This wooden observation platform and pavilion emerges from the landscape of a memorial park in Koknese, Latvia, offering views across the River Daugava (+ slideshow).
Designed by Latvian studios Didzis Jaunzems Architecture and Jaunromans un Abele, the wooden structure is located in the Garden of Destiny, a park designed to celebrate the country’s 100th birthday in 2018 and pay tribute to all those that have died in the last century.
The architects used the natural incline of the site to build a pavilion that is partially buried beneath the ground. A sloping roof provides an elevated deck that visitors can walk over, while the surrounding terrace concludes at a balcony that cantilevers out across the water.
“The view terrace and pavilion create a harmonious environment to discover the special character of the site – the spaciousness and the faraway horizon over River Daugava,” explained Didzis Jaunzems.
Existing features around the site informed the shape of the building. As well as working in line with the site’s topography, the architects designed a structure that avoids all surrounding trees whilst seeking out the best viewing spots.
The structure was built almost entirely from larch. Wooden planks were fixed around a larch frame, creating a uniform surface across the ground planes and around the building’s walls.
Each plank was also milled to create fine ridges, intended to prevent visitors from slipping when the ground is wet, and glazing was added at the front of the pavilion to offer shelter from strong winds and rainfall.
Wooden benches fold up from the ground to provide seating and metal railings create see-through balustrades.
Since opening, the site has become a popular location for all kinds of activities. “The view terrace unintentionally has become a very popular place for wedding ceremonies,” said Jaunzems.
Photography is by ML-Studio.
Read on for more information from the design team:
View Terrace and Pavilion
View Terrace and Pavilion are situated in memorial park “The Garden of Destiny”, the area of Consolation which is the first zone of Future according to overall project of the island. The Garden of Destiny is memorial place for all souls that have been lost to Latvia in last century and it will be completed as a gift to country on its 100th birthday in year 2018. The View Terrace project started as an architectural competition and with a help of donations is now first realised permanent building in memorial park. View terrace received the Prize of the Year in Latvian Architecture Best Works Award.
The view terrace and pavilion create a harmonious environment to discover the special character of the site – the spaciousness and the faraway horizon over River Daugava. The tight bond between Latvian people and nature has been emphasised in the project. Nature is a source of inner energy, strength, peace and inspiration. Nature has been a priority in this project since it is the consolation for Latvians. The building has been designed considering site particularities and in harmony with nature:
» The main flows of people have been analysed. The building is made in a way to not cover the view to river panorama when approaching the site; » Stop points such as benches and covered space are situated in the places where view is the most stunning and emotional; » The building has been shaped in a way to preserve most valuable trees on the site; » Terrain level differences are used in the project design. The pavilion is partly sunken into the ground so it doesn’t cover the view when approaching the building and to provide comfortable access from the lowest level of terrace.
View terrace and pavilion has diversified levels of “openness”. This gives an opportunity to use the building in all kind of weather conditions as well as lets visitors to choose the level which emotionally suits them the best. For example if it is raining or in case of strong wind people can enjoy the view from the part of pavilion that is covered with roof and protected with large glass. But if the weather is not an issue then exposed long benches can be used. The building can be seen as a platform for harmonious interaction between people and nature.
The main architectonic idea of the project is building volume that following people movement from a pathway and seats gradually grows into a building in this way exploring building location on the very coast of the river. Roof inclinations creates an exciting place where to play and relax. The main challenge of the project was its highly public significance – it is built for everybody and furthermore by donations of people. The building is very compact however its configuration and various possibilities of usage allow to coexist all parts of society. From this year on couples in Latvia can officially get married outside the church and the view terrace unintentionally has become a very popular place for wedding ceremonies.
Pavilion and view terrace are made in wood – larch. The load-bearing structure is larch frames. Finishing is larch planks that are processed in a special technique to avoid slippery surfaces on pathways and roof of the building.
Project address: Memorial park “The Garden of Destiny”, Krievkalna Island, Koknese, Latvia Projects architects: Didzis Jaunzems, Laura Laudere in collaboration with architecture office Jaunromans and Abele
A pavilion with a spiked roof by Australian firm Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects rises above the landscaped site of the new National Arboretum on the outskirts of the Australian capital, Canberra (+ slideshow).
The pavilion is one of two buildings designed by Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects for the project, developed in partnership with landscape architects Taylor Cullity Lethlean. The designers transformed an area of bushfire-damaged land to create a botanical garden displaying a collection of endangered trees and plants.
Photograph by John Gollings
The pointed pavilion is situated on a plateau called the Event Terrace, which was excavated below the ridge of a nearby hill to minimise the impact of the built structures on the landscape. Its dramatic roofline was designed to provide a focal point, creating a building that can be used as a venue for events including parties, weddings and ceremonies.
Photograph by John Gollings
“[The pavilion’s] roof shape is a defined contrast to the rolling topography of the site,” said the architects. “The pointed roof will be an emphatic pause in the sweep of the Arboretum’s landscape in this precinct.”
Photograph by John Gollings
The roof projects over a curving balcony that rises from the sloping hillside and provides an outdoor extension with panoramic views towards the city, lake and nearby mountains. A framework of plywood box beams supports the zinc-clad roof, which is flanked by concrete wings housing bathrooms and service areas.
Nearby, a visitor centre with a shallower pitched roof marks the entrance to the park. This contains facilities for visitor information and orientation, education spaces, a shop and a cafe.
The curving shape of the zinc-clad roof was designed to emulate the ribbed structure of leaves and complement the undulating forms of the natural topography.
Photograph by John Gollings
“The architecture develops the long-standing tradition of significant garden buildings as transparent enclosures with dramatic internal volumes and sense of indoor-outdoor connection,” the architects explained.
A cutting in the hillside lined with rock-filled cages leads into the building’s multipurpose central atrium, which has a vaulted ceiling supported by wooden beams that resemble tree branches.
A fan-shaped arrangement of pointed glass panels set into the geometric roof structure near the main entrance introduce daylight into the the flexible space, which opens onto the Event Terrace at the opposite side.
