Archinect - News

Zaha Hadid Architects will refurbish Le Schuylkill Tower in Monaco

2024-03-12T12:15:00-04:00

The next new project from Zaha Hadid Architects will renovate major elements of the historic Le Schuylkill Tower in Monaco.

Built as the principality’s first high-rise in 1963, the aging 25-story residential tower overlooks the Mediterranean and Monte Carlo’s Port Hercule and boasts 188 apartment units in its present layout.

Image courtesy MIR

Joined by Square Architecte, ZHA will embark on a renovation that will result in a brand new 441,320-square-foot space in May of 2027. The operation will add six total penthouses made from low-carbon (XCarb) steel to the three uppermost floors while reconfiguring the interior and balconies without any alteration to the building footprint, as well as reducing whole-life carbon emissions through a BD2M accreditated design.

Image render courtesy Talcik Demovicova

Other environmental considerations include grey and rainwater recycling, improving the building’s envelope performance, and an on-site waste management system.

The new building will also...

Louis Kahn-designed Graduate Theological Union building in Berkeley reopens following two-year renovation

2023-11-24T15:15:00-05:00

After two years of alterations, the Louis Kahn-designed Hewlett Building at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA has reopened. According to the college, the renovations were undertaken to “better serve the needs of students” while remaining loyal to Kahn’s original vision.

Image credit: Graduate Theological Union

Kahn was selected to design the building in 1972 but passed away two years later while the scheme’s final drawings were being produced. Having subsequently been delivered by local firm Peters, Clayberg, and Caulfield in association with Esherick, Homsey, Dodge, and Davis, the Hewlett Building is one of few projects of Kahn’s completed after his death.

Image credit: Graduate Theological Union

The latest alterations to the building began in 2022, led by local firm Russell Architects. Among the stated goals of the college for the renovations were to bring the institution’s community “under one roof and offer more collaborative spaces to gather in study, classroom setti...

'A home for tea and life': Japanese and Ukrainian influences blend harmoniously in this Kyoto house renovation

2023-09-25T12:25:00-04:00

Ukraine-based MAKHNO Studio has completed work on a residence in Kyoto, Japan inspired by “sado,” a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. The century-old dwelling has been refurbished with attention to its history and the preservation of authentic elements while “adding a drop of Ukrainian color to the Japanese context.”

Image credit: Naoki Miyashita

The experience begins at the house's entrance, marked by a small tea garden named “roji.” Adorned with Japanese ritual stones and Ukrainian DIDO art sculptures from the MAKHNO workshop, the roji garden sets the tone for a tranquil visit, whose “good entities protect the house from sad thoughts and uninvited guests.”

Image credit: Naoki Miyashita

Upon entry through the “genkan,” or entrance hall, guests are greeted by a collection of Japanese and Ukrainian art. The main living area, segmented by a traditional Japanese screen known as “byobu,” serves multiple functions, showcasing art a...

SPARK and Arup create a retrofitted mall and education hub in the heart of Singapore's Selegie Arts District

2023-08-02T15:49:00-04:00

International architectural and design consultancy SPARK, alongside ARUP, has brought an eye-catching, youth-focused mall and education hub to the heart of Singapore’s Selegie Arts District. Situated between the adjacent School of the Arts Singapore (SOTA) and several long-standing shopping malls, this vibrant refurbished space serves as a new beacon for the surrounding area.

Entrance. Image: KhooGuoJie

Called GRiD, the project centered on the purpose of increasing asset value through social interaction, increased accessibility, and the celebration of self and community. The building was deliberately designed to stand out, with its neon-clad façade and supersized graphics. GRiD reimagines the corner that it sits after replacing what the architects described as an “unproductive 4-storey void.”

Atrium view. Image: KhooGuoJie

The new structure has a Tetris-like arrangement of stacked retail and dining volumes and terraces. The voided spaces encourage direct connections to the basement le...

Norman Foster-designed high-tech icon used in James Bond film to receive $6 million refurbishment

2023-08-01T14:59:00-04:00

The Norman Foster-designed Spectrum Building was used as a backdrop for A View to a Kill (1985), the fourteenth installment in the James Bond series. The single-story warehouse, distinguished by its bright yellow steel masts, is a high-tech architecture icon.

