Design group prescription., in conjunction with Arup, have developed a sophisticated sundial based off of solar path data that takes the form of a flowering fan. The geometry is optimized using the specific solar data from any world location, giving the sundial a completely unique form based on where it is constructed, and is materialized in a strong, flexible plastic through a 3D printing process.
As the design is 100% scalable, the designers foresee applications for the design in both park and festival pavilions and home installations. Watch the video below to see how the sundial’s geometry is generated, and how a small-scale prototype designed for Amsterdam proves the design concept.
From the architect. Set within the existing Bedford building of The City University of New York, the Medgar Evers College Library renovation transforms an existing 45,000 square foot traditional library into a modern information commons. A new addition, located adjacent to the library, adds a glassy 2,000 square foot welcome center that gives the library a civic presence on the street while providing a new front door to the College along Bedford Avenue.
The concept for the renovation is inspired by the brilliant and reflective pages of illuminated manuscripts and their modern counterpart, the computer screen. Treating each interior surface as a bright reflective page, the renovation transforms the former dark and shadowed space into a bright and airy learning environment that takes advantage of an existing north facing two story glass wall and space frame to admit light deep within the building. Natural light enters the three story space from north facing windows and an overhead skylight to illuminate the space frame, interior surfaces, sculptural stair, group study rooms and offices. A new three story opening along the north facade and new sculptural staircase physically and visually link all three levels. The opening increases the legibility of the space and hence the building’s clarity by allowing the visitor to see the various program functions of the library from the entry. The result is a light-filled inspiring information commons with adjacent study and classroom spaces.
In addition to the interior transformation of the space, the renovation completely transformed the program of the library. Built in the early 1980’s, just before the advent of the computer revolution in libraries, the Medgar Evers library was designed as a traditional collection and study space relying on the isolated individual scholarship model for learning. While individual study spaces and book collections are still available, the renovation transforms the functions of the library into a modern information commons that supports collaborative learning. Significant to this transformation is the reclamation of under-utilized storage space on the lower level for the less public functions such as, technical services, special collection storage and the traditional book collection. This approach freed up space on the main and second floors for more collaborative study areas and technology driven classroom spaces.
The renovated library provides for collaborative technology workstations adjacent to staff reference and nearby help desks. Supplementing the information commons on the main level are group study rooms, a media center and casual seating throughout. Previously the library provided ten computer workstations. The new space now provides 42 computer workstations on the main level, 15 computer workstations on the lower level and access to power and data at every seat. In addition to the information commons, 10 group study rooms, an emerging technology center, testing and advising classrooms, special collections archives and gallery are provided. These additions were possible within the existing structure by reducing and placing the most important collections in compact mobile storage, thus freeing up valuable floor area for program use.
The renovation incorporates a number of sustainable features in order to reduce energy consumption and improve interior environmental quality. The north facing glass wall permits diffused natural light to enter the library and photo optic dimming system monitor light levels and keeps artificial lights off for most of the daylight hours. All enclosed rooms have glass partitions oriented toward the information commons to borrow natural daylight throughout all spaces of the building. Reflective roofing reduces heat gain on the facility and a new high performance heating ventilation and air conditioning system vastly improves energy consumption. Recyclable backed carpet, bamboo wood flooring and paneling, low VOC paints and LED lighting are used throughout to improve the quality of the interior environment.
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Alongside the team’s players, the board of directors chaired by Josep Maria Bartomeu presented the model of the project, which will begin construction in mid-2017 to expand the stadium’s capacity to 105,000 spectators. In addition, the organization published a series of videos about the project, including an explanation of how the expansion will take place without affecting a single football match.
“We will build a great open space around the stadium, like a giant piece of origami arranged not to disturb the flow of people into the stadium,” explained Takeyuki Katsuya, the lead architect at Nikken Sekkei. “The solution for the stadium was to continue the path started by Mitjans,” the original designer of the stadium, Francesc Mitjans-Miró, added Joan Pascual. “In this sense, we said: the climate of Barcelona allows it. We open it and we leave all of this open space. This is what makes it unique, different.”
The new Camp Nou is part of Espai Barça, an ambitious remodeling project involving all the facilities of the Catalan team, including the new Palau Blaugrana designed by HOK and TAC Arquitectes, the Barcelona Campus and new Mini Estadi – all without interrupting matches in future seasons.
