design – Page 84 – Sig Nordal

Ermita del Santo Sepulcro Rehabilitation / Héctor Fernández Elorza + Manuel Fernández Ramírez

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Architects: Héctor Fernández Elorza, Manuel Fernández Ramírez
Location: Plaza de la Constitución, 10450 Jarandilla de la Vera, Cáceres, Spain
Area: 45 m2
Project: 2012
Photographs: Montse Zamorano, Héctor Fernández Elorza

Technical Architect: Raúl García Cuevas
Surveyor: Isidro Méndiz
Collaborating Architect: Violeta Ordoñez
Architecture Students: Javier Estebala, Clara González, Rubén Mejías, Carlos Moya, Gonzalo Rojas, Miguel Ruiz-Rivas
Construction Equipment: Burcio Núñez SA
Promoter: Ministerio de la Vivienda
Project: 2008
Budget: 157.918 euros

From the architect. Jarandilla de la Vera has grown around a large granite promontory, leaving its steep western side untouched protecting the access and placing the Main Square in the slightly sloped eastern side. From this square an irregular ramp starts off in the shape of a steep ascending path parallel to the northern facade of the church, arriving at a small square defined by the entrances to both the church and the Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre.

The rehabilitation project of the chapel has developed two strong actions. Firstly, to consolidate and assure the constructive stability of a seriously harmed building in a state of ruin and neglect. Built in the 17th century as a small chapel attached to the church, its use varied. In the 19th century it was used as a small prison and during the start of the 20th century, after its roofing came down, as a school.

Secondly, to adequate in a flexible manner the new use proposed for this construction, given that many varied activities will be developed.

With barely 100 m2 and only one access from the small square, the chapel is divided into two volumes which configure a unitary space -given their shape, size and linkage. The first and largest volume has an irregular four-sided plan and a gabled roofing with its ridge placed perpendicular to the facade. Although the second volume is smaller, it is taller. Placed in the back of the previous one, this piece used to be the apse. Thus its high ceiling topped with a semicircular dome covered by a hipped roof with a lantern that shines light inside through the center of the dome. The link between both volumes is solved by a five meters wide circular granite arch.

The developed work proposes an intervention of subtle, minimal actions on the original remains of the building. On one hand, the new structural system has been designed to supply the existing shortcomings and to get rid of the observed pathologies in the actual state of the building. This is achieved by incorporating an interior ‘shell’ -floor, lateral walls, and covering- made of armored concrete 25 centimeters thick. This element solves the totality of the main volume and assures the reinforcement and stability of the original perimeter walls. The remains of the shake roofing were used to create the texture of the formwork to construct the concrete shell, translating the wood texture of the old chapel to the new construction.

On the other hand, the semicircular dome´s lantern is recomposed by the insertion of a stainless steel element that reflects the light into the interior of the second volume, the former apse. This element plus the two lateral apse windows and the semicircular gap above the main entrance are the only ways to shine light into the chapel. The width of this arched main entrance enables a double door that allows a variable relationship between the exterior and the interior of the chapel along with variable illumination too.

The interior acoustic absorption has been taken into account too, in order to avoid uncomfortable sound reverberations. This is solved by covering the interior of the façade wall with solid beveled wooden pieces in line with the concrete shell that absorb and break secondary acoustic waves enhancing the interior comfort.

Lastly, the exterior appearance of the walls is very simple, made in basic stonework and lime mortar plastering. The granite flooring finish from the interior of the chapel is extended outwards to the small square, leaving uncovered the grain of the stone of the promontory, and including big chunks to configure the ledge highlighting, therefore, the former compactness and weight of this site.

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17 Excerpts from OMA Publications To Read and Download

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Earlier this year, the Rem Koolhaas-led firm OMA launched a redesign of its website. If you haven’t already popped over to see more than three decades worth of cutting-edge, provocative architecture projects, you’ll have a good reason to now: downloadable excerpts from six of the office’s highly acclaimed books and magazines.

