Achitecture and Design

Ateliers Jean Nouvel completes pair of inclined skyscrapers in Paris

Ateliers Jean Nouvel completes pair of inclined skyscrapers in Paris

French design studios The 180- and 125-meter-tall Tours Duo buildings were created by Jean Nouvel to "create a character" for eastern Paris. The two skyscrapers, which are intended to serve as a landmark for eastern Paris, house 139 rooms of hotel accommodations and 97,000 square meters of business space. Philippe Starck, a French designer, created the interiors. According to Jean Nouvel, Eastern Paris is gradually coming into focus, consolidating and taking shape, and completing and changing an incomplete context.
The goal of this endeavor is to construct the top of the mountain, the century's apex. Additionally, it involves developing a personality or singularity that is connected to the reality of the location, that highlights its unique beauty, and that depends on it to create and enhance the area's allure. The pair of skyscrapers are situated away from a central plaza and were constructed next to the Périphérique ring road and a sizable railroad line. The skyscrapers were tilted by Nouvel to be more visible from the Seine River, the Périphérique, and a number of other prominent locations in the city. In his opinion, the location does not qualify as a landmark from the Avenue de France's perspective. The Bibliothèque Nationale de France's walkway does not provide a view of it. A little incline may easily bring the towers into view while allowing us to play with the reflections of the railway landscape in the south facade, which would be clearly visible from the ring boulevard and the boulevard du Général Jean Simon. After the Tour Montparnasse, Tour Duo 1 is the second-tallest skyscraper in
30.09.2022
Civic Architects converts 1930s town hall buildings into shoe museum

Civic Architects converts 1930s town hall buildings into shoe museum

Circular openings sliced into an existing brick wall provide views through to exhibition spaces inside this shoe museum, which Amsterdam-based Civic Architects designed in Waaliwijk, the Netherlands. The Schoenenkwartier Museum presents the history of shoe design and production in Waaliwijk, which for centuries was an important center for traditional craft within the North Brabant region. Civic Architects was tasked with converting a cluster of heritage-listed buildings to house a collection of 12,000 objects, along with other museum facilities, a cafe, and laboratories for design and prototyping. The Raadhuis ensemble was designed by architect Alexander Kropholler to accommodate functions associated with the original town hall. It was built in phases in the 1930s and expanded in the 1980s with the addition of an office block. The Shoe Museum extends the principles applied by Kropholler in his original design, with the original layout of open arcades and a small kiosk complemented by new arched windows framed in thick oak. Civic Architects said that they applied subtly subversive design details to nuance Alexander Kropholler's overly restrictive and rigid architectural views. As such, the addition was not a fashionable or contradictory icon but a fresh new chapter in the historically layered story of the building. The museum occupies a prominent site on Raadhuisplein square, from which its main public functions – including the cafe and open workshops – are visible through the large, arched openings. The building can be entered from the square or from an adjacent arcade through large pivoting or sliding doors. The entrances lead to a generously proportioned foyer featuring a brick path that makes it feel like an extension of the public square. The central foyer connects with the rest of the open-plan
13.09.2022
Ingenhoven Architects unveils pair of plant-covered skyscrapers in Tokyo

Ingenhoven Architects unveils pair of plant-covered skyscrapers in Tokyo

German studio Ingenhoven Architects has completed a pair of skyscrapers, including Japan's tallest residential building, which is covered in planting on the lower levels. Set on either side of Tokyo's tallest building – Toranomon Hills Tower designed by Japanese studio Nihon Sekkei – the pair of skyscrapers have a similar aesthetic, with one containing apartments and one office space. The taller 220-meter-high skyscraper contains 54 stories of apartments, making it Japan's tallest residential tower, while a 185-meter-high tower contains 36 stories of office space.
Designed by Ingenhoven Architects, the skyscrapers are connected by bridges to create a greenery-covered first-floor podium. Ingenhoven Architects founder Christoph Ingenhoven said that the core aim was to design two new towers which integrate well with the surrounding neighborhood, respecting the taller central tower while presenting their own contemporary urban response. And to give something back to the city by offering a green, publicly accessible plateau at the first above-ground level – a place of balance with zones of calm amid the rush of this large city. Informed by the green space surrounding the nearby Atago Shrine, Ingenhoven Architects created a series of terraces on the lower floors at the base of each tower, which contain 154 full-sized trees. Alongside the trees, the studio wrapped the lowest seven floors of the office building and the eleventh floor of the residential building in hedgerows, in a similar move to an office it designed in Düsseldorf that contains five miles of hedges on its facade. Ingenhoven explained that they had integrated urban green into the project, which was not very common in Tokyo, to create a green, lively, publicly accessible plateau at the first above-ground level. The plateau was reserved for pedestrians
09.09.2022
Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos creates an alfresco feeling inside Mexico City skyscraper restaurant

Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos creates an alfresco feeling inside Mexico City skyscraper restaurant

This restaurant was designed by local firm Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos to give the idea that you are dining on a typical Mexican patio. It is located at the top of a skyscraper in Mexico City.

Ling Ling is an Asian fusion restaurant with nearly 360-degree views of the city that is situated on the 56th story of the Chapultepec Uno building on Paseo de la Reforma.
To give patrons the impression that they are dining in one of the expansive courtyards and terraces that are distinctive of Mexican architecture, the 1,000 square meter interior was renovated by the architecture firm Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos. According to the company, it used structural components and building techniques to help straddle the line between architecture and interior design during the design process. The "terrace," a triple-height atrium with glass walls and a portico-style roof, is the focal point of Ling Ling. The tables are surrounded by planters containing mature trees, and the portico structure above is covered with climbing plants that cover the columns and hang from them. The inner salon and dining room, which are encased within vaulted timber structures, have ceilings that have been lowered to human scale. These more private, cavernous areas are furnished with furnishings that was specifically designed for them and are highlighted by soft lighting. The design team selected a palette of vegetal hues for Ling Ling's interior to complement the exuberant greenery installed throughout the space. Another dining space in Mexico City was designed by the architecture firm Taller ADG to resemble an old-style Italian trattoria.
02.09.2022
Muda Architects models Tianfu Museum of Chinese Medicine on yin-yang symbol

Muda Architects models Tianfu Museum of Chinese Medicine on yin-yang symbol

A museum in Chengdu that will be devoted to the history of Chinese medicine and be organized in the shape of the yin-yang symbol has been disclosed by the Chinese architectural company Muda Architects. The 13,000 square meter structure will be known as the Tianfu Museum of Chinese Medicine and lie next to Huitong Lake in Pengzhou. The concept, created by local firm Muda Architects, will merge water with a ring-shaped land feature to create a massive Taiji diagram, or yin-yang symbol, which symbolizes the tenets of holistic traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).
The main entrance of the Tianfu Museum of Chinese Medicine will be situated on its west side after it is finished. Here, the facade's perforated aluminum panels will block the sun to keep the building cool. A double-curved glass curtain wall will let in more natural light on the building's lake-facing east facade. On the ground floor, there will be primary public areas, such as the entrance hall, an auditorium, an interactive exhibition space, and the dining area. On the first and second floors, there will be an exhibition and workshop room set up. The basement level of the Tianfu Museum of Chinese Medicine is planned to have utilities and parking, and it will link to a sunken outdoor plaza where a variety of public events will be held. The museum's exterior was also created by Muda Architects, and it has seasonal TCM herb plantings to help visitors learn. The museum will be open to the public around-the-clock. The main building for the Tianfu Museum of Chinese Medicine has been built, and it is scheduled to open in 2023. In other parts
26.08.2022
Groupwork emulates lost 18th-century buildings with Bristol apartment block

