Hasta La Ideas

Curator Justin McGuirk tells us why his Golden Lion-winning installation about a community living in a vertical slum in Caracas could set an example for new forms of urban housing, in this movie we filmed at the Venice Architecture Biennale.

“Why should the majority of the poor in countries like Venezuela be forced to live in the slums around the edge of cities if there are empty office towers in the city centres?,” he says.

McGuirk teamed up with architects Urban-Think Tank and photographer Iwan Bann to create the Torre David/Gran Horizonte exhibition and restaurant, which presents the findings of a year-long research project.

The 45-storey Torre David skyscraper was designed for a financial organisation in the 1990s, but construction was abandoned following the the death of the developer and squatters began moving in. The building is now home to around 3000 residents, who have adapted the concrete shell by partitioning off rooms to suit their needs.

“When you look inside you will find that the apartments are actually like any middle class apartments in the world,” said Urban-Think Tank founder Alfredo Brillembourg at the preview on Monday. “So this is not a slum; the slum is in your head.”

Photographs by Iwan Bann displayed in the Arsenale exhibition show how businesses and groups also occupy the building, including factories, hairdressers a gym and even a church. ”We’ve mapped how people have built a whole infrastructure and city themselves,” said Baan.

The pop-up Venezuelan restaurant brings a flavour of Caracas to the exhibition, illustrating the team’s belief that “sharing a meal is the best way to establish common ground for a discussion.”

We also reported on the project earlier this week, when it was awarded the Golden Lion for best project at the biennale.

See all our coverage of the Venice Architecture Biennale »

Photography is by Iwan Baan.

Here’s some more information from Urban-Think Tank:

Torre David, a 45-story office tower in Caracas designed by the distinguished Venezuelan architect Enrique Gómez, was almost complete when it was abandoned following the death of its developer, David Brillembourg, in 1993 and the collapse of the Venezuelan economy in 1994.

Today, it is the improvised home of a community of more than 750 families, living in an extra- legal and tenuous occupation that some have called a vertical slum.

Alfredo Brillembourg and Hubert Klumpner, along with their research and design teams at Urban-Think Tank and ETH Zürich, spent a year studying the physical and social organization of this ruin-turned-home. Where some only see a failed development project, U-TT has conceived it as a laboratory for the study of the informal.

In this exhibit and in their forthcoming book, Torre David: Informal Vertical Communities, the architects lay out their vision for practical, sustainable interventions in Torre David and similar informal settlements around the world.

They argue that the future of urban development lies in collaboration among architects, private enterprise, and the global population of slum-dwellers. Brillembourg and Klumpner issue a call to arms to their fellow architects to see in the informal settlements of the world a potential for innovation and experimentation, with the goal of putting design in the service of a more equitable and sustainable future.

In the spirit of the Biennale’s theme, Common Ground, the installation takes the form of a Venezuelan arepa restaurant, creating a genuinely social space rather than a didactic exhibition space. The residents of Torre David have similarly created a variety of common grounds—for sports, leisure, worship, and meetings—that reinforce the cohesive nature of this settlement.

Even before its opening, this installation has become controversial in the Venezuelan architectural community. Many are dismayed that the nation’s architectural accomplishments are “represented” by a never-completed and “ruined” work; others argue that the exhibit condones the Venezuelan government’s tacit and explicit support of illegal seizure and occupation of property. In fact, none of these positions reflects the true nature and purpose of the exhibit.

Above: the installation at the Arsenale

It, and its creators, avoid taking political sides, arguing that Torre David represents not Venezuelan architecture but rather an experiment in informal/formal hybridity and a critical moment in the global phenomenon of informal living.

Above: the restaurant

With the aim of developing the debate over Torre David and similar sites in other cities, the installation includes many of the letters and newspaper articles that have appeared in response to the announcement of this exhibition.

The post “Why should the poor live in slums if there are
empty offices in the city?” asks Justin McGuirk appeared first on Dezeen.

Waves of stone ripple around the corners of a Hong Kong shopping centre that was recently renovated by British designer Thomas Heatherwick.

Pacific Place was originally constructed in the 1980s and is located at the base of four towers, which house offices, hotels and luxury apartments.

Flat skylights replace the previous pyramid-shaped ones to maintain natural daylight inside the building whilst allowing the roof to be converted into a public terrace.

A new restaurant has been constructed on this level, featuring a swirling ceiling of folded steel.

Heatherwick has also installed a new signage system around the building, helping visitors find their way around.

Thomas Heatherwick also recently completed furniture for an English abbey – see our earlier story here.

Photography is by Iwan Bann.

