Hasta La Ideas

Spanish studio Arquitectura-G have renovated this apartment in the El Born area of Barcelona by adding wooden storage and mezzanines.

Divided in two by a solid wall, the apartment comprises a kitchen and dining area on one side with a living room, study and bedroom on the other.

Thin white metal steps lead from this second part to a mezzanine that extends over half the floor area, with an even higher platform holding the bed.

Photographs are by José Hevia.

Here are some more details from the architects:

Accommodation of 34 m2 and 4.5 m in height, divided by a load bearing wall in two rooms of similar size, located in El Born in Barcelona.

Assuming this separation, the housing project divides into two areas:

The first consists of the kitchen and a mobile cabinet, which operates as a bar, kitchen side table and dining table. It is a social area linked to the driveway, which improves the electrical installation and use television to spread beyond the mere fact of cooking and eating.

The second stay, however, responds to needs of a greater degree of privacy. That is why the space is fragmented into different trays that house the program in height, providing a gradient of intimacy without losing the visual connection between them.

Thus, the first tray, which occupies half the area of ​​this room, is understood as an ambiguous space dressing room and study area. The second highest one-quarter of the plant surface, contains the space for a bed.

For the resolution of this scheme in height, are particularly important furniture, adapting to different places, meeting the urgent need for storage, and the connection and relationship between levels.

Neglecting current standards of habitability and construction, it gives each area the necessary scale for each item and use the appropriate features.

The spaces are formed depending on the size and privacy they require, and wealth is given by the relations generated between them. For this reason, rather than speaking of space “up” or “below”, we can talk of “spaces between”, “spaces next to” or “spaces.”

Work: Reform of Housing in the Born, Barcelona
Architects: ARCHITECTURE-G (Jonathan Arnabat, Jordi Ayala Bril, Aitor Fuentes, Igor Urdanpileta)
Contributor: David Fernandez Taboada
Sponsor: Ms. Santarelli
Location: Barcelona (Spain)
Reformed Surface: 34 m²
Project Year: 2010
Year built: 2011

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PAC House by A+R Arquitectos	House K by Yoshichika Takagi	House in Fukawa by Suppose Design Office

This house in Barcelona by architect Santiago Parramón of RTA-Office is clad in slabs of basalt.

Called House C, the residence curls around the site through two storeys and a basement level.

The closed outer face of the building gives way to glazing round the inner courtyard, which contains a pool and lawn.

The information that follows is from the architects:

House C. Barcelona

Geometry, skin, cuts that let you discover the dermis.

Space, three-dimensional continuity. There are no elevations, no plans, or sections.

This is space within a solid object, a block of black basalt in which we make a number of penetrations as in a quarry, mine tunnels and corridors that communicate with the outside, with the light of the morning, of noon and the darkness of the night.

Santiago Parramón, founder and director of the atelier RTA-Office, designed House C as the indivisible cross-sectional view of the object, with an emotional design.

Dark skin, pale dermis. Contrast. Cuts and cracks, reinforcing the change of scale, working for the presence.

A unitary object that proposes its maximum dimension.

The complexity of the site works in our favour: the closed outer perimeter, walled, stony; inside the glass folds open. We traverse the wall. It’s the north face of the building and there we place the access: a spectacle of natural light, reflections, transparencies, an explosion of multiplying images.

A kaleidoscopic space, beauty, image, observation. Everything at the same time thanks to the effects produced by the transparent crystals of different sizes and angles. Everything impacts on the building. Nature enters the interior through these cuts and segments the different rooms of the house.

At dusk, transparency overrides limits: the light of day is now projected from inside the house to the outdoors.

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House K by Yoshichika Takagi	House in Fukawa by Suppose Design Office	Gable House by FORM/Kouichi Kimura

Dezeen archive: Sturgess Architecture’s glass viewing platform cantilevered over a Canadian glacier (above, top left) was our most popular story over the last week so we’ve grouped together all our stories from the Dezeen archives about viewing platforms and observatories. See all the stories »

All our archive stories »

What Happens When is a temporary restaurant in SoHo New York that will be open for nine months. The creative team behind the project; John Fraser (chef), Emilie Baltz (branding & graphic design), and Elle Kunnos de Voss (interior design) will transform the space each month to create a new thematic dining experience.

Working with almost no budget, the team turned to Kickstarter to help realize the project and added another layer of community involvement by asking for theme suggestions from donators. Each theme is called a movement, and ‘Movement 1’ debuted in February with a stark Nordic wonderland interior.