Now, it has been reported that global real estate investment company AEW is investing approximately $6 million to refurbish the site. According to a report from Swindon Advertiser, currently, "£4.7 million will be invested by global real estate investment and asset manager AEW in an attempt to refurbish the site which opened in 1983."

Previously on Archinect: Norman Foster-designed warehouse, featured in James Bond film, joins UK heritage list

The project will include a roof refurbishment, repair, and redecoration of the steel frame and cladding. Work on the 260,000-square-foot structure is expected to be completed in May 2024.

In 2013 the structure was given Grade II* listed status by English Heritage for its innovative indus...

RIBA pauses 66 Portland Place renovation for a year

2023-05-04T16:54:00-04:00

RIBA’s well-publicized overhaul of its longtime 66 Portland Place headquarters building has been put off for at least a year, according to a report published today in the Architects’ Journal.

London-based Benedetti Architects has been in charge of the £20 million ($25 million) renewal scheme, which was supposed to entail a thorough interior remodeling to include a host of modern amenities, including a broadcasting center, for its members and House of Architecture initiative. RIBA President Simon Allford described the project as being both “urgent and essential” at the time of its announcement.

The firm had been selected by the organization over a group of shortlisted submissions that included Hugh Broughton Architects, Hall McKnight, David Kohn Architects, Roz Barr Architects, Feix&Merlin, and four others. A spokesperson for RIBA told AJ they are “reviewing the Stage 1 feasibility study and exploring funding options for a significant capital project.”

Earlier on Archinect: RIBA is ...

UNStudio refurbishes former banking HQ in Eindhoven

2023-04-11T17:55:00-04:00

UNStudio has just unveiled a completed redesign of a former bank headquarters building called Fellenoord 15 in the Dutch city of Eindhoven.

The project transformed the former Rabobank HQ into a 32,000-square-meter (344,440-square-foot) governmental facility equipped with the latest building management technology and capable of hosting more flexible work concepts that are better constituted for the demands of our century.

The building before its transformation. Image: Studio Hans Wilschut

The completed building following the redesign. Image: Studio Hans Wilschut

Taking the shell of the existing building, UNStudio says they were able to save roughly 40% of the CO2 footprint required by new construction. Its design enables the use of a new public space between the building’s entrance and the adjacent bus station. A series of high-tech sensors decreases energy consumption while increasing the efficiency of workers’ use of the building through data.

Image: Evabloem

Geotherma...

[Y/N] Studio's East London retrofit offers a fresh start for the Bradbury Works community hub

2023-03-06T14:17:00-05:00

London-based [Y/N] Studio has just released photos of its new Bradbury Works retrofit commercial project in the Dalston neighborhood of the city's Hackney borough.

Located in Gillett Square, the scheme refurbished existing workspaces in a Victorian-era brick masonry building while adding ten new mini retail units and a two-story extension to provide increased usability and interaction between its tenants and their neighbors in the square.

While retaining the brick facade and retail spaces located on the terrace level of the structure, Y/N’s project team was able to add larger workspaces, each with private mezzanines, to the third floor while ensuring improved cross ventilation through the addition of a new access deck that also provides tenants with a sweeping view of the capital.

Image courtesy French and Tye

Another double-height covered external terrace is enacted between the retail component and third-floor workspaces. Finally, the design comes wrapp...

An Edwardian terrace house refurbished as a sleek, energy-saving abode in London

2023-02-16T15:32:00-05:00

British firm Architecture for London has recently completed the extension and refurbishment of a traditional Edwardian terrace house into a modern, energy-efficient home.

Photo: Lorenzo Zandri and Christian Brailey, courtesy of Architecture for London

Called Low Energy House, the residence is located in Muswell Hill, a suburban district in north London, and aimed to set an example of a sustainable refurbishment of a typical terraced home with a constrained budget. The project’s embodied energy and energy in-use were taken into heavy consideration.

Photo: Lorenzo Zandri and Christian Brailey, courtesy of Architecture for London

The energy requirements were reduced through insulating, triple-glazing, and improving airtightness. The home was extended via a rear extension and a loft conversion.

