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Arthouse Café in Hangzhou, China

Anabel — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:38:22 +0000

Situado en Hangzhou, China, el Café Arthouse se encuentra en el 3er piso de una galería comercial. Movimiento y espacio interior aparecen en directa oposición dinámica y estática. El equipamiento interior se define como estático, en contraste con el cuerpo humano en movimiento. En base a este concepto de espacialidad, la dinámica del cuerpo humano a través de estos espacios genera un concepto no determinado en el que los límites espaciales y corporales están en constante confusión. Con un uso mínimo de materiales tales como madera, mármol, vidrio y Corian, el local se construye con componentes básicos que crean un nuevo paisaje. El objetivo es estimular la sensación única y compleja de cada visitante, inspirado en la geometría y utilizando triángulos como modelo para rodear toda la zona de estar.

Arthouse Café in Hangzhou, China

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Situated in Hangzhou, China, within a three-storey gallery of 3000 sq. ft., Arthouse Café is on its 3rd floor. As the client suggested that this project is free of corporate branding, designing the café’s identity was completely up to the designer in working out the best company image. Serving coffee in the daytime and alcohol at night, Arthouse Café provides visitors with a new dynamic ambience within the exhibition building.

Movement and interior space usually appear in direct opposition, as dynamic and static, whereas interior setting is in general considered to be static in contrast to the moving human body. Base on this concept of spatiality, a dynamic form was created for the static interior space. Movement of the human body through these dynamic space will then generate a non-determined concept of space where spatial and bodily boundaries are constantly blurring.

With minimal use of materials such as timber, marble, glass and Corian, this area is constructed with basic components for building a new landscape. It aims to stimulate each visitor’s unique and complicated sensation. Inspired by geometry and especially using triangles as blueprint, the “moving triangle” concept is manifested by placing triangles in three-dimensional form to surround the whole sitting area. Slight changes of simple lines construct the character of the cafe which is unique and could bring every individual into a new geometric context.

By introducing a simple triangular form in varies dimensions creates a mass that tends to dematerialise through movement. This design attempts to break the boundary between traditionally divided units such as the wall, floor and ceiling, hence, enables communication between the interior space and users.

Arthouse Café in Hangzhou, China

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Fuente: Arthouse Café in Hangzhou, China

“Tree hut” in Paris

Anabel — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 14:45:34 +0000

Esta instalación se ha realizado para el dormitorio de un niño en un loft parisino. Un árbol crece en torno a una escalera, que conduce a una cama colgante. Ramas y hojas crecen en la pared buscando protección y seguridad, extendiéndose en el techo. Una rama inferior crea un escritorio debajo de la escalera.

“Tree hut” in Paris

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This installation has been realised for a kid’s bedroom in a Parisian loft.
A tree grows around a staircase, leading to a hanging bed.
Branches and leaves grow up on the wall procuring protection and security and extending themselves on the ceiling.
A lower branch creates a desk under the stairs.

Fuente: “Tree hut” in Paris

Nam June Paik Library in Yong-In, Korea

Anabel — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 16:28:00 +0000

La Nam June Paik Library es una nueva biblioteca pública de arte en Yong-In, Corea. Inspirado en los procesos artísticos de Nam June Paik, el objetivo del proyecto era diseñar un dispositivo espacial de múltiples funciones, que redefina la relación entre los usuarios y la información. Mientras que la biblioteca convencional se caracteriza por la transmisión unidireccional y pasiva de información, con contenidos estáticos, centralizados y predefinidos, la Nam June Paik Library tiene como objetivo promover el acceso no lineal y aleatorio a la información, para estimular la producción de información, la expresión espontánea y la yuxtaposición de ideas.

Nam June Paik Library in Yong-In, Korea

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The Nam June Paik Library is a new public art library in Nam June Paik Art Center in Yong-In, Korea, open to general public on April 15th, 2011. The library was designed by a U.S. based design and research collaborative N H D M / Nahyun Hwang + David Eugin Moon. The library collects, preserves, and provides access to historical and contemporary material related to Nam June Paik and his art. It offers to scholars a space for professional research, and to the local community an open forum for cultural engagement. The library houses and circulates the Center’s Nam June Paik Archives Collection, Nam June Paik Video Archives, and a rare Fluxus Footages Collection, as well as the user generated materials. The design and construction of the library was made possible by City of YongIn and Gyeoggi Province Government’s Small Library Fund.

Inspired by Nam June Paik’s artistic processes, the goal of the project was to design a multi-functional spatial device, which redefines the relationship between library users and information. While the conventional library is characterized by the one directional transmission of information, where the static, centralized, and predefined content is passively received by the readers, the Nam June Paik Library aims to promote non-linear and random access to information, to stimulate production of information beyond consumption and advocates spontaneous expression and juxtaposition of ideas.

The Library Machine located in the center of the library deploys the following 6 architectural and programmatic devices:

1. Scattering
The juxtaposition of the dispersed information produces complexity that contrasts the simple geometric initial form.

2. Non-Textual Content / Off-Site
Objects related to Paik’s work are scattered, plugged, and mapped throughout the surface of the machine. Reprogrammable dynamic media can communicate Paik’s previous works, as well as information on artistic and other happenings from the off-site locations of interest.

3. Physical Engagement
Additional storage areas and unique shelving in the long drawers are incorporated to help the future expansion of the collection, while inducing curiosity, interactivity, and playful engagement.

4. Production Lab
Inside the machine is reading, installation, video laboratories, and a space also for debates and group workshops.

5. “Representation Cells”
Content is also generated by users who can contribute to the information exchange. Small spaces or vitrines are made available for public display.