Both the pavilion and the visitor centre overlook a turfed amphitheatre and a series of gardens, events spaces and 100 strips of forest that will mature over time. Sculpted terraces and a stream descend down the hillside towards a valley, which contains a dam to provide recycled water to the gardens.
Photography is by Brett Boardman unless otherwise stated.
Here’s a project description from Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects:
National Arboretum Canberra
TZG, in association with landscape architects Taylor Cullity Lethlean, won an Australia wide competition for the National Arboretum, on a 290ha. site of bushfire-damaged land north of Canberra’s Lake Burley Griffin. The Arboretum is a collection of 100 forests, each home to a single internationally-endangered species. The species are chosen from the many thousands that are threatened world-wide, and curated according to colour of foliage, pattern of bark/leaf, filigree of branches, scent and texture, and suitability to local growth conditions.
A simple formal geometry, developed from Griffin’s water axis, interacts with the landform on which it is laid. 250m wide forest bands are defined by native-planted clearings leading to the lake. Each Forest offers an immersive experience of a single species. Each Forest holds a viable population, creating a seed bank for each species’ native land, so that vulnerable and endangered species are preserved.
Defined gardens and event spaces are surrounded by the forests. With the provision of services, pavilion shelters and toilets these spaces have the potential to be booked for a wide range of events.
Photograph by John Gollings
The spaces also provide opportunities for themed gardens, sponsored plantings and temporary exhibits, performances, artworks and garden designs. The 1400m long Central Valley forms a focal clearing at the centre of the site, with a sculpted series of terraces linked by a cascading stream and a fully-accessible pathway.
The linear water feature feeds as the main water storage facility, located at the foot of the Central Valley the Arboretum. The dam and other water tanks will have a total capacity of 20 megalitres of recycled water, and will be a demonstration of water sensitive landscape design, showcasing contemporary design and ecological water recycling technology.
The Arboretum was opened to commemorate Canberra’s centenary in 2013, with all 100 forests planted. The forests are complemented by the Village Centre visitor’s centre, the Margaret Whitlam Pavilion reception centre, a regional Playground and the first of the many gardens planned for the site. A full road and pedestrian circulation system is operational, and a site-wide interpretation strategy underlines the projects long-term ecological benefits.
Village Centre
The Village Centre is the main point of arrival for the National Arboretum Canberra, and provides a full range of visitor facilities to complement the outdoor experiences of the Arboretum. The Centre’s architecture develops the long-standing tradition of significant garden buildings as transparent enclosures with dramatic internal volumes and a strong sense of indoor-outdoor connection. Importantly, the strong presence of the building acts as a focus for the Arboretum while the trees are immature.
The exterior of the building is a sculptural form in the site’s rolling topography, contrasting low stone-clad wings with a high arching roof clad in weathered zinc, the form of which is inspired by the fronds of the adjoining forest of Chilean Wine Palms, and by the ribbing of many tree leaves. The interior subtly recalls the branched forms of mature trees.
Photograph by John Gollings
Carefully sited below the ridgeline, the building forms a unified composition with Taylor Cullity Lethlean’s dramatic sculpting of the site’s Central Valley, the 6 Hectare Event Terrace and the small Pavilion, now under construction and a counterpoint to the Village Centre.
The building occupies the northern end of the Event Terrace, overlooking the landform of the Central Valley and the adjoining planted forests. It connects the central carpark with the major Play Space, and the Event Terrace, grassed Amphitheatre, Gardens and pedestrian pathway networks.
From the car park, visitors enter the Arboretum through the new building, passing through the dramatic Entry Cutting formed through the ridgeline knolls, planted with forests of white-flowering crepe myrtle. The heart of the building is its main vaulted space, which flexibly accommodates a range of functions, including exhibitions, events, retail, a café and programmed activities. It focuses on the dramatic views southeast to Lake Burley Griffin and the city of Canberra, and opens to the north and south to the sweep of the Event Terrace. Service spaces are screened by stone walls in extended low-cost wings, tying the building into its landform.
The building incorporates a range of energy-saving measures, supporting the environmental value of the Arboretum as a whole, with a very low-energy envelope and structure. All water is captured. Low energy lighting and mechanical systems are used throughout. The dramatic, low energy timber structure was fully computer dimensioned and prefabricated in Tasmania and quickly erected on site. Each rafter is a pure circle arc, but each of a different diameter to respond to the curve of the site. The resultant 3D shape is a complex non-geometric volume, with no repeated elements. The choice of timber reduces embodied energy by nearly 90% compared to steelwork, and the stone walls have an equally low energy profile. The roof is comprised of conical pre-cast concrete columns supporting a structure of engineered laminated Tasmanian Oak and pine beams and rafters.
The building was designed by architects Tonkin Zulaikha Greer and constructed by Project Coordination. It was developed as part of the Arboretum “100 Forests” master plan, won in competition in 2004 by landscape architects Taylor Cullity Lethlean and urban designers Tonkin Zulaikha Greer.
Location: Canberra, ACT Client: ACT Government Completed: 2005-2012 Builder: Project Coordination, project manager David Carr Project team: Peter Tonkin, John Chesterman, Juliane Wolter, Tamarind Taylor, Wolfgang Ripberger, Trina Day, Roger O’Sullivan Landscape Consultant: Taylor Cullity Lethlean Roof: pure zinc sheet, hand formed standing seam joints Ceiling Sound Insulation: Acoustisorb fabric finished panels Gabion and mortared stone walls: Wee Jasper porphyry Windows and roof glazing: double glazed sealed units with very high performance solar glass with a low emissivity coating Cooling and air conditioning system: extensive natural ventilation complemented by underfloor hydronic heating and low-energy airconditioning. Water system: 90,000 litre underground tank, all water recycled for toilet flushing and plant watering Floor: Honed and sealed in-situ concrete, with the required slip grade
The Margaret Whitlam Pavilion will be an important facility for the National Arboretum Canberra, related to the Visitor Centre and the spectrum of activities planned for the Arboretum.
