zone / PICO COLECTIVO
- The Little House of the Yellow Door / Mariclé Scalambro arq.
- SHoP Architects Design New Embassy Compound in Honduras
- Guaica Residence / Padovani Arquitetos Associados
- Safdie Architects' Albert Einstein Medical School Breaks Ground in São Paulo
- 2I4E House / P+0 Architecture + David Pedroza Castañeda
- Architecture is a Corporate Product - and We're All Buying
| Posted: 07 Nov 2018 09:00 PM PST _08.42.56.jpg?1540910727) Alberto Kalach is a Mexican architect whose career has focused on creating site-specific works that blend into the natural environment. In his most recent exhibition in Mexico City, Territories and Housing, Kalach shows a series of drawings that highlight his concern for the environment. In these drawings, we can see a master plan that proposes ways of living with an environmental conscience. In this exclusive ArchDaily interview, the renowned architect discusses his initial approach to architecture, his mentors and inspiration, and the state of water in Mexico City. He also stresses how the newest generation of Mexican architects is producing spaces at the highest quality in years. In the video below, press CC for English subtitles.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 10 Renowned Brazilian Projects by International Architects Posted: 07 Nov 2018 08:00 PM PST  © © Gustavo Xavier During the second half of the twentieth century, architects all over the world, specifically from Europe, produced a legacy of renowned, modern works in Brazil. Following the principles of masters such as Le Corbusier, names like Lina Bo Bardi, Hans Broos, and Franz Heep held an undeniable influence on Brazilian architecture. In recent years, the country has been welcoming a variety of buildings designed by foreign architects. Below, we have compiled 10 iconic works by international architects. Museum of Tomorrow / Santiago Calatrava Museum of Tomorrow / Santiago Calatrava. Image © © Gustavo Xavier  Schematic roof and facade. Image by Santiago Calatrava Address: 1, Mauá Square - Downtown, Rio de Janeiro - RJ, 20081-240, Brazil Aqwa Corporate / Foster + Partners Aqwa Corporate / Foster + Partners. Image © Unloop  Floor plan. Image by Foster+Partners  Section. Image by Foster+Partners Address: 299, Binário do Porto Street - Santo Cristo, Rio de Janeiro - RJ, Brazil Museum of Image & Sound Copacabana / Diller Scofidio + Renfro Under construction: MIS Copacabana / Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Image © Marcelo Horn / GOVERJ Address: Atlântica Avenue, Rio de Janeiro - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil VITRA / Studio Daniel Libeskind + Pablo Slemenson Arquitetura VITRA / Daniel Libeskind. Image © Marcelo Scarpis  Floor Plan. Image by Daniel Libeskind  Section. Image by Daniel Libeskind Address: 500, Horácio Lafer Avenue - Itaim Bibi, Sao Paulo - SP, 04538-082, Brazil Japan House / Kengo Kuma + FGMF Japan House / Kengo Kuma and FGMF. Image © FLAGRANTE Address: 52, Paulista Avenue - Bela Vista, Sao Paulo - SP, Brazil Anhembi Morumbi University | Campus São José dos Campos / KAAN Architecten + URBsp Arquitetura Anhembi Morumbi University | Campus São José dos Campos / KAAN Architecten + URBsp Arquitetura. Image © Fran Parente  Floor plan. Image by KAAN Architecten + URBsp Arquitetura  Section. Image by KAAN Architecten + URBsp Arquitetura Address: 9009, Dep. Benedito Matarazzo Avenue - Jardim Oswaldo Cruz, São José dos Campos - SP, 12216-550, Brazil Anhembi Morumbi University | Campus Piracicaba / KAAN Architecten + URBsp Arquitetura Anhembi Morumbi University | Campus Piracicaba / KAAN Architecten + URBsp Arquitetura. Image © Fran Parente  Floor plan. Image by KAAN Architecten + URBsp Arquitetura  Section. Image by KAAN Architecten + URBsp Arquitetura Address: 1600, Rio das Pedras Avenue - Piracicamirim, Piracicaba – SP, Brazil Arena do Morro / Herzog & de Meuron Arena do Morro / Herzog & de Meuron. Image © Iwaan Baan Address: Camaragibe Street - Mãe Luíza, Natal - Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil Casa Boipeba / daarchitectes Boipeba House / daarchitectes. Image © Michel Rey Photographe  Plan. Image by daarchitectes Address: Cairu, Brazil Iberê Camargo Foundation / Álvaro Siza Fundação Iberê Camargo / Álvaro Siza Vieira. Image © Fernando Guerra  Floor plan. Image by Álvaro Siza  Section. Image by Álvaro Siza Address: Padre Cacique Avenue, Porto Alegre - Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Villa-VR / YTAA - Youssef Tohme Architects and Associates Posted: 07 Nov 2018 07:00 PM PST  © Ieva Saudargaite
 © Ieva Saudargaite Text description provided by the architects. The topographical disposition of this site, with a 25-meter difference between the road and its lowest point, led to a somewhat counterintuitive approach: to view the site as one would, a highly structured piece of architecture. The structure itself was then imagined as a plot with gentle contours. Two expansive roofs, rather like vast sheets, seemingly insubstantial yet solid, trace the outlines of two floors, with living areas on the lower level and bedrooms upstairs. The pre-stressed white concrete structure is taken to the limit of its flexibility. From within, the roof appears to split and crack, letting natural light in through the openings.  © Ieva Saudargaite  Ground floor plan  © Ieva Saudargaite  Cross Section  © Ieva Saudargaite  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Administrative Building Textilverband / Behet Bondzio Lin Architekten Posted: 07 Nov 2018 06:00 PM PST  © Thomas Wrede
