Courtesy of Foster + Partners

Construction has begun on Foster + Partners’ Varso Tower, which will become Poland’s tallest tower upon completion. As a part of the larger Varso complex, which will include three additional buildings, the 53-story tower will reach 310 meters in height and will span 140,000 square meters.

The tower is expected to become a new hotspot for business, residents, and tourists, as it will house flexible office space, two restaurants, shops, cafés, covered internal streets, and an observation deck, which at 230 meters will become one of the highest in Europe. From here, building users, locals, and tourists will experience views of Warsaw’s skyline and the metropolitan area.

The Varso development is located next to Warsaw’s Central Railway station, and will revive the most centrally located brownfield area in the city, “bringing new life to the vicinity and improving the local environment and surrounding public spaces with extensive new planting and street furniture.”

Courtesy of Foster + Partners

The lower buildings in the complex, by Hermanowicz Rewski Architects, will form a central frontage along one of the main streets next to the Central Station, as well as a joint multi-story podium with green rooftop terraces for building occupants.

Because Varso will utilize technology to reduce air pollution as well as electricity and water consumption, the project will be the first of its scale in Poland to be rated “Outstanding” in the BREEAM certification scheme.

Courtesy of Foster + Partners

“We believe that Varso Tower will have a unique place on Warsaw’s skyline, but most importantly it will establish a new destination capable of revitalising this urban quarter, right in the heart of the city,” said Grant Brooker, Head of Studio at Foster + Partners leading the design team in London. “The building contains high-quality and flexible office space, but it also makes an important contribution to the city with its glazed public courtyard at ground level and the spectacular viewing platforms with restaurants at the top. These public galleries offer panoramic views of the city to everyone.”

The project is scheduled to be completed in 2020. 

News via Foster + Partners.

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© Josefina Leyton

• Architects: Estudio Leyton
• Location: Lo Barnechea, Santiago Metropolitan Region, Chile
• Architect In Charge: Matías Jarpa
• Area: 260.0 m2
• Project Year: 2016
• Photographs: Josefina Leyton

© Josefina Leyton

The house is located in a family condominium, in La Dehesa, each site faces an inner street that gives access to them. Therefore is a front and a against front, the first is shared, and the second is in a more private area, this transition is posed through a central axis composed of 3 spaces that follow each other, acces hall, open central courtyard and warm terrace.

© Josefina Leyton

Ground Floor Plan

© Josefina Leyton

The house is a square that its defined in inner and outer edges, each of wich has a  function related to familly dwelling, this is how the most private sector corresponding to the bedrooms, living room and desk are separated, in another sector the public spaces, living and dining room and in another sector of the square, services.

© Josefina Leyton

Each of these spaces is related to the exterior, either with an airtight facade, or in the case of the living areas with a terrace is projected as an emergent volume of the square shape, that opens to the outside, but tempering the space with full and empty.

© Josefina Leyton

The second levels apear as spaces emerging from the main volumen, capturing the outer light and taking it with an inclination  of the sky to the interior, in its outer form these volumes are triangular, wich causes the planes to intercept each other.

Section

© Josefina Leyton

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Arch Out Loud is partnering with Last House on Mulholland to host the HOLLYWOOD design competition. The competition asks participants to design a house of the future which demonstrates the use of innovative technology, integrative environmental strategies and capitalizes on the iconic prominence of its site beneath the famed Hollywood sign. The competition serves as a design charette generating ideas about the potential for what the site could become and how it can inspire the future of residential design.

The Hollywood sign itself has long served as a symbol of the neighborhood’s dominance over the motion picture industry and as a beacon for its aspiring talent. When it was erected in 1923, however, the Hollywood sign (then, Hollywoodland) was meant to serve as a real estate advertisement and not a logo for showbiz. Today, the icon’s popularity has led to incessant tourist traffic within the residential streets of the canyon below. The site for the Hollywood competition is located on an empty plot directly beneath the sign on Mulholland Hwy, which has been purchased by Steve Alper of Last House on Mulholland.

