RSS
 

Posts Tagged ‘Hadid’

Zaha Hadid Architects Make Flood Protection Look Elegant in Hamburg

28 Aug

As urban planners grapple with the need for creative flood management systems in cities around the world, Zaha Hadid Architects provides an interesting example in Hamburg.

Located along the Elbe River, the new Niederhafen River Promenade offers two functions in one: a flood wall and a riverfront promenade. Set in a popular tourist area alongside one of the city’s most important public spaces, the new promenade offers views of the Elbe, links to adjacent neighborhoods and lots of room for pedestrians, food stalls, cafes and street performers, with shops and public utilities set into the structure at street level on the side that faces the city.

The barrier at Niederhafen was first built in the 1960s in the aftermath of severe storm surge floods that caused 315 fatalities and destroyed the homes of 60,000 residents, but according to modern calculations, it was no longer high enough to be effective. In addition to raising the total height of the barrier by .8 meters, the overburdened supporting elements of the structure needed to be replaced. The city announced a competition to design a redevelopment, awarding the project to Zaha Hadid Architects.

Standing 8.6 meters (28 feet) high on the eastern side and 8.9 meters (29 feet) high on the western side, the barrier is now tall enough to protect the city from maximum winter storm surges and extreme high tides. The architects carved sculptural staircases into the sides at various points, creating angular amphitheaters that encourage people to linger and enjoy the views and “generating an oscillating sequence in the river promenade as it repeatedly widens and narrows.”

“Dedicated cycle lanes at street level run the length of the flood protection barrier. Wide ramps at Baumwell and Langdungsbrücken connect the river promenade with street level and provide accessibility for all. A third central ramp enables service vehicles to access the promenade and Überseebrücke.”

“The river promenade is divided into two sections with different spatial qualities. The zone to the west is at a larger scale, offering wide views downstream of all shipping activity on the river. To the east, the port’s marina creates amore intimate atmosphere with a long ramp alongside the amphitheater leading visitors down to the water’s edge.”

Of course, concrete flood walls aren’t right for every city, especially those where aquatic wildlife habitats have been destroyed and need to be restored. Some cities are working on plans to do just that, like Chicago’s “Wild Mile.” Read more about how “urban rewinding” can help make cities more flood resistant.

Photos by Piet Niemann via Zaha Hadid Architects


WebUrbanist

 
Comments Off on Zaha Hadid Architects Make Flood Protection Look Elegant in Hamburg

Posted in Creativity

 

Honoring Zaha Hadid: 5 of the Starchitect’s Greatest Projects

01 Apr

[ By Steph in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

SONY DSC

The world lost a star architect this week, trailblazing Iraqi-born Zaha Hadid, who was the first woman to receive the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Gold Medal. Her striking modern structures are experimental, visionary and bold, never afraid to make a strong statement. These are not buildings designed to blend into their environments, but rather sculptural focal points, every one of them a landmark in its respective city. Attempting to narrow down her best works is as futile as it is subjective, but here are five that stand out as prime examples of her distinctive style.

Glasgow Riverside Museum of Transport

hadid glasgow

hadid glasgow 2

hadid glasgow 3

hadid glasgow 4

The spiky, jagged front facade of this museum flows into ribbons of reflective zinc, symbolizing the landscape of its setting as the junction of the rivers Clyde and Kelvin. Designed like a linear tunnel bent to one side, its roof mimicking waves in the water, with a column-free, open center for hosting exhibits. Said Hadid of the project, “Through architecture, we can investigate future possibilities yet also explore the cultural foundations that have defined the city. The Riverside Museum is a fantastic and truly unique project where the exhibits and building come together at this prominent and historic location on the Clyde to enthuse and inspire all visitors.”

