Hasta La Ideas

French architect Noel Dominguez has added a timber-clad residence with an angular penthouse to the former garden of a townhouse on the outskirts of Paris (+ slideshow).

Named Wooden House in Paris, the compact three-storey residence is clad with timber on its two lower storeys, while its glazed top floor is a wedge-shaped penthouse set back from the parapet.

Paris-based Noel Dominguez describes the building as “a periscope” mounted on “a wooden cube”. Its shape was designed to maintain privacy from surrounding buildings, but also ensure it doesn’t restrict the views from any neighbouring windows.

The two-storey base is a timber construction, with deeply recessed windows concentrated onto two elevations, while the upper section was conceived as “a mass of metal and glass” that “contorts and twists to avoid side views,” said the architect.

A large open-plan living room and kitchen occupies the entire ground floor and features exposed ceiling beams and recessed shelving units.

A spiral staircase leads up to a bedroom and bathroom on the middle floor, while the angular penthouse holds the master bedroom.

Due to the restricted nature of the site, construction become a challenge for the design team. Access was through a 1.4-metre-wide passage, meaning that timber had to be lifted into the site with a hand-powered pulley system.

In response to this, the architect built a digital model of the structure, giving each timber component a unique reference number for ease of construction. This enabled the house to be constructed in just three weeks.

Photography is by Fred Toulet, apart from where otherwise stated.

Read on for more text from the architects:

Wooden House in Paris

In the heterogeneous urban fabric of this part of the 20th district of Paris we are asked for a house. 
At the bottom of what was, before the breakup of the family and the sale of the house on the street, the garden, the client starts a new life.

To make the best use of the qualities of the plot of land allocated, the house is divided into two entities.

The wooden cube – a cube of wood is placed back-to-back against the terraced houses in the site. Four of its faces are open, according to the opportunity for views and illumination offered by the plot of land and the terraced housing.

The periscope – positioned on the wooden cube, a mass of metal and glass contorts and twists to avoid side views while making visual framing and lights of the project.

Ship in a bottle… 
Over the 18 metres that separate the narrow street from the construction platform site we circulate across passages 1.4m wide, we encounter a porch 2.5m high with a tree across it. The house on the street is inhabited, its garden opens itself on our plot. The project thus looks like a model ship in a bottle.

We choose a technique where small units of wood are assembled on site and placed by hand or pulley, without machinery (no crane !).
The entire structure is modelled in 3D, each piece arrives on site with a reference and is part of a very precise mounting process.
In order to limit damage to the environment (broadly defined), this technique allows the mounting of the house in three weeks and then the adorning of an insulating wool protection.

Architect: Noel Dominguez
Team: Léo Pollard, Zoé Salvaire
Structural engineering (foundation): N. Perifan
Structural engineering (wood): Rialland
TCE: LMP
Framing wood, insulation and siding: LS Charpentes
Aluminium joinery: FHA
Painter: ECRIN
Locksmith: La Boite de Fer
Carpentry: Francis Bonnet ébénisterie
Cost without tax/M²: €2850

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into Parisian garden appeared first on Dezeen.

The timber and stone buildings of Gion A Caminada, a cult figure in Swiss architecture, will feature in an exhibition opening next month at the House of Art in the Czech city of České Budějovice (+ slideshow).

Hailing from Graubünden, the same Swiss canton as fellow architect Peter Zumthor, Gion A Caminada has built little outside of his native region and instead focussed much of his life’s work on the village of Vrin, where he established his studio in the late 1970s.

Both the population and the economy of the village were in serious decline, so Caminada set about providing infrastructure that would help it to thrive again. These projects include the Klosterhof Salaplauna farming facility and the Mehrzweckhalle public sports hall.

Initally trained as a carpenter and cabinet-maker, the architect also designed a series of houses aimed at combining traditional constructions with modern detailing. Examples of these include Haus Walpen in Blatten, Haus Caviezel in Vrin and his own home, Haus Caminada.

The exhibition, entitled Creating Places, will offer a retrospective of Caminada’s career to date, compiled by the architect alongside curator Michal Škoda.

“The aspect of my architecture that I am interested in is the discussion with the local tradition,” said Caminada, who currently works as an architecture professor at ETH Zurich.

“I pose a question to myself what those old architectural systems may give us,” he continued. “Where is the substance of those constructions? How can they be transformed for new kinds of use to meet the requirements of the present time?”