Here’s a little more text from the client, developer Swire Pacific:

About Pacific Place

Pacific Place is a large scale, high quality, mixed-use development encompassing floor space of approximately 5.19 million sq ft by gross floor area in the central business district of Hong Kong. It is linked to Admiralty MTR station, with connections to other modes of transport.

Since its inception in 1988, Pacific Place now houses nearly 130 shops and boutiques and two major department stores, collectively offering an array of contemporary fashion and international luxury brands.

The mastermind behind the Pacific Place contemporisation project, Thomas Heatherwick, took an organic approach to the new design, using natural forms and materials to bring a sense of fluidity to Pacific Place.

Materials such as natural stone and textured Tektura wallpaper were used to add a sense of depth to otherwise flat surfaces, whilst wood was manipulated to eliminate angular edges and create a more natural flowing sensation within the complex.

Over 1.6 million man-hours have been spent on the contemporisation project since it was initiated in 2007.

Materials used in the renovation include over 3,600 sqm of Limestone and Bedonia stone were also featured in the new design, with 72 variations of plant species employed for the landscaping of the level 4 area.

Besides the warmer ambience and softer design of the mall, visitors can also enjoy a new selection of high-end brands and stores at Pacific Place, including luxury department store, Harvey Nichols, British fragrance brand, Jo Malone, and travel accessory company, Tumi. Journeys through the mall are more enjoyable with a new music system continuously playing music tracks interwoven with natural sounds, whilst new escalators to the carpark levels and redesigned bubble lifts make access easier. The washroom facilities have also experienced an upgrade, with a new design which affords visitors the luxury of space in a modern setting. In total, the interior, exterior, and architectural refinements to Pacific Place have cost approximately HK$2 billion.

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The substantial completion of the Pacific Place contemporisation project marks a new era for Pacific Place, reinforcing its reputation as a premier shopping destination in Hong Kong.

Steven Holl Architects have collaborated with Brazilian architect Solange Fabião on this wave-shaped museum of the sea in Biarritz, France, which opened this week.

The Cité de l’Océan et du Surf has a cobbled plaza over the concave roof, which gently descends to meet the sloping ground.

The galleries of the museum are contained within this curving concrete block, while two acid-etched glass boxes at one end accomodate restaurants and a surfer’s kiosk.

The museum houses exhibitions about scientific issues associated with the sea and tides.

More stories about Steven Holl Architects »

Above photograph is by Steven Holl Architects

Photography is by Iwan Baan apart from where otherwise stated.

Here are some more details from the architects:

Cité de l’Océan et du Surf opens in Biarritz, France

The Cité de l’Océan et du Surf, located in Biarritz, France will open to the public on June 26, 2011.

Above photograph is by Steven Holl Architects

The museum, a design by Steven Holl Architects in collaboration with Brazilian artist and architect Solange Fabião, aims to raise awareness of oceanic issues and scientific aspects of surf and sea.

Above photograph is by Steven Holl Architects

Derived from the spatial concept “under the sky” / “under the sea”, the museum’s concave exterior creates a central gathering plaza, open to the sky and sea, with the horizon in the distance.

Above photograph is by Steven Holl Architects

On the interior, the inverse convex curve becomes the ceiling of the main exhibition space, evoking the sense of being “under the sea.”

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The building’s spatial qualities are first experiences in the entrance space, where ramps pass along the dynamic curved surface on which filmed exhibitions are projected, animating the space with changing images and light.

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Two “glass rocks,” which contain the restaurant and the surfer’s kiosk, activate the central outdoor plaza and connect analogically to the two great boulders on the beach in the distance.

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The plaza’s southwest corner is dedicated to the surfers’ hangout with a skate pool and an open porch underneath that connects to the auditorium and exhibition spaces inside the museum. This covered area provides a sheltered space for outdoor interaction, meetings and events.

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The gardens of the Cité de l’Océan et du Surf aim at a fusion of landscape and architecture, and connect the museum to the ocean horizon.

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The precise integration of concept and topography gives the building its unique profile.

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The public plaza is paved with a progressive variation of Portuguese cobblestone paving that allow for the growth of grass and natural vegetation.

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The building lifts up toward the ocean towards the west and the concave form of the plaza is extended through the landscape.

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With slightly cupped edges, the landscape, a mix of field and local vegetation, is a continuation of the museum facility and provides a site for festivals and daily events.

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The exterior of the building is a textured white concrete made of aggregates from the south of France.

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Materials of the plaza are a progressive variation of Portuguese cobblestones paving with grass and natural vegetation.

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A combination of insulated glass units with clear and acid-etched layers animates the visual dynamics enhancing interior comfort.

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The interior of the main space is white plaster and a wooden floor provides under-floor wiring flexibilities.

