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Telefontomten

Design proposal for a mixed-use project in Geilo, in the valley of Hallingdal. Geilo is first and foremost a ski resort, but also offers summer activities. The site  is located on the main road of the city and offers a 360 view panorama.

The task was to develop apartments that skiers could rent when visiting Geilo along with building amenities and additional program such as restaurants, shops and playgrounds.

Our main intention was to break down the scale to fit into the village context. We separated the programme adding a base which roof’s acts as a public platform and laid on top of it the housing volumes. These volumes have the same measurements and have either an individual pitched roof or half of one.

Some of the volumes are shifted to the front or to the back to create terraces for the apartments and allow side windows for bedrooms. It was important to maintain a collective feeling and at the same time give the users privacy in their apartments. Bedrooms are placed on the north facade with smaller openings and away from the highway. Living rooms and kitchens are oriented to the south, to get more light in and enjoy full openings towards the mountains.

 

 

Taipei Performing Arts Centre

Various Architects have been asked by the Office of Metropolitan Architecture to join their team of architects as consultants on their competition winning Taipei Performing Arts Centre (TPAC) project in Taiwan. The project will be run from a newly established OMA office in Hong Kong, lead by David Gianotten. The Hong Kong office will also be working on several other projects, including the masterplan of the West Kowloon Cultural District and the Shenzen Stock Exchange.

Partner Ibrahim Elhayawan from Various Architects will be the project leader of the OMA team, and will work closely with Rem Koolhaas and the OMA team to develop the 40,000m2 theatre in Taipei from competition scheme to the definitive design phase. Various Architects were approached by OMA due to our extensive experience with complex cultural projects and theatres, something we look forward to further extending in Hong Kong.

The TPAC contains a 1500 seat theatre and two 800 seat theatres, which can be connected together in many configurations via an innovative and flexible stage arrangement. We are extremely excited to be a part of the OMA team on this bold theatre project and look forward to our collaboration over the next year.

 

For more information about the project refer to the OMA project page.

All images by OMA / Frans Parthesius© All rights reserved.

Mobile Performance Venue

The Mobile Performance Venue (MPV) will represent Arts Alliance Productions and their performance «ID – Identity of the Soul» worldwide in 2009. ID is a five-screen cinematic performance based on Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen’s epic poem Terje Vigen and Mahmoud Darwish’s poem A Soldier Dreams of White Lillies. Associative images of the poem, interspersed with filmed images of an actor presenting it are projected onto five 12mx7m HD-video screens. Live dancers perform in front of, behind, and between the screens throughout the show.

The client brief for the project is for a lightweight and easily transportable venue that meets their technical requirements for projection screens and surround sound system, while also creating a unique and iconic structure. The current design (end of schematic design phase) makes the MPV the largest mobile venue in the world. The dynamic oval form is 90m x 60m, ranges from 10m to 17m tall, and has 3900m2 of covered space. The central performance space (2000m2) will hold a standing audience of 3500 people. Optional configurations include optional stadium seating and conversion of the central screen to a stage for live performances. The project is divided into 20 structural segments which allow varying configurations ranging from 2000 to 3900 m2 total area if needed.

The public plaza is formed by an arcade of open hexagons at ground level that mark a clear entrance to the otherwise closed form. This plaza contains all of the necessary front-of-house functions such as ticketing, cloak room, and restrooms. A mezzanine area above can be used for refreshments, catering, exhibition, or VIP functions. The back-of-house skin has a more complex and closed pattern. This serves to protect the projectors, sound systems, personell, and dancers behind the screens.

Sustainability is a difficult and complex topic for a project of this size that requires transport. Our main goal was to make the structure as lightweight and compact as possible to reduce shipping weight and volume. One example of this is the self-supporting PVC skin of hexagonal inflated tubes and cushions that form the front-of-house and back-of-house spaces. The specified fire resistant PVC fabric is durable and 100% recyclable.