Other projects featured will include Aussichtsturm Reussdelta – an observation tower for ornithologists – and Waldhuette, a school classroom contained within a woodland cabin.

The exhibition opens at the House of Art’s contemporary art and architecture gallery on 7 May and will run until 15 June.

Here’s some more information about the exhibition:

Gion A Caminada – Creating Places

“The aspect of my architecture that I am interested in is the discussion with the local tradition. I pose a question to myself what those old architectural systems may give us. Where is the substance of those constructions? How can they be transformed for the new kinds use to meet the requirements of the present time? It is always the matter of discussion and a new development. I believe that it is the core of tradition of the entire village.”

These are the words of the Swiss architect Gion A Caminada, whose exhibition was prepared by the Gallery of Contemporary Art and Architecture of the House of Art in České Budějovice for May and June this year.

In the late 1970s, Caminada appeared with a project of improving the development and functioning of the village. And Vrin became the place that Caminada focused a major part of his lifelong effort on. Nowadays, with the benefit of hindsight, we can state that certain ideas and proposals of Caminada’s have not remained at the level of considerations only, which is proved by an essential change on the place mentioned.

Vrin, a village that was dying, both in terms of population and economy, started to change in a number of respects. People stopped moving away, and a number of communal and private buildings, as well as modern farming constructions enabling a contemporary manner of cultivating land, were built. All of this was achieved without a conflict with the traditional nature of the village. Traditions and the cultural heritage were linked with new, up-to-date needs. Another proof of the well-chosen way is that Vrin was the first village to be awarded the Wakker Prize of the Swiss Heritage Society.

In Caminada’s work, architecture also plays a social role. It is happy and beautiful only if the tension between tradition and modern ways bring attractive solutions and if its function is linked with a way of life.

Caminada based his work on the presumption that houses have to reflect people’s stories, and that architecture is an interdisciplinary field, while technology is merely its complement. He uses contemporary means to imprint a traditional appearance to the Alpine environment. However, at the same time, he admits that architecture is becoming a political issue to an increasing degree. The designer has to overcome a number of obstacles related to politics. This is what he partly views as the weak point of contemporary architecture, which has forgotten to solve problems.

Caminada focuses his interest on the countryside/periphery. He characterises it as the domesticated countryside. Although this area once received a generous support from the Swiss government, this support started to fade away as the government decided to support centres/catchment towns and large villages, which are supposed to influence and inspire the periphery. However, is he convinced that proceeding in the opposite direction is correct. He assumes that this way would, on the contrary bring about an increase in the number of abandoned villages.

He is very particular about tradition and continuity in his work, not only about the picture. His constructions communicate in a comprehensible language, giving priority to their own function. It places a great emphasis on details while studying further possibilities of traditional constructions and trying to find ways towards a perfect model of the timbered house.

We can talk about architecture with a reflection of the original culture, with respect to a particular place, which is not only a romantic area, but also a countryside with whims of the weather.

This exhibition that Caminada prepared specially for the Gallery in České Budějovice focuses on the subject of The Creation of Places. At this venue, it deals with a particular architectonic object to a lesser extent, but gives more attention to the idea of how a place could be strengthened in its broadest reality. The exhibition is divided into five parts, and visitors may see both the village of Vrin and the relationships between objects and the countryside, and the place of Caminada’s next place of work – the ETH Zurich.

Gion Antoni Caminada lives in the village of Vrin, in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. First, he learned the trade of carpenter and cabinet maker and then he attended a school of applied arts. After gaining experience on his travels he graduated from the ETH Zurich, the Department of Architecture, where he currently works as a professor. In the late 1970s, he returned to his native village of Vrin, founded his own office, and is also politically active there. Most of his realised works that focus on optimising the functioning of the village are situated at Vrin and its surroundings. He is interested in discussions with the local building tradition, and seeks possibilities of employing old building constructions in modern architecture. To realise his constructions he uses traditional local materials wood and stone.

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Swiss architect Gion A Caminada appeared first on Dezeen.

Asymmetric windows complete the angular timber-clad volumes of this nursery in Heilbronn, Germany, by local studio Mattes Sekiguchi Partner Architekten (photographs by Zooey Braun + slideshow).

