The library is conceived as a platform, with a unique intermediate post (10.80m range). All spaces are planned on a regular grid of 1.80m x 7.20m, which organizes all architectural and technical devices (lighting system, ventilation, furniture, façade, etc.) of the library in order to offer an open and flexible interior space.

The building envelop is designed as a “smart” skin, which controls internal spaces ambiance as well as views. The facade system is inspired by pine cone scales, which open or close according to the level of humidity in the air. The full height glass curtainwall is protected by wooden sun-shading, which angles changes along the facade according to the orientation of spaces. This system allows a gradual transition from protected zones to opened and transparent zones. This sun-shading is vertical for a better answer to the main western orientation of the building.

“There are a number of factors at play here that are contributing to one of the steepest construction downturns in generations,” says AIA chief economist, Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA. “We have businesses nervous about expanding their facilities, a fragile financial sector, excess commercial space and general unease in the international economy. Things should begin to turn around midway through next year with retail and hotels expected to see the strongest growth, along with health care and amusement and recreation facilities.”

Altoon + Porter transformed the CentralWorld, from an introverted complex world trade center maze into an engaging functional space allowing visitors to be exposed to the elements of modern design. As the second largest shopping complex in Southeast Asia, CentralWorld is the civic heart of Bangkok’s main shopping district. The project has been redeveloped as a mixed-use center designed to bring the excitement of the annual New Year’s Eve countdown all year round. It includes retail, offices, entertainment, leisure and hospitality space, as well as a visually stunning seven-story high, 350-meter long glass façade capable of hosting a digital Media Wall with the potential to project multiple LED images, ticker tape and lasers. The new high-tech face of the phenomenal center looks out on a revitalized plaza complete with fountains and gardens.

The redesign transforms the existing eight-story maze by opening up the plan and optimizing vertical circulation including stairs, escalators and elevators to the space behind the glass façade. In addition, the entire complex is a transit oriented development by virtue of a new bridge link to an adjacent train.

Just days before ICSC announced the “Best-of-the-Best” awards, political upheaval struck in the Bangkok shopping district, where rioters torched a portion of CentralWorld. Fortunately the damage from that event only affected one-sixth of the retail space.

“I just can’t adequately express my sadness about it,” said Ronald A. Altoon, FAIA, partner of Altoon + Porter Architects. ”It’s just tragic, but the mall will be rebuilt,” he said. “It was not only the largest shopping center in Thailand, but also the best-performing, so I look forward to the next iteration.”

Altoon + Porter Architects’ project team included: James F. Porter, AIA, partner-in-charge; Ronald A. Altoon, FAIA, LEED® AP, CDP, partner-for-design; William J. Sebring, AIA, design partner; and Mitchell Lawrence, AIA, CSI, project manager.

Designer Francisco Gonzalez-Pulido created Veer’s public spaces and lobbies, which showcase commissioned works by Richard Long and an abundance of natural light flowing through floor-to-ceiling windows.

“Arguably the most striking residential building in the world, Veer Towers is a masterful work of contemporary architecture offering buyers an immersive, artful lifestyle set within the urban mosaic of CityCenter,” said Tony Dennis, executive vice president, CityCenter residential division.

Each Veer Tower is home to approximately 335 contemporary condominium residences ranging from approximately 500 to 3,300 square feet. Residential options include studios; deluxe studios; one-, two- and three-bedroom flats; and penthouses.

Affirming its commitment to deliver a new level of environmental consciousness to the Las Vegas Strip, Veer Towers earned CityCenter’s sixth LEED® Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The accomplishment marks the highest LEED achievement by any hotel, retail district or residential development in Las Vegas. The 18-million-square-foot metropolis is one of the world’s largest private sustainable communities.

CLICK HERE to read about another CityCenter project.

The BHMA says this standard establishes finish test methods and code numbers for finishes on various base materials. Performance test methods for finishes are outlined in the standard.

CLICK HERE for more information, or to download a free copy of the ANSI/BHMA A156.18 – 2006 the American National Standard for Materials and Finishes.

Back in June the American Institute of Architects (AIA) hosted its national convention in Miami. More than 17,000 took part in the three-day event, which offered them the chance to take part in numerous learning sessions that provided continuing education credits. While class-room style lessons are important, you can also learn a lot by talking to other people in the industry to find out about their latest industry news, trends and developments. So in addition to the sessions, the AIA convention also included a trade show where hundreds of companies, including an impressive grouping from the glass and metal industry, offered up their newest products. Through their exhibitions, exhibitors brought their own type of education to architects—education about glass and energy performance; safety and security; and aesthetically pleasing design features.