1. Elements (2014)

Publisher: Marsilio

Available Excerpts:

Ramp II: Claude Parent

(Download here)

2. Project Japan (2011)

Publisher: Taschen

Project Japan (2011). Image via www.oma.eu

Available Excerpts:

Kisho Kurokawa
Arata Isozaki
Media Architects

(Download here)

3. Al Manakh (2007)

Publisher: Archis

Available Excerpts:

Drawn in the Sand
Introducing
Cityscape 2006 Report
Export Dubai
Workers in the City

(Download here)

4. Post Occupancy (2006)

Publisher: Domus d’Autore

Post Occupancy (2006). Image via www.oma.eu

Available Excerpts:

Casa da Música

(Download here)

5. Content (2004)

Publisher: Taschen

Available Excerpts:

AMO Atlas
Go East!
Utopia Station
The Enemy + CCTV

(Download here)

6. Project on the City II: The Harvard Guide to Shopping (2001)

Publisher: Taschen

Project on the City II: The Harvard Guide to Shopping (2001). Image via www.oma.eu

Available Excerpts:

Evolution
Escalator
Relearning from Las Vegas

(Download here)

We included OMA’s website in our feature on the “Best Designed, Most Useful, Architecture Firm Websites“. Check out the others, here.

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Platanenkubus Nagold / Ludwig.Schoenle

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Architects: Ludwig.Schoenle
Location: Nagold, Germany
Architect In Charge: Ferdinand Ludwig, Daniel Schönle
Area: 100.0 m2
Project Year: 2012
Photographs: Courtesy of Ludwig.Schoenle

Client: Landesgartenschau Nagold 2012 GmbH 
Plants And Plant Maintenance: Helix Plant Systems
Engineering: Brocke Engineers, Stuttgart

Plane-Tree-Cube Nagold
The Plane-Tree-Cube was designed as a contribution for the Regional Horticultural Show in Nagold in 2012. It was conceptualized as a long-term Baubotanik experiment within an urban context. By the help of “Plan Addition” techniques, a green cube with an edge length of 10 meters was created that, right from the beginning, had the dimension of a full-grown tree. Initially, young plane trees are arranged in plant containers on six levels. They form green walls around a space open to the sky.

In the course of time, the upper part of this space will be covered by the gradually emerging canopy, while the lower part will become more transparent and dominated by the increasingly knobby and thick trunks. During the horticultural show, the cube served as a view tower and shady retreat for visitors. After the show, the area will be developed into a new neighbourhood. The plane-tree-cube will then function as a multifunctional vertical pocket park.

“Plant Addition” is a technique where young plants are arranged above and adjacent to each other and connected so that they merge into a network-like plant structure. Only the lowest plants are put in the ground, all others are planted in special containers fitted with an automated system that continuously supplies them with water and nutrients. As this network of plants develops, the roots embedded in the ground grow more vigorously than those placed in containers because the ground provides more root space, which plants can exploit for additional resources. Once the inosculations have developed, the artificially created plant structure can transport water and nutrients from the roots in the ground to the upmost leaves, and the roots of the container plants become obsolete. Step by step, these high-level roots can be cut off, the automated watering system can be removed, and, finally, the living structure becomes self-sufficient. Simultaneously, the secondary growth in circumference increases the strength of the plant structure and eventually it becomes self-supporting so that the scaffolding, initially required to support the containers and the young plants, can be removed. During two test series, this concept was validated with different tree species.

Product Description. The drip irrigation system by Netafim is an essential element to continuously and precisely water the plants in the pots. The Airpot Growth System is an innovative pot system working with so called “air pruning” of the roots to avoid circular root growth in the pots and to foster healthy plant growth. The large format concrete plates by steico cover the whole ground floor area of the project, giving it an generous appearance.

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Kengo Kuma Unveils Designs for Residential Superstructures in Moscow

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Kengo Kuma & Associates have been tapped to design a new high-rise residential complex on Kutuzovsky Prospekt in Moscow, adjacent to the new business district of Moscow City. The project will be the first urban plan in Moscow to take the form of superstructures rather than individual buildings, and will be Kuma’s first project in the Russian Capital.

The 360,000 square meter complex will follow an open-courtyard concept where the elongated building structures will frame a wide promenade directing pedestrians through to the nearby Moscow River. Public and community social spaces will also be integrated throughout the project, along with an underground parking deck and small indoor garden.

On the outside, the building facades will be constructed from matte anodized aluminum to reflect sunlight and create “an effect of lightness and transparency.”

In an interview conducted by the Architectural Council of Moscow and included as part of a press release for the project, Kuma explained his inspiration for the site and his take on the current state of the architecture world:

Archcouncil: Why have you decided to work here? What are you interested in?

Kengo Kuma: The location of this project is very important for Moscow, because it’s near the Moscow River, which is the new center of activity in Moscow. The aim of the project is to combine the big boulevard and the riverside; and it can change dramatically the urban environment of the location.

