Iseami House in Costa Rica by Robles Arquitectos

Iseami House in Costa Rica by Robles Arquitectos

The Iseami House by Robles Arquitectos is located on the Peninsula de Osa in Costa Rica.

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“How to” on submitting projects to Architecture Caribbean

Firstly, thanks to all our members and readers for your commitment to design and to Architecture Caribbean.  A few of our readers have had problems submitting their projects to our site for publishing. We apologize for your troubles and have placed the submission process steps to aid you in submitting your great works. Continue sending in your works in Architecture, Visual Arts, and Design; we look forward to them!

Submit work process

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3. Please Click home page http://www.architecturecaribbean.com/index.php
4. Submit work http://www.architecturecaribbean.com/submit-work.php?section=art
5. Select Appropriate  Section
6. Click submit button.

Let us know if you need any further clarification.

Thanks from Architecture Caribbean

Centre Pompidou Metz by Shigeru Ban

Centre Pompidou Metz by Shigeru Ban

chinese-hat

Centre Pompidou Metz by Shigeru Ban

Centre Pompidou Metz by Shigeru Ban

Centre Pompidou Metz by Shigeru Ban

Inspired by the technical properties of Chinese hats and bridges, the nearly complete Centre Pompidou-Metz will be a satellite branch of the Centre Pompidou modern art museum in Paris. Architects Shigeru Ban and Jean de Gastines designed the building to have a “superstructure” – a curved roof made of wooden hexagonal units supported by a central metallic spire and four conical pillars. The large surface area of this signature roof element covers a collection of interior spaces where three galleries unite.

The roof of the building is definitely intriguing. The connections and detailing of joints are filled with education, craft, and precision. I look forward to experiencing the light, interstitial spaces, and how the spaces are used when it is opened. Externally, I wonder about a few things…what is the context surrounding this museum? What does a Chinese hat have to do with a museum in Paris? Is this design grounded in the genius loci of the site?

Eikongraphia gives an educated critique of the Centre Pompidou, what do you think of the Centre Pompidou Metz?

National Academy for the Performing Arts, Port of Spain, Trinidad

National Academy for the Performing Arts, Trinidad

National Academy for the Performing Arts in Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago.

Read previous Blogs on the Performing Arts Center:
architecturecaribbean.com/blog/?p=85
architecturecaribbean.com/blog/?p=249

http://www.architecturecaribbean.com/blog/?p=324

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2014 Incheon Asian Games Stadium by Populous

Incheon Asian Games Stadium

Incheon Asian Games Stadium

Incheon Stadium

I think the design is eye-catching, the symbolism of the Seung Moo dance as an inspiration a fine one, and the renderings look great. What do you think?

See UN Studio’s selected for Dalian Shide Stadium in China
Click for more>>

UN Studio’s selected for Dalian Shide Stadium in China

Dalian Shide Stadium

UN Studio has won the limited competition for a 40,000 spectator football stadium for the Dalian Shide FC. The stadium will be built in the city of Dalian, on the southern tip of Liaodong peninsula in Northeast China. The design for the 38,500 m2 stadium was been inspired by the colourful layering and overlapping of the ancient Chinese cuju football.  Photos courtesy: Bustler.

Dalian Shide Stadium

The design for the Dalian stadium presents an inclusive approach to stadium design where the articulation of the structure and the openings and overlapping moments of its double-layered envelope serve as the starting point for visitor experience and programmatic and infrastructural requirements, in addition to heightening spectator experience in terms of proximity to the playing field.

Dalian Shide Stadium

Ben van Berkel of UN Studio says that a key feature of the Stadium is the proximity of the spectators to the pitch, ensuring the best views from the tribunes and creating a true sense of engagement. In the Dalian stadium, they envisioned the playing field as a stage with design specific views and focal points. A two tier seating system and curved outlines optimize the corners of the tribunes and allow the spectators to be as close as possible to the playing field.”

Dalian Shide Stadium

Cuju is to kick a ball with feet. Cu means kicking with feet, while Ju refers to a kind of leather ball stuffed with feathers. So combined together, Cuju means to play the ball with feet. As a kind of ancient Chinese sport, it is the prototype of the contemporary football.

Cuju

I applaud the strong concept of the Stadium by UN Studio, as well as the correct execution in the design. Well done! The “colorful weaving of the spirit of the spectators with the public realm and the urban context of the building”, along with the weaving of the structure which takes its cue from the colorful layering and overlapping of the ancient Chinese cuju football is a solid design concept.In my previous blog post on this competition (http://www.architecturecaribbean.com/blog/?p=349) I discussed NBBJ’s entry. This one won me over due to its concept and the execution of that concept was clear and concrete.

What do you think of UN Studio’s design?

Dalian Shide Stadium, China by NBBJ

Dalian Shide Stadium

NBBJ’s recent competition entry for a new stadium in Dalian, China challenges the typical stadium typology of a dramatic skin which shields those outside from those inside. The concept according to NBBJ is “an open-ended ‘garden’ design which welcomes external interaction; creates public space and invites visitors to breath in the surrounding nature.”