An extremely efficient ‘bicycle wheel’ truss provides lateral stability for the project and full or partial coverage of the performance space. Supported by standard aluminum staging components this structure is also lightweight and recyclable. Optional mesh or solid pvc covers would provide shade in hot dry climates or rain protection in wet ones. The central oculus can also be covered with an inflatable cap. Water tank foundations remove the need to transport heavy weights. The entire project can be transported in 30 standard 40’ containers (20 if roof is omitted). The structure requires 2 weeks for assembly and one week for disassembly. This estimate is conservative, but represents an extremely low shipping volume for a structure of this size.

Olympiagården

Various Architects has been commissioned by Nielsen Project to design the renovation of the office building the housed one of the oldest cinema in Oslo. The building is named after the cinema it housed, Olympia kino. The project is a result of the a collaborative design process with the client.

The main concept is to bring back some of the historical qualities of the building in a modern way. The design focuses on the office building by creating a generous foyer in the middle of the building, sacrificing valuable commercial areas to provide special experience in such a dense area in Oslo center. This experience is enhanced by developing a green garden in the backyard and connecting the foyer to garden on different levels. The choice of material and patterns has been inspired by the original building using natural materials such as stone, copper and wood. We received positive critique from the Cultural Heritage Office for our design the focuses on renovating the facade to it´s original design and putting emphasis on universal access.

CK 32 Office Building

Various Architects is working on the refurbishment of Christian Kroghs gate 32 in downtown Oslo. The building will be reburbished in its totality for new office tenants and includes facade upgrade, new lifts and ventilation system, refurbishment of office floors as well as the shared indoors courtyard.

The building is from the 1930s and has a clean and clear modernist character where it rests on the Akerselva riverfront. As it is a listed building the renovation will include collaboration with the Oslo Conservation Office. We look forward to new dialogues with them and will lend experience from our successful renovation of Olympiagården.

Aalto University Campus

Revisiting the principles of the Garden City and Alvar Aalto’s design philosophy, the new school knits itself within Otaniemi to enrich the existing dynamics of the area with a wealth of opportunities for social interactions. The keystone of this ap- proach is the Mesh, a three dimensional structure that play- fully articulates the social and teaching spaces, blurring boundaries between the interior and exterior, between viewing and making, between knowledge and action.

This Mesh extends between the different buildings on site, to unify existing and new faculties and weave together the sur- rounding public spaces with multi level circulations. Guidingusers into the site and through its entrance atriums, the Mesh hosts a spectrum of meeting points of various scales that mul- tiply the points of interaction with the action zones of the cam- pus and the new vibrant square that it frames.

The new central square wraps around Aalto’s Main Building and Library, placing these iconic building at the heart of the campus. Its auditorium is strengthened as the main visual navigation landmark of the site: the new buildings laid out on the site to ensure that it remains visible from all approaches to the square. The site layout is clearly readable from the central square to allow easy visual navigation for visitors and campus users. The subtle interplay of hard and soft landscaping along the pedestrian and cycle axes on the square offer multiple highly accessible routes to the common facilities surrounding it. To the west, the central square merges into the experimen- tal courtyard, a large sheltered space located at the inflexion point of the Mesh. This transient spaces overflow with the activities of creative studios and workshops of the Design, Art and Architecture faculties, overlapping onto it to bring together the different disciplines of the school and foster collaboration and interaction.

Kunstsilo

Various Architects participated in the Kunstilo competition in Kristiansand in the south of Norway.

«Nicolai Tangen has offered Kristiansand an art collection comprising 1,100 Norwegian works, which he has collected over a period of 20 years. The 1,100 works constitute what experts have called the most important collection of Norwegian art from the 1930s to the 1970s.»

Our proposal had the following intentions:

– Restore the existing silo to its original condition (1935).

– Making the silo completely public.

– The addition of a new building (art museum) that humbly encircles the silo.

– A horizontal new building allows for future vertical expansion.

– Make the roof of the Art Museum accessible and extends it to the green axis in Odderøya.

– The cultural island becomes clear and interesting from several possible admissions.