6. Library “Machinettes,” The Propagation Aides
Parts of the machine can detach as independent modules and can freely travel to other rooms or even outdoors to perform communicative functions, such as video projections or sound performances.

The design attempts to make the intangible physical and to turn a personal experience to a collective and interactive one. Through the Library, the contents become dynamic, and the consumer of information becomes the producer. The collective generation and appreciation of information makes the library experience multi-directional and reciprocal.

Fuente: Nam June Paik Library in Yong-In, Korea

Aesop I.T Installation, Hong Kong

Anabel — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 18:11:36 +0000

Cheungvogl architects, inspirados en una imagen en blanco y negro de cientos de linternas flotantes, han imbuido esta instalación en la tienda insigna I.T .HYSAN ONE de Hong Kong de una delicada luminosidad. Ochocientas cajas de resina se disponen encima de barras de acero de diferentes longitudes, creando la sensación de que cada caja asciende a su propio ritmo, como si se doblaran hacia arriba por medio de hilos invisibles.

Aesop I.T Installation, Hong Kong

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Aesop has created an installation in Hong Kong’s I.T HYSAN ONE flagship store that builds on the reputation for architecturally remarkable retail spaces.

The installation, which will be open from 21 November to 4 December, will also operate as a counter.

Cheungvogl architects, inspired by a black and white image of hundreds of floating lanterns, have imbued the I.T HYSAN ONE exhibition space with a similar delicate luminosity. Eight hundred resin boxes are arranged atop steel rods of varying lengths, creating the sense that each box is ascending at its own pace, as if being drawn upward by an invisible thread. Some boxes hold Aesop formulations while others are designed to reward visitors’ curiosity through unexpected sound, scent and touch.

At the end of its two-week tenure the Aesop installation will be deconstructed and re-formed as a permanent counter on the first floor of I.T HYSAN ONE.

Thoughts, Cheungvogl:
With technology comes speed and instantaneity, everything happens in a blink.
Press and sent. Virtually stored and safely forgotten. Gone.
Lifetime is precious because it is limited. Through time its ephemeral presence turns into fading past. 24 hours a day, 365 days a year are reduced to small pieces of memories – the subjective collage of life.
This installation aims to rediscover precious moments of the past.
There sits the small bottle of complimentary shampoo on top of the bathroom shelf, once brought back home from a hotel stay. One avoided using it, unconsciously trying to hold on to a memory.
Memory often materializes in small things. Memories are often maintained by the less obvious senses.
If we only move slowly enough, we can begin to ‘Think sound’, ‘Hear scent’, ‘Speak silence’.
How many other guests in that hotel in that one night might have brought home a complimentary bottle of shampoo, holding on to a memory just by trying not to use it too fast?
If we only could find a way to store the fragments of our lives, other than on the top of our bathroom shelves or at the back of our closets…
Imagine how visible or invisible ghostly things could be captured as memories;
Imagine how these memories could be shared and understood by others;
Imagine how memories could be re-lived.
Memory. Slices of time. Small enough to fit into a tiny little box.

Fuente: Aesop I.T Installation, Hong Kong

Tendinha dos Clérigos Bar in Oporto, Portugal

Anabel — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 19:58:14 +0000

La configuración y la geometría de este bar en Oporto, la funcionalidad y los límites de la estructura construida que se desarrolla en dos plantas, determinaron la organización de los espacios y la imagen del establecimiento.

Tendinha dos Clérigos Bar in Oporto, Portugal

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The space and geometric configuration of the space, the intended functionality and the limits of the constructed structure that is developed in two floors had determined the organization of some spaces and image of the establishment.

Thus, we understand to implant the sanitary installations of the public, the warehouse and respective dressings room M/F of the staff in the floor -1. In floor 0, the destined spaces to the public are developed fluidly from the vestibule that separates the interior spaces of the exterior. The “bengaleiro” is next to the entrance but with independent access once the first bar was dislocated more for the interior of the establishment. To follow implanted a volume (sanitary installation of support the usuaries of reduced mobility) that it marks the access to the stairses of connection to the floor -1. Finally we conclude the fund of the space with a support bar that also functions as closing of the space of the dance track.

The image of the bar is born of the “treatment” of the walls and roofs with different heights harmonized for the red color and “cuts” in its materials for the introduction of artificial light. It was intended to give differentiated dimension to the roofs in order to increase the legal least height and air volume that is dependant of the maintenance of part of the existing flagstone for structural reasons.

Fuente: Tendinha dos Clérigos Bar in Oporto, Portugal

Buenos Aires Underground

Caro — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 14:06:45 +0000

Buenos Aires es una ciudad culturalmente diversa, con una población de aproximadamente doce millones de personas. La empresa Diseño Shakespear ha intervenido en muchas facetas de la cultura visual de la ciudad y en su infraestructura de la información.

Buenos Aires Underground

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Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, is a culturally diverse city with a population of approximately twelve million people. The firm Diseño Shakespear has made a lasting impression on many facets of the city’s visual culture and information infrastructure.

Buenos Aires Underground (Subte) A successful wayfinding system relies on a combination of on-site research and what Ronald refers to as “verified intuition.” Two fundamental criteria govern any system: 1) the signs must be easy to find and their locations predictable, and 2) the signs must be easy to understand. Ronald believes that designers have an obligation “to listen to people, to decipher their codes, to discover their yearnings, and to give them an answer.” Research and evaluation of the existing system stimulated the development of a rational and functional graphic language that clearly communicates, providing travellers with the sense and assurance that they will reach their destinations without a problem. In addition, the design solution would require adaptation to 86 subway stations, each with unique physical conditions.

