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Stairs: The Latest Architecture and News

Handrails and Accessibility 101: Ensuring Safe Usage in Architectural Projects

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Architectural design is a discipline that spans a wide range of scales, from macro scales involving the design of master plans or large urban complexes to micro scales, where it focuses on specific elements such as fixtures and fittings. Regardless of scale, careful attention to the design of each component of the built environment plays a critical role in how people experience architecture.

At the architectural micro-scale, railings and handrails play specific roles but are often confusing. While railings are designed to enclose spaces and prevent falls, handrails function as support elements, offering orientation and stability to avoid accidents and injuries. It is in the latter aspect that a stronger connection to accessibility becomes evident. For this reason, it is essential to have handrails, wall railings, and assist railings that meet ADA standards, such as those developed by Hollaender Manufacturing Co. These elements adapt to various design conditions, facilitating the movement of individuals who may encounter barriers in the physical environment.

How to Take Advantage of Stairs for Different Uses?

Vertical circulation may be just one of the functions of a ladder. Always occupying a reasonable area, this element can serve to bring some other uses when it is thought of in a more integrated way with the entire room, providing living spaces, storage and also a greater aesthetic appeal. That is why we have gathered some ideas on how to occupy the areas around a staircase in different projects: from home to industrial scale.

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Architecture and Color: Explore 15 Projects that Feature Exterior Red Staircases

Stairs are often an inevitable part of a building's DNA. Nowadays, staircases not only serve the function of practicality but are also a showcase of their own kind, especially if paired with a color that is guaranteed to grab attention. Among warm colors, red is considered to be the most powerful one. On one hand, it evokes feelings of joy and energy, and on the other, feelings of alertness and danger. Red can stimulate a whole range of emotions. Therefore, its usage should be attentive, delicate, and thought out.

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The History of the Penrose Stair and its Influence on Design

Stairs in architecture are oftentimes a design focal point- the heavyhandedness in creating something that moves us from one level to the next, up and down repeatedly, something so simple and familiar with a twist is what makes the experience of traversing a stair so unique. Our obsession with stairs and the level of illusion that they create in architecture perhaps stems from the way that they’re able to twist the optics and perceptions of space. We understand that they transport us in one direction or another, but can stairs ever be circular? Is it possible to go up and down for eternity? 

How to Incorporate Steel Railings Into the Design

Railings play two roles in architectural projects, both as a support and safety component in a building, which involves a great deal of technical detailing and accessibility standards, and as an accent element in the design. In this article, we will explore the different ways in which these elements can be used in a project.

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The Versatility of Wooden Staircases in Portuguese Houses

The presence of different ground levels requires solutions to connect them, either because of a need to adapt to the terrain or any other factor that leads to the verticalization of a building. Staircases serve the purpose of connecting the various floors and creating the building's dynamics through many different shapes, designs, and materials. When made of wood, they can also add a variety of colors and textures that contribute to the uniqueness of this element.

17 Unconventional Stair Railings To Inspire Your Next Project

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Guardrails and handrails are two elements that are often confused. While the first is used to close a space and prevent a person from falling, the second is a support bar for balance. Normally standard solutions are used for both elements, but with an attractive design, they can become standout details in a project.

For inspiration on materials, structures, and details of guardrails and handrails, here are 17 notable examples.

NIO House / AIM Architecture

NIO House / AIM Architecture - Showroom, Kitchen, Facade, Table
© Dirk Weiblen

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Dongcheng, China
  • Architects: AIM Architecture
  • Area Area of this architecture project Area:  1741
  • Year Completion year of this architecture project Year:  2018

Elephant-Parade Office / CUN Design

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  • Interior Designers: CUN Design
  • Area Area of this architecture project Area:  4100
  • Year Completion year of this architecture project Year:  2017

If Staircases Are Such A Crucial Architectural Element, Why Are They So Often Neglected?

Staircases can trigger conversations, provide a sense of arrival, and dazzle with ingenuity. As an architectural element, they are not just about circulation – so why are they neglected in the design of so many new projects? In this short film from Monocle, the breadth of ingenuity possible with the stair—from those of the Danish National Bank in Copenhagen to London’s Leighton House Museum—explore how they can come to embody the very essence of a good architectural project.

For the Love of Stairs

On this day of love, we bring you a compilation of eye candy capable of meeting or exceeding the specifications of any architect. These seductive staircases demand a double take. From curvaceous to straightforward or no-strings-attached (literally), we’ve got something for everyone. 

They're yours to gaze at after the break. 

Vertebrae Staircase / Andrew McConnell

Vertebrae Staircase / Andrew McConnell  - Interior Design, Handrail
Courtesy of Andrew McConnell

Inspired by the spine of a whale, the Vertebrae Staircase is not simply mimicry of organic form but an exploration in shaping structure. Much of the design work went into refining the single component, or vertebra, that mate with each other creating a unified spine running from floor plate to floor plate. These interlocking vertebrae create a rigid and self-supporting structure. 

More on Andrew McConnell's 'Vertebrae Staircase' after the break.

Russel Hill Road / gh3

Architects: gh3 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada Design Team: Pat Hanson, Anthony Provenzano Structural Engineer: Blackwell Bowick General Contractor: Jens Nielsen Project year: 2006-2007 Budget: US $500,000 Constructed Area: 185.8 sqm Photographs: Ben Rahn

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The interior of the building was stripped back to a more modern tradition of interior. The house becomes a neutral shell punctuated by three sculptural elements – a block of stone that is associated with kitchen elements, a curved stair, and a 20′ stone bench/shelf and fireplace wall. Each of these elements is associated with windows, skylights, and double height spaces to enhance the spatial experience of the house. Kitchen working areas and storage for dishes, books and media are organized linearly along the exterior walls and are concealed behind full-height doors.

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