Hasta La Ideas

Here are some images of an office building designed by American studio Richard Meier & Partners, currently under construction in Prague, Czech Republic.

Called City Green Court, the building will feature glass façades interrupted by protruding vertical fins and balconies.

The eight-storey building will be organised around a central open-air atrium with a large tree in the middle and a wall covered in plants at ground level.

Walkways spanning across the courtyard will provide access routes from opposites sides of the building.

This is the third building to be designed by Meier as part of a masterplan for the Pankrác Plains in Prague.

Construction on the tower began in September last year and is due to be completed in 2012.

Renderings are courtesy of Vize.

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The following information is from the architects:

Richard Meier & Partners third building breaks ground in Prague, Czech Republic and receives LEED Platinum pre-certification

Richard Meier & Partners Architects is pleased to announce the construction of City Green Court which has recently started last September 2010. This is RM&P’s third building within the Master Plan of Prague 4- Pankrác that began almost a decade ago with a local Czech developer and named the CITY Project. Based on RM&P’s Master Plan of the superblock on the Pankrác Plains, this once neglected area of Prague has now been transformed into a multi-functional, vibrant and revitalized business, commercial, and residential district filled with green public spaces and amenities.

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City Green Court has been modified and re-designed to the new owner Skanska’s sustainability goals and high standards to achieve the highest level of LEED certification. The project has recently received a LEED Platinum Pre-certification. With City Green Court, Richard Meier & Partners completes the northwestern corner of the superblock along M. Pujmanové and Hvĕzdova Streets with a cluster of three buildings. Conceived as a geometric volume in dialogue with the near context, City Green Court also offers respected contrast to the surrounding buildings. Like its earlier siblings City Tower and City Point, it is inspired by the language of Czech Cubism with an expressive façade that responds to issues of conservation and sustainability articulated with forms reminiscent of this avant-garde movement.

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When completed in early 2012, it will be a welcomed and key addition to the Pankrác superblock. “We are working together to make City Green Court a benchmark for green building design in the Czech Republic, said Richard Meier. “This assignment has been particularly challenging as it also meant addressing the historic beauty of Prague and at the same time creating a modern image of the City for its future.” Distinctive vertical solid panels with fins angled according to the sun’s orientation are integrated into the design of the curtain wall, emerging from both the south and west facades to minimize solar heat gain and to provide balanced shading and comfort within the interiors while maximizing daylight and views.

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In contrast, the north and east facades do not need solar protection: shading is unnecessary to the north, and City Tower, the adjacent high rise standing on the neighboring site shields the building to the east. White spandrel glass replaces the fin panels producing facades which are calm, sleek and uniform. The four facades when juxtaposed create a harmonious and dynamic envelope that can be perceived differently from close and distant vantage points. The eight-story building is organized around a central sky-lit atrium surrounded by highly efficient office floor spaces. To the south, a grand canopy marks the formal entrance to the building that leads into a single height lobby which then opens into the multi-story atrium.

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Atop the seven office floor plates, the partial mechanical penthouse level is covered with an extensive green roof and a skylight. Nestled in the atrium is a singular black olive tree and green ivy wall, with bridges spanning above from one side of the space to the other while a free standing stair connects the first four floors promoting movement and interaction, and encouraging less use of elevators. The exterior and interior of City Green Court are intertwined visually and physically with landscape elements spilling into and reappearing in the atrium.

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“Skanska Property Czech Republic, our Associate Architect CUBOID and our local consultants in Prague are fast becoming experts in green building design,” said Partner in Charge Dukho Yeon. “With its tautly composed form and elements, City Green Court embodies a certain discipline and restraint; designed within the framework of Skanska’s green initiative. We hope that we continue to educate each other and influence future development with a critical outlook on architecture and social responsibility.” City Green Court is expected to achieve LEED platinum certification in the Czech Republic by drastically reducing energy consumption.

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In addition to the very efficient building envelop, some of the most important measures towards LEED certification include natural ventilation of the atrium during the summer, state-of-the-art mechanical systems, reduction of water runoffs and storm water collection, green roof, indoor air quality control and the use of local and recycled materials.

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“We are proud to cooperate with Richard Meier & Partners Architects on the redesign of City Green Court to meet the growing interest in green, modern and flexible office space that offers a stimulating work environment,” said Britta Cesar, Managing Director of Skanska Property Czech Republic, and continued: ”Together with the enthusiasm and commitment from Richard Meier & Partners Architects we managed to achieve LEED platinum Pre-certification.”

