House of Families / Fantastic Norway

Dec 2010

By Irina Vinnitskaya — Filed under: Housing ,Residential , Fantastic Norway, Greenland, Nuuk

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“House of Families” is a project for the Greenland Self Government and Kommuneqarfik Sermersooq to provide housing for disadvantaged young women with children in Nuuk, Greenland. The architects, Fantastic Norway, who designed the building are part of a larger group led by Dahl & Uhre architects and TNT Nuuk architects and including MDH arkitekter, 42 architects + Regional associates, M: ARC and Arkitekti Helena Lennert in the development of Nuuk.

For more on this project read on after the break.

Courtesy of Fantastic Norway

The building has been rendered inviting and protective by the architects to create a safe and nurturing environment for the young women and their children. The house is broken into smaller building volumes to create the conceptual framework of an assembly of many small families that coalesce to create the larger structure.

plan 02

This social network, established to create an environment of learning and development for both the mothers and their children, is a step up for many of the families. It is an environment where the families can learn to live on their own, fend for themselves, and eventually live an independent life. The conceptual backbone of the programmatic functions of the whole assembly is a range of social zones and meeting places where various functions come together and various encounters can take place. The common functions within the building: the kitchens, the playgrounds, the sitting rooms all establish social relationships to reintroduce the residents back into society.

elevation 01

The building creates a literal shelter from the rough climatic conditions of the region. A heavy building mass is dense and closed to the north. Outdoor spaces are oriented to the south, but protected from heavy wind and rain in the southwest. The building mass breaks up and allows light to enter the front of the building where vegetation can flourish. The building also applies environmental technologies to sustain the life inside: an external heating system, passive solar technology, solar panels and water heating all contribute to a technological management system that regulates and controls energy consumption.

Architects: Fantastic Norway
Location: Nuuk, Greenland
Project Team: Anette c.Flygansvær, Håkon Matre Aasarød, Erlend Blakstad Haffner, Ingeborg c.Lindheim og Simon Pranter.
Strategic Plan: Dahl&Uhre arkitekter, TNT Nuuk arkitekter, MDH arkitekter, Fantastic Norway, 42 architects + Regional associates , M:ARC+ Arkitekti+Helena Lennert.

: Courtesy of Fantastic Norway

: Courtesy of Fantastic Norway

: plan 01

plan 02

plan 03

plan 04

elevation 01

section 01

diagram 02

diagram 02

diagram 03

Cite:
Vinnitskaya , Irina . "House of Families / Fantastic Norway" 01 Dec 2010. ArchDaily. Accessed 26 May 2012. <http://www.archdaily.com/92939>

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Nom_de_Guerre says:

Sou Fujimoto called, he wants his due credit back

# December 1, 2010 at 18:10

Hata Lo says:

I dont agree with Guerre. I think it is different from Fujimoto’s project. We can’t judge a project only by its shapes alike because it is dangerous for us not tell spaces. In this project, it is different form fujimoto’s project by dealing the open space between buildings. And its openings are also different. By the way, a lot of master’s projects are very similiar with others’ but actually different in total.

# December 1, 2010 at 21:37

obret says:

Never thought I’d witness the day when Sou Fujimoto was called original.

# December 1, 2010 at 23:32

I don’t agree with Guerre. I think we can’t judge a project only by it’s shapes. A lot of masterpieces are very similiar but actually different. This project is also different from Fujimoto even its shape alike. You can tell different from open space between buildings which make these two projects totally different. I don’t want to judge which projects better but we should find space not the shape only.

# December 1, 2010 at 21:27

ko says:

hi hato

but isn’t space made by shape?

# December 1, 2010 at 23:03

Dear Ko,

The shape is only a visual resault but not space.

We are aware of Space in various sense such like materail, colour, matter, void and the shape…

So it is dangerous for a architect to aware of the space only by its shapes, which make us ignorant of other senses in architecture.

# December 1, 2010 at 23:37

The Shape is only a visual result but space can be aware by colour, matter, light and void….

So if we too focus on shapes that would make us unware of other sense in architecture.

# December 1, 2010 at 23:55

Lateraal says:

love it!

# December 2, 2010 at 02:36

up_today_arch says:

Toy sity… but very attractive…

# December 2, 2010 at 07:41

RR says:

It’s becoming really tedious reading the comment “architect x called… blah blah blah” in reference to perceived copying of work.

People who say this are obviously going out of their way to attempt to discredit the architect of the ‘copy’, in favour of the architect who they believe to have designed the ‘original’, right?

So, are they trying to imply that architecture has no value unless it is completely original? Or is it ok by their authority to design work similar to that of an inspiration, providing they stamp the ‘original’ architect all over it?

Either way, it is a dumb opinion. All designers are influenced to a lesser or greater degree by other designers; sometimes more visibly than other times (even the ‘great innovators’ some of the more immature fans idolise).

Grow up.

# December 2, 2010 at 07:56

John says:

RR, I agree. I’m reminded of something I read recently that stated that all acts of creation MUST relate to what has come before to be legible. So essentially, there is not an act of creation that is 100% original.

Not to mention, with the sheer number of buildings that are produced, do people actually think that there is not going to be some repetition, even if only by chance!?!

# December 2, 2010 at 12:10

Kris says:

These people are products of a society that only enjoys the next best thing, preferring to throw everything else away. They’ve no appreciation for design, just incessant archi-porn.

# December 2, 2010 at 13:31

Cristian says:

Cute!

# December 2, 2010 at 09:34

chris says:

I like this just as much as Fujimoto’s Childrens Rehabilitation Center and Herzog & de Meuron’s Parrish Art Museum. Its perfectly fine for a project to appear similar in nature.

First iteration of Parrish Art Museum, incase anyone was curious:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/41838385@N00/2332120814
http://www.flickr.com/photos/soulellis/2332121024/in/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/41838385@N00/2332120900

# December 3, 2010 at 21:02

9:40 PM Dec 1st

DEZIGN

House of Families / Fantastic Norway: Courtesy of Fantastic Norway“House of Families” is a project for the Green… http://bit.ly/hLCxcL

9:49 PM Dec 1st

ELS

RT @ArchDaily: House of Families / Fantastic Norway http://archdai.ly/fZM1P3 #architecture

9:54 PM Dec 1st

GR2TF

9:56 PM Dec 1st

Raffaella Sacchetti