© bloomimages

Richard Meier & Partners has released images of their competition-winning design for a new 34,750 square meter (374,045 square foot) mixed-use building in Hamburg, Germany that will combine luxury condominiums, rental apartments and the new headquarters for German real estate company Engel & Völkers.

The firm was selected as the winners of an international competition for the design in 2013, beating out proposals from Foster + Partners and Zaha Hadid Architects.

© bloomimages

The new building will be located in the HafenCity quarter of Hamburg, on the waterfront of the Elbe River. The design takes advantage of this location, providing units in the 16-story residential tower, known as “STRANDHAUS by Richard Meier,” with floor to ceiling windows to take in panoramic views of the city and the water. The third to 15th floors will consist of 66 apartments, while the top floor will contain two large penthouse units.

© bloomimages

All units will feature open, light-flooded interiors and unique details designed also by Richard Meier & Partners.

“The early history of our office is rooted in the design of some of the most iconic residential projects,” says Bernhard Karpf, design partner-in-charge. “This project continues the tradition of minimalist and light-filled spaces and of the continuous and clear organization of the intricate program requirements of a mixed-use building.”

© bloomimages

© bloomimages

“Natural light is the main building material, and the main characteristic of the interior spaces is their openness and transparency. They are filled with natural light and animated by the connection to the port, the city and the street life around the HafenCity district. Each floor of the development is a study in balancing transparency and natural light with various degrees of privacy required for the residential and office interiors.”

© bloomimages

© bloomimages

The Engel & Völkers headquarters will be located in the five levels of the base, occupying a total space of approximately 6,800 square meters. Office spaces will be organized around a double-height entrance lobby, which will invite in both employees and visitors to enjoy the public space, with details bearing Richard Meier’s signature white finishes.

“The color white is a fundamental part of Richard Meier & Partners inimitable style – a color that is also dominant throughout Engel & Völkers branding,” said Christian Völkers, CEO/Founder of Engel & Völkers AG.

Courtesy of Richard Meier & Partners Architects

Courtesy of Richard Meier & Partners Architects

Construction on the project is already underway, as the shell construction of the four-level underground parking garage has recently been completed. Due to the proximity to the Elbe River, the garage needed to utilize non-traditional construction techniques typically associated with large scale infrastructure projects and underground train tunnel designs.

“Besides the technical challenges, the planning phase has also had to take the varied uses of the building ensemble into account. The final design is a good solution that safeguards the functionality of individual areas while ensuring an attractive overall appearance,” said Philipp Schmitz-Morkramer, Founder and CEO of Quantum Immobilien AG, the project developer.

© bloomimages

© bloomimages

The next phase of the project with be structural construction and fitting out of the above-ground structure. The building is expected to be completed in 2018.

News via Richard Meier & Partners.

Courtesy of Richard Meier & Partners Architects

Courtesy of Richard Meier & Partners Architects

• Architects: Richard Meier & Partners
• Location: HafenCity, 20457 Hamburg, Germany
• Design Principals: Richard Meier, Bernhard Karpf
• Project Architects: Parsa Khalili, Anne Strüwing
• Competition Team: Kevin Browning, Bori Kang, Amalia Rusconi-Clerici, Stephen Sze
• Project Team: Kevin Browning, Pablo Costa, Alejandro Guerrero, Henry Jarzabkowski, Bori Kang, Aung Thu Kyaw, Sharon Oh, Steven Sze
• Owners: Quartier am Strandkai GmbH & Co. KG
• Area: 34750.0 sqm
• Project Year: 2018
• Photographs: bloomimages, Courtesy of Richard Meier & Partners Architects

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© Lorena Darquea

• Architects: IX2 Arquitectura
• Location: La Barca, Jalisco, Mexico
• Area: 759.7 sqm
• Project Year: 2016
• Photographs: Lorena Darquea

• Project : Javier Ituarte Landa
• Collaborators: Javier Zepeda Macías, Patricia Ortega Correa, Luis Gil del Río, Juan Ruíz García, Eduardo Gómez López
• Construction Management: Javier Ituarte Reynaud

© Lorena Darquea

This set of 10 houses (first stage) is located northwest of the town of La Barca, Mexico.

The houses are built on an area of ​​924.04m2 in a horizontal subdivision called Jardines de San Ignacio which has approximately 450 lots which are mostly of 90.00m2 (6.00×15.00m).

