Nowadays bicycles are not only used for sports or as a recreational activity, as more and more people are choosing bicycles as their main means of transportation.
Architecture plays a fundamental role in promoting the use of bicycles, as a properly equipped city with safe bicycle lanes, plentiful bicycle parking spots, and open areas to ride freely will encourage people to use their cars much less.
Bicycles can play an important role in environmental sustainability and people's quality of life. That's why it is fundamental for cities to position them prominently, as a key promoter of sustainable mobility. Under this model, it seems urgent to encourage the use of bicycles within contemporary cities and consider them when designing and planning.
Denmark and the Netherlands are currently the leading countries in architecture for bikes. They are considered a cyclist's paradise because of their excellent infrastructure and architecture, making them a worldwide reference in this field.
We have curated this list of projects by BIG, NL Architects, Monk Mackenzie Architects, and Landlab, among others, that serve as inspiration for the development of contemporary cities, in ways which integrate bicycles through a diversity of means such as parks and public spaces, pavilions and cultural centers, bridges and parking lots and, of course, bicycle paths.
From the architect. CANANA L.A is a young couple who have launched a company dedicated to the production, bottling and sale of different kinds of beer.
CANANA is located in La Aljorra, L.A., a small village in the south-east of Spain, which can be reached by roads with echoes of Los Angeles, surrounded by a landscape which resembles its palms with the hills of Santa Monica in the distance.
CANANA L.A is an adventure; a beer made with attention and love in a former agricultural tools warehouse, which was built by their family and friends: the friends were masons, the father electrical installer and the godfather the carpenter. And that is why it is that way.
Known as one of the world’s grandest subway systems, the Moscow Metro is filled with materials more commonly associated with palaces or museums – marble and granite walls, bronze columns, and lavish chandeliers are just a few of the opulent textures you’ll find beneath the streets of Russia’s largest city.
Despite their renown, the Moscow government almost never allows professional photographers to capture the beauty of the stations. But in 2014, photographer David Burdney was finally given that opportunity. Visiting the system late at night after the metro had closed, Burdney was able to capture each station in its best light, and completely devoid of people.
Burdney’s original interest in the metro came from their unique role in Russian history. Know as “Palaces for the People,” the original metro stations opened in 1935 as an element of Communist propaganda. Employing the slogan “The whole country is building Metro,” leader Joseph Stalin enlisted nearly 75,000 workers to complete the system as a symbol of the government’s supposed care for its people.
“Crystal chandeliers and cobalt blue glass, exquisite red marble quarried in Russia, magnificent bronze columns and intricate ceiling plaster reliefs, forced people to physically ‘look up’ to the light, giving thanks to Stalin,” explained Burdney to MashuMashu.
Today, the Moscow Metro transports up to 9 million people daily through 200 stations. With several additional expansions in the works, the system is expected to become the world’s largest by 2020.
14 From the architect. The city of Moscow experienced a huge size and population boom following the industrial development and railway construction of the late 19th century. At this time, horse-drawn cars and trams were the main form of transportation, but soon the horses were not enough to fuel the city's rapid expansion.
Strelka KB has announced two Russia-based design teams, Timur Bashkayev Architectural Bureau and BuroMoscow, as the winners of the design competition for two Moscow metro stations. The stations, Nizhniye Mnevnik and Terekhovo, are both located to the northwest of the capital.
When thinking of metro stations, the word quiet generally doesn't come to mind-with all of the train and pedestrian traffic, not only is noise produced in high quantities, but it is also echoed. With this issue in mind, London-based Variant Studio created their proposal for the competition to design the new Novoperedelkino station in Moscow, Russia.
Moscow-based architectural studio Nefa Architects ( Nefaresearch) have been chosen to redesign the Solntsevo metro station. Their project, which is designed to "create a solar spray effect" on the station's subterranean platform, won an international competition whose winners were ultimately chosen by Moscow 's citizens.
Photographer Chris Forsyth has released the latest images from his photo series Metro. Having previously gone underground to capture the surreal beauty of Montreal's metro system, Forsyth traveled to Europe to shoot stations in Munich, Berlin and Stockholm. His photographic style portrays the stations in their best light - bright, clean, colorful and completely absent of people.
From the architect. The combined office and kindergarten building is located on the perimeter of the historical park of the official residence of the Norwegian State Railway’s director. The brief asked for a prominent, yet considerate project that would become a backdrop to the historical park. Being situated in between the historical city of Oslo and the open harbor transformation area of Filipstad, we were interested in developing a hybrid typology. A building that would be perceived as a clear extension of the city -block structure towards the street, and at the same time a pavilion that would reinforce its relationship with the park.
The organizational strategy of the plan was to make a clear distinction between a strict autonomous core and a more fluid, adaptable facade that traced the perimeter of the plot. To accentuate this shifting condition in plan, we decided to work with a repetitive facade that would also be a pragmatic approach to the generic office program.
The ground floor was split in two volumes as the zoning plan required public access to the park through the site. This condition allowed for a functional separation between kindergarten and office building. The entrance to the office was placed at the corner of the building to articulate the city block character of the building, and to facilitate a connection between the park and the ground floor programs.
