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Armadillo Vault: Delicate Stone Canopy Held Together by Compression

02 Jun

[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

stone canopy 1

Not a drop of glue or any other adhesive holds together the delicate, 2-inch-thick limestone tiles that make up this airy canopy, which billows into the vaulted ceilings of the Arsenale di Venezia at the 15th annual Venice Architecture Biennale. Conceived by Block Research Group and presented by ETH Zurich, the ‘Armadillo Vault’ is a temporary custom-built installation showing off the surprising versatility of an unyielding material that’s been an architectural mainstay for millennia. Compression keeps all 399 individually-cut, unreinforced stones in place as they stretch across the cavernous space.

stone canopy 2

stone canopy 3

The centerpiece of an installation entitled ‘Beyond Bending – Learning from the past to design a better future,’ the Armadillo Vault aims to show the world that digital design and fabrication methods can go hand in hand with humble, ancient building materials like earth and stone. Other components on display include four innovative vaulted floor systems and a series of graphical force diagrams showing how the stones fit together.

stone canopy 4

stone canopy 5

Spanning over 52 feet through the Arsenale, the canopy was initially manufactured and assembled in Texas before being disassembled and shipped to Venice, with master stonemasons tasked with setting it into place on-site over a period of two weeks. The precision of the puzzle-like assembly to hold up all that weight with very few supports is a result of mathematically analyzing the structure to control compressive forces.

stone canopy 6

Check out how the structure was designed and installed in this video from Block Research Group, including computer models that show off the tessellation and Voussoir Geometry used to design the tile assembly.

[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

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Inverted Umbrella: Drip-Free Design Turns Canopy Inside Out

21 May

[ By WebUrbanist in Design & Products & Packaging. ]

umbrella double canopy layer

Like tableware or sliced bread, the umbrella is the subject of many reinvention attempts but few approach the sheer cleverness and ingenious simplicity of this design solution, which tackles drips, winds, crowds and compactness in one product.

inverted umbrella design

Created by engineer and inventor Jenan Kazim, the KAZbrella solves the core everyday issue of umbrellas bringing water into your home or vehicle, while also making them easy and safe to open in crowds as well as resistant to high winds (able to pop out then back into shape without breaking). When the umbrella is closed, a strap around the top seals the water inside, keeping it from dripping.

umbrella dry wrap

umbrella inversion process

“The patented design includes a string and pulley mechanism that allows the frame to open the opposite way to a traditional umbrella, though the action of pushing the slider up until the upper latch is engaged remains the same. It still looks and functions like a traditional umbrella when open, but when closed the spokes fold in so they point away from the handle and the outer surface is hidden inside.”

umbrella everyday use

inside out umbrella

umbrella in crowd

The KAZbrella also employs materials for lightweight durability, from its fiberglass spokes and aluminum frame to its double layer of woven polyester. It can be opened and closed through smaller gaps than its ungainly cousins, making it easier to keep dry while entering or exiting spaces. It can then be set down against a wall, in a stand or on your car seat without getting things wet.

[ By WebUrbanist in Design & Products & Packaging. ]

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Form Follows Treehouse: Tiny Green Canopy Home Tops Wood Trunk

12 Dec

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]

living tree building

Wrapped in living greenery, the upper story of this solar-powered, tree-shaped dwelling branches outward, set upon a wooden framework supporting it from below.

tree trunk shape house

Designed by Elevate Structure Inc. in Hawaii (photos by Corey Lum for Civil Beat), the 40-square-foot-base expands upward to a 400-square-foot second floor above, overhanging to provide shade for outdoor uses (patios or parking) underneath.

tree house interiors

Eco-friendly features include living and breathing exterior walls that can also be used to grow edible produce, self-sufficient solar power generation via side and top panels and rainwater storage and collection (up to 1,500 gallons).

tree house shape

The modular structure was originally designed as an easy-to-ship, simple-to-build and off-the-grid solution for remote parts of Oahu, but the target has since been expanded due to broader public interest.

tree house living walls

While they work wonderfully as elevated homes, the units can also be used for other purposes, including small stores, cafes, offices, gyms and/or storage spaces.

From its creators: “Inspired by Hawaii’s natural beauty, Elevate founders Tiffany and Nathan set out to create these innovative structures to help care for the environment and help people. The pressure of existing global issues – insufficient water availability in areas, poor air and water quality in others, and high energy consumption are exacerbated by the increasing population density and demands of urban environments – combined with their streak of entrepreneurship brought the Elevate unit to life.”

