News: the completion of Art Nouveau architect Antoni Gaudí’s Sagrada Família basilica in Barcelona is simulated in this movie released to show the final stages of construction anticipated before 2026, 100 years after the death of the architect (+ movie).
It combines helicopter footage of the current building with computer-animated renders to show spires, a central cupola and other remaining structures rise from nothing.
When the basilica is finished it will have 18 towers dedicated to different religious figures, of various heights to reflect their hierarchy. There are eight towers completed so far.
Work began on Sagrada Familia in 1882 and Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi took over the direction in 1914. The completed basilica is due to open in 2026, 144 years after it began, to coincide with the centennial anniversary of Gaudí’s death in 1926.
Since the mid 1980s, the build has been overseen by Catalan architect Jordi Bonet, whose father previously worked on the project with Gaudí.
A smooth, curved concrete shell forms the exterior of this art studio in Boeotia, central Greece by Athens studio A31 Architecture (+ slideshow).
A31 Architecture designed the space as a combined studio and gallery for an artist, creating a place adjacent to his home where he can hang paintings and simultaneously construct large sculptures.
A wooden door is set into the double-height glass-fronted entrance, accessed by an open concrete patio area.
Inside, floating steps protrude out from the side of one wall in the large downstairs workspace, leading to a mezzanine attic level that is used for storage.
The concrete steps also double as exhibition space for small sculptures.
Thin sections of concrete have been cut from the exterior to form windows and the blocks that were removed are now in use as benches and plinths.
“The space created is open, friendly, solemn, and simple,” said architect Praxitelis Kondylis. “It forms part of the nature as if it has been standing there for ages.”
The Artist’s warehouse is a monolithic Modern structure. Its orthogonal plan is divided into three zones: firstly, the cantilever with the balcony in the south, where the entrance is situated. Secondly, the artist’s workspace and finally the attic in the north which serves as a storage space.
The most important demand was an open space structure of a significant height suitable to the needs of the artist in order for him to hang paintings and construct huge sculptures.
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Another wish has been the integration of the new structure with the surrounding nature. A part of the landscape was incorporated in the open-space sculpture gallery, hosting the artist’s creations.
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The space created is open, friendly, solemn, and simple. It forms part of the nature as if it has been standing there for ages. It’s dome, a timeless and interregional architectural coronation element spanning from antiquity to Modernism, interacts with the intimate space of the artists house, the “cell”.
East facade
The wall openings, which relate to the Sun’s trajectory, the interior lighting and the ventilation, stem from transverse horizontal sections in the building shell. The sliced concrete blocks that are removed now function as benches for people and pedestals for sculptures.
West facade
Architect: A31 Architecture (Architect and project author – Praxitelis Kondylis) Structural Design: A31 Construction (Engineer – Panagiotis Karras) Construction: A31 Architecture and Construction Ltd Plan Area: 4.000 m2 Building Area: 75 m2 Budget: 70.000 Euros Client: Alexander Liappis, Painter Spot: Dilesi, Boeotia, Greece
This house in Saitama, Japan, by Naf Architect & Design looks like it’s been chopped in half and split open.
Architect Akio Nakasa of Naf Architect & Design designed the three-storey House Snapped for a couple and created two sections to separate the pair’s shared activities, such as dining and relaxing, from private ones, such as dressing and working.
“The composition of this residence was inspired by a phrase of the client couple, ‘stranger hours’,” said Nakasa. “This is a witty phrase describing the relationship of the couple, which is not always stereotypically close but sometimes distant like strangers.”
The smaller side of the building is intended to accommodate the “stranger hours” and contains bedroom and bathroom spaces, while the “shared hours” are assigned to living and dining rooms in the largest side of the house.
A round wooden column is positioned at the junction between the two sides, emphasising the appearance of a hinge.
Each room inside the house has a different floor surface, chosen to suit the activities taking place inside. A wool carpet was selected for the bedroom for its sound-absorbing qualities, while the kitchen and dining room has a mosaic floor that will reflect sound and one of the studies is covered with soft cork tiles.
“The height of the ceiling and flooring materials are chosen according to the nature of the space in order to increase the quality of the time the couple spends together,” added Nakasa.
The exterior of the house is clad with timber boards, painted in a vivid shade of blue, while the hinged middle features a contrasting white-rendered surface. A triangular lawn occupies the space in between.