The main attraction of the art museum is located on the west side towards the sea, and leads directly into the open, public part of the building. Then you are free to move on to the exhibition, or stay in the public section. From the main street of the car park on the east side, you are welcomed to the museum through an open passage, through the open atrium (art garden) and into the building.

The roof garden at the museum is adapted for multiple activities. With seating areas, viewing point and activity areas along a universally designed walkway. It is a prerequisite that the surrounding theater and cultural institutions should be able to use the roof for learning, exhibitions, and more.

The contact to the free area on Odderøya is an important visual and natural context – the green lushness is pulled up on the school roof and «blows» further across the roof of the museum. From the pier in front of the museum you will be able to experience this lushness and be inspired to explore the roof garden.

Exhibition Concept

The Nicolai Tangen collection is co-located with Sørlandets Kunstmuseum in the new building that encircles the restored silo. The two collections get their own wings, which are flexible and can easily vary in size as desired and meet future exhibition requirements.

The art galleries in the silo will be reserved for less famous and willingly local artists. Here, there is room for art in many forms of expression with fast shifts in the exhibitions. The roof terrace is located in front of the restaurant and library, and can easily be transformed into an art garden and adapted to different types of cultural events.

Art school

On the East of the art museum is the cultural school. This is an interdisciplinary institution containing educational venues with scenes for music, dance and visual arts. This is a cultural dynamo, which is the city’s natural meeting point between locals and performers. The ceilings of the Cultural School will act as a green park that extends to the roof of the art building via a bridge. The art school will thus be a link between the cultural and green axis of the art museum.

Knauslia

Various Architects has been commissioned to design a housing project in Larvik, a municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The site is located at the end of the road with a complete view towards the sea, next to a green belt.

The task was to design three housing units of which one was the main house for the clients and the other two were apartments below the house.

The main challenge was to open to the views the site offered, yet at the same time maintain the privacy from each unit. The house opens completely to the west, with terraces and curtain wall windows. The apartments open to the east, getting their own individuality.

The project has split levels due to the sloping terrain, which broke the volume into two. Allowing the main house to be at the top and the apartments in the lower level. The volumes are split with a courtyard which is a private area for the house. An important element of the design, providing views, collectiveness and natural light into the house.

The house has a traditional wooden pitched-roof shape to fit with its surroundings, and it lays on a concrete base which houses the two apartments.

Framparken Masterplan

Various Architects was commissioned to design a new Culture House and Mosque. The client, Islamic Cultural Society, acquired the 25 000 square meter site of Handelsskolen in Larvik. The site is located nearby our previous project, Mesterfjellet Skole, and lies adjacent to Framparken sports arena and Thor Heyerdahl secondary school. 
 
The program includes housing complex, parking garage and a restaurant in addition to the mosque and cultural center.
 
Our design focuses on creating an inviting and transparent projet that gives back to the whole community. At the same time that the project expresses the fusion between Islamic background and the Norwegian context. 
 
The existing school is redesigned to house the cultural center and is incorporated with the new mosque structure. The housing buildings are located adjacent to the housing neighbourhood while the restaurant is placed toward the sports arenas.
 
The new mosque has an introverted design with emphasis on creating calm spaces. Inspired by traditional Islamic architecture, yet resolved in a modern and abstract manner creating meditating spaces with indirect natural lighting. 
 
The masterplan focuses on creating various outdoor areas with different activities. The cultural center create an enclosure for semi-private outdoor areas for the housing complex. The restaurant opens towards the sunny plaza that connects to preserved landscape on the site.

Gulskogen Park ULOBA HQ

ULOBA invited 5 teams of architects to compete for the design and development of Gulskogen area in Drammen. Various Architects qualified for the competition together with BIG, SLA,Transsolar and Ramboll.

The task was to design a new headquarters for ULOBA in addition to providing master-planning proposal for the 25 acres site. The aim of the competition was to realize a project that will be an example of Universal Design. The Gulskogen Park project shall be a showcase for the equality of disabled people in the community. The project will also be a model of sustainable architecture and urban development through Future Built program.

