Residential: The Latest Architecture and News

Being awarded the Pritzker means you’ve hit it big. Having that ribbon placed around your neck proves you’re top dog in the architecture world and you’ve practically become a household name….doesn’t it? While that may seem that case for Gehry and Hadid, even Piano and Meier, the Pritzker’s seventeenth honoree, (France’s first laureate, in fact) Christian de Portzamparc sometimes feels forgotten.

For their latest commission, Visiondivision addressed the extension of an 18th century cottage with their typical offbeat approach (check out their other projects previously featured on AD). Abiding by the clients’ request for the house to blend in with the environment, particularly from the one side where the client’s conservative mother “has her cottage and watchful eyes”, the extension becomes a unobtrusive living space that is part of the earth, making it appear “almost invisible”.

More images and more about the extension after the break.

A few days ago, we shared Forrest Fulton‘s Lace Hill proposal for Armenia, and tonight we share the firm’s idea for a retreat that creates two distinct meditative spaces through its relationships to the landscape. A floating wooden deck and a small, dimly lit enclosure,which is sunken into the ground, intend to respond to one another as a way to “intensify a spiritual experience of the place.”

More about the retreat after the break.

One of the most ambitious projects of Risco architects is the concept design for the new towers – Sky Residence II + Sky Businees – located in Luana Sky Center. Two towers with great programmatic diversity, aiming for high urban density and encouragemente of further developments around this so-called Sky Center, the future new town.

More images and architect’s description after the break.

GLR Arquitectos‘ residence in Nuevo Leon, Mexico sits on higher topography than its neighboring houses. This “privileged situation” provides the home with greater height, and as a result, better vistas toward the National Park of Chipinque. The home is comprised of simple, pure geometric volumes that intend to evoke an image of lightness within a language of heavy and massive volumes.

More about the project after the break.

Yury Permyakov designed a simple house that adheres to the client’s main concern: to maximize the seperation from the neighboring houses. The 300 sqm house is seen as some “kind of pearl” that wrapped by a protective layer, and only a slight sliver of the inner surface of the facade is left open. The exterior protective surface is a coarse dark-colored metal sheets with small holes.

More images after the break.

Toronto-based architectural firm Hariri Pontarini Architects in collaboration with Great Gulf Homes has recently revelaed the new design for One Bloor, a mixed-use residential condominium tower in Toronto, Canada.

More images and architect’s description after the break.

Cheungvogl, a young international architectural practice based in Hong Kong (see previous projects by Cheungvogl featured on AD here), designed two residences in Tokyo on a private development. House 2a is to be occupied by the client, a Japanese-German couple, based in Tokyo while House 2b is for sale. The client’s required that the design be, “Calm, but not sterile. Humble, and yet unexpected. Economical, nothing extravagant. Open space with flexible floor plans and a space to contemplate.” Working with these ideas in mind, Cheungvogl created related residences that also become separate enities.

More about the residences and more images after the break.

In an interesting article from the New York Times this week, different families completed not so typical renovations. A few years ago, the Sleeper family moved from their crowded Missouri ranch house when they saw an eBay offering for three acres with an empty sandstone cave in Festus, Missouri. The initial idea to build a larger home on the land was soon abandoned as the family realized the potential the former quarry offered. With 15,000 feet of naturally insulated space, the Sleeper family took up a new residence – inside the cave. The older family members helped add more “home” touches to the cave and since the cave’s bare walls shed sand, the Sleepers placed interior roofs or umbrellas over areas like the kitchen that need to stay sand-free. Other than that, the family truly enjoys the natural feel of the space and have created a comfortable home. “The inside of the house feels like you’re outdoors without the discomfort of hot or cold,” Mrs. Sleeper states.

More images after the break.

SADAR + VUGA’s submission for the Deluxe Serviced Apartment Tower in Burj Dubai district was shaped by the ambition and inclination of the developer, Damac Properties, to erect a unique residential building in the rapidly developing area by the Burj Dubai tower. The building would be distinguished by its architectural design and image; at the same time, it would serve as a model of a functioning and energy-efficient residential building at the beginning of the 21st century.

More images and full architect’s description after the break.