Pozna? based mode:lina architekci studio were lucky to design an interior that reflects one very interesting personality: a young lawyer and a pilot all in one.

“I want simple and cosy space in neutral style, so that every new thing will fit perfectly.” he said.

In this apartment characteristic themes reffers to owner’s biggest passion – aviation. Models and graphics are mixed with simple white forms of furniture. Fine wood creates atmosphere the client asked for – interior is spacious, modern but homely as well.

One important room is the office, young lawyer’s main command centre. Here, soaring craziness gives way to serious job. Although the mood of this space is rather conservative, you can still find shelves that look like plane parts and a big beloved Concorde on the wall.

Here, even furniture reffers to aviation. Wing-shaped storage with holes between shelves allows to keep whole apartment under visual control.

“I am so ready to land on my super-comfortable sofa!”

 

+ Project facts

PROJECT: Aviator Apartment
DESIGN: mode:lina architekci (Pawe? Garus & Jerzy Wo?niak)
PROJECT TEAM: Pawe? Garus, Jerzy Wo?niak, Kinga Kin
COMPLETION: May 2013 / Maj 2013
AREA: 60 m2
PHOTOS: Marcin Ratajczak

 + All images and drawings courtesy mode:lina architekci

The three white, variously formed domed structures at the foot of Monte Tamaro in Rivera, Switzerland (Tessin) are an awe-inspiring sight. However, the architectural design of the Splash & Spa Tamaro waterpark, which was officially opened on 15 June 2013, is not the only impressive aspect. The interiors of the three themed domes also offer diverse attractions: over an area of 2,500 m2, the largest dome houses a wave pool with a children's area as well as a pool bar and restaurant. In the second dome, a number of water slides provide fun for children and adults alike. Visitors to the third dome can relax and pamper themselves in a wide range of saunas, steam baths and hammams.

The structure supporting the three domes features steel lattice girders (arranged radially) which run hidden between two membranes.

The inner membrane of silicon-covered glass fibre and the outer membrane of PTFE-covered glass fibre were fastened air-tight onto the steel structure. A higher air pressure in the interspace causes the outer membrane to form outwards into a flat curve, taking up the dome's curvature. An aluminium vapour-coated low-e sheet is strung between the two membrane layers in order to reduce thermal radiation loss. During the day, the membranes create a bright and cheerful atmosphere in the inner space. In the evening, the artificial lighting in the membrane interspace impressively sets off the dome structures both inside and outside.

formTL was responsible for the overall planning of the membrane envelope.

Membrane surface area:
Outer membrane (all three domes) 6,700 m²
Inner membrane (all three domes) 4,700 m²

Dimensions:
Dome area AQ (swimming pools) around 2,500 m2
Dome area WE (wellness) around 550 m2
Dome area SA (slides) around 990 m2

Materials:
Outer membrane of PTFE-covered glass fibre:
St.Gobain Sheerfill II
Inner membrane of silicon-covered glass fibre:
Interglas Atex 3000

Object: Splash & Spa, Tamaro/CH
Client: Credit Suisse, Zurich/CH
Architect; Suisse Projects, Mezzovico/CH
Main contractor: Garzoni S.A., Lugano/CH
Planning of steel support: Airlight Ltd., Biasca/CH
Membrane manufacturer: Canobbio Spa, Castelnuovo Scrivia/I
Membrane planning: formTL, www.form-TL.de
Photos and drawing: formTL

+ All images courtesy formTL

Luca Curci architects studio has designed a landmark for the United Arab Emirates skyline with an innovative project based on the concept of "Organic Cities". The organic buildings become part of the new megalopolis, merging and mixing residential elements with business divisions, shopping life with wellness areas, cultural places with social life. The aim is to create a common place where people can live, meet, learn, work, socialize and create new mixing cultures.

The project is organized in 2 groups: organic buildings on the earth, and "moons" on the sea. All of them are connected and linked each other with roads, parks, and running streets. The aggregations on the ground are futuristic and have organic shapes. The "moons" on the sea are divided into 3 kinds: the smaller are private residences with a private approach from the sea and from the air. The middle "moons" are hotels that can be reached by the sea, the road and the air. The biggest "moons" are residences, hotels and private apartments.

The aggregations of buildings near the sea have shapes conceived to live on desert ground, because they can be realized on it. The idea starts from the nature structures that are able to live near the sea, with sun and wind and any kind of natural element. They exist to be the future and evolution of contemporary metropolis. This kind of structures will develop again the connections between humans, during everyday life, with thousand of common places that will aggregate crowds, to win the alienation of XX and XXI century cities.

The masterplan has been created to be adaptive and to evolve. It will depend on the different places where to build it. The first 5 buildings and 5 moons are completely full of any kind of services available to be built in our contemporary cities, with a great attention to social life, human connections, common places where to meet, real social life.

The total floor area will host more than 150.000 habitants, with 50% of the lot area dedicated to green and connections, open areas, common grounds, places. More than 800.000 square meters dedicated to hotels, spa, wellness areas, 6.300.000 square meters to shopping malls, galleries, museums, 4.500.000 square meters to offices and other social services.

