Located in Woldya, a town in the Amhara region in northeast Ethiopia, the new maternity care center is placed at the entrance of the Woldya hospital becoming a new gathering area for future mothers. Designed by Xavier Vilalta Architects (XVA), maternity is divided in two areas that share an entrance space: the maternity unit and the mothers waiting area. The first one is the functional and operational medical space and the second, a temporary hostel for upcoming patients that need a place to stay before they enter in the final stage of their pregnancy. More images and architects’ description after the break.
The proposal for the Green Square Library & Plaza in Syndey rethinks a common emphasis on new technologies and the transformation of a reading room in a library being an inside storage space of books to a public space that communicates with its boundaries. For this design, Gus Wüstemann Architects suggests a bridge from the virtual world to the authentic world, from nature to culture, society and technology. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Designed by Archiplan, their second prize winning proposal for the Performing Arts Studio of the National Theatre of Korea is an extension design concept for the performers practice facilities in the basement of the existing plaza. The main issue is the vitalization of the environment which is now 'blocked' by the retaining wall on the edge of the main road and by the steep slope that makes a disconnection of the site. By embracing art, culture, and the city itself, this proposal connects the two-dimensional old theatre-plaza and the nearby park to link the performer and the citizens while allowing the art and culture flow well. More images and architects’ description after the break.
The proposed Great Fen Visitor Center by Arrigoni Architetti consists of three barns arranged on the edge between land and water in a clear orthogonal layout. Gathered around an open space, the buildings will represent the welcoming meeting point for single visitors and groups as well as the ideal setting for outdoor activities and events. The goal is to find a balance between architecture and landscape, loosening the boundaries between inside and outside, allowing different views and encouraging the curiosity for an individual, non preset experience. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Designed by da architecture, their first prize winning proposal in the IBA Basel 2020 competition, Das Band meiner Stadt (The band of my city), is a new dynamic that is brought to the Eastern railway station district of Quartier du Lys, which becomes the new landmark of the city of Saint-Louis. The development of this new district on the western side of the station area is characterized by a well-mixed, multi-use business district with offices, commercial and residential programs. This will benefit Saint-Louis train station and help the stream of travellers to further increase. More images and architects‘ description after the break.
AGi Architects, in collaboration with Bonyan Design, recently won the competition to build the General Department of the Information System in Kuwait. Their design is based on three principles: representativeness, security and functionality, turning the complex - with a total gross area of 135,482 sqm - into a strong civil icon representing Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior Affairs. The building design aims for the clear transmission of a conceptual duality it derives from: technology, innovation and transparency on the one hand versus strength, stability and security, which are inherent to the Ministry of Interior Affairs. More images and architects' description after the break.
Designed by Studio 7 of Urban Architecture China, their proposal for the New XIUYI Kindergarten in Kunshan, China aims to strongly connect to the layout of the traditional village. They do this by spreading 30 classrooms into nine buildings and forming a relatively independent settlement type of a space. The organic arrangement creates both interesting private play areas and diversified public spaces, at a scale appropriate for children. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Designed by STRATO, the project proposal for the Collider Activity Center has two primary objectives: visual identity and vitality. Conceived as a sort of natural formation, the entire building is emphasized by the folding panels of the walls, the placement of the volumes and the power that this arrangement represents. Since it is placed in a context of ongoing evolution, their version of the activity center aims to be the driving force of the transformation of the whole district of Sofia, Bulgaria by becoming a symbol for the entire city. More images and architects’ description after the break.
The renowned Montpellier architecture firm A+ Architecture has been entrusted with the project of building a new site at the domaine d’O, the Jean-Claude Carrière theatre. A unique and environmentally friendly project, the project is based on a global environmental approach aiming for general energy efficiency and for environmental quality standards. Other than the slab that supports it, the entire structure could be dismantled and rebuilt on a different site. The unique design is enhanced by a light wooden lozenge structure recovering the entire building. More images and architects' description after the break.
Chosen as one of the five finalists in MOMA’s Young Architectural Program (YAP), Yalin Architectural Design’s proposal ‘IM-Debris’ focuses on how Istanbul and all the other cities in the world have to come up with local solutions to their own problems in global standards. The main purpose of this design is to be within the rubble which we are usually used to observe from a distance, to form a place with every possible material that is left from a construction and to have the visitors re-discover where it came from, in a place designed by it in the first place. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Providing services to 80 residents with developmental intellectual disabilities, the Day Care Village proposal by PRAUD sits on a site on the north-west side of Beer Sheba. The city provides facilities and community services to 700 people with developmental intellectual disabilities of various levels, and the project is part of their aim to support and assist those in need. Hence, the project must not only address the demand of day care center but also suggest a typology for day care center so that it can influence future development of service facilities in Beer Sheba. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Courtesy of harry C. Bougadellis & Associate Architects + Georges Batzios Architects
Designed by Charry C. Bougadellis & Associate Architects+Georges Batzios Architects, their proposal for the Piraeus Museum of Underwater Antiquities, which received an honorable mention, was divided in two elements based on the notion of ‘Viollet-le-Duc’: the negative element being the void, whilst the positive being the vertical and horizontal elements that define a space (walls and slabs). The link between these two elements, which defines the unity of the space is man. Therefore, the architectural space cannot be applied without the presence of man. More images and architects' description after the break.
