Between Books and Trees / JAJA

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Our friends from JAJA shared their latest proposal, which was awarded third prize, for a new public library in Daegu, South Korea.  Pushing the boundary of the notion that a library must be a contained, quiet and nearly isolated space, JAJA’s proposal treats the library as massive public zone for the fostering of communal creativity, and dissolves the separation between inside and nature.   JAJA, typically noted for their form making abilities, have opted for a minimialistic formal language of the architecture, so that the streamlined library can capture the textures of the existing trees and the books within to create a cohesive experience that celebrates both.
More, including images, drawings and model photos, after the break.

The Cornerstone / JAJA Architects ApS

© JAJA

In our latest AD Futures, we introduced JAJA Architects, an up-and-coming Danish firm.  The backgrounds of the firm’s three principals (Norwegian, Danish, Japanese, Thai and Swiss) form an interesting design aesthetic, as their influences fuse together to make a strong statement.  The young firm recently won a competition  for a mix-use building in with their proposal entitled the Cornerstone – an office building that gives a new visual anchor point and a place where people can meet to see the urban life unfold.

More about the winning design after the break.

AD Futures #7: JaJa

We are back with AD Futures, our series of articles that feature the most innovative young practices around the world, practices that i´m betting on their future.

This week, i present you JaJa, a Danish practice funded by Jakob Christensen and Jan Tanaka, the two Ja’s. Why did i pick them?

  • They are very young (pretty obvious for this section, but still worth mentioning).
  • They are doing some interesting designs, exploring different shapes and concepts, always challenging traditional program schemes.
  • They got the 4th place on the Stockholm Public Library expansion competition, a project with an interesting section.
  • They just got a site and a grant for their  own non-profit project: The Watchmans Hut. Architectural entrepreneurs.
  • They make a good use of their blog.

It´s funny how we found them, as someone recommended them on our Facebook group when we featured their Ormen Lange project.

And now onto two of their recent competitions, Book Hill and Hatlehol Church:

Office and shop complex proposal by JAJA

This was sent to us by Klaus Olsen via our Facebook Group. The Danish architects JAJA have just revealed their new proposal for an office and shop complex in Sandnes – . They have worked with Rambøll Aros on this 13,000m2 project.

The building is named after an ancient Viking Ship, which was called worm Lange. The ship was Norwegian, and it feels appealing to draw historical references to a piece of contemporary architecture.

For more details, click here.

More images after the break.