Pullpo Advertising Agency by architect Hania Stambuk, Chile

Architect Hania Stambuk Marasovic designed this project for Pullpo, a advertising agency that is located in Santiago, Chile.

Starting the project from the abandoned facilities of a salt factory in the western sector of Santiago Chile, the commission is considered as a counterpoint of industrial aesthetics of the precarious versus a clear and contemporary proposal that complies with the various demands of an advertising agency.

The program is developed considering a workplace for the creative staff that includes offices, conference rooms, photographic studios, service and storage areas, cafeteria, restrooms and incorporated parking.

Photographs by Marcelo Cáceres

Via: Archdaily.

Kwint by SAQ- Studio Arne Quinze, Brussels, Belgium

Studio Arne Quinze (SAQ) a talented conceptual architecture and design firm located in Belgium, have designed this exclusive Kwint restaurant in Brussels. KWINT is located in the heart of the city of Brussels.

SAQ’s design features a custom- made sculptur bar, warm and neutral color palette, the dimensionality of the sculpture emphasizes the horizontality of the space while light reflects off the sculpture and grazes the walls to divide the space and create an intimate, magical experience that is light and refreshing. KWINT refers to the five arched windows in the newly opened restaurant.  The restaurant is enclosed by custom sized glass designed to fit delicately within the heavy existing architecture, creating a strong connection between history and modernization. Through the windows you have some breathtaking views of the city.

Restaurant – Bar Lounge- Delicatessen shop
Mont des Arts 1
1000 Brussels, Belgium

Via Purentonline

VISIT ARNE QUINZE STUDIO!

Fuji Kindergarten By Tezuka Architects, Tokyo, Japan

Designed by husband and wife architects Takaharu and Yui Tezuka, Fuji’s kindergarten most immediately captivating element is its circular orientation. (video on Monocle)

The large one-story halo-shaped building has an 183m outer circumference, and an inner circumference of 108m. The small village is made for 500 children! The central courtyard becomes a meeting point for the various groups that inhabit the kindergarten.

Created in the scale of a child, ceiling heights are restricted to 2.1m. This stresses an extremely close relationship between the ground level and the rooftop, and has been an influential factor encouraging the children to explore without inhibition. Pupils often mingle and meander between the rooftop and central garden, which like many elements of the design consistently facilitate important lessons in self-discovery.

Main functions of the kindergarten are found underneath the oval roof (where children frequently run around in the hundreds). To promote social skills and the removal of hierarchical structures, the kindergarten’s interior environment is devoid of walls.

Each classroom is fitted with individual skylights, allowing for the natural sun to seep in, and the curious addition of rope ladders. Pupils playfully use these ladders to access the rooftop. Likewise, three large existing zelkova trees have been cleverly incorporated to serve a trio of purposes: foster respect for nature; provide yet another option for ascending the facility; and eliminate psychological barriers between inside and out.

The entire portfolio can be found in 2 books! Must have!
Book Takaharu Tezuka Architecture, on amazon

Via Travelwithfrankgehry – Check out this video

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Buzen House by Suppose Design Office, Japan

Here’s another project from Japanese studio Suppose Design Office, this time a house in Buzen, Japan, where separate structures are connected under a glass canopy. The wooden-clad residence features different courtyards and corridors where children can play under a glazed roof.

Following text is from the architects:

When they are young, places like a narrow path between houses, the edge of a garden, the back of a shed, under the floor, or an open lot are the preferred playgrounds of children.

Rather than a park or garden that was built to be played in, we wanted to make a house with a courtyard that would become a playground naturally. Rather than a collection of rooms, we think of this house as a collection of constructions, and we produced a design that seems to be made out of various different structures.

Paths covered by a glass roof weave between the disconnected structures to create an interior space that feels exterior, a private space that feels public, a hall that feels like an avenue.

In that space the children can run around, you can enjoy a breeze while you eat, read under the sun, and fall asleep watching the stars. There is a charm beyond imagination there, beyond normal home life.

