Vieux Port Pavilion / Foster + Partners, Photos by Edmund Sumner

Posted on mayo 21, 2013 by :: noticias arquitectura ::

Located at the mouth of Marseille’s World Heritage-listed harbor, the Vieux Port Pavilion, designed by Foster + Partners, provides a new sheltered events space on the eastern edge of the port. Bringing new focus to the city, these photographs by Edmund Sumner demonstrate the stainless steel canopy’s ability to amplify and reflect the surrounding movement of the harbor, creating a spectacle that encourages pedestrians to linger. Since its opening early this year, the project is truly an invitation to the people of Marseille to enjoy and use this grand space for events, markets and celebrations once again. A complete gallery of Sumner’s images can be viewed after the break.

Vieux Port Pavilion / Foster + Partners, Photos by Edmund Sumner originally appeared on ArchDaily, the most visited architecture website on 20 May 2013.

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Foster + Partners Reveals Residential Community Project for London

Posted on mayo 18, 2013 by :: noticias arquitectura ::

Foster + Partners has been selected to developed a proposal for a low energy, high-density residential community in Islington, London. The site is a 1980s business park that is to be regenerated into a residential zone of two towers and a landscaped park. The project will incorporate the arera’s planned high-rise buildings and is ultimately set to provide a new landmark for the city.

The two residential towers at 250 City Road will provide the area with 800 new units. At 36- and 42-stories, the two towers are taller than the surrounding buildings, but are stepped down in such a way as to blend with the existing low-rise architecture.

The site is designed to create a comfortable and healthy environment that provides outdoor spaces, amenities, transportation connections and protection against wind and noise in the open spaces. The site is interconnected with pedestrian routes, connections to adjacent streets and transportation links and shops and cafes to establish an urban quarter.

The buildings are designed with a combined heat and power plant that can be connected to the local grid, photovoltaic panels, green roofs, and rain water collection systems.

Foster + Partners Reveals Residential Community Project for London originally appeared on ArchDaily, the most visited architecture website on 18 May 2013.

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Museo Lenbachhaus se reabre al público | Foster + Partners

Posted on mayo 13, 2013 by :: noticias arquitectura ::

Museo lenbachhaus se reabre al público 1

Después de más de diez años de restauración, el “Museo Lenbachhaus” en munich ha reabierto al público con una ceremonia especial a la que asistieron el Ministro alemán de cultura, el alcalde de Munich, el director del museo, y el arquitecto Norman Foster de Foster and Partners. El museo, originalmente construido en 1891 como una villa y estudio para el artista Franz von Lenbach, se ha ido ampliando a lo largo de un siglo, ya que su función fue la re-apropiación pero las estructuras estaban en necesidad de una restauración extrema para dar cabida a los cerca de 280.000 visitantes al año.

Museo lenbachhaus se reabre al público 2

El diseño de Foster actualiza el rendimiento del complejo y ha mejorado los aspectos logísticos de los edificios existentes – la circulación, ventilación y luz natural – y también pidió la adición de una nueva ala moderna, que alberga la colección del “jinete azul” de pinturas expresionistas y proporciona suficiente espacio para un restaurante, terraza, servicios de educación y atrio que articula la mezcla de lo viejo y lo nuevo. La nueva adición se concibe como un “joyero” que contiene los tesoros del museo, vestido con tubos de cobre de aleación de aluminio que es de color que representan una interpretación contemporánea del vibrante tono amarillo-naranja de la villa original. La circulación exterior se actualiza a través de espacios del patio reactivadas y plazas de nuevo diseño y pasarelas que conectan mejor a la nueva estructura con la construcción histórica, que fue despojada de la mayor parte de sus anexos edad para exponer el verdadero diseño original. Calefacción y refrigeración se realizan ahora a través de los sistemas a base de agua en el suelo, junto con sistemas de recogida de aguas pluviales, iluminación de bajo consumo y naturales lo convierten en un medio ambiente responsable dentro de la ciudad.

Museo lenbachhaus se reabre al público 3

Lord Foster afirma:

“Nuestro principal reto ha sido mantener la misma cantidad de área de exposición, dentro de la huella del museo, mientras que la creación de nuevos espacios de circulación y visitantes. Dada la forma en que las diferentes partes del museo habían evolucionado, no había tal cosa como un espacio típico – cada esquina es individual, único y obligatorio de atención y diferentes decisiones de diseño. Este ha sido un proceso fascinante. Otro aspecto importante de nuestro diseño ha sido la creación de nuevas oportunidades para obras de arte que se exhiben fuera de los límites tradicionales de la galería, como en el atrio. Este espacio desarrolla la idea de la “sala urbana” – es pública y social el corazón del museo, y el punto de conexión con la ciudad en general “.