A: The Moscow Government approved the unified urban development concept of the Moscow River’s adjacent territory. What challenges are development projects facing, which, like yours, will be implemented on the riverside? And what benefits can they bring to the city?

KK: In the XX century the riverside and city life were totally separated. On the riverside there were factories or warehouses — those houses block the river from the city. But in the XXI century people would like to enjoy the nature of the river. In Japan we also have the same program: the nature, a river or ocean, and a city have been separated by industrial buildings for a long time. In Europe people face the same problem — when buildings have broken the nature and the city.

Our project in Moscow is kind of a “gate” which connects the city and the river. This is an ideal project to combine the courtyard, various activities and the river. We’ve been working together to create this kind of new prototype which will connect nature and the city. It can be the new prototype not only for Moscow; it can be the new prototype for every city in this century.

A: What do you think about the trends that were demonstrated at the present Architectural Biennale in Venice: simplification of shapes, cost reduction, single use policy? What’s your forecast for the future?

KK: Now the relationship between society and architecture is changing, as society is very often critical to the cost of the building, and also the environment has become very important. In that new situation the architects should find a new way of creating their character; as still a strong character is very necessary for architectural design. But at the same time the cost, environment and global warming effect have become very-very important. And we should find the meeting point of these requirements.

A: Do you think that the competence of modern architect is changing?

KK: In the beginning of the XX century, the Russian architects tried to combine the technology of the XX century and the new design. Nowadays what we should do is to combine the environmental technology and architectural design; because we have many new technologies for ecology and for sustainability. But the architectural design and those technologies are totally separated. We should integrate those things together.

In this project we are designing the riverside; we even use simulation of wind flows to create the most comfortable environment. This work can be a good example of integrating the two kinds of technology.

News via Archcouncil of Moscow.

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K21 Skardsøya / TYIN Tegnestue Architects

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Architects: TYIN Tegnestue Architects
Location: Møre og Romsdal, Norway
Architect In Charge: Andreas G. Gjertsen, Ørjan Nyheim
Area: 60.0 m2
Project Year: 2016
Photographs: Pasi Aalto

Contractor: Sissel By, Olve Aarhaug

From the architect. The cottage holds a special place in contemporary Norwegian culture. A few generations back the majority of the Norwegian people made a living from farming, fishing or lumbering, trades which afforded closeness with nature. In the contemporary and urbanized way of life the cottage is a means maintaining this closeness. This particular cottage is modestly sized with its 60 square meters, and thus a sustainable structure both in terms of material usage and energy consumption.

The building sits amidst marshland, sea-adjacent rock and scattered pine- and juniper-vegetation. An important consideration in the project was to avoid interfering with this sensitive surrounding terrain. It heals slowly due to climatic factors. The cottage lies 21 meters above sea level, and the distance to the sea front is 100 meters. Some marsh had to be cleared in preparing for the building phase, exposing bedrock and thus aiding in integrating the cottage with the terrain.

The structure rests on a concrete base, and the main building is a studwork house with beamed ceilings. The main building sits on three different levels. This lowers its height and emphasizes a connection between the interior of the cottage and the outside areas. The access point is on the western side of the lot, slightly lower than the cottage itself. Visual impact depends markedly on perspective. From the west the cottage appears rather tall, while from the east it looks lower and more adapted. Entry to the main building is situated next to the outhouse, and a shared gallery roof keeps it sheltered from rain and wind.

The clients did most of the construction work themselves. This level of client participation is rare, and we were delighted to see the level of personal commitment put into the details. The exterior of the building is clad in spruce harvested from the client’s own forest. This untreated material fades rapidly, attaining a light and silvery shimmering hue. The outside detail is kept to a minimum to ensure an even patina for the walls.

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Museum of Contemporary Art & Planning Exhibition / Coop Himmelb(l)au

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Architects: Coop Himmelb(l)au
Location: Wen Hua Da Lou, ShangBu, Futian Qu, Shenzhen Shi, Guangdong Sheng, China
Design Principal: Wolf D. Prix
Project Partner: Markus Prossnigg
Design Architects: Quirin Krumbholz, Jörg Hugo, Mona Bayr
Project Architects : Angus Schoenberger, Veronika Janovska, Tyler Bornstein
Project Coordination: Xinyu Wan
Area: 80000.0 m2
Project Year: 2016
Photographs: Duccio Malagamba