Mattes Sekiguchi Partner Architekten designed the wooden Kleinkindhaus as a complex of playrooms and learning spaces for Heilbronn’s Waldorf School.

To complement the building’s green surroundings, the architects sourced Swiss pine to create an exposed wood-panelled facade and a bare wooden interior.

“The timber construction is a natural and elemental method of building,” architect Kristina Heuer told Dezeen. “The building is inspired by nature. It literally grows out of the site and unfolds like an organism.”

Situated between the existing school building and the kindergarten, the timber-clad nursery is inspired by Rudolf Steiner’s architectural theories promoting accessible spaces that open out to nature and are filled with natural light.

“The polygonal shape is a reaction to the surrounding landscape. It provides pleasant, sustainable and healthy space and therefore satisfies the social, physical, and spiritual needs of its occupants,” explained Heuer.

Angular windows puncture the exterior walls, while gill-like slits allow natural ventilation.

The elongated section of the building acts as a backbone for three protruding group activity rooms, connected by a long corridor. These rooms open out into an external play area and include areas for the children to rest.

“For us, it was very important to create a light and open environment for the children and nursery nurses,” said the architect.

The main entrance leads to a multi-purpose room and reception area for guests, while suspended orbs illuminate the way to the kitchen, office and storage rooms.

Other spaces include a computer room and a wardrobe where children can store their coats.

Photography is by Zooey Braun.

Here’s more information from the architects:

Kleinkind-house Heilbronn

The free Waldorf school Heilbronn is situated in a green oasis, between two poles: the large-scale development of schools and the university in the north and east, and the heterogenous housing development in the west and south. The new Kleinkind-house was built between the main building and the kindergarten in a confined area.

An elongated ridge, opened by a multi-purpose room, houses the administration and the secondary rooms. It points the way to the arriving people, guides and accompanies their way and protects the attached three buildings of the group rooms like a strong backbone.

Those three group rooms stick like fingers into the green space, joggle with it and form individual south- facing open spaces. An in-between zone is formed between the group rooms and the backbone, which self- evidently construes the situation of entrance. Insides, it sets the space for public and semi-public movement and communication.

The whole building is polygonal reshaped in ground plan and elevation. The resulting flowing spaces follow the anthroposophical architectural idea of Rudolf Steiner. It creates diverse and high-quality spacial situations with different connections of views and outdoor spaces. There are places, which invite to stay, to play, to move, to learn or to rest. An open, light and friendly atmosphere couples with good clarity and easy orientation.

Using the wood planking façade and wood panelling interior walls, the wooden frame construction is made visualised and experienceable. The choice of material follows the logic of organic construction. On one side the building is integrated into the surroundings and on the other side it is conform to the users need for natural and harmonic building materials.

Location: Max-Planck-Strasse 56/1, 74081 Heilbronn
Client: Verein für Waldorfpädagogik Unterland e.V.
Architects: mattes · sekiguchi partner architekten BDA
Project architects: Fabian Ehehalt, Ramona Schröder
Landscape architecture: Pascal Bauer, Heilbronn
Completed: 08/2013

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Kleinkindhaus nursery in Germany appeared first on Dezeen.

Black panels of corrugated iron clad the exterior of this lakeside wooden cabin in rural Victoria, Australia, by local firm Branch Studio Architects (+ slideshow).

Branch Studio Architects originally designed the Pump House to give the clients space for storing a water pump and other equipment needed to maintain their farmland property, but the compact shed also doubles as a quiet lakeside retreat.

“The original brief was for a temporary shed-like space to house the water pump and other farm equipment as well as to provide the owners with somewhere sheltered to have a cup of tea when they came to hang out with George, their horse, on the weekends,” said architect Nicholas Russo.

“Although the project eventually developed into something slightly more extravagant, the modesty of the original ambition is still evident in the ‘no-frills’ detailing and rugged materiality of the finished building,” Russo added.

Sections of corrugated Colorbond iron clad the asymmetric roof and two side walls, which feature narrow horizontal windows.

The front and rear walls are entirely glazed, so the owners can open the interior to a deck overlooking the lake.

The main space in the building is an open-plan living room and kitchen featuring a wood-burning stove. A central bathroom divides this space from a studio and bedroom at the rear, which offers views out into the countryside.

