Elamang Avenue / Luigi Rosselli

By Megan Jett — Filed under: Houses ,Selected , Australia, Luigi Rosselli Pty, Rammed Earth,Sydney

Architects: Luigi Rosselli
Location: Sydney, Australia
Project Architects: Candace Christensen, Patrick Bless, James Horler, Sean Johnson
Landscaper: Terragram, Vladimir Sitta
Project Year: 2010
Photographs: Justin Alexander

What makes a house comfortable? Is it the level of padding in the couches or the climatic and physical comfort that architecture, integrated with nature, allows? Elamang is a house that attempted the highest level of “comfort” as described above, whilst producing the smallest environmental impact.

A rammed earth wall spine is the passive thermal system developed in this house to provide protection from climatic extremes. The spine links all levels of the long stepping dwelling on its south side.

Lower Ground Floor Plan

The scheme also aimed to morph the existing dwelling into a more contemporary house and to link it to a new garage structure on Elamang Avenue. The design of the house uses the articulation of the old footprint, the additions and the garage volumes to form three landscaped courtyards and gardens.

Courtyard

Photovoltaics produce a considerable amount of the dwellings energy, as does a solar hot water installation. The bowels of the house contain 14300 litres of water tanks and, much like a camel it can survive heat and drought with minimal water and energy consumption.

The project succeeded as a testing ground for our aim to combine a high quality of residential design with a high level of environmental sustainability.

Skipark 360° / C.F. Møller Architects & Berg Arkitektkontor

By Alison Furuto — Filed under: Public Facilities ,Sports Architecture , Berg Arkitektkontor, C.F. Møller Architects, Sweden

Courtesy of C.F. Møller Architects & Berg Arkitektkontor

The Swedish branch of C. F. Møller Architects, in collaboration with Berg Arkitektkontor, has designed Sweden’s new, spectacular skiing attraction, Skipark 360°, the world’s most complete indoor ski park with a 700 m long downhill slope and a drop of 160 m, making it the only indoor ski slope in the world to meet the requirements for hosting the World Cup. More architects’ description after the break.

Courtesy of C.F. Møller Architects & Berg Arkitektkontor

At a height of approx. 135 m, it will be one of Sweden’s largest buildings, and will become a landmark in the forest landscape just outside Stockholm. Construction of the ca. 1.5-2 billion Swedish kroner project is expected to start at the turn of 2013/2014.

In addition to the downhill run, the complex will also contain a 3.5 km cross-country skiing tunnel, an arena for biathlon, ice hockey, bandy and figure skating, and a snow park for snowboarding. There will also be restaurants, shops, a spa and hotel and conference facilities, offering panoramic views of the countryside.

4th Building by Denton Corker Marshall

Architects Denton Corker Marshall have won a competition to design a 50-storey office tower in their home town of Melbourne, Australia.

Details from DCM:

Denton Corker Marshall wins design competition for new tower in the heart of Melbourne

Denton Corker Marshall’s design for a signature commercial tower on the Carlton Brewery site, a prime inner-city Melbourne block, has been declared a winner in an architectural ideas competition run by Australian developer Grocon.

Building 4 will be the largest building in Grocon’s masterplan of the Carlton Brewery site on the corner of Swanston and Victoria Streets.
Envisaged as a tall flanking element, it will provide a new long distance marker for Melbourne’s civic spine which stretches from the Shrine of Remembrance through the heart of the city.

Speaking today, Partner Bill Corker said: “We are delighted to be working with Grocon on another landmark building in our home town of Melbourne. We hope to create an interesting and dynamic tower that will contribute effectively to the city’s urban design and skyline.”
At around 50 stories, the building will provide approximately 85,000sq of commercial office space with the potential for a hotel and/or apartments on the upper floors, subject to planning approval.

The design features a simple language of ‘sticks’ to create a series of closely spaced slender towers that will generate startling views from the surrounding streets and public spaces.

By eroding the tops of select sticks, a distinctive crown to the tower will be created providing a highly memorable silhouette to the northern city skyline.

The design will undergo further development and will be submitted for planning approval at a later date.

For further information on the practice go to www.dentoncorkermarshall.com. For further information on Grocon go to www.grocon.com.au

Japanese Architecture

The latest of Wallpaper*s architectural letters focuses on Japan. Concentrating on non-residential projects the survey includes the Nakamura Keith Haring Collection Museum (above). The museum, located in Kobuchizawa, is the only one in the world dedicated to Haring’s work. Another highlight is the Tamo University Library by Toyo Ito and Associates.

Selections after the jump include the Library, as well as a few commercial structures. Check the full feature at Wallpaper* for complete information.

City of Jaca Hockey Arena

A keynote structure of the 2007 Youth Olympic Festival of Jaca, the City of Jaca Hockey Arena houses facilities for figure skating, speed skating, and games of ice hockey. The site was designed by Coll-Barreu Architectos, taking inspiration from the local typography. (via Arch Daily).

The interior of the City of Jaca Hockey Arena after the jump.

11th Avenue by Jean Nouvel 2

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Here are new images of 100 11th Avenue, a residential tower in Chelsea, New York, designed by French architect Jean Nouvel and which recently broke ground.

Above: studies of sunlight on curtain walling at different times of day. Below: with 1,650 panes of glass, the curtain walling is described as “the most highly engineered and complex” ever built in New York City.