An adaptable but consistent program governs Subte, and a well-considered hierarchy of information is delivered using a bold, clear, and concise visual syntax. An early task was to design a new map. Prior renditions, relying on actual interpretations of topology, were visually dense and difficult to interpret (Fig. 26). Influenced by the map of the London Underground designed in 1933 by Henry C. Beck, and the New York Subway system map designed by Massimo Vignelli, the Subte map was reduced to a comprehensible network of linear elements and typographic labels positioned horizontally, vertically, and at 45 degree angles. The simplified, diagrammatic structure provides a legible gestalt for riders en route (Fig. 27). The re-designed map diagrams the cityscape into a translatable model based upon simple geometry. City streets form a secondary lattice beneath the prominant subway lines to orient riders to their position in the city.

Ronald Shakespear, founder and principal of this multi-disciplinary firm describes his design mission as “making the city legible.” A dramatic example of this quest is the Buenos Aires subway system, a mega-wayfinding project designed by Ronald Shakespear and his sons, Lorenzo and Juan. The system inherited the name “Subte” (from subterráneo) the colloquial term for subway used by residents of the city. This memorable term functions as a brand along side the Tube in London, the Metro in Paris and Washington D.C., and the Subway in New York.

The Buenos Aires subway system originated in 1913 with the introduction of a first station and grew rapidly in later years to keep pace with a burgeoning population. Before the design transformation by Diseño Shakespear, the “system” constituted nothing more than a chaotic collection of vernacular elements. (Fig. 24). In separater stages between 1995 and 2007, Diseño Shakespear pursued separate stages of the subway’s branding and wayfinding transformation for the existing five lines. The team relied on their established design methodology: “research, analysis, synthesis, drafts, final project, implementation.” Sketches and graphic notations served to visualize and synthesize ideas and concept.

A grid system accommodates a variety of sign types, from interior station signage to exterior directional signage (Fig. 28). As shown in figure 29, each of the six subway lines (A–F) is assigned a color from a vivid palette of primary and secondary hues. The contrast between colors brands each of the lines, making it easy for riders to pinpoint where they are and how to plan their route. The color scheme corresponds to the Subte map. Station signage consists of 41 signs in a typical station configuration. Station identification bands run parallel to the tracks at a consistent height of 2.2 meters from the platform floor. This creates a 220 meter, “perpetual belt,” through the interiors of the stations. The station name repeats every 2.5 meters, helping riders to readily identify their stops from within the trains (Fig. 30). Ronald Shakespear attests that signs are “active expressions of identity that go beyond just giving directions and solving basic circulation and communication problems.” They must integrate into the surrounding environment and contribute to a sense of place.

Observations revealed critical psychological concerns; for example, the express need for riders to leave the underground environment as soon as possible. As Ronald puts it, “The exit sign is the most important symbol to people on the subway: How do you escape? It is unnatural to be underground in the city.”

Source > Typographic Design, Rob Carter (Wyler,Usa)

Fuente: Buenos Aires Underground

Urban Future at Design Miami 2011

Anabel — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 16:59:13 +0000

BIG + Kollision + Schmidhuber & Partner team presentaron su visión sobre el futuro de la movilidad en la vida urbana para la automotriz Audi en el Design Miami 2011. La imagen de la muestra es la de una futura ciudad pavimentada con una superficie digital que libera las calles de las fronteras existentes y permite una nueva flexibilidad de uso público. El espacio de 190 m2 contiene una instalación de LED en tres dimensiones que ofrece una visión de la futura ciudad donde se comparte el espacio público entre peatones y vehículos sin conductores. Toda la superficie se funde en un flujo continuo de información que permita en tiempo real la interacción entre los vehículos y su entorno. Montadas sobre la instalación del Design Miami, cámaras 3D siguen el movimiento de los transeúntes y procesan los datos en una obra de arte generativa que se retroalimenta en los paneles LED.

Urban Future at Design Miami 2011

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BIG + Kollision + Schmidhuber & Partner team up to bring BIG’s vision of future urban mobility to life for AUDI at Design Miami/ 2011, running from November 30th through December 4th adjacent to Art Basel Miami Beach. BIG originally presented the concept as an entry for the 2010 AUDI Urban Future Award introducing a future city paved with a digital surface that liberates the streets from existing boundaries and allows for a new flexibility of public use.

The 190 m2 three-dimensional LED installation provides a glimpse of the future city where the public space is shared between pedestrians and driverless cars. The entire surface would be infused with a continuous flow of information allowing for real-time interaction between vehicles and their environment. Mounted above the Design Miami installation, 3D cameras track the movement of passers-by processing the data into a generative artwork that feeds back into the LED panels.

“Our pavilion for AUDI renders visible the invisible forces that flow through our city – the driverless car is relying on sophisticated sensory and computational technology that constantly observes and calculates the dynamic space that the living city constitutes. The result is an architecture of movement whose forms have not been predetermined by the architect but are constantly being recomposed by the people populating the pavilion.” Bjarke Ingels, Founder & Partner, BIG.

The installation sets the stage for Audi’s showcar, Audi A2 concept, which has its U.S debut at the design fair and is dedicated to future urban mobility, capable of communicating with its environment. The exhibition car continuously emits arrows showing its driving path, navigating real-time between visitors at the stand.

“We have created 190 m2 of future public space around the concept car, visualizing how pedestrians and cars interact digitally. Pedestrians are creating digital safe zones and the movement of the car is simulated, navigating between people. We believe that infusing the surface of the city with information technology will create a new kind of true shared space – a condition similar to a public square. In a single day, the function of the street may alternate multiple times between entirely pedestrian, vehicular, or even recreational functions. ” Andreas Klok Pedersen, Partner-in-Charge, BIG.