 © Reimund Braun Text description provided by the architects. The design concept of the building for the Association of the Northwest German Textile and Garment Industry aims to provide all employees with a view of the picturesque landscape to the north and to welcome those arriving from the south with a strong textile image. The elongated structure is enclosed on three sides by a completely closed brick facade. The volume closed to the east, south, and west and open to the north is the basis for an energy-optimized office building.  © Reimund Braun  Ground Floor Plan  © Reimund Braun The inspiration for the brick facade is the alabaster fold of the Beethoven statue by Max Klinger, which is located in the Leipzig Bilder Museum. Max Klinger created a paradoxical perception here. The viewer sees a seemingly fluent light scarf over the knees of Beethoven and recognizes at the same time that it consists of solid stone. Following this image, behet bondzio lin architekten employ six special stones with a gradient that increases in gradient, creating a seemingly moving facade of light and shadow. The analogy to a light cloth over which the wind blows arises.  © Thomas Wrede  Scheme  © Reimund Braun The separation and easy movement of the building volume creates a pre-area that receives the users and visitors and leads them into the building. To the north, it opens almost completely over a glass facade to the exceptionally beautiful landscape. Due to the north orientation, all rooms are well supplied with daylight and do not require sun protection. This allows even in midsummer the full-time view of the employees in the countryside.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| CTN House / Brengues Le Pavec architectes Posted: 07 Nov 2018 05:00 PM PST  © Marie-Caroline Lucat
 © Marie-Caroline Lucat Text description provided by the architects. The compact and opaque typology of the buildings of the original house did not take advantage of the landscaping quality offered by the immediate proximity of a public park. To meet the need for expansion, the agency recommended that the house is renovated by occupying the night area, giving it more intimate spaces, and designing a contrasting extension, by means of a very open volume for the day spaces.  © Marie-Caroline Lucat  Floor Plan  © Marie-Caroline Lucat The installation of a narrow extension has been designed to occupy all the exterior. This layout generates a clearer reading and identifies spaces, such as the new entrance to the north, or the pool to the south. With reference to the Farnsworth House by Mies Van Der Rohe, the typology of the construction translates into a rational and assertive black metal frame, allowing total transparency, and alternating volumes of glass and lounge terraces.  Axonometry 1 The level of the extension is a midpoint between the level of the existing house, too elevated compared to the garden. The staircase, the only physical contact with the original house, allows the different levels to be connected. A trick of light makes the transition between the two epochs. The horizontality of the structure emphasizes the randomness of the vegetation and the trees of the park.  © Marie-Caroline Lucat  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| China Museum Of Design Bauhaus Collection / Álvaro Siza + Carlos Castanheira Posted: 07 Nov 2018 04:00 PM PST  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG
 © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG Text description provided by the architects. The Chinese Academy of Art (CAA) in Hangzhou has two campuses. One is in the city center, near West Lake, and a new larger campus is in the outskirts. The presence of the architect Wang Shu is ubiquitous on the new campus: most of its buildings were designed by him. When we started on this work, he had not yet received the 2012 Pritzker Prize. The help that we received from both of him and his architect wife Lu Wenyu during the early stages of our work – and even today -, were and continue to be fundamental.  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG The huge CAA collection and its recent acquisition of a large set of originals items from the Bauhaus School prompted the idea of a museum for the permanent collection along with other works and temporary exhibitions. We were given a characteristic museum brief, apart from some specific features. The huge campus was already nearly fully occupied. There was only one area still available on the south-eastern edge, at the intersection of two major roads in this expanding area. The available land has a triangular shape, with the planning restrictions of an urban and environmental nature that defined the building's possible footprint and volume.  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG The internal layout seeks to facilitate smooth visitor flow and flexibility in the use of spaces. Being an art academy, its main purpose will be to display the results of different activities, languages, and techniques deployed by students and teachers, as well as to receive guests. The basement is planned to house the technical areas, archives, service areas, and a café connected directly to a triangular courtyard in the center f the building. Above it, the ground floor contains the entrance, public and rest areas, distributions, temporary exhibition halls, and auditoriums. A mezzanine level permits circulation and a ramp link to the roof garden above the east-facing volume.  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG  First Floor Plan  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG The top floor of this volume is for the permanent exhibition of the Bauhaus collection. The administration areas, workshops for young artists and also some of the infrastructure are on the south-facing upper floors. Red Agra sandstone from India will define the volumes and the exterior cladding. Some of the planes, especially inside the triangular volume, will be clad with white marble. The frames will be in be aluminum/wood. A free-standing volume in white concrete, inserted perpendicularly to the southern boundary, will be used as an entrance of the general public. Construction will begin shortly.  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG  Sections A and B  © Fernando Guerra | FG+SG  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Wooden Cube Villa / White Cube Atelier Posted: 07 Nov 2018 03:00 PM PST  © Farshid Nasrabadi