The Pavilion is located on the south-western tip of the U-shaped Events terrace, looking across the future grassed Amphitheatre to the Visitors Centre and out to the Central Valley and the city of Canberra beyond. Its axis aligns with the Captain Cook water jet, continuing Griffin’s structuring of the city by focal radiating axes. The building is kept below the landscaped ridge to the west, so that it is subordinate to the landform, whilst its roof shape is a defined curve in contrast to the rolling topography of the site. The pointed curve of the roof will be an emphatic pause in the sweep of the Arboretum’s landscape in this precinct, and a dramatic statement when viewed from the main car entry adjoining Tuggeranong Parkway.
The building includes a main internal space suitable for functions of up to 120 people, including cocktail parties, weddings, dinners, music and other performances and ceremonial events. The space opens eastwards to an outdoor terrace projecting over the lip of the slope, and north and south to smaller linking terraces, each with fully-openable glass doors. The eastern terrace captures a panorama of the city and its surrounding mountains, with the sweep of the lake and the Parliament flagpole as a focus.
The structure is an innovative pre-fabricated arrangement of steel beams and insulating composite panels, clad externally in zinc, matching the ribbed roof of the Village Centre to the north. Low wings of off-form concrete house service functions.
The interior of the Pavilion complements in feel and detail the ecological focus of the Arboretum. The limed plywood lining and the use of special elements in hardwood highlights the value of trees as sources of material and as carbon storage. The space has been extensively modelled for acoustics, suiting amplified and natural voice and music.
Low-energy services and water recycling complement the sustainable focus of the Arboretum, and ensure the Pavilion’s on-going operational feasibility.
The building was designed by architects Tonkin Zulaikha Greer and constructed by Manteena. It was developed as part of the Arboretum “100 Forests” master plan, won in competition in 2004 by landscape architects Taylor Cullity Lethlean and urban designers Tonkin Zulaikha Greer.
Location: Canberra, ACT Client: ACT Government Completed: 2005-2013 Builder: Manteena Project team: Peter Tonkin, John Chesterman, Juliane Wolter, Wolfgang Ripberger, Roger O’Sullivan Steel Structure: steel portal frames with Kingspan composite panels Roof: pure zinc sheet, hand formed standing seam joints Ceiling: perforated acoustic-lined plywood, hoop pine veneer with limewash Windows and door glazing: double glazed sealed units with very high performance solar glass with a low emissivity coating Cooling and air conditioning system: extensive natural ventilation complemented by underfloor hydronic heating and low-energy air conditioning Water system: shared underground tank with Village Centre, all water recycled for toilet flushing and plant watering Floor: honed and sealed in-situ concrete, with the required slip grade
News: architects and designers including OMA, BIG and WXY have unveiled proposals to revitalise parts of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut devastated by Hurricane Sandy, and help protect them against future emergencies.
Big U by BIG, also main image
The Rebuild by Design competition asked ten teams of architects, landscape architects, engineers and urban designers to develop proposals for different sections of America’s east coast, which was struck by the hurricane in October 2012.
Big U by BIG
Danish studio BIG has developed a protective system, called Big U, which would wrap around the outside of Manhattan. Designed to shield New York City against floods and stormwater, the three separate sections would also create new public spaces.
Resist, Delay, Store, Discharge: A Comprehensive Strategy for Hoboken by OMA
For the Hoboken district of New Jersey, Rem Koolhaas’ OMA proposes introducing an “urban water strategy”, where a combination of hard infrastructure and soft landscaping can create a coastal defence integrating natural drainage.
Blue Dunes – The Future of Coastal Protection by WXY and West 8
New York studio WXY Architecture worked with landscape architects West 8 on a strategy for the New York and New Jersey harbour, entitled Blue Dunes. The designers made predictions about storms of the future and are promoting the establishment of a research initiative.
Living Breakwaters by Scape Landscape Architecture
The design by New York landscape firm Scape features “a necklace of breakwaters” to offer a buffer against wave damage, flooding and erosion on Staten Island, while urban design studio Interboro have developed a series of approaches for the barrier islands, marshes and lowlands of Long Island.
Living with the Bay: A Comprehensive Regional Resiliency Plan for Nassau County’s South Shore by Interboro
Other proposals include ideas for Jersey Shore, Bridgeport in Connecticut and Hunts Point in New York’s South Bronx.
Hunts Point Lifelines by PennDesign and OLIN
The competition was initiated last year by US housing and urban development secretary Shaun Donovan. The winning projects will be announced later this year and will be implemented with funding from community grants.
This wooden pavilion with a protruding canopy was designed by Ramser Schmid Architekten to offer a sheltered outdoor seating area for visitors to the city library in Zug, Switzerland (+ slideshow).
Swiss studio Ramser Schmid Architekten worked with landscape firm Planetage Landscape Architects to create the public pavilion for a new city park occupying the derelict space between the library’s two buildings, located within a historic arsenal.
The space was already home to a basement car park, which extends out from the edge of the landscape. Rather than burying this under more landscaping, the team chose to encase it behind a slatted timber screen and build a mushroom-like pavilion on top.
“The pavilion with its widely projecting roof creates a new sense of identity for the old Zeughaus site,” architect David Dick explains in his project description.
The structure is made from timber blocks, which are arranged in a pattern that resembles brickwork. Regular spaces create a rhythm of openings, revealing the supporting beams behind.
“In analogy to the retaining wall’s veil of wood, a transparent shell of horizontal wooden slats around the pedestal was designed in order to embellish the poor quality of the existing buildings rather than to hide them,” said Dick.
Planetage Landscape Architects surrounded the structure with shrub beds and low hedges, which line the edges of footpaths connecting the two library buildings with the city’s pedestrian pathways.
Photography is by Ralph Feiner.
Here’s a project description from Ramser Schmid Architekten:
City Park Zug
The area to be newly designed consisted mainly of the space between two locations of the local library: the main building in the south and the ancient arsenal, in which additional rooms had been installed into in 2011. The clients, the city and the canton of Zug asked for a public city park that was to be linked to the historic city’s pedestrian walks. The main goal of the park was to connect both sites of the library.
One of the main challenges was the fact that an underground car park from the 1970s partly juts out of the tilted terrain and its driveway divide the area into two sections.
