Hasta La Ideas

Spanish collective Grupo IUT built a tower of straw bales on the outskirts of Guimarães in Portugal (+ slideshow).

Located in an area of farmland near the road into Guimarães, the Agricultural Mountain stood 13 metres high and contained 288 straw bales.

The bales were piled up in a tiered ziggurat formation around a thin metal structure, which supported an elevated room accessed by a narrow door.

The structure remained rigid and secure due to the assembly pattern of the straw bales and the way they compressed under their own weight, so no other reinforcement was needed.

“We visited Spanish and Portuguese farms to study the material. It is usual to see big straw bale ‘mountains’ in the Iberian farms,” IUT Group told Dezeen. “Normally the farmers have only nine layers of straw bales, but we arrived at 15 layers because we changed the construction system and we redrew the shape.”

Above: photograph is by Nelson Guarrido

“We are sure, after studying the Agricultural Mountain’s behaviour, that we can have a bigger height,” they added.

Above: photograph is by Nelson Guarrido

When the installation was taken down at the end of September, the straw was re-used by local horse stables.

Above: photograph is by Sara Lazaro

Grupo IUT is a collective comprising architects Nuno Miguel Lima Cruz and Bruno Martins Afonso Gomes plus designer António da Silva Lopes.

Above: photograph is by Nelson Guarrido

The project was one of the winners of Performance Architecture, an international competition organised by MoMA curator Pedro Gadanho to create temporary urban interventions for the European Capital of Culture 2012.

Above: plan

We’ve featured a number of temporary installations in Guimarães this year, including a cinema that requires visitors to crawl in like centipedes, a set of swings that generate electricity and a project to turn the city’s fountains into playgrounds.

Above: section

See all our stories about Guimarães »
See all our stories about pavilions »

Photography is by Carina Oliveira except where stated.

Here’s some more information from Grupo IUT:

agriCultural Mountain
Temporary urban intervention at the Guimarães 2012 European Capital of Culture.

Technical data
Authors: IUT Group: Nuno Miguel Lima Cruz (architect), Bruno Martins Afonso Gomes (architect), António da Silva Lopes (designer)
Consultant: Joaquim Carvalho (civil engineer)
Support: Jofebar and Herdade das Barradas da Serra
Site: Guimarães, Portugal
Client: Guimarães 2012 European Capital of Culture

First prize winner of the Performance Architecture International Competition
Exhibition period: August 13th to September 30th, 2012
Project numbers: Installation with a 13,60×13,60m base and total height of 13,00m.
288 straw bales of 2,7×0,8×0,9 m and 300 kg each, in a total of 86400 kg and 560 m3 of wheat, produced in about 25 hectares of land, which will feed 15 horses for about 1.5 years.

Context

The Agricultural Mountain project was one of the winners of the international competition Performance Architecture, aimed at choosing proposals for five temporary urban interventions in the scope of Guimarães 2012 European Capital of Culture. The competition intended to draw up architectural and urban strategies that, in reactivating performance art approaches, provided new directions as to the roles of architects, artists and designers in the urban context. The competition selected multidisciplinary teams proposing temporary concepts and structures that would stimulate the appropriation of controversial public spaces by the city inhabitants.

Approach

Cultural activities are mainly urban happenings. Rural people and rural areas are usually outside the mainstream circuit of the cultural industry. This proposal aims to bring the cultural phenomenon to the agricultural realm.

Concept

The project explores the paradox of an ephemeral monument creation. It’s an artificial mountain placed at the city outskirts, outside the dense urban core, at an agricultural area called “Veiga de Creixomil”. This area represents a microcosm of the Ave river valley diffuse city, where Guimarães is a center piece, characterized by a great dispersion of the urban settlements, creating a blurred distinction between the urban and the rural areas. It is located in the only uncultivated terrain of the region, next to the highway access to Guimarães, highly visible by the city visitors arriving by car.

The proposal distinguishes itself from the immediate surroundings by its vertical scale (12,70m height) in opposition to the horizontal plain, producing an immediate impact to the public as soon as they arrive to town. It has a wide base, like a ziggurate, that narrows up into a tower with salient corners. The intervention wants to be a landmark, as the ancient Guimarães Castle tower is, but also wants to be visited and conquered, instead of a military defensive fortress. It is an invitation for the public use, to climb it, seat and rest. The scale is big and almost superhuman, forcing the visitor to touch the straw and escalade. The interior space is appropriate to small events and a quiet space to lounge. The outside space creates a natural auditorium suitable for wider audiences and to enjoy the view.

