From the architect. The project is a full refurbishment of a duplex in Madrid’s city center that will host a family expecting its third child and whose needs will change drastically along the next years. For that reason, the house is designed as an unfinished space, which will be modified and adapted to respond to the life changes of its inhabitants.
In the first state proposed,the house has large and fluid spaces, where the absence of physical barriers (open spaces, doors disappearing into walls, very few partitions, continuous pavements…) allows permanent visual contact for a family with small children, understanding their spatial needs as an extensible playground. On the lower floor the house is built around three volumes, which coincide with the most intimate and private spaces (two bathrooms and a dressing room) and around a single volume upstairs (the third bathroom). The remaining program is configured as a series of interstitial spaces without clear boundaries and dissolving the traditional structure of the distributor hall.
Isometric
Diagram
As residents grow up, and needs for large spaces to play in are reduced, the house will be fragmented to respond to these new situations and requirements of independence in a very simple, fast and economic way. In this second phase, the project proposes an adaptability solution through which, with only two plasterboard partitions, the functionality of the house changes, offering more private spaces while maintaining the common family gathering spaces: the kitchen and living room.
The staircase, built in folded sheet lined with bamboo and sustained with tensioned steel wires, plays an important role in this central core of the house, by being a lightweight and light-permeable element acting as a spatial and activities link in the house. It is also an interactive object, which functions as a decorative support that holds the different expressions and family events throughout the year (birthdays, Christmas, Halloween…) giving the house a unique and customizable character.
Floor Plan
The whole house has been adapted to improve climatic conditions with better insulation and smooth cross ventilation due to the fact that all doors and windows are sliding.
The project aims to achieve a dwelling whose life proceeds in parallel and harmony with the people who live in it, adjusting to their needs in time and understanding the necessity of adaptability and customization in our contemporary lifestyles.
The very concept of an art gallery implies an inward focus. While the need to showcase the cultural treasures contained within is self-evident, the need to connect these sheltered exhibition spaces to the outside world is less so, and in some cases is overlooked entirely. Even monumental design that turns the museum itself into a sculptural element may fail to make a reference to its particular surroundings. This sense of ‘placelessness’ is what Steven Holl sought to avoid in his design for an art museum at the heart of Helsinki, Kiasma – a museum whose carefully choreographed outward views, formally irregular gallery spaces,, and indeed its very name speak to the ideal of connection.
Demand for a contemporary art museum in Helsinki arose as early as the 1960s, although debates on just how to create one delayed decisive action for three decades. It wasn’t until 1990 that the Museum of Contemporary Art opened to the public, and even then it was in a temporary setting. A design competition for a new, permanent museum launched in the autumn of 1992; the following year, Steven Holl’s entry, entitled “Chiasma,” was selected from over 515 other proposals.[1]
Webster’s Dictionary defines chiasma as “an anatomical intersection.” Kiasma is, as its name implies, a design of intersections. Its site in the center of Helsinki is a focal point between several notable structures: the Finnish Parliament building is directly adjacent to the museum’s west, Alvar Aalto’s Finlandia Hall lies to the south, and Eliel Saarinen’s Helsinki Station can be found to the east. The northern face of the museum. meanwhile, is bounded by Töölö Bay.[2]
Courtesy of Steven Holl Architects
These features served as driving forces to determine the form of the building: a curved “cultural line” links Kiasma to Finlandia Hall, while a straight “natural line” connects it to the landscape and the bay.[3] The result of this site synthesis is a structure comprising three main elements: two building components and water. The eastern building volume is a twisted, curving mass whose southern and eastern faces are truncated where they meet the urban fabric. Its western counterpart, meanwhile, is a more typical orthogonal extrusion. The two forms meet at the northern end of the site, where they intersect with the waters of a reflecting pool that calls out Holl’s proposed southward extension of Töölö Bay.[4]
Courtesy of Steven Holl Architects
Visitors enter the museum through a spacious lobby with a glazed ceiling. This lobby serves as the starting point for stairways, ramp, and corridors that curve off to lead into the rest of the building.[5] The gallery spaces are characterized by the architect as “almost rectangular,” each containing one curved wall. This irregularity differentiates each successive space, creating a complex visual and spatial experience as visitors pass through the museum galleries.[6] The initial impression is that of the typical closed-in, placeless museum interior; however, it is only by moving through each space that one discovers various unexpected views to the outside. This choreographed outward focus, combined with the irregular forms of the interior, creates what Holl called “a variety of spatial experiences.”[7]
Courtesy of Steven Holl Architects