Lenbachhaus Museum / Foster + Partners

Posted on mayo 9, 2013 by :: noticias arquitectura ::

Architects: Foster + Partners
Location: Munich, Germany
Design Team: Norman Foster, David Nelson, Stefan Behling, Christian Hallmann, Ulrich Hamann, Klaus Heldwein, Florian Boxberg, Leonhard Weil, Judith Kernt, Henriette Hahnloser, Eike Danz, Diana Krumbein, Simon Weismaier, Christopher Von Der Howen, Inge Tummers, Jörg Grabfelder, Katrin Hass, Tillmann Lenz
Area: 12,328 sqm
Year: 2013
Photographs: Nigel Young / Foster + Partners

Project Management: DU Diederichs Projektmanagement
Structural Engineering: Sailer Stepan & Partner GmbH
Mechanical Engineering: Ingenieurbüro Robert Ottitsch (HLS + RLT) + PEG GmbH (Elektro)
Quantity Surveyor: CBP Cronauer
Cost Consultant: Höhler + Partner
Landscaping: Burger Landschaftsarchitekten
Lighting Design: Ingenieurbüro Bamberger
Art Installations: ‘Wirbelwerk’ 2012 by Olafur Eliasson & ‘Lenbachhaus’ 2012 by Thomas Demand
Client: City of Munich, Cultural Department, Building Construction
Site Area: 4,000 sqm

The Museum’s historic buildings have been carefully restored and the exhibition spaces augmented by a spectacular new wing, which provides an ideal environment for viewing the magnificent ‘Blue Rider’ collection. As well as radically improving the buildings’ environmental performance, the remodelling has created a new entrance and social spaces, including a restaurant, terrace, education facilities and a dramatic full-height atrium, where the old is articulated within the new.

Built in 1891 as a studio and villa for the artist Franz von Lenbach, the Lenbachhaus Museum has been gradually extended over the last century. However, its buildings were in need of renewal and the museum lacked the facilities to cater to a growing audience of 280,000 people a year. Redefining circulation throughout the site, the project has transformed a complex sequence of spaces of different periods into a unified, legible museum that is accessible and open to all.

Peeling away the unnecessary historical accretions, a 1972 extension has been removed to reveal the wall of the original villa, which has been sympathetically restored in ochre render. The different historical elements are then unified along Richard-Wagner Street by a new gallery pavilion, containing two levels of exhibition space. The new building is intended as a ‘jewel box’ for the treasures of the gallery – it is clad in metal tubes of an alloy of copper and aluminium, their colour and form designed to complement the villa’s rich ochre hue and textured facades.

Inside the new building, a sequence of intimate galleries display the Museum’s internationally- renowned ‘Blue Rider’ collection of early twentieth-century Expressionist paintings, echoing the domestic scale of their original setting in the villa Lenbach. As many of the works of art were paintedin ‘plein-air’, indirect natural light has been deliberately drawn into the upper level galleries to create the optimum environment for their display.

A new entrance has been created adjacent to the restaurant, accessed via a new landscaped piazza to the east of the museum – this move reclaims the courtyard garden, turning it from a pedestrian thoroughfare into a tranquil space for visitors. The restaurant is open outside of the Museum’s opening hours and its seating continues outside, helping to enliven the surrounding streets and attracting new visitors into the galleries.

The new social heart of the building is a dramatic top-lit atrium, with ticket and information desks, access to a new temporary exhibition space on the ground floor and a grand, cantilevered stair to the upper level galleries. Clearly articulating the old within the new, its impressive volume incorporates the ochre exterior wall of the original villa and is scaled to accommodate large-scale works of art. The Museum commissioned the artist Olafur Eliasson for a site specific work titled Wirbelwerk. During the day sunlight washes the white walls via a long, slender opening at roof level and horizontal louvres cast changing patterns of light and shade within the space.

As well as repairing the fabric of the existing buildings, one of the main aims of the project has been to radically improve the museum’s environmental performance. A water-based heating and cooling system within the floors has been implemented – using significantly less energy than an air based heating, this represents an innovative step in a gallery context. Rainwater is also collected and recycled and lighting has been replaced and upgraded with low-energy systems.

Lord Foster:

“Our main challenge has been to maintain the same amount of exhibition area, within the museum’s footprint, while creating new circulation and visitor spaces. Given the way that the different parts of the museum had evolved, there was no such thing as a typical space – every corner is unique and required individual attention and different design decisions. This has been a fascinating process. Another important aspect of our design has been creating new opportunities for works of art to be exhibited outside the traditional confines of the gallery, such as in the atrium. This space developsthe idea of the ‘urban room’ – it is the museum’s public and social heart, and point of connection with the wider city.”

Lenbachhaus Museum / Foster + Partners originally appeared on ArchDaily, the most visited architecture website on 09 May 2013.

