Europaconcorsi - Progetti In Copertina

Celtic Museum Glauberg - kadawittfeldarchitektur

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:20:15 +0200

BRIEF A museum for Celtic art, in direct proximity to a historic burial mound. | ADDED VALUE Similar to an excavated archaeological find, the metal body of the museum juts out from the landscape and forms a counterpart to the burial mound. More of a mysterious object itself rather than architecture, the museum should be stumbled upon by its visitors as a marker of landscape discovery.

Photo by Werner Huthmacher. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

CELTIC MUSEUM GLAUBURG | GERMANY The Celtic Museum is a clearly contoured and distinct volume, blending in with the surrounding landscape. Partly inserted into the slope, it projects itself towards the burial mound. Its vital function as an element of the landscape, the museum building amplifies the burial mound’s leading role. Underneath the main volume, one finds the foyer and the café and adjoining rooms as well. Here begins and ends the exploration of the museum’s archaeological trail. A staircase-ramp guides the visitor into the exhibition. In the end, one finds a panoramic window, offering an impressive view of the burial mound, incorporating it into the exhibition itself. The roof acts also as an observation deck onto the scenic landscape and the skies above – so that the surroundings can be “discovered.”

Photo by Werner Huthmacher. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

Kindergarten Sighartstein - kadawittfeldarchitektur

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:18:51 +0200

BRIEF A kindergarten integrated into the landscape like a chameleon (including a crèche) for 4 groups | ADDED VALUE Genius Loci – the first impression of this place in the midst of green meadows and fields leads to the concept of the built playground. The elevated and abstractly stylized “grass” facade of the cubic building brings a certain harmony to the volume as well as an identity and orientation for the kindergarten.

Photo by Angelo Kaunat. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

KINDERGARTEN SIGHARTSTEIN, NEUMARKT AM WALLERSEE | AUSTRIA The inner organization of the two- storey building follows the logic of use: On the ground floor, one finds the space for the kindergarten groups – with direct access to the garden while the crèche groups are kept safe in the floor above. The group rooms are lined up along the south side with direct access to the terrace. To the east are additional rooms such as the personnel area, administration, quiet room and mess hall. The mid-point and core of the building is the multifunctional “interactions space” – a public communication area located at the intersection between functions. The multi-functional hall is a communicative center for children and caretakers, used as a junction for various functions: a space for shared activities and an alternative space for bad-weather activities.

Photo by Angelo Kaunat. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

adidas Laces - kadawittfeldarchitektur

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:16:54 +0200

BRIEF Research and development building with 1700 working places at the adidas World of Sports campus in Herzogenaurach. | ADDED VALUE In contrast to conventional office typologies, the ring structure developed by kadawittfeldarchitektur lends to the building a double relationship to the landscape – both to the outer surroundings and to the communicative landscape of the atrium. The connecting walkways, “Laces”, efficiently open up access to all office areas without the need to cross through other departments. At the same time they transform the atrium into a creative center of the building that provides an identity.

Photo by Werner Huthmacher. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

ADIDAS LACES, HERZOGENAURACH | GERMANY The new Laces blends into the existing World of Sports ensemble as a floating counterpart to the black, recumbent mass of the adidas Brand Center. Its clearly contoured volume positively invites the surrounding campus to find a continuation within its interior, an atrium with a controlled climate. Lined up in a circular arrangement, the office areas with their large glazed surfaces open onto the atmospheric inner space and the remarkable landscaped space. The connecting walkways that cross the atrium, the Laces, “tie” the built volume together, as it were, to form a many-layered office building that is rich in relationships. They enable a maximum of interaction and allow open areas of communication to emerge. As delicate connecting bridges, they weave a poetic spatial structure into the interior and thus make the special creative atmosphere of the building legible. The result is an inspiring place for research and product development.

Photo by Werner Huthmacher. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

Photo by Werner Huthmacher

laces

model

AachenMünchener Headquarters - kadawittfeldarchitektur

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:15:46 +0200

BRIEF Company representation, consideration of the existing building structure, urban integration. | ADDED VALUE Company headquarters in the inner city usually form blind spots, unattractive to the public and desolate after office hours. Therefore, the design is not understood as an architectural but as an urban task with the aim of maximizing public space on the building lot. With a number of plazas, a direct footpath from the main train station and the inner city and the integration of external uses, the area becomes more attractive to the public. The demand for maximum public use and communication dictates the internal organization of the building.

Photo by Jens Kirchner. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

AACHENMÜNCHENER HQ, AACHEN | GERMANY The annex occupies two blocks of late 19th-century city fabric, and provides a new interpretation of the typical perimeter development with its semi-public and leafy courtyards. The urban sequence of expansions and squares is extended by a perron and a plaza evolving from it. Existing and new buildings are connected by the “boulevard” which consists of a transparent level hosting seminar areas, a restaurant, a cafeteria, meeting rooms, and other communication areas. The boulevard floats above the various garden spaces inside the building block, and connects the office spaces, eventually opening up at the main entrance and the pocketpark, offering a representative face to the street.