Just like children who use space outside to its full potential, we wanted to make equal the relationship between inside-and out by using the courtyard as a part of everyday life and bringing inside activities outside. Beyond making city streets like courtyards to make them feel closer to houses, we want to continue to try and envision the architecture of the future, moving past the inside-outside relationship to find new types of connections.

+ Lodge by Suppose Design Office, Hiroshima, Japan
+ House in Otake by Suppose Design Office, Japan
+ Clinic by Suppose Design Office, Hirosihima, Japan
+ House in Nagoya by Suppose Design Office, Aichi, Japan
+ House in Sakuragawa, Tokyo by Suppose Design Office
+ Nature Factory by Suppose Design Office, Tokyo, Japan
+ House in Nagoya2 by Suppose Design office, Japan

VISIT SUPPOSE DESIGN OFFICE

VitraHaus by Herzog & de Meuron on DEZEEN, Weil am Rhein, Germany



Check out the photographs of the VitraHaus by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, which has opened at the Vitra Campus in Weil am Rhein, Germany on Dezeen!. Pictures are made by Iwan Baan.

GO TO DEZEEN

UXUS to design retail shops in Tate Modern, London, UK

UXUS are pleased to announce they have been appointed by Tate Modern to design retail shops in the Transforming Tate Modern project.

Design consultancy UXUS announced that it has been appointed to design the new retail shops in the existing Tate Modern, housed in the converted Bankside Power Station. As part of the Transforming Tate project, UXUS will design retail stores for the existing Tate Modern, as well as the Herzog & de Meuron-designed extension.

The Transforming Tate Modern project responds to developing art practice and visitor needs with the expanded retail shops providing a greater opportunity to offer an increased and diverse range of books and products in line with the richly diverse requirements of Tate’s customer market.

Creative Director George Gottl states Tate has asked UXUS to produce ‘a brand experience in a supportive role to the galleries, to enhance the experience of visitors and allow them to feel that they are leaving with a piece of the Tate’.

UXUS will begin concept design in February 2010.

ABOUT UXUS
Founded in Amsterdam in 2003, UXUS is an independent award wining design consultancy specializing in strategic design solutions for Retail, Communication, Hospitality, Architecture and Interiors. UXUS creates “Brand Poetry”, fusing together art and design, and creating new brand experiences for its clients worldwide. We define “Brand Poetry” as an artistic solution for commercial needs.  Artistic solutions target emotions; emotions connect people in a meaningful way. Design gives function, art gives meaning, poetry expresses the essence.
Check out the website HERE!

Special thanks to Amy for sharing

+ Previous project of UXUS Design on ArchiDE, click here

VISIT UXUS DESIGN

Nafi, Hair Salon by ZMIK Studio, Basel, Switzerland

ZMIK Design Studio has refurbished a hair salon in Basel by wallpapering the entrance with photocopies from Vogue magazine.The space is subdivided into two zones, which are being separated by a sharp border.

The ceiling and the walls of the entry zone are seamlessly covered with photocopies on packaging paper made from Vogue magazines from the 1920′s until today.

The hairdresser Hairstyling Nafi in Basel’s historic city centre is undergoing reconstruction. The space is now subdivided into two zones, which are being separated by a sharp border. The two areas strongly contrast in their function as well as in their spatial atmosphere. The ceiling and the walls of the entry zone are seamlessly covered with photocopies on packaging paper made from Vogue magazines from the 1920ies until today.

Opulently furnished and bathed in warm light, the entry is an invitation for a rest, for purchasing products and for discussing the newest styling – trends. In the white working area nothing distracts the work of the hair stylist.

The ideal light for working, the bright and glossy surfaces and the reduced furnishing put the newly cut hairstyles into the centre of attention. The customer – literally being framed by the mirror – brings the room alive with the reflection of his face. Up for a new hair-do?

Photos by Eik Frenzel
Via Cubeme

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Charred Cedar House by Naf architect & design, Hiroshima, Japan

Japanese based architecture firm Naf architect & design have completed this Charred Cedar House located in Hiroshima, Japan. The site is located in a district where many traditional sake breweries preserve good old Japanese street with plaster and charred cedar walls.

