Glass Farm by MVRDV This shop and office complex by Dutch architects MVRDV is disguised as an old farmhouse, but its walls and roof are actually made from glass. The building is located in the market square of small Dutch town Schijndel, where MVRDV partner Winy Maas grew up. The town suffered damages during World War II, and Maas has been campaigning since the 1980s to replace a destroyed structure in the space between the church and the town hall. Thirty years and six failed proposals later, the architects and the town council agreed to develop the site within the traditional building envelope specified by the town planners. MVRDV reinterpreted this volume in glass, then compiled photographs of traditional local farmhouses by artist Frank van der Salm and created a collage of images to apply to each surface of the facade. The building is out of scale with the original farmhouses, so it appears to be two storeys high rather than three, while visible doors measure at a height of around four metres.
On Space Time Foam Installation by Architect Tomás Saraceno International architect Tomás Saraceno has been an influential and innovative part in the creation of the “On Space Time Foam” art installation. Now located in the HangarBicocca in Milan, and set to continue on at MIT as an integral part of Saraceno’s residence there. The installation is essentially a floating structure that is composed of three levels of clear film that is able to be accessed by the public. It’s construction was inspired by the cubical nature of the space that it is in, and it looks like an experience to be had. Each and every person moves at their own pace and in their own manner, and each action has a reaction within the suspended plastic layers. It in turn makes some gorgeous photos as well.
FUTURE PRENTICE. Chicago Architectural Club « REMED January 29, 2013 Project Team: David Giraldeau, Alexandre Guilbeault Project Year: 2012 A RESEARCH APPARATUS The upper part of the Prentice building; the perforated organic shell, is decidedly iconic. A NEW SKIN. AN UPGRADED HUB. THE GOLDBERG SHELL. The architectural interpretation of this apparatus lead to a new potential of spatial qualities, meeting the needs of an unusual typology of campus.
Spiralab research laboratory by KINO Architects The angled columns of an earthquake-proof structure frame a series of window slits on the exterior of this Tokyo research laboratory by KINO Architects (+ slideshow). Located in an industrial area beside Tokyo Bay, the building is used as a chemical research facility for a materials development brand and comprises a U-shaped block with a horizontal slice through its middle. This slice offers clues about the internal arrangement of the building, which is based on the abstraction of a linear plan. KINO Architects planned a route through a reception, an auditorium, meeting rooms and laboratories, then stretched it through all three floors to create a loop from one ground floor entrance to another. Offices and meeting rooms required the most privacy, so the architects located them on the middle floor where they can be separated if necessary. The architects named the building Spiralab, as a reference to its looping interior layout. Photography is by Hiroyuki Hirai and Daici Ano. Spiralab
archdaily Despite reports that construction firm Broad Sustainable Building (BSB), a subsidiary of Broad Group, could not complete its 220-story Sky City tower in 90 days, the company’s senior VP Juliet Jiang has announced that the skyscraper “will go on as planned with the completion of five storeys a day.” Thus, rather than in seven months, the world’s tallest tower (838 m; 2,750 ft) will be finished in three – topping out at the end of March 2013. As we’ve discussed before here on ArchDaily, the tower could truly be revolutionary in China; Broad Group’s 95% prefabricated modular technology, which is responsible for the incredible rate of construction, is also radically environmentally-friendly, earthquake-safe, and cost-effective. More info on the world’s tallest tower, after the break… According to ConstructionWeekOnline, Sky City will be 83% residential, housing 31,400 people from both luxury and low-income communities. Either way, we’ll keep you updated as this story unfurls.
Bent perforated facade by Chris Kabel Dutch designer Chris Kabel has wrapped this house and studio in Amsterdam with a facade of perforated hexagons that catches the light like a hanging sheet of fabric. Kabel was approached by architecture studio Abbink X de Haas to collaborate on a building exterior that would relate to the history of the area, which is within the city's red light district but is also associated with the textile industry. "This was the area where wool and cloth were dyed in the sixteenth and seventeenth century, in fact one of Rembrandt's paintings depicts the people that worked here," the designer told Dezeen. After considering a series of laser-cut screens, Kabel instead decided to use sheets of aluminium with perforated sections. "With these industrially produced aluminium plates you can punch out a shape, then afterwards you can still bend the perforations, so then it can either catch light or cast a shadow," he said. Above: photograph is by Luuk Kramer See more projects with perforated metal facades »
Tour des Canadiens: frénésie au bureau des ventes Qu'en est-il exactement? Demain, quelques étages supplémentaires seront mis en vente à l'intention des 500 clients inscrits en ligne, qui viendront aussi rencontrer Guy Lafleur. Combien précisément? Impossible de le savoir avec certitude. «Beaucoup de bonnes unités seront disponibles, assure Daniel Peritz, vice-président principal, chez Canderel, un des promoteurs du projet avec La Corporation Cadillac Fairview, le Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ et le Club de hockey Canadien. Mardi dernier vers 14h, dans le bureau des ventes, les petits points rouges à côté de chacun des appartements ne laissaient aucun doute: tout était vendu. M. En date de mercredi, «pas loin d'une quarantaine d'étages» avaient été mis en vente, a spécifié M. Un intérêt certain Le projet soulève indéniablement un grand intérêt, attirant un grand nombre d'acheteurs potentiels. «Je pense que c'est un bon investissement, a-t-elle indiqué. «Pour nous, le Canadien est très important, précise-t-il.