© Lorena Darquea

One of the features and benefits of the location is that the set is attached to a green, which will take place the implementation of a municipal linear park.

Axonometric

The main objectives were to identify the market which led us to stick to the ideology of the region, and therefore decided to build walls of solid block and concrete structure armed in order to achieve greater confidence with the inhabitants of the municipality. We also seek with the established budget, worthy interior spaces and on the other hand a clear image of quality in design which is achieved by the plastic of the property, concluding that the assembly is shown as a unit.

© Lorena Darquea

Floor Plan

It was proposed to achieve a different landscape which has been marked by large social housing developers, where the sequence of our architectural design allows to observe a number of full and empty accented with a color change.

© Lorena Darquea

The immediate role is completely accomplished by the use of materials not common in this sector like the front wall of Okume wood and with that emphasize the demarcation of competition.

Elevation in X-Ray

We worked on the outside a traditional flattened sand-cement base with making this offer a better product and remove in a certain way the stigma that carries the social housing in Mexico.

© Lorena Darquea

Inside lighting and ventilation of spaces occurs naturally through the backyard and the front of the house. According to the excess of light and the arid context, it was decided to provide small windows to the property. The back yard is shown as a living and private element, which is attached to the public area of ​​the house. We also look forward to separate the private areas from public areas of the neighbors.

© Lorena Darquea

Floor Plan

At the top there is a terrace, which is shown as an element with foundations in the principle of incrementally based on the homes of Alejandro Aravena, allowing in the future to grow automatically to prevent program changes (needs) during the time of a family in the building.

These gaps in the volume will generate a play of shadows during the day.

© Lorena Darquea

One of the materials that most benefited the project was to build slabs with an insulating panel of the m16 NOVIDESA brand, so we get a thermal house.

© Lorena Darquea

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© Filippo Romano

• Architects: Herzog & de Meuron
• Location: Milan, Italy
• Architects In Charge: Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron, Stefan Marbach
• Area: 7.795 sqm
• Project Year: 2016
• Photographs: Filippo Romano

• Partner In Charge: Andreas Fries
• Project Manager: Mateo Mori Meana
• Design Team: Liliana Amorim Rocha, María Bergua Orduna, Nils Büchel, Amparo Casani, Yolanda De Rueda, Claudius Frühauf, Yannik Keller, María Ángeles Lerín Ruesca, Monica Leung, Christina Liao (Animation), Adriana Müller, Argel Padilla Figueroa, Francisco Requena Crespo, Juan Sala, Francisca Soares de Moura, Carlos Viladoms, Federica von Euw, Thomasine Wolfensberger
• Partner Architect : SD Partners
• Mechanical Engineering: Polistudio
• Structural Engineering: Zaring

© Filippo Romano

From the architect. Strengthening and Reinforcing the City

The overall masterplan for Porta Volta holds an important strategic potential for creating a positive impact on the surrounding area, due to its important urban dimension. As part of the redefinition of the area Porta Volta, Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli intends to relocate its seat to the northern centre of Milan, considered as an ideal environment for the foundation’s multiple activities. Together with the building of Fondazione, the project includes the development of two further buildings, mainly dedicated to offices, and a generous green area as extensions of the existing boulevards.

© Herzon & de Meuron

A Site Steeped in History

The historical analysis of the site drove the evolution of the design proposal. The urban organisation of Porta Volta traces back to the course of the Mura Spagnole, the ancient 16th century city walls which were the last of a series of fortifications which since Roman times have defined the city’s growing boundaries. After the opening of the bastion in the late 19th century, Via Alessandro Volta laid the basis for the city’s extension outside the ancient walls, connecting as a new, prominent urban axis the historical centre with Cimitero Monumentale. Today, the emptiness of the site is a testament to the walls and, at the same time, reminds one of the destructions this area has suffered during the Second World War.

© Filippo Romano

A Gate as Point of Reference within the City

Together with a series of preserved gates, the two Caselli Daziari di Porta Volta offer an important reference point within the Milanese city plan. The allocation of Edificio Feltrinelli and the Fondazione along Viale Pasubio and the allocation of Edificio Comune along Viale Montello opposite the axis Via Alessandro Volta underline this historical gate, taking up the Milanese tradition of twin buildings as in Piazza Duomo, Piemonte or Duca D’Aosta.