The Waldorf Astoria New York has released plans for a top to bottom restoration and revitalization of the building’s historically landmarked exterior and interior space, to be carried out by architects Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and interior designer Pierre-Yves Rochon (PYR). If approved by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, the restoration will be among the most complex and intensive landmark preservation efforts in New York City history.
Restoration plans call for the revival of many of the hotel’s Art Deco elements that have been lost through previous alteration. All of the building’s landmarked spaces, including the Lexington Entry, Lobby and “Peacock Alley,” will be preserved, while hotel amenities will be modernized for an enhanced visitor experience.
In addition to the restoration of the public and event spaces, the Waldorf plans to feature new guest rooms, suites and condominiums.
“We have assembled a world-class design team with unparalleled experience restoring and revitalizing historic properties to create a proposed plan that treats the Waldorf Astoria New York’s history with respect and dedication to detail,” said Brandon Dong, Anbang Insurance Group, which owns the Waldorf Astoria New York. “The restoration of the beautiful landmarked spaces is central to the Waldorf Astoria New York’s future as a New York City icon and global destination.”
SOM has had previous experience working on restoration and adaptive reuse project for several other New York City landmarks, including Moynihan Train Hall, the General Electric Building headquarters and the Lever House.
“Our design for the Waldorf Astoria New York reclaims the full potential of one of New York City’s most legendary buildings and opens a new chapter in the hotel’s celebrated history,” commented Roger Duffy, Design Partner, SOM. “The Waldorf Astoria has been an audacious civic icon since it first opened in 1931, and we are honored to be leading the effort to restore this Art Deco masterpiece, while turning it into a world-class destination for the 21st century.”
Interior design PYR works exclusively on five-star luxury hotels, fine dining restaurants and private residences. They have also worked with Waldorf Astoria in recent times – including the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, scheduled to open in June of this year.
“Protecting the spirit of this iconic property and reflecting its history through a modern, more forward-thinking lens will be at the heart of the hotel’s interior design. From the overall atmosphere down to the finest Art Deco details, American grandeur and international glamour will meet in the Waldorf AstoriaNew York – no other hotel in New York will compare,” said Pierre-Yves Rochon, Principal and Global Design Director, PYR.
The Waldorf Astoria New York originally opened in 1893 on the present-day site of the Empire State Building, before moving to its Park Avenue location in 1931. The building was designated an official New York City landmark in 1993, with its marquee interior spaces receiving landmark status in 2017.
The entire renovation is expected to take two to three years.
From the architect. Conceptually, the house is designed as having a northern red brick wall spine which runs from the car port at the top of the site down to the terrace next to the copse towards the East of the site.
Landscape Plan
This wall is then punctuated with varying sized openings and seats internally. The brick is exposed internally in certain areas, giving the house a textural and warm feeling.
In plan the wall is two L shaped elements that mirror each other, the first forming the entrance and car port and the second the chimney and living space wall. The double height space forms the break between the two elements and opens the view to both sides.
Section
The wall represents the brick walled gardens in traditional English gardens. To manipulate with the wall further we have proposed a varied palette of brick work, from flemish bond, to hit and miss and herringbone bond. The thickness of the wall allows for shadow, and texture along the length as well as high insulation levels.
As a foil to this more solid element, the southern facades of the house are more glazed and timber clad. The timber being a mixture of 50 mm sawn timber cladding and planed for doors and vents. A series of timber louvres shade the Western sun and provide privacy for the bedrooms.
A sloping roof sits above the timber, brick and glazed elements separated from the brick spine with high level glazing, which affords views of the mature trees to the North. The roof will have a copper soffit externally which will shimmer in the sun. A sedum finish to the top will help with bio-diversity.
The journey and narrative of the house and site starts at the new entrance with a sloping driveway down to the car port. Hedges and flowers shield the house for privacy and offer a level of surprise once in the house. The car port is open to reduce its mass and also houses a log store and cycle, bin store. Here the red brick spine wall wraps around the functions with the use of hit and miss brick work. The timber roof then floats over to the top continuing to the house as a covered entrance way. Vertical timber screens allow for planting to grow along the entrance path. At this point there is a change in level and a small opening through the brick screen into the Northern garden and meadow.
The entrance is expressed via a large metal clad front door. Once through the door, there is an entrance hall with brick flooring and coat cupboard, bench. A W.C and shower is off to the right. At this point the view is directed down the spine wall which terraces down with storage and gallery along the way and a single window seat framing a view of the large trees to the North.
The view at the end of the gallery is centred on the fireplace. The wet, utility, plant spaces are concealed behind the gallery wall, housing the boilers, solar thermal tanks and boot room.
At the bottom of the gallery the level changes subtly and the double height dining room opens up with a view to both sides of the site, this space will be flooded with natural light and a contrast to the lower darker entrance sequence.
The double height space is framed by the brick chimney and fireplace. The brick will be herringbone which mirrors that of the entrance floor. The chimney starts the second part of the brick spine and also shifts the circulation and entrance to the more private living space to the front of the house.
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The chimney also houses the staircase to the first floor with a light well above. A change of level through the chimney leads to the living space which has a corner view of the copse and landscaping. A window seat allows views to the North. In addition the living room wall is exposed brick which continues outside to form a low garden wall to the Eastern terrace.