 © Farshid Nasrabadi Text description provided by the architects. Moving through Gajot tourism area in Maku, West Azarbayjan, a white building is seen devoid of any ornament, settled in a green context and embracing a wooden cube kindly… An introvert construction as well as being extrovert; introversion comes from its look toward inner spaces while being illusive for the viewer and extroversion is felt when inviting the viewer to the interior space through a platform.  © Farshid Nasrabadi  Design Procces  © Farshid Nasrabadi Architecture of this building was a recreation of volume and space aimed to redefine the relationship between architecture and the viewer; there was an attempt to reflect human feelings through this building and to transform the feelings into built environment.  © Farshid Nasrabadi The challenge of 30-square-meter gross area leaded to a 5*6 square at ground floor and cantilevered surfaces in northern and southern faces at the first floor to meet spatial requirements as well as playing a fundamental role in shaping the form of the building. Ground floor connected to the earth by a platform is dedicated to living room and kitchen and the first floor includes a bedroom and a bathroom. The two levels are connected by a light-weight cantilevered stairway. The upper stairway leads to the roof which is functioning as an observation space over natural sceneries. A pool is added to the western part of the platform to improve natural ventilation in the cosy platform.  Scheme  Section 02 The building is located in a district with virgin nature and domination of nature is obvious at the first glance. The volumes are independent as well as combined and the simplicity of forms is emphasized by utilizing two natural materials with high contrast. Large picture windows are added to permit fluidity and transparency to the environment.  © Farshid Nasrabadi We were intended to build a building which epitomizes its nature and functions as a particle of the built environment to be inhabited.  © Farshid Nasrabadi  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| AD Classics: Thorncrown Chapel / E. Fay Jones Posted: 07 Nov 2018 02:00 PM PST  © Randall Connaughton This article was originally published on August 2, 2014. To read the stories behind other celebrated architecture projects, visit our AD Classics section.  © Randall Connaughton In the late 1970's retired schoolteacher Jim Reed purchased the property where Thorncrown chapel would be located - originally as a space for his retirement cabin. But, after seeing tourists stop along the highway to view the beauty of the area, his vision changed. He imagined a non-denominational chapel, a spiritual place -- one that Jones would later describe as a "place to think your best thoughts." Perhaps its simplicity is what draws over 2000 daily visitors –it is architecture that everyone, not just architects, can understand and appreciate.  © Randall Connaughton The remarkable glass and wooden structure was dreamt up by E Fay Jones while he was both practicing in Little Rock and working as Dean at the University of Arkansas School of Architecture in 1978.  © Randall Connaughton With over 425 glass windows and a repeated column and truss structure, the vertical chapel is like a "forest within a forest," reaching 48 feet high, 60 feet long and a mere 24 feet wide. A central skylight allows generous portions of light to spill through onto those below. Custom lanterns adorn each column and at night reflect off the glass – as if they were lit somewhere off in the forest.  © Randall Connaughton For Jones, the process of construction was just as important as the final object. His practice was unique in that he employed not only young architects, but craftsmen, such as stonemasons and carpenters, whose influence is evident in the Chapel. Every truss was made of local pine – "no larger than what two men could carry through the woods." 2x4's, 2x6's and 2x12's were assembled on site and subsequently erected, leaving minimal site impact. In fact, the only visible steel in the project is the diamond-shaped patterns centered in each truss.  © Randall Connaughton Born in the small town of Pine Bluff, Arkansas in 1921, Jones never had the desire to become as famous as his close friend and influence Frank Lloyd Wright. Indeed, perhaps the words at the entrance of Thorncrown Chapel encapsulate E Fay Jones and his humble architecture best: Please Come In And Sit Awhile, Just As You Are. Sources "AIArchitect, December 19, 2005 - Thorncrown Chapel Wins AIA 2006 Twenty-five Year Award." AIA.org. Web. 29 Jul. 2014. "The Architecture of Thorncrown Chapel." Thorncrown Chapel. Web. 01 Aug. 2014. "Fay Jones Collection, University of Arkansas Libraries." Fay Jones Collection, University of Arkansas Libraries. Web. 29 Jul. 2014. "Special Collections." Manuscript Collection 1373 | University of Arkansas Libraries. Web. 29 Jul. 2014.