© Filippo Romano

Besides the preservation of the Mura Spagnole’s archaeological remains, the concentration of building mass endeavours to create a generous public green area as extensions of the existing boulevards. On the street level, the new edifices will house cafes, restaurants, and shops, offering an area for interaction and recreation to the citizens.

© Filippo Romano

A House for the Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli

A narrow gap separates the Fondazione from the adjacent building, reflecting two autonomous constructions which are simultaneously part of an overall whole. The ground floor of the Fondazione accommodates the main entrance, cafeteria and book store, followed by the double height multi-functional space on the first floor, and an office area on both the third and fourth floors. The reading room on top of the Fondazione offers researchers and interested public the opportunity to study documents from the historical collection stored in the secure underground archive.

© Filippo Romano

A Milanese Project: Scale, Structure and Repetition

The new buildings are inspired by the simplicity and generous scale of historic Milanese architecture as Ospedale Maggiore, Rotonda della Besana, Lazaretto and Castello Forzesco. They are also inspired by the long, linear Cascina buildings of traditional rural architecture in Lombardy, which already were an important reference in Aldo Rossi’s work, for instance his residential building in Gallaratese.

© Filippo Romano

This is why we propose an elongated and narrow architecture which in a vaguely figurative way introduces a roof which melts into the facades. The structure expresses the geometrical conditions of the site in a rotation of its members and balances between transparency and spatial definition. Façade, structure and space form an integrated whole. 

The redefinition of Porta Volta will intrinsically be a Milanese Project, taking up themes of Milanese urbanism and architecture, which through the course of history have led to a series of emblematic buildings for which the City of Milan is renowned.

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© Studio Gang

The Nolli Map made history when it was created in 1748, largely because of its focus on public spaces. With it, Giambattista Nolli highlighted the fact that public places don’t exclusively exist in the forms of streets and parks, but also in enclosed spaces. Yet the importance of our communal areas is constantly being undermined. Our public areas exist to promote inclusion and equal opportunities, but despite that they are being forgotten and abandoned, debilitating their ability to bind communities together.

Given that the main goal of Studio Gang’s newly released, free, downloadable booklet, Reimagining The Civic Commons has been to “help communities everywhere activate their civic commons,” then, it is unsurprising that the booklet includes graphic maps reminiscent of Nolli’s visual aim. The booklet, which arose from work funded by the Kresge Foundation and Knight Foundation, focuses on the advancement of 7 types of “existing assets”: libraries, parks, recreation centers, police stations, schools, streets and transit. Since the start of Studio Gang’s research, a larger, $40 million initiative has begun—funded by the JPB Foundation, The Knight Foundation, The Kresge Foundation and The Rockefeller Foundation along with a multitude of local donors—with plans taking shape in Philadelphia, Chicago, Detroit, Memphis and Akron. The graphic guide is designed to offer adaptable, cost-effective and flexible approaches to these spaces, so that it can be implemented over time and in a variety of different communities. Read on for our summary of the report’s 7 strategies for improvement.

© Studio Gang

1. Open Libraries to Opportunity

© Studio Gang

Libraries house a vast amount of public resources and information, with over 120,000 libraries across the US hosting over 90 million visits per year. The physical interiors of many library buildings however, feel closed off and isolated due to their traditional function of storage and as places for individual study. As this method of information exchange gradually becomes less relevant in the new digital era, libraries have begun to adapt the services they provide, and Studio Gang believes that the buildings need to follow suit.

Opening up the façade to create a generous, accessible entrance, as well as installing large windows to visually connect the interiors with surrounding streets, will work to draw in passers-by. Once inside, Studio Gang suggests meeting areas, fabrication tools and technology rooms to support digital development in the workforce. In order to expand the library’s function as a place of gathering, an extension of the building in the form of a covered outdoor space is also proposed, serving as a new neighborhood destination for events.

2. Shape Parks into Experiences

© Studio Gang

10% of the urban area of the United States is covered in parks, totaling almost 2 million acres in total. Greenery in cities is known to improve people’s happiness, health and productivity, as well as providing “ecosystem services,” such as relieving strain from storm water systems. In order to increase their reach, Studio Gang encourages more diverse topographies to serve as gathering points, but also manage storm water. Bold and vibrant art, furniture and greenery can help to attract people into the parks, as well as visually emphasizing their presence.

3. Move Recreation Centers Towards Wellness

© Studio Gang

Despite the intended use of recreation centers as year-round social, health and education hotspots, current centers offer far less than what was originally planned. The “Civic Commons” booklet proposes the supplementation of centers with other wellness opportunities, such as on-site medical care, nutrition workshops and stress-relieving activities to attract a broader market.