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]

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Urban Algae Canopy Produces a Forest’s Worth of Oxygen Daily

11 May

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

urban algae prototype system

Generating as much oxygen per day as 400,000 square feet of natural woodland, the Urban Algae Canopy combines architecture, biology and digital technology to create a structure that responds to and enhances its environment.

urban algae exterior shelter

Created by EcoLogics Studio, this “world’s first bio-digital canopy integrates micro-algal cultures and real time digital cultivation protocols on a unique architectural system,” with flows of water and energy regulated by weather patterns and visitor usage. Sun increases photosynthesis, for example, causing the structure to generate organic shade in realtime. The canopy as a whole can produce over 300 pounds of biomass daily.

urban algae water system

A hybrid of architectural and ecosystem design, the canopy is made to adapt its features based on manual as well as environmental inputs, letting users exert control (via a digital interface) within a larger dynamic system. “This process is driven by the biology of mico-algae is inherently responsive and adaptive; visitors will benefit from this natural shading property while being able to influence it in real-time.”

urban canopy

For EcoLogics, this is just the beginning of a larger vision – organic systems tied to high-tech ones in current and future buildings and infrastructure, as well as a breakdown of the differentiation between urban and rural, cities and nature. Integrating organic and artificial systems opens up sustainable possibilities for everything from temperature control to power generation.

urban algae canopy project

More from its creators: “In ecoLogicStudio we believe that it is now time to overcome the segregation between technology and nature typical of the mechanical age, to embrace a systemic understanding of architecture. In this prototype the boundaries between the material, spatial and technological dimensions have been carefully articulated to achieve efficiency, resilience and beauty.”

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

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Unboxing: Angled Metal-Clad Canopy Hints at Surprises in Store

05 Apr

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Offices & Commercial. ]

unboxing storefront design

There is nothing like a good mystery to draw people in, but adapting that maxim in an architectural context flies in the face of convention, making this barely-open-box building all the more effective in how it employs the element of surprise.

unboxing exterior facade night

unboxing front facade

While closing people off to what is for sale may seem antithetical to showcasing wares. At the same time, that is precisely the paradox Herzog & De Meuron’s latest storefront for a fashionable chain of Japanese boutiques uses to its advantage.

unboxing facade interior

This new shop for Miu Miu, intended to be its flagship operation, works on both fronts, playing on our desire to unbox from outside while creating an intimate interior space within.

unboxing main entry

While the outside is polished and minimalist, like the case of some fresh new smartphone, the inside is set up as much like a living room as a store, encouraging people to browse, linger, sit and lounge among the various items for sale. Mannequins are set up as participants and exemplars, themselves sitting on the seats or floors, or leaning against racks in the store.

unboxing sitting spaces

“The typological model that best suited these considerations and specifications was a box placed directly at the level of the street, its cover slightly open to mark the entrance and allow pedestrians to look inside,” explain the architects. “Only then do they realize that the building is a shop. Here, under the oversized canopy, the two-storey interior is visible at a single glance, as if the volume had been sliced open with a big knife, turning the inside out.”

unboxing store interior chairs

unboxing living room

“The rounded, soft edges of the copper surfaces inside meet with the razor-sharp steel corners on the outside of the metal box, while the cave-like niches clad in brocade face the central space of the shop like loges in a theater. The shop on two tall storeys not only presents enticing goods on tables and in display cases; it is also like a spacious and comfortable home with inviting sofas and armchairs.”

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Offices & Commercial. ]

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Cabins in the Canopy: 13 Modern Tree Houses by Baumraum

24 Jul

[ By Steph in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]

Baumraum Treehouse Solling 1

Ranging from minimalist elevated meditation cabins to complex climate-controlled company meeting spaces, the many treehouse creations of German company Baumraum offer unconventional and often strikingly modern silhouettes in natural settings. Custom-designed and costing anywhere from $ 25,000 to nearly $ 200,000, these treehouses and treehouse hotels are places for adventure and retreat amongst the foliage.

Treehouse Halle

Baumraum Treehouse Halle 2

Baumraum Treehouse Halle 3

Stairs ascend through a hole in the roof of a garage on a German property, spiraling around an oak tree to reach the Treehouse Halle. Baumraum set this zinc and wood structure 11 meters above the ground as a sleeping and relaxation space, supported by two steel stilts anchored to the lower part of the tree. A double-sized bed peeks out a large window onto the surrounding landscape.

Almke Treehouse

Baumraum Treehouse Almke 2

A lucky scout group in Wolfsburg, Germany gets to meet at this elevated clubhouse constructed around a pine tree, with two almost-identical wooden volumes set at staggered heights within the forest canopy. The Almke Treehouse provides a place to gather, eat and sleep, with the lower volume full of bunk beds for eight.

