Architecture Lab

Via Bustler

A jury consisting of Daniel Libeskind, Wiesław Bielawski, Grzegorz Buczek, Wiesław Czabański, Wojciech Duda, George Ferguson, Wiesław Gruszkowski, Jack Lohman, Andrzej Pągowski, and Hans Stimmann has announced their decision for the competition for the Museum of the Second World War in Poland, Gdańsk.

- Prize I EUR 80,000- entry no. 117- identification number 84171358- 92 pt – Studio Architektoniczne “Kwadrat”, Gdynia; Poland. (See below for details)
- Prize II EUR 50,000- entry no. 125- identification number 11092109- 79 pt – Piotr Płaskowicki & partnerzy Architekci; Warszawa; Poland.
- Prize III EUR 30,000- entry no. 21- identification number 02122001- 75 pt – BETAPLAN S.A. ; Ateny; Greece.
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View the winning entry “Kwadrat”, with jury comments:

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The Jury is of the opinion that the design selected in the Architectural Competition has every chance of becoming one of the most important features of the Gdańsk City Centre from the very beginning. In our belief it meets all conditions of joining in the sophisticated symbols in the future alongside the Armoury, St Mary’s Church, or the Crane.
The huge building tactfully merges in the neighbourhood sharing the chance of becoming an icon of Gdańsk with the major historic elements around. The minimalist means of architectural expression proposed by the authors gracefully blend the modern idea of the building with the historic background. In its Design, the innovative, huge-scale project makes use of the unique air of the city and transforms it in a modern manner. The colour and texture proposed in the design smoothly blend with the colours of Gdańsk giving the museum the power to pass the test of the 21.c century.
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The huge building tactfully merges in the neighbourhood sharing the chance of becoming an icon of Gdańsk with the major historic elements around. The minimalist means of architectural expression proposed by the authors gracefully blend the modern idea of the building with the historic background. In its Design, the innovative, huge-scale project makes use of the unique air of the city and transforms it in a modern manner. The colour and texture proposed in the design smoothly blend with the colours of Gdańsk giving the museum the power to pass the test of the 21.c century.

Check the rest of the entry at Bustler
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Via Ja StudioInc

Solar Park south, August 2010s
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Slow Up-rising
Solar Park south, International Idea competition – Calabria, Italy – August 2010
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“Subject: Solar Park South Works – Solar Highway – carried out by re-using Salerno-Reggio Calabria highway sections between Scilla and Bagnara to be decommissioned by the Italian Highways Authority.” Solar Park South brief
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“Rather than completely demolishing the old route, with its extraordinary reinforced concrete viaducts, now fully integrated within the landscape and the collective imagination, the reuse and redevelopment of certain by-passed sections is proposed as a means of boosting the production of renewable energy; experimenting with new eco-friendly technologies; favoring connections between villages and access to the valuable crops on mountain crests; and, finally, developing new forms of environmental and land art capable of stimulating responsible tourism.” Solar Park South brief
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The submitted panels for the competition:

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Project Details:
Client: Stockholms Hamn AB
Architect: Arkitektfirmaet C. F. Møller and Berg Arkitektkontor
Address: Värtahamnen, Stockholm, Sverige
Size:16500 m2 and a new customs area of 1100 m2
Competition year: 2009-2010
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“The new terminal for Stockholm’s permanent ferry connections to Finland and the Baltics will be a landmark for the new urban development Norra Djursgårdsstaden – both architecturally and environmentally. The terminal, which will have a facade covered with expanded mesh, recalls the shape of a moving vessel and the architecture – with large cranes and warehouses – that previously characterized the ports. At the same time, the terminal has an ambitious sustainable profile, characteristic of the entire development.

The main idea has been to create natural links between central Stockholm and the new urban area in connection with the terminal, so that city life will naturally flow into the area. Therefore the terminal is raised to be at level with the urban zone, so it is easy for both pedestrians and traffic to access. At the same time the roof of the terminal building is designed as a varied green landscape with stairs, ramps, niches, and cosy corners, inviting both Stockholmers and passengers for a stroll or relaxing moments, while enjoying the view of the ferries, the archipelago, and the city skyline.

The aim is that the ferry terminal will be predominantly self-sufficient in energy and thus stand as an environmental model for public construction. Therefore the architecture of the terminal will integrate i.e. solar and wind power, for example the terraced landscape on the roof will integrate beds of solar cells along with the planting. The plan is to communicate the sustainable efforts to the people in the building by using i.e. centrally placed television screens, helping to raise awareness of the potential of sustainable construction.
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Via Atelier Hapsitus

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Selected as co-finalist

The project consists of the creation of a landmark for the city of Beirut, extending the existing building without destroying it. We created a project whereupon the new structure shares the corner with the existing building and cantilevers above it.