Once again, the opening of facades, as well as the removal of interior walls, will open up single-purpose rooms into larger, more adaptable spaces. By connecting indoor and outdoor areas more light and air will flow into the buildings, as well as removing barriers to participation. This will hopefully also attract external service providers that can make use of the suggested leasable spaces. Finally, there is the possibility of activating entrances to mobile services such as health and food trucks.

4. Center Police Stations on Community

© Studio Gang

Studio Gang feels that police stations have become isolated from communities, often separated from the surrounding urban environment and surrounded by parking lots. This isolation minimizes productive exchanges between police, residents and city officials, instead increasing the dissonance between policemen and the community they serve. To counteract this, stations can begin by offering free Wi-Fi and ATM services to attract people inside. Implementing art and furniture at the entrance can also create a “porch”-like atmosphere for locals to enjoy. Including a roof-top canopy space may invite more shared activities such as dining and gardening, and opening retails spaces that benefit both policemen and local residents can establish lively community surroundings.

5. Cultivate Schools into Innovation Campuses

© Studio Gang

With nearly 50 million students being educated in about 97,000 elementary and secondary schools in the US, schools hold an enormous responsibility for the education, health and welfare of young people, as well as the future of the population. Unfortunately US students have fallen behind their international counterparts in mathematics and sciences, and a third of the children are overweight or obese. Implementing “laboratories” for experiential learning through the utilization of all surfaces, especially in outdoor areas, can enhance the learning environment, improve health, reduce stress and add natural beauty.

The four proposals for achieving this are: converting rooftops to greenhouses and “garden classrooms”, implementing green spaces that reach out into the surrounding neighborhood, growing agriculture on adjacent vacant land that can be used for phenological science, and incorporating student-grown vegetables in the cafeteria.

6. Make Streets into Places

© Studio Gang

Streets are used by all people, everyday. They are “the fabric that connects a city,” but how can they be transformed from thoroughfares to places? By developing a dynamic roof canopy pedestrians will be protected, improving the walkability of streets and the public health of a community. Additionally, developing storefronts and supporting local events will provide a form of entertainment for pedestrians, as well as encouraging local spending to stimulate economic growth. Planting trees can solve increasing urban heat, and designing the surface of the streets can optimize the maintenance of storm water, as well as increasing options for transit.

7. Make Transit Stops a Place to Go

© Studio Gang

Over 35 million people in the United States use public transportation every weekday, which saves them an average of $10,000 per year and increases property values by 42% when located near a high-frequency transportation service. However, public transportation nodes are often inconsistently located; they include gaps in certain routes and separate neighborhoods, causing socioeconomic divides. Studio Gang envisions future transit stops as “civic anchors,” that are communities in themselves, by expanding existing routes to create “transit hubs” where different circuits meet. In addition to this they propose adding new stops on transit lines, as well as infrastructure to supplement those new connections.

© Studio Gang

Reimagining The Civic Commons is available for download here. If you want to find out even more, you can visit Studio Gang’s website.

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© Ed Lederman

• Architects: TADA
• Location: Bridgehampton, NY, United States
• Lead Architects: TA Dumbleton Architect
• Area: 3000.0 ft2
• Project Year: 2013
• Photographs: Ed Lederman

• Structural Engineer: Robert Silman & Associates
• Mep Engineer: Ettinger Engineering
• Tada Design Team : Tim Dumbleton, Georgina Lalli, Monica Trejo, Letizia Spigarelli

© Ed Lederman

This house sits in a corner of a large lot in the center of Bridgehampton, New York.  Reminiscent of an old farmhouse with it’s simple shape and repetitive openings, also shares it’s DNA and it’s open space plan with that of a New York loft.  

© Ed Lederman

Plan

© Ed Lederman

The house, which was designed and built in 8 months, provides numerous connections to it’s surroundings – gardens, outdoor shower, pool & BBQ pit, while the larger double height end windows maximize the relationship with distance spaces beyond.  

© Ed Lederman

Plan

© Ed Lederman

The open plan is an exercise in fluidity and weightlessness, which contrast the heavily insulated – stucco exterior walls that ground it. 