The house consists of three layers of different nature of space. Seen from the street, the first layer is a black box, the second layer void with spindly oblique steel pillars randomly piercing the space and the third layer gable black box floating on top.

More pictures and info on Archdaily!
Photographs are made by  Noriyuki Yano / Nacasa & Partners

+ Previous story of Naf Architects & Design on ArchiDE, click here

VISIT NAF ARCHITECT & DESIGN

Lodge by Suppose Design Office, Hiroshima, Japan

Japanese architects Suppose Design Office have completed new hair salon in Hiroshima, Japan, with a band of mirror glass wrapped around the cutting space.

Called ‘Lodge’ the salon is divided into three parts. In place of using walls for separating the room, they used some large strips of mirros which is positioned at customers’ head height and affords a sense of privacy when they are seated.

“When I design, I think about space without any stereotypes. To delete the all common sense in my mind is a key for me to bring up new or beyond ideas of spaces.”

+ House in Otake by Suppose Design Office, Japan
+ Clinic by Suppose Design Office, Hirosihima, Japan
+ House in Nagoya by Suppose Design Office, Aichi, Japan
+ House in Sakuragawa, Tokyo by Suppose Design Office
+ Nature Factory by Suppose Design Office, Tokyo, Japan
+ House in Nagoya2 by Suppose Design office, Japan

Via Designboom

VISIT SUPPOSE DESIGN OFFICE

Louisiana Pavilion wins International Innovation Award

Louisiana Pavilion wins International Innovation Award (earlier story on ArchiDE)

The green Pavilion in the Sculpture Park of the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art has been a catalyst for play and energy during the past few months.  The pavilion has now been honoured with the JEC Innovation Award 2010 for its design combining sustainability and intelligent materials

The JEC Innovation Award is the largest international award for the composite design field that encompasses innovative companies in the car and air transport industries.  The award places the green pavilion alongside research and development projects from visionary industry giants such as Airbus, Boeing, Daimler Chrysler and Rolls-Royce.

- It is amazing that we, as a small Danish studio can play in the same league.  The project started as an experiment to test the limits of what was possible to construct out of biological materials.  It is because we believe that the future is about new materials that require less energy to develop than aluminum or concrete.  Now we hope that this knowledge generated through the project can be used in other applications – and perhaps also other industries, explains Kim Nielsen, Principal of 3XN, whose R&D department GXN has developed the project.

The Pavilion is constructed from biodegradable biological materials such as cork, flax fibres, corn and soy beans.  Together they form a bio-composite developed especially for the project.  The entire process has been a remarkable learning experience in replacing traditional materials with the biological.

- At StageOne we are highly experienced at working with complex shapes and unusual materials. In this instance we worked with biologically derived materials in a structural application, which was new for us. The project was made even more challenging by a demanding deadline and a tight budget, explains Edwin Stokes, FRP Development Director at StageOne Freeform Composites, who produced the Pavilion.

A number of high technology elements are integrated into the Pavilion, which results in the sculpture having an interaction with its environment.  Phase changing materials regulate the temperature, so the pavilion is warm to sit on when it is cold and feels cool on a warm summer day.  The exterior skin is self-cleaning and also has a photocatalytic effect of cleaning the surrounding air.  The most important interaction is the immediate one with users, as the pavilion can be touched and walked on unlike most of the other sculptures in the garden at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art.

- It’s fascinating to think that people’s activity can generate energy simply by integrating specific materials, just as we can see here where ‘children at play’ create the energy required to run the integrated LED lights, explains Development Director Bente Andersen from COWI.  She further says, the Pavilion has given us the opportunity to demonstrate, how sustainable and intelligent materials can be used in buildings.

The Pavilion was created for the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art’s primary exhibition leading up to the UN Climate Conference in December, ’Green Architecture for the Future’.  In just four months, the idea, design and materials came together.  This intense process required an integrated co-operation between the projects three main partners – 3XN, COWI and StageOne along with more than 20 other innovative companies.

Special Thanks to Lise Roland Johansen
Photographes by ADAM MØRK

VISIT 3XN ARCHITECTS

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Thema: Esquire door Matthew Buchanan.

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