Groupwork emulates lost 18th-century buildings with Bristol apartment block

For a location near St Mary Redcliffe Church in Bristol, UK, architecture firm Groupwork has designed a bronze mesh-covered residential complex that draws inspiration from structures destroyed in World War Two bombs.
The 120-apartment Redcliffe Way construction will be encased in a bronze mesh that mimics the size and shapes of earlier structures from the 18th century that had stood on the location. The construction of a parking lot was intended to be both modern development and a monument to the history of the location, which was bombed during World War II. The desire to rebuild the bombed urban block that had once stood in front of St. Mary's in the studio sparked thoughts about nostalgia, memory, altered narratives, and creating monuments, which led us to think about meshes or cast materials that can represent the fleeting, miscast, or misremembered historical narratives. Rebuilding the streets and their forms in areas that had been bombed during World War II would create urban cohesiveness and give the locals a chance to create their own narrative. We are building neoclassical facades in the 18th-century style, but in response to the desires of the contemporary community, with transient and fluctuating illusions of empire and power. This is historical memory without sentimentality. The complex will consist of four independent buildings connected by roof gardens and balconies, with a bronze mesh surrounding all the structures to give the impression that it is one large building. The D-shaped urban block will be built around an interior While street-facing enclosures enhance the current shop streets, the ground level is mostly designated for soft and hard landscaping utilized by residents and guests. The four buildings will be partially encircled by a perforated bronze skin, giving the occupants inside some privacy and partially shielding the interiors from the sun to lessen warming and energy consumption. The sheet alone lowers the potential uplift of the total embedded carbon from 30% solid to 70% void. Applying these
20.08.2022
MVRDV unveils pair of skyscrapers with "stratified cliff" facades

MVRDV unveils pair of skyscrapers with "stratified cliff" facades

Two L-shaped buildings with angular, cliff-like facades make up the Oasis Towers complex in Nanjing, China, which was unveiled by the Dutch architecture firm MVRDV.
The Oasis Towers mixed-use residential and commercial development, which will have two 150-meter buildings, will be constructed on a site near the Jiangbei New Area Financial District in Nanjing.

The project will encompass two L-shaped, 40-story towers that surround an "oasis" in the center of the site and occupy two adjacent blocks of the Jiangbei New Area concept, which is intended to become a new financial hub and center for Nanjing. The co-founder of MVRDV claimed that Nanjing's modern architecture was influenced by nature in both shape and appearance. With Oasis Towers, they aimed to take that fad to its logical conclusion by not only mimicking nature with its curved, tiered "cliffs" but also literally incorporating it into the architecture through the use of vegetation and natural processes. According to the studio, each tower will be constructed on the opposite corners of the blocks to take advantage of the strong western breezes that will provide the site with the most ventilation. The exterior, perimeter-facing skins of the towers will be decorated with a formal, gridded façade, and the inside, interior-facing facades will have rippling and cascading terraces directed toward a public shopping plaza. A three-story envelope will be formed by terraces that taper towards the site's perimeter and surround the "oasis" and park-like space at its center. These terraces will be covered with trees, shrubs, and other vegetation and will be clad in recycled bamboo.
17.08.2022
Metal-clad boxes form Everden house by StudioAC in Toronto

Metal-clad boxes form Everden house by StudioAC in Toronto

Gabled elements and corrugated aluminum siding feature in a family home that was designed by Canadian firm StudioAC to be "impactful without being indulgent”.
The Everden house is located on a slender, rectangular lot in Toronto's Cedarvale neighborhood.

Local firm StudioAC said that the brief was to create a home that felt unique and personal to the homeowners and unapologetically contemporary while still having cues to the traditional ideas of ‘house.' Aiming to create a residence that feels both "playful and serious,” the architects designed a three-story building that reads as stacked boxes.
The home is topped with a gabled roof that alludes to the local housing stock. The peaked form was used for certain windows and interior elements, as well. The architecture studio said that while a gabled roof was one of the quintessential icons of ‘house', we were interested in elevating this phenomenon beyond motif to a spatial experience that defined a narrative throughout the project. Facades are clad in corrugated aluminum, which was selected for its durability and affordability. On the front elevation, upper windows are covered with a mesh made from aluminum panels, which were custom perforated and then sealed. Inside, the team put special focus on the spatial experience, which freed them up to be flexible with the material expression. The ground floor is split level, with the dining area and kitchen occupying the front portion of the plan and a sunken living room situated in the rear. Steps lead down from the kitchen to the living area, which provides a physical separation without the use of a wall, the architecture studio said. StudioAC said that they had wanted to create spatial delineation and the
11.08.2022
Sanders Architecture places glazed bridge on ash-clad Austin home