© Ed Lederman

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During the IV International Congress in Pamplona, organized by the Architecture and Society Foundation, we had the opportunity to speak with Bjarke Ingels about his approach to theme “Architecture: Climate Change.” The founder of BIG told us about the importance of clean technology and how these technologies must be integrated into architecture. He asserts that new industrial projects must also break from traditional paradigms and question established concepts in order to be reintegrated into communities as clean, attractive and multi-use spaces. Ingels suggests that clean technologies holds exciting possibilities for public spaces.

One of the most innovative and sustainable experiences that Ingels spoke about is the partially completed Amager Bakke waste-to-energy plant in Copenhagen. The plant not only converts trash into energy, but also includes a roof-top ski slope. This out-of-the-box design was only possible because the plant produces the cleanest by-products in the world.

This interview was originally conducted for ArchDaily en español.

Here’s How BIG’s Power Plant Ski Slope Will Blow Smoke Rings
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BIG’s Waste-to-Energy Plant Breaks Ground, Breaks Schemas
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AD Interviews: BIG’s Jakob Lange / Chicago Architecture Biennial
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Courtesy of HENN Architects

On Tuesday, September 6^th, a groundbreaking ceremony was held for the newly planned “Berliner Block,” the Zalando Headquarters — a structure designed by HENN Architects for Europe’s largest online dealer in footwear and fashion. Along with David Schneider of Zalando Management Board and Berlin’s governing mayor Michael Muller, architect Gunter Henn spoke about the construction project currently underway.  

Courtesy of HENN Architects

In 2015, HENN Architects won the competition to design the Headquarters in Berlin.  Their project will bring the entirety of the Zalando offices into a group of two buildings located on one city block. Hence, a Berliner Block. 

Courtesy of HENN Architects

While a typical Berlin block-edge development is horizontal or vertical, the Headquarters plan rotates the building grid diagonally to the plot. The outcome, in effect, allows for naturally illuminated workspaces and transitions between office and public space, linked by translucent facades.

Courtesy of HENN Architects

Beyond the central “marketplace,” catwalks connect most of the areas, while an adaptable rooftop terrace can be used for a range of activities. The Headquarters, which are under construction now, are expected to open in Autumn of 2018.

News via: Henn Architects 

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© A.Kourur

• Architects: GMAA
• Location: Geneva, Switzerland
• Area: 120.0 sqm
• Project Year: 2013
• Photographs: A.Kourur

© A.Kourur

The Meditation Pavilion blends in the global conception of the park where it’s placed, enhancing the composition with its own qualities.

© A.Kourur

The idea of this pavilion is projected through the particular relation of the wooden volume gently hovering above a crossing water surface, creating an ensemble precisely aligned with the cardinal directions.

© A.Kourur

The poetic relation between the pavilion and the water surface is highlighted through a work on the vegetal environment that confines the pavilion’s position inside the private park that spreads around it. 

Plan

The Gramineae mounds around the pavilion and the pool create a fluid vegetal belt, changing colors and movements with the seasons, and hiding the pavilion from direct views, allowing only partial or indirect perceptions. It is only fully revealed when penetrating among the mounds.

© A.Kourur

A special attention is given to lighting design (natural and artificial) in order to preserve the site’s intimate character. In both lateral volumes, skylights allow natural light in, while suspended spotlights and indirect lighting enhance the rhythm of timber cladding and the the ceiling’s corners.

© A.Kourur

The pavilion itself is composed by a crossing central void, flanked by two lateral volumes. The ensemble sits on top of a wooden platform cantilevered over the lawn and pool. The structure is made of V4A stainless steel covered by thermo-coated solid ash wood in walls, floors and ceilings.

© A.Kourur

The central void includes two slight reinforcements on the floor in an asymmetric position and can be closed by sliding elements from inside the walls. Each lateral volume contains a different function: the changing room and bathroom in the west one and the summer kitchen and storage in the east one. 

© A.Kourur

In order to refresh the atmosphere around the pavilion, a misting system is integrated along the eaves.

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Courtesy of Trienal de Arquitectura de Lisboa

The Lisbon Triennale Millennium bcp Début Award was created to celebrate the achievements, and promote the careers of, young architects and practices under the age of 35.

More than 140 applications were received, representing five continents and including 39 countries including Portugal, Germany, Brazil, and Mexico, as well as Iran, Jordan, Sudan, and Palestine. The jury have praised the very high level of the proposals across the board.

The experts especially appreciated the ability for participants to expand and experiment with the limits of the discipline, connecting technological innovation to socially and environmentally conscious solutions.  