At first floor, the building has the more private master suite to the East above the living space, and the guest, children’s bedrooms/bathrooms to the West. The two sides are linked with a library and link bridge which overlooks the double height space. A flexible study also looks over the double height void space creating a vertical connection to the dining family spaces below.
Sustainability was an intrinsic driver for the design, form and location of the house. We designed the house from a fabric first principle and using the orientation to maximize the energy from the sun along with thermal mass. The double height space collects the suns energy and a large chimney acts as a thermal store and thermal vent for summer months with a stack effect being created.
Ground Floor Plan
A highly insulated and airtight fabric with triple glazed windows ensures that heat cannot escape but also so that the house does not over heat. MVHR with heat recovery moderates the air quality and temperature.
Timber louvres and a large overhang at roof level provide passive shading for summer sun but allow winter sun to flood the house in winter. All materials are sustainably sourced and the timber is all FSC rated. The insulation is a sheep’s wool.
Water usage has been carefully considered, with the use of suds, surface and rain water collection for irrigation, and a treatment plant that deals with waste with the cleaned water allowed to run into an adjacent soak away. Low flush fittings are used throughout and there is only one bath in the house.
Heat and hot water is provided by an air source heat pump, a log burner and under floor heating. Although the Client tells us that she hardly has the heating on during the colder months.
Other renewables are PV panels on the roof to provide electricity and smart meters with a holistic lighting and heating control controlled by an iPad.
The house also seeks to enhance the surroundings with sedum roofs, new extensive landscaping, wild meadow and woodland management plans for the copse, along with a bespoke bat hotel that we designed in the chimney and owl boxes in the trees.
Incorporated into the strategic plan of the newly renovated House, Tai Sushi chain based in Irapuato, DF and nearly a dozen of these strategically nestled in the city of Leon, Guanajuato. Inaugurate its latest installment in the old town of the same property in the north of the city, conceived as a place of high Japanese cuisine combining concepts of ex-hacienda with cosmopolitan airs translated in their selection of materials, proportions and taking controlling factor innovation its eight plates to the delight of their finest diners.
His new architectural language dignifies the concept of nature thanks to the neutral range in color, nakedness and simplicity of its materials. Within the requirements and constraints in several areas scoop was handled as physical and visual communication as a constant in and out of the proposed area is was achieved with the design of a solid pine wood in different treatments which contains so open your kitchen and main access status, vestibulando bulkhead containing the main hall and which is delimited with a perimeter planter unleashed every way for its unusual condition in a controlled manner into the unpublished recreates conformations of stalactites and stalagmites wooden consolidation point as columns, referring to a culinary career that dropwise solidifies within a genus of foodies, these physical form promptly framed plates in the lounge and sleek private sections based on pine vertical sheltering their main chefs touting the culinary arts.
The wet area has been specially treated wood since it is randomly modulated to support eco-resin panels encapsulating finely cut bamboo sheets in its circular section. This treatment endow translucent natural light to vestibulación the area mentioned above. Within the bathrooms are magnificent handling accented by dark glimmers emphasizing his travels and sober decoration. Its two main halls are connected by a light border created a gap and a reflecting pool with an approach based on serials flat sheet flagstone recreating a rocky horizon, this landscape is framed by a pair of light and delicate columns wrapped in fabric showing his fine manufacturing, main bar suggests the connection of two different areas, the proportion was adapted to coarse elongated stone management bark squared modulations which constantly talks between gray laminated wood and the casual stroke of his role Skin.
Plan
The newly created Sato, born with a brushstroke of passion, which allows more complex taste their new dishes with ease and commitment that represents a hobby.
From the architect. The SODA Apartments represent the outcome of an ideal relationship between Architect, Builder and Developer. A shared enlightened attitude towards the delivery of inner-city dwellings within an existing heritage building shell, SODA Apartments culminates in a 13-unit apartment building over 4 storeys. 85% of the dwellings have a northerly orientation and all dwellings have cross-ventilation.
Apartment sizes range from 52 to 140 sqm. Unique solutions were developed throughout the overall design to deliver small yet clever solutions to spatial challenges.
The tight site configuration resulted in unusual apartment configurations; eg. 2-storey maisonettes were designed with living areas elevated to the upper floor for northerly access to the living areas and outdoor terraces, whilst bedrooms are located below with unique 'periscope' windows designed to overcome issues of acoustics, fire protection, privacy & security.
The spatial solutions for this development emerged out of the client’s enlightened willingness to challenge the typical apartment product delivered today. The client/builder/developer demonstrated the willingness and the courage to challenge the market and deliver something beyond the ordinary.
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The project concept also includes retention and restoration of the existing Lindsay St façade, and incorporates street art along the laneway boundary as part of the design proposal.
From the architect. The design concept that leads the project for Hunter Douglas architectural products is the revaluation of the apparent structural elements. The beams and concrete slabs of the building are incorporated into an open design in which the materials have a strong presence. The constructive elements are combined with block walls and micro polished concrete floors to affirm the coherence of the whole image.
The activities in this showroom are very important, on one hand the daily operation of the collaborators and on the other hand customer service. To achieve the flexibility required by the space an aluminum frame system of low angle was developed for walls and plafonds in order to exhibit the different collections of the brand and make all the necessary changes during the year. The work area is clearly identified for the team to integrate and develop its activities without a hitch. Being a space designed for multiple activities some of the walls can be removed to expand the area and have contact activities with the clients.