Project Team: Jessie Castro, Jessie Chen, Jasmin Dieterle, Luis Ferreira, Peter Grell, Paul Hoszowsky, Dimitar Ivanov, Ivana Jug, Zhu Yuang Kang, Alexander Karaivanov, Nam La-Chi, Rodelle Lee, Feng Lei, Megan Lepp, Samuel Liew, Thomas Margaretha, Jens Mehlan, Ivo de Nooijer, Reinhard Platzl, Vincenzo Possenti, Pete Rose, Ana Santos, Jutta Schädler, Günther Weber, Chen Yue
Digital Project Team: Angus Schoenberger, Matt Kirkham, Jasmin Dieterle, Jonathan Asher, Jan Brosch
Local Architect: HSArchitects
Structural Engineering : B+G Ingenieure
Mechanical Engineering: Reinhold Bacher
Lighting Design: AG Licht
Cost Management : Davis Langdon & Seah

From the architect. The Museum of Contemporary Art & Planning Exhibition (MOCAPE) is part of the master plan for the Futian Cultural District, the new urban center of Shenzhen. The project combines two independent yet structurally unified institutions: The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) and the Planning Exhibition (PE) as a cultural meeting point and a venue for architectural exhibitions. The lobby, multifunctional exhibition halls, auditorium, conference rooms and service areas will be used jointly.

Both museums are designed as separate entities emphasizing their individual functional and artistic requirements and yet are merged in a monolithic body surrounded by a multifunctional facade. This transparent facade and a sophisticated internal lighting concept allow a deep view into the joint entrance and transitional areas between the buildings. From the inside, visitors are granted an unhindered view onto the city suggesting they are somewhere in a gently shaded outdoor area, an impression enhanced by 6 to 17 meter high, completely open and column-free exhibition areas.

Behind the entrance area between the museums, visitors ascend to the main level by ramps and escalators and enter the “Plaza”, which serves as a point of departure for tours of the museums. From the Plaza the rooms for cultural events, a multi-functional hall, several auditoriums and a library can be accessed.

A silvery shining and softly deformed “Cloud” serves as a central orientation and access element on the Plaza. On several floors the Cloud hosts a number of public functions such as a café, a book store and a museum store and it joins the exhibitions rooms of both museums with bridges and ramps. With its curved surface the Cloud opens into the space reflecting the idea of two museums under one roof.

The Urban Concept

The MOCAPE monolith completes the eastern part of the master plan for the city center and fills the last gap in the Futian Cultural District between the „Youth Activity Hall“ (YAH) to the north and the opera-library complex to the south.Similar to other buildings in this district, the main level of the MOCAPE lies 10 meters above the ground level and so creates a stage-like platform, which acts as a unifying element with the adjacent buildings.

Skin, Light and Energy Concept

The exterior skin consists of an outer layer of natural stone louvers and the actual climate envelope made from insulated glass. These elements form a dynamic surface, which is structurally independent from the mounting framework of the museum buildings. This functional exterior envelops the two museums, a vertical access and entertainment element (Cloud), the public Plaza, and the multifunctional base.

The technical building equipment is designed to reduce the overall need of external energy sources: Pollution free systems and facilities use renewable energy sources through solar and geothermal energy (with a ground water cooling system) and only systems with high energy efficiency have been implemented. The roof of the museum filters daylight for the exhibition rooms, which reduces the need for artificial lighting.

With this combination of state of the art technological components, a compact building volume, thermal insulation and efficient sun shading the MOCAPE is not only an architectural landmark but also an ecological and environmentally friendly benchmark project.

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New York City Mapped All of its Trees and Calculated the Economic Benefits of Every Single One

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Public spaces, squares, and parks in New York City are administered by the city’s Department of Parks & Recreation (NYC Parks).

In recent years, the agency has been responsible for creating new programs to help children, youth and adults be aware of the importance of caring for their urban landscape.

One of these programs is a TreesCount! which in 2015 gathered 2,300 volunteers to learn about the trees in their environment, what state they are in, what care they need, what their measurements are, and how they benefit the surrounding community, etc.

For months, they walked the streets of the five boroughs together with a group of monitors who previously trained them to recognize what trees they were studying and their characteristics.

Now the information gathered on these walks, which gave rise to an urban forest registry, is available on the New York City Tree Map. With it, you can view statistics on each of the 685,781 registered trees, a calendar of activities related to tree care, the total number of species and find out which is the most common tree in your neighborhood.

In terms of data for each tree, no detail was left out, since each one was assigned a unique ID number, as well a color indicating its species. In addition, it has its exact location accompanied by its corresponding image in Google Street View, the possibility of reporting any possible issues that may arise and a summary of the ecological benefits for each tree translated into an economic value.