archdaily A few days before the wrath of Sandy, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) broke ground on what will be the first net zero energy school in New York City and the Northeast U.S. Located on a 3.5-acre site on Staten Island, at the intersection of Crabtree Avenue and Bloomingdale Road, P.S.62 Richmond will serve 444 pre-kindergarten through fifth grade students. When completed in Fall of 2015, the cutting-edge primary school will harvest as much energy from renewable on-site sources as it uses on an annual basis. Learn more after the break… Roger Duffy, FAIA, SOM Design Partner and head of the firm’s Education Lab describes this project as “an extraordinary opportunity to help define the next generation of energy efficient school buildings for New York City and beyond.” Designed to comply with the SCA Green Schools Guide in lieu of LEED certification, the project will be NYC School Construction Authority’s (SCA) first “sustainability lab.”
SOM promotes floating observation deck over Grand Central Terminal News: while Foster + Partners think simply increasing capacity is the way to improve New York's Grand Central Terminal, architecture firm SOM has proposed adding a floating observation deck that slides up and down the sides of two new skyscrapers (+ slideshow). The moving deck is one of several public realm strategies that the firm is promoting for the 100-year-old station, following an invitation from the Municipal Art Society of New York to re-think the spaces in and around the building. SOM suggests that the hovering deck would improve the quality of the public space around the building by offering an "iconic landmark" with a 360-degree panorama of the city skyline. "Throughout the history of New York City, urban growth has been matched by grand civic gestures," said SOM partner Roger Duffy. The plans also include new pedestrian routes to help ease congestion, as well as a series of public spaces that are privately owned and managed. See Foster + Partners' proposals in our earlier story.
DawnTown 2013: Landmark Miami Design Competition Winners Announced DawnTown recently announced the winners for Landmark Miami, their 2013 ideas competition which focused on how cities are instantly identified by the individual structures within them. With the challenge of coming up with a new symbol for the future, architects and designers were tasked with creating an iconic architectural piece that contributes to the image of Miami. Studio Dror was announced as the first prize winner for their ‘Miami Lift’ proposal which pays tribute to the city’s by elevating visitors to give them a new perspective to the city. 1st Place: ‘Miami Lift’ Team Name: Studio Dror Location: New York City, NY, USA 2nd Place: ‘Lemonade Square’ Team Members: David Giraldeau, Alexandre Guilbeault Team Name: REMED Location: Montreal, Canada 3rd Place: ‘Torre de Las Americas’ Team Members: Mauricio Gonzalez, Alfredo Andia Location: Miami, FL, USA / Santiago, Chile
Des tours de 580 millions au centre-ville de Montréal | Maxime Bergeron et Danielle Bonneau Les projets ont été présentés en première lecture au conseil d'arrondissement de Ville-Marie, un passage obligé pour toute construction d'envergure. La tour la plus élevée est prévue par Cadillac Fairview à deux pas du Centre Bell, tandis que la firme Magil Laurentienne projette cinq immeubles de 13 à 25 étages à l'est de l'autoroute Bonaventure, en lisière du Vieux-Montréal. Une société à numéro souhaite quant à elle ériger une tour résidentielle de 35 étages sur la rue Union, entre Cathcart et le boulevard René-Lévesque. «Il y a un regain d'intérêt pour le centre-ville, qui est le plus habité au Canada, a souligné à La Presse Affaires Marc Labelle, directeur de l'aménagement urbain de l'arrondissement Ville-Marie. Le gratte-ciel de Cadillac Fairview, s'il se réalise comme prévu, deviendra l'un des plus hauts de la métropole. Ce gratte-ciel de 160 millions constitue la première phase d'un vaste complexe de 400 millions que Cadillac Fairview compte ériger autour du Centre Bell. Bureaux