06 January 2019

The project is located on a long and very narrow site, on the edge of Parc La Vilette in Paris’s 19th district, within an urban development done by Reichen & Robert architects. On the northeast, new Paris tram route is passing along the site. The site is bordering with tram garage on the southwest, above which is a football field. The first 3 floors of the housing will inevitably share the wall with the tram garage. The parcel has a very particular configuration; 11m in width and extending approximately 200m north-south. This foreshadows the importance of processing the eastern facade overlooking the extension of the street Des Petits Ponts which hosts the tram and both cyclist and pedestrian walkways. The long volume of the building is divided into two parts connected with a narrow bridge. Between two volumes there is a garden. The building has 11 floors: a technical space in the basement, shared programs in the ground floor, and student apartments in the upper nine floors. The layout is very rational and modular. The major objective of the project was to provide students with a healthy environment for studying, learning and meeting. Along the length of the football field is an open corridor and gallery that overlooks the field and creates a view to the city and the Eiffel tower. This gallery is an access to the apartments providing students with a common place. All the studios are the same size and contain the same elements to optimize design and construction: an entrance, bathroom, wardrobe, kitchenette, working space and a bed. Each apartment has a balcony overlooking the street. Narrow length of the plot with 10 floors gives to site a significant presence. Each volume contains two different faces according to the function and program. The elevation towards the street des Petits Ponts contains studio balconies-baskets of different sizes made from HPL timber stripes. They are randomly oriented to diversify the views and rhythm of the façade. Shifted baskets create a dynamic surface while also breaking down the scale and proportion of the building. The elevation towards the football field has an open passage walkway with studio entrances enclosed with a 3D metal mesh. Both volumes are connected on the first floor with a narrow bridge which is also an open common space for students. The building is energy efficient to accommodate the desires of Paris' sustainable development efforts. The Plan Climates goal is that future housing will consume 50KW-h.m.² or less. The objectives of energy performance and the construction timetable were met by focusing on a simple, well insulated and ventilated object that functions at its best year round. Accommodations are cross ventilating and allow abundant day lighting throughout the apartment. External corridors and glass staircases also promote natural lighting in the common circulation, affording energy while also creating comfortable and well lit social spaces. The building is insulated from the outside with an insulation thickness of 20 cm. Thermal bridge breakers are used on corridor floors and balconies to avoid thermal bridges. Ventilation is controlled by double flow mechanical ventilation, providing clean air in every apartment with an optimum temperature throughout the year. The incoming air also reuses heat from the exhaust air. The roof is covered with 300m² of photovoltaic panels to generate electricity. Rainwater is harvested on site in a basin pool used for watering outdoor green spaces. (Fabiana Cambiaso - Università La Sapienza) www.ofis-a.si  Photos: ©Tomaz Gregoric.

