Hasta La Ideas

Eight huge wings resembling a cluster of duck feet form the roof of this theatre in Wuxi, to the west of Shanghai, designed by Finnish practice PES-Architects (+ slideshow).

Above image is by Pan Weijun

Wuxi Grand Theatre is situated on a manmade peninsula on Taihu Lake.

Above image is by Kari Palsila

The perforated aluminium panels on the roof are lit up by thousands of colour-changing LEDs.

Glowing columns are dotted around the main entrance square and continue inside the building where they support the roof of the central lobby.

The main auditorium is covered with 15,000 solid bamboo blocks designed to enhance the acoustics of the space.

Above image is by Kari Palsila

Around 20,000 custom-made glass bricks cover the curved wall of the auditorium in the lobby area overlooking the lake. “Finnish nature, lakes and ice” were the inspiration behind this part of the building, say the architects.

Above image is by Kari Palsila

The theatre has been shortlisted for an award at this year’s World Architecture Festival, which takes place from 3-5 October. The full shortlist is available to read on Dezeen.

See all our stories about theatres »
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Above image is by Kari Palsila

Photographs are by Jussi Tiainen except where otherwise stated.

Here’s some more information from the architects:

Wuxi Grand Theatre

In 2008, PES-Architects won the first prize in the invited international architectural competition for Wuxi Grand Theatre. The other competitors were established and well-known practices from Germany, France, Japan and Denmark. The main idea of Wuxi Grand Theatre is based on its location. The manmade peninsula on the northern shore area of Taihu Lake and the highway bridge nearby make this location comparable to that of Sydney Opera House.

Due to this location the building is an impressive landmark, rising up to a total height of 50 meters like a big sculpture from the terraced base. Its eight gigantic roof wings stretch far over the facades, giving the building a character of a butterfly, while protecting the building from the heat of the sun. The architectural concept is unique: inside the steel wings are thousands of LED lights, which make it possible to change the colour of the wings according to the character of the performances. This is possible, because the underside of the wings is covered by perforated aluminium panels.

Another special feature is the “forest” of 50 light columns, each 9 metres high, which start from the main entrance square, support the roof of the central lobby and continue outside of the lakeside entrance into the lake. There is a strong Chinese feature that runs throughout the whole building: the large scale use of bamboo which is both a traditional and a modern Chinese material.

Above image is by Martin Lukascyzk

Recently new methods for the production and use of bamboo have made it possible to cover the Main Opera Auditorium with over 15,000 solid bamboo blocks, all individually shaped according to acoustic needs and architectural image. There is also a material with a Finnish character: almost 20,000 specially designed glass bricks cover the curved wall of the opera auditorium in the lakeside lobby. Finnish nature, lakes and ice were the architectural inspiration.

Architecture and interior design: PES-Architects
Project: Wuxi Grand Theatre
Address: to the North of Jinshi Road, North bank of Lake Li, Taihu New City, Wuxi, P.R.China
Client: Office for the Important Urban Projects in Wuxi /Fan Chun Yu, Zhou Jian
User: Wuxi Culture and Art Administration Center
Floor area: 78 000 m2
Year of completion: 2012
Start of design: 2008
Competition: June 2008

Plan – click above for larger image

Architects:

Competition, 2 phases:
PES-Architects: Pekka Salminen and Tuomas Silvennoinen (main designers), Tristan Hughes, Jouni Rekola, Michael Bossert, Heikki Riitahuhta, Tomi Laine, Miguel Pereira, Emanuel Lopez, Elina Modeen, LaiLinLi, Fang Hai
UDG: Sun LiYang, Gu ZhiPeng, Guan XiaoJing

SD-, DD- and CD-phases:
PES-Architects: Pekka Salminen (project leader and chief designer), Martin Lukasczyk (project architect/ project manager), Elina Modeen (project manager China), LaiLinLi (project manager China), Fang Hai, Julia Hertell, Tristan Hughes, Vesa Hinkola, Willem-Anne van Bolderen, Miguel Pereira, Nicholas Capone, Marcelo Diez, Jani Koivula, Heikki Riitahuhta, Tomi Laine, Yang Yue
UDG: Zhang Min, Guan XiaoJing, Teng Xu

Main auditorium section – click above for larger image

Interior design: PES-Architects: Pekka Salminen, Martin Lukasczyk, Kai Lindvall, Satu Ristola