Floor Plan
The use of natural lighting and ventilation was promoted to achieve an environment in perfect harmony with the surroundings, besides considering the energy consumption in the long run. The lighting design features an active control system and as requested by the company storage spaces were to become a "paperless" office. The result is a contemporary space that can be transformed according to the needs maintaining consistency between image and functionality.
From the architect. On the vast lawn of the Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media (YCAM) forecourt, Megumi Matsubara & Hiroi Ariyama of the Japanese architecture firm Assistant designed two pavilions where children can play over the summer. The project was commissioned by YCAM to celebrate their 10th anniversary and made in collaboration with the YCAM's educational program team. YCAM is well known for introducing the most cutting-edge in the spheres of Arts and Media in Japan and abroad, serving as an artistic platform for sharing IT-based media technology, theatre and dance performances, art exhibitions, and more. The pavilions each feature a circular garden in which a variety of elements commingle; the sun, the earth, the air, visual images and sound.
Model
Floor Plan
Model
The pavilions encourage children to leave the media environment in the YCAM building and interact with the immediate surroundings, including natural light, wind, touching directly soil and plants, feeling the sky and birds mixed with the high-tech media technology. The boundaries between children’s experiences inside the pavilions and the ones induced by playground tools are blurred. The architecture and the playground equipments are given an equal weight and together define the whole environment.
The circular shape dilutes one’s sense of direction. The two pavilions’ structures both contain the void reversing each other’s plan: one holds the void at the centre, while the other is circled by the void. It is those voids that welcome wind and light into the space, heightening children’s awareness towards subtle natural phenomena that surround them.
From the architect. The land occupied in this project has the total areas of 27 square meters, with 9 corners and zigzag edges, being located in a spontaneous residential area with many constraints on urban management regulations such as number of floors allowed, height and closed-only balconies. Nevertheless, the project investor – homeowner purports at building a town house that is able to accommodate minimum two generations of the family, while can also be put out to lease for extra income, ensuring long-term living. Given limited investment and usable capacity of land, which equals only 50% of social housing’ usage standard in Vietnam, the architect must provide reasonable calculation and solution in order for “the machine for living” (Le Corbusier) to operate in accordance with the purpose of the owner.
•The lower part for lease, including ground floor and mezzanine level: ground floor has a building area of approximately 24 square meters, together with another 3 square meters for garden and setback space. Mezzanine level is initially designed for office leasing, but can later be remodeled to become a private room for children as adults.
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•The upper part for residence, with its own entrance, forming an independent apartment: the first floor - bedrooms and the attic floor, utilizing 50% of the possible building area, are set as kitchen and dining space. The residual area is living room as an open space on the sky view. This two-in-one attic space is integrated by two L-shaped sliding roofs made of glass.
Regarding interiors, space and objects’ sizes follow minimalist concept. The materials used are common, inexpensive, require median sophistication and techniques so as to effectively economize investment cost.
Therefore, on one hand, the architect has successfully brought about the balance between usability, economy and aesthetic elements into the architecture. On the other hand, in order to create the artistic imprint for the project, the architect expresses his metaphorical idea as if this small town house is eagerly escaping from the cramped city space, by integrating architecture into paper-crafting art, which is very familiar to primary school students in Vietnam. The house structure describes two layers of white and black paper being glued together. The white walls being torn apart reveals a cramped "living box" with steel window casings, and recessed walls in black. Other slanted walls represent all the paper folds, cuttings, and tears that are simple, free and not too technical of paper-crating art. This small town house plays a plus point, contributing to a lively corner of a densely populated district like Go Vap District, Ho Chi Minh City.
With the intention to find the best balance, the house was designed to provide easy flexibility and space options based on the personal needs of the family, rather than using the maximum floor space according to the building regulations.
The house offers an open feeling, while at the same time providing enough privacy for the residential area in which it is located. An exterior concrete wall that surrounds the terrace, the fixed window facing south and the fixed window facing to the east towards the railway, accomplishes this.
The second floor offers some spacing options that can be separated by curtains or doors hanging from the structures, with rails notched into the wood. This allows the family to select multiple options for set up.
From the architect. The project was to renovate and extend the University’s Victorian Chapel. Originally built in 1880, and then extended in 1927, the Chapel is used for a number of different events and purposes: services, group meetings, concerts and as a place of quiet contemplation.
In 2015 the University commissioned Design Engine Architects to oversee a complete restoration of its internal and external fabric. In addition, the University asked for an extension to the chapel, to include a small side chapel and a social and meeting space. The brief was to create a very special project, to sit as a small ‘jewel’ in the heart of the campus.
Floor Plan
The interior of the original gothic revival chapel has been returned to its former glory with renovation work to the walls and timber ceiling alongside the introduction of new oak and stone floors, heating and architectural lighting. The university has chosen locally sourced Purbeck limestone, a material traditionally used for its decorative quality in churches and cathedrals across England, exploiting the natural characteristics of the embedded fossils within it.
A new contemporary altar has been introduced, made from 7 horizontal sections of Purbeck stone and a new font has also been commissioned greeting visitors on entering from the South door. Designed to reflect light within the interior spaces, the font basin, made from highly polished stainless steel, is a section of a sphere, a reference to “light of the world”. The basin is supported on a polished Purbeck limestone cylindrical plinth.
