Today’s A-Zdvent calendar features Rafael Viñoly and his Firstsite gallery wrapped in golden metal. New York architect Vinoly also made the headlines this summer after reports surfaced that his Walkie Talkie skyscraper in London was reflecting light intense enough to melt cars.
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Rafael Viñoly appeared first on Dezeen.
20 Fenchurch Street, connu sous le nom de « Walkie Talkie Building », est le nouvel immeuble de verre et d’acier conçu par l’architecte Rafael Viñoly. D’une hauteur de 160 mètres de haut avec ses 37 étages, cette structure représente depuis le sol un miroir géant. Un projet à 200 millions de livres sterling.
News: architect Rafael Viñoly has admitted he knew the facade of his curvy Walkie Talkie skyscraper in London would focus an intense beam of sunlight onto a neighbouring street, but says that he “didn’t realise it was going to be so hot”.
Speaking to Guardian architecture critic Oliver Wainwright, Viñoly said that his curvaceous 37-storey tower at 20 Fenchurch Street was originally designed with horizontal sun louvres that would prevent a glare strong enough to melt the paint and bodywork of parked vehicles on Eastcheap Street, but that they were removed to cut costs.
“We made a lot of mistakes with this building,” he said, “and we will take care of it.”
The architect claims to have identified the problem during the design stages, but says he was without appropriate tools or software to analyse the precise effect.
“When it was spotted on a second design iteration, we judged the temperature was going to be about 36 degrees,” he said. “But it’s turned out to be more like 72 degrees. They are calling it the ‘death ray’, because if you go there you might die. It is phenomenal, this thing.”
He also suggested that the problem could be down to changing climate. “When I first came to London years ago, it wasn’t like this,” he said. “Now you have all these sunny days. So you should blame this thing on global warming too, right?”
This week developers installed a two-storey netted shield to cover the facade of the building, now nicknamed “Walkie Scorchie”, while city officials have suspended three parking bays until a more permanent solution can be found.
Reports first surfaced at the start of the week that the building was damaging vehicles. Since then it has been reported to have cracked pavement tiles, started a fire and even been used to fry an egg.
This isn’t the first time that Viñoly has had complaints about sun reflecting from one of his buildings. In 2010, guests at the Vdara Hotel in Las Vegas complained of scorched hair and melted drinks glasses.
“That was a completely different problem,” Viñoly told the paper, stating that the brief for that project had called for curvy towers. “We pointed out that would be an issue too, but who cares if you fry somebody in Las Vegas, right?”
The Walkie Talkie is scheduled to complete next year.
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Images of the Walkie Talkie are courtesy of Shutterstock.
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says Walkie Scorchie architect Viñoly appeared first on Dezeen.
News: the “death-ray” effect created by sunlight reflected off the glazed facade of Rafael Viñoly’s Walkie Talkie skyscraper in London were predicted over a year ago by a professional CGI artist, it emerged today as developers rush to install protective screens.
The artist, who goes by the forum username Bobdobbs, anticipated that the curvaceous facade of the 37-storey tower at 20 Fenchurch Street could at certain times of the year create light reflections up to 600% brighter that its surroundings buildings, using a simple 3D mock-up of the volume.
“A clear hot late September/October day may throw up some very interesting lighting effects,” he wrote on a thread at website SkyscraperCity. “I’m fairly confident that the difference, from measurement, is about 600% brighter! I know where I wouldn’t want to stand!”
Comparing the project to nearby skyscraper The Shard, which is reported to have dazzled train drivers, Bobdobbs added: “The Shard’s death ray will be nothing compared to this.”
The news emerges as developers Land Securities and Canary Wharf take emergency action to prevent more damage being caused by intense glare from the nicknamed “Walkie Scorchie”, which is said to have melted vehicles, cracked pavement tiles and even started a small fire.
“Following approval from the City of London, we will be erecting a temporary scaffold screen at street level on Eastcheap within the next 24 hours,” said a spokesperson. “This solution should minimise the impact on the local area over the next two to three weeks, after which time the phenomenon is expected to have disappeared.”
They added: “We are also continuing to evaluate longer-term solutions to ensure this issue does not recur in future.”
Philip Oldfield, a tall buildings expert from the University of Nottingham, has suggested that amendments to Rafael Viñoly’s initial concept could be to blame. “It seems the original design included small horizontal balconies on the south facade rather than the continuous glass facade as built now,” he told The Independent. “This would have surely mitigated any significant glare like we are seeing at the moment.”
Other preventative measures that could be taken include adding small fins to the exterior or applying a special coating that reduces the impact of the reflections.
This isn’t the first time that a building by the Uruguayan architect has prompted complaints about glare. In 2010, guests at the Vdara Hotel in Las Vegas complained of scorched hair and melted drinks glasses. The hotel has since used anti-reflective film, oversized plants and rows of umbrellas to fix the problem.
The unfinished skyscraper is not set to open until next year and will feature an elevated garden and observation deck that will be open to the public.
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Photograph of the Walkie Talkie is courtesy of Shutterstock.
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effect a year ago appeared first on Dezeen.
News: Rafael Viñoly’s Walkie Talkie skyscraper in London is reflecting a beam of light intense enough to melt cars, according to a series of recent reports.
Claims surfaced over the weekend that the glare from the curvaceous glass facade of the 37-storey tower – currently under construction at 20 Fenchurch Street – have caused vehicle paintwork to melt and bodywork to distort.
Engineer Eddie Cannon, who parked his Vauxhall Vevaro beneath the building, told local newspaper City AM: “The van looks a total mess – every bit of plastic on the left hand side and everything on the dashboard has melted, including a bottle of Lucozade that looks like it has been baked.”
Tiling company director Martin Lindsay suffered a similar fate, claiming that the panels surrounding his Jaguar XJ had been warped. Attacking property developer Land Securities, he said: “They’re going to have to think of something. I’m gutted. How can they let this continue?”
Land Securities has acknowledged the claims and is promising to look into the matter. “As a precautionary measure, the City of London has agreed to suspend three parking bays in the area which may be affected while we investigate the situation further,” said a spokesperson.
The skyscraper, nicknamed the Walkie Talkie due to its distinctive profile, is set to be the first London building completed by Uruguayan architect Rafael Viñoly, who is based in New York. This recent controversy has prompted critics to rebrand the building “Walkie Scorchie”.
The skyscraper is scheduled to complete in 2014 and will feature an elevated garden and observation deck that will be open to the public.
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Images of the Walkie Talkie are courtesy of Shutterstock.
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“melts cars” appeared first on Dezeen.
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