Foster + Partners has completed and reimagined the Apple store in Sanlitun, an urban quarter in Beijing, China. Originally built in 2008, Apple’s first store in China has relocated, in proximity to the older building, taking on more social aspects, and generating a “new dialogue with the surrounding pedestrian streets, addressing the large open square that is a social focus for the district”.
For several years, Rosi Pachilova has been looking into and building upon the tools we use to analyse and configure layouts for our built environment. Together with Dr Kerstin Sailer, a reader in Social and Spatial Networks at the Space Syntax Laboratory, UCL, she has developed a tool that can assess spatial proposals for their impact on the quality of care of healthcare providers. In 2019, their work was awarded the RIBA President’s Award for Research in the Building in Quality category.
The Covid-19 pandemic has transformed the way we live our lives. Significant and long-lasting repercussions will be felt across society and industry, many of which are sure to influence the way we approach the design of our buildings and cities. Over the past few weeks, the Urban Design team at Foster + Partners has been exploring how recent and fast moving developments in urban planning – instigated and encouraged by the current crisis – will affect and shape the future of London and others worldwide.
In Belval Luxembourg, ICÔNE, the Foster + Partners-designed office development has broken ground. Tackling the future of workspace, the design generates flexible layouts and addresses the current tendencies for safe working environments.
Foster + Partners has created a series of architectural challenges for kids, to learn and have fun during the lockdown. Available templates and activities include making paper skyscrapers, creating your own city, drawing trees, and imagining the future.
Foster + Partners first built project in Russia is set to be completed later this year, as construction work for the RMK headquarters in Yekaterinburg nears finalization. The 15-storey building designed for the leading copper producer rethinks the conventional office space, bringing about a domestic scale to the interior layout.
Architects around the world have put their knowledge to use in the fight against the coronavirus. While some designed alternative facilities to increase the capacity of hospitals, others imagined different types of face protection gears to help with the world-wide shortage of masks. Using 3d printing technology, easy to assemble techniques, and low-cost material, firms, universities, and individuals have mobilized their expertise to create face shields for citizens and medical staff.
Foster + Partners have designed a new residential tower project for the Qianhai Talents’ Apartments in Shenzhen. The winning competition design takes aim at the city's rental market, formed as a building exclusively for ‘talents’ – professionals who would have an intensive work-centered lifestyle. Exploring themes of privacy and exclusivity, the project aspires to create modern layouts that redefine the residents’ living experience.
British international studio Foster + Partners has won the competition to design the headquarters for Alibaba, in Shanghai. The newest building of the e-commerce giant will take a unique form generated by an algorithm that combines major aspects of the project.
At first glance, it seems that Apple's strong retail design has derived from consistent design. But since Steve Jobs opened the first Apple Store in 2001, the brand has changed its store and lighting design concept five times. Thereby change appears as a central factor when a brand grows and expands internationally. For each period Apple developed sophisticated details and has strived for the perfect sky in their store - a smart strategy to enhance naturalness and sustainability.
Foster + Partners have released their design for the new Red Sea Airport, expected to welcome one million visitors by 2030. Inspired by the forms of the desert, the green oasis and the sea, the terminal building aims to provide a new type of experience, diverging from the common hassles of airports.
Foster + Partners have released images for their proposal for the new Le Dôme winery in Saint-Émilion, the firm’s second winery in the Bordeaux area, the first being Château Margaux in 2015. Located in a UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Landscape, the design blends seamlessly with the topography.
Foster + Partners has created in partnership with Luye Medical and Cleveland Clinic, a healthcare facility, challenging the traditional hospital prototypes. The design of the general medical hospital in Shanghai’s New Hong Qiao International Medical Center aims to generate a new type of patient experience.
A 301,400-square-feet extension for a shopping center and two 12-story buildings will be the first project by Foster + Partners in Chile, according to local newspaper El Mercurio.
Planned to be built in San Joaquin, a predominantly industrial, working-class neighborhood in Santiago, Chile, the project will be made for real estate company Grupo Patio.
Foster + Partners have completed the new Apple Aventura store in Miami, Florida. Designed to embody the city's openness, the project features an undulating vaulted roof that is reminiscent of the city’s nautical roots. The building's materiality and flow are inspired by the region’s Art Deco buildings as the new two-level store responds to the light, culture and climate of Florida.
Foster + Partners have broken on a new residential tower in the Philippines. Called The Estate Makati, the project is located in the heart of Manila’s Makati Central Business District, and marks the practice’s first project in the Philippines. The 54-story tower is made to embody a unique approach to residential living, creating expansive, flexible homes in the sky that combine landscaping with panoramic views of the city.
When an extension on an existing historical building is requested, often architects opt for glass, transparent and reflective interventions. Some decide to stay neutral and subtle when dealing with an older structure, while others choose a bold and outspoken design to manifest their contemporary character. With each project having its own conceptual motivation and reasoning, the outcomes are different and diverse.
Read on for some relevant examples, each responding to a different program.
Foster + Partners have won the international competition to design the new Bilbao Fine Arts Museum in Spain. The winning proposal was revealed by the president of the Provincial Council of Bizkaia and the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum Foundation Board. The revitalization will turn Plaza Arriaga into the new heart along the museum’s spine. The proposal seeks to reorient the museum towards the city by restoring the façade of the existing building and making it more permeable, while enhancing the institution’s unique identity.
_Nigel_Young-_Foster___Partners_Westlake.jpg?1576163568 "Apple Store Westlake, Hangzhou / China. Architecture: Foster + Partners. Image: © Nigel Young")
