World Sustainability Center / Studio Shift
Studio Shift’s proposal for the World Sustainability Center in Afsluitdijk, Netherlands offers flexible environments to accommodate an educational conservation facility for both students and researchers, as well as the general public. The strong geometric complex emphasizes different connections on the macro scale, by relating to other major metropolises, infrastructures, educational facilities and park systems, and the micro scale by fusing its own new “sphere of influence” with its immediate community.
More images, diagrams, drawings and information after the break.
© Studio Shift
Regarded as a “mixing-pot” for the varied educational interests the building hosts, the Center provides an interface for progressive thinking between academic research and the efforts of professionals. “The landscape and architectural forms present an exhilarating and progressive investigation into emerging technologies while offering a flexible enough environment to accommodate the rapid pace of change inherent in resource conservation research. The Center must define itself as an agglomeration of many entities with common interests and therefore cannot be reflected in a simple, single structure,” explained the architects.
Site Program Diagram © Studio Shift
The project takes full advantage of its siting on the Wadden Sea with an educational pier for ecological observation and an actively programmed park to add a new node to the Dutch national park system. Floating piers with temporary exhibitions educate visitors about emerging sustainable strategies and technologies. A marina, outdoor amphitheatre and agricultural research garden grace the Lake Ijssel strip with visitors arriving via energy-efficient shuttle buses and watercrafts.
The offices are arranged as research clusters, encouraging collaboration between various disciplines and groups. “There is no distinction made between the facilities of academics and professionals as it is envisioned that they will work side-by-side,” added the architects. Vertical circulation systems placed within interior gardens maximize social interaction as the shared gardens provide a small gathering space.
Section BB © Studio Shift
he observation tower stands over the submerged lecture hall, and its form provides a variety of framed views of the landscape. The architects envision the tower as a means to investigate energy-production or serve as a surface for the cultivation of organic food products.
© Studio Shift
Several key features include a high-performance, operable metal façade shading system that responds in its articulation to the building’s orientation relative to the sun. Façade panels alternate between solid panels (solar), perforated panels (glare and sun control) and void panels (view apertures). Additionally, all hard and soft surfaces including the roofs are optimized for rain water collection and filtration and the lake is used as a heat sink for the cooling system, eliminating the need for specific conventional mechanical equipment.
Site Plan © Studio Shift
Plan 1 © Studio Shift
Plan 2 © Studio Shift
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- Connections Diagram © Studio Shift
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- Site Program Surface Diagram © Studio Shift
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- Site Program Diagram © Studio Shift
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- Site Transport Diagram © Studio Shift
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- Hotel Program and Circulation © Studio Shift
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- Circulation Diagram © Studio Shift
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- Program Diagram © Studio Shift
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- Program Diagram © Studio Shift
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- Plan 1 © Studio Shift
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- Plan 2 © Studio Shift
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- Site Plan © Studio Shift
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- Section AA © Studio Shift
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- Section BB © Studio Shift
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Project Team: Mario Cipresso (Principal), Irina Krusteva, Ryan Ramirez, Tanya Retherford, Bryan Chavac, Ken Matsui, Garrett Helm
If you start your own firm, is it fair to use the same bag of tricks you developped for your previous firm? Just asking.
It’s not just a ‘bag of tricks’ (if it is then you shouldn’t be doing architecture), it’s how you think about your approach to architecture. And that stays and evolves with you for the rest of your life. So yes, if you developed it, it’s yours.
Hard to believe this is supposed to be a “sustainability center”. The contorted form means lots of wasted material. The pedestrian experience looks like an endless tundra of hardscape. And where are all the plants and animals? Even the gray renderings are depressing. If this is the future of sustainability, count me out.
absolutely!!! the design is kicking itself by the eye catching form and shape…..just wonder how much money the client may left after the design’s overbudget and overwaste……. what an old idea and jury!!!
morphosis rip-off…
some green walls would have helped.
the spaghetti of built forms could have been placed over the freeway too to strengthen the connection between the learning centre and the marina.
Looks more like a Zaha rip off to me…
@archi
looks more like you’re a first year student.
@kk
lol
the guy (Mario Cipresso aka the founder of Studio Shift) worked for 6 years at Morphosis…
This building looks scary. Too edgy and I think it lacks foliage that would soften the design a bit.
they blatantly took the form from TVCC…
TVCC TVCC TVCC + Morphosis plan
However the form is still seductive….
Does that make it legit? I do not know…
It seems highly in efficient, But when I can not stop staring
I dont know if it matters.
Most of the discription seems to be about circulation, which is evident in the drawings!
The more I see it the worse it gets. Cutting edge, modern, no concept?, just a bunch of twisted elements. No doubt it is a lot of conceptual design, however, it lacks elegance, sense of proportions and the concepts that took years to develop to the original fathers of architecture. The problem is that of experimental architecture is encouraged by software developers and schools of architecture. we are abandoning the concept of working with human scale. where is all that? where is all that craftsmanship that comes come originality?
The interior is quite gorgeous.
A nightmare from Lebbeus Woods graphics (Lebbeus’ graphics are beautiful nightmare while this is a vulgar parody). Another “sustainable” monster. Another good candidate for Carbuncle Cup of 2015 or so… What a disgrace http://bit.ly/ch67cv
nice drawings..plan, section and diagram..renders are more expression vs. real…
I find hard to believe that anything with ‘world center’ in its name is sustainable. sustainability comes from understanding and relating to each unique part of the world’s qualities and issues. I see it basically as if decentralization is more needed than ‘the greatest world center of something’.
Well said, bruno. You are not alone.
Step forward from ZH dogma. It is not so important whom they teach, important what are they do. They try to do something new, may be with few mistakes. Remember first ZH project Hong-Kong Peak Club. It was absolutely unusable building. But it illustrated the idea. Try to find new idea in this project.
4:57 PM Aug 16th
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One of the cooler buildings I've seen being developed.. http://tinyurl.com/2d6jr5z
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