Floating Baths, designed by Ondrej Lipensky and Andrea Kubna, on the Vltava River in Prague is conceived as a closed rounded space, floating on the water surface. Since the waterfront of the river is a problematic issue here in the city, the architects thought about a function that would get local people into the center again. The floating object is accessible by boat and is not connected to the banks of the river. It is an island and in close distance to Strelecky and Slovansky Island, many small harbors with boats and treadles, but also streets overloaded with cars, is a place to take a rest during the busy day for meeting friends. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Piran Days of Architecture (PDA) is an international architectural conference with one of the oldest traditions in the world. First presented in 1983 it is held every year at the end of November in the charming, medieval Slovene town Piran. The aim of the conference is to asses current trends in architecture and to present the most progressive and innovative ideas of architectural and spatial production. The conference is traditionally accompanied by several architectural exhibitions. The most important is the international architectural exhibition of recent works by Central European architects which compete for the distinguished international Piranesi Award, which went to Marte.Marte Architekten this year. More images and information on the winners after the break.
The Asia Pacific winners of the Holcim Awards for sustainable construction were recently announced in Singapore. The Holcim Awards is an international competition that recognizes innovative projects and future-oriented concepts on regional and global levels. The competition is designed to encourage architects, planners, engineers and project owners to go beyond conventional notions of sustainable construction in their work and to harmonize ecological, social and economic concerns. Projects and concepts in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, civil engineering, mechanical engineering and related fields are eligible for entry in the competition. More images and information on the winning competition proposals after the break.
AWP, a Paris-based architecture firm, was named in July the general contractor for the landscaping of the public spaces and follies situated at the foot of the Grande Arche. The site, located near the future Arena 92 in the Jardins de l’Arche neighborhood, serves as a space for genuine interchange between La Défense and Seine-Arche. The urbanists at AWP are equally responsible for a guide plan for Defacto that will enhance the urban space of La Défense’s business district. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Above is a video for the Research Centre of the University of Jussieu, the competition winning design by BIG and OFF architects. The new multidisciplinary research centre, Paris PARC, located between Jean Nouvel’s Institut du Monde Arabe and the open green park of the Jussieu Campus will become a significant addition to the campus, strengthening the international appeal and openness of the leading French University for Science and Medicine.
The building of the new metro in San Sebastian Donastia will connect the people and the different areas of the city in a new way. It will set a new standard for the future of the town and its way forward. It will offer donastiarras and visitors a new means of public transpiration, and be a part of the future pulse of San Sebastian Donastia. The entrance design by Snøhetta is based on a continuous movement from underground level to over ground, and vice versa. The design element goes from being a ceiling structure underground to create a roof structure over the stairs and up over ground. The structure describes the transition between the two states and connects the city life with the metro world. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Along with Moszkva square, Móricz Zsigmond circus is a very busy public transportation junction, located in south Buda. With a round art relic in its middle – the Gomba (meaning mushroom because of its form) is a popular public space for people to meet, with several trams and buses intersecting, along with the Budapest Metro – subway line 4, presently under construction. The concept by Hetedik Műterem Ltd. was to treat the art relic of József Schall (from 1942) with proper respect but determined courage. At the same time, they redefined the currently closed space structure, to put forward and intensify the presence of the urban public space. More images and architects’ description after the break.
In consonance with the spirit of this competition, Triple O Studio’s design concept, titled, ‘A Learning Curve’, was to respond with a multi-pronged approach that assimilates, on the one hand, the local ethos of the city; and on the other, answers the design program with a solution that is literally a learning curve. Their design is a building that effectively portrays the face of a vibrant country and provides education on an aspect of modern life – disaster prevention – that many prone countries have still not addressed. More images and architects’ description after the break.