Urban Future at Design Miami 2011

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Fuente: Urban Future at Design Miami 2011

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

Anabel — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 21:24:09 +0000

La República de Guinea Ecuatorial se encuentra en la costa oeste de África Central. Incluye varias pequeñas islas en alta mar, una región insular y las islas de Annobón Bioko. Malabo es la capital y la segunda ciudad del país y se encuentra en la costa norte de la isla de Bioko. El edificio del Centro del Congreso SIPOPO se encuentra junto al océano, rodeado por el bosque, al lado del recientemente construido Meeting Hall. El bloque rectangular de dos pisos está envuelto en un metal semi-transparente como un escudo protector de la fuerte luz del sol. La textura de encaje de la malla otorga sombra al interior sin obstaculizar su transparencia. El edificio, con su elegante velo, se funde con el océano y la vegetación circundante, y a su vez refleja la belleza de los alrededores.[/intro]

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

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Republic of Equatorial Guinea is located in the west coast of Middle Africa, including several small offshore islands and an insular region containing Annobon and Bioko islands. Malabo is the capital and the second largest city of Equatorial Guinea, located on the northern coast of Bioko Island. The SIPOPO Congress Center building site is situated by the ocean and surrounded by the woods, next to the recently built Meeting Hall.

The rectangular two-storey block is nested in a semi-transparent metal envelop as a shield protecting from strong lights and create an implication of security, protecting the interiors from sharp sun beams yet benefiting the daylight at optimum.
The lacy texture of the mesh behaves like sun-break and grants a shady interior without hindering the accent of transparency. The building with its elegant veil visually merges to the ocean and the surrounding greenery in serenity, reflecting the beauty of the surroundings.

Encircled and harmonized with the green woods and the blue ocean, mirroring the nature on the building’s uninterrupted sheer glass walls, the gray-bronze mesh follows the color of the tree trunks and the existing Conference Hall materialized in solid travertine.
Through the placement of metal panels in variations at different levels and angles, the façade is perceived as an assortment of playful geometries glittering with day light, echoing not only the colors and tones but also the motions of the winds and waves.
The panels is to change in every direction with the orientation of the building and depending on its relation with the exterior and the course of sunlight; the semi-transparent perimeter “shield” of designed bronze mesh application that flows around the building, protects the inner glass walls to reduce the heat in order to improve building’s energy efficiency.
The glass wall systems allow for the maximum viewing area with no horizontal or vertical mullions to obstruct the vision towards the ocean. Especially the restaurant, directly facing the ocean, benefits the maximum view.
The refraction on the glass together with the glittering reflection of the moves of the mesh joins the mirror image of the surrounding nature. The three-dimensional effect of the mesh curtain gives the feeling of floating expression by the vast sea and the breeze gliding through the leaves.
The iconic building gains gestures of its own and presents the moves and processes of nature in its appearance using the language of contemporary architecture.
Incise patterns permit controlled daylight to diffuse into the building interior and at night, when lobbies and the restaurant are lighted, the oozing beams through the slits communicate with the spirits of the forest and ocean.
Entering the main lobby, which is double space atrium, the interiors grant a feeling of spaciousness, and create a wide circulation zone. The main conference hall is a rectangular space at the first floor, with a circular seating design. The hall is situated amid the structure and accessed through the connecting lobbies at three sides; as the balances of light and shadow, transparency of a communal space and confidentiality of affairs of state is carefully practiced in the physical existence of the project. Situated as a back row of the mail hall, VIP launches are designed at the ground floor. The restaurant, overlooking the bay, is also located at the first floor flanked by the foyer at two intersecting sides.
An understanding of contemporary architecture is proposed for the building which is supported by all means of technological infrastructure. Starting with the design of special walls, the acoustic concerns are supported by architecture, as well as the quality of technical equipment.
Natural materials like timber, natural stone and glass is preferred all through the construction. From carpets to natural stone flooring, each item is the choices of elaborate design. The three dimensional walls of each space is uniquely designed with reference to local sources, such as the bark of pine trees mimicked in timber and mirror at the restaurant, or the geometric motives of African tradition on the walls of the lobby. All lighting elements like chandeliers are tailor made; some representing precipitations in crystal driblets, colorful waves or a lively stream. Not only physically but also symbolically, the building is a sign of its land.
High technology and high security systems are applied in the building. All technical rooms, storage, service and maintaining facilities are solved at the basement (+0.00 level) floor.
The transparent connection bridge links the new building to the existing Hall repeating the same design manners in the texture of the natural environment. At the start of the corridor, the building as a source of pride for Africa, the Africa map made up of lights welcomes the leaders at the entrance and enriches the communicative nature of the Congress Center.

Aimed to develop as a diplomatic resort, the new Center will be the core of the presidential zone and host the exclusive meetings in harmony with the adjacent grove and the seaside. Align with its function as a meeting place for the presidents, the building is strong and symbolizes to be modern; it is simple but functional and finds its expression in elegance. The Center is in harmony with the environment and makes optimum use of natural resources such as daylight, the greenery, the ocean and the view.

The building is in accord with its “place” in terms of natural resources and cultural heritage, it is not an imported glass box model but a genuine African trace of our era.
Open to negotiations of African cultures, African leaders shall meet up at the Sipopo Congress Center which is a strong element of high representation. Like the powerful ancient silk cotton tree -Ceiba- of the Equatorial Guine flag, the Sipopo Congress Center will gather the delegates of nations under its roof for ‘Unity Peace and Justice’.