Here’s a full project description from Akio Nakasa:
House Snapped
Two buildings, large and small, stand on L-shape plot adjoining at the corner. The form of the two buildings comes is as if one building snapped in two, and they are placed along the shape of the site.
A column stands at the adjoining corner of the two buildings, and four zones, yard, entrance, small and large buildings, are placed radially. Four zones can be shared or partitioned using sliding doors.
The composition of this residence was inspired by a phrase of the client couple, “stranger hours”. This is a witty phrase describing the relationship of the couple, which is not always stereotypically close but sometimes distant like strangers.
The antonym of “stranger hours” may be “shared hours”. The large building incorporates living room, dining room, and kitchen where the couple spend “shared hours” and the small building in the back of the plot incorporates bedroom, bathroom, and toilet where the couple spend “stranger hours”.
The height of the ceiling and flooring materials are chosen according to the nature of the space in order to increase the quality of the time the couple spends together, whether it is “shared hours” or “stranger hours”. For example, the living room has vaulted ceiling and flooring with high reflectance material for the voices to reach one another. The bedroom has low ceiling and flooring with sound absorption material to keep tranquility.
The yard, where the couple and their neighbours exchange greetings, is covered with soft lawn. The entrance, which accepts all kinds of guests, has whisper concrete finishing which gives more formal impression.
Four zones placed around the column may be flexibly used according to the situation, allowing a compact and comfortable lifestyle.
Name of the project: House Snapped Location: Saitama City, Saitama Category: detached house Structure: Wood construction Number of storeys: 2 storeys above ground Maximum height: 8.432 m Maximum eave height: 6.411 m Frontal road: 4.00m on the east Site area: 108.49m2 Building area: 51.04m2 Total floor area: 81.41m2 Completion: April 22, 2012 Architect: Akio Nakasa (principal architect), Daisuke Aoki
Le Pedras Salgadas Park au Portugal propose deux maisons appelées « Tree Snake House » au design très réussi. Proposant un lieu épuré dans un environnement tranquille et naturel, cette création de Luis & Tiago Rebelo De Andrade est à découvrir en images dans la suite.
The long narrow bodies of snakes inspired the shapes of this pair of matching woodland hideaways that stretch out between the trees of a park in northern Portugal (+ slideshow).
Designed by architects Luís Rebelo de Andrade and Tiago Rebelo de Andrade, the structures each offer accommodation for one or two inhabitants at the Pedras Salgadas Park, a rural holiday resort on the edge of a spa town.
The architects aimed to “recreate the fantasy of tree houses”, by designing spaces that sit amongst the tree branches. Rather than climbing upwards, the structures maintain a flat level, which gradually becomes more elevated as the ground slopes away underneath.
Both buildings are constructed from timber, but are externally clad with slate tiles that create the impression of rough scales.
“The characteristic design associated with the slates and the wood on the base suggests a snake gliding between the trees,” said the designers. “Like a wild animal in its natural habitat, the house suddenly appears in the visual field of the observer.”
Narrow columns anchor the structures to the ground and long narrow bridges lead from the hillside towards each entrance.
Inside, symmetrical interiors offer combined living and sleeping areas with a kitchen and washroom on one side and a toilet and closet on the other.
Sustainable technologies such as solar panels and water recycling allow the buildings to be self-sufficient, while low-energy lighting and well-insulated walls ensure that electricity and heating are used as efficiently as possible.
This isn’t the first project Luís Rebelo de Andrade has worked on at the Pedras Salgadas Park – last year he collaborated with young Portuguese architect Diogo Aguiar on a series of woodland cabins.
Along with the project Pedras Salgadas Park by architects Luís Rebelo de Andrade and Tiago Rebelo de Andrade, came the challenge of creating an object that could recreate the fantasy of the tree houses.
The project for these houses was developed in partnership with the Modular System Company. The idea was to get an object that would be far away from the orthogonality and from pre-established concepts associated with the modular construction.
The characteristic design associated with the slates and the wood on the base suggests a snake gliding between the trees. Like a wild animal in its natural habitat, the house suddenly appears in the visual field of the observer.
The choice of materials gives an instant sense of connection with nature at the same time it establishes a coherent image of the proposal into a perfect symbiosis between the house and the Park.
The architects made use of new technology already tested in prototypes that allow a weightless easy-carrying construction. Native raw material, slate and wood used in the finishing also promote the integration at the same time it confers invisibility to the houses, not allowing these to take the chief role which belongs to the centennial Park itself.
