Finn House, image courtesy WoodWoodWard Architecture | Photo by John Gollings

Nestled in amongst the banksia trees and coastal scrub on the Silverleaves foreshore is a pair of glistening red fins – a bold response to the client's brief for a "grand gesture on limited means."

Finn House - Conceptual diagram, image courtesy WoodWoodWard Architecture

Reminiscent of a Richard Serra sculpture, the two striking red glazed-brick blade walls slice through the site, organising program into linear bands. The colour of the glazed bricks varies slightly as they are mostly seconds – a 'defect' that has been celebrated in this project by interspersing the colours to create a mottled, reflective sheen.

Finn House, image courtesy WoodWoodWard Architecture | Photo by John Gollings

Wedged between the fins are the discreet private spaces. Beside this to the east, a generous lighting-filled glass box clings to the luminescent bricks and contains the more public program. Cleverly located between the two blade walls, a corkscrew staircase guides the visitor between the three distinct programmatic zones through thresholds in the brickwork, emphasizing the red walls as the separator and mediator.

Finn House, image courtesy WoodWoodWard Architecture | Photo by John Gollings

The Finn house achieves a maximum effect through an economy of means by employing glazed bricks throughout the interior of house – amplified in the double height living space – and as an almost civic gesture that projects out towards the street, offering striking colour to an otherwise muted neighbourhood.

+ Project facts

Project: Finn House
Year: 2011
Location: Silverleaves, Victoria, Australia

Architecture studio: WoodWoodWard Architecture
Architects: Monique Brady-Ward, Scott Woodward & Jen Wood
Photography: John Gollings
Words: Jacqui Alexander

+ All images and drawings courtesy WoodWoodWard Architecture

.PSLAB and Architect Pier Giorgio Antonetti collaborate on renowned Pier Luigi Restaurant, Rome, Italy.

• Site-specific response by .PSLAB to bring together the different areas of the recently renovated Pier Luigi Restaurant
• Wall-mounted products inserted in the box-shaped seating area engages passers-by
• Lighting concept, the result of the open dialogue between .PSLAB, Pier Giorio Antonetti and the Lisi family

Pier Luigi Restaurant, image courtesy .PSLAB + Architect Pier Giorgio Antonetti

THE SITE

.PSLAB's primary aim was to create a feeling of continuity between the individual spaces that comprised the site. The spaces were secluded from each other with the tile and ceiling being the only repeating pattern. The restaurant's ceiling was somber and adorned with L shaped brass sheets. A major insertion that was both simple and fit with the existing features was needed to avoid encumbering the space. The space utilized elements such as wood and brass and incorporated dark colors so the team selected materials that worked with those elements when designing the concept. In the lower-level wine cellar the dome-shaped ceiling required a concept that incorporated a technical system to ensure functionality of the design, producing a design constraint.

Pier Luigi Restaurant, image courtesy .PSLAB + Architect Pier Giorgio Antonetti

.PSLAB PRODUCT RESPONSE

A major insertion was made to the restaurant's ceiling, in the form of circular-shaped drums. These lighting products were unimposing and did not conflict with the existing pattern created by the L shaped brass sheets, available across the restaurant's ceiling. The material used for these products was meticulously chosen so as not to interfere with the existing elements in the space. All lighting fixtures were set in a combination of brass and black powder-coated finishes to go along with the restaurant many features. .PSLAB overcame the constraint of the secluded spaces by creating continuity through the method of placement of the circular drums to create axis. The circular drums were dropped to the level of the brass sheets extension, creating the effect of a one-level ceiling.

Pier Luigi Restaurant, image courtesy .PSLAB + Architect Pier Giorgio Antonetti

The restaurant's wall that was exposed to the outside through vitrines had box-shaped seating areas that required an additional source of light. .PSLAB created a 2nd layer of lighting with the installment of wall-mounted fixtures in the interior walls that engages viewers as they walk by.

Pier Luigi Restaurant, image courtesy .PSLAB + Architect Pier Giorgio Antonetti

The bar and seafood stand needed a source of light that would be concentrated. Light suspensions were lowered to be closer and highlighted these two delectable sections.

In the wine cellar, .PSLAB installed lighting fixtures that responded to the circular dome-shaped ceiling. .PSLAB followed the curvature of the ceiling and placed lighting fixtures aligned to be parallel to the seating areas. From the wine ceiling, there descended a series of long, elegant black metal rods and each rod supports a brass disc with a light source at its center. .PSLAB inserted at the edge of the rod a system of flexible installation to ensure fixtures hung down where the ceiling was not flat and ensuring alignment with the section's central axis.