The home incorporates a timber structure, a continuous airtight layer, and insulation to the entire building envelope. The walls were insulated externally at the side and rear and internally at t...

Milwaukee to renovate 150 of its vacant homes in an effort to create affordable housing and jobs

2022-09-15T10:00:00-04:00

Milwaukee’s $15 million proposal to renovate 150 vacant, city-owned homes is moving forward. On Monday, the Department of City Development (DCD) announced the development teams, a mix of nonprofit and for-profit developers, that will participate in the first round of the Homes MKE initiative. The participants were selected from a request-for-proposals (RFP) process that generated a tremendous response.

A total of 66 proposals were submitted, an unprecedented number according to the DCD, with 15 developers selected. Milwaukee will sell the houses for as little as $1 and provide an estimated $75,000 development subsidy and grant a $5,000 workforce subsidy. Following the renovations, the properties can be sold to owner-occupants, rented out, or placed into a rent-to-own program.

The MKE initiative is funded by $394.2 million in federal money from the American Rescue Plan Act, which was created to offer pandemic aid. As reported by Urban Milwaukee, the properties cannot be flipped to another investor-owner. Unless sold to an owner-occupant, the homes must be developer-owned for at least five years. In addition, developers are required to provide work to unemployed or underemployed city residents. 50% of employees must also reside in a collection of specific zip codes, and they must be paid a living wage of at least $12.21 per hour.

The Eiffel Tower is getting a new 60 million euro paint job in lieu of some much-needed repairs

2022-07-12T12:01:00-04:00

According to CNN, the unnamed need for maintenance was first uncovered in confidential reports obtained by the French periodical Marianne. Rust damage to the structure has accumulated over the years, a product of the lead contained within the paint which was originally meant to protect its steel from oxidizing but is now slowly making its condition worse in the opinion of at least one structural engineer with knowledge of the situation.

As Marianne noted, this represents the 20th time the tower, which Gustave Eiffel originally conceived of as a 20-year temporary installation, has been repainted since its debut as the centerpiece of the 1889 Exposition Universelle. The latest round will reportedly cover a mere 5% of the entire 1,063-foot structure. An unnamed expert told the magazine: "At best, it will be mostly useless, but at the very worst, it will make the defects in the existing layer of paint worse and result in corrosion."

Related on Archinect: Paris mayor announces €300M Eif...

RIBA taps Benedetti Architects to lead its 66 Portland Place HQ overhaul

2022-05-26T15:31:00-04:00

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has finally picked an architect for its 66 Portland Place refurbishment.

The organization announced today that it has selected Benedetti Architects in the national competition to lead the overhaul of its aged neoclassical headquarters first designed by architect George Grey Wornum in the early 1930s.

Benedetti was selected over shortlisted submissions from Hugh Broughton Architects, Hall McKnight, David Kohn Architects, Roz Barr Architects, Feix&Merlin (with Haptic Architects & Heritage Architecture), Donald Insall Associates, Freehaus, and IDK. The London-based firm will now work with the RIBA on a feasibility study that will include the appointment of several additional smaller practices.

Previously on Archinect: RIBA unveils shortlisted firms to lead 66 Portland Place HQ refurbishment

Benedetti’s founder, Renato Benedetti, said being chosen was a “tremendous honor” and that he agreed it needed “comprehensive improvements to be fit ...

RIBA unveils shortlisted firms to lead 66 Portland Place HQ refurbishment

2022-03-03T13:45:00-05:00

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has revealed a shortlist of seven teams in the running to lead the refurbishment and modernization of its 66 Portland Place headquarters in London.

RIBA announced the planned redesign in October in a move that aims to reimagine the use of its buildings as a majority of its workers report that they prefer to work from home due to the pandemic. In January, RIBA Chartered Practices formally issued a tender for practices to submit expressions of interest to help develop a brief, including design options and budget proposals to create a fully accessible, more flexible, and sustainable building. RIBA also wants to establish three new gallery spaces. The winning team is expected to lead the project and coordinate the design team appointed to deliver the refurbishment.

Previously on Archinect: RIBA is officially looking for architects to overhaul its aging 66 Portland Place headquarters

The project forms part of RIBA’s House of Architecture ...