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

Siteplan

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

World map

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

Masterplan

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

Masterplan

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

Ground floor plan

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

First floor plan

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

Hall section

Sipopo Congress Center, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea

LAVA’s Digital Origami Emergency Shelter is a concept for an inhabited molecule. The design is based on a water‐molecule, referencing the Japanese Metabolist movement’s idea of prefabricated capsules as living space.

The base molecule can be shipped as a flat pack, cut out of local plywood, or dropped off by a helicopter. The interior can then be carved out of wood, cardboard, newspapers or other locally available materials.

Chris Bosse said: “the project plays with ideas of prefabrication and personalised inhabitation, as well as stacking of multiple units, while giving an opportunity for individual expression”.

Each unit contains sleeping space for two adults and one child as well as a little space for eating and reading. Battery or solar operated LED light brings the shelter to life, turning it into a lantern, a sign of hope.

For the exhibition LAVA created a scale model, made from CNC cut plywood sheets. In a real situation the flat pack would be folded into an origami molecule and filled with locally available material.

The Emergency Shelter exhibition featured shelters by local and international architects. The exhibition highlights the need for emergency shelters in disaster zones and the role of the design and construction industry in the aftermath of natural disasters.

Other Australian and international architects who designed shelters for the exhibition include Ateliers Jean Nouvel, PTW Architects, Tonkin Zulaikha Greer, Cox, Koichi Takada Architects, Sou Fujimoto and Terunobu Fujimori.

Japanese garden “Body LandSpace” in Orleans, France

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I have been invited to the 7th edition of ‘’Archilab 2006 Japon’’ as Japanese Young architect.
We planed Japanese garden with opposing thinking method like,
“French style” or “Japanese style”
“Feeling with the Eyes” or “Feeling with the Body”
“Movement” and “Aspect”

“French style” or “Japanese style”
The site of our design is two existing planted zones, located to the north and south of an area found within the compound of ArchiLab. The constraints related to the existing context were quite numerous. We could have designed a place, with the atmosphere of a French garden, by imposing an artificial geometry with disregard to the existing context. We chose, however, to think of a Japanese garden, which celebrates the changing of the seasons, and which could re-discover the identity of the existing site, consider it from a different perspective, and explore its full potential. On the beginning of the design processes, we cut the trees which lack life to make the vigorous fascination of new landscape.

“Watching with the eyes” or “Feeling with the body”
The existing site is considered as a stage, which brings trees and flowers forward into view. Each planted element is isolated and acts like a discrete object. The ground has been covered with white sand and the vertical surfaces have been covered with bamboo trees, creating a unified landscape within the surrounded area. This landscape is designed to invoke multiple sensations. From a visual appreciation of the planted object, we are moved into feeling the Space with our entire body = Body LandSpace.

“Movement” and “Aspect”
Groups of mirrors have been placed in the white sand in a checkerboard pattern. The movements of the visitors transform the aspect of the mirrors, creating an interactive relationship. Seen from far away, the mirrors resemble ” solid objects”, like the large rocks often found within a Japanese garden, because of its form. From mid-distance, they look like one continuous ”surfaces” which are floating on the ground, because of checker pattern and shadows under the mirrors. Up close, they become pixel-like, mapping different images of the existing site because of different angles of each mirrors.

The visitor find out new landscape composed of the map images of the sky, trees, existing buildings and the real image of white sand and trees.

Japanese garden “Body LandSpace” in Orleans, France

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Fuente: Japanese garden “Body LandSpace” in Orleans, France

Slowpoke Cafe in Melbourne, Australia

Anabel — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 16:39:21 +0000

Slowpoke Espresso es un pequeño café situado en Fitzroy, el suburbio más antiguo de Melbourne. La idea era imaginar un interior que, con un presupuesto ajustado, lograra expresar el deseo del propietario de servir comida de calidad a un ritmo lento en un ambiente cálido y acogedor. La solución para este desafío fue utilizar recortes de madera de los fabricantes de muebles locales para crear una pared de 12 metros de largo con una textura que muestra una gran variedad de especies de madera y colores. Algunos bloques más grandes sobresalen de la pared y crean estantes para los condimentos encima de cada mesa. Las mesas están hechas de tablas recicladas y otros muebles y lámparas se obtuvieron en los mercados de pulgas locales. La señalización de la calle es una caja de herramientas reciclada alimentada con energía solar , y las tarjetas del local fueron cortadas a mano a partir de envases de cartón en desuso.

Slowpoke Cafe in Melbourne, Australia

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Slowpoke Espresso is a small café located in Melbourne’s oldest suburb, Fitzroy. The brief was to imagine an interior that matched the owner’s desire to serve quality food at a slow pace. It was a necessity to come up with alternative ideas that would give the place a unique identity as well as a homely and warm feel while being on a very tight budget. Up-cycling timber offcuts from local furniture makers to create a 12 metre long feature wall was the solution to the challenge. By gathering these offcuts from different places, the result is a textured wall showcasing a variety of timber species and colours. Some wider blocks protrude from the wall to create shelves for condiments above each table. Tabletops are made from recycled floorboards and other furniture and lampshades were sourced from local flea markets. The street signage is a solar powered recycled tool box, and the business cards are hand cut from disused cardboard packaging.

Anne-Sophie Poirier is a French born and Melbourne based architect and designer working under the name SASUFI. Anne-Sophie arrived in Australia in 2005 after completing a degree in Architecture in France. She soon worked for one of Australia’s top architectural firm before realising that she was ready to go on her own. She is now practising as an architect and visual artist.