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| Posted: 07 Nov 2018 01:00 PM PST  © Jing Ming Cheng
 © Jing Ming Cheng Text description provided by the architects. Taiwan is a densely populated island with a population of 23 million squeezed onto an island, about one-sixth the size of Great Britain, of which most is mountains and rainforest. This means that extremely tightly packed dense development is not only allowed, but it is also actively enforced -both by regulation and market conditions. Linkou is one of a series of new towns being developed along the route of a new high-speed rail link from the airport to Taipei city center. The site for this project is located on a bluff at the edge of the new town with spectacular views across a thickly forested valley below.  © Jing Ming Cheng With an area of just 0.6 HA, this site was zoned to have 7 large houses in close proximity to each other. This creates issues not just of privacy and overlooking but also environmental issues to do with natural light and ventilation. To alleviate this, the flow of air around the external form and internal spaces of the houses was digitally simulated. The external form and internal layouts were then adjusted to maximize natural ventilation. Roofs that tilt up to induce low pressure, internal voids and staircase stacks that allow warm air to rise and openings at a low level all ensure a constant flow of air through all levels of the houses. These strategies also generate the unique forms and spacious interiors of the houses.  © Jing Ming Cheng Despite the close proximity of the houses it was important to bring natural light into all spaces. Courtyards and double height voids, with skylights above, bring light into the hearts of the houses but it is in their facades that the natural lighting strategy produces the most innovative design solution. Continuous metal screens modulate the light and control views both into and out of the buildings. Computer algorithms were used to vary the density of the pattern across the facade creating a seemingly random but carefully controlled blizzard of material which is actually precisely controlled to locally respond to privacy, views and lighting needs.  © Kuo Ming Lee  Axonometric Section  © Kuo Ming Lee These houses represent a new paradigm in Taiwanese housing -moving away from the dark, artificially lit and cooled typology which has dominated since the mid-20th century to a new typology; A typology which is bright and breezy and has stronger connections to the weather and nature outside. Though densely packed and structurally solid they create an atmosphere of lightness and privacy -a welcome refuge from the busy city outside. The houses have already been recognized by the ABB Leaf Awards, 2A Continental Architecture Awards and the Perspective A&D Awards 2018.  © Kuo Ming Lee  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Binary House / Christopher Polly Architect Posted: 07 Nov 2018 12:00 PM PST  © Brett Boardman Photography
 © Brett Boardman Photography Text description provided by the architects. A crafted volume is carefully connected to the retained and refashioned rear of an original 1960's yellow brick envelope to enact clear planning, cost and environmental values in an articulated binary composition - a cellular and private front to the street, with an open and public rear that expands to its landscape setting. The owners, a young couple, moved from Melbourne to embrace a beach lifestyle on the southern fringes of Sydney and commissioned a transformation to their home to accommodate their way of living with Ian, their energetic kelpie.  © Brett Boardman Photography  Ground floor plan  © Brett Boardman Photography The original bungalow allows the cultural value of its suburban type to be preserved within its locality, while also supporting environmental and budget outcomes. Its interior carefully configures a program of bedrooms and service spaces, with vaulted skylights carved within the original roof expanding several spaces to light and sky. A sharply folding intermediary form spatially unlocks a compressed front hall while allowing the location of interstitial courtyards for light, ventilation and multiple aspects at the centre of the plan - in turn promoting an interplay of private and public rooms across front and rear zones. The two-storey pavilion provides a volumetrically expansive double-height living area, and serves as a generously proportioned 'garden room' with large apertures capturing sky and landscape views. Its stair element extends the established circulation condition from the original front entry, while marking a loose threshold for the arrangement of two smaller rooms at one end of its volume - a ground level kitchen and a flexible upper floor sitting room that is adaptable as a bedroom or future study. It provides additional room for the owners to grow into, achieves improved privacy from neighbours and provides desired transparency for unfettered spatial relationships within its volume and across its two parts for strengthened connections to its place.  © Brett Boardman Photography  Section C  © Brett Boardman Photography It employs an approach which enables strong visual connections to the existing brick character from within the new pavilion and creates a dichotomy of two differing material characters at either end within the new volume - while its binary play of considered honey and grey tones strongly reference the exterior yellow brick and grey metal of the two distinct structures. Glazing expanses harness natural light and promote passive cooling and heating, while external retractable blinds temper direct sunlight when required. A northern blade screen and a pinched-in rear profile enable greater solar access onto the generous thermal mass of a concrete wall and ground floor slab - with a cantilevered terrace edge and sculpted step element doubling as seats for enjoyment of the garden.  © Brett Boardman Photography  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Wuhan Tencent R&D Center / IDEAL Posted: 07 Nov 2018 11:00 AM PST  Northern side stairs. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography)
