Magazine 2021 | The Plan

The Plan 135 [12-2021]

The issue opens with an editorial in which Patrick Schumacher, director of Zaha Hadid Architects, looks at high-intensity vertical developments. Almost a hundred years after Ludwig Hilberseimer proposed the idea, the vertical city will be at the center of a new urban revolution, while the buildings that compose it – skyscrapers – will act as social connectors rather than just ways to concentrate humans into one area. Schumacher illustrates his ideas with projects by Zaha Hadid Architects. Paolo Valerio Mosco, author of Viaggio in Italia – Architetture e Città, looks at a project by Stefano Boeri Architetti, the Ca’ delle Alzaie residential complex in Treviso, Italy. As he does in all his articles, Mosco doesn’t limit himself to just examining the building in question, but also presents his thoughts on the work of architect Stefano Boeri in general. We then take a critical look at The Creative Hub – that is, Furla’s new offices and production facility. For this project in Tavarnelle Val di Pesa (Florence), architects Stefano Gri and Piero Zucchi, from Studio GEZA Gri and Zucchi Architetti Associati, worked with the landscape to create architecture that becomes part of the landscape itself and enriches it. Still in Italy, we analyze the San Giovanni Apostolo parish complex in Ferrara, the work of EMBT Miralles Tagliabue. Like the studio’s design of the Santa Caterina Market in Barcelona, the defining element of this church is the waved design of its sculpture-like roof. We also look at Techbau’s new headquarters in Castelletto Sopra Ticino, Novara, the work of Piuarch. Moving overseas, Michael Webb looks at California House, a home designed by GLUCK+ in the Los Angeles hills, describing it as “a balance between air and earth.” Still in the City of Angels, we then focus on the Audrey Irmas Pavilion, a project by OMA New York. This is a design with a strong identity, each of its elevations marked by its own distinctive features. Its geometry, colors, and interplay of lights combine to create an architectural landmark for the city. Next we discuss two residential complexes. The first, Pearl Block, designed by D’Arcy Jones Architects, is in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The second, the San Crescente complex in Santiago de Chile, was designed by Izquierdo Lehmann Architects. We end our journey in London with the wooden sculptures of Discovered, a project organized by the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) that asked twenty young creative minds to design an object that responds to their unique experience of the pandemic. Their answers, in the form of wooden sculptures, are examined in this article. Issue 135 is especially rich in photographs and construction details from which to draw inspiration. The cover is dedicated to the Audrey Irmas Pavilion, designed by OMA New York.

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The Plan 134 [11-2021]

The November issue of THE PLAN again offers new insights into the world of architecture by examining innovative projects from around the world. This issue opens with an editorial entitled "Taxonomy of Materials according to Studio MK27" in which architect Marcio Kogan discusses his architectural language, the product of combining four natural elements and seven materials. In Highlights, Michael Webb writes about two projects created by Michael Maltzan Architecture in Winnipeg, Canada, both of which have added another dimension to the art district that’s developing on the edges of the city’s university campus. Staying in North America, we go to Massachusetts to examine the renovation of the Neilson Library, in which architect Maya Lin has subtracted elements and created new contrasts in a neoclassical building. Still in the States, we visit the Baker Museum, designed by Studio Weiss/Manfredi, and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Museum, designed by DS+R in Colorado. Next we take a look at one of the three themed pavilions at Dubai 2020: Terra – The Sustainability Pavilion, designed by Grimshaw. This is zero-impact architecture that supports sustainable lifestyles in extreme climates, such as deserts. The building not only captures energy from sunlight but also fresh water from humid air. We then focus on MPdL Studio’s design for the Amanda Manufacturing headquarters, in which a seemingly random arrangement of columns creates a space that’s quite unique. Touching down in the Sicilian city of Modica, we investigate a panoramic stilt home designed by Giuseppe Gurrieri Studio. And then our last stop is a residential complex with a church in Tikkurila, Finland, designed by OOPEAA. This issue’s cover photo shows the United States Olympic and Paralympic Museum and was taken by Nic Lehoux.

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The Plan 133 [10-2021]