Photo by Jens Kirchner. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

PATRIZA Headquarters - kadawittfeldarchitektur

Fri, 25 May 2012 17:13:24 +0200

BRIEF Extension of the headquarters and representation. Flexible offices, gastronomy, underground parking. Closing of the gap in the block closure, in compliance with prerequiste regulations | ADDED VALUE The designs reacts to the “relief” façade of the neighboring buildings with a double-skin façade, in which the in-between space expands from 0.5 m to 2 m, thus becoming useful space. With insulated glass on the exterior and sliding doors separating the interior offices, this “winter garden” becomes a place of relaxation or communication or a temporary work space. A new office typology is created with the possibility of an extension from two sides: the combination-zone on the access side and the winter garden zone on the façade side.

Photo by Angelo Kaunat. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

PATRIZIA HEADQUARTERS, AUGSBURG | GERMANY Patrizia Headquarters is located in the historic center of Augsburg – its tilted glass creates a respectful distance bridging the gap between two landmark buildings: the existing headquarters from the 1960s and the Hong Kong House. The horizontally positioned loggia-bands form a dynamic contrast to the 19th century building opposite. The new entrance connects the arcades of the existing building, welcoming visitors through a light-flooded foyer with views onto the adjacent theater. Up to three independent office units, flexible in layout, are created on each floor; and by further staggering the façade’s arrangement, its elegant double-skin glass façade forms an interior space which is extended into an area similar to a winter garden. These loggias not only offer up protection from noise pollution but also a form of natural ventilation for the office areas.

Photo by Gerhard Hagen. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

Photo by Angelo Kaunat. Pubblicata il 15 Maggio 2012.

The Great Rock - PLANT – Atelier Peter Kis

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:33:52 +0200

THE METAMORPHOSIS OF THE GREAT ROCK
Sándor Bardóczi

The Great Rock was created during the major reconstruction of the Zoo between 1909 and 1912, based on the specialist instructions of the Zoo Construction Committee in the capital.  The zoological tasks were supervised by the director of the zoo at the time, Dr Adolf Lendl, and the construction technology aspects by Dr Kornél Neuschloss. The primary purpose of the artificial rock was to help the Zoo, that already operated on a overly tight area, appear larger and provide greater space. Thus instead of the completely flat area, with the vertical elevation, a divided and at the same time larger surface would be created with the latest and most spectacular animal runs of the time.

The artificial rock as a zoo rehabilitation concept
The prototype for the artificial rocks were presumably the market booths fabricated from log frames, and covered by cliff effect canvas that served as the scenes for animals and showmen. The first occurrence of the concept of animal friendly artificial rocks, constructed from more permanent structures, was during the development of the Zurich Zoo. The idea according to the records could have come from a sculptor by the name of Urs Eggenschwiler. Although the plan was not realised in Zurich, the director of the Hamburg-Stellingen Zoo, Karl Hagenbeck, jumped at it. The panoramic display later became an example for great zoo constructions of the era, thus the Budapest concept also subsisted on this very same prototype, which in the end surpassed Stellingen. (The Hungarian Committee during its many study tours also visited Stellingen). Today – from the artificial rocks that have survived – the Great Rock of Budapest, with its architectural and sculptural achievement represents an outstanding architectural heritage, with only the Vincennes Zoo of Paris being a match for it in its genre.

The Hungarian Committee carried out a rather thorough preparatory work: several natural scenes were examined for the shaping of the artificial rocks, as well as seeking the opinion of the Magyar Királyi Földtani Intézet (Hungarian Royal Institute of Geology). The dolomite peak of the Great Rock in the shape of a limestone range, was in the end constructed based on detailed surveys and photo documentation of the “Egyeskő” peak in Transylvania; it covered an area of 4,700 m2, with a volume of 38,850 m3 and a height to the peak of 34 m. The plans were prepared by Gyula Végh, and during the three years of construction, 8,000 m3 of concrete was used by the company of György Pohl. The rock crust itself was made from a 6-12 cm thick Portland cement wire lattice structure by the same extraordinarily skilled rock carving and building architect artisans who created the façade decorations of eclectic Budapest; their work being supervised by geologists and sculptors. (The patterned rock cracks also hide the dilatation gaps of the structure).

A hundred year old dormant dream
The well-grounded question of whether it is an overly big extravagance in the altogether ten hectares area of the Budapest Zoo (one of the smallest amongst the zoos of the European cities) not to use or almost not to use such an area under the rock arose even during the construction of the rock. Adolf Lendl wrote about this in his concept of the zoo:
“The entire large hill will be made of cement concrete and will be empty inside. We will open the wall on one of the sides with a cave like gate entrance enclosing it with a light structure, and in the inside a huge hall, this could even be 30 m long. We will erect a stuffed whale here from the northern seas, perhaps together with the skeleton, and also several specimens of dolphins, as these are not expensive and are very characteristic animals that can rarely be seen”.
However, a lack of money and the outbreak of World War I washed away the grand dreams of the Zoological Museum. Although there were a few attempts between the two wars for some sort of functional use of the space (e.g.: skating rink, shooting gallery, riding school), mostly it operated as hay storage and junk room, as well as a practice hall for horse trainers until recent times. Over time, the permeability of the crust to water increased, water found its way in and due to the large fluctuations of temperature in the internal space, condensation was continuous, further damaging the condition of the wire lattice structure. Large pieces split from the crust of the artificial rock, thus to prevent accidents a safety steel mesh was stretched onto the reinforced concrete frame.