Heydar Aliyev Center, Baku

hadid heydar 1

hadid heydar 2

hadid heydar 3

hadid heydar 4

hadid heydar 5

The organic form of this cultural center in Azerbaijan gives it the look of a gigantic sea shell nestled among rectilinear Soviet architecture, establishing fluid connections between itself and the surrounding plaza. It’s all vaulted curves and sinuous lines extending over the roof and back to the ground again. Said Hadid, “Elaborate formations such as undulations, bifurcations, folds, and inflection modify this plaza surface into an architectural landscape that performs a multitude of functions: welcoming, embracing, and directing visitors through different levels of the interior. With this gesture, the building blurs the conventional differentiation between architectural object and urban landscape, building envelope and urban plaza, figure and ground, interior and exterior.”

Messner Mountain Museum, Corones

hadid messner 6

hadid messner 4

hadid messner 2

Poking out of a peak within the Italian Alps, the Messner Mountain Museum Corones almost seems to have unearthed itself from the depths of Mount Kronplatz to look out onto South Tyrol. In fact, the overlook visible from outside is only the tip of a structure enabling visitors to explore the mountain’s caverns and grottos. Views from the shard-like lookouts are directed to specific peaks, and the pale exterior panels are informed by the tones of the adjacent limestone.

London Aquatics Center

hadid london aquatics

hadid london aquatics 2

hadid london aquatics 3

The undulating swimming venue for the 2012 Olympics in London is inspired by “the fluid geometries of water in motion,” nearly every line within the interior taking its shape from waves. As dynamic and beautiful as it truly is, the design reflects a certain deliberate restraint on Hadid’s part. In contrast to the visually dazzling spaces she’s known for, this interior takes care not to outshine its intended purpose, keeping focus on the pool and its inhabitants. As seen in the aerial photography, controversial ‘wings’ were added to Hadid’s design to accommodate extra seating during the Games, but have since been removed to honor the integrity of her original vision.

MAXXI Museum, Rome

hadid maxxi 1

hadid maxxi 2

hadid maxxi 3

hadid maxxi 4

Often referred to as Hadid’s most iconic project, the MAXXI Museum of the Arts of the XXI Century in Rome complements the city’s antiquities while also bringing in a much-needed freshness and fluidity. An historic city full of ruins, without a lot of notable modern architecture, can start to feel static. Hadid injects a sense of vitality without dwarfing the centuries-old architecture in its immediate vicinity. Said Hadid, “Here we are weaving a dense texture of interior and exterior spaces. It’s an intriguing mixture of permanent, temporary and commercial galleries, irrigating large urban field with linear display surfaces. It could be a library; there are so many buildings that are not standing next to, but are intertwined and superimposed over one another. This means that, through the organizational diagram, you could weave other programs into the whole idea of gallery spaces. You can make connections between architecture and art – the bridges can connect them and make them into one exhibition.”

Share on Facebook





[ By Steph in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

[ WebUrbanist | Archives | Galleries | Privacy | TOS ]


WebUrbanist

 
Comments Off on Honoring Zaha Hadid: 5 of the Starchitect’s Greatest Projects

Posted in Creativity

 

Flowing Forms: Curved New Cultural Center by Zaha Hadid

19 Nov

[ By Steph in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

Zaha Hadid Heyar Aliyev 1

Architect Zaha Hadid’s designs are graceful and sinuous, imbued with dance-like movement, and the new Heydar Aliyev Center in Azerbaijan is no exception. This landmark structure, which will host the former soviet nation’s cultural programs, swoops over itself in glossy white ribbons, looking as if it were stretched and pulled into place by human  hands.

Zaha Hadid Heydar Aliyev 2

Zaha Hadid Heydar Aliyev 3

This malleability and the organic forms that inspired it forms a stark contrast to the traditional, historical Soviet architecture of the city of Baku. While not so well-known in the United States, this city stands at the forefront of architectural innovation as the Azerbaijan government spends an estimated $ 6 billion per year on new buildings. Other notable works of modern architecture in the city include the Flame Towers.

Zaha Hadid Heydar Aliyev 4

Zaha Hadid Heydar Aliyev 6

Hadid’s design is a modern interpretation of Islamic architecture as a composition of rows, grids, or sequences of columns that collectively form a non-hierarchal space. An architectural skin flows from the plaza up onto the roof of the first floor, and then rises several stories to form a shell-like canopy.