“Above all we hoped this Master Plan for the Pankrác Plains would be a catalyst for growth, said Richard Meier. “After 10 years of hard work and dedication we are now seeing the result – which is an incredibly robust neighborhood, a new urban fabric rich with activity, and an optimistic view of urbanism for Prague.”

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Office building by de Carvalho and Palmero Cabezas	Central Business District Wenzhou by Henn Architekten	Crystal Clear by C. F. Møller & Kristin Jarmund Arkitekter

This angular structure looping around a central courtyard is an office building in Saint-Etienne by French studio Manuelle Gautrand Architecture.

The façade of the building is made up of opaque and glass rectangular panels, contrasting with the yellow underbelly where parts of the volume have been cut away.

Three entry points have been created where the building rises and falls, providing a yellow canopy over the pavement.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

A central courtyard allows easy circulation in and around the building.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

The building houses the offices for several government bodies, as well as a restaurant, tourism bureau and leisure facilities.

Photographs are by Vincent Fillon unless otherwise stated.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

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The following information is from the architects:

“LA CITE DES AFFAIRES” IN SAINT-ETIENNE  – Grüner district – Zac Châteaucreux, Saint-Etienne

This office building (1.500 workstations) groups various public services, including the head office of ‘Saint-Etienne Metropole’, a business canteen and 400 parking places.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

The site is a vital liaison point between the centre of Saint-Etienne and the new Chateaucreux neighbourhood, to which it forms a major entranceway.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

It also constitutes a pole grouping several government bodies that will set up there : Regional Development Authority, Tax Services, Epora, Saint-Etienne Métropole, and so on.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

Service and leisure facilities will also be part of the mix: shared corporate restaurant, café, tourism bureau for the metropiltan area.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

The idea is to develop a long built ‘continuum’ on the site to interact with adjacent streets.

A linear construction that rears up and unfolds but also hugs the ground line to form a low accessible building – one that opens spacious courts and lifts bold overhangs.

Each of its large bays serves an access route: the main portal opens to the concourse on avenue Grüner, which draws pedestrians into the project in a sliding movement.

A high ceiling shelters and magnifies this entranceway, which is the finest and largest of three.

The other two large ‘ports’ open the project to the streets that irrigate the lot, interconnecting pedestrian itineraries in the area.

Our desire for continuity in construction does not simply reflect the idea of building a legible and unitary urban landmark, it also provides the flexibility that the project needs.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

In fact, the principle behind this continuum is to imagine a set of ‘communicating parts’ that enable the user-administrations to merge into a whole, one and all, and to evolve according to their needs in harmony with those of other tenants.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

The absence of breaks in surfaces will ensure that things remain open-ended, with the possibility of extending or reducing space.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

The project is like a large ‘Aztec serpent’ rising on the lot.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

Its body has three identical outer faces, and an underside that is different: a skin of silvery transparent scales and a bright yellow ‘throat’, shiny and opaque.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

This dual treatment of surfaces obeys a simple logic shared throughout, which aims at expressing clarity in folds.

Above photograph is by Philippe Ruault

Depending on these movements, the yellow underside is either a floating canopy or an interior vertical wall, accompanying internal pedestrian movements with its rich luminous presence.

The nearness of so much gorgeous yellow brightens up pavements and glazed elevations, casting golden washes over them like sunlight…

This is a project that is about bringing together yellow and grey, silver and gold.

ARCHITECT
Manuelle Gautrand Architecture: Manuelle Gautrand – representative architect, Thomas Daragon – works project manager, Yves Tougard – studies project manager

CLIENT
Altarea-Cogedim

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Structure: Khephren
Façade: Arcora

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Maîtrise d’œuvre d’exécution : Debray Ingénierie
Roofing / Finishings: Pitance-Lamy

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Metallic framework : Baudin-Châteauneuf
Façade : Allouis

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Surface : 25.000sqm
Length : 108 m, width : 43 m, max height. : 34 m

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Cantilever 25 m X 20 m without any grounding support

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Dates : 2005: design constest, 2006-2007 : studies, 2008-2010 : works, delivery : september 2010

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Monolith by Erick van Egeraat	Le Monolith by MVRDV	More projects by Manuelle Gautrand Architecture

Luxembourg firm Dagli+ Atelier d’Architecture have completed an office located on a rooftop in Dudelange, Luxembourg.

An extension to the headquarters of Luxembourg building engineering firm Sanichaufer, the project has a panelled facade featuring gradients of the colour grey and is a take on traditional mansard roofs typical to the area.