The interior is lined with unfinished low-grade plywood and rough-sawn timber boards. “The timber was used to create a soft, warm, cocoon-like interior which is a direct contrast to the robust external shell,” Russo told Dezeen.

The cabin is entirely self-sustaining. Along with wood fired heating, it features solar panels and tanks for collecting and recycling rainwater.

Here’s a project description from architect Nicholas Russo:

Pump House

Typically an architectural outcome is the product of a lengthy design, documentation & construction process where the ‘vision’ is communicated to both client and builder predominantly through detailed drawings and a paper-trail of addendums, RFI’s & variations.

The Pump House was different. Constructed and largely conceptualised by the owner on free weekends and rainy Mondays, the compact, re-locatable structure is more a product of rigorous discussion than that of resolved drawings… that’s not to downplay the careful consideration that was applied to the details of the house, it’s just that the way this project evolved meant that things could, more often than not, be resolved through a conversation on site and detail etched into the clay with a rusty nail.

The nature in which this project was realised meant that our involvement was quite informal as we were consulted with on an ad-hoc basis during the design & construction solely in regards to architectural detailing and the overall architectural outcome. It was exciting to be involved in a project where we could focus purely on the aesthetic and architectural outcomes of a building.

Having worked on a couple of challenging projects with the owner (a carpenter) previously, we often found ourselves deliberating over ideas revolving around establishing a methodology to design & build small scale structures that would achieve both a simplicity of construction as well as a successful architectural outcome. We regularly discussed the possibility of developing an architectural alternative to the conventional ‘off the shelf’ house and we were united in our refusal to concede that architectural detailing, simplicity of construction and affordability were mutually exclusive.

The Pump House was driven by the intersection of these three prerequisites – it had to be a considered response (architectural detailing), it had to be easy to build (simplicity of construction) & it had to be cost effective (affordability) – and in many ways is an architectural prototype that tests our responses to these age old dilemmas… it’s very much like a 1:1 concept model based on ideas which evolved through our discussions and previous experiences.

The Pump House is a celebration of the ordinary. Uncompromising in it’s simplicity, there is a rigid adherence to some very modest but key ideas about doing away with the unnecessary. Agricultural materials (Colorbond iron, low-grade plywood & rough sawn timber) are put together with carefully considered old-fashioned craftsmanship (custom made on-site windows, doors & joinery) to create something much more than the sum of their parts. In plan, the compact internal spaces arranged simply around a central service core provide only the very basic requirements of uncomplicated living, an idea that is reinforced by the uncomplicated nature of the architecture.

A semi-permanent structure, the Pump House sits softly on its site adjacent to a large dam and on the threshold between the open paddocks and the bush land surrounds. Large expanses of glazing along with a North/South orientation allow the sunlight and the wide-open green spaces to penetrate into, and seemingly pass through, the internal volume giving the condensed areas a sense of spaciousness. The formal gesture of the black box external shell creates a robust metal ‘cocoon’ within the landscape that is directly contrasted by the warmth of the timber lined internal spaces. A large horizontal window along the western facade provides the only penetration of the metal cocoon while also allowing afternoon light to filter through the dense treetop canopy and into the spaces.

The original brief was for a temporary shed-like space to house the water pump and other farm equipment as well as to provide the owners with somewhere sheltered to have a cup of tea when they came to hang out with George (their horse) on the weekends …and although the project eventually developed into something slightly more extravagant, the modesty of the original ambition is still evident in the ‘no-frills’ detailing and rugged materiality of the finished building.

The Pump House is fully ‘off grid’ and self-sustainable utilising rainwater tanks, wood heating and solar power.

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is a metal-clad lakeside retreat appeared first on Dezeen.

Ahead of the opening of the Designs of the Year 2014 exhibition tomorrow, here’s a look back at one of the standout projects – a floating school on a Nigerian lagoon by architecture studio NLÉ (+ slideshow).

NLÉ, the studio founded by Nigerian-born architect Kunlé Adeyemi, developed the Makoko Floating School as a prototype for building in African regions that have little or no permanent infrastructure, thanks to unpredictable water levels that cause regular flooding.

Half-building, half-boat, the floating structure provides teaching facilities for the slum district of Makoko, a former fishing village in Lagos where over 100,000 people live in houses on stilts. Prior to this the community had just one English-speaking primary school that regularly found itself under water.