The reconstruction works, from the surveying to the structural reconstruction of the rock to the complete renewal of the inner space, were coordinated by the architect studio of Péter Kis. Between 2006 and 2008, both the framework and the external covering of the Great Rock were renewed. However, just as one hundred years ago, it seemed that the full utilisation of the space inside the rock would come to a halt yet again due to financial reasons. Although a 3D cinema did start up in the domed hall in 2009, the great dream of Lendl, today’s version of the Zoological Museum seemed to be lost once more due to a lack of funds. Fortunately, and thanks to European Union aid sources and countless innovative ideas, the interactive life museum, the Magical Mountain was finally realised in the Great Rock.

Innovation in the deep
In order for the reconstruction design to commence at all, this huge amorphous structure had to be surveyed, as no exact plans and geodesics were available. It was Dr András Tokody and his team appointed to carry out the survey, who proved to be a direct hit for this task. The versatile surveyors – who had to be IT professionals, industrial alpinists and cave researchers all in one – had to carry out their survey in minus twenty degrees in the belly of the concrete mountain, which turned into an ice-pit in the winter of 1995. Tokody et al developed a three-dimensional computer-processing program, which at the time was considered a novelty. They wrote a separate auxiliary program and built a geographic information system database that assigned to every single beam, the text based data describing their condition and metric parameters.

Remedying the structural problems that had been mapped by the survey was not an easy canter either. From several experts experienced in framework reconstruction, in the end, on the recommendation of the excellent engineers of ÉMI, Dr Béla Kovács and Tibor Andorka, the net-liked cracked external crust was covered by a thin layer of sprayed mortar; the supporting beams were covered with a special plastic-concrete mix, which stopped or even reversed the corrosion processes. As soon as the structural problems of the artificial rock were eliminated, the leaking of the shell improved. There was only one more (however not any less serious) engineering problem to be faced in order to utilise the internal space. This was the horrific level of fluctuations in temperature. The wire lattice structure had no insulation of any kind, which resulted in the usability of the internal spaces being somewhat seasonal!

The architects in their first architectural concept outlined the creation of a “night garden” inside the rock. This concept in reality – by keeping the existing structural elements – would have meant the construction of a heat insulated glass cube structure, separated from the structural elements of the rock and leaving it untouched. The glass structure itself, in the transparent large space separated in this way would have allowed visitors full view of the wonders of the original framework. Yet, it was undertaking even more: looking at the world outside of the cubes as quasi-furnishable glass cabinets, it formed lit, but for visitors inaccessible exhibition spaces from the areas between the glass and the rock crust. If realised, visitors would have undoubtedly become confused sooner or later from this poetically transparent space game, not knowing, whether they were the audience, or at times the watched. In such a space, the roles of the “exhibited” and the “recipient” are sometimes interchanged with everything becoming somewhat relative. In the end, it could have not been realised and the reasons for this are rather ordinary: it is impossible to keep this amount of glass surface clean, especially as the majority of the visitors are fascinated little children. The concept had to be rejected.

The Magical Mountain
The modified concept vision is a cave, carved into the rock block. The new mass forms a crystal-like structure inside the rock that extends into the existing reinforced concrete structure. The shell of the broken form is self-supporting, the new structure following the historically protected reinforced framework of the Great Rock. The two bodies according to the concept complement one another, making up for an existing shortfall inside the rock. The resolution of this lacking goes beyond the archetypal connection of the rock and the cave (namely, one is positioned inside the other). A kind of dramaturgy has an important role to play, which builds on wandering and observation within the space. The visitor can continuously walk in and out of the new crystal structure, providing the option to admire alternatively one or the other structure from external or internal viewpoints. This experience is reinforced by the observation openings positioned at distinct points.

The internal halls of the rock were fully completed according to the final plans by 2011. The reconstruction added 3,000 m2 of flexible internal space to the 1909 concept (which only intended to utilise a section of the rock), and in addition, the use of renewable energy became one of the guiding threads. The heat from the thermal water feeding the Széchenyi Bath next to the Zoo has also been utilised, with the inclusion of a heat exchange system to supply renewable energy to the Great Rock, amongst the 30 buildings of the Zoo. With this, the operation itself was placed on a more sustainable basis.

The Zoo, which continuously has struggled with a lack of space, gained several thousands of square meters of exhibition area, as well as the option for housing cultural and other events. The wonders of the main structural elements supporting the Great Rock are sensitively highlighted by the reconstruction, and in the coordinated spaces an origami-like layer is added to the organically creasing boundary walls. The deep foundation of the framework, built in the past on a once boggy soil, even made it possible to excavate a complete new level above the base structure, thus they were able to increase the already considerable – so far unutilised – internal volume. Wherever possible, the light enters naturally into the spaces from above. An exciting, playful, accessible, and versatile string of space has been created, providing the Zoo with new opportunities for cultural events.

