Hasta La Ideas

A pointed arch punctures the red concrete facade of this Portuguese visitor attraction designed by Lisbon architect Gonçalo Byrne to present the history of a fourteenth century battle between Portuguese and Castilian forces (+ slideshow).

The Centro de Interpretação da Batalha de Atoleiros was designed to host an exhibition dedicated to the story of the Battle of Atoleiros, the first clash of an eight-year period of Portuguese civil war that started when King Ferdinand I died without any male heirs.

Unable to situate the building on the historic battlefield, Gonçalo Byrne Arquitectos created the centre in the nearby town of Fronteira, eastern Portugal, on a site overlooking a park.

The exterior walls are made from blocks of pigmented concrete and have a coarse surface intended to be reminiscent of the uneven construction of medieval buildings.

“The body of the building recalls the tactility of the traditional medieval construction, presenting rough textured surfaces very close to the primal textures achieved by human hand,” said the design team.

Slabs of schist, a fine-grained rock, are slotted between the layers of concrete to support the structure and give additional texture to the facade.

The pointed arch cuts right across the building to create a pair of glazed entrances beneath the shelter of the concrete. This glazing also wraps around the rear of the building to create a row of windows.

A curving wooden bench is positioned behind the windows, creating a seating area at the end of the exhibition trail where visitors are expected to look out across the park and recreate battle scenes with their imagination.

Photography is by Fernando Guerra.

Here’s a project description from Gonçalo Byrne Arquitectos:

Centre for Interpretation of the Battle of Atoleiros

Object

The Centre for Interpretation of the Battle of Atoleiros, in Fronteira, is a cultural equipment intended to raise social awareness on the several perspectives over the battle occurred on April 6th 1384, and its importance in the context of the dynastic disputes between the kingdoms of Portugal and Castela, by the end of the XIVth Century.

Given the impossibility on plotting the Interpretation Centre on-site, in the battlefield area, the City Council approved its plot in the town core, on a location with high visibility and inserted in an urban park system that simulates and evokes the old battlefield. During the visit to the Interpretation Centre, visitors will experience different visual perspectives of the battlefield, but also about the history, through its protagonists and authors, led by the hand of the painter Martins Barata.

A large bench, at the end of the exhibition circuit, presents urban park in all its dimensions, rehearsing another exhibition discourse, this made of vegetables and inert elements, a sculptural dimension that simulates the plains and the imagination refers to the Battle of Atoleiros.

Materials

The body of the building recalls the tactility of the traditional medieval construction, presenting rough textured surfaces, achieved by the use of pigmented concrete with raw and irregular expression, very close to the primal textures achieved by human hand. This texture is enhanced by interposing lines of schist slabs in the horizontal joints of the building.

As a whole, the building generates a gravitational presence; almost an earth sculpture dyed in its own tonalities, evoking time in the spontaneous patina patterns, resembling a stained vertical battlefield, between a small and a larger body, like the two armies in conflict.

Structure

The combined use of concrete walls and a structure formed by a concrete column/beam/slab system, allowed maximal area exploitation and the display of generous exhibition areas.

Through the completion of consoles the structure had acquired more complexity, allowing lateral glazing and motivating an open relationship between inner and outside areas, between exhibition and urban park.

Environment

Portuguese southern landscape has a golden/reddish tone. The reddish wash of the building tries to emulate those colours and patterns, therefore reinforcing a sense of belonging.

Colour and textures are also enhanced by the usage of the same pitch used on the urban park paving system, serving as an essential framework for the Interpretation Centre, yet reinterpreting the battlefield original landscape.

The post Red concrete visitor centre by Gonçalo Byrne
tells the story of a Portuguese civil war battle appeared first on Dezeen.

Bright red walls contrast with vivid green lawns at this art and culture centre in Portugal by Lisbon architecture firm Future Architecture Thinking (+ slideshow).

Located in the town of Miranda do Corvo, Casa das Artes is made of three differently sized volumes that are painted red all over to help the building stand out as much as possible from its surroundings.

Asymmetric roof profiles were intended by Future Architecture Thinking to correspond with the angular rooftops of nearby houses, as well as with the irregular geometries of the distant Lousã Mountains.

“The proposal is based on a contemporary language that is structurally very strong through the continuity between the facades and the roof,” said the architects.

“The slopes of the roof look for identification with the city rooftops and the use of the strong colour is intended to create a building which is immediately recognisable by the public,” they added.

A chimney-like skylight stretches up beyond the roof, drawing evening sunlight from the west down to a covered terrace at the building’s entrance.

The largest of the three volumes accommodates the stage of a 300-seat auditorium, while seating extends back into a second block positioned behind.

This block also contains the auditorium foyer, which doubles up as a split-level gallery for temporary exhibitions, while an independent cafe is housed in the third and smallest block.

Photography is by João Morgado.

Read on for more information from Future Architecture Thinking:

Casa das Artes in Miranda do Corvo

The Casa das Artes (House of the Arts) in Miranda do Corvo expresses the meeting between two identities, rural and urban, in a landscape marked by the Lousã Mountains.