 Exterior. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) Text description provided by the architects. The five-story building along the lake side is a wide mirrored pool. The building is like a modern sculpture, standing in the majestic atmosphere of the pool and the lake. The combination of a variety of floors and a rich terrace space further enhances the dialogue with the lake.  Atrium. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) To further emphasize the interaction between people, architecture and nature, a huge atrium space called the "Canyon" is built into the office building along the lake side. The fence of the fold line around the atrium echoes the body language of the exterior building, and the decoration and architecture are naturally coordinated.  Southern side stairs. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography)  © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) There is a wooden reception island on the left side of the lobby and a leisure waiting area on the right side. People enter the lobby and look forward. Through the bright, tall glass walls, the view of Lake Tangxun will be unobstructed.  © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) There are slight changes in the income of each floor of the atrium, and the hollow parts on both sides of the north and south gradually narrow until they are finally closed, and open stairs with different shapes are provided on both sides to each area.  Installation. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) In the atrium, the landscape structure of a wooden veneer wall covered with square holes is particularly eye-catching. It squats, undulates, flips, and entangles along the ground, eventually enclosing a light, free and private space for negotiation.  Lobby. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) These small-scale building components combine display and communication, and also reorganize and divide the lobby and the atrium. It not only enriches the level of the atrium space, but also emphasizes the rhythm and composition of the space on a small scale.  Dining hall. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) Different from the compact layout and single function of the traditional staff restaurant, the restaurant dining area is divided into several irregular "islands". Multiple differentiated scenes such as deck seating, private rooms, and window bar provide multiple options for each diners.  Dining hall. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography)  Dining hall. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) The heightening space of the top floor office area is fully utilized, and the mezzanine space is partially added to form different scene atmospheres. A few white umbrellas with a stretched membrane structure gently diffuse the lighting to each station.  Atrium. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography) In the Tencent R&D Center, outdoor landscapes, buildings and interior spaces form an all-round interactive relationship. The interior not only shapes the core space of the main body, but also creates a series of miniature fun spaces.  Terrace. Image © Bin Zhao (Unique Architecture Photography)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Tirrases Human Development Center / Luis Diego Barahona Posted: 07 Nov 2018 09:00 AM PST  © Roberto D'Ambrosio
 © Roberto D'Ambrosio Text description provided by the architects. The Center is presented as a new convergence and social interaction focus, directed to increase the human development of Tirrases. It is located between La Cometa Building and Las Mercedes Pedestrian Walkway, and it is a three-story building that hosts a children’s library, classrooms and workshops.  © Oscar Abarca  Plan 02 The project is linked to the place and encourages flexible use of internal space, which is organized through a central area with abundant light and wide visuals. Specific use areas are balanced with internal patios, external squares and a stairway that works as a small amphitheater.  © Oscar Abarca The whole project is based on the ideal use of the site and optimization of economic resource. Built with quality materials, the building is expected to demand low maintenance and have prolonged durability.  © Oscar Abarca  Section 03  © Roberto D'Ambrosio  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Cultural Production Zone / PICO COLECTIVO Posted: 07 Nov 2018 08:00 AM PST  © José Alberto Bastidas
 © José Alberto Bastidas Text description provided by the architects. Cultural units involve a center of urban creation and experimental economies, based on the transformation of a vandalized construction. The intervention proposes to confront the need for collective spaces, as a result of the evidence of huge gaps and precarious structures, common in the center of the city. Betting to occupy a building violated during street protests, for its rescue as cultural infrastructure, articulating a series of initiatives driven by groups of artists and local communities.  Diagrams The project manages to access a state financing program that provides technical equipment and cultural tools, foreseeing adopting shipping containers as devices that will accommodate the spaces, once they were acquired to transport the equipment.  © José Alberto Bastidas The strategy is based on supplying the old building with these devices, inserting multiple structures into a single, more complex system, like parasites that lodge on a foreign body. The design establishes a use of parts and components from modules and patterns similar to the properties of the same structuring objects. A substructure supported by previous foundations. A building assembled on top of another, by means of individual terminals that are added until organizing the whole.  © José Alberto Bastidas The nucleus is able to bring together a creative circuit managed by social groups and organizations, where operates the main telephone antenna of the city, functioning as a hybrid infrastructure that emits autonomous cultural programs and public services. The project brings a battery of spaces made up of an urban garden, cafeteria, image and audiovisual laboratory, recording studio and music room, gallery, multipurpose workshop, skate plaza, sports court and a stage for presentations.  © José Alberto Bastidas  Exploded Axonometric Details  © José Alberto Bastidas  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The Little House of the Yellow Door / Mariclé Scalambro arq. Posted: 07 Nov 2018 06:00 AM PST  © Gonzalo Viramonte
