In 2008 a prestigious competition to design Dublin’s new National Concert Hall had two finalists narrowed down from a shortlist of prominent architectural firms. 3XN and Henning Larsen Architects, both Danish Studios, presented powerful design ideas. However, due to client’s difficult financial situation caused by the global economic crisis, appointing of a final winner has been cancelled.

3XN’s proposal for the Concert Hall is a sculptural composition of volumes reflecting the interior layout of the building. Three Halls, each different in size, function and acoustic objectives, are connected by a foyer promoting flow and social interaction. The foyer expands and contracts, adapting to the new structure.

From the garden side, a transparent façade cascades down from the three Concert Hall volumes, drawing the gardens forth into the foyer and extending into a new public plaza towards Hatch Street.

The design concept from Henning Larsen Architects follows an entirely different logic. The Symphonic Hall is located at the heart of the site, becoming a pivotal point and affecting the entire organization. The Hall’s unique acoustics and lightness affect the performing act by discreetly creating unity between art and audience. Read the rest of this entry »

A new interpretation on ancient Omani architecture is explored by the Muscat Cultural Center by AS Architecture Studio. The design won the design completion to assemble the nation’s cultural heritage under one roof. A single large building with parametric roof sections perforated for light and air, the complex filters sunlight onto the large public spaces. A central courtyard is surrounded by Oman’s National Theatre, National Archive and National Library.

Placed between the sea and mountains the complex is an oasis of palm trees and protected open spaces. The 40,000 square meter area contains three wings adjacent to the courtyard. The roof bulges on the western wing for the theater program. Naturally cooled by overhangs and water features reminiscent of the countries aqueducts or falajs the courtyard is the protected core of the traditional fortified floor plan. Along with open sight lines a forest of thin columns adds airiness to the lobby and public spaces. Read the rest of this entry »

Hangzhou urban planning bureau has announced MVRDV winner of the international design competition for the China Comic and Animation Museum (CCAM) in Hangzhou, China. MVRDV won with a design referring to the speech balloon: a series of eight balloon shaped volumes create an internally complex museum experience of in total 30.000m2.

Part of the project is also a series of parks on islands, a public plaza and a 13.000m2 expo centre. Construction start is envisioned for 2012, the total budget is 92 million Euro.

Comics and animations have long been considered a form of entertainment for the younger generations but develop more and more into a sophisticated art form. The initiative for a museum especially for this relatively recent art form creates a platform which will unite the worlds of art and entertainment. By using one of the cartoon’s prime characteristics – the speech balloon – the building will instantly be recognised as place for cartoons, comics and animations. The neutral speech balloon becomes 3d.

The 30.000m2 are distributed over eight volumes which are interconnected allowing for a circular tour of the entire program. Services such as the lobby, education, three theatres/cinemas with in total 1111 seats and a comic book library occupy each their own balloon. If two balloons touch in the interior a large opening allows access and views in-between the volumes. The balloon shape allows for versatile exhibitions, the permanent collection is presented in a chronological spiral whereas the temporary exhibition hall offers total flexibility. Amsterdam based exhibition architects Kossman deJong tested the spaces and designed exhibition configurations which appeal to different age groups and allow large crowds to visit the exhibition. Read the rest of this entry »

By the efforts of preservationists, architects and  fans, the neglected Miami Marine Stadium was put under legal protection as a historical landmark, buying more time for it’s internationally supported restoration. Down Town’s Floating Stage Competition is conceived as an incentive for keeping the stadium cause in the global public eye. It drew more than 80 entries from around the world. The main requirement of the competition was to enable the future stage to navigate to other sites around Miami’s Biscayne Bay.

The first place went to Nebraskan Abingo Wu Studio, for their Miami Pearl proposal. A floating orb, partly submerged under the water would contain a circular stage. Functionally versatile, not to mention navigational, the Pearl stage was characterized by jury members as a “gorgeous design“.

A close second place was Inflatable, by Pink Cloud.DK.Design Group from Denmark. A mushroom shaped disc, helium-inflated and punctured by openings  allows the penetration of natural light. The disc serves as a canopy for the stage. The stage itself in made of transportable elements. Read the rest of this entry »

BIG, Martha Schwartz Landscape, Buro Happold , Speirs & Major, Lutzenberger & Lutzenberger, and Global Cultural Asset Management are today announced as the winning team of the international design competition for a new 27.000 m2 cultural complex in Albania, consisting of a Mosque, an Islamic Centre, and a Museum of Religious Harmony.

The capital Tirana is undergoing an urban transformation which includes the restoration and refurbishment of existing buildings, the construction of a series of new public and private urban structures, and the complete reconceptualization of Scanderbeg Square. This important square is the site of the new cultural complex that will consist of a Mosque, an Islamic Centre, and a Museum of Religious Harmony.