Covering a total constructed area of 600.000 square meters, the program will host residencies, offices and collective and commercial spaces. The tallest building will reach 470 meters while the second and third of the first group on the ground will successively descend in height. The tallest "moon" on the sea will reach 190 meters while the second 115 meters and the third 90 meters.

+ About

LUCA CURCI ARCHITECTS deals with architecture design, structural calculation, bioclimatic planning and green building, consolidations and restructuring, architecture and monumental restoration, urban design, leisure/sport spaces planning, furniture design and interior design and industrial design.

The quality of our life is strongly influenced by the architecture quality in which we live and that surrounds us. Our design is mainly based on the relationship between man and environment, and it's represented by an architecture in which individual well-being and environmental sustainability are closely related.

+ Project credits

Design architect
Arch. Luca Curci
Collaborators
Arch. Andrea Colangiuli
Arch. Nicola Boccadoro
Designer Wafa Chawachi

BIG with Kossmann.dejong+Rambøll+Freddy Madsen+KiBiSi have completed the Danish National Maritime Museum in Helsingør. By marrying the crucial historic elements with an innovative concept of galleries and way-finding, BIG's renovation scheme reflects Denmark’s historical and contemporary role as one of the world’s leading maritime nations.

The new Danish National Maritime Museum is located in Helsingør, just 50 km (30 mi.) north of Copenhagen and 10 km (6.5 mi.) from the world famous Louisiana Museum for Modern Art. The new 6,000 m² (65,000 ft²) museum finds itself in a unique historical context adjacent to one of Denmark's most important buildings, Kronborg Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage site – known from Shakespeare's Hamlet. It is the last addition to Kulturhavn Kronborg, a joint effort involving the renovation of the Castle and two new buildings – offering a variety of culture experiences to residents and visitors to Helsingør.

Leaving the 60 year old dock walls untouched, the galleries are placed below ground and arranged in a continuous loop around the dry dock walls – making the dock the centerpiece of the exhibition – an open, outdoor area where visitors experience the scale of ship building.

A series of three double-level bridges span the dry dock, serving both as an urban connection, as well as providing visitors with short-cuts to different sections of the museum. The harbor bridge closes off the dock while serving as harbor promenade; the museum's auditorium serves as a bridge connecting the adjacent Culture Yard with the Kronborg Castle; and the sloping zig-zag bridge navigates visitors to the main entrance. This bridge unites the old and new as the visitors descend into the museum space overlooking the majestic surroundings above and below ground. The long and noble history of the Danish Maritime unfolds in a continuous motion within and around the dock, 7 meters (23 ft.) below the ground. All floors – connecting exhibition spaces with the auditorium, classroom, offices, café and the dock floor within the museum – slope gently creating exciting and sculptural spaces.

By wrapping the old dock with the museum program we simultaneously preserve the heritage structure while transforming it to a courtyard bringing daylight and air in to the heart of the submerged museum. Turning the dock inside out resolved a big dilemma: Out of respect for Hamlet's Castle we needed to remain completely invisible and underground – but to be able to attract visitors we needed a strong public presence. Leaving the dock as an urban abyss provides the museum with an interior façade facing the void and at the same time offers the citizens of Helsingør a new public space sunken 8 m (16 ft.) below the level of the sea.

Bjarke Ingels

KiBiSi has designed the above ground bench system. The granite elements are inspired by ship bollards and designed as a constructive barrier that prevents cars from driving over the edge. The system is a soft shaped bench for social hangout and based on Morse code – dots and dashes writing a hidden message for visitors to crack.

The exhibition was designed by the Dutch exhibition design office Kossmann.dejong. The metaphor that underpins the multimedia exhibition is that of a journey, which starts with an imagining of the universal yearning to discover far away shores and experience adventures at sea. Denmark's maritime history, up to the current role of the shipping industry globally, is told via a topical approach, including notions such as harbor, navigation, war and trade. The exhibition has been made accessible for a broad audience through the intertwining of many different perspectives on the shipping industry.

For 5 years we have been working on transforming the old concrete dock into a modern museum, which required an archaeologist care and spacecraft designer’s technical skills. The old lady is both fragile and tough; the new bridges are light and elegant. Building a museum below sea level has taken construction techniques never used in Denmark before. The old concrete dock with its 1.5 m thick walls and 2.5 m thick floor has been cut open and reassembled as a modern and precise museum facility. The steel bridges were produced in giant sections on a Chinese steel wharf and transported to Denmark on the biggest ship that has ever docked in Helsingør. The steel sections weigh up to 100 tons a piece and are lifted on site by the two largest mobile cranes in northern Europe. I am truly proud of the work our team has carried out on this project and of the final result.

David Zahle, Partner-in-Charge

On Saturday October 5, Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II, cut the ribbon to mark the grand opening. The new Danish National Maritime Museum is open to the public for outdoor activities, exhibitions and events, making the museum a cultural hub in the region throughout the year.

+ All images and drawings courtesy BIG