The Magical Mountain exhibition (Life museum), designed for the internal space of the Great Rock, has set as the objectives – a unique and spectacular presentation of the special life forms that have appeared on the stage of life that is Earth, of the development of life and its impressive richness, where the audience may meet “wondrous rarities”. The principal thread is provided by the multiplicity of life forms and of living and non-living systems, where diversity is interpreted as a response to the challenges of the environment as well as to the problems to be solved; its unique true-to-life appearance is achieved through a range of extremely varied exhibition-technology devices that take advantage of the space.
We have designed an interactive exhibition system with adventurous games, displays of live animals and models of giant animals, with projector microscopes allowing an insight into the micro world. This together with richly equipped discovery areas and lecture theatres creates an exhibition system that can be found nowhere else in Central-Europe.

The Magical Mountain exhibition is divided into a total of sixteen exhibition areas set over four levels; its thematic is divided according to the following areas: Reception hall, Ancient Sea, Time Tunnel, Path of the Ancients, Neanderthal Valley, Life School, Time Machine, Bear Corner, Dark Labyrinth, Colony Gallery, World of the Minute, Hall of Giants, Star Space, Darwin Laboratory, Dino Terraces, Mars Space Station.

Bibliography used in the text:
Kis Péter – Szabon Márta – Persányi Miklós: Nagyszikla (2009)
Dr. Lendl Adolf: Milyen lesz az új állatkertünk? – Fővárosi Közlöny (1909. 6. szám)
Andorka Tibor (ÉMI-TÜV Bayern Kft): szakértői vélemény az Állatkerti Nagyszikla felújítási munkálatairól (2006)
A Budapest Székesfővárosi Állatkert – Magyar Építőművészet (1912. évi 11-12. szám)
Dr. Tokody András: A budapesti Állat – és Növénykert Nagysziklájának geodéziai felmérése (1996)
Andorka Tibor: A budapesti Állatkert vasbeton szerkezetű mesterséges sziklái – Magyar Építőipar (1996. évi 5-6 szám)

Bloque de 12 Viviendas en Badalona - Baena Casamor Arquitectes

Fri, 25 May 2012 14:37:44 +0200

UN HUECO URBANO USADO COMO PÁRKING.
Antes de la intervención éste era un hueco urbano, sencillamente un trocito de ciudad no acabado; un cruce de calles en forma de V y un entorno urbano habitado en su gran mayoría por trabajadores de origen extremeño y andaluz. Seguramente por este motivo, a pesar de que los edificios de viviendas de este barrio presentan una arquitectura muy modesta, presentan en ocasiones fachadas de gran colorido.

De la situación original nos pareció importante preservar la alegría y colorido de las fachadas del barrio y aprovechar la ocasión de remodelar un pequeño espacio urbano junto a una de las fachadas del nuevo edificio, a través del recurso que siempre han utilizado los vecinos del barrio: el color.

Puesto que este barrio de Badalona es casi exclusivamente residencial, el hueco entre calles había sido colonizado por la otra gran necesidad de los vecinos: el aparcamiento.

RESOLVER UN PEQUEÑO PAISAJE URBANO.
La intervención intentaba resolver un pequeño rincón de la ciudad convirtiéndolo en un espacio urbano a escala humana que dignificara el barrio y fuera, al mismo tiempo, fiel a las mismas características del barrio. En el encargo se incluían un edificio de viviendas protegidas y el espacio urbano enfrente de ellas.
Uno de los retos principales del proyecto fue la integración entre fachada y espacio público, especialmente que la nueva fachada formara parte del mismo espacio.
Al mismo tiempo, se pretendía dotar al espacio de un nuevo uso, a través de un pavimento flexible y de la aportación de un gran local comercial en la planta baja del nuevo edificio.
Los vehículos habían de ser sustituidos por árboles, juegos infantiles y la terraza de un bar.

Tesorería de la Seguridad Social en el Casco Antiguo - Baena Casamor Arquitectes

Fri, 25 May 2012 12:39:13 +0200

Ordenación del conjunto 
El edificio negocia con la trama urbana su orientación, adaptándose a la realidad del entorno urbano existente. Las plantas baja y sótano se sitúan dentro de los límites del solar; las plantas superiores, en cambio, se desplazan y se alinean con la calle de l’Om. Este desplazamiento libera el espacio de la plaza situada al sur y genera un espacio más amplio.  

Aunque el edificio divide en dos el vacío de la trama urbana, el tratamiento de los espacios es el mismo, y la planta baja se entiende como un elemento de continuidad del espacio exterior. Es fundamental la transparencia que se produce en el acceso con vistas sobre la plaza.

El edificio
 El uso característico del edificio es administrativo en las plantas sobre rasante, mientras que las plantas sótano se destinan a uso de aparcamiento y espacios de servicio.  Se trata de un edificio organizado en tres volúmenes, la rotación de los cuales viene sugerida por la geometría de la parcela edificable.   El volumen de la planta baja adopta la geometría de la parcela. Esta planta establece una relación de continuidad con el espacio público en el cual se sitúa. El volumen de las plantas primera a cuarta recupera la dirección de la calle de l’Om, y crea, con el voladizo originado por este giro, un gran porche que enmarca y protege la entrada del edificio. El tercer volumen de las plantas quinta y sexta se orienta según un giro intermedio entre los dos volúmenes anteriores. El hecho que este tercer volumen sea más pequeño que el inferior, genera una terraza accesible a los usuarios del edificio desde la planta quinta.