Materials, construction and demolition

This pyramidal volume was built just by piling up a total of 288 big size straw bales (2,80×0,90×0,80m with 300kg each) around a guiding thin metal structure with no other structural function than supporting the interior elevated floor. The construction is stable to vertical loads (gravity) taking advantage of the geometry of the proposal and the good compression qualities of the material. The stability to horizontal loads (wind or earthquakes) is guaranteed by the squared shaped plan with four close corners and the straw bales assembly system allowing a completely locked structure with no need to use mortar or other reinforcement. This is a rather unknown construction material, inexpensive and totally reusable. This intervention, notwithstanding its volume, left no trace in the landscape and no waste afterwards. The idea was to reinvent a temporary usage for this raw material the fields produce. After the temporary exhibition period all straw bales were reintroduced for consumption by local horse breeders.

The post Agricultural Mountain
by Grupo IUT appeared first on Dezeen.

Portuguese architect Miguel Marcelino has completed a rural family house with red concrete walls and three separate terraces.

Located in Benavente, near Lisbon, the building is named Three Courtyards House in reference to the three differently sized patios positioned at the north and south ends of the house. “This was the way I found to solve the problem of having the best oriented sun on the south side and the best views on the north side,” Miguel Marcelino told Dezeen.

The largest terrace is to the north and features a stepped surface with a sunken swimming pool. Meanwhile, the southern end features a courtyard with a cork oak tree, plus a smaller yard with high walls.

“One could be quiet at the large inner enclosed courtyard with the sun and the big cork oak,” said the architect. “And, in the vertical courtyard facing the framed view to the lake with the sun reflected on the outer wall, be embraced and protected by the house in a cold and harsh side like the north one,” he added.

The architect used fair-faced concrete for the walls and structure of the building, washed with an acid-based etching solution to add texture. ”This finishing, raw and earthy, was chosen because in such a landscape I thought that it would be better that this house had the feel like it would come out of the ground, more rooted and anchored to this place,” he said.

The house has two storeys, with a living room and kitchen on the ground floor and bedrooms and bathrooms upstairs.

We’ve featured a few Portuguese residences on Dezeen recently, including a concrete house in Moreira and a townhouse covered in plants in Lisbon.

See more stories about Portuguese houses »

Photography is by Fernando Guerra.

Here’s some more information from Miguel Marcelino:

Three Courtyards House

The plot is located in the middle of a ìmontadoî landscape, being the best views to the north with a lake and the skyline punctuated by cork oak trees.

The house is organized in a compact volume of two floors, complemented by three courtyards all different in size and features.

A first large courtyard, enclosed, intimate, situates on the south side, embracing a big existing cork oak.

Next to the back entrance there is another smaller patio, for service.

The third courtyard works as a key element in the relationship between home and the north side.

It is a slim space with a large horizontal opening that frames the landscape and it has an atmosphere of a “inner space outdoors”, the light is soft, by reflection on the outer wall that receives direct sunlight.

This vertical courtyard communicates with a staircase that leads to an open terrace, the last element of the sequence of spaces, patios and atmospheres that go from more introspective and private to more open and outside.

Above: ground and first floor plans – click above to see larger image

Above: long section – click above to see larger image

The post Three Courtyards House
by Miguel Marcelino appeared first on Dezeen.

This narrow townhouse in Lisbon has bushy plants all over its body and a swimming pool on its roof.

Designed by Portuguese architects Luís Rebelo de Andrade, Tiago Rebelo de Andrade and Manuel Cachão Tojal, the three-storey house was designed as a vertical garden that includes 25 different Iberian and Mediterranean plant species.

“Different fragrances are spread throughout the floors,” the architects told Dezeen. “In the swimming pool you will have the flavour of saffron; in the bedroom, lavender; in the living-room, rosemary.”

“In the heart of a busy city, the vertical garden creates an unique link with nature and an unexpected atmosphere,” they added.