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Credits:
Client: SNC Biarritz Ocean

Architect: Steven Holl Architects:
Solange Fabião, Steven Holl (design architect)
Rodolfo Dias (project architect)
Chris McVoy (project advisor)
Filipe Taboada (assistant project architect)
Francesco Bartolozzi, Christopher Brokaw, Cosimo Caggiula,
Florence Guiraud, Richard Liu, Johanna Muszbek, Ernest Ng,
Alessandro Orsini, Nelson Wilmotte, Ebbie Wisecarver, Lan Wu,
Christina Yessios (project team)
Rüssli Architekten
Justin Rüssli, Mimi Kueh, Stephan Bieri, Björn Zepnik (project
team DD/CD)

Associate architects: Agence d’Architecture X.Leibar JM Seigneurin
Structural consultant: Betec & Vinci Construction Marseille
Acoustical consultant: AVEL Acoustique
HVAC consultant: Elithis
General contractor: Faura Silva, GTM Sud-Ouest Batiment
Exhibition engineer: Cesma
Exhibition contractor: Geroari

See also:

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Knut Hamsun Centre by Steven Holl	Vanke Center Shenzhen by Steven Holl Architects	Linked Hybrid by Steven Holl Architects

New York architects SO-IL have designed these coloured acrylic display cases in geometric shapes to showcase pieces by German porcelain brand Meissen in an exhibition at Kunsthal KAdE in Amersfoort, the Netherlands.

The 32 boxes sit on MDF plinths and enclose figurine’s from Meissen’s archive, including designs from the eighteenth century.

An exhibition of SO-IL’s work, entitled To Be Determined, is also on show at the galley.

The show continues until 28 August 2011.

Photographs are by Iwan Baan.

More about SO-IL on Dezeen »

The information below is from SO-IL:

MEISSEN X SO-IL

In the Netherlands, Meissen porcelain is often regarded as ‘high-class kitsch’.

Its sumptuous, often narrative style of decoration puts it at odds with the minimalistic and conceptual traditions of Modernism.

In this exhibition, KAdE seeks to challenge this prejudice and focus attention on the great sculptural, artistic and technical strengths of Meissen.

KAdE commissioned the Solid Objectives – Idenburg Liu (SO – IL) architectural office to design an ideal contemporary three-dimensional setting in which to present the porcelain.

In response, SO – IL has designed 32 modern, geometrically shaped showcases in bright colours and with ‘pointed tops’.

The porcelain in the exhibition will be drawn from a number of sources, including the Von Klemperer collection, the Meissen factory collection and various private collections in England and Germany.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a book discussing both the porcelain and the architectural philosophy of SO – IL.

The exhibition will also include pieces from the Meissen factory collection which were produced in the 19th or 20th century but based on 18th-century models. Among these are various Commedia dell’arte figures (Brighella, Gondoliere, Arlecchino, Beltramo and Avvocato).

‘To Be Determined’ (above and below), a presentation of recent work by SO – IL, will take place in KAdE’s second floor exhibition space. In autumn 2010, it was on show in Studio X in Beijing.

See also:

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Flockr by SO-IL	Shadowboxing exhibition by Slowscape Collective	Serpentine Gallery Pavilion by SANAA

This house on S. Michael Island in the Azores by Portuguese architect Bernardo Rodrigues comprises a jumble of curved and rectilinear volumes, creating little sheltered patios in-between them.

A large red square wall screens the house from the strong winds of the North Atlantic ocean.

An undulating roof terrace is sheltered behind this screen.

The ground floor spaces are open-plan and enclosed bedrooms are located on the first floor.

Photography is by Iwan Baan.

More stories about houses on Dezeen »

More architecture photographed by Iwan Baan on Dezeen »

Here is a little bit of text from the architect:

House on the flight of birds.

The house is located in the north side of S. Michael Island in the Azores.

The microclimate of this farmland offers frequent wind and showers so the first design strategy was to block with a wall those winds, offer diverse patios and covered courtyards on the ground floor protected from rain and open all living space to the natural green around by glass walls receded from the exterior.

On the upper-floor there’s the private rooms more enclosed and protected.

The typology follows almost classical Palladian and scamozzi central plan design with double height on living room and then two lateral wings enclosing one the kitchen, also quotes the high chimneys from popular residential architecture and a covered interior patio, and the other wing has the circulations for the first floor and to the roof terrace.

These two wings end in light entrances from the south. The roof offers possibilities of flight of views over all the island north shore.

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See also:

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Concrete House II by A-Cero	Moebius House by Tony Owen Partners	Zafra-Uceda by NO.MAD Arquitectos