Fuente: Slowpoke Cafe in Melbourne, Australia

M.N.ROY club in Mexico City

Photo by Ramiro Chaves

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M.N.ROY is a project made as an open question, the one has for goal not to answer obviously what’s actually the M.N.ROY.
In this way, the place can be perceived as an anti-project of what could be the commission of a private club in Mexico City, an more precisely in its Roma neighborhood.

In fact Roma has been very important in the definition of the architectural identity of this space, located in a very dueling neighborhood, and responding on one hand to its past, the one of the high mexican bourgeoisie of Porfirio Diaz (Mexican dictator 1876 – 1911) time which abandoned the neighborhood after the 1985 earthquake; and the today’s reality of a trendy urban area that Roma became. The club is the expression a high singular personality settling in the strong left over of its past time.

According to this, where normally the renovation of the facade appears to be the starting point, the opposite was done: letting the facade untouched to increase the rupture between the original meaning of the house and the redefinition of it.
We kept the house as a testimony of what it was, the house where Manabendra Nath Roy founded the first clandestine Mexican communist party.

By not touching the facade we made paradoxically appealing the building from outside, stimulating the curiosity of the people passing by and seeing a large queue trying to enter an almost ruin house.
Once inside, we made another step in a schizophrenic architectural way, introducing a new language, deeply belonging to the mexican culture, and nevertheless completely stranger to the Porfirio Diaz architecture time.

We used a pre-hispanic language reminiscence inside, in a participative way and not contemplative as could be a nostalgic neo pre-hispanic vision of it, introducing new materials (copper, leather, wood, volcanic stone), geometries (puuc art, maya arch, pyramids), and everything, down impressive generous volumes.

M.N.ROY is the impossible mix of cultures, volumes, architectural styles, making possible an improbable modern space of melting pot.

M.N.ROY club in Mexico City

Plan

M.N.ROY club in Mexico City

Section

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Fuente: M.N.ROY club in Mexico City

Nico Nico Shop in Tokyo, Japan

Anabel — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 15:22:17 +0000

El Nico Nico Shop es el primer espacio real del sitio para compartir videos, más popular de Japón. Una “rejilla deformada” ha sido diseñada para integrar una red que ordena la estructura y las instalaciones, la cual a su vez permite diversas condiciones de iluminación y circulación. Ordinal forma * Varios / Resumen * Diferentes tamaños / perspectivas reales * Virtual. Estos elementos opuestos coexisten en este espacio y crean una “experiencia del cuerpo característica” – fusión de la percepción real y virtual. Una experiencia que podría ser como la de Alicia en el País de las Maravillas.

Nico Nico Shop in Tokyo, Japan

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Context and target
The Nico Nico Shop is the 1st real space produced by Nico Nico Douga (Harajyuku), the most popular video share site in Japan. The design targets for this space are to manage multiple functions and create a “characteristic body experience”.

“Deformed grid”, “Scale extension”, “Reflection images” are the three factors that create the spatial experience.

Operations
“Deformed grid” is designed by the integration of the ordinal grid and various required condition and activities, The ordinal grid is for the existing structure/facilities. Various required condition and activities are prospective lighting, circulation and display.

“Scale extension” is created by the furniture. Abstract origami form in three different sizes make the reality of human scale disappear.

“Reflection images” integrates real and virtual perspectives through the use of mirrors in niches and on furniture faces.

Result
Ordinal * Various / Abstract form * Different sizes / Real * Virtual perspectives. These opposing elements coexist in this space and create a “characteristic body experience” – melding real and virtual perception. An experience that might be like Alice in Wonderland.

Nico Nico Shop in Tokyo, Japan

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Fuente: Nico Nico Shop in Tokyo, Japan

Niseko Look Out Café, Hokkaido, Japan

Anabel — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 16:54:04 +0000

En un lugar cerca de la cima de la montaña, en la villa Niseko ubicada en la isla de Hokkaido, Japón, se encuentra este Look out Café, un espacio de descanso y almuerzo para los esquiadores. El restaurante está abierto sólo durante la temporada de nieve, todos los días de diciembre a abril. El edificio fue construido hace 28 años en madera y esta es fue su primer renovación.

Niseko Look Out Café, Hokkaido, Japan

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Somewhere near to top of the mountain in Niseko on the island of Hokkaido in Japan, there is this Look out Cafe for skiers to have a short break and lunch.
The restaurant opens only during the snow season, December through April daily.
This restaurant is owned by a hotel management & railway company.
It was originally built of wood since 28 years ago, and now this is the first time of renovation.

On 04 October 2010, I was called to YTL Group headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, out of a sudden, I was informed about the restaurant renovation in Niseko.
Initially, the restaurant owner hopes the restaurant opening in early December.
After a few meeting going on and also conference call to the project manager in Hokkaido, I was requested to complete the project before mid-November due to snowfall begins during that period. Counting from the day of the meeting to mid-November, it was approximately 45 days left.

It took 4 days to determine the overall design and materials, and got approval from the project manager on the fifth day. At the same time, we prepared drawings and visited the site in Hokkaido. After some comparisons and discussion going on, we have selected a suitable contractor to work together. Thereafter, constructions progress is immediately proceed.

Look out Café is located on the top of the mountain, and it is impossible to reach it by a car or ski-lifts during the off-season. Therefore, there are many times, myself and constructors were walking, hiking, and climbing over another slope to get down from the site. While, materials are carried by Caterpillar vehicle with a carrier attached to it.

In the meantime, construction workers had to climb up and down the mountain on foot if the carrier is fully-occupied with materials.
Also there was situation when it rains, we were prohibited to climb the mountain as there is possibility of land sliding.