Sustainability and ecology have always been one of the major concerns during the development of the project. The consistency and rationale for the intervention were attained by the layers and reinforced insulation, heating systems, water reuse, water solar panels, the low consumption lighting system using LED technology as well as the option of keeping the soil without any impermeable system, among other solutions. Each house comprises a studio with a bathroom and a kitchen.
Thus, the two Tree Snake Houses of Pedras Salgadas Park are objects that, using similar materials and technologies, point out to our imaginary: the primitive hut and the wild animal.
Developed by the architects Luís Rebelo De Andrade And Tiago Rebelo De Andrade in cooperation with Modular System the project also foresees multiple purposes, which can be adapted to different landscapes and climates.
More models of these houses like the Mountain Snake House, the River Snake House and the Sand Snake House, whose dimensions and materials are easily adapted to various climates and regions, are being developed and will soon be available to the public. It will then be possible to acquire one of these houses and to benefit from different situations such as coastal areas, riverbanks, mountain or urban environments.
Architects: Luís Rebelo de Andrade & Tiago Rebelo de Andrade Collaborators: Madalena Rebelo de Andrade, Raquel Jorge, Pedro Baptista Dias Project Area: 27,00 sqm Client: UNICER Constructor: Modular System
One of the most wonderfully bizarre pieces of architecture I’ve ever been lucky enough to experience in person is Antonio Gaudi’s Parc Guell in Barcelona. That the famous Catalan architect was able to conceptualize and realize all of those undulating, organic shapes in a pre-CAD era of pencil, paper and T-square is as amazing as the nearly two-million-square-foot site. It took 15 years of building, from 1900 to 1914, before Gaudi was able to see it finished.
One thing Gaudi never lived to complete is the Sagrada Familia church, also in Barcelona. He had taken the project over in 1883, but by his death in 1926, some 43 years later, it was still less than 25% complete. A reported nine architects have attempted to complete the structure since then, with the process interrupted by wars and eventually modernized by the advent of CAD. And now it seems as if architect Jordi Fauli and his team will be the ones to complete it.
Check out this amazing animation put together by Fauli and co. of how the finished structure will look as it goes up:
Dutch studio KoningEllis Architects used a combination of grey slate, warm timber and shimmering aluminium for the walls of a new building at this school for children with learning disabilities in Haarlem, the Netherlands (+ slideshow).
Daaf Geluk secondary school had previously been located on two sites, but the construction of new housing had created the opportunity to bring the entire school together on one campus. KoningEllis Architects was tasked with renovating one of the old buildings – a brick structure from the 1940s – and adding an additional block of classrooms and sports facilities.
To complement the red and brown tones of the existing brickwork, architects Suzanne Ellis and Ieke Koning designed a two-storey extension with a timber facade, then added a ribbon of grey slate around its middle.
“The two buildings are in agreement with each other not only in form, but also in appearance, without being copies,” said the architects.
A glass tunnel leads from the renovated building to the new structure, which accommodates 12 classrooms, offices and a pair of sports halls.
Rooms are arranged around a double-height atrium with a generous skylight. A wide staircase extends up through the centre and doubles up as seating, allowing the space to function as an informal auditorium.
To create a “quiet, homely atmosphere”, the architects used a simple colour palette of white, grey and lime green. They also added windows at the end of every corridor so that natural light floods through the building.
“White walls and ceilings combined with grey melange floors form a peaceful basis,” explained Ellis. “For the frames, the staircase, floor and ceiling of the auditorium white oak was used, to add a neutral, natural and warm-looking material.”
She added: “We only added one distinct colour – grass green. This fresh colour forms a stylish, modern combination with the oak.”
Each of the classrooms feature thick partitions walls, creating built-in storage closets on the inside and private workspaces in the corridors.
The two sports halls are housed at the western end of the building and feature first-floor viewing platforms for spectators.
Here’s a more detailed project description from KoningEllis Architects:
Secondary School Haarlem
The Daaf Geluk School is a special-needs school, which means that it provides education for secondary school pupils who need more attention, guidance and help. The school offers tailored-made education and provides lessons in small classes of up to sixteen pupils.
Renovation and Expansion
Formerly, the 350 pupils of the ‘Daaf’ were spread over two locations in Haarlem. When the annex had to give way to housing, the school got the chance to come together on one site. The choice was made for renovation and expansion of the existing building at the current location. The expansion consists of offices, a communal space, twelve classrooms and two sports halls.