Sanders Architecture places glazed bridge on ash-clad Austin home

A Texas home designed by US firm Sanders Architecture features a glass bridge that will weather over time and is covered in tan-gray brick and thermally treated ash. Austin's Pemberton Heights House is surrounded by a grove of native heritage live oak trees on the western slope of Shoal Creek.
According to Sanders Architecture, the placement of the trees and the design of their canopies dictated the shape of the building and the footprint of the house. The 5,948 square foot (553 square meters) house is made up of rectilinear sections that are arranged around outside areas, including a pool and backyard terrace. The residence has setbacks, protrusions, and varying heights that give it a dynamic aspect and are informed by the site circumstances. A walkway on the lower level and a glazed bridge above provide access to a semi-attached, two-story volume that is located close to the front of the house. The colors and textures of the natural surroundings were reflected in the facade's materials. The team also employed wood siding composed of thermally stabilized ash, which would eventually develop a grey patina, in addition to variegated brick. In order to visibly around the building on the sloped site, the exterior also has concrete and weathering steel. The team selected neutral colors and natural materials, like white oak and quartz, inside. There are separate public and private areas in the layout. The kitchen, dining area, living room, and den are all located on one side of the ground level. The office that serves as a bedroom is located on the opposite side. The team set up the main suite and a bedroom upstairs. There is more
03.08.2022
Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos creates doughnut-shaped clubhouse in Mexico

Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos creates doughnut-shaped clubhouse in Mexico

A circular structure beside a lake was created by the Mexican firm Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos using cross-laminated wood and volcanic stone. About two hours from Mexico City, the Valle San Nicolás Clubhouse is situated on the outskirts of Valle de Bravo. The structure contains a variety of areas for unwinding and socializing and is located on a 385-hectare residential complex by a lake with an 800-meter waterski run. The 1,800-square-meter clubhouse was created by Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos of Mexico City to offer views and blend in with the surroundings.
The mountains and the lake, which are two of Valle San Nicolás' most notable natural features, were investigated in order to better understand how they could merge and relate to one another through a piece of architecture, according to the architecture studio. The structure is designed to resemble an anchored boat and to float in the water. The structure is round in shape and features a water-filled cutout in the center. The pond is crossed by a brick corridor that divides the clubhouse into two wings. While the east wing houses a bar, kitchen, barbeque area, and eating area, the west wing houses a gym, jacuzzi, steam room, and "spa cabins." To walk around the structure and take in the nearly 360-degree views of the surroundings, two rings—one inner and one outer—serve as open hallways. A pier-shaped addition to the building features a swimming lane and a sunbathing space.
09.07.2022
Loop Architects completes ring-shaped nursing home for dementia patients in Iceland

Loop Architects completes ring-shaped nursing home for dementia patients in Iceland

This circular care facility in Selfoss, Iceland, was designed by the Danish architectural firm Loop Architects to be "homey and exciting" for dementia patients. A two-story, ring-shaped building with a courtyard garden at its center has 50 private accommodations in the specialized facility in the town in southern Iceland. The idea was created for Iceland's government property agency FSRE by Aarhus firm Loop Architects and Reykjavik business Urban Arkitektar.
The team's goal was to create a new design for dementia care facilities that offer a secure and welcoming setting that is adapted to the needs of the inhabitants. With that project, Mette Nymann stated, they had created a structure that embraces its occupants while simultaneously opening onto an inner, sensory world in the lush, secure courtyard. They recognized the possibility of redesigning care facilities for people with dementia to make them more hospitable, stimulating, and long-lasting. The building's circular floorplan is intended to enable seamless mobility within it, giving tenants access to facilities like common lounge areas while ensuring they always return to their accommodations. According to Loop Architects, "everyone shares common functions located in the inner half of the circular building," making the shape democratic and creating equal chances for everybody. In order to maximize views of the surrounding landscape, including Ingólfsfjall mountain and the lfusá river, residences are arranged along the building's perimeter. The 22-square-meter homes have a typical design, with the en-suite bedrooms leading onto balconies on the first floor and patios at ground level. A concrete framework placed in place served as the foundation for the care facility. Its exterior is covered in imported Norwegian wood, creating surfaces that are cozy and sensuous.
07.07.2022
Studio of Environmental Architecture drapes sails over mountainside home in Bequia

Studio of Environmental Architecture drapes sails over mountainside home in Bequia