The presence of the existing building at the corner of the site was an enigma to us. It had the key position on the site, although it was not necessarily the most appropriate image for the BLC new headquarters.
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In order to resolve this issue, we created a project whereupon the new structure shares the corner with the existing building and cantilevers above it. In this way, the different expressions of old and new become complementary, working together in symbiosis.
Our proposal for the BLC headquarters strives to reflect the history of the bank and project its future with a design strategy that responds intuitively to the site. Like the new administration of BLC, we have chosen to adopt the existing structure, streamline it, correct its dysfunctional aspects, and celebrate it as the departure point for a dynamic, sophisticated and unique composition growing around and above it.
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We believe that BLC Bank is best represented by a project that opens itself visually to the urban fabric with alluring spaces and landscape, rather than the hermetic and alienating facades that often characterize large corporations. The streetscape we have conceived gives the image of a bank which is progressive, has a civil consciousness and offers a quality environment to clients and employees alike.
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The design of the project is an unselfconscious gesture shaped by the site itself and the needs of the project. We toyed with forms and ideas until an intuitive, almost spontaneous shape imposed itself; a process which gives the design an edge of unconventionality.
The total project is an arresting visible landmark that thrusts the bank headquarters into the 21st century in all ways possible. It is innovative in design, in its integration of the existing building, in the way it addresses the site, in its use of sustainability, in forward-thinking social facilities, and in its bold structural solution which makes the design possible.
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Consultants:
ARUP London for structural studies.
ZEF London for sustainability and low energy studies.
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Via Foster + Partners – Bustler

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“Foster + Partners’ masterplan for West Kowloon Cultural District, on a reclaimed harbour-front site, has been launched in Hong Kong. ‘City Park’ will capture and recreate the unique character, the DNA, that makes Hong Kong such a great city. At its heart, a 23-hectare great park and a green avenue will provide a landscaped setting for a series of spectacular new cultural buildings – the jewels in Hong Kong’s architectural crown. These new buildings will be approachable and welcoming – places for both high culture and popular enjoyment.

The seventeen new cultural venues include a Great Opera House; M+ (a pioneering museum of modern art); concert halls; and a 15,000-seat Arena with an Expo Centre below. Arts educational facilities, apartments, offices, shops and transport links are to be fully integrated, and 2 kilometres of harbour-front promenade will give the people of Hong Kong their first chance to look back at the city’s iconic skyline. A social focus is created along a new central avenue, extending from Canton Road in the east to the Harbour Tunnel mouth in the west, along which a variety of cultural and commercial activities are integrated.”
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“Foster + Partners brings its understanding of urban design and knowledge of Hong Kong – gained from thirty-one years’ experience in the city – to create a vibrant new cultural quarter with public spaces and buildings where public and private realms converge, social and physical boundaries are dissolved, and different groups can meet. West Kowloon’s familiar street pattern will extend into ‘City Park’ so that it becomes a natural extension of the local community. This relationship is reflected in a rich mixture of colonnades, alleyways, lanes and tree-lined promenades – streetscapes that recall the bustle of Lan Kwai Fong and thoroughfares such as Shanghai Street in Kowloon.

Though the district will attract visitors for its imaginative cultural programme, equally important are the 30,000 square metres of arts education facilities that will encourage home-grown artistic talent and benefit the people of Hong Kong.”
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“The 19-hectare great park will have magnificent views of the harbour and Hong Kong Island, and be open and accessible to local people and visitors alike. Its sculpted terrain, with dense tree planting, will provide shade and shelter, bringing the Hong Kong countryside into the city. A series of outdoor terraces and promenades will link the cultural buildings to the waterfront with vistas to Hong Kong Island. The great park also incorporates areas for outdoor performances and exhibitions. The needs of pedestrians and cars are balanced by sinking the main vehicle route below ground level; and to further maximise parkland, the Expo Centre is embedded below the Arena, combining two functions in one compact form.”
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“City Park will achieve a carbon-neutral rating with a synergistic system of high-efficiency and low-consumption infrastructure. The low-energy design includes district cooling/heating, grey water recycling, energy recovery systems for sewage, recycling, a waste-to-energy scheme and the generation of local, low-carbon electricity. There is also provision for solar and wind energy generation.

Lord Foster, Founder and Chairman, Foster + Partners said: “Hong Kong is a great city and this project captures what is important about its DNA: the civic spaces, the squares, the parks, the greenery, the avenues and the small side streets. At ‘City Park’ we have created a world class setting for a new cultural city for everyone.”
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“Mouzhan Majidi, Chief Executive, Foster + Partners said: “The West Kowloon Cultural District is an ambitious project to create a dynamic new district with a rich mix of spaces for everyone in Hong Kong. Our approach is to create a masterplan where the boundaries between living, working and playing are blurred, public space is welcoming and lively, and the quality of urban life is substantially improved. We look forward to carrying out further work on this exciting endeavour.”
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Spencer de Grey, Head of Design, Foster + Partners said: “City Park belongs to the people of Hong Kong. What we have done is taken our years of experience here, listened to what people need and created a setting for a new world class cultural district that expresses the hopes and aspirations of the city. It will be the most extraordinary international destination – a new landmark on the world’s cultural map.” Foster + Partners
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Work on the WKCD will be phased and the venues include:

The Great Park and green avenue
Characterised by an organic landscape, the Great Park is a twenty-three-hectare green oasis, including a nineteen-hectare park, on the western promontory of the site. It not only provides the setting for three major venues – the Arena, the Exhibition Centre and the Opera House – but also contains tea houses, small temples, follies, picnic areas and informal sports pitches within its hills and densely planted trees.