The building features a contemporary and volumetrically expressive language. The sloping roofs establish a dialogue with the geometry of the mountain landscape, in an analogy to the village rooftops. The dynamism achieved through the continuity between facades and roof is accented by a strong red colour, emphasising its design and highlighting the building through the surrounding landscaped area vegetation.

More than a building, the Casa das Artes pretends to be an iconic landmark, celebrating the place where people meet, where culture and art happens, a space capable of promoting and stimulating creative activity, increasing the population quality of life.

The project was conceived by creating versatile spaces, technically suitable for different kinds of events, in order to serve all segments of the population.

The deployment area was optimised to favour landscaped spaces, allowing the creation of an amphitheatre for outdoor events, integrated in a garden which is a public space for the village, with several spaces and inviting pathways for leisure.

The building consists of three volumes reflecting different sorts of use: the first one containing the stage areas, the second comprising the audience and foyer, and the third with a cafeteria and a future museum area, which constitute a visually independent volume.

The proposed diversity of accesses for the building attempts to emphasise the characterisation of this site as a public space, while allowing the public direct access of specific places, such as the museum area and cafeteria, independently, without passing through the auditorium.

The main entrance is through the foyer. This space may function as exhibition area which can be divided into two by a short flight of stairs. From here depart two paths to an auditorium for nearly 300 people, with a motorised orchestra pit and six technical levels, properly equipped for holding theatre performances, opera, concerts, conferences or lectures.

The cafeteria can operate independently from the rest of the building, or even serve as an entrance point providing access to the auditorium. This space has a covered terrace with a skylight oriented west, channelling sunset light into its interior. The terrace area gives access to a multimedia room. The facade of the museum area is facing the northern part of the garden where one of the main entries is located and the outdoor amphitheatre.

Client: Municipality of Miranda do Corvo
Location: Miranda do Corvo, Portugal
Area: 2.360 sqm

Architect: FAT – Future Architecture Thinking
Project Team: Architect Miguel Correia, Architect Cláudia Campos, Architect Sérgio Catita, Architect Patrícia de Carvalho, Architect Miguel Cabral, Architect Margarida Magro, Architect Sara Gonçalves, Architect Telmo Maia, Architect Gabriel Santos, Architect Hilário Abril, Engineer José Pico, Landscape Architect Sara Távora
Builder: TECNORÉM – Engenharia e Construções, S.A.
Year: 2010/2013

The post Art and culture centre with bright red walls
by Future Architecture Thinking appeared first on Dezeen.

A chequerboard of opaque panels and windows surrounds this school canteen in western Germany by SpreierTrenner Architekten (+ slideshow).

Located at a secondary school in the town of Salmtal, the new building provides a flexible events space that can also be used for plays, music recitals or Christmas fairs.

Around the windows, SpreierTrenner Architekten clad the exterior of the walls with vibrant red ceramic panels. “We wanted something vivid and playful to engage the children, but also welcome any visitors,” architect Daniel Spreier told Dezeen.

“The facade material draws its inspiration from the existing school building from the 1970s, which has a red brick facade,” he added. “So a red ceramic facade using 30-millimetre panels was a close contemporary choice.”

The interior surfaces of these panels are exposed concrete, formed against chunky chipboard to create a soft texture. The red exterior is barely visible, so to add colour the architects filled the room with an assortment of red, yellow and green chairs.

A grid of wooden trusses supports the ceiling and matches the chequered pattern of the walls. This structure allows for a column-free space that can be divided up using removable partitions.

“The starting point was the square plan, which allowed for maximum flexibility” said Spreier. “To span a square plan most efficiently we thought of a two-directional grid. We then took that grid to the facade as well, so it determined the height of the room, the size of the windows and an efficient ratio for the wooden ceiling trusses.”

A glazed entrance opens the building out to the playground, where the grid continues as square paving panels and seating blocks.

“The final result seems to remind people of a Rubik’s Cube,” said Spreier.

We’ve published quite a few red building on Dezeen, including a youth centre in Denmark and a psychiatric centre in Spain.

See more red buildings on Dezeen »

Photography is by Guido Erbring.

Here’s some more information from SpreierTrenner Architekten:

The new school canteen of the Salmtal Secondary School in Germany was designed by SpreierTrenner Architekten as a multifunctional building with the greatest possible flexibility. The space is used not only by children to eat every day, but also for special events such as music concerts, theatre plays or even Christmas fairs. This is why the main room was set out with a column-free square plan only subdivided by a mobile wall.

The adjoining section at the rear contains all supporting facilities, such as a kitchen, storage space, toilets and staff facilities, etc. It has been set out with the option of extending it in the future.

The big glazed entrance opens up the main canteen room to the outside and represents a welcoming gesture. The cantilevering canopy creates a transition zone between the interior and the playground.