The team at the Architects’ Guide to Glass & Metal  was at this year’s AIA Show and you can read our coverage of the event in the July-August issue, which subscribers will soon be receiving. In addition, our publication is now online in a digital format. Check out previous editions by CLICKING HERE.

And one last thing: the Architects’ Guide to Glass & Metal magazine is now on Twitter. You can follow us for news updates, show reports and much more by CLICKING HERE.

Ennead derives from the Greek term for a group of nine and expresses the aspirations and dynamic spirit of the practice as an innovative, collaborative and ever-evolving studio environment at the forefront of contemporary architecture and design.

The partners also announced that they are creating Ennead Lab, a private foundation dedicated to research, education and advocacy. The foundation underscores the partners’ conviction that beyond individual, commissioned projects, a vital architectural practice has responsibilities to society to address challenging issues of immediate concern. In so doing, architecture can become an instrument for positive artistic, social, technological and ecological change.

Ennead Architects’ work is diverse in type, scale, and location and ranges from new construction to renovations and expansions to restorations and master plans.

The firm has designed numerous buildings and structures, including the Rose Center for Earth and Space at the American Museum of Natural History, the William J. Clinton Presidential Center and the renovation of Carnegie Hall.

Paul Cocksedge Studio has designed Drop, a series of 3-metre high, polished, stainless steel discs situated on Festival Terrace that will reflect the buildings and landscape around the Royal Festival Hall. Cocksedge conceived Drop as “huge coins that have fallen to earth from a giant’s palm and buckled on impact.” In fact, the giant coins are magnetized to encourage human interaction, enabling passers-by to place spare pennies on the reflective surface, as a result altering the appearance of the installation. As more pennies are added, the work will evolve in front of the public’s eye as Drop’s surface becomes plated in copper. The ultimate aim is for each penny given, a pound will be donated to charity. Drop is being produced by FORMTEXX using its new process for creating double curvature facades.

In addition, architect David Chipperfield has created The Space in Between, a cityscape of nine modular blocks ranging from 2.8 metres to 5.8 metres high and covering 175 square metres. The Space in Between seamlessly transforms from shimmering towers in the sunlight to glowing, jewel-like beacons at night.

Chipperfiedls is working with Sefar®, a manufacturer of architectural textiles and glass manufacturer Bischoff Glastechink (BGT). With a light source hidden in the base of each block, as day turns to night each will begin to glow and the towers’ solidity, apparent in the day, will fall away, encouraging a new relationship between the cityscape and the audience. The installation, on Southbank Centre Square, is overlooked by the various elevated walkways at Southbank Centre as well as the street and surrounding plazas. The total composition oscillates between a large still life and a small cityscape where the space in between becomes the protagonist in the balancing of mass and space.

The project is organized around a central nucleus created by a theater of 300 seats. Its peripheral envelope is lifted above the hall to reveal the inside spaces and circulation. Trapezoidal windows are placed on the whole surrounding of the building avoiding the traditional “black box” effect of a theater located in the middle of an urban environment. According to Serero, “In opposition with the unique window used by [architect] F. Pouillon for all the housing of the district, we conceived a system of free formed windows, the geometry of which is derived from the canopy of trees.”

According to Serero, this project is conceived from the inside out, resulting in the manipulation of the ground and the roof which delimit spaces. The building cantilevers above the reception hall, protecting a large glazed surface from the sun and rain. All the spaces of circulation and reception are widely bathed in natural light, either by the curtainwall of the reception hall, or by the sheds on the roof of the studios. The variation in the size of wall aperture and windows gives a quality of foliage to the bright atmosphere, the firm adds.

Illumination inside the main hall changes throughout the day. Offices and working spaces are lit by multiple window apertures of free forms, which allow every work space to have one or two views of the outdoor and landscaped spaces.

The building is clad in an architectonic skin of white concrete which will integrate bits of gravel and limestone of Meudon in its composition. Conceived as a performative skin, the roof is an important element of this project and integrates devices for controlling the internal light and thermal atmosphere of the building. On the south side, photovoltaic panels will be installed to harvest part of the electrical energy consumed by the building.