Nursery in Sarreguemines by Michel Grasso and Paul Le Quernec

Visitors enter this nursery in northeast France through a curving concrete orifice. Architects Michel Grasso and Paul Le Quernec designed the nursery, which is located beside a noisy road in the town of Sarreguemines.

The undulating entrance walls lead into a round reception room at the centre of the building. The rest of the nursery is arranged like a human body cell, with classrooms and playrooms encircling this central nucleus. Ceiling heights in these surrounding rooms slope down to just over two metres-high to create a comfortable environment for young children. Rooms around the building’s perimeter open onto sheltered terraces and a surrounding garden.

Here’s a short description of the project from Michel Grasso:

---

Nursery in Sarreguemines (France)

It’s with a feeling of total freedom that we designed this project. Our first intention was to provide a protective and protected building, for comfort and safety of children, but also for the tranquility of their parents. Our second intention was to introduce the concept of double standards within the building, the children and adult, because we don’t lose sight that it is primarily children who are the main subject of this institution. Finally, our third purpose was to find a way to modify the perception of the building. Indeed, the requirements impose a development on the ground floor of the 1350 square meters of the building…

The project was designed as a body cell with its nucleus (the nursery), its cytoplasm (the gardens) and its membrane (the wall closure). The perception of the nursery is a bush of bamboo with small boxes bringing the light into a building with curved lines. The project: 1 350 m2 / 2 400 000 euro

Client: Communauté d’Agglomération Sarreguemines Confluences 

Architects: Paul Le Quernec & Michel Grasso

Spaceport America by Foster + Partners

Foster + Partners have completed the world’s first space terminal for tourists in New Mexico. Flying displays by Virgin Galactic space vehicles WhiteKnightTwoand SpaceShipTwo marked the opening of Spaceport America.

The low-rise building is dug into the landscape beside the El Camino Real road and is entered through a cleft between the two wings. Full-height glazing wraps around the end of the building, facing onto the runway beyond.

The spaceport hangar is located in the centre of the building, with administrative areas to the west and flight training and preparation areas to the east. The project was designed in collaboration with New Mexico architects SMPC and project manager URS Corporation. Operators Virgin Galactic are currently running a test flight programme.

Pantone Christmas ornaments

Not ready for christmas but I admit these Pantone Christmas ornaments made me chuckle.

Frieze Art Fair Pavilions by Carmody Groarke

London architects Carmody Groarke arranged temporary timber pavilions around the trees in Regent’s Park for this year’s Frieze Art Fair. The three pavilions surrounded a series of courtyards, through which the trees emerged.

Translucent plastic wrapped the exterior walls and roofs of the structures, creating windows across voids in the timber. The pavilions housed VIP rooms in addition to public seating and dining areas for the event, whilst artworks were on show in neighbouring tents.

Passing Cloud by Tiago Barros

If you’re not worried about where you go or how fast you get there, this enormous inflatable cloud is the mode of transport for you. Predominant winds would determine the routes and speed of the hovering cloud, which would move from place to place without any fixed destinations.

Passengers would board the cloud using ladders and would simply sit on the surface during travel. Inside the nylon-covered balloon, a steel skeleton like that of a zeppelin airship would support the object’s structure.

New York architect Tiago Barros proposed the design for a transport network of floating clouds in the sky to the Van Alen Institute and the Department of Cultural Affairs of New York City, who were expecting competition entries for a high-speed rail network.

Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design by Stanton Williams

Architects Stanton Williams have completed a new campus for art and design college Central Saint Martins in and around a Victorian granary and two former transit sheds in London. To the north of King’s Cross and St Pancras International railway stations, 67-acres of derelict land are being transformed in what is one of Europe’s largest urban regeneration projects. The result will be a vibrant mixed-use quarter, at the physical and creative heart of which will be the new University of the Arts London campus, home of Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design.

Two new four-storey buildings provide studio blocks between the two 180 metre-long sheds, one of which now houses workshops. Cycle stores are located in historic horse stables below this eastern shed, while shops and bars now occupy the ground floor of the western shed. Four-storey-high concrete walls frame the main entrance to the college, which leads into an internal street with overhead bridges and an arched, clear plastic roof. A performing arts centre located at the end of this street contains a 350-seat theatre for student performances. The refurbished former granary now houses a library and faces a public square currently under construction.