Neue Nationalgalerie finally reopens in Berlin following a David Chipperfield Architects-led restoration

2021-08-24T13:16:00-04:00

Berlin's Neue Nationalgalerie is finally back open following a six-year, $160 million refurbishment by David Chipperfield Architects.

The original Mies van der Rohe building from 1968 now features a restored glass facade, expanded exhibition space, sculpture garden, and improved LED lighting.

Chipperfield incorporated an earlier unrealized design for a Bacardi Rum corporation building in Cuba. The building itself was taken apart in 35,000 individual segments which each required their own 16-digit bar codes.

“We had to turn over every stone,” DCA’s Martin Reichert told the Art Newspaper last week before the museum reopening. “But we had to treat it with the same care shown by restorers handling a world-famous artwork. After 50 years of use with no refurbishment, there were a great many deficits—this was not just a case of fixing things, it was about making sure it survives the next 30 to 40 years without additional renovation work.”

Bloot Architecture refurbishes rundown 1950s villa into the charming Patio House

2017-10-25T19:41:00-04:00

Located at the edge of the National Park Veluwezoom nature reserve in the Dutch town of Velp, the Patio House was formerly a rundown 1950s villa. Just this year, Bloot Architecture successfully refurbished and expanded the building into an inviting, spacious new residence.

The architects limited the use of partition walls and added larger windows and passage ways to create better connectivity between the different spaces of the home and to allow natural light to filter in. As a zero-energy building, the house has solar panels on its roof to provide energy for heating and electricity, eliminating the use of gas.

Photo © Ossip van Duivenbode.

The architects also added a new concrete extension with a patio. “The concrete beam in the façade of the original house still defines the characteristics of the villa. Parallel with this beam is the unde...

The stalled refurbishment of The Palace of Westminster

2017-10-02T04:39:00-04:00

The move would raise fascinating questions about the need to replicate habits that are tied to the layout of the current chamber – voting by trooping through “aye” and “no” lobbies, for example. Archaic linguistic protocols might seem doubly peculiar when expressed in a more modern setting. People’s behaviour is shaped by their environment and it is unlikely that parliamentary culture could be unaffected by transplant to a space unlike the unique one in which it has been nurtured.

The Palace of Westminster has been in a state of advanced disrepair for many years now. Though a plan for the building's massive £3.5bn refurbishment headed by BDP was announced last year, the government has avoided taking the decision to proceed.

The main reason for the delay in action on the crumbling Palace is financial. Yet as the the Guardian notes, the spending is necessary and justified since operational facilities are crucial in ensuing "the effective functioning of the democracy" and the structure's heritage value is hard to overestimate. While traditionalists and modernists argue over restoration and the observers contemplate the impact various spaces might have on the functioning of the parliament, prompt relocation might be the best next move since the delay is only driving costs upwards.

Brutalist block repurposed for 21st century Royal Docks workspaces

2017-09-01T01:29:00-04:00

A former beer factory in the Royal Docks is set to become London’s newest creative workspace hub, which will open later this year. The Silver Building, from SODA and Nick Hartwright, will be one of the first elements of the Royal Docks’ regeneration, which will continue throughout the next 15 years.

Brutalism is quickly becoming one of London's most celebrated styles, with the love for these post-war concrete structures growing over recent years. This project will build on the city’s hunger for not only iconic modernist buildings, but for creative spaces.

Photo Credit: Agnese Sanvito, Luke O’Donovan

The project bears the hallmarks of most regeneration hubs in London, providing cafes, galleries, function rooms, breakout spaces, studios, and workshops. The importance of these community-friendly creative hubs within London cannot be ignored; this project is a great solution to the scarcity of available workspaces for start-ups and small businesses in the city. With 50,000 square-foot...

The UK parliament to be restored by BDP

2017-07-19T18:06:00-04:00

The full scope of work includes architecture, civil and structural engineering, building services engineering, interior design, landscape architecture, lighting design, acoustics and planning. Since its construction in the mid-1800s, many systems in the palace have never undergone a major renovation, and the heating, ventilation, water, drainage and electrical systems are antiquated.