Designed for the Collider Activity Center competition, Atelier WHY's ‘Four Faces’ proposal presents a diversity of images rather than one unified experience. With the building containing many different activities, the architects were interested in branding activities with different concepts. They focused on how to convey the variety of activities happening inside to those who are outside though the shape of the building. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Building Trust International, a non-profit organization offering design assistance to communities and individuals in need, in collaboration with Habitat for Humanity and Karuna Cambodia announced the joint winners of the design competition that brings new life to housing design and delivery for low income families living in Cambodia. The winning projects include: ‘Wet + Dry House’ by Mary Ann Jackson, Ralph Green, Muhammad Kamil and Nick Shearman from Australian firm Visionary Design Development Pty Ltd., ‘Courtyard House’ by Jess Lumley & Alexander Koller from the UK, and ‘Open Embrace’ by Keith Greenwald and Lisa Ekle from USA. The Winning Student Design was by Sanaz Amin Deldar, Nastaran Hadidi, Ehsan Naderi and Simak Khaksar from Iran. More images and information after the break.
The winning proposal in the Info Point competition at Milano EXPO 2015 by Scandurrastudio aims to be an impressive void; a square and two pavilions. Featuring a great open space, a central square between two booth-like pavilions, the gate to EXPO 2015 will offer an ideal opportunity to talk about growth and evolution, while marking the time before the opening event. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Designed by Alexandros Avlonitis + Aggeliki Anagnostopoulou, their proposal for the Great Fen Visiting Center is derived by the observation of the natural environment of the site and its manipulation by he human factor. The concept is based on an attempt to mimic a very common phenomenon of agricultural terrains: the stacking of blocks of hay, and their impulsive installation in the middle of endless fields. Therefore, the new Great Fen Visitor Center becomes not a building, but a stack of volumes placed in the landscape. More images and architects' description after the break.
Long Lane, a key section of the Great Kneighton development on the southern fringe of Cambridge, has recently received planning approval, which will provide 273 homes over 5.4 hectares. Designed by C.F. Møller their contemporary masterplan retains historic features from the existing site, while providing homes that are functional, flexible and sustainable. Working in collaboration for developer Homes by Skanska and PRP, the customer-focused scheme provides a tenure-blind mix of private and affordable housing. More images and architects' description after the break.
Designed by Architetto Matteo Ascani (AMA), the main driving force behind the their Cambonian Sustainable Housing project was to somehow recreate the sensation of living in a typical Cambodian house, where people have to maintain their own traditions, but in healthy and safe living conditions. Combined with a type of spatial experience that allows flexibility and the simple method of construction, this environmentally conscious design is able to respond to the needs of this society. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Developed by Arup and built to international sports federation standards, the Ashgabat Olympic Complex in the heart of Turkmenistan will be one of the largest building projects on which Arup has delivered the ‘total’ design and includes 750,000 square meters of sports and social buildings. Having just signed the contract for phase two of the project, which will add an aquatics center, indoor athletics arena, and a tennis center, the venues also include a velodrome, training halls, hotels, offices, a medical center and media facilities. More images and their description after the break.
As the main ice sports facility for the 2018 Pyeongchang winter olympic games, the master plan proposal by Idea Image Institute of Architects (IIIA)has expressed local natural specific characteristics which is very beautiful and clean based on the New horizons, which is the vision of 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic games. Their design concept for the speed skating arena has beautiful shapes inspired by dynamic movement of speed skaters. More images and architects’ description after the break.
CPG Consultants recently won the Hanoi Noi Bai International Airport VIP terminal design competition, which was organized by the Airports Corporation of Vietnam. Expected to be completed in late 2014, the lotus flower-inspired design with its iconic petal-shaped pavilion roof will extend a ceremonious welcome to Heads of State and dignitaries as they arrive or depart from Hanoi. The new VIP Terminal will feature an octagonal geometry in plan, with the reception hall, state lounge and president lounges forming the centerpiece while the VIP lounges and function rooms form the angled part of the perimeter. More images and architects' description after the break.
Léon Wohlhage Wernik Architekten was recently announced as the first prize winner for their proposal in the Living on Kunstcampus competition. Situated in the heart of Berlin, on the estate of the Hamburger Bahnhof, a new quarter will be created there, including the dominant urban planning element called the “Kunstkubus”. A lengthy building with a faceted surface gives the residential area its own urban planning presence. All apartments radiate spaciousness, and can be freely partitioned and enter into a relationship with the city through large loggias, or so-called “green rooms”. More images and architects' description after the break.
With shelters and settlements in northern Canada currently undergoing a housing crisis due to decadent construction and energy costs, the corresponding ramifications on overcrowding and deprivation have resulted. What the Drift House aims to do is hybridize the intelligence of tradition and technology of both housing systems to offer direction on future constructions in the Arctic. Designed by Neeraj Bhatia of The Open Workshop, this housing prototype for northern climates proposes a series of snow fences that passively utilize snowdrift to form a new dwelling type by calibrating the snow fences with differential mesh openings and height. More images and architect's description after the break.