The commonly accomplished competition entry by Planetage Landscape Architects and Ramser Schmid Architects was the winner of the 2010 competition. The jury report mentions the “surprising and yet persuading configuration of the terrain edge”. Instead of hiding away the underground car park’s volume by banks of earth, the planners accepted the presence of the building and decided to additionally expose it, extend it and to strengthen it by a wooden wall cladding. The car park now appears as a retaining wall, which separates the upper level with the old arsenal and its terrace from the lower part.
The lower level serves as public traffic area for the underground car park on the one hand. An array of shrub beds bordered by low hedges has been provided, which accompanies the footpaths towards the site and which can be seen as a spatial analogy to the existing Old Town’s gardens in Zug.
The staircases to the upper level pass by the retaining wall that is covered with vertical wooden slats. The cladding serves several purposes: besides being a fall protection, it highlights the built structures and facilitates orientation onsite. Protruding elements of the old underground car park, like for example an emergency exit, are masked. Visible transitions between new and 40-year old concrete surfaces are obscured with the new supplements, without hiding away the massive presence of the building.
The upper level located in front of the newly installed research library in the old arsenal is designed as a wide and open park. Generous and versatile lawns, a water basin, flexible seating configurations provide for a relaxed atmosphere.
The pavilion with its widely projecting roof creates a new sense of identity for the old Zeughaus (arsenal) site. The placement of the pavilion on the very top follows the inner logic of the complex: the mushroom-like pavilion is built on the lift shaft and the ventilation station of the 10-storey underground car park below. The technical section that protrudes the car park’s roof is amplified and used as a pedestal for the cantilevered roof construction. In analogy to the retaining wall’s veil of wood, a transparent shell of horizontal wooden slats around the pedestal was designed in order to embellish the poor quality of the existing buildings rather than to hide them. The cladding depicts the vertical subconstruction as well as the roof’s radially arranged laminated beams and reveals, solely by its geometry, the constructive design of the supporting structure.
Landscape architecture: Planetage Landschaftsarchitekten Team: Marceline Hauri, Christine Sima, Ramon Iten, Helge Wiedemeyer, Thomas Volprecht Modification of the car park and pavilion: Ramser Schmid Architekten Team: Christoph Ramser, Raphael Schmid, David Dick, Isabel Amat, Lena Bertozzi, Elena Castellote, Patrick Schneider Technical Planners: Schnetzer Puskas Ingenieure, d-lite Lichtdesign Site Manager: Kolb Landschaftsarchitektur
Landscape architecture firm Martha Schwartz Partners references Bedouin carpets and sand dunes in teardrop-shaped landscaping for a green retreat in the centre of an Abu Dhabi business district (+ slideshow).
Martha Schwartz Partners designed Sowwah Square for a site at the heart of Abu Dhabi’s new central business district on Al Maryah Island, formerly known as Sowwah Island.
The 2.6 hectare public plaza features colourfully patterned granite paving and an assortment of plant-covered mounds. There are also granite seating elements, garden beds, sculpted hedges and rows of Indian fig trees.
“The inspiration for the square was derived from the nature and culture inherent to the Arabian Peninsula: dunes, traditional irrigation systems (falaj), oases, bedouin textiles and the popular use of formal clipped hedges in the United Arab Emirates, drawing connections with the French baroque château gardens,” said the architects.
Green mounds, a typical feature in the Al Maryah, feature patches of plants of different colours and textures. Species such as the Golden Ice Plant Lampranthus, which has bright orange flowers, are planted next to the Purple Lady Iresine, which features small purple foliage.
“All the plant species used in the project were selected for their hardiness, low maintenance and drought and heat tolerance,” the architects said.
The teardrop-shaped mounds are dotted through the square. Some form centrepieces to the granite benches, acting as wind shelters.
The polished grey-granite benches encircle the mounds and have grooves carved into their surfaces, allowing bubbling streams of water to run across them to offer visitors relief from the heat.
The benches come in six variations. Some have extended seats, while others have high backs or wider leaning space. At night, the base of each benches is illuminated.
The pavement is set with patterned sections of honed, flamed and polished granite, and extend outwards in layers to emphasise the teardrop shapes.
Sculpted hedges line the edges of low garden beds, with native grasses planted in the centre to sway in the wind.
Here’s a project description from Martha Schwartz Partners:
Sowwah Square
Sowwah Square is the first development within the larger Sowwah Island master plan in Abu Dhabi and is intended to be the centre piece of the island development, providing a green retreat at the centre of the new commercial hub.
On the southern edge of Sowwah Island, the main urban space is located on top of a two-level retail podium and creates a landscape setting for the Sowwah Square complex. Future phases of the project will include a 5 star Business Hotel, serviced apartments, and additional retail complexes adjacent to Sowwah Square.
The inspiration for the square was derived from the nature and culture inherent to the Arabian Peninsula: dunes, traditional irrigation systems (Falaj), oasis, Bedouin textiles and the popular use of formal clipped hedges in United Arab Emirates, drawing connections with the French baroque château gardens. This merging of ideas is represented in a contemporary responsive design created a sustainable, cool and protected micro climate for users and a dynamic kaleidoscope of planting and patterned paving on the ground and viewed from the surrounding towers.
The Public Realm has been designed so that these future developments can be integrated into the landscape scheme. The podium landscape as a whole has been designed as one large plaza space, with each of the areas having a different character and function.
Sculptural mounds provide micro-climate environments as wind protection and cooling to the local surroundings. They also add a spatial intimacy, framing outdoor rooms, which mitigate the impact of the mega-scale skyscrapers in the site.
The structure of the square uses large constructed vegetated mounds that orchestrate outdoor rooms to shelter pedestrians from the Shamal, a strong north-westerly wind blowing over Persian Gulf and to provide intimate spaces amongst the towering buildings. Linking the mounds together, the decorative pattern like that of a traditional rug, weaves through the square.
To soothe people from the heat, water features are incorporated into long stone benches that wrap the mounds, providing playful and tactile experience. The surface texture is finished with ornate grooves creating a dynamic rippling effect. In order to maximise this limited resource, and reduce evaporation, the water is contained in narrow Falaj like channels as used in ancient irrigation system found throughout the Middle East. At night, the benches come to life with integrated lighting at the base that silhouettes the mounds and highlights the polished surfaces.