“In many ways, Makoko epitomises the most critical challenges posed by urbanisation and climate change in coastal Africa. At the same time, it also inspires possible solutions and alternatives to the invasive culture of land reclamation,” said the architects.

NLÉ developed a structure that can accommodate up to 100 adults, even in bad weather conditions. It is primarily used as a school, but can also function as an events space, a clinic or a market, depending on the needs of the community.

Built by a team of local residents, the structure was put together using wooden offcuts from a nearby sawmill and locally grown bamboo.

A triangular profile allows the building to accommodate three storeys whilst remaining stable over the water. “It is an ideal shape for a floating object on water due to its relatively low centre of gravity, which provides stability and balance even in heavy winds,” said the designers.

The lower level houses a space for play, while a sub-dividable space on the middle floor accommodates up to four classrooms and the upper level contains a small group workshop. A staircase on one side connects the three levels.

Here’s the project description from NLE:

Makoko Floating School

Makoko Floating School is a prototype structure that addresses physical and social needs in view of the growing challenges of climate change in an urbanising African context. It is a movable ‘building’ or ‘watercraft’ currently located in the aquatic community of Makoko in the lagoon heart of Africa’s second most populous city – Lagos, Nigeria. It is a floating structure that adapts to the tidal changes and varying water levels, making it invulnerable to flooding and storm surges. It is designed to use renewable energy, to recycle organic waste and to harvest rainwater.

An estimated 100,000 people reside in Makoko in housing units built on stilts. Yet the community has no roads, no land and no formal infrastructure to support its day-to-day survival. In many ways, Makoko epitomises the most critical challenges posed by urbanisation and climate change in coastal Africa. At the same time, it also inspires possible solutions and alternatives to the invasive culture of land reclamation.

Until now Makoko has been served by one English-speaking primary school, built on uneven reclaimed land, surrounded by constantly changing waters. Like many homes in Makoko, this has rendered the primary school building structurally precarious and susceptible to recurrent flooding. Sadly, the inability of the building to effectively withstand the impact of increased rainfall and flooding has frequently threatened local children’s access to their basic need – the opportunity of education.

In response to this and in close collaboration with the Makoko community, NLÉ has developed a prototype floating structure that will serve primarily as a school, whilst being scalable and adaptable for other uses, such as a community hub, health clinic, market, entertainment centre or housing. The prototype’s versatile structure is a safe and economical floating triangular frame that allows flexibility for customisation and completion based on specific needs and capacities.

The 220m A-frame or pyramid building is 10m high with a 10m x 10m base. It is an ideal shape for a floating object on water due to its relatively low centre of gravity, which provides stability and balance even in heavy winds. It also has a total capacity to safely support a hundred adults, even in extreme weather conditions.

The building has three levels. The 1st level is an open play area for school breaks and assembly, which also serves as a community space during after hours. The 2nd level is an enclosed space for two to four classrooms, providing enough space for sixty to a hundred pupils. A staircase on the side connects the open play area, the classrooms and a semi enclosed workshop space on the 3rd level.

The simple yet innovative structure adheres to ideal standards of sustainable development with its inclusive technologies for renewable energy, waste reduction, water and sewage treatment as well as the promotion of low-carbon transport. Furthermore a team of eight Makoko-based builders constructed it using eco-friendly, locally sourced bamboo and wood procured from a local sawmill.

Construction began in September 2012 with floatation mock-ups and testing. Recycled empty plastic barrels found abundantly in Lagos were used for the building’s buoyancy system, which consists of 16 wooden modules, each containing 16 barrels. The modules were assembled on the water, creating the platform that provides buoyancy for the building and its users. Once this was assembled, construction of the A-frame followed and was completed by March 2013. Makoko Floating School is now in regular use by the community as a social, cultural and economic centre and will soon welcome its first pupils for use as a primary school.

The project was initiated, designed and built by NLÉ in collaboration with the Makoko Waterfront Community, in Lagos State. The project was initially self-funded by NLÉ and later received research funds from Heinrich Boll Stiftung as well as funds for its construction from the UNDP/Federal Ministry of Environment Africa Adaptation Programme (AAP).

Makoko Floating School is a ‘prototype’ building structure for NLÉ’s proposed ‘Lagos Water Communities Project’ and its ‘African Water Cities’ research project.

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anchor in Lagos Lagoon appeared first on Dezeen.