 La necesidad de luz natural determinada por el uso administrativo del edificio se resuelve con grandes ventanales en fachada que se protegen de la incidencia de la radiación solar directa a través de una envolvente continua de lamas de aluminio. Estas lamas confieren identidad a las fachadas del edificio: se disponen en posición horizontal a lo largo de las fachadas principales del edificio (fachadas longitudinales) y en posición vertical en los testeros.

  El uso de una estructura porticada con pilares en fachada permite obtener plantas diáfanas que se organizan a partir de dos núcleos verticales, dejando el resto de la superficie libre. La compartimentación se hace a través de elementos de tabiquería ligeros. De esta forma, el edificio permite una versatilidad de ocupación en el tiempo.

Progrés-Raval Health Center. Badalona - BAAS Jordi Badia

Thu, 24 May 2012 16:49:11 +0200

The building opens out onto a newly-built square and has a courtyard-style entrance. The new health centre, together with future council buildings, will shape a new urban space.

The consulting area is a black prism covered with ceramic lattice which is supported from the ground floor. A single, very expressive column separates the entrance courtyard from the remaining public space.

Els Grogs secondary school - BAAS Jordi Badia

Thu, 24 May 2012 16:48:17 +0200

The main building is constructed on one floor with the classrooms coming off a central corridor, which is then visible from outside through several terraces.

This central corridor has a large skylight and is the formal base of the project. Rooms such as the library and the technology classroom stand out from the ground floor and create linked outdoor spaces.

The separate gym is linked to the main building with a covered area which also forms the main entrance hall of the school.

Concrete and dark vertical plates are used across the whole building.

Medical facility in Bruges - Cristian Panaite, Katrien Devreese

Thu, 24 May 2012 16:06:38 +0200

Dudzele is situated along a remote road linking the picturesque historical city of Bruges,Belgium to the North Sea shore. It is located in the Polders, an artificially created landscape separated from the sea by dikes .The village is centuries old but never grew to a city. The house typology in the surroundings is one or two levels high and look like archetypal. The main public space and the urban form of the village is defined by the main street ,once a country road cutting through the landscape. The architects were asked to replace a ruined modest existing house, aligned to the main street, with a new building housing the main medical facility of the village. How to insert this needed function in an old village without disturbing the tranquility which reigns the place centuries ? Due to it’s function, the building should be visible but the urban regulations ask for a total integrated volume in accordance with the surroundings. The project arises as a series of different volumes interfering with the linear development of the main street. One built volume develops four separate volumetric entities . The first one borrows the low scale of the neighboring context, the second one reaches the highest point giving to the whole visual independence while the last two are gently melting in to the flat landscape of the backyard. The interior spaces are simultaneously shaping and shaped by the different functions : waiting room, reception or consulting rooms, altogether developed and rigorously aligned along the access route to the backyard. By reinterpreting the existent urban situation, the project creates a new open visual perspective perpendicular on the main road, offering more urban deepness to the main street .

64 Viviendas colectivas - MCBAD / Colomer Dumont

Thu, 24 May 2012 13:50:29 +0200

INTEGRACION AL LUGAR
El proyecto se inscribe en el plan parcial “ZAC Seguin” en los antiguos terrenos de la fabrica Renault. El plano de ordenación de la manzana A2 en la que esta situado el edificio esta realizado bajo la coordinación del estudio suizo Diener & Diener. El proyecto se caracteriza por el juego de tensiones entre la masa construida por los seis edificios en los bordes de la parcela y el vacío central. Los espacios exteriores de la manzana son públicos y componen un juego de circulaciones y cruces.
Cuatro de los edificios avanzan hacia el interior de la manzana componiendo un juego de tensiones y dibujando el vacío central.

VOLUMETRIA
El edificio situado al ángulo entre la calle Yves Kermen y el paseo “Allee Robert Doisneau” constituye el elemento de transición entre la escala propuesta hacia el interior de la ordenación y la escala impuesta por el plano de ordenación urbana de Boulogne-Billancourt. El edificio articula dos viales de naturaleza muy diferente, esta articulación se traduce en un juego de retranqueos y vacíos que dialogan con el entorno y con el resto de la manzana. El edificio guarda su alineación en el ángulo y se retranquea en los áticos y en el interior de la ordenación generando de este modo balcones de diferentes profundidades. Las fachadas lisas refuerzan la volumetría erosionada y el ritmo de ventanas y balcones la composición buscada.

