2013

gmp Architekten just won the first prize in the competition for the design of the Elbbrücken Underground station. The genius loci of this over-ground station is determined by its position directly at the river Elbe, the future dense urban development, and by the historic Elbbrücken bridges with their conspicuous shallow steel arches. Characterized by simple and clearly structured access principles, the complex difference in levels between the terrain and the platforms is cleverly dealt with inside the building. More images and architects' description after the break.

With the main objective of creating a model for the architectural design of daily child care facilities in Turkey, the 'Child-Play-Learning-Space-Environment' concept by ddrlp consists of creative components for a building while being formed by multiple relations. Ranging from 75 to 150 children between ages of 0 and 6, the main form generators of their design included social interaction spaces: individually, by group, for crowded uses, the relationship with sun, sky and seasonal-natural cycle, and the sensual interaction with light, colour, texture, material, shape and structural components. More images and architects' description after the break.

The ‘Great Sky Visitor Center’ is a shimmering mirrored disc floating above the flat horizon of the Great Fen atop a shallow cone of fenland planting - a dramatic profile and marker in the landscape, but also one camouflaged when seen from the air. Designed by Nicholas Hare Architects, the silvered surface, that seen from within, dematerializes its edge against a reflected sky, intends to patinate and change over time in sympathy with the landscape it reflects. More images and architects' description after the break. Their design is a spherical surface reflecting 360 degree views of the continually evolving Fen landscape. In place of selective framed views, all views would be accepted into the heart of the Center from this ever changing landscape. A shallow landscaped cone provides added drama on approach to the upper viewing level: a device that allows the circular structure to act as a compass, allowing orientation and a literal and metaphorical sinking into the landscape from any chosen point of departure.

'MonsterScape', an exhibition display design for Monster Exhibition 2013 organized by Recover & Rebuild Japanese art & design, was a concept created by Hannat Architects to exhibit monsters as a metaphor of disaster and to prevent people’s consciousness of disaster from diminishing. On display this past February, the organizer of the event wanted this exhibition to be something not to tell the misery of disaster but to recall “important things" that tend to be forgotten in everyday life, and visitors to enjoy art and design. More images and architects' description after the break.

Scott Tallon Walker Architects just won the competition to design the new £35 million 5G Research Centre for the University of Surrey which will be the world’s first center for research into the next stage of mobile technology at the University. Their concept for the new building creates a flexible space with a circular atrium that acts as a central lung and focus, to ensure maximum interaction amongst researchers. The building will house the UK’s largest academic research center for mobile communications with 130 researchers and around 90 PhD students. The project has been given an urgent status and it is being undertaken immediately/ The project is expected to be completed well before the end of next year. More images and architects' description after the break.

Who are currently the most noteworthy young architects in Norway, and how are they positioning themselves both at home and abroad?

Titled, 'The Fenland Beacon', this proposal for the Great Fen Visitor Center is rooted in the landscape; responding to the inherent qualities of the Great Fen. Designed by Nicholas Hare Architects, the expansive sweep of the timber façade that ventures out and dissolve into the landscape is punctuated by the tower dramatically rising above the Fenland horizon, anchoring the visitor centre within the wider context; an orientating beacon within the expanse of the Great Fen. More images and architects' description after the break. Visitors are invited to embark upon a journey, aiming to elevate their understanding and deepen their relationship with the Great Fen. The linear sequence of experiences through the site, pavilion and tower distil the beauty of the environment into their elements whilst silencing the others, allowing the appreciation of each individual aspect that makes up the whole. Culminating in the ascent of the tower, the visitor is rewarded with a unique 360-degree panorama of the Great Fen.

Designed by Tarh O Amayesh, their proposal for the Central Mosque of Pristina, the fundamental principal of the project comes from the definition of Mosque, which is a place for praying and going from body to soul. The prayer is someone who connects the earth to the sky, while the mosque is a space for the becoming. Becoming is a symbol of movement and movement is the source of the mosque (the house of god). This plan is shaped in this framework as the mosque is a symbol of ascending sprit from soil to the sky, from city to the Kiblah. More images and architects' description after the break.

Opening May 7 at the Canadian Center for Architecture (CCA), the 'Archaeology of the Digital' exhibition will feature the work of Frank Gehry, Peter Eisenman, Shoei Yoh and Chuck Hoberman while examining the foundations of digital architecture at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s. Curated by architect Greg Lynn, the exhibition along with the related publication are conceived as object-based investigations of four pivotal projects by the featured architects that established distinct directions in architecture’s use of digital tools. The event delves into the genesis and establishment of digital tools for design conceptualization, visualization and production. The exhibit runs until October 13. For more information, please visit here.

Housing Corporation VANKE recently asked NL Architects to make a proposal for a Super Market as part of a big resort in Sanya, the southernmost city in China. Renowned for its tropical climate and for being a popular tourist destination, the site of the resort will consist of three clusters of large residential slabs of 21 stories high enveloping semi enclosed gardens. The public space plays a crucial role in the atmosphere of the area as a whole so a lot of consideration is going into creating a pleasant environment. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Coming to Delft, The Netherlands this September 27-28, the Revit Technology Conference (RTC) is an independent training conference covering Building Information Modelling in all its aspects, with a core focus on workflows centred on the Autodesk Revit Technology. This is a unique ‘for users, by users’ event, where experts and leaders in the field of BIM share their knowledge and exchange their insights. With speakers and delegates from all aspects of the industry – from designers to owners, from surveyors to facility managers ‐ RTC provides many opportunities and benefits together in a single location. To register, and for more information, please visit here.