Pier Luigi Restaurant, image courtesy .PSLAB + Architect Pier Giorgio Antonetti

CONCLUSION

The end-result achieved in Pier Luigi Restaurant was a direct outcome of the open dialogue between .PSLAB, Pier Giorgio Antonetti and the Lisi family. This project holds as a true testament to the bespoke approach .PSLAB follows whenever working on a new project. The established and continuous dialogue allowed for a smooth collaboration and got the architect to place his trust in .PSLAB to create a lighting response that would be in cohesion with his vision for the renovation of the space.

Pier Luigi Restaurant, image courtesy .PSLAB + Architect Pier Giorgio Antonetti

The products that were used in Pier Luigi Restaurant, simple and somber, responded well to the constraints and characteristics of the space. They provided a sense of continuity between the very secluded sections, creating unity and harmony within the divided space. These fixtures, conceived according to the restrictions of the space, is in harmony with the concept created by the site's architect, giving the space the same recognition as the restaurant's well-established reputation.

+ About

.PSLAB | www.pslab.net

Founded in 2004 with over 100 team members working out of four city bases in Europe and the Middle-East including offices in Beirut and Stuttgart, .PSLAB are designers and manufacturers of site-specific lighting products. Our work can be found in private homes, conceptual boutiques, restaurants, offices and art galleries worldwide. We have also been internationally awarded for many of our lighting products.

Our creative and technical teams work together on every aspect of product development, from concept to construction. This gives us the edge that is the core of our identity – our pieces are individual to particular spaces, and are manufactured by us, in our own factory.

Pier Luigi Restaurant

Located between Renaissance palaces, Pier Luigi Restaurant has been a point of reference for quality and traditional yet inventive Italian cuisine since 1938. It is located in one of the most pleasant squares in Central Rome giving diners an incredible sight onto a 16th century Piazza. Renovated by Pier Giorgio Antonetti and managed by Robert Lisi and his son Lorenzo Lisi, the restaurant has maintained its character and liveliness and is favored by both local and international diners for its traditional Roman hospitality. The restaurant's wine-cellar holds a selection of 450 wines from every region of Italy

Well-known for its prime location amidst beautiful renaissance buildings, Pier Luigi Restaurant is located a few meters away from both Piazza Camp de' Fiori and Piazza Farnese in central Rome

UADM - Uppsala University, image courtesy 3XN

The new university building unites the past and the future by extending the lines from the historical surroundings into an innovative structure pointing towards future study and work life

Uppsala University has more than 500 years' of history and thus is one of Sweden's most established institutions, complete with traditions and an esteemed regard. At the same time, the University is known as a modern institution for world class research and higher education. Thus, the vision for the new University Building is to bridge the past and the future by creating synergy between location, expression and layout.

UADM - Uppsala University, image courtesy 3XN

The building builds a bridge between past and future. Several lines from the historic surroundings are also present in the new building, that through its flexible and open spaces will encourage new ways of working, studying and collaborating, explains Jan Ammundsen, Partner and Head of Competition in 3XN.

UADM - Uppsala University, image courtesy 3XN

The 13,000 m2 university building include a number of sustainable features such as natural ventilation and a facade design protecting from direct solar heat gain, while allowing plenty of daylight inside. Although the building has a light and transparent expression its compact structure minimizes the surface resulting in environmental and operational savings.

UADM – Uppsala University

UADM is designed with particular attention to Uppsala University's historical location and legacy combined with today's modern and transparent working environments, which invite social interaction in a multi-disciplinary forum. The building will house the University management, administration, restaurant, and a small study hall.

UADM - Uppsala University, image courtesy 3XN

The building concept is a simple construction of overlapping office wings placed on top of each other. In doing so, the result is an open atrium which unites the building. The atrium is serves as the backdrop for the staircase which not only connects the floors, but also provides mezzanine areas in connection with the atrium. The building's entrance and lower floor has a sense for the human scale, while the higher floors open up and grant a treetop view over to the Uppsala Castle, the botanical garden and the university campus area.

The design of the floorplate gives a dynamic and variation to the whole building. The open spaces increase the experience of being a part of the same environment, while the small and large plazas create the feelings of intimacy and community.

UADM is a multi-purpose building within a unified structure. It respectfully integrates the landscape and lines from the surrounding buildings, most importantly the 16th century Uppsala Castle. With flexible design and integrated environments, UADM lives up to the University's ambition of creating new ways of working, studying and interacting.

+ Project facts

In the competition:

• 3XN
• Helin & Co Architects
• Semrén + Månsson Arkitektkontor
• Niels Torp AS Architects

3XNs proposal: Unihus Uppsala

• Adress: Dag Hammerskjölds Väg, Uppsala, Sweden
• Client: Akademiska Hus and University of Uppsala
• Size: 25.000 m2
• 3XN team: Kim Herforth Nielsen, Jan Ammundsen, Christian Wamberg, Olaf Kunert, Tobias Gagner, Stig Vesterager Gothelf, Majbritt Lerche, Rasmus Hjortshøj, Eva Hviid-Nielsen