© Hemant Patil

• Architects: Lovekar Design Associates
• Location: Pune, Maharashtra, India
• Architects In Charge: Ashwin Lovekar, Anjali Lovekar
• Area: 4800.0 ft2
• Project Year: 2016
• Photographs: Hemant Patil

• Other Participants: Ajey Deodhar, Shivkumar Ranbhor

© Hemant Patil

The project is a photography studio complex for a young photographer who specializes in automobile, product and fashion photography. 

© Hemant Patil

The premise, based in Pune, India, which was earlier a factory complex, was in an abandoned and dilapidated state as it was unused for many years. It comprised of a large factory shed, servants’ quarters and a watchman’s cabin with a good amount of open spaces in the front. This area was in a no-development zone, hence it was not allowed to build any additional covered structure outside the limits of the existing structures in the complex.  The exercise therefore, was to provide all the requirements while maintaining the footprints of the existing structures. 

© Hemant Patil

The Factory shed was converted into the studio for the photography due to its expanse and the height available, while the watchman’s cabin and the servants’ quarters were converted into an image processing unit and an office respectively. An unused space of about 7’ between the new office (erstwhile servants’ quarters) and the factory shed was converted into a transition court, which the office looked into.  This court, which is secured with a M. S. Pergola above, provides light and ventilation to the office, which has blank walls on 2 sides. An L- shaped wall flanks the court on the front side, providing some enclosure and housing the L shaped pergola, which highlights the entrance to the office. Linear, multi-colored windows in wood planks, open out the office façade to the paved, landscaped entrance court with existing and added plants and a couple of green benches.  

Courtesy of Lovekar Design Associates

On the other side of the plot was the main access to the factory shed with a watchman’s cabin and an outdoor toilet. This area was worked on by re-designing the toilet, adding a wall that hid the toilet door and creating a frame in brickwork that gave an identity to the space. This frame houses a bamboo pergola with a potted Frangipani and a yellow bench, creating an enclosure for outdoor seating. 

© Hemant Patil

Sustainability is achieved by using the existing structure with minimal changes to the architectural footprint. The climate in India being hot, doesn’t allow for large openings and use of glass. The structure, therefore, has minimal windows and obtains light and ventilation only through the front colored windows and the side court, which is open to sky. The design character too is minimal, with almost no decoration. Natural elements such as light and air along with architectural characters and colors that are local to the tropical climate of India forms the design language. An unused factory complex was thus converted into a contemporary studio for a young photographer with minimal expenditure and in a short time frame.

© Hemant Patil

Product Description. The project needed a raw and rustic feel to it. Hence plain cement concrete flooring, which is called “The Indian Patent Stone”, was used for flooring and highlighting a few walls. Other than this, paints in earthen shades were used on hand-plastered walls to give a raw look. The ceiling was painted black, while the doors and windows were painted in bright shades of acrylic emulsion paint.

© Hemant Patil

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© Peter Clarke

• Architects: SJB
• Location: Richmond VIC 3121, Australia
• Project Year: 2016
• Photographs: Peter Clarke, Michael Gazzola, Aaron Puls

• Client: Salta Properties

© Peter Clarke

As the name suggests, the primary driver for the final building in the ‘A Place to Live’ development is the people who live here. Innovative floor-plans, generous balconies, premium finishes, passive thermal control and cross ventilation coalesce to provide the intangible feeling of comfort these apartments embody.  And, while these elements are extremely important to the residents, what the design achieves is far broader. Bold, yet restrained, the result is a curvilinear form that posits rigour of scale and proportion in a single sweeping gesture that is both place making and highly aspirational. 

© Peter Clarke

© Peter Clarke

Key to the building’s appeal is a combination of calm and strength, where the rhythm of line negates the bustle of the intersection. Visually cueing the layered curves of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Guggenheim in New York, wide bands of powder-coated aluminium composite seemingly float in space thanks to deeply recessed balconies. The design however, is wholly cognisant of the site and not simply the hero curve of the corner, no matter how dramatic! Each aspect of the building is independently addressed with corresponding shifts in form. Burnley Street is greeted by an undulating curve that wraps around the building and makes a fluid transition to Victoria Street where, rather than continuing as a round, the form makes a slight return. The result is an unexpected and extremely beautiful transition that exaggerates the visual grace of the cantilevered balconies. It also creates a clearly defined corner from which to commence the portion overlooking Williams Reserve. At this point, the character of the building shifts to make a direct response to the Reserve. Here, powder-coated aluminium gently gives way to timber in prelude to the central section’s realisation in timber and glass, before switching back to metal for the southern side.

© Michael Gazzola

Occupying a site of approximately 810m2 the sculptural form of the 63 apartment, mix use building demonstrates a tailored response to key drivers inherent to the location: the busy intersection; and Williams Reserve. Pragmatic concerns, raised in shadow analysis, have been mitigated by a stepped layering of floors that ensures minimal shadow impact on the reserve. Additionally this has the benefit of increased sight lines, with no awareness of the upper floors from within 22 metres. And, while this solution is invisible by definition, what it achieves for the overall form is imparted as a sense of lightness a solid block cannot deliver. This is driven home by the extraordinary design that visually floats the whole building above a fully transparent ground floor.