Stay Residence by Studio Loop

Stay Residence is a three-story building located in a distinctively dense area of Tokyo, Japan. Designed by StudioLOOP for a family with a newborn baby. The 4.5m(15ft.) wide and 13.5m(45ft.) long narrow site was provided and sandwiched between 3-story houses.
The clients requested a parking area, vanity near the bedroom, two offices, a living room sharing a Japanese room, pantry space in the kitchen, and a roof terrace.
The structure was built with diminishing walls toward the upper space, and more open windows and overt regions. The upper floors attracted more natural light and served as a primary source of ventilation. The box-shaped exterior is constructed of white stucco, and the only color used is orange for the entrance.
The overall design of the home’s interior is incomparable to any western or European home I’ve seen. The amount of light that penetrates through the top floor is staggering, and illuminates the beautiful wood that outlines the windows, floors, and staircase. I love how there are different levels within each level. The spiral staircase is also a great design within this narrow home as a way to save space.

L41 220-square-foot home

The L41 220-square-foot home ( 20,4 m²) by architect Michael Katz and designer Janet Corne is a beautiful example of their dedication to sustainability.
For Katz and Corne, it was important that they didn’t just set out to design the smallest possible house, but to find out how small they could build a house that was still delightful. In their words “we didn’t set out to design a 220 sqft house – we set out to design a delightful house, then measure it.”
They began with where they spend time in their home, and for them the kitchen and family room type area is what they believe is the heart of the home, and that’s what they focused on. They designed a fully functional kitchen and dining area that feels much larger than it really is. The kitchen features all the appliances you would normally expect, a dishwasher, convection oven and microwave, an under-the-counter fridge and freezer, and a washing machine/dryer combo. It also features a state-of-the art magnetic induction stove and a slide out overhead fan.
The living room features a couch that folds out to a bed, a coffee table, chairs, lots of storage, and a computer desk — a custom designed glass sliding door that disappears into the side of the unit gives full access to a outdoor deck and additional storage.
The roof of the L41 generates and stores solar electricity through photovoltaic and solar thermal heating and cooling cells on its green roof. It also happens to be the perfect place for a small garden.
This is the 220 sqft studio unit, but they have a one-bedroom unit that is 350 sqft, and a two-bedroom which is 450 sqft. The units are all modular and can be stacked or arranged in many configurations; Katz is currently working on a 12-story building, and he believes that it will be a great example of how density can be increased in low-density single family zones.
One of the advantages of building something so small like the L41, is that it is realistically possible to mass produce. Katz says that there have been many efforts to mass produce buildings but have largely failed; prefabbing large buildings has been problematic to mass production.
The house is built from cross-laminated timber (CLT) that is manufactured in Vancouver, BC Canada. CLT has many of the same properties as concrete, which allows them to stack the units; the biggest difference between concrete and cross-laminated timber is the CLT is completely sustainable. Katz believes that CLT is the world’s most important building material.
The L41 is a model of sustainability and a wonderful example of how design results in innovation without having to sacrifice quality and, in this case, delight.

Mr.Button

Mr.Button is putting a serious smile on my face. Produced by John Caswell Design.

Evelyn Grace Academy in London by Zaha Hadid Architects wins the RIBA Stirling Prize 2011

Evelyn Grace Academy by Zaha Hadid Architects has won this year’s RIBAStirling Prize for the greatest contribution to British architecture in the past year. The prize was awarded at a ceremony held this evening at Magna Science Adventure Centre in Rotherham.

Click for other constestants.

Here is some more information from the RIBA

---

Evelyn Grace Academy in London by Zaha Hadid Architects wins the RIBA Stirling Prize 2011 for the best building of the year
The Evelyn Grace Academy, a cutting-edge new secondary school in Brixton, south London by Zaha Hadid Architects has won the prestigious £20,000 RIBA Stirling Prize 2011 for the best new European building built or designed in the United Kingdom. This is the second year running that Zaha Hadid Architects have won the RIBA Stirling Prize; last year they won the award for their MAXXI Museum of 21st Century Art in Rome; this year they have put the practice’s formidable reputation to great use by breaking new ground in school design. Now in its 16th year, the RIBA Stirling Prize is presented in association with The Architects Journal and Kingspan Benchmark

The presentation of the UK’s premier architectural award took place at a special ceremony this evening (Saturday 1 October) at the RIBA Stirling Prize-winning (2001) Magna Science Adventure Centre in Rotherham, and will be televised tomorrow (Sunday 2 October 2011) on BBC TWO’s The Culture Show at 5pm.