A single staircase spans one side of the house to connect all three floors and the roof terrace. The architects describe them as “an allusion to the famous stairs of Alfama,” in reference to the stepped streets in the oldest area of the city.

On the roof, the narrow pool stretches along the whole length of the terrace so that it can be used for swimming lengths.

Living and dining rooms are on the second floor, while bedrooms occupy the first floor and a garage and music room are on the ground floor.

Other buildings with green walls on Dezeen include a pharmacy and clinic in Japan and a furniture showroom in Brazil.

See all our stories about green walls »

Photography is by Fernando Guerra.

Here’s a description from the architects:

House in Travessa do Patrocínio

From a small lot with its unique implantation, this project has raised early on a couple of challenges… and along with them, ideas emerged.

Above: ground floor plan – click above for larger image

The box housing deviates from the gable to create a vertical yard (glass box), with a straight ladder connecting all floors, an allusion to the famous stairs of Alfama, running between the all four floors walls and linking the various dimensions.

Above: first floor plan – click above larger image

This courtyard is the heart of the house, bringing light to the interior, enhancing the main entrance and creating a real exterior/interior relationship.

Above: second floor plan – click above for larger image

In terms of material, we chose to polish the rectangular form and give the block the face of a tree, making it one more element of the square, which resulted together with the existing tree and water fountain, in a triad.

Above: roof plan – click above for larger image

The program was set up almost automatically, the technical services and garage with direct access from the street, the first floor holding the private area of the house. The second floor is the social area, with a direct connection to the coverage, extending social into outdoors, being the view related to the social side and the private area to both square and Embassy, the setting of a typical Lisbon experience, which is a truly intimate relationship between quarters.

Therefore, this project is in fact a mini lung and an example of sustainability for the city of Lisbon, keeping the principles of a living typical habitat and a relationship with the outside, assuming a revitalizing urban role.

Above: section – click above for larger image 

Architects: Luís Rebelo de Andrade, Tiago Rebelo de Andrade & Manuel Cachão Tojal
Co-Workers: Madalena Rebelo de Andrade, Raquel Jorge, Carlos Ruas & Tiago Moniz
Location: Travessa do Patrocínio, Lisbon, Portugal
Project Year: 2008-2012
Project Area: 248 sqm
Client: BWA – Buildings With Art

Construction:
Construoeiras, Obras Públicas e Construção Civil SA
Supervision – RTCNC,Lda – Eng. Rui Taborda
Electrical, Communications and Safety – EppE – Eng. José Cardoso Water and Sewer – Carlos Nunes Baptista
AVAC – Prom & E, Lda – Eng. Luis Baião
Gardens – Adn-Garden Desing

The post House in Lisbon by Luís and Tiago Rebelo
de Andrade and Manuel Cachão Tojal appeared first on Dezeen.

This hill-top house by Portuguese architect Jorge Graca Costa was designed for a professional surfer and his family (+ slideshow).

The form of the U-House took inspiration from traditional Mediterranean courtyard houses to protect it from the windy climate of western Portugal.

“Our mutual interest in sustainability didn’t keep us from wholeheartedly embracing modern design,” says Jorge Graca Costa, explaining how he and the client wanted to integrate environmental strategies into the holistic design of the house, rather than simply tack on “green” devices as an afterthought.

Perched at the top of a hill and surrounded by trees, the shape of the house frames the view over the San Lorenzo bay and helps to moderate the climate within the courtyard.

A grassed area and a decked patio lead on to a non-chlorinated pool, which is heated by a combination of solar and biomass energy.

The windows are deeply recessed with high performance double-glazing to let in plenty of natural light while keeping solar gain to a minimum.

Photographs are by Fernando Guerra.

See more projects in Portugal.

Here’s some more information from the architect:

The U House located in Ericeira, a World Surfing Reserve, was designed for José Gregório three times national Surf champion and a well known big wave rider, his wife and two daughters. This 300 Square meter house occupies a big lot, surrounded by a dense mesh of trees, on top of a hill overlooking Saint Lorenzo Bay.

The goal was to avoid green pronouncements, allowing to achieve ascetics and exciting architecture solutions, instead of designing a building fully controlled by superfluous green technologies and merely aggregating raw materials.