In Japan, seasons of autumn and winter, daytime is shorter than nighttime whereas sunset begins at 4 in the evening in despite of sunny day or cloudy day. In addition, strong winds also come as a result of frigid condition. This forced us to leave the site before sunset to avoid any unfortunate consequence. Resulted, construction progress unable to proceed as scheduled.

However, the progress of construction is always depends on the changes of situation. Fortunately, it is a warm winter this year as snowfall comes late, and construction can be carried out until late of November.
The project is completed by early December, with the grand opening of Look out Café.

Although there are many constraints during the progress, but the outcome is very satisfying and impressive. Not to mentioned about the tight deadline and managing the construction workers, limitation in using only three types of materials- woods, paint, and wallpaper are also a challenge.

Currently, most of the tourists are mainly from China, Singapore, and Australia, and Japan is less than 10%.
We used vertical timber lattice as the main material, which is known to represent Japanese identity.
So, now, the tourists can feel the exotic Japan when they are walking along the alleyway, as the reflections from the roofs come in different sizes and heights.

Illumination effect is created as the lights from roof came through the lattice.
And the feeling of warmth and secure are all around the space as it is surrounded by roofs with various sizes and heights. The feeling is more obvious especially when the space is crowded.
It was attempt to create an ambience whereas can feel the outside world atmosphere in an interior space.

Niseko Look Out Café, Hokkaido, Japan

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Fuente: Niseko Look Out Café, Hokkaido, Japan

Beijing Noodle No. 9 in Las Vegas

Anabel — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 16:37:35 +0000

Un espacio, suavemente cubierto de luz a través de una piel de seda. El reto consistía en romper las ideas preconcebidas sobre los elementos que conforman un espacio interior, al regirlo con “un elemento de coordinación” a través de la creación de una frontera sin costuras.

Beijing Noodle No. 9 in Las Vegas

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A space, gently covered with light through a silk-like skin.
The challenge was to break the preconceived ideas that make up the elements of an interior, by governing the space into “one coordinated element” through the creation of a seamless border.

This contemporary Chinese restaurant, Beijing Noodle No. 9, is located within the huge casino hotel holding over 3,300 rooms in Las Vegas. The restaurant is adjacent to the casino; consequently, the excitement, gaming machine sounds, and neon lights are naturally overflowed into the space.

In general, a space usually consists of various interior elements, materials, series of products, and patterns placed appropriately. Taking advantage of no support columns in the site, the Beijing Noodle No. 9 utilizes the only one pattern throughout the space to achieve the minimal and visually calm atmosphere set in the heart of a surrealistic environment.

The restaurant incorporates the subtle boundary bringing the fading casino sounds into the space to create the inviting welcome to customers. Since the open design facade allows the sounds in and out, the one primary arabesque pattern is applied to the entire space to produce visual calmness.

As customers walk into the space, they will undergo the visually and physically gunblockedh entry experience, and are comfortably led past the sparkling aquarium tanks to the deep part of the restaurant. The gorgeous double-wall design features the elegant arabesque patterned layers, consisting of one woodland-patterned steel decorative surface above a painted similarly patterned solid back, with glossy finish. This design creates the arabesque shadow effect, and the wall continuously extends to be the ceiling, which generates a soft cocoon-like interior experience. By placing LED indirect lights between the layers, the arabesque patterned shadows are appeared on the tables, floor, and kitchen appliances to accomplish a cohesive design throughout the space.

The overall dining experience, supported by brightly lit ambient light, envelopes customers in a sensuous embrace. Dreamy lighting contrast projecting the wonder of deep forest, and secrets of the ocean conquers the sounds from the casino to create a visual serenity.

Beijing Noodle No. 9 in Las Vegas

Floor plan

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Fuente: Beijing Noodle No. 9 in Las Vegas

Placebo Pharmacy in Athens, Greece

Anabel — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 16:42:51 +0000

El diseño para esta gran farmacia de 600 m² nos obligó a cambiar nuestro punto de vista inicial hasta crear un edificio virtual, una “farmacia placebo”. La forma octogonal de la estructura existente fue transformada en un cilindro con el fin de crear un espiral que conversa con el rápido movimiento de la Vouliagmenis Avenue. Los paneles de la fachada están perforados en lenguaje Braille, el cual alude al sistema utilizado en los envases farmacéuticos. Esta fachada protege el interior y, a su vez, actúa como señuelo para los transeúntes. La farmacia se distribuye en dos plantas, en la planta baja se ubica la tienda principal y la entreplanta superior contiene los espacios auxiliares para los médicos. La farmacia se dispone en planta sobre un patrón radial, con el mostrador de caja como punto focal. Los productos se exhiben en forma de abanico a partir de este punto focal. El dispensario de drogas, las áreas de preparación y los baños se distribuyen por fuera de este patrón radial. Este modelo proporciona un flujo natural en el espacio y permite que, durante todo el día, la luz entre profundamente hasta el centro de la planta.

Placebo Pharmacy in Athens, Greece

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The design process for this large (600 m²) supralocal pharmacy forced us to shift our viewpoint and come up with a virtual building – a placebo pharmacy. The octagonal shape of the existing structure was re-formed into a cylinder in order to create a spiral which seeks to converse with the rapid motion on Vouliagmenis Avenue, the urban artery on which the building stands. The panels of the façade are perforated using Braille, which both alludes to the system’s use on pharmaceutical packaging and boosts visibility by allowing the light to find its way into the interior. The new facade also protects the interior while acting as a lure for passers-by. Inside, the product display mirrors the circular frontage, while a ramp up to the upper level extends the dynamism of the exterior spiral into the interior space.