Dalian Shide Stadium

The structure and form of stadiums in the past and have are always about a dominant façade, dominant roof, and dominant structure. Examples include:

• Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, USA,
• Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium
• Mound Stand at Lord’s Cricket Ground, London
• Telstra Stadium, Sydney

The original site for the new stadium (a new one is being sourced) was set beside the ocean with mountains as the backdrop to the stadium. Instead of closing off those outside from those inside, the concept “welcomes external interaction, creates public space and invites visitors to breathe in the surrounding nature.” The shorter sides of the stadium allow views to public plazas, the ocean, and mountains. The longer sides of the stadium fold up from the landscape as planted walls.

Dalian Shide Stadium

Dalian Shide Stadium

The imagined conversation between the mountains and the ocean seems almost poetic, and I can see it. Since the site for this stadium is an open one (open parkland setting), having the walls “fold up” from the landscape into planted ones can make a positive contribution to the environment. The façade does not seem to be properly composed just yet; and having the stadium completely hidden behind the planted walls is a valid strategy. I would have preferred to see those walls rise from berms in the landscape however. The planter walls seem like a monstrous barrier. If there were mounds, larger mounds rising from the landscape meeting these planted walls, the scale of the wall would read better, reinforcing their concept of interaction with nature so that it melts away into the surrounding landscape. The roof proposed will be a flexible system of cables and fabric which will “flutter above the fans.”

I like the concept and the renderings sell it. I see their concept of openness to nature. What do you think of the design?

Links: NBBJ, World Architecture News

Port of Spain International Waterfront – Trinidad & Tobago

Port of Spain Waterfront

The Port of Spain Waterfront originally uploaded by Liam Boodoo

Stay tuned for my analysis of the Port of Spain Waterfront project. In the meanwhile, feel free to read our article on Waterfront Development here>>.

See more images of the Port of Spain Waterfront in our Flickr Album

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National Academy for Performing Arts Center – Video

National Academy for the Performing Arts

Brief video of the National Academy for the Performing Arts Center in Port of Spain, Trinidad (Caribbean).

Read previous Blogs on the Performing Arts Center:
architecturecaribbean.com/blog/?p=85
architecturecaribbean.com/blog/?p=249

The New Acropolis Museum by Tschumi

The New Acropolis Museum

The New Acropolis Museum originally uploaded by RobW

The New Acropolis Museum in Athens, Greece designed by Bernard Tschumi Architects with Michael Photiadis of Athens as local associate architect was opened this June 2009. It is located on the southeastern slope of the Acropolis Hill, at the entrance of a network of pedestrian walkways that link the key archaeological sites and monuments of the Acropolis. The New Acropolis showcases and protects the sculptures of the Acropolis and what remains in Greece of the Parthenon frieze from the pollution of the open air. It also aids in convincing the British government to return the Athenian artworks to their place of origin.

New Acropolis Museum

The New Acropolis Museum originally uploaded by RobW

There were three concepts for the generation of the museum; the concept of light, movement and a tectonic and programmatic concept. The concept of light comes from the conditions within which the museum is placed; and the importance light plays in showcasing the sculptural objects. The second concept of movement is seen in the three-dimensional loop circulation through the museum. The collection is installed in a chronological sequence. Beginning with the archaeological excavations, visible through the glass floor in the entrance gallery, the Parthenon Gallery at the top of the building against dramatic views of the Acropolis, and then loops down to finish in the Roman Empire galleries below. A tectonic and programmatic concept was a driving factor in the architectural promenade and enclosure of the museum. The museum’s façade of black fritted glass provides ideal light for the sculptures. The Parthenon Gallery’s glass outer walls allow 360-degrees of uninterrupted views of the ancient temple and its surrounding city; with direct view to and from the Acropolis. The Parthenon Marbles are visible from the Acropolis above.

New Acropolis Museum

The New Acropolis Museum originally uploaded by RobW

I really like this project. Why? Projects which find their place and grounding from the architectural archaeology of a site is always powerful to me; projects which pay attention to the genius loci of their sites. Firstly, Tschumi rotates the Parthenon Gallery 23 degrees from the rest of the building to align with the Parthenon. By doing this, he pays homage to the Parthenon. Two Architects who stick out in my mind for “grounding” their buildings are Richard Meier and Caribbean Architect, Colin Laird. The Atheneum and the Museum for Applied Arts in Frankfurt, Germany are just two examples. The National Library by Colin Laird in Trinidad &Tobago is another example of the proper grounding of projects (stayed tuned).

New Acropolis Museum

The New Acropolis Museum originally uploaded by RobW

Tschumi did not attempt to copy classical elements into his design. He paid homage to Greek culture and their legacy of architecture, philosophy, science, and mathematics in this museum. The sharp, clinical, sleek facade of the museum cast against the rich textures of the Acropolis is just wonderful. He does what I referred to in my previous blog post on The Interlace by OMA, there was a correct use of history in his design. Constraints present us with opportunities to innovative, and create solutions; this is one such case. The sheer history and power of the Acropolis can be intimidating, but Tschumi made it work, and created what I think is a winning design. What are your opinions of the New Acropolis Museum?

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