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Elegant Farmhouse is a residential project designed by Vanguard Studio Inc. in 2014. It is located in Austin, Texas, USA. Photos by: Fine Focus Photography
“Rooms with a view”, evokes not only the film of the same name, but also the magic of a domestic, landscaped setting. It is in this poetic, yet functional, spirit that the architects imagined their project for the LEGTA (Agricultural Technological and General High School) boarding house in Saint-Genis Laval.
The need to comply with very stringent energy standards (BEPAS) increased the complexity of the project’s starting point which was to provide an appropriate architectural solution for an imposing programme, which would fit into an agricultural landscape and organize the relationship with the existing buildings.
Plan
A co-educational 96-bed boarding house with communal areas (common room, study rooms and staff housing) in addition to the teaching facilities (250 pupils) composed of several heterogeneous entities, located on the Coin estate, 12 kilometres from Lyon.
The project has had to fit into a very heterogeneous setting with the different structures built over time to meet the growing needs. On the Coin agricultural estate which covers 75,000 m2, the old farm with its characteristic manor house features was extended in the 1970s with a second set of buildings built in the style of time to house the teaching facilities and dining room. Twenty years later the agro-food research laboratories, resembling industrial premises, were built on the outer boundaries of the plot.
Plan
In terms of the landscaping, the hilly topography offers a number of viewpoints looking out across the surrounding countryside, taking in the Monts du Lyonnais, the Pilat, and the Rhône valley. The rural nature of the setting is still pre-dominant, with orchards and remarkable woodland spaces, but the surrounding urban housing estates are gradually getting nearer.
In this context, the boarding house can be viewed as the last piece of an architectural puzzle. It both brings together the different components and reveals their true nature. It is the final full stop, organizing the space and landscape, guiding the resident and the user.
In order to meet the dual challenge posed by a dense programme covering 2,000 m2 in a rural setting which needs to interact with the original building, the designers decided to divide the project into three structures and to simultaneously reorganize the outside spaces.
Elevation
Elevation
Two new buildings, facing east to west, act as the backdrop. Converging slightly, they form an angle with the manor house around a levelled off contemplation garden. The boarding house on the second floor dominates the architectural grouping. It accommodates the bedrooms and support services and extends to the west with the staff housing and technical rooms. The common room on the ground floor benefits from the advantages of all four aspects and frames the square formed by the high school. The main entrance, reception area and common room are all located in this part of the programme. At a right angle a second volume outlines a clear, simple outcrop which organizes the vertical accesses, the study rooms, and the service rooms. An old hangar with golden stone pillars has been renovated to form a covered courtyard. Sheltered, but still open, it closes off and confirms the status of the central square around which the rest of the programme is built.
The overall layout uses a rift effect to treat the interface between the old and new buildings which takes the form of an old pedestrian alleyway which is used to access the service spaces for the project: student parking and staff housing.
The walkways and staircases are absolutely crucial to the project. They benefit from lots of natural light and differentiated views. The bay windows in the boarding house are north-facing and positioned at different heights which allows for natural smoke control and offers views over the orchards.
Splitting the project over three buildings gave the project a certain functionality and improved efficiency. This is notably true for the bedrooms, the mainstay of the boarding house, which are housed in a separate building accommodating one hundred high school students.
Each 30 m2 unit is designed for three people and contains three beds, separate wardrobes, individual aligned desks and a bathroom with a shower and two wash basins.
This unity aims to create a feeling of domestic harmony which allows each person their own privacy in a pleasant shared space. Every last detail has been thought out to optimize the use of space and enhance the user-friendliness of the communal areas. The essential features have been carefully preserved and the architects have worked hard to include details which create a sense of family living, including components that can be customized by each individual, such as the curtains and bookshelves. These bedrooms are protected, welcoming spaces in which community and individuality coexist.
SG House was designed by Atelier d’Arquitectura J. A. Lopes da Costa in 2009. It is located in Macieira de Sarnes, Portugal. SG House by Atelier d’Arquitectura J. A. Lopes da Costa: “The house consists of two structures, perpendicular to each other, and a third one serving the swimming pool. Due to its volume this house seems to have two floors, but it is, in fact, distributed almost exclusively in..