Zaha Hadid Heydar Aliyev 5

The clean, curving lines of the roof structure are already inviting passersby to ascend the roof, and it’s probably only a matter of time before skateboarders turn it into one big exhilarating playground.

Share on Facebook





[ By Steph in Architecture & Public & Institutional. ]

[ WebUrbanist | Archives | Galleries | Privacy | TOS ]


WebUrbanist

 
Comments Off on Flowing Forms: Curved New Cultural Center by Zaha Hadid

Posted in Creativity

 

Architecture Meets Fashion: Shoes by Hadid, Gehry & More

03 Jan

[ By Steph in Design & Products & Packaging. ]

Architect Shoes Main

How would the architectural styles of Zaha Hadid, Frank Gehry and Santiago Calatrava translate to shoes? As these 6 collaborations prove, sometimes the results are just as you’d imagine, and sometimes they’re completely unexpected. These architect-designed and inspired shoes range from the practical and wearable to sculptural art objects.

Zaha Hadid for Melissa

Architect Shoes Hadid Melissa

Brazilian brand Melissa offered the ideal medium with which architect Zaha Hadid could indulge her creativity: moulded plastic, which makes it easy to create shapes that can’t really be achieved with more traditional shoemaking materials. Says Hadid, “The design engages with the ?uid organic contours of the body. The shoes asymmetric quality conveys an inherent sense of move-ment to the design, evoking continuous transformation. The concept addresses the perception of wearing the shoe in motion rather than a static display on a shopping window.”

Frank Gehry for J.M. Weston

Architect Shoes Frank Gehry

Would you ever imagine that shoes designed by Frank Gehry would be so… conventional? The architect known for flashy, amorphous metallic structures designed these six-buttoned black-and-white leather boots for the 2009 collection of shoe company J.M. Weston.  “You shouldn’t have to differentiate between disciplines, shoes are very architectural and always have been, and even more recently there are new shoes… (that are) buildings.”

Zaha Hadid for Lacoste

Architect Shoes Hadid Lacoste

Zaha Hadid designed a series of limited edition shoes available in quantities of just 1,000. According to Hadid, the shoes were designed “utilizing dynamic fluid grids, which when wrapped around the foot, expand and contract to negotiate the body ergonomically – creating a unique undulating and radiating landscape, ultimately translated to shoes in fine calf leather.”

Julian Hakes for Mojito

Architect Shoes Julian Hakes

Architect Shoes Julian Hakes 2

The Mojito shoe by architect Julian Hakes wraps around the foot in a continuous ribbon, and lacks the footplate that one might say is the most essential part of the shoe. As with most of these creations, however, Hakes’ design is more about form than function.

Rem D. Koolhaas for United Nude

Architect Shoes Rem Koolhaas

The nephew of famed architect Rem Koolhaas, and an architect himself, Rem D. Koolhaas teamed up with British shoemaker Galahad Clark to create a line of architectural shoes for their brand United Nude. United Nude designs has also been inspired by other art forms, like furniture – they have a shoe that honors designers Charles and Ray Eames.

Santiago Calatrava-Inspired Shoes by Tea Petrovic

Architect Shoes Calatrava

The architecture of Santiago Calatrava is captured flawlessly in a series of cutting-edge shoes by Tea Petrovic  for a project at the Academy of Fine Arts in Sarajevo. “I have created a shoe collection, as my graduating project, that is centered around the idea that each shoe is an sculptural-architectural structured form. To underline their sculptural form, the shoes are kept white, which on the other hand emphasis the artistic language, present in the entire collection.”

Share on Facebook





[ By Steph in Design & Products & Packaging. ]

[ WebUrbanist | Archives | Galleries | Privacy | TOS ]


WebUrbanist

 
Comments Off on Architecture Meets Fashion: Shoes by Hadid, Gehry & More

Posted in Creativity