Housing is one of the primary aspects of the architecture profession. There are many ways to explore it, from a subordinate program such as a religious cloister to the splendor of a single-family home. Luis Fernández-Galiano is torn between the "waste" of a low-density area in this type of housing and its seductive formal charm. He reminds us that high-density collective housing, such as apartments, makes more sense in an urban context.
Buckminster Fuller's obsession with geodesic shapes placed them in architectural history. The spherical appearance and the complex structural framework gained different appropriations and scales over the years, one of the most iconic works being the Montreal Biosphere, the US pavilion for the 1967 World Expo, designed by him. These structures emerged from his interests in material efficiency, structural integrity and modularity. Back in the 60s, he understood these features as essential for a sustainable and easily replicable intervention
There are several constructive technologies to configure the structural system of a building. From the 1960s onwards, the adoption of techniques that enabled the interaction between different materials became increasingly common, diversifying the design language and seeking the main advantages each element has to face certain situations. Over the years, some mix concrete, wood, stones or steel.
When organizing the elements, materials and colors of an architectural layout, architects can successfully guide users through a room and its different spaces, therefore creating an easy and seamless trajectory for those inhabiting it. By exploring innovative strategies to create new ways of arranging a space, architecture can use color to boost certain aspects of a project’s scheme. The use of color in architectural design combines different factors beyond aesthetic preferences by also affecting the user’s emotions and behavior. Before launching into the color selection, the design process entails certain decision making, such as which architectural elements to highlight, if there is a zonification or division of spaces within the use of colors, the creation of focal points, and the consideration of how each color is associated with a determined mood.
With a breakdown of five architecture projects, the following article analyzes how color is applied as a design strategy to define spaces through three categories: structure, elements and objects, and definition of spaces.
'Color in certain places has the great value of making the outlines and structural planes seem more energetic' - Antoni Gaudí
The Italian city installed glass barriers around the 900-year-old church to keep the waters out. The decision was made after near-record flooding in December 2022, preventing a repeat of the November 2019 near-catastrophe that aged parts of the building “20 years in a day,” according to Basilica’s Procuratoria governing body. The temporary structure is fixed until the MOSE system fully works by the end of 2025, protecting the city of Venice, Italy, and the Venetian Lagoon from flooding.
Let us return to the first architecture class on structures and the classification of structural efforts. In most structures, whether natural or man-made, compression forces are the primary actors. These are efforts undertaken with equal and opposing loads, applied in the interior of the structure, which tend towards the shortening of the piece in one direction - or compressing it, as the name indicates. It is not difficult to find examples of this: for example, a stone wall or a wooden log can resist the weight of a covering through internal compression efforts that are inherent to each material. Tension efforts, on the other hand, tend to lengthen components in the direction of the applied force of action. Steel, for example, is a material with good tensile strength. It is used in reinforced concrete precisely in the parts where the piece is in traction. But it is also possible for a structure to only have tensile parts, as is the case of membrane, tensioned, or tension structures, which consist of surfaces pulled by the action of cables or ropes in which the masts absorb compression efforts.
One of the first elements used by humans to build shelters, wood is a versatile material that, along with technological advances, remains a protagonist in the construction industry, being used in different ways and moments in a work.
Architecture, to materialize as a constructed and functional building, requires the collaboration of a series of disciplines. During the design stages, these complementary areas are added to the architectural design, attaching systems that help in the construction's functionality, known as complementary projects.
Recent years have seen an increased acknowledgement of the collective endeavour that is architecture and a better valuing of the different professions that participate in the design process. Within every extraordinary building, structural engineering plays an essential role in delivering the architectural vision. The article highlights the past and present contributions of engineering to the built environment, personalities that have stood in the shadow of architects delivering their design intent, and the collaboration between engineers and architects today.
Many architects tend to prefer using materials and architectural elements in their natural or raw state. It is common to remove ceilings and finishings, especially in renovation projects, to expose a building's structure. This process of reclaiming the natural materials of construction - without incorporating elements to cover the framework, pipes, tubes, and cables - transforms these spaces into places that have nothing to hide.
Groupwork, in collaboration with Jackson Coles, Eight Associates, Webb Yates, The Stonemasonry Company and Polycor, is investigating the possibilities to build large commercial buildings in stone, through the Stone Tower Research project and The New Stone Age exhibition.
Cardboard tubes are so commonplace that we may no longer even notice them. Yet they are everywhere: in a roll of toilet paper, in the packaging of the college diploma, in fireworks, and in the tissue and paper industries. And now, more and more, they can be found in unusual places, such as on the walls of houses and buildings. The material is part of modern life and is being produced for a multitude of industrial applications and consumer products. The vast majority are used as structural cores in winding operations. Immediately after manufacturing, paper, film or textiles are rolled directly onto cardboard tubes resulting in a stable roll that is easily stored and transported.
Great school design is more than just a good piece of architecture. Particularly in vulnerable areas with poor public infrastructure, schools symbolize the role of the state and education as a transforming agent for social improvement. They can also become areas for community life, sports, courses, among other uses. Unfortunately, these projects do not always receive the attention they deserve.
Schools require diverse and complex programs and flows, therefore, developing an educational project is one of the greatest challenges for architects. Due to the economy, rationalization, and speed of work, Brazil's largest portion of school projects are designed from prefabricated concrete elements with rigid modulations and, in rare cases, steel. But what may seem to limit at first, can actually become an exercise in structural creativity.
In an attempt to elucidate the systems used to materialize these projects, we've selected a compilation of seven prefabricated schools in plan and section to create incredible spaces for learning.
Inverted king post trusses are made of steel bars and cables used to reduce bending, deformation, and a trusses’ height. In other words, they are a collection of continuous beams (steel or wood) and steel cables that are positioned under the beam, supported by an upright king post. Although slender, they are suited for large spans and have small sections.
Designed by Czech designers Atelier SAD and distributed by mmcité1, this mobile, nature-inspired gazebo is a playground must-have for children and adults alike. 109 waterproof, plywood scales are treated with resistant glaze and connected by galvanized joints to create a self-supporting, sustainable structure.
In the Lujiazui financial district in Pudong, Shanghai, Kengo Kuma has reimagined a 1972 shipyard into a new 9,000-square-meter multi-use complex, named Shipyard 1862. Behind original, rugged brick walls, the old shipyard was once defined by a 12 by 30-meter grid, which allowed for massive interior spaces to hold ships. In this industrial-style adaptive reuse project, Kuma was careful to preserve the building’s structural and material integrity. These photographs provided by Julien Lanoo show how the industrial shell has been transformed by the refurbishment project.
