Offices: The Latest Architecture and News

+ 12

Miami’s growing art district of Wynwood is set for further development in the form of two projects designed by renowned local architect Kobi Karp – Wynwood 25 and Gateway at Wynwood. The first is a $100 million unique mixed-use residential opportunity in the neighborhood, co-developed by the Related Group in Miami and the New York based East End Capital, and interiors by Meshberg Group, while the second is an upcoming 12-story tower responding to the increasing demand for office rental space.

“Wynwood’s artistic spirit and modern vibe are elements that inspired our designs for Wynwood 25 and Gateway at Wynwood,” explained Kobi Karp, Founder, and Principal of Kobi Karp Architecture and Interior Design, Inc. “This forward-thinking, vibrant area is gaining so much momentum and we wanted this to translate into our designs. It’s an exciting time to be a part of Wynwood’s growth and we aim to create unique designs that merge seamlessly with the area’s culture and unique energy.”

+ 1

#donotsettle is an online video project created by Wahyu Pratomo and Kris Provoost about architecture and the way it is perceived by its users. Having published a number of videos on ArchDaily over the past two years, Pramoto and Provoost are now launching an exclusive column, “#donotsettle extra,” which will accompany some of their #donotsettle videos with in-depth textual analysis of the buildings they visit.

“The office has an easy-going mood and relaxing atmosphere. That’s why we call it The House,” says Jacob van Rijs, one of MVRDV's founders, when he brought #donotsettle into his office.

For architecture, an industry that is famous for long workdays, the office can potentially be a stressful environment. Van Rijs explains how the office could have a significant impact upon people's psychology, as they spend a large part of their life there. The MVRDV House has broken the rigid office typology, and made it more entertaining.

+ 8

+ 15

The second stage of the creative competition of the state Corporation Rosatom.

Renderings have been released for Hollwich Kushner’s first European project – Die Macherei, a new mixed-use business district based in Munich. Designed by the New York firm in collaboration with local practices msm meyer schmitz-morkramer and OSA Ochs Schmidhuber Architekten of Frankfurt/Cologne and Munich respectively, the financial hub will feature 64,000 square meters of rental space, bringing together offices, shops, dining experiences, a hotel and a gym.

“I could not be more excited to realize our first European project in my hometown. Designed not just as a series of buildings but as an exploration of the spaces between the buildings, Die Macherei is an innovative design for a new way of working and interacting, integrating social activity and behaviors to promote a sense of community,” expressed Matthias Holwich, principal at HWKN.

+ 4

Architecture continually evolves to meet societal demands. Recently, a global effort to tackle climate change, and to achieve optimum energy efficiency in buildings, has brought standards such as BREEAM and LEED to the fore. However, as scientific analysis and awareness of human mental health has increased, architects are once again required to place humans at the centre of the design process. This growing trend has led to the development of WELL Building Certification – considered the world’s first certification focused exclusively on human health and wellbeing.

+ 11

This essay by Alan Hess about the iconic Capitol Records building in Los Angeles was originally published as "The Architecture of the Capitol Records Tower." It is part of the book 75 Years of Capitol Records, published by TASCHEN, which is scheduled for release in February.

The president of Capitol Records was certain that a serious company could not operate out of a building that looked like the stack of records in a jukebox. So when Welton Becket, the new headquarters’ architect, showed him a model of the multistoried circular tower, Wallichs was annoyed. It would look like an advertising gimmick, Wallichs said, in a city where hot dogs were sold out of buildings shaped like hot dogs. Becket countered that the circular floor plan was more cost-efficient for the amount of usable space than a standard rectangular office building. Unimpressed, Wallichs told Becket to go back and design a conventional building.

The myth that a stack of records inspired the Tower has never died, though. As soon as the building opened, Hollywood columnist Bob Thomas wrote about it as “a monstrous stack of records.” Wallichs went on a public offensive from the start: “There was no intentional relationship between the shape of phonograph records and the circular design of the Tower” he insisted to the Chicago Tribune.