On the Caribbean island of Bequia, the Studio of Environmental Architecture employed enormous sails to create a "land yacht" that was constructed from reused wood and features a sophisticated rain collection system. Sail House has a distinctive look thanks to a system of tightly stretched shade components constructed of the same material as modern sails.
According to a California-based company, due to the challenges of building in the Caribbean with its scarce resources, all of the home's components were constructed in Indonesia before being carried in containers to the island. The project at Bequia, an island in the Grenadine group, had a main residence, a caretaker's cottage, and guest houses dispersed across the face of the steep slope. Tensile shade structures, in accordance with the architectural studio, offer more shade than conventional, rigid roofing would, making the house better suited for an equatorial environment. In addition to creating a thermal chimney to expel heat from the top by increasing cross ventilation, the roofs produce a swooping curve that is intended to gather rainfall. The studio said that the grouping of structures was constructed with this purpose in mind. Each building rests on a concrete base that serves as an anchor for the canopies' support system, which is made of aluminum. Rainwater is gathered on the canopies, channeled through the aluminum "masts" by metal clamps, and then drained to the massive cisterns that are housed in the concrete base. The studio claims that these cisterns enable 100% of the water utilized for the home to be collected from dew and rainfall and also produce a cooling effect when cross ventilation from the sails mixes with the water in the cisterns. Local production meets the annual water requirements, demonstrating that resiliency may be both aesthetic and strategic. The main building has three levels. There is a lounge next to the curved pool on the same level as the cisterns. The living room, kitchen, dining
30.06.2022
BIG wraps Lapland hotel treehouse in 350 birdhouses

BIG wraps Lapland hotel treehouse in 350 birdhouses

The Biosphere treehouse, which is surrounded by birdhouses, was designed by the Danish architectural firm BIG and is located in the Treehotel in Swedish Lapland.
The hotel room, which was developed in association with Swedish naturalist Ulf Hman, was intended to completely immerse visitors in the forest setting close to the village of Harads. Before the epidemic, Bjarke Ingels, the founder of BIG, claimed to have been in a handful of the Treehotel rooms and experienced a sense of renewal from total absorption in nature. The notion of allowing not only the human visitors but also the local bird and bat population to cohabit in a circular swarm of nests came to life almost immediately. He couldn't help but wonder if there was a way to enhance the immersion. The hotel room is enclosed in a mostly glass cube that hangs between two trees. 350 different-sized birdhouses are supported by a metal grid that surrounds the cube to make a spherical shape. There is hope for the glass to remain clear within this cloud of aviary construction after our initial chats with Ulf Ahman from the Norrbotten Ornithological Association revealed that birds do not drop where they nest. A suspension bridge leading to the 34-square-meter Biosphere treehouse at the Treehotel has a gentle upward slope. It comprises a toilet and shower facility, as well as a double-height living area with huge windows for viewing the birds and the nearby forest. A stepladder leads from the living area to a double bed that is elevated over the To encourage a variety of birds to nest, the hotel was covered in birdhouses of all sizes. According to ornithologist and Norrbotten Ornithological Association chairman human, the room is intended to improve local bird populations in addition to providing visitors with a unique experience. He claimed that surveys conducted in Norrbotten County by the County Administrative Board and us, as ornithologists, reveal that a variety of bird populations are declining. The number of natural holes in
29.06.2022
Studio Dlux converts industrial buildings into Red House School in São Paulo

Studio Dlux converts industrial buildings into Red House School in São Paulo

Studio Dlux, headquartered in Brazil, has introduced whimsical aspects to a disused warehouse that now houses an international school in So Paulo. The Villa-Lobos Red House School is located in the upscale Vila Leopoldina neighborhood.

The private school, which caters to students from kindergarten to high school, is part of a Brazilian network of Red House International Schools. The school provides a multilingual education that emphasizes the development of socio-emotional skills and a global outlook.
Red House kids, according to Studio Dlux, learn via active research and exploration both within and outside of the classroom. The Villa-Lobos campus aspires to be a model for international and bilingual educational institutions in Brazil. The project involved the adaptive reuse of two concrete structures from 1978. The blocky, two-story structures were originally utilized as electronics warehouses. The designers used vanilla-colored plaster on the facades and added robust lattices made of "ecological wood" and plastic. A new metal sky bridge was built to connect the two blocks. A preschool, café, and indoor sports court are all housed in one of the buildings. The primary and high school areas, as well as a library, a maker space, and music rooms, are located on the other side of the building. The team included fun elements like gabled forms, circular cutouts, and swaths of brilliant color throughout the school. Vinyl flooring, foam acoustical panels, and plywood are among the interior finishes. Studio Dlux chose the wood decor from open-source files and had it
03.06.2022