Ten finalists have been chosen by the jury to compete for the second edition of the award. The winner will be announced during the opening week of the Lisbon Architecture Triennale (5th-9th October 2016) and will give a lecture on the closing week (7th-11th December 2016).

Al Borde, Ecuador

Founded in 2007 in Quito, Al Borde is led by architects Pascual Gangotena (1977), David Barragán (1981), Maria Luisa Borja (1984) and Esteban Benavides (1985). The collective focuses on the human dimension of space achieved through a minimal resort to available resources. Drawing on the “ordinary”, they wish to expand the human condition engaging people and communities in the design process, questioning the subjection of architecture to bureaucracy and capital. In 2015 they were nominated for the Design of the Year Award at the Design Museum in London, while this year they figured in the official selection of the Venice Architecture Biennale. 

ASA STUDIO, Rwanda

Based in Kigali, this architectural practice is currently involved in a long-term project combining research, education, design and construction. ASA is responsible for the realization of the first kindergarten in Rwanda (2012), 11 preschools, more than 60 maternity wards, health centers and facilities. To this activity they combine the commitment to the creation of the first Architecture School in Rwanda, where they wish to promote opportunities for the future architecture graduates.  

Carles Enrich, Spain

After graduating from the Architecture School of Barcelona, in 2009 Carles Enrich founded his own studio initiating projects at different urban scales. His work has been exhibited at the Venice Biennale both in the Catalan Pavillion (Vogadors) in 2012 and in the Spanish Pavilion (Unfinished) in 2016. Since 2008 he holds a teaching position at the Architecture School of Barcelona as well as at School of Architecture in Reus.

El Umbral, Mexico

Founded in Mexico City in 2013, El Umbral is led by architects Mercedes Landa Quintanilla, Mario Ramos Catalá, Jos Sacre and Pamela Martínez. Their activity includes the construction of residential buildings, public spaces as well as urban design projects. In 2014 the practice was awarded the Jardin San Hipolito Award and was recently chosen with other two finalists to present a proposal for the international cultural fair in Mexico City. 

 

Hevia + Urzúa (Guillermo Hevia García + Nicolás Urzúa), Chile

The practice was founded by Guillermo Hevia Garcia (1986) and Nicolás Urzúa Soler (1986), who are both graduates of the Pontificia Universidad Católica do Chile, where they now teach in the school of architecture. They won the first prize in the 2016 YAP Constructo Award and were between the finalists of the Iakov Chernikhov Award in 2014. In 2015 they represented Chile at the fourth Architecture Biennale of Latin America.

Paulo Manuel do Vale Afonso, Portugal

Architect (1982) trained at the University of Coimbra and at the NTNU, in Trondheim, Norway. He has worked with OAB, Office of Architecture in Barcelona, as well as with 51-1 Arquitectos in Lima, in the same city he was one of the co-founders of AMA (Afonso Maccaglia Architecture).

Pedro Pitarch, Spain

Architect (1989) and contemporary music composer. Pedro Pitarch works and lives in Madrid. Occupying a somewhat tangential position within the architectural practice, his investigations focus on the interrelations between society, contemporary culture and media.   

PLURAL, Slovakia

Plural was founded by Martin Jancok in 2009 and later joined by Michal Janak in 2013. The practice’s projects are based on a conception of architecture as a public domain, a common language whose structure should be used for the common good. In 2015 Plural received the first prize for the SSE-Complex Award, and was awarded an honorable mention in the House for the Elderly Award in 2014.

Terra e Tuma Associated Architects, Brazil

Founded by Danilo Terra, Pedro Tuma and Fernanda Sakano, the practice is devoted to research and design at different scales. Through the combination of their respective experiences, the three founders wish to give shape to ambitious projects able to exploit at best of the technical assets of available materials.

UMWELT (Scheidegger & Garcia Partarrieu), Chile 

Founded in 2011, by Ignacio Garcia Partarrieu (1984) and Arturo Scheidegger (1983), Umwelt develops research and design projects at different scales. Umwelt has exhibited projects at the Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Santiago and Venice Biennales as well as at the Storefront for Art and Architecture in New York. The practice has recently been selected for the 2015 Iakov Chernikhov Award as well as for the 2016 Emerging MCHAP Award.