The urban concept strategy by Maxthreads Architectural Design for the NW Beijing technology and research center pursues the maximization of open public space on the ground level of the site, including a canal walk area, open spaces and car park area. The mass of the new building is therefore raised into the first floor level. This open space is important to activate the site and the new research center. It is also important as an appropriate take off point or point of termination) for the overall site area sustainable mechanics. They are proposing a generous, diagonal underpass that emerges from the site environment and grand connective gesture. More images and project description after the break.
The present proposal for the Accra Twin Towers by Frederico Valsassina Arquitectos occupies a central position in relation to the urban design of the city of Accra. It has a place in a regular small sized plot, located on Liberia Road, near the British Council. The scale of the urban mesh on which it is inserted stands from the density of the suburban construction that surrounds this central area of the city which underlines a privileged treatment of the spaces. In this sense, as a major action, with an ambitious program, it was understood that the planned object should take advantage of all these constraints in order to be able to assume an emblematic role in the urban and architectonic context of the city. More images and architects’ description after the break.
An exhibition taking place in The Sacré Coeur cathedral of Casablanca from November 4 – November 26, Learning from Casablanca is a representation of the result of an architectural comparative research in the field of housing and urbanism. In the context of the 5th African Perspective Conference, AAMatters in collaboration with Casamemoire has initiated this exposition with hopes that looking again at Casablanca might open new perspectives to the complex problems of modernist neighborhoods being demolished to make way for new development projects. More information on the event after the break.
Located on the Wele-Nzas, the new capital city will be built in order to fulfill the President’s dream. The new capital city will be the attraction for an estimated 160.000 inhabitants and will extend for 8.150 Hectares. The concept is characterized by modernity and respect by the country’s cultural roots, optimizing its identity and the richness of the ecosystem where it belongs. Sustainability is also a privileged feature in every strand. The concept, by IDF-Ideias do Futuro, has its origin in the fusion between the river and the orthogonal matrix represented by the road net, in progress. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Located on the floodplain of Rio Tamanduateí, one of the most important rivers of the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil, Park D. Pedro II is a symbolic public space, with important historic buildings with its connection between the center of town (the historical hill) and the east zone. The transformation by Una Architects, H+F Architects, Metrópole Architects and Lume of the Park D. Pedro II, beyond its internal limits, has as premise of an urban redevelopment that could radiate qualities to the surrounding neighborhoods. Briefly, the plan provides three axes of intervention. More images and architects’ description after the break.
After a fire destroyed the foyer of the gymnasium in Oberglatt, Switzerland, the city council asked for a new extension to the remaining parts of the building. The proposal by kit architects, which took the second prize in the competition, seamlessly connects to the existing structure, through program, space and form. Old and new dissolve into one, giving the building from the 70ties a distinct new identity. More images and architects’ description after the break.
The new extension designed by 1+1=1 Claudio Silvestrin Giuliana Salmaso architects and planners for laRinascente in Piazza della Repubblica, Florence, is conceived as a symbol of strength through the square, yet of lightness, in the detail of the Archangel’s wing in Filippo Lippi’s painting of the Annunciation. Visually, the new extension is floating above Palazzo del Trianon while preserving its authentic architectural structure. More images and project description after the break.
Designed in an undeveloped plot in Gdynia, Poland, the housing concept by Mikolai Adamus and Igor Brozyna is based on the idea of tissue as group of elements cooperating with each other. The area is divided into plots of shapes that occur in the neighborhood. Instead of being placed on separate parcels, houses are grouped into settlements, allowing to achieve a diverse public park between. More images and project description after the break.
Giannikis SHOP won the honorary mention in the national architecture design competition for the Thessaloniki Water Transport Piers in Greece. Four Piers (Eleutheria Square, Megaro, Aretsou, Perea) are designed so that each Pier is composed of three elements: the floor, the pavilions and the inflated pneumatic structure. The main goals for this competition proposal were functionality, economy and innovation. More images and project description after the break.
Located at the heart of the city of London, the Barbican will be featuring the upcoming screening of Mur Murs (1981) and Get Out of the Car (2010) as part of their Architecture on Film season on November 29th at 7pm. More information on the films after the break.