Edoardo Croci

11 October 2018

The renewed impulse towards liturgical building, the sustainability of churches in the urban context and the miraculous properties of porcelain stoneware. "God is in the details," as German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe said, one among the masters of the Modern Movement, stated. Never was an expression more appropriate if we look at sacred architecture and the attention paid to particular technical aspects of design, to the social role of a liturgical building and the significance a place of worship can acquire once inserted in a urban context. These aspects became fundamental once again after the 2nd Vatican Council - with figures such as Cardinal Larcaro dedicated to promoting religious building constantly dealing with the city - and turned into the protagonists of the debate on contemporary architecture also because of the numerous works of religious buildings planned by archistar such as Richard Meier, Le Corbusier, Mario Botta, Renzo Piano and Tadao Ando. But most of all thanks to the renewed impetus of the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI), involved in supporting this field by organizing competitions which calls for projects of news churches: only in the recent period, besides the call for the diocese of Mantua, also those for Forlì, Lucca and Monreale’s churches are being defined.   The activism of ecclesiastical clients seems to be in contrast to the general slowdown in the industry, with an overall drop in new buildings of 44% from 2006 to 2012 and a non-residential market that is struggling to reverse the tendency. A recovery that seems to be based above all on the development of environmental and urban sustainability, a goal which has always been dear to CEI. If green design and redevelopment are the possible future of architecture, sacred building is very much a part of that "human ecology" which also latest pontificates referred to, specifically: the attention paid to the energy efficiency of the building; the accurate selection of materials not harmful to health; the choice both of construction systems that favour the exposure to the sun of worship places and of technologically-advanced facilities. Good examples do not lack, from more than 700 churches in Germany that have solar panels installed on the roof to the Immaculate Sacred Heart of Mary at Brembo di Dalmine (Italy), where the designers from the PBEB Studio have created a church inside a factory felt into disuse.   A liturgical building that thus presents less features of a monument to show more and more the characteristics of an architecture with specific functional elements, naming universal accessibility and security. As well as respecting the equilibrium with the surrounding environment, be it a landscape, be it the urban fabric. In particular, the majority of religious buildings able to propose a contemporary language associate the innovation of forms and materials to the familiarity of a place aimed to spirituality, a point of reference of the local identity and within the social context it belongs to. Environmental sustainability is consequently the main goal of a sacred architecture aiming at conveying the concept of community, thanks to the use of green materials that represent a synthesis of contemporary aesthetics and functional quality. As for the materials, it is well known that ceramics are historically a common solution employed in the construction of religious buildings, for example for the covering of internal walls or for the decoration of domes and colonnades as well. A prominent role reiterated today by porcelain stoneware with its "miraculous" properties which let it adapt to different colours and spaces with different sizes, thanks to the availability of different shapes and thicknesses. Together with the elimination of glazes, these features allow the use of porcelain stoneware both indoor and outdoor, as in the case of the DSG Ceramics gres tiles which Ithaca Associate Architects and Itinera Associate Studio chose for the project they proposed to compete in the contest for the parish of Santa Maria del Carmine (Naples, Italy), organized by the Archdiocese of Sorrento-Castellammare di Stabia. The DSG products specifically selected for the project of the church facility are Luserna and Basaltina, both in the bush-hammered version: porcelain stoneware slabs able to resist to abrasion, with friction coefficient R11(perfect for uses in high-traffic areas), and with a stone effect capable of enhancing broader areas. An aesthetic detail fundamental for the creation of a unique pedestal that, according to the designers’ intention, should visually arise from the cross inside the church and then reach the exterior of the facility entirely travelling its perimeter, finally turning into a seat in the churchyard, as a symbol of welcoming. The indissoluble connection between the daily lives of all believers and the liturgy are indeed recalled by the principles which the project is based on, and is represented by a volcanic stone-effect flooring eliminating any continuity between the various parts of the sacred architecture.  Finally, to go back to quotations, in particular to another prestigious member of the Modern Movement, Le Corbusier asserts: "Architecture is the learned game, correct and magnificent, of forms assembled in the light." A light that, in some cases more than others, can truly be said to be of divine origin. Here you can download free textures of DSG products.

Marco Mignatti

This project deals with the extension and the restructuration of a young workers residence, a 10-levels building made of a concrete structure with overhangs every 2.50m. The existing building was built in a brutal way in the 1970s on the Fondation Eugene Napoleon domain, a group of Heritage buildings.

To go faster, allow freedom of interior organization and future flexibility, the extensions have been assembled using a metal frame.

The anodized aluminium envelope draws up a new geometry, free of architectural styles, that encompasses the extensions and the existing buildings.

It reflects the light and is slit by openings onto the windows and the balconies/galleries of the garden. Final touch to the Fondation’s composition, the garden is connected to the Boulevard by openings in the outer wall, to the communal life spaces on the ground floor and to the galleries on the western façade.

The housing itself is the result of working on expanding minimum space, on series and repetitions. The metal structure allows shifting forward or backward the light frame partition walls in the flats to create two spaces, the “services” in the hall and the living space close to the window.