The Arena and Expo
A reinvention of a building type, the Arena and Expo centre contains a stacked programme – combining two functions within one compact form. With the arena constituting a large-scale performance venue on the upper levels, the expo centre is dug-into the site, below ground. The benefit of this unique programme is that it not only frees space for more parkland, but also concentrates two heavily serviced buildings within one, thereby reducing the infrastructure required for access and services for each. While the Expo centre will be full of activity during the daytime, the Arena will host events at night, thus creating a lively 24-hour shopping and entertainment centre.

Habitable Wall
Sweeping around the inner perimeter of the park and establishing a buffer to the West Harbour Crossing, a “green wall” contains hotels, restaurants, conference facilities and the showcase energy centre that serves the whole site.

Great Opera House
The home of WKCD’s resident opera company, the Great Opera House nestles within the Great Park, flanking its north-eastern edge and representing the western culmination of the Avenue. The Great Opera House marks the transition from city to park-scape. In front of the Great Opera House is Opera Plaza, which can be used for informal events and temporary exhibitions. This space sits within the park and offers spectacular views of the Bay and the Hong Kong skyline.

Green Rooms / the Urban Edge
With services and infrastructure placed below ground and the level of the development dictated by the buried Express Rail Link station, the public urban realm of WKCD is raised three metres above the current topographic datum. The city therefore steps down to the water’s edge, establishing dramatic views across the bay. A series of ‘green rooms’ step down from the cultural venues along the site edge, and extend towards Kowloon Park. Each room has a distinct identity, with the level change offering potential for terraced gardens, stepped plazas and integrated services and kiosks.

The Avenue
The Avenue, a bustling, wide boulevard-like pedestrian street, is the central spine running east/west from the Great Opera House at the edge of the Great Park, to Black Box Tower and Canton Road Plaza Gateway. The Avenue unlocks the whole district, connecting all the different elements together, and is characterised by a dynamic mix of major cultural venues, along with shops, noodle bars, private galleries, artists’ studios, workshops and residential apartments. A network of smaller streets intersect the Avenue, offering specialist culture-related shopping and cultural experiences. At the far western end of the Avenue, a bridge leads directly to Elements shopping centre and to Kowloon MTR station, while at the far eastern end, Austin Bridge connects directly to Austin Station and to King George IV Memorial Park beyond.

Xiqu Plaza and the Chinese Theatre
At the centre of the Avenue, adjacent to the Chinese Theatre, Xiqu Plaza is the centrepiece of the district. Occupying a strategic location, Xiqu Plaza connects to the forecourt plaza of the Express West Kowloon Terminus Rail Link, establishing a dramatic gateway to the development on arrival by train with a view corridor towards the Hong Kong skyline. The social heart of West Kowloon Cultural District, the plaza is filled with food stalls, organic markets, restaurants and cafes. The square is influenced by the presence of the adjacent Chinese Theatre, with its generous overhanging roof, beneath which there are restaurants and cafes. This establishes a traditional Chinese identity for the entire district.

Art School, Theatre and Academy, Music Square
Adjacent to the Great Opera House, a mixed-programme development would house an art school on the upper levels, with a music academy on the lower levels and theatre below grade. To the north of the building, a public square establishes an outdoor social space, with temporary music-related events or installations and a possible showcase for the art school and music academy. Rising above the height of the surrounding buildings, the art school is a bold marker, with spectacular views towards Hong Kong and an external rooftop terrace with sculpture garden.

The Concert Hall and Symphonic Stairs
The concert hall is defined by its raised public terrace that steps up, dramatically, from the waterfront. A key viewing point for the Hong Kong skyline, audiences are able to watch performances against the backdrop of Hong Kong. Equally, the building’s strong form is a civic and cultural marker for the cultural district, when viewed from Hong Kong. A music centre of international standing, the concert hall will consolidate West Kowloon’s position as an arts destination in its own right.

East of Xiqu
A number of further venues and public squares extend eastward from Xiqu Theatre. Characterised by a mixed programme of commercial, education and cultural uses, these include recording studios, the White Box gallery, Literature Square and Dance studios.