Albania is the crossroads of three major religions: Orthodox Christianity; Catholicism; and Islam. With the recent completion of two new churches, all three religions will now have new places of worship in the heart of Tirana. The complex will not only serve the Muslim community of the city and surrounding areas, but will educate the public about Islamic values and serve as a beacon for religious tolerance.

BIG’s winning entry was selected out of five finalists, including Spanish Architect Andreas Perea Ortega, Architecture Studio from France, Dutch SeARCH and London-based Zaha Hadid.

“The winning proposal was chosen for its ability to create an inviting public space flexible enough to accommodate daily users and large religious events, while harmonically connecting with the Scanderbeg square, the city of Tirana and its citizens across different religions. Additionally the project shines through its beautiful garden surrounding the new Mosque and Center of Islamic Culture which symbolically features the rich vegetation described in Islamic literature. Finally the team’s awareness of the economic aspects of this important development will contribute to a successful realization of this project.” Mayor of Tirana, Edi Rama. Read the rest of this entry »

This contemporary habitable bridge in Italy was designed by architects Philippe Rizzotti, Vermet Tanguy, Manal Rachdi, and Samuel Nageotte. The project received the first prize of the Solar Park South International Competition.

The bridges allow a limited impact on the landscape. The local culture of Bergamotte, Italy demonstrates the region’s perfectly tempered weather (8°-30°C), and the volcanic area reveals a high energy potential. The climate and the site inspire vertical villages for the european snowbirds (housing/medical equipment/entertainment/shops) that are connected by walkways to the sea and highways to the cities. The system is autonomous regarding the main resources water and energy thanks to the rainwater and the geothermal power.

This contemporary archeology (the bridge over the bridge) results in a process where urban falls meet the climbing nature. The vertical privacy of the inhabited piles supports the horizontal sociability of the public equipped decks, while providing a unique view for each one, at every level. The combination between the infrastructure and the environment is efficient enough to establish a new responsible high quality way of living. Read the rest of this entry »

This “adventure house” designed by Mexico City-based Dellekamp Arquitectos was intended as an iconic statement of lifestyle for the area. Located in a fishermen region of virgin beaches and extremely low density, the Crusoe house provides a unique experience of the Río Lagartos reserve by facilitating contact with nature.

The multi-level house, inspired by local architecture, implements an experimental modern design that makes extensive use of wood and bamboo. The house resembles a forest of columns with a pending room structure that is articulated as a box system divided by shutters. Its open façade concept, facing north to the sea, keeps the house naturally cool and ventilated. All energy supply is based on a sustainable concept, making use of solar systems, water recycling-collecting and wind energy. The raised floor enhances bioclimatic regulation and allows a free corridor of fauna and vegetation. The construction is also hurricane friendly and envisages the rise of water level. Read the rest of this entry »

Hope Tree installation was envisioned by award-winning architecture firm, 24^o Studio, led by Fumio Hirakawa and Marina Topunova (both graduates of SCI-Arc) as a spatial condition that attended to question our surrounding as we know it and hoping to generate a discussion and understanding amongst the visitors about the place of our everyday life, our environment. Lately, we are bombarded with products that try to deal with the consequences of environmental damages throughout the world, but occasionally we overlook the roots of these occurring problems by not fully understanding our environment. Read the rest of this entry »

This project is a contemporary interpretation of the architecture of the 16th-century courtyard of the State University of Milan, translated and transformed from rigid Cartesian geometries into the linear fluidity of dynamic space.

Adapting to the natural contours of the courtyard and the forces that converge towards its center, the project emphasizes the slope of the arches, creating a powerful vortex of spatial distortion that favors dialogue with the surrounding colonnade.

The development of the complex three-dimensional curved geometries of the installation, starting with the flat ceramic tiles, adds another level of complexity to the whole. Visitors are encouraged to explore the sculptural sensibility and formal dynamic of different elements in which the balanced relationship between solids and voids expresses the project solution. Each individual piece can be interpreted not only as a whole, but also as a captured fragment of a magnetic field. A certain margin of strangeness introduces a stimulus that has evolved between latent force and physical material. Read the rest of this entry »

This almost caricatured example of architecture, establishes a specifically ironic approach to sustainability.  It refers to the production of brown coal, still one of the most exploited non-renewable energy sources. Making it into a outdated practice and exhibiting it as a museum artifact is what makes the design witty and interesting. To complete the architect’s statement, the building is conceived so it would rely on wind energy.

It contains an uncapped pipe, opened to the air at the ends. Thanks to the pressure difference between top and bottom, an air current is formed going up. Wind turbines installed at the top use the airflow in creating enough energy to light the tower all year round.

The building is made of slag concrete. It’s a combination of concrete and a by-product of burning coil. Slag is supposed to replace an expensive crushed stone filler added to the concrete itself. Read the rest of this entry »