The new ULOBA headquarters will bring together the organisation’s activities in a building that will set new standards for sustainability and universal design. The building will not only house the ULOBA existing features, but also a community of related companies that together will create an active house in the heart of the new city of Gulskogen Park. As an urban district with various functions, the new headquarters serving the city for the future development of the area and help create a vibrant, accesible and green urban spaces that open up to all sides and connects to Gulskogen Park, the train station and the historic avenue towards the landscape.

The building and the district will be a landmark for Independent Living vision and a eksperimentarioum for urban design and sustainability. ULOBA new headquarters is designed in one single level – as a small urban district, a courtyard formed by various features, outdoor spaces and meeting places. Canteen, auditorium, fitness center, garage and meeting rooms are articulated as islands in a combined maneuver space, create optimal framework for informal meetings and stay.

The geometry is circular and rectangular at once: the overall geometry is rounded, and as architectural archetypes – a form which simultaneously creates clarity, an organic and effective movement between functions. The round shape is naturally optimized in terms of materials, it has a natural stabilizing effect, reduces air movement and creates good acoustic conditions. In contrast, the sub-elements, the individual rooms are rectangular. A form that is better suited for space-saving furniture and decoration of functional rooms.

Geneva Dance Pavilion

Much like «a story within a story» our aim is to create a «world within a world», separated from the hustling and bustling of every day life. Visitors and performers are invited into a calm and playful, sheltered space designed to stimulate their senses and release creativity. Different programs are nested within each other, creating shells that unfolds and leads th ebody through different spatial experiences.

Dance here is understood as moments of movement in time, and our aim has been to make visitors a part of this motion. By layering the spaces where screens and openings overlap we intend to blur the boundaries between visitors and dancers, making our visitors part of the performance taking place. Visitors are lead through an enclosed exterior garden, through a slender pathway, into a wide foyer before entering an intimate performance space in the heart of the pavillion.

Our Aim

In our design we have focused on creating a unique atmosphere, uninterrupted by the outside world. This is achieved by a system of layers, making the outer wall an important feature of our design. The idea of a world inside a world, is for the benefit of creating a stimulating environment for artists and the public to meet, dance and be creative while exposing the Contemporary Dance Assocation (ADC) in a beautiful and interesting way.

We have focused on creating an integrated, sustainable and flexible design, by finding cost efective and practical design solutions. The impact of the project on site has been minimized and the existing vegetation integrated into our design. The project contributes a great deal to the existing city fabric by creating an integrated public space which can be used as a public garden (park), sheltered from the hard traffic of the two main roads, surrounding the sire. The lush garden could be a permanent installment for the area, adding to the cities green lungs, when the dance pavilion is relocated.

The Outer Wall

While the layering of spaces allows for interesting encounters and beautiful visual effects it is also designed for it’s sound insulating properties, in the way each layer gradually diffuses sound, protecting the inner core from disturbance and noise outside. The outer wall diffueses sound and light by dispersion, allowing for a protected area inside.

Glass fibre reinforced polymer rods with timber boxes produce an open structure for the wall, with the rods allowed to sway or ‘dance’ in the wind. Cantilevered out of a precast concrete strip footing at their base, the top of the rods are restrained with a cable between steel corner posts, providing deflection control and defining the form.

Transparency and patterns of the wall changes depending on prespective, revealing different areas of the interior, showing glimpses of what is going on inside. The pattern diffuses light and sound while shadows play on the ground adding to the unworldly experience. The elements moves in the wind and twists to make a dynamic rhythm as if dancing when the viewer moves, capturing movement in a cinematic effect.

Ensjø Mixed Use

Stor Oslo Eiendom Invited Various Architects as a wild card to compete against Nordic,  A lab and Lund & Slaatto. The task of the design competition is to develop the site at Enjsø area, east of Oslo center. The program is mixed use of commercial, office spaces and housing.  The site is adjacent to Tyngdepunkt where massive housing and commercial development are underway.