Knowledge Centre
The Knowledge Centre is located to the south of West Kowloon Terminus and Austin Station, connecting to East Gate Plaza and Austin Bridge to the east. A 21st century library and centre for learning and literature, the Knowledge Centre is welcoming and accessible, offering visitors and the local community a place to learn, meet, research and spend leisure time. Containing a library, computer rooms with wi-fi, the building is also home to exhibitions relating to literature and local history and culture. The programme suggests open, flexible environments in which communication can flourish.

M+
WKCD’s pioneering museum of modern art, M+ is accessed from the Avenue, near to Kowloon Park Bridge on the waterfront. Flanked by two plazas, the venue is also home to a sculpture-making courtyard to the east and a sculpture garden to the west. The building is characterised by its flexible exhibition spaces – including spaces for large-scale installations – as well as additional functions, such as lecture theatres, an archive of Chinese painting, art storage and a roof-top restaurant and sky-garden. A pedestrian public route leads through the site, reinforcing its integration into the wider city context. A major international centre for the visual arts, M+ is ranked among the world’s elite modern arts institutions, such as the Pompidou Centre in Paris and Tate Modern in London.

Canton Road Plaza and Black Box Tower
The Avenue culminates, at its far eastern end, in the Canton Road Plaza and the distinctive Black Box Tower. The tower houses a twenty-four-hour bookshop at the lower level, with three theatres stacked above, hosting fringe performances and comedy.

Connections and transport integration
Central to the vision for WKCD is the seamless integration of public transport and connections to Hong Kong, China and beyond. There are footbridges to Austin Station, Elements shopping centre, Kowloon Park and West Kowloon Station (with trains to the airport taking just twenty minutes). There is also the China ferry terminal to the East and the Star Ferry terminal close to the concert hall with regular connections to Hong Kong. The infrastructure for the entire site is discreetly placed below grade, with deliveries and service access to the venues separated from the predominantly pedestrian ground level. An automated transit system is proposed, which would connect all venues, keeping walking distances to a minimum and strategically connecting all the dots on the transport map. A fleet of eco minibuses connects further into central Kowloon areas.”
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NEW YORK, NY (August 19, 2010) — Sukkah City, www.sukkahcity.com, an ambitious global architectural contest that engaged the design, creative and architectural worlds to radically reinvent the ancient sukkah, today announced the twelve winners of the competition that will be on display in Union Square Park, ahead of the week-long festival of Sukkot. The selected designs will be built by their designers at the Gowanus Studio Space in Brooklyn and then driven by truck to Union Square for public display on Sunday, September 19 and Monday, September 20.
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More than 600 entrants had to wrap their minds around the arcane rules of Halakah, Jewish Law — which allows a sukkah to be built in a tree, on a wagon, or out of a living elephant. Entries came from 43 countries, including China, India, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Turkey, and Bosnia & Herzegovina.

“We asked some of the most creative people in the world to re-imagine and renew the sukkah, and the results are truly dazzling and inspiring,” said Roger Bennett and Joshua Foer of the cultural organization Reboot, which organized the competition in collaboration with the American Institute of Architects, Architizer, Dwell, the Union Square Partnership, and the City’s Department of Parks & Recreation. “This humble structure will come to life in twelve new forms that are bold, beautiful and quintessentially New York.”

A panel of judges, including Pritzker prize-winning architect Thom Mayne, The New Yorker’s architecture critic, Paul Goldberger, NYU Environmental Health Clinic Director Natalie Jeremijenko, and designer Ron Arad selected the winning entries during a recent session at the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The winners (full list below) were selected in a blind review, and include the Brooklyn-based firms Matter Architecture Practice; Bittertang, winners of the 2010 Architectural League Prize; and Solid Objectives – Idenburg Liu, winner of the 2010 MoMA/P.S.1 Young Architects Program. One structure will be voted on by New Yorkers to stand and delight throughout the week-long festival of Sukkot as the “People’s Choice Sukkah.” The “People’s Choice” will be announced at a September 20 ceremony. Selected entries will also be displayed in an exhibit at the Center for Architecture in New York City during the month of September.

The process and results of the competition, along with construction documentation and critical essays, will be published in the forthcoming book “Sukkah City: Radically Temporary Architecture for the Next Three Thousand Years.”
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Sukkah City 2010 Winners

Dale Suttle, So Sugita, and Ginna Nguyen – New York, NY
Gathering

Henry Grosman and Babak Bryan – Long Island City, NY
Fractured Bubble

Ronald Rael, Virginia San Fratello – Oakland, CA
Sukkah of the Signs

Kyle May and Scott Abrahams – New York, NY
LOG

Peter Sagar – United Kingdom
Time/Timeless

tinder, tinker – Sagle, ID
Shim Sukkah

Matthias Karch – Berlin, Germany
Repetition meets Difference | Stability meets Volatileness