Design
For the type of pupils of ‘the Daaf’ it is important that the school has a quiet, homely atmosphere. Structure, clarity, peacefulness and security were therefore important conditions for the design. The layout ensures that there is always light at the end of the spacious corridors. The interior design has been kept basic and light, to avoid too much stimulation.
The heart of the school is the auditorium, where the broad wooden staircase, also functioning as seating for the stage, immediately catches the eye. The wood extends as a carpet in front of the staircase and at the end curls up into natural casing of the stage. A large skylight above the stairs makes the auditorium light and pleasant.
The building has been logically and cleverly planned. For example, the common areas are situated at the nodes and there is no wasted space. In the corridors smart double walls have been constructed. On the classroom side, there are built-in cupboards and on the corridor side there are recessed lockers and workplaces where pupils can sit and work quietly. Through the window the teacher can monitor them as well.
At the far end of the extension is a double gymnasium. The height in this part of the building is used for changing-rooms on the first floor and to provide a balcony where spectators can follow the activities in the gym. By providing the gyms with their own entrance they can also be used outside school hours.
Renovation
On the site they found a beautiful brick school building from the forties, but it didn’t meet the current requirements any longer and the original structure was not visible anymore. By removing the superficial interior additions and careful renovation of the primary structures, the architects were able to bring back the beauty of the original building. Constructive interventions strengthened the improvement of the routing and lines of visibility.
Sight lines are important to our design. From the new entrance square you look through the connecting corridor into the old building. The orientation of the buildings creates several outdoor areas: an entrance square, two playgrounds, and a secluded courtyard between the old and the new buildings. The old and the new are connected by a glazed corridor.
The new interventions were accentuated by using the colour green, which continues into the new building. To leave the historic appearance as much intact as possible, the iconic iron window frames were retained and renovated. Finally, a modern ventilation/air handling system was put in to improve the climate in the building. In this way the historic characteristics of the existing building have been preserved and the quality of the building environment has been optimised.
The two buildings are in agreement with each other not only in form, but also in appearance, without being copies. The colour palette of the façade and the roof of the old building; brown and purple-grey, returns in the new building in contemporary materials such as preserved wood, aluminium and slate, all maintenance free materials. Hence the new building gets a warm feel to it, in tune with the old one, but still with its own character.
Around the school they put a ‘ribbon’; a horizontal stripe of purple-grey slate. In front of the entrance are the large steel letters ’DAAF’. The sign fits well with the modest building. No loud signs, just a stylish touch.
An aluminium strip ensures a tight transition between the different materials and gives the outline of the horizontal and vertical surfaces in the facade extra sharpness. The sun-blinds are hidden behind a removable panel. The technical drawings for the construction were not outsourced to ensure the quality of the design and to have maximum control during the building process.
With the same attention to detail the building was integrated into the environment. Also, the neighbourhood, welfare and preservation organisations were consulted. It was a puzzle to get the new building onto the plot. The new building doubled the volume of the existing school, and residential homes are close. That is why the appearance of the school has been kept modest. By using a light colour wood at the top and the bottom, the building looks friendly and inviting.
L’un des plus grands centres commerciaux de Scandinavie se trouve à Malmö dans le sud de la Suède. Appelé ‘Emporia Shopping Center’, ce dernier a ouvert l’année dernière. Un projet architectural magnifique pensé par Gert Wingårdh à découvrir en images dans l’article.
Découverte de l’architecte mexicain Juan Carlos Ramos qui a récemment proposé ce projet original de structure de forme pyramidale. Avec une face entièrement vitrée, cette idée visuellement intéressante a été sobrement appelée « Pyramid House ». L’ensemble est à découvrir en images dans la suite de l’article.
French architects RAUM have arranged a cluster of holiday apartments in Brittany around terraces that are connected by small alleys (+ slideshows).
The clients for the project were a couple who asked RAUM to create two holiday homes with adjoining studio flats on the Quiberon peninsula, which can be rented by one or more families.
The architects designed the buildings around a series of outdoor spaces, linked by passages that can be transformed from public to private areas by closing gates.
Interiors are given a minimal treatment to focus attention on the terraces, and all of the ground floor living rooms feature sliding doors that open onto the decking outside.
A small building in the southwest corner of the site houses one of the studio flats, while another is located above the garage.
Wooden flooring is used throughout the interiors and also creates a connection with the external decking.
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