Browsing: Renzo Piano

Resting on the outskirts of Naples, Renzo Piano latest Volcano Buono is a mixed use center  that aims to become integrated into the landscape, rather than just occupying it.  The central piazza of the Volcano includes a 150 meter-wide space that holds an outdoor theater and market, while a series of concentric rings form the center’s commercial areas.  Piano explained that the Volcano  is “a contemporary take on a Greek marketplace, a void as a place for events, meetings, dialogue and the gathering of people”.

More about the Volcano and more images after the break. read more »

Renzo Piano’s latest project, the Shard, has recently moved to the construction phase.  The 1,016 ft high skyscraper will be the tallest building in Western Europe and will provide amazing views of London.  The mixed use tower, complete with offices, apartments, a hotel and spa, retail areas, restaurants and a 15-storey public viewing gallery, will sit adjacent to London Bridge station as part of a new development called London Bridge Quarter.  Replacing the 1970’s Southwark Tower on Bridge Street, the Shard is a welcomed addition to the London skyline, and its central location near major transportation nodes will play a key role in allowing London to expand.

More about the tower after the break. read more »

The design for the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center at the Faliron Delta area in Athens, Greece. The building is being designed by -in my opinion- the master of sustainable architecture: Renzo Piano.

The SNFCC is not  an ordinary building, as it will house a very important program: the National Library of Greece and the Greek National Opera.

This 187,800 sqm project – a private-public endeavor – will have a cost of € $450m, financed entirely by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, and once completed in 2015 it will be turned over the Greek State.

There´s only a few images available at the moment, but from the model and sections we can see how the building integrates into the slope of the park, and it´s connected to the sea through a canal parallel to the existing explanade. On this, Piano says: “The Cultural Center’s proximity to water, and the natural warm breezes and light of Athens were particularly inspiring during the design process.  It was immediately clear that we must take advantage of all these elements to ultimately design a zero emissions building that expresses movement and energy”.

The roof consists in a series of interconnected photovoltaic cell panels which will cover the structure’s needs, taking advantage of the pure “green” solar and wind energy, in a similar way to the California Academy of Science.

We´ll keep you posted on the future development of this project. More images -courtesy of Renzo Piano Building Workshop- after the break.

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Fernando Herrera shared with us some very interesting photos of the California Academy of Science (previously posted with the official photos). First, a series of pictures from the opening day on which you can see the building with people on it, and get a better idea on the scale and how it works. He even caught Renzo Piano admiring his own work!

Also, he sent us a series of pictures of the green roof during construction, on which you can see more details such as the irrigation system and the skylights.

Enjoy the gallery! I also recommend checking out Fernando´s Flickr page, he has photographed an interesting selection of contemporary buildings in the US and Europe.

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The last 2 times I went to San Francisco, I saw the progress of the new California Academy of Sciences building, by italian architect Renzo Piano. It was amazing to see how the 2.5 acre green roof took shape. The building is now complete, it was opened to public yesterday.

The building recovers two and mixes it with a whole new structure, which is actually very transparent, connecting it visually with the Golden Park, away from the old conception of dark museums. Shade will be provided by a canopy that goes around the bulding, with solar panels on it.

Sustainability was a key aspect of the design, as this project is one of the ten pilot “green building” projects of the San Francisco Department of Environment, aiming to get platinum LEED certification. Actually, the building will consume 30-35% less energy than required by code.

The project conserves two limestone walls from the previous building (1934), and houses a planetarium, a rain forest habitat and an aquarium, and several exhibition spaces to house the several Academy collections.

The planetarium and the bubble that contains the rain forest habitat are the two big spheres that shape the green roof. The roof becomes a landscape with California native species, that won´t need extra maitenance or water, attracting local species to occupy it. Thus, the green roof won´t be fully accesible to visitors, who can only walk through a small path.

All the pictures on this post are © Tim Griffith. Check out his website for great architecture photography.

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