This variety was, in Holl’s reckoning, essential to the function of Kiasma. Contemporary artists produce an endless stream of unique works, and so a museum that showcases them must be able to anticipate and provide for anything ranging from the subtle and restrained to the grandiose and unpredictable. The irregular, subtly differentiated spaces of the museum serve as exhibition halls that Holl describes as a “silent, yet dramatic backdrop” for the display of equally variegated art.[8]
Holl worked with more than pure massing and windows to give each space its own unique character. Natural light was an important consideration – Holl was fascinated by the constantly changing character of Finland’s daylight.[9] Many of the windows in Kiasma are composed of translucent glazing, which diffuses the Scandinavian sunlight as it enters the interior. The staccato rhythm of city views is achieved by the occasional inclusion of fully transparent glass – both as a narrow crescent that allows a view to Helsinki Station and as full curtain-wall facades at the north and south ends of the building’s volumes.[10]
Light also permeates Kiasma through an abundance of skylights. More than simple punctures in the ceiling, the skylights work with the curving, irregular lines of the building to turn light into a sculptural element in itself. Horizontal ‘light-catching’ sections along the ceilings and upper walls deflect and diffuse light from skylights and clerestory windows down into the museum spaces; this system allows natural light from a single roof opening to penetrate through and illuminate multiple levels.[11]
[1] “The Story of Kiasma.” Kiasma. Accessed March 23, 2016. http://ift.tt/1SpbStm. [2] “Kiasma, Museum of Contemporary Art.” Arcspace. November 11, 2012. Accessed March 23, 2016. http://ift.tt/1TetbdK. [3] “Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art.” Steven Holl Architects. Accessed March 23, 2016. http://ift.tt/1SpbSto. [4] Lecuyer, Annette. “Art Museum, Steven Holl Architects.” Architectural Review, August 1998. September 21, 2011. Accessed March 23, 2016. http://ift.tt/1TetcOI. [5] “Architecture.” Kiasma. Accessed March 22, 2016. http://ift.tt/1SpbStq. [6] “Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art.” [7] Bianchini, Ricardo. “Overview of Kiasma Museum.” Inexhibit. December 12, 2014. http://ift.tt/1TetbdL. [8] “Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art.” [9] “Architecture.” [10] Lecuyer. [11] “Kiasma, Museum of Contemporary Art.” [12] Bianchini.
From the architect. La Source, media library and centre for eco-citizenship in Le Bouscat (France)
The new building and its function are immediately intelligible as one approaches from Rue Emile Zola, thanks to clear signage positioned on the east façade, while the main entrance is situated on Rue Formigé, thereby creating a direct connection with the bus stop opposite. The building’s accessibility via public transport and its inherent eco-mobility is therefore clearly brought to the fore and visually underscored.
To avoid the broken lines created by positioning the building on Rue Émile Zola, the architects at King Kong chose to create a sense of visible continuity between La Source and the neighbouring post office. The run of facades opposite the new building also respect this principle of alignment, and their choice therefore endows the immediate area with a sense of urban coherence. Any sense of meaningless dispersal or dissipation within the existing urban context was carefully avoided. It was King Kong’s aim to stitch the urban fabric of the town centre back together, rather than introduce an additional disruptive element.
The architects were mindful of the importance of the magnificent time-honoured plane trees standing on the site in the eyes of the local population, both young and old, and chose to protect each and every one of them. This was the source of inspiration for the cambered line of the building’s main façade; its well-defined but gentle curve speaks volumes of the noble nature of the building’s specific function.
The trees also provide the building with a visual filter and natural protection from the heat of the sun, creating perfectly adapted spaces within for working and reading in well-lit conditions. The gentle sweep of the building’s façade means that the main volume opens out towards the northeast, and this encouraged the architects to reposition the building’s two main functions, using the larger surface area to house the multimedia library rather than the Maison de la Vie Éco-citoyenne et Associative (MVEA). The curved façade also prevents the inside spaces from seeming either too vast or too cold. The easily identifiable reading areas, and sections for children, young people and multimedia resources, along with the educational activity area, are at once pleasant and inviting. They create a very open, lively atmosphere, free of artificial separations, and are bathed in contrasting shades of natural light, a source of pleasurable well-being. Inviting glimpses are offered of the exterior environment throughout.
Visitors enter the building via a common entrance hall, offering clear signage for all, including the sight or hearing impaired, and making it easy to find one’s way either to the MVEA or multimedia library. These two entities, serving differing purposes but also sharing a number of complementary characteristics, have been brought together within a single volume, thereby underscoring the need for exchange and conviviality between generations and social or cultural groups. The bonds established between the multimedia library and the MVEA have strengthened the dynamic role the latter intends to play within the local community as a federating and educational driving force.