PROGRAMA
Al edificio se accede por dos zaguanes que atraviesan hasta el interior de la parcela a modo de pasajes. Los dos núcleos de comunicaciones distribuyen 64 viviendas sociales en alquiler. Los espacios servidores de las viviendas estan distribuidos en el interior a modo de espina dorsal, dejando los espacios de vida en fachada. Esta distribución favorece la flexibilidad y evolucion en las viviendas y la libertad de composición buscada en las fachadas. Todas las viviendas disponen de espacios exteriores multiples y habitables que prolongan la vivienda hacia el exterior. El acceso al aparcamiento es común con el edificio de oficinas contiguo y esta compuesto por 86 plazas.

LOS MATERIALES
La fachada esta tratada con un juego de texturas de color arena, los grados de color y la textura refuerzan la volumetria del edificio creando superficies mates y brillantes y generando variaciones a lo largo del dia. Todo ello a traves de dos materiales, los morteros de texturas diferentes y el hormigón texturado. El zócalo de hormigón ancla el edificio en su parcela, compuesto por un ritmo de placas de hormigón texturado por una matriz ondulada proporciona al volumen la brutalidad buscada. Por ultimo el ritmo aleatorio de huecos y los balcones en voladizo estan tratados como elementos independientes de aluminio anodizado de color dorado. Las carpinterías de aluminio dorado van acompañadas de un marco del mismo material. Todos los elementos ligeros, barandillas, están realizados en “metal deploye aplastado” color dorado.

SOSTENIBILIDAD El proyecto responde a la clasificacion “THPE” (Tres Haute Performance Environnemental) francesa. Los términos sostenibles integrados en el proyecto responden al confort y la calidad de vida del habitante y a la búsqueda de la eficiencia energética.

La volumetría compacta y el tipo de aislantes utilizados favorecen el confort térmico verano-invierno. Todos los huecos disponen de un sistema de protección solar a modo de store. Las cubiertas vegetales del edificio están realizadas con un complejo de “sedum sopranature” que permite aumentar la inercia térmica del edificio, y suavizar las variaciones de temperatura en el interior de las viviendas. Gestión del agua: Proponemos una gestión inteligente del agua en el edificio. Un sistema de retención de agua a través de dichas cubiertas y el espacio vegetal de la parcela permite recoger el agua de lluvia de las terrazas y dirigirlo hacia los jardines filtrantes de la cota cero. El agua de lluvia se reutilizara para la irrigación y mantenimiento de las zonas verdes de la parcela. Asimismo se prevé un sistema de evacuación unido a la red de saneamiento en caso de excedentes en fuertes precipitaciones. Las terrazas inaccesibles están cubiertas por plantas tapizantes tipo sopranature. Las terrazas accesibles son verdaderos jardines en el aire setos de 1.20m delimitan las terrazas ~~Parrotia persica~~ y maceteros de arboles – Acer palmatum, Eleagnus, Euonymus, Cotinus, Cupressus, Hydrange, Azalea – estan distribuidos aleatoriamente sobre un revestimiento de placas de hormigón para el suelo flotante. #socialhousing

Paper Garden - Anouk Vogel

Wed, 23 May 2012 16:42:48 +0200

In the spring of 2011 Anouk Vogel was invited to make a garden for the Gardening World Cup held in Nagasaki, Japan. The brief was to make a garden of 24m2 for the duration of one month in the autumn of the same year. In total 16 designers from different countries were invited to take part in the Gardening World Cup.

For this event Vogel choose to make a design entirely folded out of white paper. The idea is based on an old Japanese legend that grants a wish, such as a long life or recovery from illness or injury, to anyone folding a thousand origami cranes. Inspired by this tradition Anouk Vogel folded a thousand paper flowers with a team of 15 local people to express a wish for world peace and tolerance. The team needed two weeks to fold all the parts composing the garden. The plants are made with special paper that can absorb water without being destroyed. The flowers open when moist and fold back in shape when drying.

Despite being invited to take part in this event and the fact that medals would only be awarded to the different designs after completion of the gardens, Vogel’s proposal to make a paper garden was first rejected by the organizers. The reason being that the garden did not contain real flowers and could therefore not be judged. In the interest of the theme significance, Vogel assured the organizers that she accepted not to receive a medal if only she was given the chance to realize the garden in order to express her wish for tolerance. Eventually the garden was built and was awarded the judges special award as well as a sliver medal.

Entrenched Garden - Anouk Vogel

Wed, 23 May 2012 16:40:09 +0200

Located in the entrenchment on the roof of Fort near Spijkerboor, one of the forts on the defense line of Amsterdam, a large installation composed of 1400 dahlias was completely hidden from the outside world and could only be discovered after a journey through the dark and moist fort. A matrix of 6 different colours and 5 varying flower shapes were precisely arranged in a centrifugal geometric pattern that formed a gradient from dark red to white. Visitors were invited to wander through this blossoming field as well as to view the installation from the fort’s roof. From there it could be seen in juxtaposition with the rigid geometry of the Beemster polder.

Spanish – Portuguese Agricultural Research Center (Ciale) - Canvas Arquitectos

Wed, 23 May 2012 15:22:42 +0200

This laboratory is meant for research and experimentation in farming and plant maintenance. It has the infrastructure required to conduct research related to agricultural activities in the field of physiology, biochemistry and molecular biology of plants, fungus and microorganisms.