 (Fabiana Cambiaso - Università La Sapienza) Credits: suzelbrout.com Figures: ©  Hervé Abbadie; © Frédéric Delangle Young Workers Residence, Paris, France aasb_agence d'architecture suzelbrout / Suzel Brout, Leslie Mandalka Site: 3751 mq Completed: 2011 Materials: Modular panels of anodised aluminium with serial holes made with laser technology, Steel Applications: Envelope, Structure  

29 October 2018

Located in the north of the Spanish capital, with a strong architectonic identity, the project, which follows an architectonic philosophy of sustainable development, is a gigantic business campus enclosed within a glass wall, crowned by the greatest solar paneled roof in Europe. The 26,000 m2 of solar panels that cover the canopy-roof transform solar energy into electricity, 4,389,000 kw/h/year, which in turn reduce atmospheric emissions of CO2 by 2000 Tn. The new headquarters of Telefónica, Distrito C, which is, due to its dimensions, the largest corporate project in Europe, and one of the largest in the world, houses its twelve thousand employees in one sole headquarters located in the north of Madrid, in Las Tablas. A total of 16 buildings, 400,000 square meters, and 6,000 parking spots are some of the figures that shape Distrito C, located in Las Tablas. Characterized by the homogeneity of the buildings, joined by an immense roof canopy, the new business campus is spread over a 200,000 square meter rectangle of surface area and extends below ground. The district is divided into four phases, in each of which are two four-story buildings and one ten-floor tower. In addition to these twelve buildings, there is another singular building –the Central Building- where the company management is located, another housing all of the catering services (open to the public) and a third holding a daycare center, a fitness center and a health center for company employees. The project uses one sole coating material on the façade: glass. It utilizes the entire range, from total transparency as an intrinsic quality of the glass, to the artificial and absolute opaqueness of color silk-screened glass. For the former, extra-clear glass in large dimensions 4x2m is used. For total opaqueness, a new type of glass that was developed specifically for the project was used, making the interior vision compatible with the exterior opaqueness thanks to an advanced technology. Technically the façade was constructed through a modular system of double curtain walls. The combination of filtering qualities and distances between layers reduces the resulting solar factor –relationship between visible light transmitted and rejected heat- to 19%. This favorable relationship is absolutely necessary for the installation of the cold beam air-conditioning system with its reduced maintenance costs. Except for the four towers, all of the buildings are crowned by an impressive canopy, a rooftop that covers the entire construction, unifying the complex. Additionally, the canopy, which serves the purpose of refreshing and shading the common areas and corridors that internally connect the four phases, supports the largest surface area of photovoltaic solar panels (16,000) in all of Europe. An impeccable landscaping project incorporating the architecture and organized around a large pond was developed in Distrito C. (Fabiana Cambiaso, Università La Sapienza) Credits: www.rafaeldelahoz.com    Telefónica Headquarters -  Rafael De La-Hoz Castanys Architetto Site: Madrid, España Completed: 2008 Materials: Glass Applications: Envelope Photos: © Rafael De La-Hoz Arquitectos; © Roland Halbe; © Miguel de Guzmán; © Luis Asín; © Joan Roig

Edoardo Croci

28 November 2018

Mud huts, wooden houses, stone houses: the architecture of all the world is changing, evolving and adapting to the environment, climate and local materials. Great examples of sustainable construction, expressions of traditional cultures, arise from here.

"Learning from Vernacular" exhibition was staged at the Vitra Design Museum. It has been an opportunity to discover examples of traditional architecture: a contemporary design that hides new forms of construction, from South Africa, Egypt, China, to Malaysia up to Cameroon; wooden architecture, spectacular projects in bamboo up to structures that resemble tunnel and were made with Palm grass.

The exhibition presents the residential projects of the Auburn University of Rural Studio in Alabama, the collaboration between architects and craftsmen in India, the work of architect Carin Smuts in South African townships or the bamboo structures of the Colombian Simón Vélez. Films, photographs and plans demonstrate how the buildings were built and the everyday life of their inhabitants.