The public areas are positioned on the ground floor, while those reserved for the administrative staff and management are positioned above, on an easily accessible and more secluded mezzanine floor. A sweeping corridor offers unimpeded views over the entirety of the multimedia library below and enables the staff to watch over the activity going on below, while creating a sense of unaffected friendliness between the public and staff. The materials used for the floor coverings, as for each and every element of the building’s interior design, are elegant, refined and unpretentious, brought to life by the play of light flickering over them in tune with the shifting atmospheric conditions.
It seemed logical, from the point of view of sound construction economics and thermal and acoustic insulation, to choose concrete for the building’s main structural framework. The glazed areas, in all their diversity (opalescent, translucent or transparent glass) were designed in light of the building’s orientation, and also enhance the building’s aesthetic appearance and the level of user comfort offered. The south-facing façade was set back from the surrounding constructions in accordance with local building regulations, and is equipped with shutters which may be repositioned in accordance with the changing seasons or to adapt to specific requirements. The positioning of the windows was determined with the presence of neighbouring houses uppermost in mind, as was the gradated height of the building’s façade. The neighbouring houses almost all have gardens, and the privacy of their inhabitants was to be respected.
The material chosen for the roofing enabled the architects to provide a roof space. The double curve of the roof is formed by a textile membrane enveloping the whole building in one homogeneous sweep. This membrane respects the latest environmental concerns and greatly facilitates the building’s maintenance, notably in terms of falling leaves. This material has been used across the globe in all types of construction projects for a number of years now, and other examples of its implementation in and around Bordeaux may be cited. In all cases, the membranes have withstood the test of time and their efficiency has in no way been diminished. Modern day textile membranes are even more efficient and respect the most stringent ecological norms.
The building embraces the town by means of an ample, pleasant esplanade, in perfect harmony with the redevelopments recently implemented in the vicinity, creating visually effective structural lines. The area around the main entrance has also been reworked, meaning that the building is immediately recognisable from Rue Formigé and the bus stop. Passers by enjoy unhindered views of La Source’s elegantly curvaceous façade, framing the age-old plane trees standing magnificently at its heart.
The esplanade is graced with a sculpture, La Troisième Ile, by Francesca Bonesio and Nicolas Guiraud/atelier 37.2, as part of the per-cent-for art programme.
The whole creates a feel of multiple amenities rubbing shoulders with meaningful intent, both within the building but also in connection with the wider urban context, the natural environment, public spaces and buildings yet to come. This design is inspired by a sense of just how important it is to take the existing architectural legacy of a given site into consideration when designing for the future, hand in hand with the project’s varying functions, while leaving ample room for the necessary evolution of a town whose eyes are resolutely set on the future.
The townhouse is located in Passau/Germany, in an area in danger of flooding. The polygonal, multi unit house was built within 6 months as an KfW 70 Standard house. The concept for the building provides the strict separation between living areas and utility areas.
Plan
Towards the street the house presents itself very introverted and closed. This part of the house holds the staircase and utility rooms, it is built out of concrete and differs itself in material and aesthetically from the rest of the building.
The house is also built on a concrete base, that way the building is not only flood-proof, the concrete base holds parking spots as well.
The units are situated towards the back of the property, away from the busy street and behind the concrete core.
On the inside, the building tells the story of its construction, raw wooden and concrete surfaces are left exposed and natural materials and colors dominate.
The living quarters are built out of solid wood. The fair-faced floor screed is made out of multiple washed sand and is treated and sealed with natural wax. Thanks to the big window openings the rooms are flooded with natural light and appear bright, airy and generous.
At first, it was a Kyomachi-ya that has been painted multiple times due to refurbishments in the last 80 years. Firtstly, for returning it to the original form, the paints were scraped off. Then, to be able to provide the minimal needs for living in a house, a white box has been placed in the building. The coexistence of the newly placed white box and the historical elements of the Kyomachi-ya, as a background, emphasizes the contrast of the old and the new, and lets the memories of the building possessed with in the flow of time surrounds the space.
The beauty of the Kyomachi-ya architecture has represented in the building by the pillar which supported the building for more than 80 years, as well as the roof which has surpassed the rain and the wind with the walls that kept inside warm during the severe winter of Kyoto.
Plan
On the North side of the site a park has been located. To be able to capture the environment of the park to the interior space, the white box has placed on the South area of the site.
On the Northern facade of the building, a large opening placed towards the park for bringing the sunlight to the deeper part of the first floor which had never bright before with the reducing the area of the second floor.
The Kyomachi-ya holds the beauty and the history of the past 80 years, and contemporary elements, which illuminated by the sunshine leaks from the trees from the park, brings the new, contemporary meaning to the Kyomachi-ya.