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Updated Plans Released for Foster + Partners’ Apple Campus in Cupertino

Posted on mayo 1, 2013 by :: noticias arquitectura ::

The City of Cupertino has released Apple’s revised campus plans, following the recent news criticizing Steve Job’s “sky-high requirements for fit and finish” that have resulted in a “ballooning budget.”

Abandoning Apple’s classic “white” detailing, architects Foster + Partners have opted to clad the 2.8 million square foot, circular monolith in black – a stylistic remedy that seems to be in line with the overarching campus goal to “provide a serene environment reflecting Apple’s brand values of innovation, ease of use and beauty.”

More details after the break…

Working to shave a reported $1 billion from the $5 billion budget, the revised campus plans have removed 300,000 square feet of construction costs by pushing the entire Tantau Development to Phase 2. As explained in the project description, “Phase 2 includes 600,000 square feet of office, research and development buildings for up to 2,200 employees along North Tantau Avenue, providing flexibility to address future business needs. Construction of Phase 2 will follow completion of Phase 1. The Tantau sites will have small satellite plants.”

In addition to this, the refined site plan seems to have prioritized its multimodal transportation goals as an expanded section details bicycle access improvements with the integration of “enhanced bike lanes”, which lure pedaling commuters with buffered lanes.

Also notable in the plan is a minor increase to parking availability and updates to public improvements, as well as a new section on Public Art that details four locations where the company plans to install art near the campus.

With a primary goal of promoting creativity and collaboration, the 176-acre campus will consolidate the current disjointed assemblage of aging corporate facilities into a single high performance office, research and development building, with supporting facilities, for 14,200 Apple employees.

The campus’ centerpiece – the signature 4-story Main Building – is designed to hold 12,000 of those employees. It will offer state-of-the-art meeting and office space, along with a 60,000 square foot dining space whose outdoor terrace will extend into the lush orchard and woodlands of the building’s inner courtyard.

Separate facilities to be constructed in Phase 1 include a 100,000 square foot corporate fitness center, a 1,000-seat Corporate Auditorium, and a four-story parking garage near Interstate 280 – which, along with the Main Building’s expansive underground parking garage, will accommodate for 10,980 cars.

The campus is set to achieve “net-zero energy” by offsetting energy use with 700,000 square feet of rooftop solar panels (enough to generate 8 megawatts of power), along with additional contracts for solar and wind power and climate responsive window dressings. In addition, the project will replace existing asphalt and hardscape with over 100 acres of landscaped green space reminiscent of the natural California landscape, including the use of native and drought-tolerant vegetation, while a compact land use plan will reduce building and parking footprints. Minimize use of potable water will be achieved through using recycled water, if available as a result of projects now under consideration, and improve runoff by increasing permeable surfaces.

The completion date has been reset to 2016.

via The City of Cupertino, MacRumors

Updated Plans Released for Foster + Partners' Apple Campus in Cupertino originally appeared on ArchDaily, the most visited architecture website on 01 May 2013.

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Foster’s Apple Headquarters Exceeds Budget by $2 Billion

Posted on abril 5, 2013 by :: noticias arquitectura ::

The estimated cost of Apple’s Cupertino City headquarters has escalated from an already hefty price of $3 billion to $5 billion (more than $1,500 per square foot), reportedly pushing back the original completion date to 2016. According to Bloomberg, Apple is working with lead architect Foster & Partners to shave $1 billion from the “ballooning budget”. Most of the cost is seemly due to Steve Job’s “sky-high requirements for fit and finish”, as the tech legend called for the 2.8 million square foot, circular monolith to be clad 40-foot panes of German concave glass, along with its four-story office spaces be lined with museum-quality terrazzo floors and capped with polished concrete ceilings.

Although lambasted for his ambitious plans and “doughnut-shaped” design, Steve Jobs wanted to create a masterpiece that looked as good as it functioned, just like his products. During a 2011 presentation to the Cupertino City Council, Jobs stated, “This is not the cheapest way to build something… there is not a straight piece of glass in this building.” He continued, “We have a shot… at building the best office building in the world. I really do think that architecture students will come here to see it.”

More after the break…

The spaceship-like headquarters, as Jobs would describe, is intended to accommodate more than 12,000 employees. It will be one of six visible structures planed for the 176 acre parcel – which includes the headquarters, a lobby to a 1000-seat underground auditorium, a four-story parking garage near Interstate 280, a corporate fitness center, a research facility and central plant – all of which will be accessed by a network of underground roads and parking lots, hidden by 6,000 trees.

In addition, Jobs envisioned the campus to achieve “net-zero energy” by offsetting the campus’ energy use with 700,000 square feet of rooftop solar panels (enough to generate 8 megawatts of power), along with additional contracts for solar and wind power, climate responsive window dressings, and more (additional project information, including plans and images, can be found here).

Despite the cost, Bloomberg states, “There’s no indication that Apple is getting cold feet.” Site excavation is planned to commence in June.