This means that when choosing a tree on the map you can see the amount of rainwater it retains each year (expressed in gallons) and the money each individual specimen saves each year. The amount of electricity conserved is also estimated, calculated in kilowatts per hour (kWh), as well as the reduction of air pollution.

All these are formulated according to figures from U.S. Forest Service that estimate the total ecological benefits a tree gives in dollars. In the case of the tree in the image below, this one has a benefit for its population that amounts to slightly more than $500 USD each year.

If you want to check the map out for yourself click here.

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39 Strange Habits Most Architects Can Relate To

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Previously we had a look at some of the strange habits of top architects. From drinking on the job to polyphasic sleeping, it turns out famous architects are a bunch of weirdos. But what about the rest of us? It’s not just the famous architects who are weirdos—it’s simply impossible to spend such long periods of time on the job without picking up a few strange habits along the way. Whether it’s the way we work, the way we interact with buildings, or things that don’t even seem odd until a non-architect points them out, those in architecture have some pretty strange habits.

1. Spending five hours looking for the right font

2. Smugly carrying a Moleskine around everywhere

3. An uncanny ability to spend hours in your office/studio and get absolutely nothing done at all

4. Planning travel itineraries around buildings

5. Always feeling like you deserve a coffee break

6. Thinking Bjarke Ingels is a bit cute

© Sharon Lam, using an image by <a href='http://ift.tt/2frV5Zj user Epizentrum</a> licensed under <a href='http://ift.tt/2gyLN9X BY-SA 3.0</a>

7. Having imaginary conversations with Bjarke Ingels in the shower

8. Feeling up walls, columns, floors

9. Misplacing your metal ruler every five minutes

10. Misplacing your scale ruler every two minutes

11. Getting way too excited over a nice handrail

12. Dropping $30 (or more) on a pen

© Sharon Lam, using an image by <a href='http://ift.tt/2frU1on user Dmitry Dzhus</a> licensed under <a href='http://ift.tt/2az3P8J BY-SA 2.0</a>

13. Getting aroused by heavy paper stock

14. Thinking you have better taste than your non-architect friends

15. Alienating your non-architect friends by saying things like “tectonic” and “how have you never heard of Bjarke Ingels?”

16. Feeling incredibly grateful for hi-res transparent .pngs

17. Having way too many layers open in Photoshop

18. Finding your wardrobe become more and more monochromatic

19. Really really appreciating a well-designed public toilet

20. Pointing out the thermal bridges in every steel building you see

21. Judging books by their cover

22. Having terrible time management despite years of thinking “this year will be different”

23. Including a famous building in your profile picture

© Sharon Lam, using an image by <a href='http://ift.tt/2frX6Vx user Somach</a> licensed under <a href='http://ift.tt/2gyLN9X BY-SA 3.0</a>

24. Feeling disappointed that your profile picture doesn’t have as many likes as it should, because of non-architect friends who don’t get it

25. Abandoning your LinkedIn profile because you don’t like the way the website looks

26. Referring to architects by just their first name like “Zaha”

27. Referring to architects by made up nicknames like “Corby”

28. Referring to clients by made up nicknames… but only when they’re not around

29. Not being able to afford any of the furniture/gadgets/clothes you want

30. Waiting until payday to splash out on furniture/gadgets/clothes anyway

31. Religiously using Muji stationery

32. Getting starstruck around buildings

© Sharon Lam, using an image by <a href='http://ift.tt/2gyOE2A user Nauib Hossain</a> licensed under <a href='http://ift.tt/2az3P8J BY-SA 2.0</a>

33. Watching reality tv shows with judging panels and thinking they’re nothing compared to client meetings you’ve been through

34. Feeling way too important when wearing hi vis and hard hat on site

35. Finding masking tape in your hair

36. Fully understanding the business card scene in American Psycho

37. Spending all day rearranging furniture in a plan drawing

38. Overestimating how much you can do in a day

39. Underestimating the time you spend scrolling through the internet looking for “inspiration”

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Mola Structural Kit II: Another Way to Learn About Structures

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Mola, creator of the Mola Structural Kit, is back at it with a second interactive structural kit aimed at changing the way people study and teach structures around the world. Mola sold over 4000 of their first kit across more than 50 countries in 2014, and now you can back the newest expansion on Brazilian crowdfunding website Catarse.

Mola 2 includes 144 pieces and a bilingual manual to expand on and broaden the possibilities of Mola 1, encouraging users to be even more creative and innovative. To that end, the makers have developed new adjustable length bars, lightweight connectors, and continuous connection parts that are fully compatible with the components from Mola 1.