At the end of 2015, OMA’s first major commission, the Netherlands Dance Theater (NDT) was swiftly demolished. The once-praised building was reduced to dust and debris within a few months, without drawing much attention from the architecture world. Koolhaas had heard rumors about the demolition of the NDT over the last decade, but did not expect the lack of public outcry. “There was almost nothing, almost zero,” he said.
Using the NDT as a case study, Metropolis Magazine takes a look at how the early works of our most lauded architects are treated when they are no longer fit for purpose, and asks how we decide on the role preservation plays in the architectural profession. Is the demolition of the NDT a sign of lack of respect for OMA? Or is it a more general sign of our current era of rapidly changing styles and a need for larger buildings? Read the full story by Metropolis Magazine, here.
Several new renderings have been released of Robert A.M. Stern Architects’ TriBeCa condos at 70 Vestry Street, according to New York YIMBY. Located next to the West Side Highway in TriBeCa in New York, the 14-story building will contain 46 condos and over 153,000 square feet of residential space, with each apartment ranging from 1,700 to 7,000 square feet.
Additionally, the building will feature a list of upscale amenities, including a swimming pool, squash court, exercise room, storage, billiards room, library, and automated garage for nine cars.
French Baumaniere limestone will clad the façades of the stepped structure.
Nestled into the tree line at the top of a gentle rise, the house folds and unfolds to take advantage of sweeping panoramic views, and wraps upon itself to form an intimate courtyard against the forest’s edge.
The building is conceived as movement through a Fibonacci spiral. The resulting plan allows a graceful progression through the rooms, spiraling up to the highest point, a cozy aerie. The architecture considers the qualities of the light and views throughout the day and seasons, and offers optimal arrangements for different experiences, from breakfast, to midday recreation, to star-gazing from bed.
The architectural vocabulary and the materials, such as granite from a nearby quarry, were inspired by traditional farm houses and utilitarian buildings of western Massachusetts. Selected in a complementary palette, the varied materials play with textures and hues, and will take on greater character as they age in an evolving dialogue with the natural landscape.
“Part of war and conflict has always been the collateral damage. Buildings have fallen in the path of military objectives, but, […] in this war, buildings aren’t destroyed because they’re in the way of a target. The buildings are the target.” As the narrator of The Destruction of Memory so eloquently explains, the destruction of culture—of buildings, books, and art—is often not an accidental consequence of conflict. As we can see by the actions of ISIS in Iraq and Syria today, the destruction of cultural artifacts is part and parcel of a conscientious strategy to target and destroy the collective memory, history, and identity of a people.
“One of the ways to get rid of history is by remov[ing] all the physical traces of history,” Daniel Libeskind, the architect of the Jewish Museum Berlin, explains in the film. “[To] make believe that nothing ever happened, nothing was ever there.”
The new documentary, based off the 2006 book of the same name, by architecture critic Robert Bevan, offers stories of resistance, protection, and rebuilding. Most importantly, it asks the viewer a vital question of our times: “How can we stem its path and save the story of who we are?”
From the architect. The project, situated along Bruyn street at Neder-over-Hembeek , envisions the construction of 65 apartments and a day- care with 48 places. The apartments are divided into 5 distinct buildings constituted of systematic modules, where the layout, thanks to a series of direction changes, permits to avoid any repetitions devoid of nuances. The day care is on the frontage of this new urbanistic entity. Its presence contributes to the dynamism and quality of the future neighbourhood.
Courtesy of B612
The project is situated on the edge of the urban on a clear transition point between the urbanistic stretch, the fringes bordering the roads, and the areas opening into the landscape: the alignement of the buildings defines the roads and the public spaces, but at times it draws back, it opens, then it spreads out to make place for the structural, open and landscaped entities. The site and brief analysis has allowed us to define the guidelines and the project objectives in order to compose a friendly and durable environment that is beneficial for the accommodations and the neighbourhood.
Courtesy of B612
Section
Courtesy of B612
The implantation starts with the day-care which reconstructs urbanistically the currently undefined intersection between the streets Bruyn and Trasserweg. The day-care allows to articulate the North part intended for the new planned accommodation, with the already existing urbanised South part. Then, the urban development along Bruyn street permits to define the aligning without creating a built front thanks to the subtly offset geometry of the buildings. It creates openings and natural continuity that follows the distinctive features of the landscape.
Plan
Simultaneously with constructing the built environment, the project aims to create open landscaped spaces that would be structuring and beneficial for the city, the project and the landscape. The garden is the space that is constituted by the buildings and at the same time it is the space constituent of their qualities.
Sig Nordal 