The grey colour scheme continues inside the space, with striped shades of grey on the walls.

The building will act as a showroom displaying modern building technologies.

Photographs are by Jörg Hempel Photodesign.

Here are some more details from dagli+ atelier d’architecture:

“Rooftop Office ” Dudelange is the extension of the company headquarters of Sanichaufer. Sanichaufer is one of the biggest Luxemburg-based firms in building services engineering, with over 50 years of experience.

Sanichaufer’s main fields of activity are heating, air-conditioning and central control systems. For this reason, the “rof-top office” is designed as a showroom displaying the most modern building technologies.

Principle of the different shapes

The construction laws demand the adaptation of the roof type of the adjacent building on a sixth of the façade width. However, the client wanted a cubic extension with a flat roof. The design combines those two opposites – the “mansard-object” as required by the laws – and the “roof-top office” as demanded by the client.

The two seemingly opposite shapes become one consistent design by using color gradients. Coming down the “mansard-object”, these gradients seem to create a movement that finally integrates in the base of the “roof-top office”, visually dragging the latter underneath the “mansard-object”.

Alternation with Color gradients
The combination of the different forms takes place with the help of grayscale gradients. The form follows the shades and vice versa. A subtle game. It alternates the opposite forms of the “Mansard object” and the “roof-top office”, as well as the different degree of the shades that seem to break out of the façade at the joints of the different parts.

Bizarre interiors

The interior design picks up the subtle interaction between colors and forms. The new mocks the old, color mocks shapes, straight lines the curved ones. The walls and ceilings of the new areas are designed completely in white.

The design intents to produce a bizarr empty space in which only the gradients generate forms and movement. In some areas the visitors of the new building are abruptly confronted by old parts of the building, areas, where the interaction of old and new generate or reinterpret new space.

Intelligent building technology

The “roof-top office” becomes the CI of Sanichaufer, by the architectural language as well as the best possible energy efficiency. Therefore, the “roof-top office” is built in timber construction. Because of its function as showroom, the latest state-of-the-art in heating and air-conditioning is used.

A central control unit with touch panel and IPhone user interface manages the controlling and fine tuning of the installed systems. For Sanichaufer, the focus was not only on energy savings and energy efficiency, but also on the use of renewable energy like solar energy and green electricity.

dagli + atelier d’architecture is a young Luxembourg based contemporary architecture and design firm founded and owned by Türkan Dagli. Since 2005, dagli+ is managed by Türkan Dagli and Mathias Eichhorn.

SANICHAUFER:

DESIGN: dagli + atélier d’architecture, Luxembourg
CLIENT: Sanichaufer sci

LOCATION: 58, Rue Pierre Krier, L-3504 Dudelange
COMPLETION: october 2010

SURFACE: 250 m²
VOLUME: 750 m³
PROGRAM: office & commercial

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Spanish studio Hoz Fontán Arquitectos have completed this rectangular office tower in Irun, Spain.

The eight-storey tower sits atop an elliptical plinth, which in turn is built on top of an existing car park.

The building has a double-glazed facade and features gardens on the upper two floors.

The tower houses the headquarters for the Zaisa transportation hub and its offices are located in the higher floors, while the remaining floors are sublet.

Photographs are by José Hevia.

Here’s some more information from the architects:

Located close to the border between Spain and France, the new office tower is the last building of the Zaisa transportation hub in Irun, and houses Zaisa’s headquarters and rental office space.

The tower is inserted in front of a building that has a crescent like façade, and over a previously existing underground parking.

When the parking was built, some pillars were raised from the ground level waiting for a future development.

The first volume of the tower is an elliptical base that groups the pillars that came from the parking.

On top of this ellipse, eight stories of offices are located.

The two volumes have a different structure that is connected by a W that also points the entrance of the building.

Zaisa’s headquarters are located in the two upper floors, which are connected by a double height space.

The last floor provides two garden terraces, accessible from the meeting rooms.

The building is covered by a double layer glass façade, which allows the air to flow between the layers, and in which one of the layers is treated to block solar radiation.

A variety of glass modules are used, the smallest one can be opened, while the wider one forms a cut in the outer layer, providing a more direct contact with the views.

Credits:

Architecture: Hoz Fontán Arquitectos
Project directors: Angel de la Hoz, Cristina Fontan

Project team: Gurutze Aldanondo, Angel Alvarez
M/E: Juan Murua

Structural Engineer: Jose Antonio Gurruchaga
Constructor: Altuna y Uria

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