© Michael Gazzola

Supported by tapered oval columns, the upper floors hover above walls of glass that allow Williams Reserve to be viewed from all sides of the building. Superbly leveraging the external aesthetic appeal of the Reserve throughout the entire ground floor, the bold but restrained design joins the calm of the landscape with the buzz of Burnley and Victoria Streets. This sense of calm is enhanced by timber finishes, deep charcoal tones, steel, and powder-coated aluminium, which are used throughout this area as large uninterrupted swathes of neutral tones. The result is a restful palette that draws the eye through the building to the landscape beyond.

Floor Plan Level 01

This palette is continued in the apartments, which benefit from generous balconies finished with fine louvres and substantial glazing. Arranged to maximise privacy and view, the floor-plates mimic the individual floor-plans in cognition of neighbours, view and amenity. Completing the building at ground floor are a convenience store and café, plus wellness facilities including a gym, pool and sauna. Indeed, taking full advantage of the lower floor glazing, the pool, which runs along the side facing Williams Reserve, allows tenants to fully engage with the reserve while doing their morning laps!

© Michael Gazzola

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© Vincent Hecht

In this photoset, Vincent Hecht takes his lens into the recently completed Sumida Hokusai Museum, designed by pritzker prize winner Kazuyo Sejima, one half of the acclaimed international firm SANAA. Located in the Tokyo neighborhood of Sumida, the 4-story, angular structure will house a collection of over 1800 works by world-renowned ukiyo-e woodblock painter Katsushika Hokusai, who lived in Sumida over 200 years ago.

The museum will feature space for a permanent exhibit examining the relationship between the artist and the region, as well as temporary exhibition spaces, seminar and lecture rooms, and workshop areas to provide more in-depth studies into the artist’s work.

Angular cuts in the building’s reflective facade will bring natural light into the gallery interiors, where works such as ‘The Great Wave Off Kanagawa’ will be displayed. The angular geometries will continue into the interiors in the form of walkways and apertures.

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

© Vincent Hecht

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© Rafael Gamo

• Architects: CC Arquitectos
• Location: Leon, Guanajuato, México
• Project Architects: Manuel Cervantes, Lizett Matsumoto
• Project Area: 1250.0 m2
• Project Year: 2014
• Photographs: Rafael Gamo

• Structure: Mauricio Pantoja, Fernando Calleja
• Building Services: IESH, Samuel Nischli

© Rafael Gamo

From the architect. Located between two production warehouses of leafy green vegetables, the project consisted of resolving the location of offices in a space that made emphasis on the constant interaction of the areas that comprise the administration, to promote a friendly atmosphere, take distance from the corporate condition, and try to approach a community working for common purposes.

© Rafael Gamo

As in the case of other projects, I faced a site area that has no limits in the ordinary concept of lot or property. The context consists of agricultural fields that generate deep horizons. This became the second aspect I wanted to address: how to contain work spaces, bring a human scale to the whole, and provide visual breaks. I took advantage of the proximity to one of the production plant warehouses to visually involve the production process.

© Rafael Gamo

Ground Floor Plan

© Rafael Gamo

The program is split into a set of volumes separated by short distances, a condition that generates space for green finishes which at the same time cause mobility and encounter, either in the gardens or in the main courtyard. The project is covered by a slab linking the volumes and giving shade, thus, the plant becomes permeable to the wind and protected from the sun, letting daylight through a hole that opens to the sky.

© Rafael Gamo

We reserved one of the courtyards for the artist Jeronimo Hagerman to produce a piece there. He decided to take the yellow color of the protective bands for mosquitoes inside the plant to paint the walls of the courtyard. Usually, Hagerman uses vegetation to build his pieces, and in this case he used Cissus Antartica to create a maze of benches and green curtains, which refer to the hydroponics system used in Next.

© Rafael Gamo

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© The Shopping Sherpa via Attribution Engine. Licensed under CC BY-ND

For U.S. architects, working abroad will now be easier than ever, as the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) has announced a new mutual recognition arrangement with the licensing authorities of Australia and New Zealand. Effective as of January 1, 2017, the agreement allows architects to earn reciprocal licenses that authorize architects to work in the two countries.

“The arrangement is an exciting opportunity for architects seeking to expand their careers internationally,” said NCARB President Kristine Harding, NCARB, AIA. “NCARB Certificate holders have been able to pursue licensure in Canada and Mexico for some time, and this arrangement represents a significant step in providing additional benefits to these architects.”

So far, 29 of the 54 U.S. state and regional licensing boards have accepted the arrangement:

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• New Hampshire
• New Mexico
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Puerto Rico
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Vermont
• Virginia
• Washington
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin

This arrangement is the result of over two years of research and negotiation conducted by a special NCARB evaluation team, who determined the path to licensure in Australia and New Zealand mirrors that of U.S. requirements, with emphasis of the three pillars of accredited education, structured experience, and comprehensive examination. The agreement was signed by the Architects Accreditation Council of Australia and the New Zealand Registered Architects Board.  

Similar to the agreement with Canada, U.S. and foreign architects hoping to work in Austalia and New Zealand must meet the following requirements:

• Citizenship or lawful permanent residence in the home country
• An active NCARB Certificate
• A license to practice architecture from a U.S. jurisdiction that has signed the arrangement
• 6,000 hours (approximately three years) of post-licensure experience in the home country
• Validation of licensure in good standing from the home authority
• Licensure in the home country not gained through foreign reciprocity

For more information about the new Mutual Recognition Arrangement and to inquire about earning a license to practice architecture abroad, visit http://ift.tt/2iUJekE.

News via NCARB.

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