A number of bespoke oak furniture pieces were commissioned from and designed in collaboration with Luke Hughes, most notably the oak pews, lecturn, credenza storage units, bookcases and tables.
The obvious location for the extension was to the north of the main Chapel; despite the site constraints, the resulting design is an empathetic response to the gothic revival building where its connection, form and materiality seem both intuitive and exciting.
Perspective Facade Section
The design consists of a pitched roof structure that mirrors that of the existing building and allows light to penetrate into the perimeter exterior spaces. The ridge over-sails the existing building eaves line creating a clerestory window that provides both light and ventilation at high level. The plan form creates a twist in the pitched roof bringing an intriguing geometric dynamic to the new addition.
The form lent itself to a timber frame structure – a series of primary wall and roof trusses, each one different to create the changing form. Externally, the form is clad with perforated aluminium panels, anodized to give a highly reflective ‘gold’ finish, giving a dramatic textural surface to the building that is continuous over both roof and wall, allowing the building to be interpreted at different distances and scales. Design Engine developed a pattern referential to the existing architecture and an interpretation appropriate for the 21st century.
From the architect. The design of the house is primarily based on the rules of local architecture. It respects the morphology of the traditional built context, referring to the prevailing gabled roof type of the house and respecting its volumetric and material parameters. On the other hand the Chimney house marks typological transformation generated by the users’ specificity.
The kitchen, with a multifunctional wood stove, plays the vital role in the private and social life of a couple living in the countryside. Stove’s centrally positioned chimney determines the concept of the house informing the centrally aligned layout of spaces within the specific cross-section of the house. The ridge of the roof is pushed apart creating a continuous skylight running throughout the house’s linear volume and providing top light for all the crucial spaces.
Plans
Positioned on the borderline of the village it clearly relates to the adjacent wooden barn with the dark wooden materiality, but with the new distinctive volumetric identity moves deliberately away from its vernacular neighbour and curiously associates with the nearby 16th century church creating a dialogue between the two.
Oiled larch boards completely define the materiality of the outside relating to the traditional finish of the vernacular barn. Deliberate secondary wooden roof cladding provides the continuity of the dark wooden materiality of the facade cladding. The building’s envelope is developed as a thick wall integrating multiple storage spaces, secondary kitchen, and small ‘inhabitable’ window niches that carefully curate incoming light and expanding views to the surroundings. Interactive capabilities allow for an array of activities. Material definition of the interior responds to haptic abilities of inhabitants: oiled oak is used for all the surfaces that can be reached and touched by the human body, whereas the structure of the roof is in reinforced concrete showing the imprint of the wooden formwork that provides for the continuity of the texture of interior envelope.
Rising the gaze, starting from the material inner envelope and moving towards the zenith, one can discover and observe ever changing condition of the sky that becomes part of everyday life in the house.
The kitchen, with a multifunctional wood stove, plays the vital role in the private and social life of a couple. The centrally positioned chimney determines the concept of the house, informing the linear and centrally aligned layout of spaces within the specific cross-section of the house. Its distinctive volumetric identity curiously associates the house with the nearby 16th century church.
From the architect. Design studio IWT converts two rural barns into a glass house and wooden cave for Wim Hof in the east of the Netherlands. The Iceman focus on the integration of extreme human physical endurance with psychological performance through a.o. breathing exercises, cold water exposure and meditation training for both international private clients and professional athletes.
The design consists of two flexible generic main areas. One with an open, extravert and outward atmosphere (which relates to the air), and one with a closed, introvert, secluded and grounded atmosphere (which relates to the earth). This juxtaposition forms the basic layout for upgrading the site into a no-nonsense but sensitive backdrop for the wide range of envisioned activities.
The glass house provides day and sunlight access throughout the day, creating a never ending play of shadows and light in the space which is ideal for active physical exercises.
The larch wood slats entirely enclose the introvert area. This locally sourced wood from the sawmill next door is combined with two artisanal walls of clay plaster, specifically mixed for this client. It creates a warm, earth-like atmosphere for meditation. The dimmable light sculpture waves through the space, as a playful reference to the breathing exercises performed in this area.
The existing steel structures are maintained and form a framework for the building requirements in which future upgrades can be integrated by plugging in to the self sustainable power network of photovoltaic cells and thermal storage on site.
A visually clean and calm appearance is accomplished by combining an array of different elements such as insulation, gutters, drainage pipes, sliding door rails, glass panels and structural beams into one carefully detailed wooden slatted element, almost like a click-on facade.
Both sheds have large sliding doors (one wooden door of 3.5m x 4.30m and two glass doors of 5.5m x 3m) positioned diagonally opposite of each other. Once opened up completely, they enable a blurred use with inside and outside activities and provide a natural air flow throughout the building.
In a prototype developed for the 2016 London Design Festival, Arup Associates designed The Circular Building, one of the first buildings in the UK built to satisfy Circular Economy principles, in which “all components need to be implemented and utilized to their full potential and to the duration of their life cycle, while creating a comfortable and aesthetic environment for the user.”