 © Gonzalo Viramonte Text description provided by the architects. This house of the early 20th century, (popularly known as "casa chorizo"), is located in the central area of the city.  © Gonzalo Viramonte As time went by, several transformations blurred the original scheme. Before the intervention the old house was in a total state of deterioration.  © Gonzalo Viramonte The remodeling and restoration project responds to a simple individual housing program for a young person.  © Gonzalo Viramonte The facade and the original internal structure were preserved. However, to expand spaces and create flow of circulation, divisions that had been incorporated in subsequent interventions were eliminated.  Plan The existing service room on the upper floor that was accessed from the patio was demolished. The iron in the staircase was reused in the mezzanine library.  © Gonzalo Viramonte Taking advantage of the availability of height of the living room (characteristic of these old buildings), a new mezzanine space was created, functional as a working area or for eventual guests.  © Gonzalo Viramonte The kitchen, social bathroom and dining area function as a separation between the social area and the subsequent intimate area overlooking the patio. This way the communication between the grill, the kitchen and the social area flows, preserving the privacy of the private area.  © Gonzalo Viramonte The colors of the facade (wall and door) were chosen trying to differentiate from the house next door, to avoid uniformity without creating disharmonies.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| SHoP Architects Design New Embassy Compound in Honduras Posted: 07 Nov 2018 05:00 AM PST  Tegucigalpa New Embassy Compound. Image Courtesy of SHoP Architects SHoP Architects have revealed new renderings of their design for a New Embassy Compound (NEC) in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. In 2013, SHoP was among the firms selected by the U.S. Department of State's Office of Overseas Building Operations (OBO) to realize facilities that will meet its operational needs while embodying and communicating the spirit and highest values of the United States.  Tegucigalpa New Embassy Compound. Image Courtesy of SHoP Architects  Tegucigalpa New Embassy Compound. Image Courtesy of SHoP Architects The NEC's design takes its cues from the mountainous Honduran landscape, forming a sense of connection between the buildings and the surrounding area. The north façade addresses the city, creating a welcoming entrance to the chancery, while the east, west and south facades are more solid. As one traverses the site, the reading of the building changes considerably, from open and transparent to stately and heroic. The material palette plays an important role in connecting interior to exterior, incorporating the copper colored anodized aluminum fins used on the façade and referencing the light-toned limestone, warm, rich woods and dark stone visible throughout.  Tegucigalpa New Embassy Compound. Image Courtesy of SHoP Architects Special attention has been paid to solar shading and thermal comfort, implementing strategies to mitigate solar heat gain and allow for generous daylighting. During the design process, the AE team used various tools, including virtual reality, to make design decisions, modeling all scales to study various construction methodologies. "The process of designing the NEC in Tegucigalpa has been an incredible partnership between SHoP, the consultants and the OBO team," said Chris R. Sharples, a founding partner of SHoP Architects. "Design challenges were met through a remarkably efficient, highly collaborative process between all parties and we are honored to be able to represent the United States in this capacity." The NEC is expected to break ground in late 2018 and to welcome its first occupants in 2022. SHoP is currently working with OBO on several projects around the world, including the embassies in Tegucigalpa and Seoul.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Guaica Residence / Padovani Arquitetos Associados Posted: 07 Nov 2018 04:00 AM PST  © Nelson Kon
 © Nelson Kon  © Nelson Kon Text description provided by the architects. The minimalism of shapes and the straight lines of the design are evident in this residence. This premise came from the client himself, an admirer of architecture and contemporary art. As a continuity to this minimalism and visual cleaning, the closures and openings of the project are presented in a light way, justifying and composing the sectorizations, circulations and perspectives adopted. The main volume featured is drawn by a continuous white line, which merges with the wood and glass and rests on a rocking concrete block.  Ground Floor Plan The concrete marks the private social functions of the house and the continuous white volume houses the service and leisure areas on the ground floor. In the void resulting from the joining of these two volumes are the rooms, located in strategic and central position and that open totally to the leisure area. This same block of concrete crosses the ground in a north / south direction and presents itself on the rear façade with a large horizontal opening. On this façade the rooms are facing north and overlooking a generous preservation area which is also an integral part of the land.  © Nelson Kon This project, designed for a family of 5 people (couple and 3 children), intended to propose a practical home that aesthetically reflects the client's admiration for art and design. As a sculpture, the Guaicá Residence lands elegantly on the ground, taking advantage of the topography to create the internal and external spaces. The entire front face of the residence is covered by a large Uglass glass plane, which creates horizontal and vertical perspectives. As the person approaches, the façade reveals a long swinging metal staircase attached to a crude reinforced concrete structure. The concrete, kept apparent with the markings of the metallic formwork - works as a structural gable and also as a minimalist backdrop of the house decoration - also signed by the Padovani Arquitetos office.  Sections The decoration was directed to house the works of art that go from Alfredo Ceschiatti to Martins de Porangaba; from Geraldo Teles de Oliveira to Willem de Kooning. The national travertine marble is applied in all internal and external environments of the ground floor. On the top floor, the wood appears to give comfort to the intimate surroundings. A large, continuous sliding panel in ripped cumaru wood (vertically) appears on the rear facade as external locking of the rooms.  © Nelson Kon The dialogue between indoor materials and natural lighting takes place throughout the day, creating light and shadow effects, precisely controlling the intensity for each space. At the bottom of the terrain is the pool that was set at a higher elevation, with the infinity edge being thought of inverted. Instead of turning to the landscape, it is done in the opposite direction. Thus, from the leisure area of the house the water frames and continuously reflects the lines of architecture.  © Nelson Kon  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Safdie Architects' Albert Einstein Medical School Breaks Ground in São Paulo Posted: 07 Nov 2018 03:00 AM PST .jpg?1541592816 "Vista do átrio. Image Cortesia de Safdie Architects") Vista do átrio. Image Cortesia de Safdie Architects The first Brazilian project by Safdie Architects has broken ground in Sao Paolo's Morumbi neighborhood on November 6. The Albert Einstein Education and Research Center is part of the Albert Einstein hospital complex. The new center, named Campus Cecilia and Abram Szajman, will be one of the most advanced institutions in Latin America for medical studies. It will feature innovations in learning methods and technologies, as well as flexible research laboratories capable of adapting to the advancement of hospital techniques. "The new Albert Einstein Education and Research Center will provide an oasis for bustling urban life," said Moshe Safdie. "Our project promotes a sense of calm - a lush inner garden with different levels, informal meeting areas, and classrooms masked by an inventive glass cover that evokes the feeling of being under the shade of a tree. The design of this center will educate and empower tomorrow's medical leaders," the architect concluded.  Vista do Campus. Image Cortesia de Safdie Architects Cláudio Lottenberg, chairman of the Deliberative Council of the Brazilian Israeli Beneficent Society Albert Einstein, added: "Moshe Safdie and his architects are our ideal collaborators in this project. Their creations are both functional and beautiful, creating an uplifting atmosphere that supports the mission and aspirations of the center." Located on a sloping terrain, the new center takes advantage of topography and is divided into two wings: one dedicated to research, the other to teaching connected by a landscaped atrium in the center of the building. The program, distributed in classrooms, laboratories, offices, an auditorium, and a cafeteria, is organized along a series of gaps around this atrium.  Vista do átrio. Image Cortesia de Safdie Architects The project is scheduled to be completed by 2021 and, once started, will increase the capacity of the complex to 4,000 students. News via Safdie Architects  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 2I4E House / P+0 Architecture + David Pedroza Castañeda Posted: 07 Nov 2018 02:00 AM PST  © FCH Fotografía
 © FCH Fotografía Text description provided by the architects. A weekend house for a couple was set out in a wooden terrain with descending topography. The best views are located a few meters from the access, in the same place where a dip, that testifies the occasional passing of important quantities of water across the land, is situated. It is right there where we decided to set the house to facilitate the access as well as minimize the presence of the construction in the landscape.  © FCH Fotografía The original proposal was a bridge-house where a large volume, suspended over a ravine will connect the two stone garages supported on 3 points: the guest’s room, the staircase and the grill area. A series of economic blows challenged the bridge project, however, the owners strong will to make the house a reality, even if it was just a part, did not give away.  © FCH Fotografía A minimum version of the project that can grow over time is then proposed. The bridge volume is left for a second phase and the project includes only the construction of the 2 blocks for the bedrooms. The generous master bedroom becomes the living-dining room; the closet turns into the kitchen and the guest´s room becomes the new master bedroom.  © FCH Fotografía To achieve a congruent built volume these 2 interiors (2I) are proposed as simple and independent elements placed one on top of the other. The connections between them and the relationship with the surroundings generate 4 outdoor spaces (4E) to enjoy the landscape.  © FCH Fotografía The lower volume consists of a bedroom facing the forest, with a bathroom in the background. It is a semi-underground volume whose apparent concrete walls generate the garage on the upper floor. On these walls a staircase is suspended from the garage giving access to the bedroom. The entrance is through the first of the exterior spaces: a patio crowned with a tree, limited by a series of walls that allow it to be treated as a small plaza.  © FCH Fotografía  Ground floor plan  © FCH Fotografía The upper volume contains a small living and dining room, a kitchen open towards the social spaces and a full bathroom that will allow the volume to function as a bedroom in the future. The block moves to the west to generate an access and remains suspended over the bedroom creating, on the lower floor, a second outdoor space: a covered terrace protected by the shade of the magnificent pine tree and cedars surrounding.  © FCH Fotografía  Section 01 + 02  © FCH Fotografía The roof of the bedroom, which leads to the north towards the forest, generates a third open space: a small solarium which is accessed through the huge window that demarcates the room. To the south, a second staircase to access the roof top is suspended from the house social volume. This fourth outer space allows enjoying the most impressive views of the land.  © FCH Fotografía The house resolves almost all the interior surfaces with natural concrete. The structural elements such as banked beams, retaining walls and stairs were left apparent; the polystyrene beam and vault roof, as well as the insulating panel loading walls are flattened with a fine, polished finish. The floors were made also in concrete generating a neutral and clean aesthetic that underlines the beauty of the landscape.  © FCH Fotografía The exterior spaces attached to the ground, such as the garage and the terraces of the bedroom, are resolved in local stone in a rustic finish. The solariums on top of the bedroom and rooftop use a polished concrete finish. The sober and pure materiality cleanses indoors and outdoors underlining the beauty of the landscape and converting it into the theme of the spaces.  © FCH Fotografía Nature activates the project, not only by framing it and creating contrast, but by making the neutral volumes the surface where the shadows of the large amount of trees encircling the house project, adding life to these small pieces that converse with the surroundings with small contemplation points. The relation between interiors and exteriors establishes a new dialog with the woods and the mountains.  © FCH Fotografía  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Architecture is a Corporate Product - and We're All Buying Posted: 07 Nov 2018 01:30 AM PST  Google Dublin. Image © Peter Wurmli Architecture, unlike other aspects of culture (such as fashion or music), can only really be experienced and understood in person. For highly branded companies, designing a new building can be a prime opportunity to signal taste and values - but also creates an interesting architectural conundrum. While the buildings will be inhabited (nearly 24/7) by company employees, they're also very much populated by the imaginations of people across the globe. What is it like to be in these places?  Image via Flickr user rjshade This question is so compelling that it was essentially the plot device of the 2013 film, The Internship. Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson starred as two 'loser' guys so desperate to reclaim the coolness of their youth that they take internships at Google. While their hapless attempts to fit into a world they know nothing about makes the movie fun, it also does a lot of heavy lifting on the company's behalf. Working isn't cool... unless you do it at Google. The Google offices have swimming pools and barber shops, and all the food is gourmet and free. You could even take your conference call from a ball pit. Who wouldn't want to work there? It's one thing to see this popular image presented in movies, but companies increasingly seem to be using architecture as a way to brand and signal their particular flavor of cool. And yet, you wouldn't necessarily know this from the street. Driving around Silicon Valley can be a disorienting experience. For all the creativity and innovation centered in the region, it's nearly impossible to deduce this when you're actually there. The landscape is suburban, punctuated more by strip malls and office parks than by the 'town squares' or 'spaceships' or you might expect to see.  Screenshot from video via Apple Big-name (and occasionally BIG name) architects have, in the past few years, attached to tech campus projects in calculated alliances. Apple and Foster + Partners are both behemoths known for their sleek and uncompromising works; Facebook, BIG, and Frank Gehry all cultivate an image as rebellious underdogs, even though this is far from the truth. That corporate offices are now the focus of this kind of branding is fairly obvious. After all, the companies say to the press, innovation can only happen when the space makes it happen. But can these highly-branded spaces actually provide for the needs of the users?  Rendering of the Apple Campus in Palo Alto At Apple, results are mixed at best. The new campus is seductive in images: glitzy sheets of glass seem to appear to hover (just like an Apple laptop), every surface is polished to perfection. But employees have complained of indecipherable circulation, unpleasant working spaces, and long distances. For locals, the campus is even less generous (despite being a major presence): you're welcome only up to a threshold. None of this comes as a surprise. In a review of tech campus designs published in Vanity Fair back in 2014, Paul Goldberger mused: "…it remains to be seen whether this wave of ambitious new construction will give the tech industry the same kind of impact on the built environment that it has had on almost every other aspect of modern life - or even whether these new projects will take Silicon Valley itself out of the realm of the conventional suburban landscape. One might hope that buildings and neighborhoods where the future is being shaped might reflect a similar sense of innovation." What Goldberger seemed to get at, even if he didn't quite say it, is that these branded spaces don't seem to be actual buildings. They're products. The press surrounding Bloomberg HQ's recent Stirling Prize win make this even more clear, with keywords such as 'achievement' and 'most sustainable' cropping up throughout the award citations. "Bloomberg is an astounding commitment to quality architecture." said jury chair Sir David Adjaye in his jury statement. RIBA president Ben Derbyshire similarly hailed the project as 'monumental achievement', saying: "The creativity and tenacity of Foster + Partners and the patronage of Bloomberg have not just raised the bar for office design and city planning, but smashed the ceiling."  © Nigel Young. ImageThe Bloomberg Headquarters in London The building may be a colossal achievment, but it has an equally outsized presence to those actually on the street. The much-lauded public passage is gloomy, the public plazas overly-groomed. This experience is echoed inside: "…[it] is an extremely deep-plan, inward-looking office environment, where glimpses of the outside world are secondary to views back in to Bloomberg's hubbub of 'collaboration and teamwork,'" said Olly Wainwright in his review of the complex for The Guardian. "You often feel very far away from a window, a sense exacerbated by the great bronze baffles that further block the view." The Bloomberg HQ is just one among many of these types of buildings that have recently seemed to gain more praise for their appearance by the statistics and on our screens than on the street. And this gap between the architecture's remote experience (how it is photographed and advertised) and their actual presence points us to whom the design is actually intended: the remote viewers. This should be a concern. When structures become a commodity for remote viewers rather than an engaged participant in the urban fabric, the essence of architecture is lost. And if companies continue to use architecture as an outsized branding strategy, its worth paying attention to who they're selling to. Can design retain its worth for the general public when presented as a value proposition? Probably not.  Google Tel Aviv. Image © Itay Sikolski  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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