Landscape design Finland: Maisemasuunnittelu Hemgård: Gretel Hemgård, Vilja Larjosto
Landscape design China: Feiscape, Shanghai
Structural design Finland: Vahanen Group: Matti Haaramo
Structural design China: Shanghai Institute for Architectural Design and Research SIADR, Shanghai

HVAC design Finland: Climaconsult: Harri Ripatti
HVAC design China: SIADR, Shanghai
Lighting design Finland: Valoa Design: Roope Siiroinen, Marko Kuusisto
Lighting design China: Enjoy, Shanghai

Acoustic design Finland: Akukon & Kahle Acoustics: Henrik Möller, Ekhard Kahle, Thomas Wulfrank
Acoustic design China: Zhang Kuiseng, Shanghai
Stage design Finland: Akukon: Henrik Möller , Janne Auvinen
Stage design China: SBS, Beijing

Section – click above for larger image

Other participants:

Bamboo: Yrjö Kukkapuro, Fang Hai
Space programme: Finnish National Opera/ Timo Tuovila
Special glass bricks: Tapio Yli-Viikari and Kirsti Taiviola (Aalto University), Niu Fanzheng, Lu Ye
Glass column consulting: Glaston: Pekka Nieminen

Local partners:

Shanghai Institute of Architectural Design and Research Co. SIADR (DD and CD phases)
Gold Mantis, Suzhou (interior design DD and CD phases)
United Design Group Co.Ltd. UDG, Shanghai (competition phase and SD phase)

Material suppliers:

Bamboo interiors: Dasso Co, Hangzhou
Roof material: Rheinzink Co, Shanghai
Glass elevations: Pilkingtong Co, Shanghai
Glass Bricks: SIP Pengli Visual Mastermind & Design Co. Ltd.

Elevation – click above for larger image

Contractors:

Construction administration & client: Office for the Important Urban Projects in Wuxi/ Fan Chun Yu, Zhou Jian
Construction supervision: Zhejiang Tiangnan Project Management Co. Ltd
Main construction company: China Construction 3rd Engineering Bureau/ CSCEC
Steel structure construction: Jiangsu Huning Steel Mechanism Co. Ltd
MEP: China Construction Industrial Equipment Installation Co. Ltd
Stage machinery: SBS Bühnentechnik GmbH/ SBS Stage Equipment Technology (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd
Stage machinery supervision: ENFI
Acoustics: Huisitong Acoustic Technology Enineering Co. Ltd
Stage lighting: Hangzhou EKO Light
Facades: Wuxi Jingcheng Curtain Wall Engineering Co. Ltd
Interior construction: Gold Mantis, Decoration Co. Ltd. of China Construction 3rd Engineering Bureau, JiangSu XinHuaDong Construction Decoration Engineering Co. Ltd, Hua Ding Construction Decoration Engineering Co. Ltd
Landscape construction: Shanghai Landscape Construction & Design Co. Ltd, Yixing Hydo-Engineering Co. Ltd
Building automation: ZheDa Innovation Technology Co. Ltd

The post Wuxi Grand Theatre
by PES-Architects appeared first on Dezeen.

More bamboo: this floating tea house in Yangzhou, by Chinese architects HWCD Associates, features brick rooms linked by louvred bamboo corridors and brises soleil.

Situated in the ShiQiao garden in Yangzhou, a city to the northwest of Shanghai, the tea house is organised in asymmetric cubes on a lake.

Tall rows of bamboo create corridors along the outdoor walkway. The bamboo is arranged vertically and horizontally to produce “interesting depth” and visual effects as you walk around, the architects told Dezeen.

Lights are inset into the door frames, providing a glowing pathway between the grey brick buildings.

We’ve featured tea houses from all over the world on Dezeen, including a lantern-like structure near Washington, D.C. and a timber and rope teahouse in the Czech Republic.

Recent stories about bamboo architecture include a Bangkok hair salon with thousands of bamboo stalactites and a thatched bamboo bar in the middle of a lake in Vietnam.

See all our stories about tea houses »
See all our stories about China »

Here’s some more information from the architects:

Tea, one of China’s most precious culture heritages has remained popular throughout the thousands of years. As tea leaves come from modest tea trees, through the long process of picking the leaves, drying the leaves and finally produces a cup of tea.

Thus, tea requires an unassuming setting in order to understand its lengthy process. Today, the appreciation of Chinese tea has become an art and furthermore, many teahouses are designed for this purpose.

Amongst the lush ShiQiao garden, stands this humble tea house which embraces the traditional Chinese garden fundamentals while blending into the natural environment.

