Clinging to a precious step of granite, ice axes in hand, with the next rest 12 meters up, the only regret you’ll have as a climber is the training you passed up. Each centimeter gained vertically is a triumph as the lactic acid…
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Cette maison de vacances a été conçue par le cabinet et studio d’architecture GLUCK +. Le but était de garder l’empreinte de l’arbre afin de ne pas perturber le site. Une architecture ancrée dans la nature offrant une superbe vue sur le lac et sur les montagnes au loin. Le tout est à découvrir ci-dessous en images.
At 12,000 feet above sea level, with a cold wind perpetually whipping and the alpine sun intensified by the reflective snowfields below, the old adage “the clothes don’t make the man (or rather, person)” couldn’t be less true. Technical, carefully designed clothing and…
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Perched on an Alpine ridge 3256 metres above sea level, this shiny steel cabin by Swiss firm Savioz Fabrizzi Architectes creates a starting point for mountaineers climbing the Bishorn, Weisshorn or Tête de Milon (+ slideshow).
Savioz Fabrizzi Architectes designed Tracuit Mountain Hut to replace an existing climbers’ facility that had been constructed in 1929 in the Chaussy section of the Swiss Alpine Club.
The existing building had been subjected to a number of adaptions over the years and would have required extensive renovation to bring it up to modern standards, so a decision was made to simply knock it down and start from scratch.
Wrapping over the peak of a mountain and glacier, the building has an angular shape that is orientated south to make the most of solar heat and energy.
“The nature of the site, between a cliff and a glacier, defined the position and shape of the new hut, which is constructed along the ridge above the cliff, fitting in with the site’s topography,” said the architects.
Solar panels cover the south elevation and the roof, allowing the building to generate all of its own power. Larger windows are also located on this side of the building, where they can take advantage of solar heat gain.
The difficulty in transporting concrete to the remote location prompted the architects to use a timber frame for the building’s structure, which had to be prefabricated and airlifted to the site by helicopter.
Corrugated stainless-steel panels clad the west, north and east elevations, creating a shiny surface that offers a distorted reflection of the surroundings.
Four storeys of accommodation are contained within the building, including sleeping spaces for up to 116 guests and large canteen.
“From the refectory, guests enjoy an uninterrupted, plunging view over the Val de Zinal,” added the architects.
Photography is by Thomas Jantscher.
Here’s some project text from Savioz Fabrizzi Architectes:
New Tracuit Mountain Hut, Zinal
The Tracuit Mountain Hut (altitude 3256 metres) belongs to the Chaussy section of the Swiss Alpine Club and is situated in the Val d’Anniviers, in the heart of the Valaisan Alps. Its superb position makes it the ideal starting-point for climbing the Bishorn, the Weisshorn, and the Tête de Milon.
The hut was built in 1929 and enlarged several times to cope with a constant increase in guest numbers and expected levels of comfort. Current requirements concerning health and safety, staffing, facilities, and environmental protection meant that the hut needed to be enlarged and completely refurbished. As transforming the existing hut would have produced a significant cost overhead, the club decided to build a new one. The design was chosen via an architectural competition.
The nature of the site, between a cliff and a glacier, defined the position and shape of the new hut, which is constructed along the ridge above the cliff, fitting in with the site’s topography. The south facade of the building extends from the cliff and works like a large solar collector, being either glazed or covered with solar panels to make maximum use of solar energy. The other facades reflect the surrounding landscape. From the refectory, guests enjoy an uninterrupted, plunging view over the Val de Zinal.
At this altitude, the construction methods had to be adapted to the adverse weather conditions and to the means of transport available. As transporting concrete is particularly expensive, its use was minimised and restricted largely to individual footings.
The whole of the structural frame is of wood. The wall and floor components, consisting of studs/beams, insulation and cladding, were prefabricated in the factory and transported by helicopter for on-site assembly. Panels of stainless steel cladding protect the roof and outer walls from the elements.
The east, west and north walls have only a few openings, reducing heat loss while providing optimum natural ventilation. Larger windows on the south wall, which is exposed to the sun, enable passive solar energy to be stored, and this wall is also covered with solar panels.
During the work, the existing hut accommodated the usual guests and also the construction workers. At the end of the work, this outdated, energy-hungry building was taken down. The lower part of the walls remains, with the south wall delimiting the terrace and protecting its users from the wind.
Via its large area of solar panels and south-facing glazing, the building makes maximum use of solar radiation. The compact shape of the building and efficient wall insulation reduce heat loss. Low-tech ventilation is used to recover the significant amount of heat emitted by the building’s occupants, while making it more comfortable and preventing any problems with mould growth in premises that are closed for several months of the year.
Client: Swiss Alpine Club, section Chaussy
Program: hut with 116 beds, (6 dorms with 12 places, 5 dorms with 4 places, 1 dorm with 24 places), refectory, professional kitchen, techniques
Civil engineer: Alpatec SA
HVAC engineer: Tecnoservice Engineering SA
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Architectes wraps over an Alpine ridge appeared first on Dezeen.
There’s nothing quite like hitting the mountain in state-of-the-art Gore-Tex technical outerwear, but when it comes to rough and tumble durability, these moisture-wicking wonders often fall short. The Missoula Pants from Salt Lake City-based
Focus sur Thomas Kneubühler, un photographe canadien qui s’est penché avec sa série « Electric Mountains » sur l’atmosphère des pistes de ski éclairées la nuit au Québec. De jolis clichés à découvrir dans une série d’images sur son portfolio et dans la suite de l’article.