Innovative sustainable design has been instrumental in the project which has been awarded a LEED Gold certification. The steep angulated mounds contribute 1.45 times more green space than level planters and water consumption is reduced due to the vertical planting maximising 100% irrigation moisture.
The information gathered during the pedestrian, vehicular, and program site studies has been used to inform the landscape design strategy. The straight line pedestrian linkages and vehicular movements are used to structure the public realm and the design concepts have been used to infill the public realm structure.
The 77 individuals who lost their lives during the 2011 terrorist attacks in Norway will be commemorated by this competition-winning intervention by Swedish artist Jonas Dahlberg to sever a strip of headland from the coastline near Oslo.
Jonas Dahlberg plans to pay tribute to victims by creating “a wound or a cut within the landscape” that will symbolise the feeling of loss created by the events of 22 July, which included the bombing of a government quarter in Oslo and the shootings that followed on the nearby island of Utøya.
The artist plans to make a 3.5 metre-wide slice between the surface of the landscape and the waterline in the Norwegian village of Sørbråten – just across the water from Utøya – effectively making it impossible to reach the end of the headland on foot.
“My concept for the Memorial Sørbråten proposes a wound or a cut within nature itself,” explained Dahlberg in his competition text. “It reproduces the physical experience of taking away, reflecting the abrupt and permanent loss of those who died.”
A five-minute trail will lead visitors across the landscape towards the memorial. This pathway will become a tunnel, arriving at a cutaway that faces across the water towards a stone wall inscribed with the names of the victims.
“The names will be close enough to see and read clearly, yet ultimately out of reach,” said the artist. “This experience hopes to bring visitors to a state of reflection through a poetic rupture or interruption. It should be difficult to see the inherent beauty of the natural setting, without also experiencing a sense of loss.”
Dahlberg also plans to use the excavated material to build a second memorial at the government quarter in Oslo, forging a connection between the two sites to reference the connection between the two attacks.
Excavated soil and stone used to create another memorial in Oslo
The various trees and plants removed to create the pathway at Sørbråten will form an artificial landscape in Oslo, creating a sunken walkway with tiered seating along one side. Meanwhile, the leftover stone will be used to construct an amphitheatre.
Here’s the full announcement from the July 22 Memorials organisation:
Swedish artist Jonas Dahlberg to design July 22 Memorial sites in Norway
Director of KORO/Public Art Norway Svein Bjørkås announced the jury’s evaluation of submissions and final decision in the closed competition July 22 Memorial sites. The jury’s decision was unanimous, voting Swedish artist Jonas Dahlberg as winner of the competition.
Dahlberg’s concept takes the site at Sørbråten as its point of departure. Here he proposes a wound or a cut within the landscape itself to recreate the physical experience of something being taken away, and to reflect the abrupt and permanent loss of those who died on Utøya. The cut will be a three-and-a-half-metre wide excavation running from the top of the headland at the Sørbråten site to below the waterline and extending to each side. This gap in the landscape will make it impossible to reach the end of the headland.
The material excavated from the cut at Sørbråten will be used to build the foundation for the temporary memorial at the Government Quarter in Oslo, and will also subsequently serve as the foundation for the permanent memorial there.
From the Jury’s evaluation of Jonas Dahlberg’s proposal:
Jonas Dahlberg’s proposal takes the emptiness and traces of the tragic events of 22 July as its starting point. His suggestion for the Sørbråten site is to make a physical incision into the landscape, which can be seen as a symbolic wound. Part of the headland will be removed and visitors will not be able to touch the names of those killed, as these will be engraved into the wall on the other side of the slice out of nature. The void that is created evokes the sense of sudden loss combined with the long-term missing and remembrance of those who perished.
Dahlberg has proposed to move the landmass taken out of the rocky landscape at Sørbråten to the permanent and temporary memorial site in the Government Quarter in Oslo. By using this landmass to create a temporary memorial pathway between Grubbegata and the Deichmanske Library, a connection is forged between the memorial sites at Sørbråten and the Government Quarter. The names of those killed will be recorded on a wall that runs alongside the pathway.
The proposed permanent memorial site in Oslo takes the form of an amphitheatre around Høyblokka. Dahlberg also proposes to use trees taken from Sørbråten in this urban environment to maintain the relationship between the memorial sites in the capital and to the victims of the atrocities at Utøya.
The Jury considers Dahlberg’s proposal for Sørbråten as artistically highly original and interesting. It is capable of conveying and confronting the trauma and loss that the 22 July events resulted in in a daring way. The proposal is radical and brave, and evokes the tragic events in a physical and direct manner.
Russian studio Wowhaus has transformed a four-lane highway beside Moscow’s Moskva River into the city’s first year-round park, featuring rows of trees, fountains, cafes and artists’ studios (+ slideshow).
Photograph by Alexander Minchenko
Extending from the northern perimeter of Gorky Park, the Krymskaya Embankment project creates pedestrian pathways and cycle routes alongside the southern bank of the river, connecting with the Central House of Artists gallery building and Muzeon Fallen Monument Park.
Photograph by Alexander Minchenko
Starting at the Krymskaya Bridge, Wowhaus divided the stretch into four zones that each accommodate different activities, then used a wave motif to unite various design elements that include cobbled paving, wooden benches, buildings and pathways.
Photograph by Alexander Minchenko
“The central design element of the embankment is the wave,” said the architects. “Wave-shaped benches, and pedestrian and cycling waves create an artificial landscape.”
“In summer the wave-shaped multi-level layout can be used for walking, cycling or roller skating, while in winter it is a perfect setup for sledging, skating or skiing,” they added.
The first zone encompasses the area in front of and underneath the bridge. It includes a wooden stage for outdoor performances, as well as a series of sheltered benches made from reconstituted stone and wood.
Photograph by Alexander Minchenko
The next section accommodates the artists’ studio and exhibition spaces, which are contained within a 210-metre-long structure featuring wavy roof profiles.
Photograph by Alexander Minchenko
A riverside pathway runs along beside the structure, leading on to a fountain area behind. Here, jets of water are laid out on a 60-metre-long grid to create an interactive water feature, flanked by rows of linden trees designed to reference classic French streetscapes.
