Rowzan residence is a private residential building in 7 story consists of a private triplex unit upon two individual flats .The site is located in Zaferanieh neighborhood, in northern part of Tehran on a steep slope which varies up to 16 meters from south to north which ensures scenic overlooks toward the city skyline. So it was a main purpose in design process to take advantage of this spectacular view, but in the north and east sides there is a camp with student rush, thus minimum opening was preferred to have more privacy and quietness.
The project is organized in three parts which settle on the slope gradually. The southern part is the yard and spiral car ramp which connects the street to the parking floor in two height upper. The middle part includes parking area and the twin flats and the northern part devoted to lobbies of the residence , both public and private, and the triplex unit with direct access to the northern alley.Here architects designed a perforated concrete shell safeguarding the inhabitant’s privacy from the overlooking neighbors .It acts as a second skin protects the inner transparent mass which has been set back and let it have large windows with maximum possible light. This creates a unique calm in-between place which keeps you far away from the city next to that ,where water pond duplicates light by reflection and the bamboos, potted in oval-shape container ,add life and beauty to the space.This shell continues in the east side, becomes the single skin of the envelope which channels limited light and sight in ,but in the south with sweeping views of the city, it has been cut off to have maximum openness.
These eyelets and scratches have been inspired by functions behind. In north ,there are enclosures in each floor which oriented them towards a closed-shape and in the east, with open space and spiral staircases, the perforation orientation shaped in a more dynamic way .Diversified depths and length of them not only enhances the dynamism and vitality of the facade, but also boosts the lighting features and the overnight beauty of the building.
In the traditional Persian architecture, when privacy and introversion was one of the most significant features, windows have fundamental role in forming the appearance and identifying the architectural characteristics of residential buildings. However, with the progression of time , there is a lack of variety and characteristics for windows and they have lost their historical position. In this project architects tried to revitalize this historical role with an attempt to avoid monotony and boredom in the repetition of these apertures.
From the architect. After the Ludian earthquake in 2014, most of the local rammed-earth buildings in Guangming Village were destroyed. Villagers chose to build brick–concrete houses during the reconstruction period. However, the price of building materials rapidly increased and became unaffordable for most local villagers.
This project innovates the traditional rammed-earth building technology to provide villagers a safe, economical, comfortable, and sustainable reconstruction strategy that the villagers can afford, own, and pass on.
A prototype house has been built for an aged couple to validate the technology and building performance of the innovative rammed-earth building system.
Within a limited land, the design is integrated with the living and semi-outdoor spaces to provide a comfortable and artistic living environment for the aged couple. Double-glazed windows and insulated roof are used to improve the thermal performance of the building.
To improve the seismic performance, the components of the wall are well adjusted using clay, sand, grass, etc. Steel bars and concrete belts are added to the wall to improve structural integrity and to avoid vertical cracking. The concrete belts are hidden in the wall so that the earth facade could be integrated. The quality of the building materials, rammed tools and formwork are increased.
The result of a shaking table test shows that the seismic performance of the rammed-earth building is significantly improved and can meet the local seismic codes.
The “3L” (local technology, local materials, and local labor) strategy has been used in the reconstruction project. The outcome could be summarized into three aspects:
In environmental dimension, the environmental impact of the houses are minimized. Good thermal and daylighting performance guaranteed a low operating energy consumption.
In economic dimension, the construction and operating costs have been minimized to be affordable to local residents. The villagers themselves constructed the houses mainly with manpower and simple tools. They could easily improve and maintain the houses in the future, and utilize this technology as a means of earning their livelihood.
In social dimension, local residents are fully engaged in the entire process of reconstruction. Local government and multidisciplinary university resources are used to supported rural reconstruction. We protected the local traditional rammed-earth construction method and lifestyle by improving its building performance with a simple strategy and local materials.
In the subsequent stage, this anti-seismic earth building system will be applied to more rural projects in Southwest China. This strategy will also provide guidance for local reconstruction policies and rammed-earth building standards.
The project is a photography studio complex for a young photographer who specializes in automobile, product and fashion photography.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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!
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.
Monument Valley – Arizona – USA (by Jesse Loughborough)
Sig Nordal 