The house design emerges from the inevitability of protection of prevailing winds. The north wind dominant in the summer and the stormy south wind dominant in the winter carrying the rain from the sea. Therefore the central idea was a design based in the reinterpretation of ancient’s Mediterranean patio houses, creating a patio sitting on a plateau embraced by two long arms interconnected by a third body, never ignoring the fabulous views to the west even in interior spaces.

Abundant glazing brings in natural light while a high performance envelope controls temperatures. Eco-friendly Interior finishes and art work made from recycled materials take place in prominent places in the house.

The numerous sustainable features includes: cork has a primary isolation material, passive design (natural heating and cooling), floor and water heating by solar panels supported by biomass heating, microclimate environment created by the patio and the pool (pool water without chemical treatment) and rainwater harvesting (collected in a pre-existing well) for irrigation proposes.

The house’s success in harmonizing design, functionality and sustainability is augmented by its livability, extreme comfort and considerable savings in consumption of water and energy. Its humble size and careful design are a testament to the success balance of architecture with a prescriptive performance design.

Name of the owner: José Gregório
Location: Ericeira; Portugal
Site Area: 5.000.00 Square meters

House Area: 300.00 Square meters (House) + 90.00 Square meters (Basement)
Clients brief: Primary residence for a couple and two daughters regarding eco-concerns
Design features: A+ (A plus) classified house by the National Energy Agency
Materials: Ecofriendly materials including cork has a primary isolation material

Architecture: Jorge Graça Costa, Arquitecto
Architecture Collaboration: Rui Rodrigues, Rafaella Gradvohl

Renewable Energy: Natural-Works, Guilherme Carilho da Graça Eng.
Engineering: ACR Engenharia
Photos: Fernando Guerra, FG + SG

Ground floor plan – click above for larger image

Basement plan – click above for larger image

Roof plan – click above for larger image

Cross section – click above for larger image

Longitudinal section – click above for larger image

North elevation – click for larger image

East elevation – click above for larger image

South elevation – click above for larger image

West elevation – click above for larger image

The post U-House by
Jorge Graca Costa appeared first on Dezeen.

Stripy glass screens obscure views between rooms at this dental clinic in Torres Vedras, Portugal, by MMVArquitecto (+ slideshow).

Patterned with vertical stripes of green and black, the semi-transparent walls surround the reception and waiting area of the clinic and are made from recycled glass panels of different thicknesses.

“The inspiration came from a block of ice,” architect Miguel Marques Venâncio told Dezeen, and explained how he wanted to “potentiate the reflections and the vibrations of the light, creating a perception of space that is constantly mutating.”

Narrow recesses fold around the walls and ceilings, and are illuminated from behind to provide channels of light.

Apart from the colourful screens, the clinic has an all-white interior that is only interrupted by a handful of red and blue chairs within the three surgery rooms.

See more stories about dentists on Dezeen »

Photography is by Fernando Guerra.

Here’s some more information from MMVArquitecto:

The challenge is based on the re-interpretation of a Dental Clinic, in the search of a new clarity and spatial character.

The site is located on a first floor of a common building in the centre of Torres Vedras. The space requires a new image to provoke new atmospheres, new sensations.

The desire of creating a distinguished space in the city, more paused, contemplative, a space of reflection, leading to the discovery of the importance of silence and of spaces apparently empty yet full of drive.

An experimentation where the selection of materials is sustained by the nobleness of the materials. That experimentation is essentially realised with the immaterial architectural element, which is space.

Working with space, is determined by perception, paths, light, reflections, transparencies, fluidity.

The mass composed by a summary of recycled glasses, potentiates the reflections and the vibrations of the light, by creating a perception of space that is constantly mutating.

The search of a timeless space, with a plentitude of senses, where light is filtered in different ways, gives poetry to spaces, dignifying them.

Location: Torees Vedras, Portugal
Client: R. Leal
Architect: Migues Marques Venâncio

Collaborators: B. Pedrosa (project, digital images), V. Vázquez (project), M. Álvarez (project), T. Palos (models, drawings)
Construction supervision: MMVArquitecto
Construction company: António Manuel Nogueira Cesário

Plan – click above for larger image and key

Long section – click above for larger image

The post Dental Clinic by
MMVArquitecto appeared first on Dezeen.