Photograph by Olga Ascension
The final zone, entitled Green Hills, includes landscaped areas interspersed with winding pathways and various pavilions. Wooden benches slice into the hillsides and are surrounded by rowan trees, apple trees and hawthorns.
Photograph by Olga Ascension
Here’s a project description from Wowhaus:
Krymskaya Embankment
A once unappealing Krymskaya embankment, only recently separated from the Muzeon park and the Central House of Artists, has been transformed beyond recognition: what once was a road has turned into a lane for pedestrians and bicycles. Fountains have been set up, wave-shaped artist pavilions have replaced a chaotic exhibition area and small hills with benches scattered about have become part of the landscape park thus extending a green strip from Gorky park on the other side of the Krymsky bridge.
Objective
To turn a quiet four-lane road into a new city landmark, thereby bringing life to the deserted area of Muzeon park between the Central House of Artists and the Moskva river.
Photograph by Olga Ascension
Solution
To link the Krymskaya embankment to a 10 km pedestrian and cycling route that starts at Vorobievy Gori and to replace the road with a landscape park with distinct transit and sport features while preserving the artists’ exhibition zone.
Photograph by Olga Ascension
The transformed Krymskaya embankment is the first year-round landscape park in the centre of Moscow. In summer the wave-shaped multilevel layout can be used for walking, cycling or roller-skating while in winter it is a perfect setup for sledging, skating or skiing. The central design element of the embankment is the wave: wave-shaped benches, pedestrian and cycling waves create an artificial landscape.
The park zone was divided into four parts: an area in front of the bridge, an artists’ zone around a “Vernisage” pavilion, the Fountain Square and “Green Hills”. When planning each zone, the view from the other bank was also considered.
Photograph by Alexander Minchenko
Under the Krymsky Bridge
A transit zone connecting Gorky Park with the Krymsky embankment has become a popular spot and also provides shelter from the rain now that a stage, and two wooden amphitheatres have been built. 28 artificial rock and metal benches illuminated from the inside are scattered along the way as an amenity for pedestrians and cyclists from Muzeon to Gorky park.
The entrance of Muzeon is a 210 metre wooden vernissage with a wave-shaped roof (the pavilion was designed by Asse Architects).
Photograph by Olga Ascension
Fountain zone
The fountain zone which is the central element of the new park, faces the Central House of Artists and is separated from the river by a linden alley. A fountain jet, 60 metres long and 14 metres wide, is one of the options of the so called “dry” fountains when the edge of the water is level with the paving. The fountain has an internal system of dynamic lighting that allows various lighting patterns.
49 lindens were planted in a classic French park order to the north-east of the fountain on the embankment. A special planting technology, used in Russia for the first time, allows walking and cycling on these lanes without causing damage to the trees.
Photograph by Olga Ascension
“Green Hills”
When planning this part of the pedestrian route special attention was paid to the artificial landscape and plantation. Hills designed for walking and resting were furnished mainly with steppe plants. Trees and bushes with decorative crowns like lindens, hawthorns, rowan trees and ornamental apple trees were planted on hills from where one can contemplate and admire the scenery.
Photograph by Alexander Minchenko
The artificial relief is accentuated by wave-shaped wooden benches and beach beds that are “cut” into hills between walking lanes. There is also an artificial pond in this part of the park.
Photograph by Alexander Minchenko
Pavilions
In accordance with the bureau’s project there are three pavilions on the Krymskaya embankment, the fourth one will be completed by the end of 2013 and will replace a gas station. Pavilions will be used as cafes, stores and bike rentals.
Pavilion near the fountain square is designed by Darya Melnik and the cafe-pavilion in the “Green Hills” zone is designed by Anna Proshkuratova. The bike rental pavilion closest to the 3rd Folutvinsky Lane is equipped with a concrete roof ramp for bikes or skateboards, designed by Roman Kuchukov.
Photograph by Olga Ascension
All pavilions feature an extensive use of glass, some of them even use structural glass shapes – U-shaped toughened glass with high-bearing capacity.
Photograph by Olga Ascension
Lighting solutions
To make the park accessible and attractive for guests 24 hours a day, planning takes into account night time illumination, especially the point lighting of certain landscape elements. Ornamental lamps that are installed in groups among plants on the hills illuminate the area and create a striking visual. All the lanes are illuminated as well so that pedestrians and cyclists do not get lost.
Photograph by Olga Ascension
On the Fountain Square the “dry” fountain together with the linden alley make up a lighting composition that combines the dynamic colour lighting of the fountain jets with the softer warm-white illumination of the regular rows of the linden alley.
Area of the Krymskaya embankment:45 000 m2 Length of the embankment: 1 km Area of planting: 10 700 m2 Planting: 44 726 perennial and ornamental plants, 96475 bulbous plants, 485 trees and bushes. Number of flowerbeds and hills: 34, 3 of which are breast walls Area of paving: 24 318 m2 Length of bicycle lanes: 4684 m2 Light: 1419 light fixtures Fountain info: fountain dimensions – 12m х 60 m, 203 sprayers Area of pavilions: pavilion on the Fountain Square – total area 275 m2, pavilion on “Green Hills” – total area 35 m2, bike rental pavilion: total area 200 m2.
Bureau partners: Dmitry Likin, Oleg Shapiro Leading project architect: Mikhail Kozlov Architects: Maria Gulida, Alena Zaytseva, Roman Kuchukov, Darya Melnik, Tatyana Polyakova, Anna Proshkuratova, Anastasia Rychkova, Tatiana Skibo, Yarmarkina; with the participation of Yuriy Belov, Anna Karneeva, Olga Lebedeva, Anastasia Maslova Senior project engineers: Dmitry Belostotsky, Ivan Mikhalchuk Planting: Anna Andreeva Lighting: Anna Harchenkova Constructors of pavilions: Nussli (consulting), Werner Sobek Artificial landscape consulting: LDA Design Fountain and electricity engineering: Adline Chief design contractor: MAHPI
Photos: Olga Alekseenko, Yuriy Brazhnikov/Village, Nikolay Vasiliev, Olga Voznesenskaya, Elizaveta Gracheva, Darya Osmanova
News: architecture firm Snøhetta has concluded the first phase of a major overhaul of New York‘s Times Square, continuing the initiative started in 2009 to pedestrianise large sections of the popular tourist destination.