The site is part of a bigger area of environmental interest close to the river Tormes. We therefore propose an intervention in which the architecture is not imposed but rather becomes part of the territory. We intend to rethink the existing terrain into a new transformed landscape and discover a hidden morphology in the site through the activation of the current topography. Working on it emerged a series of folds and movements that have defined a landscape in which is recognized the former one.

The new building emerge in the landscape distancing itself from a housing environment without a clear order, with different shapes and indiscriminate occupation.

The topographic redevelopment of the site lead to two levels: in the upper, with the entrance from the street, the building is hidden in the landscape, while the lower level opens onto the river, separating from the ground by piles that isolate the construction of possible floods. The educational program is located in a representative volume that occupies the upper level of the access.

The research program and support facilities occupy an elongated half-buried volume that gives access to different nuanced services through an interior street. The laboratories are situated in four cubes on piles, guiding their views to the river and being separated in such a way to allow a sequenced view to the river bank from the common area.

The relationship between the volumes of the laboratories and the one containing the educational program set up a wide compositional sequence allied to the cadence of the vegetation and topography of the bank, which helps the building to integrate itself into the landscape. The highest level of the plot has direct access to the didactic and administrative program, and from the lower it is possible to enter the building through the laboratory areas. Their support zones are virtually buried by ensuring appropriate insulation. In the closest area to the river there are a number of greenhouses connected by a path outside, inside them is particularly suitable the research related to the a grobiotechnology.

The research area is reached after crossing the pronounced cut of the slab that supports the roof garden, a ramp guides you to the hall and the interior street that goes across and articulate the whole.

Through a glass wall protected by the eaves of the roof garden, light flows in this elongated and complex space that, despite undergoing the strictness demanded by the functional program, is energized with ramps and galleries that give way to the platforms of the different laboratory volumes, the exit zone or the teaching building; this varied sequence receives more interest having as a background reference the dense layer of trees and river water.

The most complex operation performed is on the ground, and special attention has been taken in order to ensure that once realized it will barely be perceived.

The architecture is clear and easily understandable, seeks a flexible and versatile scheme, able to solve the appearance of new programs that will necessarily be incorporated into the research complex.

One of the aims of the proposal is to get permeability and transparency between building and landscape, in order to obtain this, a light multilayer facade system is used, resulting in a variable density filter that meets both the heat and sunlight needs as well as the necessary privacy.

 The construction was entrusted to systems that simplified the complexity of the building and eased the execution phase. The building is separated from the ground and supported on piles, the materiality of the structure is revealed throughout the entire building, establishing a heavy and steady world. On the contrary the facade systems are light, dry mounted to exhibit their temporary and removable character.

A gallery of accessible facilities under the slabs runs the building all the way long. This infrastructure can solve the maintenance and further introduction of new services and technology. This solution avoids ceilings that would hide the structure and blur the proposal.  The roof gardens of the building take part of this privileged landscape with a proven ecological system, using seasonal flowering, hardy species and drip irrigation with low consumption and maintenance. We aimed for a bio climatic architecture and land-related that would passively achieve favorable environmental conditions.

Negozio abbigliamento Rione Fontana - UP3 ARCHITETTI ASSOCIATI, Paolo De Biasi, Francesco Durante, Elisabetta Roman

Wed, 23 May 2012 13:20:25 +0200

L’idea progettuale insiste sul tema degli opposti che vengono enfatizzati sia nelle scelte dei materiali che nel disegno delle figure. Superfici bianche, leggere e luminose si alternano ad altre scure, materiche ed opache, che (ne) assorbono la luce. Soluzioni geometriche che alternano figure assolute, monolitiche, ancorate al pavimento ad altre che sembrano sfidare le leggi di gravità. Il contrasto chiaro/scuro, luminoso/opaco, leggero/pesante non si risolve però in uno sterile rimando di specchi opposti ma diventa a sua volta terreno per infinite combinazioni cromatiche e percettive regolate ed unificate da un singolo e continuo elemento immateriale (la luce).

Alberto Bevilacqua fotografo. Pubblicata il 23 Maggio 2012.

Summer House in Southern Burgenland - Judith Benzer Architektur

Tue, 22 May 2012 17:29:35 +0200

The project Summer House in Southern Burgenland (Austria) describes a sharp-edged cubature which fits into its surroundings through its simplicity and homogeneous appearance.

In being used as a summer house, and by virtue of the installation of a wine cellar with production surfaces at a later date, the building’s design is oriented by the cubature of the Kellerstöckel (wine house) typical of the Southern Burgenland region.

The cellar contains rooms for wine storage and production; the aboveground rooms are for residential use. The cellar has been executed in a ferroconcrete massive construction. The ground floor and first floor were constructed as a pure wood construction. Here, the undisguised wooden cross layer elements were rendered effective not only in their structural-static functions but also as design elements. As a counter weight, the wooden construction material employed on a large-scale stands vis-à-vis exposed concrete and steel materials. The materials were consciously employed in an untreated, undisguised state; in their combination, they form a homogeneous ambiance.