In order to achieve these goals, designers and engineers worked together to refine the application of prefabricated construction techniques, producing details that utilize finely tuned engineering rather than mechanical fixings. Through this methodology, the team was able to create a low-waste, self-supporting, and demountable structurally integrated panel (SIPs) wall system with reusable clamp connections between the wall and recycled steel frame elements, as well as sustainably sourced, heat treated timber for the cladding and decking.
The interior volume of the building is subtly divided into three zones, reflecting how the circular economy could shape living, working, and public environments, as described by Arup in a press release:
The living zone was cocooned in an acoustic wall system, made entirely from recycled plastic bottles, a material that can be reformed again and again. The work station integrated Arup’s ‘It’s all about the Desk’ project elements. This is a system which uses sensors to monitor the internal environment, relaying data in a cloud-hosted system linking together the operable skylights, blinds and lighting system, creating an optimized environment.
Through the design process, extensive materials research and testing was required to ensure circularity. This information thus became a Materials Data Base and exhibition catalog, “collating for the first time information on the production, material substance, and next use of each asset,” tracked via QR code.
The entire project was created in an eight-week design stage and build time of two weeks on a constrained site in central London.
The detailing moved away from the traditional glass, wood or steel junctions to ensure efficient assembly, in a ‘flat-pack’ style. Each panel was comprised of a series of pieces that had been designed to fit in a specific location. These pieces were rationalized through various computational iterations to make them as repetitive as possible. Each panel was given an individual QR code before being taken to site.
In order to support the design work of our readers, the company Teka has shared with us a series of .DWG files of its various kitchen products. The files include both 2D and 3D drawings and can be downloaded directly from this article.
Download the objects below, which have been separated into the following categories: drop-in sinks, built-in sinks, undermount sinks, built-in ovens, faucets, stoves, extractor hoods, and refrigerators.
From the architect. The House in the Dune is located in The Coast Disctrict, in a seaside neighborhood 13 km north of the city of Pinamar and four hours away from Buenos Aires.
Lying on a curved cul-de-sac, the site is a trapezoid with its widest side at the back. Originally, even though it lacked tree vegetation (particularly pines, which are typical in The Coast District), the land seemed impenetrable, completely covered as it was with acacias.
Following the topography of the area, characterized by the natural sandy dunes, the terrain is plain towards the street and slopes downward steeply until it turns plain again near the back.
The client commissioned a typical summer house for him and his family, but he also requested that the house should accommodate standard uses to allow it to be rented out. The most prominent space in the house should be the social area. Connected with the unified dining and living rooms, the kitchen should be spacious and communicate into a semi covered space housing a grill and belonging to an outdoor area that allows the living room and dining area to expand into the exterior. Regarding the private areas, three bedrooms were commissioned: one en suite master bedroom and two secondary bedrooms separated from the former, sharing a bathroom. It was decided that the house would be materialized in exposed concrete, due to its zero maintenance needs.
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The Studio’s proposal was to organize the program into one architectural object that would integrate harmoniously into the site’s topography with as little environmental impact as possible. The house would merge into its surroundings by following the terrain’s natural forms and through the partial burying of its volume under the slope.
As houses in the area can be relatively close to one another due to the parcels’ organization, it was decided that the setback should be expanded beyond the minimum required by the building code so that more air and privacy could be gained. This wider setback, the mostly blind side walls, and the facades’ permeability both at the front and the back made it possible to achieve a space configuration that is private enough and that provides shelter from the outside views, which would undermine the house’s intimacy.
Axonometric
Set at the highest level of the site, the access floor houses the social areas. With uninterrupted views from the front backwards, it opens into a deck over the slope that overlooks the green lung at the back of the site and, at the same time, shelters the private uses floor that lies beneath.
Two staircases (one inside, linking the social and private areas, and one outside, linking the deck and the woods beneath) set on the same line define an axis for vertical circulations around which all spaces are organized. While on the upper floor it emancipates the living room from the kitchen-dining area-grill chained spaces, downstairs it separates the master and secondary bedrooms according to what the client asked for.
Site Plan
The longitudinal, open views from the rear of the upper level display the surrounding acacias in the foreground and the distant pines in the valley behind. Located at the lowest part of the site, the bedrooms open directly into the green lung through semi covered private expansions, establishing a continuum with the natural surroundings.
The outer stairs slide between two big concrete boxes, one containing a swimming pool and the other, a garden, and both of them linked to the deck into which the social areas open. The water, the earth, and the vegetation contained in these boxes help insulate the bedrooms beneath.
In addition to the insolation control provided by the upper floor’s expansion, the semi covered area of the deck, and the overhangings that reduce the sunrays’ incidence on the glazed surfaces, the house was also equipped with Split air cooling systems and heating through a wood-burning stove and radiant floors.
The esthetic proposal shows at once both the complementarity and the contrast between the exposed concrete’s noble expression all over the house, and the refined details of the anodized aluminum framing, the glass, and the smoothed concrete floors.
There’s a decent chance that in the last few days, you’ve seen images of Analemma, the futuristic proposal from Clouds AO to hang a skyscraper (or should that be “earthscraper”?) from an asteroid in orbit of the earth. The project has been difficult to avoid, having been picked up not only by much of the architectural media but also by NBC, CNN, Forbes, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, Mashable, IFLScience—the list goes on almost as long as the building itself.