The space was conceived to be flexible, a grid of hooks spans the entire ceiling, lamps are suspended with an extra 15ft of cord, and all the furnishings are inexpensive making them easy to modify and change. Transition time between the themes is tight, the team has from midnight when the restaurant closes to 3pm the next day to finish each movement—sounds like being back in design school!

This months theme (Movement 2) plays with scale, over-sized pine needles dance across the ceiling, little animal tracks can be found throughout the space and a moss-laden swing with miniature landscapes of plants and birds greet visitors when they enter. The project is an opportunity to experiment with ideas as much as it is an event.

We’ll be updating the gallery with photos from each movement as they emerge so be sure to check back. If you’re in New York make a reservation and let us know what you think.

What Happens When
25 Cleveland Place, NY NY
Tuesday – Sunday, 5:30pm – 11pm
212-925-8310

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Construction has begun on a large-scale housing development designed by Dutch firm MVRDV for Pune, India.

Called Future Towers India, the building will comprise 1,068 apartments plus a school, swimming pool, shops, bars, cafes and a cinema.

Nine wings will be arranged on a hexagonal grid around four cores, with raked roofs creating balconies and gardens.

The facade will be concrete, with metal shutters, wooden balconies and stone-clad circulation spaces.

The project is due for completion in 2014 and will form part of a larger scheme to create 3,500 apartments in the area.

More about MVRDV on Dezeen »

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The information below is from the architects:

CONSTRUCTION START FOR VERTICAL CITY PROJECT: FUTURE TOWERS, 3500 APARTMENTS AND SERVICES IN PUNE, INDIA

City Corporation Ltd, a leading real estate development corporation in the Indian state of Maharashtra has started construction on the first phase of Amanora Apartment City – Future Towers, designed by MVRDV. The project is located in Pune, India and comprises 1,068 apartments & public amenities, as a part of a large scale housing development with a total of 400.000m2 comprising 3,500 apartments. Completion is expected by summer 2014. The apartments and facilities are interwoven and create a vertical city which will due to its various apartment types offer housing to a diverse group of residents.

Future Towers phase one: The total surface of the first phase is about 210,000m2 comprising of 115,000m2 housing, 8,400m2 public amenities and 49,662m2 parking.

India is currently in a rapid development to provide housing for millions; as a result often monotonous large scale housing estates appear. MVRDV takes on the challenge to participate in this development which seems dominated by efficiency rather than quality. The Future Towers project introduces lost qualities to mass housing: increased density combined with amenities, public facilities, parks and a mix of inhabitants resulting in a vertical city. The 1,068 apartments of the first phase vary from 42m2 to 530m2 and are set to attract a diverse mix of population to the new neighbourhood with the ambition of creating a lively sub-centre for Pune. The studio to villa size apartments are designed according to an analysis of modern Indian housing standards. They are in general equipped with balconies, naturally ventilated service spaces and almost each bedroom has an individual bathroom. The hill shape structure with its peaks, valleys, canyons, bays, grottos and caves adds identity to the city and provides a large number of apartments with fine views and spacious balconies; its public space offers possibilities for interaction and communal activities.

The 400 acres site is located 10 kilometres from the city centre of Pune in the centre of the Amanora Park Town development; the plot will be built up with FAR5 but still maintain large gardens. The first phase building is raised by a basement and plinth which contain parking and various public facilities: A school, swimming pool, retail, bars, cafes and a cinema. At the tallest point of the structure a sky lounge will be established. The building follows a hexagonal grid to provide views and natural light to the apartments. This allows the 9 wings with double loaded corridors to be efficiently serviced by 4 cores. The interconnected courtyards are programmed to offer the inhabitants relaxing and social environments. There will be an herb garden, an event plaza, a flowerpot garden, a playground and a sculpture garden. In-between the volumes of each of the three phase’s gardens are planned.

The facade will be made of concrete and the large windows will have sun protection by ornamented metal shutters, allowing for natural ventilation between facade and the many ventilation shafts that cross the structure vertically. The circulation spaces and public spaces will be clad in natural stone; the balconies are all clad in wood.

City Corporation Ltd. has commissioned MVRDV to design in total 3 phases of Future Towers with in total approximately 3,500 apartments or 400,000m2 of housing and amenities. Besides MVRDV the team is based in Pune: Project Management by Northcroft India, co-architecture and MEP by Neilsoft, Structural Design by J+W. Future Towers was a competition won by MVRDV in November 2009 and it is the first MVRDV project in India presented to the public. MVRDV is currently also working on a range of projects in Mumbai and Bangalore.

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Pushed Slab Building by MVRDV	Westerdok Apartment Building by MVRDV	Gwanggyo Power Centre by MVRDV