Matter Practice – Brooklyn, NY
Single Thread

Volkan Alkanoglu – Los Angeles, CA
Star Cocoon

Bittertang – Brooklyn, NY
Bio Puff

SO-IL – Brooklyn, NY
In Tension

THEVERYMANY – Brooklyn, NY
P.YGROS.C / passive hygroscopic curls
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Via Bustler

Long Island-based firm Bates Masi + Architects has been honored with two AIA New York State Design Awards in the Residential Small Project Category. Competition for this award is open to Architects registered in the State of New York with projects located around the world. Awards will be presented on October 15 at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center at the annual AIA New York State Convention.
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“The Pryor Residence in Montauk, New York was awarded the AIA NY State 2010 Award of Merit. In addition, this project was featured in the July 11, 2010 issue of New York Magazine and noted for evoking childhood experiences of camping through the design. A seamless relationship between the house and nature occurs when the 36’ wide sliding doors completely pocket into the walls. Bronzed metal sunscreens slide to allow varying levels of sunlight for unique living experiences.

AIA NY State also honored the firm with its 2010 Citation of Design Award for Noyack Creek Residence located in Southampton, New York. Utilizing a limited material pallet and orienting the views out to the tidal estuary liberates the predetermined building envelope of this residence on a narrow lot. Noyack Creek was featured in the House and Home Section of the New York Times in 2009 as well as on our sister site Archinect. ”
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The architectural firm based on the East End of Long Island has been practicing for the past 46 years and has completed a range of projects including residential, institutional and commercial located around the world. Bustler
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Via Evolo

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eVolo is pleased to invite students, architects, engineers, and designers from around the globe to take part in the 2011 Skyscraper Competition.
The annual eVolo Skyscraper Competition is a forum for the discussion, development, and promotion of innovative concepts for vertical density. It examines the relationship between the skyscraper and the natural world, the skyscraper and the community, and the skyscraper and the city.
The exponential increase of the world’s population and its unprecedented shift from rural to urban areas has prompted hundreds of new developments without adequate urban planning and poor architectural design. The aim of this competition is to redefine what we understand as a skyscraper and initiate a new architectural discourse of economic, environmental, intellectual, and perceptual responsibility that could ultimately modify our cities and improve our way of life.
The use of new materials, technologies, aesthetics, and novel spatial organizations, along with studies on globalization, flexibility, adaptability, and the digital revolution are some of the multi-layered elements that the participants should take into consideration. This is also an investigation on the public and private space and the role of the individual and the collective in the creation of a dynamic and adaptive vertical community.
There are no restrictions in regards to site, program or size. The objective is to provide maximum freedom to the participants to engage the project without constraints in the most creative way. What is a skyscraper in the 21st century? What are the historical, contextual, social, urban, and environmental responsibilities of these mega-structures?
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Registration
Students, architects, engineers, and designers are invited to participate in the competition. We encourage you to have multidisciplinary teams.
• Participants must register by January 11, 2011.
• Early Registration: US $65 until November 16, 2010
• Late Registration: US $85 from November 17, 2010 to January 11, 2011
• One registration = One project.
• Participants may submit various projects, but must register each entry.
• There is no limit as to the number of participants per team. Individual entries are accepted.
• After your registration has been approved eVolo will send the registration number which will be necessary for submission boards.
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Schedule
• July 19, 2010 – Competition announcement, registration begins, acceptance of questions
• November 8, 2010 – Deadline for submitting questions
• November 16, 2010 – Early registration deadline
• November 30, 2010 – Answers to questions posted on website
• January 11, 2011 – Late registration deadline
• January 18, 2011 – Project submission deadline
• February 28, 2011 – Winners’ announcement
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Submission Requirements
This is a digital competition and no hard copies are necessary. Entrants must submit their proposal via email no later than January 18, 2011 (23:00 hours US Eastern Time) to the following email address: skyscraper2011@evolo.us