In related news, Facebook’s quarter-mile-long West Campus by Frank Gehry was just awarded approval from city council. All the details here.

Reference: Bloomberg

Foster’s Apple Headquarters Exceeds Budget by $2 Billion originally appeared on ArchDaily, the most visited architecture website on 05 Apr 2013.

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Grand Opening: Queen Alia International Airport By Foster + Partners

Posted on abril 1, 2013 by :: noticias arquitectura ::

Project: Queen Alia International Airport

Architect: Foster + Partners

Location: Amman, Jordan

Foster + Partners recently announced the opening of a new terminal for the Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, Jordan. Securing the city’s position as the main hub for the Levant region, the flexible, modular design of this airport allows for future expansion, with the goal of increasing passenger capacity from 3.5 million to 12 million by 2030. The complex geometric design of the roof echoes the veins of a leaf, with each exposed soffit drawing inspiration from traditional Islamic motifs, such as the black flowing fabric of a Bedouin tent. To deal with Amman’s harsh arid climate, Foster + Partners designed the airport to be highly efficient by taking advantage of the thermal-mass properties of exposed concrete, while the roof canopy shades the terminals from direct sunlight—like a cool oasis in the middle of the desert!

Read more about this project in the Architizer database.

Photos: Nigel Young

Queen Alia International Airport / Foster + Partners

Posted on marzo 25, 2013 by :: noticias arquitectura ::

Architects: Foster + Partners
Location: Amman, Jordan
Collaborating Architect: Maisam – Dar Al-Omran JV
Year: 2013
Photographs: Nigel Young / Foster + Partners

Design + Build Main Contractor: Joannou & Paraskevaides (Overseas) Ltd, J&P-AVAX S.A.
Structural Engineer: Buro Happold
Quantity Surveyor: David Langdon
M+E Engineer: Buro Happold
Landscape Architect: Dar Al-Handasah
Lighting Engineer: World of Lights
Additional Consultants: NACO, ADPi, Zuhair Fayez Partnership, Rahe Kraft
Client: Airport International Group, The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Ministry of Trans, Joannou & Paraskevaides (Overseas) Ltd, J&P-AVAX S.A., Airport International Group P.S.C.

The airport has a highly efficient passive design, which has been inspired by local traditions, and is based on a flexible modular solution that allows for future expansion – the new building secures the city’s position as the main hub for the Levant region and allows the airport to grow by 6 per cent per annum for the next twenty-five years, increasing capacity from 3.5 million to 12 million passengers per annum by 2030.

In response to Amman’s climate, where summer temperatures vary markedly between day and night time, the building is constructed largely from concrete, the high thermal mass of the material providing passive environmental control. The tessellated roof canopy comprises a series of shallow concrete domes, which extend to shade the facades – each dome provided a modular unit for construction. The domes branch out from the supporting columns like the leaves of a desert palm and daylight floods the concourse through split beams at the column junctions. Echoing the veins of a leaf, a geometric pattern based on traditional Islamic forms is applied to each exposed soffit. The complex geometry of the roof shells and fabrication strategy was developed in conjunction with Foster + Partners in-house geometry specialists.

Two piers of departure gates run along either side of the central building, which contains the main processing areas and shops, lounges and restaurants. Between these volumes, open-air courtyards – a feature of vernacular architecture in the region – contribute to the terminal’s environmental strategy: the plants and trees help to filter pollution and pre-condition the air before it is drawn into the air handling system and reflecting pools bounce indirect natural light into the airport.

The terminal is glazed on all sides to allow views of the aircraft on the apron and to aid orientation. Horizontal louvres shade the facades from direct sunlight – to eliminate glare, the louvres become concentrated in more exposed areas close to the columns. The concrete structure incorporates local gravel to reduce maintenance requirements and the embodied energy of the material, and to harmonise with the natural shades of local sand.

Amman is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world – the airport’s design resonates with a sense of place and local architecture, particularly in the domed roof, which from the air echoes the black flowing fabric of a Bedouin tent. There are also references to the Jordanian tradition of hospitality – in celebration of the custom for family groups to congregate at the airport, the forecourt has been enlarged to create a landscaped plaza with seating, shaded by trees, where people can gather to bid farewell or welcome returning travellers.

Mouzhan Majidi, Chief Executive, Foster + Partners:

“Queen Alia International Airport has been an extraordinary project – it has transformed Amman into a niche hub, while offering critical growth for the wider economy through regional links. The new terminal building is energy efficient, will accommodate phased expansion and provides a dynamic symbol for Jordan. Our early involvement from the conceptual design stage, supporting the selection of operators, and through detailed design and work on site has involved many of our specialist in-house teams, from architects to climate analysts, space planners and geometry specialists. It has been a pleasure to work with our Jordanian colleagues and the team at AIG, and it is great to see the results of this work come to life today”