The tea house is known as the bamboo courtyard as it mainly uses bamboo to create an interesting play of vertical and horizontal lines. In some spaces, the vertical and horizontal elements intensify to form a psychedelic perspective, evoking a profound sensory perception.

Traditionally, Yangzhou courtyards are formed with inward facing pavilions, creating an internal landscape space. So, drawing inspiration from this, the bamboo courtyard was designed from a basic square footprint, fragmented into small spaces to create an internal landscape area. Each of the spaces has views into the surrounding lake, allowing a panoramic view of the area.

As one walks through the bamboo courtyard, the asymmetrical corridors present an intentional semi-obstructed vision with the layering of bamboos.

There is a strong experiential sense of space, layered from one to another; from totally open to the internal lake to narrow spaces between the rough brick finish and bamboo curtain.

Section – click above for larger image

From the exterior, the bamboo courtyard has a cube form with a variation of solids and voids. The strong verticality becomes more apparent at night when the teahouse lights up to illuminate the surroundings. The simple form illustrates the harmonious blending of architecture with nature.

North elevation

Moreover, the natural materials such as bamboo and bricks have low embodied energy and low impact on the environment. The pocket of voids improves natural ventilation within the bamboo courtyard while the thick brick wall retains heat in winter, reducing the dependency of mechanical heating and cooling system.

East elevation

One who appreciates tea would understand that every serving of tea differs in colour, scent and taste even if it is from the same pot. There is a layering of experience in enjoying every cup of tea. Thus, the bamboo courtyard is an abstraction of the tea experience, creating layers of experience through spaces.

South elevation

If tea is an art and architecture is a way of life, then the bamboo courtyard is the portrait of the both worlds.

West elevation

Location: ShiQiao, Yangzhou
Client: Building And Construction Authority of YangZhou Economic and Technological Development Zone
Client-side Project Manager: YaoQiang
Design Firm: Harmony World Consulting & Design (HWCD)
Design-partner-in-charge: Sun Wei, Shi Jun
Building Area: 400m2
Completed: May 2012

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by HWCD Associates appeared first on Dezeen.

Sur l’excellente bande son « Ticking Away » de Cransto, le réalisateur Masaya Sugimura nous propose de découvrir avec talent Tokyo, cette ville unique et atypique. Grâce à une utilisation réussie de la technique du time-lapse, le réalisateur tire un portrait partiel de cette mégalopole. A découvrir en HD dans la suite.

Dezeen News: the new owners of Battersea Power Station say their £8bn revamp of the site will begin in 2013, ending more than 25 years of speculation over the future of the London landmark.

Earlier this week a consortium of Malaysian investors, comprising developers SP Setia and Sime Darby plus the Employees Provident Fund pension fund, completed its £400m purchase of the site.

The redevelopment is set to include 3400 new homes, a shopping centre, hotels, offices and an arts space. During the work, the power station’s four white towers will also be removed and rebuilt using new materials. The first phase is intended to be complete within four years.

Situated on the south bank of the river Thames, the power station was built in two parts, the first completed in the 1930s and the second in the 1950s. It famously appeared in the Alfred Hitchcock film ‘Sabotage’ and on the cover of the Pink Floyd album ‘Animals’, and is now a Grade II* listed landmark.

Since ceasing electricity generation in 1983, the power station has largely remained vacant as developers have repeatedly failed to bring their proposals to fruition. Most recently, Chelsea Football Club was unsuccessful in its bid to turn the power station into a 60,000-capacity stadium.

In 2008, architect Rafael Viñoly put forward plans for a sustainable development to include a 300 metre high tower and ‘eco-dome’, while British architect Terry Farrell later unveiled proposals to remove the walls of the power station and turn it into a park.

See our other stories about Battersea Power Station »

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to finally redevelop London landmark appeared first on Dezeen.

Dezeen News: architect Frank Gehry has donated $100,000 to the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) to endow a new annual prize for the best graduate thesis projects.

The Gehry Prize will be awarded to projects selected by critics and jurors in the Graduate Thesis Weekend hosted in September. The first prize will be given out during the 2012 graduation ceremony, held on 9 September. Gehry has been a SCI-Arc trustee since 1990 and his ongoing commitment to SCI-Arc will be celebrated at the school’s 40th anniversary reception in April 2013.

We recently reported that Gehry is designing a new campus for social media giant Facebook in San Francisco.

Portrait is by Melissa Majchrzak.

See all our stories about Frank Gehry »

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with $100,000 donation appeared first on Dezeen.