As the summer house is not inhabited during the winter months, a larch grid mantle was developed which can be shut completely. During the uninhabited winter months, the house is thus unobtrusively and sculpturally situated in the landscape. In order to achieve this, folding and flap shutters were developed which, when shut, flush with the façade and, also coated with rhombus boarding, melt into the mantle. In the summer, the shutters work against aestival overheating: when opened – as canopies – and when shut. The sharp edges of the cubature are formed by copper corner plates. The terrace area, also formulated as a larch grid, forms a sort of shadow of the building. The mantle is thus carried forward in design in the outside space.

41 social dwellings in Vallecas - Paredes Pino Arquitectos

Tue, 22 May 2012 16:56:29 +0200

I have always been a linear block. I was aware, from the very first moment, of what the regulations said about my future: “Building an open linear block.” The shape of the plot did not help much. A corner L with three arms that wrapped up the square (an urban block with an interior courtyard).

Being linear, even if one turns around the corner, and with gallery accesses, has many advantages. You can be even fairer, by giving all the housing units two orientations: the street and the interior courtyard, cross ventilation and access to all tenants from a single entrance.

The radial organization, fan-shaped, brings the open space closer to all the housing units. Balance of conditions. Their vertical stacking makes logical the application of all the structural services systems.

The gallery provides access to each of the housing units while being the vertical communication street. It also creates a space that we understand not only as a dynamic corridor but as a true open lobby for each unit. An intermediate, transicional space which allows to filter or tame outside elements like wind, cold or excessive heat.

The access to all units takes place through an elevated courtyard-laundry room, as the last step in the gradient that separates the public from the private. Crossing the housing units, the openings that are set-back offer a greater intimacy to users because they contain only their own windows. The house is organizad in two area: a day one, with the Entrance, the kitchen and the living area; and the night one, with the bedrooms and the bathrooms.

In the upper level – which accommodates the lumber rooms – the terrace solarium, with its artificial grass carpet, extends the dwelling towards the roof and offers privileged views over the Ensanche (urban expansion area) of Vallecas. #socialhousing

Open Center for Citizens Activities - Paredes Pino Arquitectos

Tue, 22 May 2012 16:55:09 +0200

We propose the incorporation of a thin layer. A place with the capacity to reconsider the changing needs, aware of its flexible and temporary condition. CAAC is projected by a solution based on prefabricated circular elements that vary in height and diameter and arranged in a flexible but tight way, allowing a view similar to an urban forest of shadows. It is indispensable to assume their role as part of the new center of Cordoba. This is achieved through the addition of elements, instead of overwhelming buildings that do not allow a dialogue face to face with the user.

The design of the plant cover is closely connected to other points of view from which the action is perceived, both existing buildings on the perimeter and from other positions as it happens from the bridge over the tracks of the AVE. Therefore it is of great importance to this treatment of surface color on top

Equally important has been the ground plane treatment as an activator of different uses. The surface treated like a huge board game that can hold any kind of activities, those already known and others yet to be invented. The temporary use of market two days a week is a condition but not in any way a limit, it is only one more of the potential uses to be made.

The cover is solved with parasols diameters between 7 and 15 meters. In turn, the heights are also variable between 4 and 7 meters. This allows great flexibility with little variability and constructive elements. Furthermore, the position at different heights, it avoids excessive opacity of construction, and allows the passage of light reflection through the various umbrellas.

The structure is steel umbrellas. Inside the columns are constructed element evacuation of rainwater from the roof, fixed with concrete filling. It is built with aluminum plates in different colors and interior insulation. The treatment of the bottom surface is reflective, giving the place a huge potential in the way that light activates the color by reflection.

Finally note that artificial lighting is fixed in the same parts, relying on a uniform light on the ground plane and the capture of light by reflection from the undersides of the parasols, light points are in different orbits each parasol taking into account the amount of light that reaches the sunshades nearby.

Le bon arbre au bon endroit - NIPpaysage

Tue, 22 May 2012 15:51:34 +0200

Temporary garden presented in collaboration with Hydro-Québec for the Métis International Garden Festival. «le bon arbre au bon endroit» (The right tree at the right place) reminds us that planting the right tree in the right place makes good sense. Above, thousands of birds perched on dozens of cables surround the garden. On the ground, the project has evolved over a three year period: 2008-wire reel garden, 2009-hammock garden and 2010-giant picnic table garden.

In their garden Bon arbre au bon endroit, NIPpaysage, a quintet of Montréal landscape architects NIP PAYSAGE have created an electrifying garden. Thousands of birds congregate on lines that help illustrate the many uses of hydro wires in the landscape. And by planting the right tree in the right place, wires and gardens can happily co-habit the same space. This shocking garden is being developed in collaboration with Hydro-Québec, a partner of Les Jardins de Métis since 1999.

“Être aux oiseaux” (Be as birds): French-Canadian expression meaning “being in such a joy that it appears as ecstasy”. The table is an ideal meeting space, a festive place like no other. To exchange bites or speeches, nothing else matters than the diner evolving around the altar of greed. Here, it is an iconic oversized table, crossing a landscape dominated by a large chandelier, which invites us to the feast. Surrounded by wired walls and full of birds, that are fully guests, the installation enhances the earth’s pleasures making them the best paradise of all.