Its location on such a prominent site enables the project to gain widespread attention. Therefore, the project will seek to promote a positive mission and serve as an example for how future homes can be built and inhabited. As advancing technology continues to affect all aspects of daily life, social customs as well as living patterns will evolve and homes of the future should reflect such evolution. As climate change continues to impact energy consumption and production, rising sea levels, and water scarcity, all building especially those in coastal, arid cities like Los Angeles will need to find appropriate responses to address such concerns.

Rewards:

Prizes total $6,000
1st Place – $3,000 + Certificate
2nd Place – $2,000 + Certificate
3rd Place – $1,000 + Certificate
10 Honorable Mentions – Certificate & Publication
Directors Choice – Certificate & Publication
Owners Choice – Certificate & Publication

Jury:

Thom Mayne – Founder, Design Lead | Morphosis
David Basulto – Founder, Editor in Chief | ArchDaily
Tom Kundig – Principal | Olsen Kundig Architects
Jimenez Lai – Founder | Bureau Spectacular
Peter Zellner – Founder, Principal | ZELLNERandCompany
Jenny Wu – Principal | Oyler Wu Collaborative
Paul Petrunia – Founder | Archinect
Jonathan Segal – Founder | Jonathan Segal Architect
Heather Roberge – Founder, Design Lead | Murmur
Dwayne Oyler – Founderl | Oyler Wu Collaborative
Frank Clementi – Partner | Rios Clementi Hale Studios
Ron Radzinor – Founder, Partner | Marmol Radzinor
Christine Theodoropoulos – Dean | Cal Poly State University
Benjamin Ball – Founder | Ball-Nogues Studio
Greg Lindy – Owner | Lux Typographic + Design

Calendar:

Advanced Registration – January 3-14
Early Registration – January 15-26
Regular Registration – January 27- February 9th
Submission Deadline – February 10th

3D models, detailed CAD linework and a portfolio of site photos are available to competition participants.

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Contact arch out loud at info@archoutloud.com

• Title: Hollywood: Design an Iconic Home of the Future
• Type: Competition Announcement (Ideas)
• Website: http://ift.tt/2j8h0FQ
• Organizers: arch out loud
• Registration Deadline: 09/02/2017 23:59
• Submission Deadline: 10/02/2017 23:59
• Venue: Los Angeles, California, USA
• Price: Advance – Jan 03-14: $45, Early – Jan 15-26: $65, Regular – Jan 27-Feb 09: $85

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Architect Evgeny Didorenko has released his conceptual proposal, Thames River Museum, which aims to improve connectivity on the North Bank of the Thames River and create an exciting museum space in London.

As a proposal for the Thames Museum, which is currently a project without permanent accommodation, Didorenko’s work seeks to help the museum become a reality by finding a location for it that would not only work with the museum’s context, but that would also solve existing issues on the riverbank.

Therefore, the proposal’s site is an underused portion of London’s North Bank—Queen’s Quay. Historically, Queen’s Quay served as a transportation hub to deliver goods to city residents from the sea, but now lies abandoned, and stays dry during periods of low tide, when water levels drop up to eight meters.

Courtesy of Evgeny Didorenko

Courtesy of Evgeny Didorenko

Courtesy of Evgeny Didorenko

Furthermore, the existing pedestrian route along the embankment in this area is essentially nonexistent, with no access to the waterfront, and no direct pathways, which forces pedestrians to walk inland for several blocks before returning to the river.

The proposal features three main components: a continuous, pedestrian-friendly waterfront, the Thames River Museum, and a public lido on top of the museum, in order to transform the space back into a public attraction.

Courtesy of Evgeny Didorenko

Courtesy of Evgeny Didorenko

The focal point of the project, however, would be the “Thames Screen,” a large, “inverse fish bowl” window that shows the River’s changing elevation throughout the day, allowing visitors “to explore the river from the inside, reflecting the living pulse of the city of London.”