Featuring the latest industry news along with some of the most significant current projects, the October issue of THE PLAN takes us on another journey into the world of architecture. What do architects and engineers imagine today when they design a complex of buildings, a landscape, or infrastructure that will be part of the world tomorrow? The editorial that opens THE PLAN 133 examines this question. It’s written by Werner Sobek, a German engineer and architect, founder of the Stuttgart-based Institute for Lightweight Structures and Conceptual Design, and founder of the international engineering firm of the same name. He urges architects to dream a feasible utopia, one that is positive and the result of a coming together of conscience and science. In Michael Webb’s Highlights column, we meet American Kevin Daly (kdA Architects), among the most interesting architects to be working in Los Angeles for 30 years. So, what makes him so good? His ability to work on a variety of projects united by three factors: (1) satisfying client needs, (2) full respect for budgets, and, in particular, (3) the ability to adapt to local climatic conditions. We remain in California to learn about the latest work by Gehry Partners. Still in North America, after the success of the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Canadian firm Archistar has returned to the world of music with a project for the Beckmen YOLA Center. This project is marked by a more sober register, both in terms of cost and form. We then travel to Africa with architect Diébédo Francis Kéré and photographer Iwan Baan. Through a notebook and camera lens, we discover fragments of light and life in the ancient structures of Burkina Faso, as part of a special feature that includes an interview with the two. In Rwanda, we visit a university complex built in the urban district of Kigali, now the site of a number of clusters of innovation. This is a project in which exposed brick facades encourage a material connection with the setting. Next we go to the town of Jesolo in Italy’s Veneto region to look at a new residential and commercial complex, designed by ELASTICOFarm, that asserts its own special personality against a uniform and calming coastal backdrop. In the municipality of Montorso Vicentino, we analyze the new Faeda headquarters, the work of 3ndy Studio. Also in Italy, we visit the Bocconi Campus, designed by SANAA, a potential point of reference for the Milan of tomorrow. Finally, we travel to India to view an extraordinary project: a villa with 150 steps to the sea that draws its inspiration from that country’s ancient stepwells. The product of the creative flair of Matharoo Associates, the project also features on the cover of this issue.

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The Plan 132 [09-2021]

Mutations, metabolisms, or metamorphoses – how are cities transforming at the crossroads of the new century? This question, made more topical than ever by the pandemic, is the subject of the editorial that opens THE PLAN 132. The piece was written by Carmen Andriani, an architect and professor specializing in urban regeneration at the University of Genoa. Next comes Michael Webb’s Highlights column, in which he looks at an initiative of the city of Los Angeles that, to solve the problem of the shortage of affordable housing, asked architects to present designs for ADUs, Accessory Dwelling Units. Numerous ideas were submitted, including Pebble House by studio SO–IL. Also in the field of social housing, but this time in Italy, MAB Architettura and Beretta Associati worked on the Moneta Milano project. The two studios won the Progetto 10.000 contest for this 310-apartment coliving development, conceived with the idea of community at its heart. Returning to the United States, the iconic Tribeca neighborhood in Lower Manhattan is the setting for the renovation of an apartment in the Jenga Tower. Studio Bohlin Cywinski Jackson has redesigned the interiors of the residence, reflecting the dynamic forces expressed by the concrete and glass tower itself, the work of Herzog & de Meuron. The home-studio of architects Takaaki and Yuko Fuji in Tokyo’s Shibuya district, on the other hand, features a steel structure and timber interiors. Hallmarks of the building are its bay windows, which, stacked together, define the volume and the interior spaces. Moving from the built to the natural environment, an integration between architecture and nature forms the basis of McLeod Bovell Modern Houses’ concept for BlackCliff House in West Vancouver. Perched on a clifftop, the home is situated between the coastal mountains and the Pacific Ocean, offering views over the latter through its large windows. The cover of THE PLAN 132 is dedicated to Frank O. Ghery’s The Tower, a building that, standing 184 feet (56 m), towers over the skyline of Arles, France. Built using over ten thousand stainless steel blocks and fifty glass boxes, the tower houses exhibition spaces, offices, a library, and a cafeteria. By contrast, Kéré Architecture’s design of the Burkina Institute of Technology in Koudougou has a village-like composition of several low buildings that feature local building materials and techniques, all arranged within an open enclosure. Marking the twentieth anniversary of the death of Catalan architect Enric Miralles, the exhibition MIRALLES. Perpetuum Mobile is entirely dedicated to wood and design. The event is curated by Benedetta Tagliabue and Joan Roig i Duran, and is taking place at the Disseny Hub in Barcelona. The exhibition brings together over twenty furniture pieces, all of them wood, that Miralles designed for his last home, conceived as a space in constant motion.

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The Plan 131 [06-2021]