The spaces in which great architecture firms produce their work are a source of endless curiosity for architects. By understanding these workspaces, architects hope to understand the environment in which their favorite ideas and drawings are shaped, and gain a more intimate understanding of their favorite practices. For this reason, we have searched our archives for the architectural offices that have previously been published on our website. Among our selection are international names such as MVRDV and Selgas Cano alongside other offices which, though not so well known, also demonstrate how your workspace can be a source of inspiration for design.

See the offices after the break. 

Last month we put out a call to our readers to show us where they work. It was a pleasure to receive so many submissions, each showing the particular talent and creativity--and, the incredible geographical scope--of the ArchDaily community. These are our favorites (in no particular order). Enjoy and submit your own drawing in the comments.

Zaha Hadid Architects' new Port House in the Belgian city of Antwerp, which has been almost a decade in planning and construction, officially opens this week. A monumental new structure sits above a repurposed and renovated (formerly derelict) fire station, providing a new headquarters for Europe's second largest shipping port. Housing 500 staff, who will now be under the same roof for the first time, the building represents a sustainable and future-proof workplace for its employees. Photographer Laurian Ghinitoiu has visited to capture his unique perspective on this new addition to the city's crane-covered skyline.

+ 37

CetraRuddy has been selected to design a new 18-story office building in Manhattan’s trendy Meatpacking District. With plans filed before zoning ordinances in the area changed the height limit to 130 feet, the project will feature an extra 140 feet, with a total height of 270 feet.

Located on West 15^th Street near Ninth Avenue, the office building—which was previously designed as a hotel—will connect to a landmark district building on West 14^th Street, which will be renovated as a part of the project. Together, the two buildings will feature 250,000 square feet of office space with a landscaped rooftop and an additional five terraces for communal work and relaxation areas.

+ 3

+ 18

Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects has won the international competition to design a new mixed-use development in the heart of Stockholm, Sweden: Hästen 21. The new development will comprise retail, office and residential spaces, creating a “central artery” for the area with a strong visual presence adapted to the history and skyline of the existing city.

Construction is underway on a new office and retail tower in the Dubai International Financial Center district (DIFC). Designed by Foster + Partners, the 1.5-million-square-foot "ICD Brookfield Place" has officially broke ground and is expected to be completed by late 2018.

"The beginning of construction at ICD Brookfield Place marks the next phase of one of Dubai's most prestigious developments at the DIFC. We were honored to be chosen by ICD Brookfield to design a project that we believe will become a new social focus for Dubai, combining world class office space with a major civic plaza," says Foster. 

If Norman Foster were a household item, he would surely be a Swiss Army Knife. Foster, who turned 80 this year, is unrelenting in producing architectural solutions to problems that other architects can only theorize - just last Wednesday, for example, his firm released their design for a previously-unheard-of building typology, a droneport in Rwanda.

It is surprising then to find the man or his eponymous firm Foster + Partners absent from a list like Fast Company’s “The World's Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Architecture,” organized into superlatives: MMA Architects, “for thinking outside the big box,” Heatherwick Studio, “for reimagining green space,” or C.F. Møller Architects, “for rethinking high-rise living.” This is not to say that Foster or his firm should be substituted for any of these deserved accolades, but rather that for five decades Foster and his firm have ceaselessly worked to enhance and expand on the human experience with architectural solutions that are both inventive and practical - a fact that is perhaps lost as a result of his position within the architectural establishment.

With that in mind, we thought it was worth highlighting the many occasions over the decades where Foster + Partners has shown themselves to be among the world's most innovative practices. Read on for more.

+ 9

Welcome to the second installment of The Long(ish) Read: an AD feature which uncovers texts written by notable essayists that resonate with contemporary architecture, interior architecture, urbanism or landscape design. In this essay, written in March 1896, Louis H. Sullivan (1856-1924) discusses the construction of high-rise office buildings. Sullivan, often described as the 'Father of Skyscrapers' and the 'Father of Modernism', was a mentor to a number of US architects in and around Chicago — including Frank Lloyd Wright and the Prairie School. In this essay, written when he was forty years of age, Sullivan lists his solutions to the many problems associated with building tall, and doing so with a degree of artistic flair.

Read the essay in full after the break.