The jury was composed by André Tavares (PT), Chief Curator of The Form of Form; Fernanda Bárbara (BR), architect; Luís Santiago Baptista (PT), architect and critic; Margarita Jover (FR), architect; Mimi Zeiger (US), critic, editor and curator; Tetsuo Kondo (JP), architect; and Tim Abrahams (UK), architecture critic and editor at Machine Books.

The winner of the Début Award receives a 5000EUR prize and will deliver a public lecture in Lisbon as part of the main programme of the Lisbon Architecture Triennale. With this prize the Triennale wishes to support new voices and forms of practice, expecting that the prize will contribute to the young professionals’ creative, intellectual and professional growth at a crucial and potentially transformative stage in their career.

Via Trienal de Lisboa

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No.1 Building

The career of Japanese architect Kenzō Tange features a curious anomaly: he received the same commission twice. In 1952, during the early stages of his career, Tange designed an administrative building in Yūrakuchō, Tokyo, for the city’s metropolitan government. Over thirty years later, when the government relocated to Shinjuku, Tokyo, he again won the commission to design its administrative building. Completed in 1991, this would be one of his last, and most ambitious, projects. The second incarnation now dominates the city’s skyline, its highly distinctive design guaranteeing it landmark status. Nicknamed Tochō (an abbreviation of its Japanese name Tōkyō-to Chōsha), its architectural references to both tradition and modernity act as a visual metaphor for the eclectic city over which its inhabitants govern.

Plan of the Complex (Public Domain)

Though usually referred to as a single building, Tochō would be more accurately described as a complex comprising three structures. Though visually distinct and individually named, all three buildings within the complex are linked by pedestrian routes. No.1 Building is the tallest of the three; the main structure stands thirty-four stories high but its twin towers soar to forty-eight stories, making it the tallest building in Tokyo at the time of its construction. Clad in precast concrete panels, the façade is inset with light and dark granite to create a variety of geometric patterns.

At its base, the façade of No.1 Building forms a sheer face which becomes increasingly articulated as the two towers ascend. This irregular composition adds visual interest and prevents the building from appearing monolithic, despite its height. The articulated surfaces also perform a practical function by disrupting the strong winds which buffet the building at its highest points. Receding cutouts at the tops of the towers create a frame for a collection of satellite dishes, transforming aesthetically­ unappealing—though necessary—elements into intentionally decorative features.

No.2 Building

To the south of No.1 Building stands No.2 Building. Its structure comprises three interlocking towers of increasing height, the tallest of which stands at thirty-four stories – level with the main structure of its counterpart. Again, no attempt is made to conceal less attractive architectural elements, with many of the building’s services displayed prominently on the large balconies formed by the rooftops of the lower towers; an example of the architectural honesty which typifies Tange’s work. The façade of No.2 Building features the same patterns of granite and concrete as its neighbor; by maintaining stylistic consistency across the complex Tange was able to create a visual link between its individual components.

The third building in the complex is the Assembly Building, an eight-story semicircular structure which sits at the foot of No.1. While the No.1 and No.2 Buildings primarily house government offices, the function of the Assembly Building is more specific: it serves as the meeting chamber for the councilors of Tokyo. The sweeping curve of the building encompasses an expansive courtyard which is sunk below street-level, separating it from passing road traffic to create a tranquil clearing in which open-air concerts, for example, can be held. As the building extends westward, its arms become high-level walkways raised on piloti. The southern arm intersects with a bridge spanning the gap between No.1 and No.2, binding together the three components of the complex through a system of pedestrian circulation.

No.1 Building

Tange’s architecture is characterized by an interplay between tradition and modernity; he believed that “the most vital task of today is creatively to elevate both past and future.”[1] Many of his early works lean heavily on the architectural traditions of his native country of Japan –  particularly evident in his design for his own home of 1953. However, while he acknowledged the influence of Japan’s heritage, he repeatedly attempted to distance himself from purely historical associations. “Tradition can be compared to a catalyst;” he wrote, “it stimulates our design process, but just as a catalyst disappears after the chemical action, so tradition does not remain in the final design.”[2]

By the late stages of his career, references to architectural history in Tange’s designs had become less overt, but remained extant. At Tochō, the geometric pattern of the façades recalls the screen paneling of traditional Japanese houses. The twin towers of No.1 Building, meanwhile, can be compared to the split towers of Gothic cathedrals.

