These night shots by New York photographer Andrew Prokos capture some of the buildings designed by late Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer in Brasília (+ slideshow).
National Museum of the Republic
Andrew Prokos topped the Night Photography category at this year’s International Photography Awards with the series, which documents buildings such as the National Congress of Brazil and the Cathedral of Brasília after dark.
National Congress of Brazil
“I became fascinated by Oscar Niemeyer’s buildings as works of art in themselves, and the fact that Niemeyer had unprecedented influence over the architecture of the capital during his long lifetime,” said Prokos.
National Congress of Brazil
Niemeyer, who passed away last year, completed a series of civic and government buildings in the Brazilian capital over the course of his career, following the appointment of Juscelino Kubitschek as president in 1956.
Cathedral of Brasília
As well as the congress building and cathedral, Niemeyer also designed the Palácio do Planalto – the official workplace of the president – as well as the National Museum of the Republic and Itamaraty Palace.
Palácio do Planalto
“I found the city fascinating from a visual perspective,” Prokos told Dezeen. “At its best the Niemeyer architecture is elegant and inspired; at the other end of the spectrum there are structures that are straight out of the Soviet era.”
News: London studio Weston Williamson has won a competition to design a new athletics stadium for Brasilia with a concept for a shape-shifting structure that opens like a flower in response to wind direction and sunlight.
The competition called for ideas for a 70,000-seat athletics venue and Weston Williamson’s winning response features a circular building with a skeletal structure modelled on the wings of a bird in flight.
A series of feather-like sections would make up the animated exterior. Each would be able to shift itself independently, adapting to changing weather and lighting but also creating a spectacle during ceremonial occasions.
“The exterior form of the new athletics stadium reflects the utopian spirit of the Brasilia plan by incorporating a geometry that is ever-changing,” said the studio. “The stadium, therefore, has no fixed identity, but alters in relation to the condition of its surroundings.”
The base of the stadium would be elevated on a wooden plinth and surrounded by pools of water and trees, using passive cooling to moderate the interior temperature.
Position one
The competition, which was organised in connection with the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, was intended to be “design constraints free”, allowing applicants to “be creative and test the boundaries of what is possible”. A $12,000 prize is awarded to the winner.
Weston Williamson + Partners has won 1st prize in the Brasilia Athletics Stadium Competition run in connection with the upcoming Olympics.
The exterior form of the new Athletics Stadium reflects the utopian spirit of the Brasilia plan by incorporating a geometry that is ever-changing. The stadium, therefore, has no fixed identity, but alters in relation to the condition of its surroundings.
Position four
The stadium references the iconographic plan for Brasilia, that represents a bird in flight, by incorporating massive feather like structures that envelop the interior. These fine structural elements shift in relation to wind direction and sunlight, meaning that the form is constantly in flux. The movable envelope also acts ceremoniously, reaching upwards to the sky when an event is about to unfold, adding another layer of visual spectacle to the games.
Position five
The stadium is situated on a wooden plinth surrounded by water pools and dense greenery which helps to cool the site in the intense heat. A network of shaded facilities is situated beneath this plinth, all lit with top light from perforations within the timber structure above.
The design proposes a fluid icon, suited to an environment that is being continually redefined.
Keith Loutit et Jarbas Agnelli ont pu créer ce time-lapse réussi lors du Carnaval de Rio de Janeiro. Très bien exécutée, cette vidéo permet de montrer la ville brésilienne sous son plus beau visage, le tout sur une musique de Jarbas Agnelli. A découvrir dans la suite.
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