With its 40 models, the exhibition presents a veritable panorama of world architecture. And it opens the eyes of the public for the abundant variety of materials, shapes and construction techniques that exist outside of the commercial market and are handed down from generation to generation. In these cases, the social aspects of architectures are often just as important as aesthetics or the economy. Thanks to the numerous examples of renewable raw materials and energy-neutral solutions, it offers numerous opportunities for sustainable development of resources. Learning from vernacular was made possible thanks to the complete collection of École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). This collection includes more than 700 1:20 scale architectural models and many documents. The collection is part of a large archive dedicated to modern architecture, whose Director Pierre Frey is the curator of the exhibition. One of the pioneers of sustainable and social construction practice is the architect Anna Heringer, that held a conference at Vitra Museum about projects in countries such as China, Morocco or Bangladesh, where she developed a unique approach to architectural design that closely involves the community and local materials. www.design-museum.de www.anna-heringer.com  

Marco Mignatti

15 March 2019

The stems of banana plants, which were traditionally destined to be discarded, become a new natural material today. Green Blade is the quality and eco-friendly semi-finished product presented at Made by French company FIBandCo, the result of a process carried out on these plants. The result is a natural plating, ethical and sustainable coating. Green Blade has the look of wood and it comes in four hot colors obtained through a manufacturing process, without the use of water or chemicals. This material is born in the wild and is treated with ECHO and responsible processing. In the hands of architects, designers and planners it becomes versatile material. It is used mainly in the form of plating, for cladding and architectural panels, but also to decorate kitchens, furniture and design objects thanks to its flexibility, thin thicknesses and translucent effect. An added value is that FIBandCo is a company committed to sustainable development. The bosses of the company are two young French engineers former students of ESIEE Paris, l'École de l'Innovation Technologique, who developed this particular innovative process to enhance the stems of banana plants in small units installed in the heart of banana plantations. The company was founded in Martinique, in the heart of the plantations: a choice that makes it possible to optimize resources and reduce carbon emissions. The fiber manufacturing process does not require the use of any chemical agent and the company produces its energy through solar panels. A green-oriented style, for sure!   www.fibandco.fr

Marco Mignatti

11 October 2018

Everyone feels responsible for the ecological changes our planet is undergoing in recent decades. We are increasingly sensitized to this issue. The new houses are all in energy class A, but many now are opting for passive house, i.e. without heating and cooling systems, but only powered by renewable energy sources. A 185 square meters detached, in Bollate (Milan), has recently been made passive standard, but with a "Mediterranean" style: it bears the signature of BLM Domus. Characterized by modern architecture that remains in shades of white and grey, the house has a technological heart that beats inside the wooden structure, very resistant material with thermal and physical quality aseismic recognized that vouches for the thermal and acoustic insulation. The house has three floors, from the basement where there is the tavern with fireplace, a bathroom and a laundry with technical installations. The ground floor is divided into living area, rooms and facilities, all in an airy. There is a steel and wood staircase leading to the upstairs rooms. In this house all the free heat are maxed out, produced by a household appliance in operation, from the people who live in the house or from the sun. A plant in air-water heat pump is responsible for heating in winter but also of lower temperatures in summer. Where does the PassivHaus come from? The idea comes from Germany and it is a solution designed to provide thermal comfort without traditional plants. It is called "passive" because heat inputs are passive, i.e. due to sun and heat generated from household appliances and by tenants themselves. To be called "passive", an house must comply with the parameters of the standard defined by the Passivhaus Institut in Darmstadt in Germany, a region where temperatures are colder on average. For this reason we speak now of " Mediterranean passive": in Italy there is a mildest climate, so technological facilities are dimensioned according to the place and the surrounding environment, to avoid wasting energy. “We are proud of this project and happy with the result” – says Marco Bevilacqua, technical director of BLM Domus – “The house in Bollate is proof that “passive house” is no longer a concept for a small 'elite' environmental fanatics. Thanks to our experience, together with the adoption of cutting-edge methodologies, we have been able to build a passive house with a financial investment comparable to that of a class A building.”

Carlo Bardelli