The $55 million reconstruction project is the largest redesign of the square in decades and encompasses the transformation of five public plazas between 42nd and 47th Streets, which will be entirely reconstructed to remove any traces that vehicular traffic once ran through the square along the Broadway.
Rendering by Snohetta and MIR
Snøhetta completed the redevelopment of the plaza between 42nd and 43rd Streets just in time for the New Year’s Eve celebrations. It features flattened-out curbs that create single-level surfaces for pedestrians, as well as new benches and paving surfaces.
Working alongside engineers Weidlinger Associates and landscape architect Mathews Nielsen, the architects plan to open a second plaza by the end of 2015 and complete the entire project the following year.
Rendering by Snohetta
This stretch of the Broadway was first closed to traffic in 2009 as part of an initiative by New York mayor Michael Bloomberg to provide additional space for more than 400,000 pedestrians who pass through Times Square every day. Since then the square has seen a 33 percent reduction in traffic-related injuries, as well a 180 percent increase in shop lets around the square.
“Since we first introduced temporary pedestrian plazas in Times Square, we have seen increased foot traffic and decreased traffic injuries – and businesses have seen more customers than ever,” said Bloomberg. “With more than 400,000 pedestrians passing through Times Square every day, the plazas have been good for New Yorkers, our visitors, and our businesses – and that’s why we’re making them permanent.”
Once complete, the restructuring will add 13,000 square-metres (140,000 square-feet) of new pedestrian space to Times Square. It will feature ten solid granite benches, as well as two-tone paving slabs with embedded metal discs, designed to reflect the neon glow from surrounding signs and billboards.
“With innovative designs and a little paint, we’ve shown you can change a street quickly with immediate benefits,” said transportation commissioner Sadik-Khan.
French studio TVK has overhauled the Place de la République in Paris to create an even larger pedestrian plaza that includes a new cafe pavilion, water features and over 150 trees (+ slideshow).
TVK‘s largest intervention was to adapt the surrounding road layout to make more pedestrian-priority areas. This increased the size of the square to 280 metres wide by 120 metres long, making it the largest pedestrian space in the city.
“The redevelopment of the Place de la République is based on the concept of an open space with multiple urban uses,” said the architects.
“The elimination of the traffic circle frees the site from the dominating constraint of motor vehicle traffic. The creation of the concourse marks the return of calm in an airy, uncluttered two hectare space,” they added.
The new cafe has been added to the south-west side of the square. Named Monde & Médias Pavilion, which translates as World and Media Pavilion, it was designed to host different public activities.
All four sides of the building are glazed to allow views through. A solid canopy cantilevers from one side to create a sheltered seating area and its underside is clad with reflective aluminium.
French studio NP2F Architectes designed the interior of the cafe, which features a fluted marble bar, wooden chairs and an assortment of plants.
Three different kinds of concrete slabs were used to create the surface of the square and are interspersed with plane trees, honey locust trees and lighting columns.
A circular water basin has been added around the nineteenth century statue at the centre of the square, while the a second water feature comprises a plane of water covering a small area outside the cafe.
Monde & Medias Pavilion and Place de la République, Paris
TVK hand over the redevelopment of the Place de la République, inaugurated by the mayor of Paris on June 2013.
Due to its exceptional size (120m by nearly 300m), its symbolic dimension as a representative public statement and its location in the city, the Place de la République occupies a special place in the international hub that is Paris.
The redevelopment of the Place de la République is based on the concept of an open space with multiple urban uses. The elimination of the traffic circle frees the site from the dominating constraint of motor vehicle traffic. The creation of the concourse marks the return of calm in an airy, uncluttered two hectare space. The new square, now skirted by motor traffic, creates a large-scale landscape and becomes an urban resource, available and adaptable for different uses. Clear connections with the large boulevards promote a new balance centred on soft transport for pedestrians, cyclists and public transport.
The statue of Marianne, the reflective pool, the pavilion and the rows of the trees form a strong axis. This harmony is amplified by the serene balance of the mineral element and a very gentle slope of 1%. All these elements contribute to both the interpretation of unitary materials in a perennial and contemporary manner and multiple explorations (colours, water, lights) creating different urban ambiances. The Place de la République is now the largest pedestrian square in Paris.
The south-west part of the square houses a 162 m² pavilion, a unique building, glazed throughout to retain a continuous impression of this singular space. The pavilion was conceived and designed by TVK Architectes Urbanistes. It’s interior layout has been designed by NP2F architectes.
The articulation of public and pedestrian areas
Abandoning the traffic circle model
The redevelopment of the Place de la République is based on a decision to create the largest possible public pedestrian area. Paris was in need of an exceptionally large and versatile public place, like an open field in the heart of the city, a feature found in many other large cities. Also, it was essential to move away from the traffic circle model.
Functional & environmental dissymmetry
Two-fold dissymmetry, both functional and environmental, is used along the long axis of the square to blend it into the general urban setting.
Motor traffic has been reorganised. It now runs along the southern edge and two smaller sides of the square only. Now that the traffic runs in both directions and the pavements have been widened, the road is much more similar to the large Parisian boulevards.
Unity and balance
The Place de la République is also open to varied groups participating in a very wide range of activities. The aim of the project was to cater for these users by changing the balance between the roadway and the concourse. The most important challenge was to reunify and harmonise the attributes of a city with those of a local neighbourhood.
The pavilion’s design
In line with the principles adopted in the redevelopment of the Place de la République, the “Monde & Médias” Pavilion is a perennial building, designed to last. It is scalable and adaptable, but also is a strong presence, opening onto the square. It is the only edifice in the new square. The Pavilion is sited on the southwest part, in line with the reflective pool and the statue de la Republique. It is fully glazed so as not to obscure the view and provides a continuous vista of the square. The pavilion houses a “World & Media” themed café and its entirely modular interior can host a wide variety of festive, social and cultural events and uses in all seasons and all weathers.
The pavilion is assertively simple in design, comprising a closed volume, 9.29m by 18.20m and 3m high, and a 0.75m-thick roof with an 8.70m cantilever.