Unknown Author (25 January 1955). Public Domain. ImageKenzō Tange's residence

Throughout his extensive writings, Tange frequently extolled the virtues of modern technology. This is somewhat surprising given that his first completed project, the Hiroshima Peace Park, bore witness to the destructive potential of human ingenuity. Nevertheless, Tange’s design for Tochō directly invokes technology through its design; the architect cited the computer chip as the stylistic inspiration for No.1 Building.[3] This digital imagery is repeated within the building, where a circuit-board motif decorates some of the ceilings.[4]

Given the economic climate in Japan at the time, references to computing were particularly apt. Thanks to its world-leading technology industry the country was enjoying an economic boom and the computer chip had become a national symbol for modern Japan. Tange even borrowed the rhetoric of technology, quoting Norbert Wiener (the inventor of cybernetics) when describing his own architectural designs as “communication spaces” linked by “informational channels.”[5] As such, the transfer of people through the corridors and elevators of No.1 Building emulates the transfer of information through electrical signals in a computer. Not only does the building employ the iconography of a computer chip, it also functions as one.

Elevation of No.1 Building (Public Domain)

Tange’s embrace of modernity did not, however, extend to the adoption of European Modernism; a style of which he was highly critical. Though he admired the work of Le Corbusier, he disdainfully noted that for most Modernist architects “the mere white box—which was no more than a starting point—was in itself a true goal.”[6] Tange also took issue with the functionalist attitude of the International Style, which he saw as overly simplistic and rigid: “criticism has often been made by people living and working in these buildings that this restricts their life and I believe their complaints are worthy of attention.”[7]

Tange’s own design process involved a “typification of function,”[8] wherein the most fundamental needs of the building’s future users were prioritized and other needs, deemed arbitrary, were ignored. For instance, the massive scale (and $1billion cost) of Tochō led to public outrage during construction but, as justified by the project’s construction manager, “it needed to be this size to house the ganglia of a huge computer network intended to make the Tokyo government the most sophisticated in the world.”[9]

Satellite dishes on No.1 Building

While Tange may not have subscribed to the European model of Modernism, he did share the movement’s aim to (ostensibly) sweep away the old and build anew. Tochō‘s new site in Shinjuku—the historic red-light district of Tokyo and a notorious center for Yakuza activity—afforded Tange the perfect opportunity to do so. The area had been targeted for regeneration by city councilors in the 1980s, and the construction of Tochō signalled the beginning of the redevelopment of Shinjuku as a modern financial district. Though the neighborhood still retains some aspects of its insalubrious past, its transformation into a thriving economic hub has been hugely successful. Twenty-five years after completion of Tochō, the area is now strewn with skyscrapers which house the headquarters of national and multinational corporations.

It has been suggested that Tange’s belief in the regenerative power of architecture has its roots in the cycles of growth and decay described by Buddhist teachings.[10] The demolition of Tange’s original Metropolitan Government Building shortly after the opening of Tochō completed this cyclical process. Though Tochō is often overlooked within the architect’s oeuvre, in many respects the complex exemplifies his style through its harmony of tradition and modernity, its typified functionalism, and its capacity to reflect a national identity.

The Assembly Building and Public Square

References
[1] Tange, Kenzō. “Creation in Present Day Architecture and the Japanese Tradition”. In Robin Boyd. Kenzō Tange. New York: George Braziller, 1962. p.113
[2] Tange, Kenzō. “In Search of a New Architecture”. Japan Quarterly, 31:4, 1984. p.407
[3] Weisman, Steven R. “A Plush City Hall, but Please, No Marble Bathtub!”. New York Times, 20 August, 1990
[4] Žaknić, Ivan. 100 of the World’s Tallest Buildings. Victoria: Images Publishing, 1998. p.104
[5] Ibid. Tange. “In Search of a New Architecture”. p.408
[6] Ibid. p.406
[7] Ibid. Tange. “Creation in Present Day Architecture and the Japanese Tradition”. p.116
[8] Ibid. Tange. “In Search of a New Architecture.” p.407
[9] Ibid. Weisman.
[10] “Tange, Kenzō”. Oxford Art Online. Accessed 13 July, 2016. [access]

• Architects: Kenzo Tange
• Location: Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, 2 Chome Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tōkyō-to 160-0023, Japan
• Architect: Kenzo Tange
• Area: 27500.0 sqm
• Project Year: 1991
• Photographs: flickr user IQRemix (licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0), Wikimedia user Kakidai (licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0), Wikimedia user Wiiii (licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0, , Wikimedia user Morio (licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0)

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