Is the design realistic? Obviously not, and it’s obviously not intended to be. It’s intended as a utopian thought experiment. Clouds AO has something of a pedigree in this field, as winners of a NASA-backed competition to design a Mars base with their idea for a building made of ice. As a result, it would be facile to join the internet’s collective bottom-of-the-page comment mob to point out that it would be prohibitively expensive, or that it might be more enjoyable to live on the ground anyway.
But is the design a usefulutopian thought experiment? There are some design failures that better technology, or a lot of money, or the changed mindset of a futuristic society just won’t fix. So without further ado, here are a list of the problems that this out-of-this-world design would face, in chronological order, with the issues that make it impractical in our current world marked as “minor” and the ones that would undermine the proposal in any universe marked as “major.”
Step 1: Go fetch an asteroid and bring it into orbit around the earth
As surprising as some may find this idea, it’s actually becoming increasingly feasible, with NASA hoping to place a small piece of an asteroid in orbit of the moon by 2021. The much larger asteroid needed for Analemma would cost a lot more to capture, but as Clouds AO argues in their project description, “if the recent boom in residential towers proves that sales price per square foot rises with floor elevation, then Analemma Tower will command record prices, justifying its high cost of construction.”
Step 2: Build a 27 kilometer-tall skyscraper in Dubai
Minor problem: The image below clearly shows that the intention is to build the skyscraper on the ground first, before loading it onto the asteroid. However, the final building is proposed to extend from 32 kilometers in the air down to just above the height of the “tallest obstruction.” Under Clouds AO’s plan, a safe height is likely to be around 5 kilometers (more on this later), requiring a tower of 27 kilometers. There are all sorts of reasons that building a 27 kilometer-tall structure isn’t currently possible, especially one as slender as is shown in these images, ranging from wind-loading problems to material strength. For now, let’s assume that this will one day be possible.
Step 3: Attach a 35,754 kilometer-long cable to the asteroid
Minor problem: If you thought material strength was an issue in the previous step, this is a whole other level. Currently the strongest material known to us is Carbon Nanotubes; if we could, hypothetically speaking, make those longer than just 6,000 kilometers, they would snap under their own weight. A cable strong enough to support this design would likely need to be at least six times stronger. Let’s imagine that, at some point in the future, this material exists (which, incidentally, would also likely mean space elevators are not far from a reality).
Step 4: Lift the Building Off The Ground
Minor problem: Lifting such a structure off the ground would be incredibly tricky. Assuming it is lifted from the base, even a minor deviation from vertical would cause it to topple over uncontrollably. Also, all the comfortable, settled structural members would have sudden, unpredictable loads added to them as the building begins to move, and as discussed above, this structure is precarious to begin with.
Step 5: Attach the building to the cable hanging from the asteroid
Minor problem: More structural problems for the building. Structures that are efficient in compression (ie those built on the ground) are not necessarily efficient in tension (ie those hanging from an orbiting asteroid). Let’s hope future engineers are talented enough to build a structure that, even at 27 kilometers long, can do both efficiently.
Minor problem: The asteroid is in a geosynchronous orbit—one in which it completes one orbit at the same speed as the earth rotates, once every day. However, since Dubai isn’t on the equator, this orbit can’t be geostationary. That means, from the perspective of the construction site, the asteroid briefly slows down overhead once every day, then dashes off southward, eventually coming to a halt a few hundred kilometers east of southern Madagascar before making its return at the same time the following day. In other words, the building needs to be attached very, very quickly.
Minor problem: The instant the building is attached to the asteroid, the center of mass of the whole system will be moved lower than it was before. That means the system is no longer in geostationary orbit; it is now on a collision course with Earth, unless the whole assembly can be lifted higher very quickly. Even Clouds AO’s own diagrams show the asteroid itself at 50,000 kilometers, well above the 35,800 kilometer height of a geosynchronous orbit. This change in height would have to be done pretty quickly to avoid the asteroid crashing down to earth—which would take some powerful thrusters given the bulk of the asteroid. Then, once the assembly (including your building) has been lifted up 14,000 kilometers, what to do? Hopefully the engineer planned 14,000 kilometers of slack in that supporting cable.
MAJOR PROBLEM: Anything “in orbit” which is dangling a significant portion of itself into the atmosphere cannot be considered to be in a stable orbit (unless, perhaps, it is in a geostationary orbit, as a space elevator would be). Since the building would be moving at speeds of hundreds of kilometers an hour between the northern and southern limits of its geosynchronous orbit, it would experience significant air resistance, which would gradually slow down the asteroid and de-orbit the entire assembly. This effect could only be counteracted with a continuous injection of thrust, which would require a lot of fuel—in fact, to imagine how much fuel, try envisaging our 27-kilometer skyscraper, while still oriented vertically, with wings attached, flying around at the speed of a commercial airliner. This would be just as efficient.
Clouds AO’s plan is to utilize the cheap construction costs in Dubai and then take advantage of high home prices in New York, making the project more economically feasible. Like the original capture of the asteroid, this change in orbit would take a significant amount of fuel, but since this is a one-time expense (rather than the continuous use of fuel outlined in step 6) we’ll let it slide.