The roof grid of the main room consists of 10cm thick and 1m high wood trusses. To keep the appearance simple all ducts, ventilation outlets and lighting are recessed in the ceiling. The integrated lighting produces glowing wood squares that turn the structural trusses into a design feature.

The squares were also used to perforate the building envelope, creating a human scale (1.25 x 1.25m) and allowing for changing outlooks and interesting insights. The surrounding landscape almost appears like pictures hung on the wall rather than mere windows. The checked windows also allow the pupils to interact and play around with their classmates relaxing outside in the schoolyard.

All materials used were kept natural, robust, durable and simple. The main components were concrete, wood and ceramics. The façade was clad with ceramic tiles reflecting the red bricks used to build the original school. Its glazed surface makes it more durable and easier to clean.

Although the façade is a bright red, no colours were used inside to allow the vibrant furniture to stand out. The concrete walls were constructed with a rough surface produced by standard OSB formwork that creates a warm texture. The floor shows the concrete screed surface, similar to the material used in car parks, covered with a transparent protective resin layer.

The architect, Daniel Spreier, wanted the children to take ownership of the building and use the surrounding spaces to relax and have fun. The checked pattern is playfully extended into the external space, which is framed by lawn areas and trees and subdivided by direct paths.

Above: site plan – click above for larger image

The area includes two “external classrooms” consisting of staggered concrete cubes, which allow the students to sit down, run around, jump over and let out any excess energy that builds up in classroom.

Above: floor plan – click above for larger image

Since the building opened, these cubes have proved to be very successful, with children hanging out with their friends at break times and after school.

Above: section – click above for larger image

The post Salmtal Secondary School Canteen
by SpreierTrenner Architekten appeared first on Dezeen.

Dezeen archive: one of our most controversial stories this week was a strikingly red psychiatric centre, so we’ve grouped together all of our stories about bright red architecture. See all the stories »

See all our archive stories »

You can’t miss this bright red psychiatric centre in Spain, where the differently pitched roofs are meant to reveal how much mental activity takes place in each room.

Completed by Spanish architects ///g.bang/// the new youth facility in Zaragoza connects to the existing Nuestra Señora del Carmen Neuropsychiatric Centre through an underground tunnel.

Roofs with the steepest pitches are located above shared common rooms, while shallow gables correspond to patient bedrooms and staff quarters are located beneath flat roofs.

The red powder-coated zinc sheets cover the entire exterior, interrupted only by frameless windows.

In the past we’ve also featured a mental health clinic where the doors don’t open but the walls do instead – take a look here.

Photography is by Jesús Granada.

Here’s a longer description from architects:

Young Disabled Moduls and Workshop Pavilions
‘Módulo Para El Tratamiento De Jóvenes Con Discapacidades Conductuales’

ONE CONCEPT, ONE COLOR AND ONE MATERIAL

The assignment is motivated by the need to expand the Neuropsychiatric Center Our Lady of Carmen, in Zaragoza.

In the first phase there is a new support center for youth with behavioral problems, and currently sharing facilities with the geriatric section and, by the nature of their treatment and pathology, was necessary to become independent.

In a second phase will be built the “Module for Occupational Workshops.”

PROGRAM

It has 10 single bedrooms and 8 double rooms, with toilets. The common areas of the internal are two living rooms and dining room.

The program is completed with, reception room, two offices, laundry, office, control room toilets, storage and utility room.

GEOMETRY

The floor plan is rectangular, dimensions 15.5 x 65 m. The facade has no cantilevers , but reflects the emptying of the building volume in the direction north, creating a courtyard to capture sunlight and allow controlled the patients to stay there in the summer.

The roof, for the most part, sawtooth shape, with variable slopes – very steep at some points – reflects, from the outside, the degree of internal mental activity in relation to the type of rooms they occupy: the resting or sleeping area with a slope of 60%, common areas or with maximum activity have outstanding peak of 240%.

The treatment of the spaces occupied by the medical staff and caregivers has been dealt with flat roofs.

Click above for larger image

MATERIAL/COLOR

Façade and roof are covered with red zinc coated sheet. Historically, these centers, known as asylums were unrecognizable and hidden by society.

Click above for larger image

But Hospital, “hospitare” in Latin, means “to receive as a guest” and together with the values of the Congregation and its founder, “Hospitality between people who suffer mental impairment” and “integrating the patients into society as far as possible” where the main goals… The red color is a symbol that makes them visible… that robs us of prejudice… that emphasizes the social work… makes us more sexy! The material… the shape of this whole “scene” had to be modeled nobly!

Architect: José Javier Gallardo Ortega ///g.bang///
Graphic design: Ivo Gigante Tiago
Client: Nuestra Señora del Carmen Neuropsychiatric Centre | Hermanas Hospitalarias del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús

Type: Medical Facility
Location: Camino del Abejar – Zaragoza, 50011, Spain
Building status: built in 2011
Number of stories: 1 (+1 underground connection with the existing buildings)
Site size: 12000 m2
Site type: Suburban
Building area: 1000 m2
Budget: 1500000 USD