The project submission must contain the following files:
1. Two boards with the project information including plans, sections, and perspectives. Participants are encouraged to submit all the information they consider necessary to explain their proposal. These boards should be 24″ X 48″ in HORIZONTAL format. The resolution of the boards must be 150 dpi, RGB mode and saved as JPG files. The upper right corner of each board must contain the participation number. There should not be any marks or any other form of identification. The files must be named after the registration number followed by the board number. For example: 0101-1.jpg and 0101-2.jpg.
2. A DOC file containing the project statement (600 words max). This file must be named after the registration number followed by the word “statement”. For example: 0101-statement.doc.
3. A DOC file containing the entrants’ personal information, including name, profession, address, and email. This file must be named after the registration number followed by the word “info”. For example: 0101-info.doc.
4. All the files must be placed in a ZIP folder named after your registration number. For example: 0101.zip
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Jury
Benjamin Aranda [principal Aranda\Lasch]
Juan Azulay [principal Matter Management, professor at Southern California Institute of Architecture]
Mario Cipresso [principal Studio Shift, professor at University of Southern California]
Ted Givens [associate director RMJM]
Eric Goldemberg [principal Monad Studio, professor at University of Miami]
Jose Gonzalez [principal Softlab, professor at Pratt Institute]
John Hill [editor Archidose]
Mitchell Joachim [principal Terreform One, professor at New York University]
Andrew Liang [principal Studio 0.10., professor at University of Southern California]
Chris Lasch [principal Aranda\Lasch]
Neri Oxman [principal Materialecology, Presidential Fellow at MIT Media Lab]
Javier Quintana [principal Taller Basico de Arquitectura, Dean of IE School of Architecture]
Rezza Rahdian [Architect, Second Place 2009 Skyscraper Competition]
Michel Rojkind [principal Rojkind Arquitectos]
Michael Szivos [principal Softlab, professor at Pratt Institute]
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Regulations
1. This is an anonymous competition and the registration number is the only means of identification.
2. The official language of the competition is English.
3. The registration fee is non-refundable.
4. Contacting the Jury is prohibited.
5. Entrants will be disqualified if any of the competition rules are not considered.
6. Participation assumes acceptance of the regulations.
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Awards
• 1st place – US $5000
• 2nd place – US $2000
• 3rd place – US $1000
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Austin Smith Lord

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Project Details:
Size: 7,300m2
Budget: £15m
Client: Stoke-on-Trent City Council
Shortlist: Wilkinson Eyre, John McAslan + Partners, Grimshaw, BDP, Zaha Hadid, Austin-Smith: Lord
Winner: Grimshaw Architects
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An Austin Smith Lord headed team were recently chosen from over 43 entrants to take part in a limited invitation design competition with 5 other teams from international opposition for Stoke on Trent City Bus Station.
Selected Architectural practices included Zaha Hadid, Grimshaws, Wilkinson Eyre, John McAslan and BDP with Engineering support from Arup, Aecom, Mott Macdonald, and Max Fordham.

The Austin Smith Lord team, consisting of JMP Transport Engineers, Curtins Structural Engineers and Hilson Moran on Environmental and M&E were supported in the provision of costs by Gleeds and Project Management input from RLB ,worked closely in the 4 week design period to develop an exciting and innovative scheme which found favor with both the public and their peers.
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The team took an early decision to re‐analyse the earlier feasibility work carried out on the site in order to see if it was possible to meet the operational capacity requirements of the brief without using the Drive in Reverse out layouts contained therein as it was felt that the risk of an accident in a drive through solution would be fundamentally lower given the nature of the site.

Working with local transport engineers and a panel of national advisors the team developed a strategy building on the layout being installed at Wolverhampton, which we knew worked having driven it in 2 days of live trials at the NEC, with a 14 bay dive through facility both meeting and exceeding the requirements set out in the brief with an additional strategy for expansion to add another 30% capacity should it be required in the future.

In addition to the innovative operational form (the Austin Smith Lord team were the only team to suggest an alternative non reversing layout) the team proposed a thin concrete curved shell like canopy echoing the potteries history of the City with manufacturers such as Spode and Wedgewood at the heart of the world Chinaware Industry. The station enclosure provides shelter from rain and snow while meeting sustainable aspirations through use of natural ventilation, rainwater‐harvesting, and air‐source
heat pumps.

The team worked closely with Gleeds to ensue the cost plan was robust and under the 15 million pound budget and to give the client confidence in the figures we utilised tender returns for sub contract packages on another local similar scheme. Following the formal submission the team were delighted to see we topped both the Council’s own public vote and the Architects’ Journal peer vote when the schemes were anonymously placed on websites for an X factor style vote on the preferred solution. Project Director and Transport Cornerstone Richard Cronin said:
“It was good to get the recognition of the public and our peers, however we do take this kind of thing in the spirit in which it was intended. It was a welcome diversion to come in and see how we were doing whilst we waited for the interview and it gave us a lift knowing we were obviously doing something right.”

Unfortunately the practice were successful in the final selection with Grimshaw Architects being appointed by the Council and the Developer for the adjacent East West Centre who are partially funding the scheme. However, upbeat Richard Cronin commented,
“ It was a pleasure to take part in such a challenging and interesting exercise and to see how the other teams approached the problems posed by the site both in terms of its operational layout and its historical mining use. We knew that looking at a drive through solution was a riskier option but were genuinely feel it was the right solution for that site, utilizing the ring road and ensuring separation of the passengers’ from the buses was key to our approach and we pride ourselves on our ability to take another look at the problem to try and see if there is a better way of doing it, That’s what we as Austin Smith Lord bring to clients in the sector, it’s about a full understanding of the operational issues and ability to analyse the patterns of use to deliver the safest and best architecture at the right price”.
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Via Bernard Tschumi Architects

Bernard Tschumi Architects has won an international invited competition to design a new center for the performing arts at Institut Le Rosey, the renowned boarding school in Switzerland. The new building will be named Carnal Hall after the school’s founder, Paul Carnal.
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“Le Rosey is located on the shores of Lake Geneva, near Rolle. Among the most prestigious educational institutions in Europe, the school is alma mater to diplomats, business leaders, and royalty. The existing campus has a cohesive, traditional architecture marked by mansard roofs and a wedge-shaped campus plan that opens onto the site, defining an open-ended court. The design began with the question of how to expand the campus with a contemporary building, fostering a dialogue between tradition and modernity, while updating the arts and performance facilities for a new generation of students.