The Pharmacy is arranged over two floors, the ground floor being the primary shop space with the upper mezzanine floor consisting of ancillary office space used as a temporary surgery for visiting health professionals.
The pharmacy is arranged in plan in a radial pattern with the main cashiers desk acting as the focal point. The product displays fan out from this focal point giving the cashier the ability to view the whole pharmacy from this central area. The drug dispensary, preparation areas and toilets are also arranged off this radial pattern. This pattern gives a natural flow to the space and allows light deep into the center of the plan at all times throughout the day.

Placebo Pharmacy in Athens, Greece

Ground floor plan

Placebo Pharmacy in Athens, Greece

First floor plan

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Fuente: Placebo Pharmacy in Athens, Greece

New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion in New York

Anabel — Mon, 23 May 2011 05:29:27 +0000

Photo by James D'Addio

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Welcoming 150,000+ Daily Visitors, Plaza Features Pavilion Designed by UNStudio, A Permanent Gift from the Kingdom of the Netherlands to New York City.

On May 12th, 2011, the official opening of the Peter Minuit Plaza and the dedication of the New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion took place in Battery Park, New York. The ceremony was held at 10:30AM (EST) in Peter Minuit Plaza, and was attended by American and Dutch dignitaries, civic and business leaders, and key representatives of New York City’s cultural and arts community.

Commissioned by The Battery Conservancy and developed in collaboration with the Parks Department and Department of Transportation, the New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion was made possible by a generous $2.3 million gift from the Kingdom of the Netherlands to New York City, in honor of four centuries of friendship and a mutual passion for the values of innovation and creativity, diversity and openness, entrepreneurship and progress. The site will be New York City’s first true 21st century intermodal transportation hub – where bicycles, buses, the subway and water transportation intersect with cultural offerings in a singular expression of daring but lyrical design – and will convert an intersection traveled by more than 150,000 residents and visitors daily into Lower Manhattan’s newest and most dynamic destination for cultural activity, entertainment, and enjoyment.

The Plein & Pavilion project was conceived by the Battery Conservancy to create an extraordinary ‘outdoor living room’ for spontaneous and scheduled activities, public markets, seating and shade, and a gleaming white, state-of-the-art pavilion for visitor information and delicious locally grown gourmet food. Designed by UNStudio in collaboration with Handel Architects LLP, New York serving as associate architect. The project’s landscape was conceived by Parks Dept. Landscape Designer Gail Wittwer-Laird.

Where History Meets the Future
UNStudio’s design for New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion creates a 5,000 square-foot, carefully programmed space located within Peter Minuit Plaza, housing regional organic food by Merchants Market, as well as the Alliance for Downtown New York’s Visitor Information Booth. This highly sculptural pavilion stands as a gateway to the Battery’s park and waterfront, with an expressive, undulating roofline and curving walls; a compact little building with the authority of a
major landmark, evoking a flower opening to its surroundings.
Every night at 12:00AM midnight, the New Amsterdam Pavilion will glow with an array of colors in tribute to Peter Minuit whose name translates to ‘midnight.’ 1626 consolidated the early settlements at the tip of Manhattan: a grouping that came to be known as New Amsterdam. This destination is, in the words of architect Ben van Berkel, “the ideal site for a permanent commemoration of 400 years of Dutch history in New York, because it is steeped in a sense of a shared past and looks directly toward the harbor where Henry Hudson sailed, but is also entirely focused on the future by virtue of its role as a modern transportation hub within the constantly changing scene of Lower Manhattan. This is a site where history meets the future.”

Warrie Price of The Battery Conservancy said, “The Netherlands is a country that sets global standards for how cities and countries can regenerate themselves through the professional strength of innovative and talented designers, and through the force and beauty of the natural world. The Battery, where New York City was born, began its own revitalization with the work of famed Dutch garden designer Piet Oudolf, who created with us the largest perennial gardens in North America, free and open to the public. With the New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion, we are delighted to continue our mission of design excellence, privileged to expand our connection to the great tradition of Dutch design, and honored to bring to New Yorkers and guests from around the world the joy of nature, the pleasure in community and the value of great modern architecture.”

About Peter Minuit Plaza
Home to the New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion, the new Peter Minuit Plaza recalls the city’s earliest days as Nieuw Amsterdam, while heralding the future with cutting-edge architecture, modern amenities and 21st Century technology. This rare park/transit meeting ground defines a new era in public space design and construction. Designed by Gail Wittwer-Laird of NYC Parks, the plaza weaves together trees, gardens, art, food and information with ferries, subways, buses, bikes and pedestrians. It also demonstrates the commitment of the City, State and Federal governments, and a partnering Conservancy in creating a unique standard-setting park.

About The Battery and The Battery Conservancy
The Battery is a 25-acre waterfront park and the cradle of New York City history. Located at the tip of Manhattan overlooking New York Harbor, The Battery hosted Dutch settlers when they arrived at Manhattan Island in 1626 and established New Amsterdam.

Today with the leadership of The Battery Conservancy, a nonprofit organization established in 1994 to partner with government to design and rebuild these historic acres, the park is the largest and most dynamic public place in Lower Manhattan. It is the front lawn of Downtown and a hub of harbor access and cultural tourism. Over five million people, including residents, office workers, school groups, and tourists from around the world, visit the park and its major landmark, Castle Clinton National Monument, every year.
The Battery Conservancy, with its partners at the city, state and federal levels, has raised over $116M to revitalize the park.

New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion in New York

Site Plan

New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion in New York

Geometric Principle Diagram

New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion in New York

Sketch Ben van Berkel

New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion in New York

Model

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Fuente: New Amsterdam Plein & Pavilion in New York