Courtesy of Evgeny Didorenko

Courtesy of Evgeny Didorenko

Concurrent with the Thames River Museum’s dedication to the archaeology and history of the River, the proposal additionally features a display of subterranean archaeological layers, in order to present the Thames as “the oldest ancient monument of the city.”

Courtesy of Evgeny Didorenko

Learn more about the proposal here.

News via Evgeny Didorenko.

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© Stéphane Groleau

• Architects: Équipe SAGP
• Location: Québec City, QC, Canada
• Architect In Charge: François Moreau, Michel Veilleux, Pierre Guimont, François Mathieu, Marc Letellier, Kurt Amundsen
• Client: Ville de Québec
• Landscape Architects: Projet paysage
• Area: 65000.0 m2
• Project Year: 2015
• Photographs: Stéphane Groleau

© Stéphane Groleau

The idea to build a multifunctional arena in Quebec City began in 2009 with the creation of the group “J’ai ma place” (which translate in a double meaning : I have my seat/I belong here), which had the mission to revive the popular craze for the return of a team professional hockey in the old capital. The project, strongly supported by the mayor of the city, has quickly captured the attention of the media and citizens. It’s in 2012 that the mandate to design this project was officially granted to the SAGP integrated team. The Videotron Centre is now a unifying project for an entire population, proud to have witnessed the birth of a unique infrastructure of its kind in the heart of the Quebec City region.

© Stéphane Groleau

 Built on the site of a former hippodrome, on the edge of the Limoilou district, the main volume of the amphitheater clearly marks the function of the building across the city. Its pure white skin and openings evoke the movement of the snow moved by the wind, snowdrifts, and more broadly the nordicity of the city. The snowdrifts, formed by icy winds, delight the eye and shape our landscape. They subtly became the visual representation and conceptual line of this sports and cultural facility of Quebec. The structure that supports this curved façade is in laminated timber, a detail that greatly colors the perception of peripheral passageways. The openings that undulate around the perimeter of the volume offers unique views of the city. From the outside, the white dome is visible from almost everywhere in the city. The internal configuration of the building, following to the principle of open concourses on the bowl, invites to the celebration and the free movement of users. The overall feel of the place is festive, lively and stimulating.

© Stéphane Groleau

© Stéphane Groleau

Videotron Centre presents a hybrid structure of steel and laminated timber. The use of wood has been chosen as a support structure of the envelope of the main volume to elegantly adapts the curve of the outer wall and gives a unique look to peripheral concourse. From the main concourse to the lower roof on a total height of over 25 meters, this structure has only an intermediate support at the upper concourse. The laminated timber arches, located at a distance of 5 meters from each other, create the 92 facets of the oval volume of the enclosure of the bowl.  Black spruce – in section 25 by 25 millimeters – was selected for its local availability and structural qualities, allowing to refine the dimensions of the impressive arches.

© Stéphane Groleau

The lobby, generous and open to the exterior public square brings the imposing building to the pedestrian scale. The lobby features a long screenprinted glass wall acting as a sunshade to minimize solar gains in summer. A hybrid structure of wood and steel has been used to support the facade of over 93 long and 11 meters high, dramatically suspended 4 meters above the ground. At night, the wall is highlighted to provide an increased civic presence. Ultimately, the wide public square will undoubtedly become a favorite place to watch a hockey game outdoors on the huge built-in screen.

Section

Floor Plan

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The amphitheater has a large number of configurations to enable a wide variety of sports and cultural events. In the show configuration, it can seat 20 396 people and 18 310 in the hockey configuration.  The infrastructure meets the NHL requirements and allows to possibly welcome a team in the upcoming years. The Centre is aiming for a LEED NC Silver certification, which is rather rare for a building of this type. 

© Stéphane Groleau

With the construction of Videotron Centre, Quebec City has adopted a new fun contemporary equipment, evocative, sustainable and connected to its community.

© Stéphane Groleau

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