MIES - Maison de l'Architecture

The Maison de l'Architecture at Daytime

The is a competition entry of an center of architecture designed by Nadau Lavergne Architects in Bordeaux, France.  The design is inherently simple: two oblong boxes are set afloat with vertical transitions (escalators, stairways) connecting them.  Staggered engineered trusses are employed to support the individual floors and long span beams made out of hollow steel tubing support the ceiling for an auditorium on the topmost floor.

Longitudinal Section of the Center

The section/model was constructed to convey a sense of linearity.  Situated near the Seine, the center of architecture would provide as a landmark to the beginning of the urban sector in Paris.  Porous and oxidized metal cladding would block out the unwanted rays reflecting off the water's edge and a buffer of green delineates the entry point to the facility from the metropolitan corner.

Vertical Circulation via Escalators

The Auditorium Lit Up

Atrium and auditorium spaces are set apart to accentuate themselves in the evening.  Floor and ceiling lights are set within parts of the structures (such as the staircases) to enhance the overall ambience of the structure.  Colors are set at a minimum, but silver and gold accents are abundantly clear in this early schematic design.

The Atrium

Proposed Staggered Truss Structural System 

For an unwieldy structure, the staggered truss makes sense.  Braced by steel tubes in the original design, in actuality, this may better be braced by a system of chevron braces between floors (which would retain the minimal structure while economically functioning as a conduit for lateral loads.

The Finished Structure at Night

Lastly, a rendering at night emphasizes what the design is all about: standing out.  This is not a design of a building.  Rather, it is the design of a space.  The space boldly separates itself from the built environments as the cars pace by.  It declares, rather than fits in.  Whether that's desirable or not is for the people of Bordeaux to decide.

MIES - Alex Kaiser's Drawings

Alex Kaiser is a fantastic drawer. He envisions worlds that we think of but hesitate to realize. His penmanship is both rigid and loose and his lines are sensual but sharp. The following set of drawings is a set of conceptual sketches Kaiser has done as an artist (he's an artist first, and then an architect second). Note clearly how he's not afraid to repeat certain lines in order to make them work. Note also how there's also the lack of things erased, which adds to the drawings' blatant candor. But first things first: enjoy:

Initial Sketches

Elaborated Sketches

Conceuptual Wireframe

Final Rendering

Transverse Section Through Middle

Transverse Section Through Ends

MIES - Bird in Flight

This house on S. Michael Island in the Azores by Portuguese architect Bernardo Rodrigues comprises a jumble of curved and rectilinear volumes, creating little sheltered patios in-between them. A large red square wall screens the house from the strong winds of the North Atlantic ocean. The ground floor spaces are open-plan and enclosed bedrooms are located on the first floor.

The microclimate of the farmland the house is situated on offers frequent wind and showers. Therefore, the first design strategy was to block with a wall those winds, offer diverse patios and covered courtyards on the ground floor protected from rain and open all living space to the natural green around by glass walls receded from the exterior.

The typology follows almost classical Palladian and scamozzi central plan design with double height on living room and then two lateral wings enclosing one the kitchen. Rodrigues also resourced the high chimneys from popular residential architecture (which often features covered interior patios), and the other wing, which has the circulations for the first floor and to the roof terrace, is also highly contextual.

The final drawings are reminiscent of a Calder mobile in their airiness, even though the usage of concrete is specified for the winged portion of the design. It goes without saying that the plan is not the driving force for the concept here - a model is - but the section is very quality and depicts the care Rodrigues took in designing the elevation for this facade-less statement house.