The pavilion’s envelope is entirely glazed. The visual impact of its structural assembly is minimal, so as not to perturb the prismatic appearance of the overall volume: the metallic elements are integrated to a maximum and the opening zones are concentrated to create an image of large glazed planes jointed together.
The supporting structure also participates in this self-effacement to achieve transparency: reduced to four small-diameter metallic posts at the corners, it is similar in design to the metallic elements. The roof band is composed of aluminium sheeting whose assemblage is invisible, with its horizontal and vertical aluminium rigidifying elements following the same rhythm as that of the glazed panels.
The cantilever’s underside is clad with large sheets of perforated aluminium. Echoing the large symmetrical composition of the Place de la République, the space’s interior organisation is dictated by a partition dividing it lengthways into two distinct and symmetrical areas.
Composition of the area and surface
The surface
The surface consists of paving slabs of different colours and sizes. The shady areas of the square are paved mostly in darker colours, while the open areas are generally paler.
The choice of prefabricated concrete ensures good performance in all weather, offering maximum resistance to the greatest variety of uses. This material also enables the use of monochrome colours, creating continuity with the surrounding surfaces of roads and roofs.
Three types of concrete paving slabs have been used in the square, reflecting its overall layout: – “large module” prefabricated slabs in the centre of the concourse, to give a wide perspective and cater for large-scale uses, – “medium module” prefabricated slabs for the rest of the esplanade along the concourse, – and lastly, “small module” prefabricated slabs (on a more ordinary scale) for the north and south pavements. The bus lane to the north of the square is made of poured concrete.
Before and after photographs
Levels
The density of the networks present under the Place de la République mean it also serves as a “roof”: the site is home to five Metro lines, sewers, telecom tunnels, etc. The levels create a main movement of great simplicity, vital to the spatial comprehension of the square and an understanding of its vastness. The simple 1% incline of the central concourse reveals two wide terraces at the back of the esplanade, in keeping with the scale of the surrounding area. The terraces continue the concourse but are edged to the north with steps. Between these terraces, the ground drops consistently towards the two large palace buildings and the shared trafficked area (pedestrians, cycles, buses, taxis), providing continuity of traffic flow and excellent accessibility.
Design diagram
A large garden, a large concourse
The square is unified by the single grand compositional movement and the one inorganic surface treatment. This unity helps to indicate three distinct sections: the urban garden of over 2,000 m2, planted and organised into several sub-areas; the central concourse of almost 12,000 m2 and 35 metres wide with the statue de la Republique as the focal point; the continuity of all the boulevards, with the road system on three of its sides and the widened pavement (13 metres on the longer side to the south west, which is the busiest side).
The terraces on the Place de la République
At the rear end of the esplanade, two flat terraces are each marked by a single step on three of their sides, which conducive to sitting and socialising. The new tree planting establishes a specific ambiance. The terraces will be equipped with movable structures expressing day-to-day and local themes, and changing with the seasons (roundabout, toy library etc.).
The playground is now located on the east terrace.
Water – in various forms and with a myriad of uses (climatic, social, recreational, aesthetic) – is a key feature of the central esplanade.
The monument basin
The statue de la Republique dominates the centre of the new pedestrian esplanade. The new base takes the form of a large circular basin, at the edge of which visitors can sit, walk, play, or examine the bas-reliefs.
During the summer months, it is filled with water, adding to the number of uses. The base also houses a new lighting system for the statue. Spotlights, sunk under the sheet of water, project moving reflections over the entire monument.
On the west concourse of the esplanade, facing the Monde & Médias Pavilion, the theme of water is repeated in a minimal, contemporary version. In summer, a fine sheet of water runs down the 1% slope, covering an area of more than 270m2 (23mx12m). Sprays are connected to this sheet of water. When switched off, they affect neither the topography nor the uses of the concourse, so are almost imperceptible.
News: British architect Norman Foster has unveiled a concept to build a network of elevated pathways above London’s railways to create safe car-free cycling routes, following 14 cyclist deaths on the city’s streets in 2013.
Entitled SkyCycle, the proposal by architects Foster + Partners, landscape architects Exterior Architecture and transport consultant Space Syntax is for a “cycling utopia” of approximately 220 kilometres of dedicated cycle lanes, following the routes of existing train lines.
Over 200 entrance points would be dotted across the UK capital to provide access to ten different cycle paths. Each route would accommodate up to 12,000 cyclists per hour and could improve journey times across the city by up to half an hour.
“SkyCycle is a lateral approach to finding space in a congested city,” said Foster, who is both a regular cyclist and the president of Britain’s National Byway Trust. “By using the corridors above the suburban railways, we could create a world-class network of safe, car free cycle routes that are ideally located for commuters.”
If approved, the routes could be in place within 20 years, offering relief to a transport network that is already at capacity and will need to contend with 12 percent population growth over the next decade.
“I believe that cities where you can walk or cycle, rather than drive, are more congenial places in which to live,” said Foster.
“To improve the quality of life for all in London and to encourage a new generation of cyclists, we have to make it safe,” he added. “However, the greatest barrier to segregating cars and cyclists is the physical constraint of London’s streets, where space is already at a premium.”
According to the designers, construction of elevated decks would be considerably cheaper than building new roads and tunnels. The routes would offer greater health benefits for London residents and would make more efficient use of space, as more car owners could be encouraged to cycle rather than drive to work.
“At crucial points in London’s history major infrastructure projects have transformed the fortunes of the capital,” said Space Syntax director Anna Rose. “For example, Bazalgette’s sewer system helped remove the threat of cholera to keep London at the forefront of the industrial revolution; the Underground strengthened London’s core by making long-distance commuting possible.”
“SkyCycle is conceived in this tradition as a network of strategic connections from the suburban edges to the centre, adding the much needed capacity for hundreds of millions of cycle journeys every year with all the social, economic, environmental and health benefits to London that follow,” she added.
Cycling safety in London was called into question in November last year when six cyclists died in road accidents in a two-week period, bringing the total for the year up to 14. A poll by BBC News found that one in five cyclists in London stopped cycling to work following the accidents.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