A highly stylized zig-zag of steel and glass, the Evelyn Grace Academy is squeezed on to the tightest of urban sites (1.4 hectares – the average secondary school is 8/9 hectares). The architects received a complex brief: four schools under a single academy umbrella with the need to express both independence and unity. The architects were strongly encouraged by the client to ‘think outside the box’. With such a small space and with sport being one of the Academy’s ‘special subjects’ (each Academy school has one), the architects needed to be highly inventive. They succeeded, for instance by cleverly inserting a 100m running track into the heart of the site taking pupils right up to the front door. By dramatically celebrating the school’s specialism, the RIBA Stirling Prize judges noted ‘this is a design that literally makes kids run to get into school in the morning’.

The Evelyn Grace Academy is the first school to win the RIBA Stirling Prize, with seven schools shortlisted in previous years. It is the first time that Zaha Hadid Architects have designed a school and their first large-scale project in the UK. Previously they designed a Maggie’s Centre in Scotland and more recently they have completed the Riverside Museum in Glasgow and the London Aquatics Centre for the 2012 Olympics.

Speaking tonight, RIBA President Angela Brady, Chair of the judges, said:
“The Evelyn Grace Academy is an exceptional example of what can be achieved when we invest carefully in a well-designed new school building. The result – a highly imaginative, exciting Academy that shows the students, staff and local residents that they are valued – is what every school should and could be. The unique design, expertly inserted into an extremely tight site, celebrates the school’s sports specialism throughout its fabric, with drama and views of student participation at every contortion and turn. Evelyn Grace Academy is a very worthy winner of architecture’s most prestigious award and I am delighted to present Zaha Hadid Architects with this accolade.”
The Evelyn Grace Academy is run by ARK (Absolute Return for Kids) Academy organisation, a charity set up by Arpad “Arki” Busson, the hedge-fund multimillionaire. ARK aims to offer exceptional opportunities to local children in inner cities with the aim of helping to close the achievement gap between children from disadvantaged and more affluent backgrounds.

Peter Walker, Principal of the Evelyn Grace Academy said:
“This visually stunning building makes a powerful statement to our students every day they attend school. As a new academy setting the highest expectations for all students, it is fitting that we have such an aspirational environment. The internal structure of the building supports the innovative nature of Evelyn Grace Academy’s small school system exceptionally well.”

Zaha Hadid said:
“It is very significant that our first project in London is the Evelyn Grace. Schools are among the first examples of architecture that everyone experiences and have a profound impact on all children as they grow up. I am delighted that the Evelyn Grace Academy has been so well received by all its students and staff.”

Evelyn Grace Academy was chosen from the following outstanding shortlisted entries:

• An Gaelaras, Derry by O’Donnell and Tuomey
• The Angel Building, London by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM)
• Folkwang Museum, Essen, Germany by David Chipperfield Architects
• Olympic Velodrome London 2012 by Hopkins Architects, supported by the Olympic Delivery Authority
• Royal Shakespeare and Swan Theatres, Stratford by Bennetts Associates

RIBA President Angela Brady announced the winner, editor of The Architects’ Journal, Christine Murray, awarded the £20,000 cheque and Peter Santo, Head of Benchmark presented the certificate to architects Patrik Schumacher and Lars Teichman, and school principal Peter Walker.

The 2011 RIBA Stirling Prize judges were RIBA President and Chair of the judges, Angela Brady; Sir Peter Cook – architect and academic, formerly of Royal Gold Medal winning Archigram; Hanif Kara – engineer, Adams Kara Taylor; Dan Pearson – landscape designer and RIBA Honorary Fellow and Alison Brooks – architect and winner of the RIBA Stirling Prize 2008 with Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios and Maccreanor Lavington for the Accordia housing scheme.

The winners of the RIBA Lubetkin Prize and two special awards were also announced this evening:

• The Met, a sixty-six storey residential skyscraper in Bangkok, Thailand by WOHA architects won the prestigious RIBA Lubetkin Prize for the most outstanding work of international architecture outside the EU by a member of the RIBA.
• St. Patrick’s School Library and Music Room in north-west London by Coffey Architects won the RIBA’s 2011 Stephen Lawrence Prize. Set up in memory of Stephen Lawrence who was setting out on the road to becoming an architect when he was murdered in 1993 and funded by the Marco Goldschmied Foundation, the prize rewards the best examples of projects that have a construction budget of less than £1 million and is intended to encourage fresh talent working with smaller budgets.
• The Royal Shakespeare Company won the 2011 RIBA Client of the Year supported by the Bloxham Charitable Trust. The award recognizes the role good clients play in the delivery of fine architecture.