The winning scheme proposes a low, stainless-steel dome that defines the site and spatially organizes the disparate parts of the program: an 800-seat concert hall, a black box theater, conference rooms, a learning center joined to a library, a teaching center, practice rooms for music and the arts, and several relaxation spaces featuring a restaurant, a cafe, a student lounge, and other amenities. A series of side openings articulates the periphery of the dome, and a terrace is cut into the center near the apex, offering views of Lake Geneva. The main interior space is the concert hall, with programmatic zones around its periphery that are articulated into an architectural promenade. From the campus, the keystone-shaped terminus of the quadrangle forms a ceremonial entrance to the project and the slope of the dome echoes the undulating landscape near Rolle. The reflective steel will provide a distinctive identity and a landmark for the school and the region.

The building’s compact shape minimizes its external surface area, acting as a thermal shield. This provision reduces energy consumption and shelters the large interior spaces under the dome with a minimum of material. The reflective polished steel offers additional energy savings over traditional cladding materials and shelters the glazed areas from sun and inclement weather.”  Bernard Tschumi Architects
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Via Bustler

Three Round 2 Finalists have been announced for The Hague’s new dance and music center on the Spuiplein: RAU, Neutelings Riedijk Architecten / Kirkegaard Associates, and Zaha Hadid Architects.

The new building on the Spui Square will become the hot spot in The Hague for dance, opera, musicals, family shows, theater, concerts, classical music and jazz.

Following is the proposal submitted by London-based Zaha Hadid Architects:

Check the images from the finalist proposal by Amsterdam-based practice RAU here
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Project Details:
Y.TOHME/ARCHITECTS & associates
www.yousseftohme.com

BLC BANK-LANDMARK COMPETITION
Design Development Phase, 2010
Location: Lebanon, Mathaf
Project Total Area: 17.000sqm
Type: BLC BANK HEADQUARTERS, Institutional
Architects in Charge: Y.TOHME/ARCHITECTS &associates
Architect: Youssef Tohme
Project Architect: Anastasia Elrouss
Collaborate Architects: Anthony Abou Rejaily, Muhammad Mahdi, and Vart Bisanz.
Consultant Architects: Christophe Hurgon
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“WHAT IS THE DEFINITION OF A BANK IN LEBANON? WHAT SHOULD IT REPRESENT? WHAT IS ITS URBAN IMPACT? THIS PROJECT IS SITUATED IN A SUBURBAN ZONE WITHIN A SERIES OF VEHICULAR ARTERIES SIDED WITH BUILT STRUCTURES ON DIFFERENT SCALES.THIS ZONE CAN BECOME A MAIN ARTERY ACQUIRING DIFFERENT INSTITUTIONS, BANKS IN PARTICULAR.WE WANTED TO DEMARCATE THIS TERRITORY BY A TOWER EMBRACING A DUNGEON FORM,RESISTANT AND LUMINOUS.THE TOWER WEARS A DRESS REMINDING US OF THE SKELETAL STRUCTURE OF MEDIEVAL WARRIORS,SOLID AND SHINING.THIS TOWER IS COMPOSED OF MOSAIC GLAZED SKIN REFLECTING THE LIFE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD AROUND IT AND THE PUBLIC SPACES ANIMATED WITHIN THE BUILDING SHOWING THE INTERNAL EXCHANGE IN THE BANK.”
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“A MONUMENTAL GARDEN INTRODUCES US TO THE TOWER ENTRANCE AND EXTENDS TOWARDS THE INTERIOR OF THE VOID WHICH IS ORGANIZING AND REINFORCING THE BANK’S SOCIAL LIFE.THIS GARDEN DEVELOPS ON SEVERAL FLOORS VENTILATING THE SPACES AROUND IT AND OFFERING RELAXATION INSTANCES FOR THE EMPLOYEES.MULTIPLE PUBLIC PLACES AND OFFICES OVERLOOK ON SCATTERED GARDENS.”
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“THE ORGANIZATION AROUND THE VOID OFFERS ALL THE OFFICES A DOUBLE FAÇADE.THIS FAVORS A NATURAL VENTILATION FOR ALL THE SPACES SITUATED ON THE SOUTHERN FAÇADE.FINALLY THE PUBLIC FUNCTIONS SUCH AS THE CAFETERIA,THE RESTAURANTS,THE LOUNGES,THE GYM,THE DAYCARE AND THE LIBRARY ARE LOCATED IN A BUFFER ZONE IN MIDDLE OF THE TOWER UNIFYING ALL THE BANK’S HIERARCHIES .WE FAVOR A TOWER OFFERING AN EXTERNAL FLAMBOYANT IMAGE ALONG WITH A WARM AND SIMPLE INTERNAL SPATIAL ORGANIZATION HIGHLIGHTING THE IMPORTANCE OF THE VOID WHICH BECOMES THE HEART OF THE BANK.”
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Via Bustler