Mola 1 enjoyed enthusiastic reception, becoming the most successful crowdfunding campaign in Brazil at the time of its release. The idea for the Mola Structural Kit originated with Brazilian architect Márcio Sequeira de Oliveira, who validated the accuracy of the model’s behavior in his master’s thesis at the Federal University of Ouro Preto in Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Check out the team’s Catarse page to learn more about their endeavor and for information on how to purchase a kit. Or, check out the information below to see how you could win a Mola Structural Kit.

Giveaway

ArchDaily has teamed up with Mola for an exclusive giveaway. We’re offering our readers the chance to win one of 5 Mola Structural Kit 2 sets, or one of 5 of the original Mola Structural Kit 1 sets. For your chance to win, simply enter your details in the form below by 9am EST on Monday December 5th.

http://ift.tt/2frNXMk

Terms & Conditions:

Winners for each of the five Mola Structural Kit 2 and five Mola Structural Kit 1 sets will be selected at random from the entrants into each draw.
If the email address provided by a winning entrant does not work or the entrant does not respond in a timely fashion to claim their prize, then the prize will be redrawn and awarded to another entrant.
By answering “yes” to the final question, entrants give permission for their email address to be provided to Mola.
The email addresses of the winners will also be provided to Mola, regardless of their answer to the final question.
The expected shipping dates of the prizes are: Mola Structural Model 1 – January 2017; Mola Structural Model 2 – August 2017.

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Home in Mitre / Bajet Giramé

November 28, 2016signordalLeave a comment

Architects: Bajet Giramé
Location: Ronda del General Mitre, Barcelona, Spain
Area: 140.0 m2
Project Year: 2016
Photographs: José Hevia

Author Architects: Pau Bajet Mena, Maria Giramé Aumatell
Constructor: GID
Collaborators: Gina Cebamanos, Huguet Mallorca, Imar, Ardèvol Associats
Budget: 1000€/m2

From the architect. The project consists of remaking a home in a 1970’s apartment in Barcelona. The former spaces were based on program requirements resulting in a series of small rooms and corridors with predefined functions. Those spaces were shaped by non-load bearing walls given its ‘properly modern‘ free plan. However, columns, beams and slabs were concealed within the internal partitions as shameful bones.

The aim of the project was to make the apartment again (remake it), with significant setting and character changes. This would be achieved two-fold: by unveiling the hidden qualities of the 70’s architecture and by defining a new series of suggestive settings.

The project endows the former idea of free plan, but exposes it ‘as found’ leaving its (‘modern’) steel columns and beams freestanding with their rough welds, as well as uncovering the (traditional) gentle ceiling vaults; enhancing very specific qualities of the construction means of those 1970’s in Barcelona. This way an ‘infrastructural space’ is defined, as a permanent envelope in which smaller and temporary interventions will arrange ‘inhabitable settings’. A series of timber pieces are displayed within that envelope stressing the divorce between space and structure.

Their shape, size and material qualities suggest places to be lived-in, from the sheltered interior of a panelled room to the gathering central space of the house.

The story

This had been their place for the last 30 years. They used to live here with their children, though it’s been few years since the youngest one left. They were living alone with many empty small rooms still laid out as sons’ bedrooms. It was the typical flat from Sant Gervasi: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, flat ceilings, decent reception room with timber flooring, long corridors and separate maid-area with kitchen, bedroom, lavatory and service entrance. He enjoys cooking, but that dark kitchen was never thought for him to cook. The apartment was double-orientated: to the street (south) with large façade and generous windows and to the rear garden (north), however the internal maze of corridors and rooms prevented any sense of orientation and natural light to go through. They needed to remake their place.

They recently got retired and spend more time at home. The space now crosses diagonally the house bringing the sunlight from one end to the other. He can see the street from the kitchen. She enjoys the unexpected walkways along the façade and around the large timber cabinets. The house feels much broader. The sight finds no end. They have a small panelled guest room for their grandchildren. There is another space where they have a desk and a sofa bed. They now appreciate the beauty of the triangular shape of the space, they understand the sequence of smaller and larger settings that their life occupies; they have a sense of orientation, a sense of place.

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1. Elements (2014)

2. Project Japan (2011)

3. Al Manakh (2007)

4. Post Occupancy (2006)

5. Content (2004)

6. Project on the City II: The Harvard Guide to Shopping (2001)

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