Manuelle Gautrand and her studio were invited to take part in the 2022 Saint-Étienne International Design Biennial, which this year is themed “Bifurcations.” In our editorial, the architect tells us about the seven projects she’ll be exhibiting in the Church of Saint Pierre in Firminy, discussing for each the issues of urban evolution, environmental challenges, and public space. In Viaggio in Italia, Valerio Paolo Mosco showcases the Piuarch studio, examining its origins and projects. The four founding architects all echo the style of Vittorio Gregotti, with whom they trained in the ’90s. However, as often occurs in eclectic Italian architecture, this continuity seems to be fueled more by departures from the style they inherited than by blindly following it: eclecticism in continuity.  In contrast with the high-density urbanization projects typical of China’s cities, the Yang Liping Center for Performing Arts creates a relationship with its setting. The project by Studio Zhu-Pei seeks to make material connections with the surrounding natural environment so as to preserve and promote the spirit and cultural identity of the region. The 2021 masterplan for the revitalization of the Los Angeles River aims to restore the area by creating healthy, interconnected ecosystems. To achieve all this, the mayor of Los Angeles turned to a group of remarkable professionals: Gehry Partners, Geosyntec Consultants, and OLIN.  The SO–IL studio has put its name to a project in Mexico for the development of vertical dwellings designed to counteract the unbridled expansion of its city. Las Americas Social Housing aims to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of the residents of León by pegging back uncontrolled urban sprawl. Designed by Thom Mayne, director of Morphosis, Hanking Center Tower is a project that challenges both the laws of physics and the record books. At 1,180 feet (360 m) high, it not only ranks as China’s tallest steel tower but has also become an icon for Shenzhen’s thriving Nanshan district.  Prototipo TELCA, the work of MC A Mario Cucinella Architects, is a groundbreaking project. On the one hand, the building demonstrates just how far 3D printing technology for the construction industry has come. On the other, it’s a testament to the viability of creating circular economies in architecture. The Pantheon House, designed by Labics, uses Japanese-style frames to achieve a blend of linear geometric lightness and a sense of materiality and Romanesque chiaroscuro.  Labarca Marttinex designed Casa Trancura so that the owners could enjoy the natural beauty of its setting, from the Trancura River to the Villarrica Nature Reserve, in Pucón, Chile.

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The Plan 130 [05-2021]

This issue opens with an Editorial Critique by Jeanne Gang about the need to reassess brutalist architecture, partly because it’s frequently the environmentally responsible thing to do. In Highlights, Michael Webb explores the close relationship between architecture and community through the lens of the 1500 Granville project in Los Angeles by LOHA (Lorcan O’Herlihy Architects). NADAAA collaborated with Bidard & Raissi to design a residence that features several interrelating faces within a whole that combines visions of inviting familiarity with real and abstract monumentality. Innovation in healthcare is the cornerstone of John McAslan + Partners’ design of the Health Innovation Hub at Lancaster University. Takeshi Hirobe Architects is behind the Phase Dance residence in Shizuoka, Japan. This project strikes a novel balance between the natural and artificial, the result is a design that pays homage to the flows of nature. When working on Villa Ca’ Gioia, Francesco Pascali Architetto examined both history and the local area. Created by dell’agnolo kelderer architekturbüro, the Cantina Bolzano winery could be summed up as a cube in the middle of an oval-shaped plaza. AREA (Architecture Research Athens) has reinvented the vacation home with a design intended to offer leisure time perfection. ML Architettura designed the new headquarters of Golden Goose, a kind of architectural metamorphosis, the project has cleverly capitalized on the structural possibilities of two existing warehouses, transforming them into a work of contemporary architecture.

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The Plan 129 [04-2021]

Is it still possible for architecture and nature to coexist? This is the question posed by Tony Joseph from STAPATI in the #THEPLAN129 editorial. In Viaggio in Italia, Valerio Paolo Mosco looks at the autonomous architecture of Labics, opening a discussion with international relevance. But sustainability and nature are the focus of this issue. We look at the Biodome, a living museum redesigned by Canadian studio KANVA with NEUF architect(e)s, as well as the Xia Dynasty Museum in Erlitou, the work of TJAD and Rurban Studio. Also featured are a project by Piraccini+Potente Architettura that innovatively reinterprets the traditions of Italy’s Cesena area. Malfona Petrini Architetti reworks modern compositional traditions in its “house in the woods,” while the project by Robert Hutchison Architecture and JSa sets out to find a complete symbiosis between the built and natural environments. Our focus also extends to art, with Bonetti/Kozerski Architecture’s design for Pace Gallery, an example of living, monumental art gallery design that rewrites the Manhattan lexicon. We also look at an extraordinary project by Steven Holl Architects’ that balances light and lightness: Winter Visual Arts Building, Franklin & Marshall College.

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The Plan 128 [03-2021]

Issue 128 of The Plan opens with an analysis by Lorcan O’Herlihy of the relationship between the domestic and social spaces. Barreca & La Varra then offers a thoughtful design lesson on ideal performance levels in the art of construction. But the main focus of this month’s issue is educational architecture. Atelier(s) Alfonso Femia outlines what the architectural vision will be for the Italian school of tomorrow. With its project in Shanghai, OPEN Architecture demonstrates how it’s possible to deconstruct a school into a village-like campus. In its design for Harvard University’s Science and Engineering Complex, Behnisch Architekten has created high-performance architecture that replicates nature. The work of RMA Architects, the design of the School of Arts and Sciences, University of Ahmedabad, focuses on permeability, through both its materials and composition. Henley Halebrown embraces an orderly formalism with a hybrid project in the United Kingdom that showcases the firm’s unique style. Shinberg.Levinas has placed the emphasis on the public dimension in its contemporary urban design for an elementary school in Washington DC. Facilitating self-sufficiency, independence, and feelings of familiarity for students are all key elements in PBDW Architects’ design of the Cooke School & Institute. Finally, Marx / Ladurner Architekten balances the domestic dimension with the old and the new in its design of an elementary school in a small South Tyrolean community.

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