Cambridge, MA-based firm Peter Rose + Partners announce the opening of the Housing Tower at the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health in western Massachusetts.
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Architecture firm Peter Rose + Partners has completed the Kripalu Annex, the first step in the firm’s master plan to reshape the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health. The project, which reflects Rose’s career-long commitment to ecologically innovative design, has recently been declared a winner of the prestigious AIA National Housing Award in the category of Specialized Housing; just one day later, I.D.’s 2010 Annual Design Review awarded Kripalu an Honorable Mention in the Environments category.

Tucked into 300 acres of dense forest in the Berkshire Mountains, Kripalu (kri-PAH-loo) is the largest and most established yoga retreat in North America. For over 30 years, Kripalu has been teaching skills for optimal living through experiential education for mind, body, and spirit, and this holistic approach was the starting point for the innovative plan that secured Peter Rose the Kripalu commission in 2004.
According to Rose, “Kripalu’s housing needs are modest and straightforward, but the architecture of the Annex, like yoga itself, is full of subtlety and layers of complexity that gently improve the structure’s performance. Light, air, using minimal means to create a calm, healing environment—it’s all about fulfilling these almost intangible requirements.”

The 80-room Housing Tower is attached to Kripalu’s existing facility through a glazed passage with a planted roof and sunny southern exposure, allowing guests to pass from the older structure to the new one with ease—in their stocking feet if they choose. Under a canopy on the western façade, the primary entrance leads to a modest lobby and a 2,400-square-foot Yoga space glazed on two sides, surrounded by dense foliage, and filled with light.

In plan, the building is organized along a tapering axis that both funnels breezes and captures landscape views. Its concrete structure and cores are occasionally revealed beside the slatted cypress cladding. The cladding will weather to a natural grey, allowing the Housing Tower, otherwise visible from across the lake, to almost disappear with the wooded landscape. Cypress sun screens slide in front of each guest room window. Moving the screens by hand to temper heat gain, visitors can see the shadows change, and feel the temperature of the wood, and allow cypress-scented breezes to enter the room. Natural ventilation, hydronic radiant heating and cooling, and an extremely compact building design (the volume is 30% smaller than typical construction), provided for an energy savings of nearly half when compared to the conventional construction.

Using simple, robust materials integrated into a streamlined design, the building does its work with efficiency and a quiet, lasting beauty, then slips out of the way to give a cherished landscape center stage.

A similar ethic imbues the entire Peter Rose + Partners’ Kripalu master plan. Proposed changes include renovations to existing campus buildings, landscape improvements, and new buildings to increase capacity, and together create a serene, ecologically sensitive environment and a model of environmental responsibility.

Source: BUSTLER
Photos: Matthew Snyder
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Via The Architecture Foundation

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The Architecture Foundation, on behalf of the London Borough of Newham and Design for London, is pleased to announce the launch of an open international competition to design a permanent group of kiosks in Meridian Square, Stratford, London, for use before, during and after the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Situated at the front of Stratford Regional Station and hosting a variety of uses, the kiosks will serve as key venues for information, orientation and services within the rapidly changing town centre.

Sponsored by Design for London, the competition is being organised by The Architecture Foundation, on behalf of client the London Borough of Newham.

Since 2009 the local authority, the London Borough of Newham (LBN) has embarked on an ambitious programme of public realm works throughout the centre of Stratford with the aim of improving the quality of the town centre for those that live, work, and shop in the area, whilst also preparing to welcome the millions of visitors who will come to the area during 2012. Studio Egret West, working for LBN, has developed a master plan for the area with new public realm designs, consolidated traffic, de-cluttered spaces and major architectural interventions.

The design competition is open, but not limited to: architects, designers, artists, product designers, and related disciplines. The Architecture Foundation encourages design teams to suggest flexible and innovative yet realisable designs for this permanent structure.

The competition will be open to entries from 13 July until 3 September 2010 via the AF website.

A shortlist of design teams will be announced in June, and awarded £1,500 each to develop their designs to RIBA stage D. A selection of entries will be on public display at Stratford Old Town Hall during the London Design Festival 2010 (18-26 September), where the public will be invited to comment on the designs. The winning team appointed to supervise the project through to RIBA stage L will be announced in October 2010.

Download the brief and appendix documents here.

To register, please complete pay the registration fee of £30 using the payment button here, and download the registration form here.
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