![chanetlair [com_ower] 001](https://i0.wp.com/www.fubiz.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Electric-Mountains-Photography9-150x150.jpg?resize=150%2C150 "chanetlair [com_ower] 001")
News: Arizona architect Nick Tsontakis has unveiled plans for a house that will straddle a mountain and be shaped like a manta ray (+ slideshow).
The $30-million two-storey building is designed by Nick Tsontakis to sit on top of Mummy Mountain in Arizona.
“The overall form of the home is reminiscent of a manta ray – even though this was not intentional – and from the air the structure looks like it’s swimming on top of the mountain,” Tsontakis told Dezeen. “I wanted to make the house design memorable and simple. It is organic, soft and liveable.”
Tsontakis told Dezeen that he came up with the concept to capture views of both the McDowell Mountains in Scottsdale to the north and of Camelback Mountain and the city lights in Downtown Phoenix to the south. “It meant that I would somehow have to infuse the house into the mountain,” he explained.
A number of local guidelines restricted the scale of the design, said the designer. “We were not to exceed the height of the top of the mountain in the centre of the home and we had to draw a 20 degree line from the [mountain’s] pinnacle in all directions, which the house could not penetrate,” he explained.
Once completed, the property will contain six bedrooms and eight bathrooms, and will boast views across Paradise Valley from a series of viewing decks.
A ten-car garage located on the upper level will be accessed via a sloping road. On the same level there will be an entry hall and a pair of two-bedroom guest wings.
Stairs and elevators will descend to the main ground level, which will accommodate a master wing on the north side and a large living area to the south.
“The two wings will be connected with a tunnel bored through the mountain from north to south, and on the east a 2000 square-foot entertainment hall would be carved out of the mountain,” added Tsontakis.
The property is currently listed by Russ Lyon Sotheby’s International Realty and is due for completion in 2015. Tsontakis told Dezeen that “the project is not under construction yet”, but that he is in conversations with “several interested parties.”
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Renderings by Nick Tsontakis AIA Architecture and Interiors.
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to straddle an Arizona mountain appeared first on Dezeen.
A bord d’un aéroplane, le photographe américain Jason Madara photographie les chaines de montagnes et les horizons lointains de l’Alaska. De lacs en en massifs escarpés, les paysages laissent entrevoir une nature sauvage et prolifère. De superbes clichés à découvrir dans la suite de l’article.
This brick courtyard house by Auckland studio Glamuzina Paterson Architects sits at the foot of a mountain in New Zealand’s Otago region (+ slideshow).
Lake Hawea Courtyard House was designed by Glamuzina Paterson Architects as a rural home for a retired couple, who requested a building that “sits on the ground with weight and permanence”.
Occupying a square plot, the single-storey house has an L-shaped plan that folds around the north and east sides of a secluded central courtyard, allowing morning and afternoon sunlight to penetrate the interior spaces.
The walls are constructed from uneven bricks, giving a bumpy texture to the outer surfaces, and large recesses are infilled with a mixture of timber panels and glazing.
“The house is an enquiry into where a site begins and ends,” said the architects. “The use of rusticated bricks creates a material relationship with the site and anchors it firmly to the ground, along with a textural palette that allows for a constantly shifting interpretation of scale.”
Alongside the usual living, dining and bedroom spaces, the architects added a music room and a quiet room, designed to accommodate the residents’ various hobbies.
Entrances to the house lead in through the courtyard, plus a garage in the site’s south-west corner offers parking spaces for a pair of cars.
Other interesting houses from New Zealand include a guesthouse with walls of Corten steel and a residence that can be towed off the beach. See more architecture from New Zealand »
Photography is by Samuel Hartnett, apart from where otherwise stated.
Read on for a description from Glamuzina Paterson Architects:
The Lake Hawea Courtyard House
The Lake Hawea Courtyard House is grounded in rural land at the foot of Mount Maude in the Otago region. The house is an enquiry into where a site begins and ends – how to define the edges of the project and the way that landscape may be inhabited.
Firmly dug into the earth, its low form and simple square plan recalls the modest language of early settler buildings in the region that utilise low slung, stone construction to deal with the extreme environment.
This idea of a singular form clad with simple materials, drove the exploration into the material and formal qualities of the house.
In their written brief the clients requested “a building not built on a domestic scale, that might have been part of a bigger building that sits on the ground with weight and permanence”.
The couple planned to retire to the house so spaces were described by unusual titles, such as the quiet room and the music room that represented their respective hobbies.
The brick amour of the Courtyard facade wraps the house and large central courtyard, framing views to the lofty mountains and low plains.
Living, dining and sleeping spaces occupy the northern and eastern edges, favouring the predominant direction of the sun, while niches and overhangs in the building envelope protect it from the hot, dry summers and harsh winters.
The courtyard bunkered in the landscape responds to the immediate context within which it is placed and allows the building to address continuous enclosure and protection from the prevailing north-east wind. The use of rusticated bricks creates a material relationship with the site, and anchors it firmly to the ground, along with a textural palette that allows for a constantly shifting interpretation of scale. The strategies of shifting roof planes and concrete floor plates enables the house to articulate the relationship of form to land, this in turn is mediated by a plinth that is expressed as a low recessed wall wrapping around the building connecting the mass to the ground and acting as an organisational tool for apertures.
As Ted McCoy once commented: “The good thing about isolation [is that] one had to learn for oneself, by looking at surroundings.” The courtyard house reflects these values.
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by Glamuzina Paterson Architects appeared first on Dezeen.
L’agence d’architectes EMA crée La Casa en el Bosque à Mazamitla, dans l’Etat mexicain de Jalisco. Une maison dont les matériaux comme l’architecture respectent et s’inscrivent dans l’environnement montagneux et boisé qui l’entoure. Un projet magnifique à découvrir en images dans la suite de l’article.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