Treehouse Djuren

Baumraum Treehouse Djuren 2

An elliptical volume with egg-like sides seems to float above a wooded family property in Northern Germany, supported on a series of four stilts around two are oak trees. Sleeping benches covered in gray felt offer a comfortable perch from which to look out onto the trees.

Treehouse Solling

Baumraum Treehouse Solling 3

Baumraum Treehouse Solling 4

Treehouse Solling hovers above a pond like something out of a fairytale, an unusual two-story structure with a rounded roof punctured by a skylight. The treehouse serves as a sleeping place and observation point connected to a nearby forester’s cabin via a cable-suspended bridge. Like most of Baumraum’s structures, the outside is covered in zinc plating and the inside is lined with timber.

Treehouse in Belgium

Baumraum Treehouse in Belgium 2

Baumraum Treehouse in Belgium 3

This treehouse was envisioned as the perfect place for a paper company to brainstorm about sustainability among nature. Located in a forest in Belgium, the climate-controlled space is a lot more like a conventional building than most treehouses, containing a kitchen, lounge and restroom as well as a ventilation system and motion-sensor LED lights. It offers all the comforts of a meeting space within an office, but in an environment that’s a lot more conducive to creative thinking.

Next Page – Click Below to Read More:
13 Modern Tree Houses By Baumraum

[ By Steph in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]

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Cracked-Earth Desert Canopy Shelters Underground Oasis

25 Apr

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

underground park abu dhabi

Splitting at the seams like sections of sun-baked desert, this expansive park opens to the sky between a network of gaps and provides shade for people and plant life below. A sunken oasis designed by Thomas Heatherwick Studios, this massive Al Fayah Park will span over 1.3 million square feet and feature play and picnic areas, performance spaces and festival venues, vegetable gardens and native flowers amid rivers and other water features.

cracked desert underground retreat

Anyone familiar with places like Black Rock City, Nevada will recognize the shape driving the design concept, but these are more than just an architect’s affectation. Beyond its naturalistic source of visual inspiration, the landscaping strategy speaks to climactic conditions in the United Arab Emirates – the sheltering dome of leaf-like decks keeps things cool below, but also helps prevent moisture loss.

subterrean people plants water

From the designers: “By creating partial shade for plants, the canopy reduces the amount of water lost to evaporation, improving the park’s energy efficiency and sustainability. Whilst providing shade in the daytime, the elevated plates also become a network of unique meeting places in the cooler evening hours.”

underground park panoramic viw

underground park water features

‘This sunken oasis becomes a landscape of plants, mature trees and a cluster of public recreational spaces. The 20-metre-high shaded garden is conceived as a place for families to gather and picnic, as well as a place for learning and festivals.”

desert sand subterranean space

For those potential critics who still see the structure as somewhat too literal, it is worth noting the wide-ranging appeal of something so iconic to potential international tourists. Whether the shapes seem striking or trite to a given person’s tastes, part of the purpose of the design is to be recognizable and ultimately draw in visitors from around the world. One question still worth raising, though, might be its fit in the site context – will it blend into the surrounding ground or stand out in the city?

[ By WebUrbanist in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

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Redwood Canopy, Muir Woods National Monument

26 Aug

It’s ironic and sad that only when we lose something does it become treasured. Muir Woods is a perfect example of this. These majestic Redwood trees were nearly wiped out to build and rebuild San Francisco (after numerous fires and the great earthquake of 1906). This last stand of local Redwood trees was saved by rough terrain that made logging difficult if not impossible and the donation of the land by William Kent.

Muir Woods National Monument Visitors

Muir Woods National Monument is among the most popular destinations in the San Francisco area. Just the other weekend my wife and I drove through Marin to see large crowds gathering at a shuttle stop to visit Muir Woods. The small parking lot there is quickly filled by early arrivals and numerous tour buses. I think it’s great that people now see the value in the serene beauty of this oasis of Redwood trees, but I can’t help but feel sad that it took their near destruction for others to appreciate their existence.

God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches, and a thousand tempests and floods. But he cannot save them from fools. – John Muir

Redwood Canopy, Muir Woods National Monument

Technorati Tags: California, Muir Woods, National Monument, Redwood, nature, stock photo

Redwood Canopy, Muir Woods National Monument

JMG-Galleries – Jim M. Goldstein Photography

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360Photography

Posts Tagged ‘Canopy’

Armadillo Vault: Delicate Stone Canopy Held Together by Compression

Inverted Umbrella: Drip-Free Design Turns Canopy Inside Out

Form Follows Treehouse: Tiny Green Canopy Home Tops Wood Trunk

Urban Algae Canopy Produces a Forest’s Worth of Oxygen Daily

Unboxing: Angled Metal-Clad Canopy Hints at Surprises in Store