Step 8: Put the building in a geosynchronous orbit that sits above New York at its northernmost reach and off the coast of Peru at its southernmost
Minor problem: The orbit diagrammed by Clouds AO simply isn’t possible. In any orbit, the northernmost latitude reached is matched by an equal latitude to the south. This isn’t a problem per se—it simply means that the building is going to travel almost 3,000 kilometers further south, stopping just north of the southern regions of Chile. But this demonstrates that orbits aren’t as malleable as the proposal suggests, and that the dream of waking up over Cuba, eating breakfast as you fly past Atlanta, stopping in New York at lunch and then seeing Haiti around dinner time is not going to happen.
Step 9: Attract residents with spectacular, low flying views of the city
MAJOR PROBLEM: As discussed above, the bottom of the tower needs to be high enough to avoid the highest obstacle. For this orbit, that obstacle comes in Peru in the form of the upper range of the Andes. Thus, to be safe, the bottom of the building should orbit at a height of around 5,000 meters—hardly the “reach out and touch the Empire State Building” kind of distance suggested by the renders. It’s possible that the orbit could be calibrated to rise higher in its southern reaches and dip low over New York, but the trade-off in doing this is that the building would then be moving faster when it reaches the city, which in itself creates more challenges.
Step 10: Build a tower that allows people to hop on and off the moving skyscraper
Minor problem: Some of the renders show brave residents base jumping out of their homes, which is inadvisable for all but the northernmost and southernmost portions of the orbit, since the building will be moving at an average speed of around 720 kilometers per hour relative to the ground. But the detailed plans also show a rather nifty transfer tower, which should give a handful of people a window of a few seconds in which they can step off the building each day. The challenge here is the precision required. A lot of factors can affect the precise alignment of orbits (especially when the orbiting body is dragging its tail through the atmosphere) so making sure the tower hits its mark exactly will be tough. Also, as discussed above the transfer tower may have to be up to 5,000 meters tall, which somewhat diminishes the cost benefits gained by building the main skyscraper in Dubai.
For all its problems, the biggest downfall of the Analemma proposal might be its specificity. As astrophysicist Dr. Jonathan McDowell told The Christian Science Monitor, “it is a fun idea that gets engineers and architects thinking outside the box, which is its purpose.” It might also be considered an ironic take on the astonishing price of New York real estate.
But if those are its strengths, outlining the proposal in such detail—allowing it to be picked apart as I have done—might be a mistake. While the proposal would do better to place itself in the fuzzy boundary between science fiction and everyday reality, the extreme detail of this proposal allows an incredulous public to take it more seriously than they probably should. That's great news for news publishers, who feed off of the outrage of their internet audiences. But it's less good news for architects, who are left explaining to their friends that no, they aren't totally serious about this and no, this isn't the kind of thing that most of the profession spends their time on.
Location: Keukenhof, Stationsweg 166A, 2161 AM Lisse, The Netherlands
Area: 3200.0 m2
Project Year: 2016
Photographs: Courtesy of Mecanoo
Client: Stichting Internationale Bloemententoonstelling Keukenhof, the Netherlands
Project Management: Frans de Brabander, Poeldijk, the Netherlands
Structural Engineer: IMD bv, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Mechanical And Electrical Engineer: DWA, Bodegraven, the Netherlands
Contractor: Van Wijnen, Dordrecht, the Netherlands
Courtesy of Mecanoo
From the architect. Keukenhof finally has a proper main entrance. Mecanoo designed an elegant gatehouse to welcome the large flows of, mainly international, visitors to the world famous gardens. A striking timber roof leans on two volumes, forming an impressive gateway to the park. The stepped roof structure of interwoven isosceles triangles provides shelter, whilst creating an ever-changing play of light and shadow.
Floor Plan
From the Outside World to the World of Flowers The gatehouse is the transition between the outside world and the world of Keukenhof and all its flowers. While walking through the entrance, you will see the beautiful Dutch skies above framed by timber triangles. Look down and you will see an intriguing pattern of triangular shadows on the ground. A fence with a tulip motif marks the beginning of a journey of discovery through the park.
Courtesy of Mecanoo
Integral Design The integral design for the entrance area includes two plazas. A forecourt with wedge-shaped planters leads visitors from the main car park to the entrance. The stepped roof leans on two volumes, forming an impressive gateway to the park. The gatehouse houses public functions such as cash registers, an information desk and retail. Skylights in the roof create a spacious and light atmosphere in the restaurant. The office spaces on the first floor, used year-round, offer extending views over the park.
Courtesy of Mecanoo
Diagram
Courtesy of Mecanoo
Spring The use of natural materials - wood, copper and brick, lends character to the building without being a distraction from its environment. On a beautiful spring day, the glazed facade can be opened almost entirely, blending the interior with the exterior. Ponds with fountains provide a suitable ambiance for a pleasant day out and sitting on the spacious terraces, visitors are treated to views over the largest tulip field inside the ‘most beautiful spring garden in the world’.
© Iwan Baan
Courtesy of NL Architects
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© Jesus Granada
© Helibeeld
© Alan karchmer
© Thijs Wolzak
Render
© Dawid Nowak
© Sergey Kuznetsov
© Iwan Baan
© Camila Cossio
© Jannes Linders
.jpg?1490750384 "© Peter Blundy")
.jpg?1490750419 "© Peter Blundy")