BDP's London studio beat Allies and Morrison, Foster + Partners and HOK in the competition and has been awarded a full interdisciplinary contract for client advisory services for the refurbishment of the Palace of Westminster, the meeting place for the two houses of the UK parliament.

The firm will be collaborating with heritage and conservation specialist Donald Insall Associates, civil and structural engineer Alan Baxter Associates, building services engineer Hoare Lea and planning consultancy Gerald Eve.

City of London’s One Poultry to become design-led creative office

2017-03-27T13:43:00-04:00

Development manager General Projects, along with architects BuckleyGrayYeoman, have been commissioned to re-establish the building as a Grade A HQ office and retail building, thoughtfully designed around the evolving needs of today’s creative sector businesses, whilst celebrating and reconstituting the building’s original splendour as a masterpiece of modern British architecture.

One Poultry, completed almost two decades ago in 1998, is both an iconic and striking building, located above Bank underground station in the heart of the City, with neighbours including the Royal Exchange and the Bank of England. Recently awarded Grade II* listing, One Poultry, with its characteristic, colourful material usage and prominent positioning, is truly a landmark building. Recent exhibitions, books, and talks have focused on the history of this project; of the start of the site, and the turbulent unbuilt plans of the previous Mies van der Rohe design.

BuckleyGrayYeoman's scheme, which will deliver 110,000sqft of inspirational Grade A offices, will maintain the solid, inspirational, postmodernist style with commissioned artwork, generous facilities, and ‘gallery-style volumes’ including ceilings soaring to almost four metres.

The surrounding area is soon to reflect the City’s ‘vibrant future’ too, with a new hotel from the Soho House Group and the Foster + Partners design fo...

Paris mayor announces €300M Eiffel Tower renovation

2017-01-16T13:05:00-05:00

The Eiffel Tower is to undergo a €300m, 15-year refurbishment, Paris’s mayor Anne Hidalgo announced on Friday. [...] The planned refurbishment is intended to bolster the French capital’s bids to host another World’s Fair in 2025 and, before that, the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic games [...]. The project will be managed by the tower’s operator, the Société d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel, a public service company wholly owned by the City Council.

The 15-year refurbishment of this most-visited monument anywhere in the world (the 127-year-old wrought iron structure has been operating at its maximum capacity of about 7 million visitors since 2003, according to Wikipedia) will take more than a few buckets of paint and also comprises the modernization of the elevators, viewing gallery, security and access facilities, as well as the light show systems.

Step inside The Bartlett's new central London HQ, designed by Hawkins\Brown

2016-12-16T20:09:00-05:00

After calling the Wates House their home since the 1970s, the UCL Bartlett School of Architecture celebrated the official opening of its newly refurbished headquarters today on 22 Gordon Street in Bloomsbury. Collaborating with the Bartlett and UCL Estates, architect Hawkins\Brown doubled the size of the existing building to 8,500 square meters.

Preserving some of the original fabric of the old Wates House and using the existing structural concrete frame, the new “flexible and robust” building now includes a public gallery and provides more open working space for the school's 1,000 students and staff.

Hawkins\Brown added a fifth and sixth floor, and a main spiraling stairway within a full-height atrium. The renovation also includes double-height glazing at ground level and a new prominent entrance to create a more inviting building in its city-center location.

“A large number of the Hawkins\Brown team are alumni of the Bartlett and have fond memories of the old Wates House,” Hawkins\B...

First glimpse of Foster + Partners and Rubio Arquitectura's Museo del Prado expansion scheme

2016-11-28T18:42:00-05:00

The Museo del Prado in Madrid has big plans for its 200th anniversary celebration in 2019. Among those plans is an expansion of the museum campus and the restoration of the historic Salón de Reinos, all of which Foster + Partners and Spanish practice Rubio Arquitectura will be in charge of designing. The team won over seven notable contenders in an international competition that included OMA, Nieto Sobejano, Souto Moura, and Gluckman Tang.

Following the museum's last major extension by architect Rafael Moneo in 1998, this expansion focuses on refurbishing the Salón de Reinos (or Hall of Realms), one of the surviving pieces of the former 17th-century Buen Retiro Palace. The expansion will also create additional gallery space for the Prado Museum's permanent and temporary exhibitions.

Read on for an excerpt from Foster + Partners' and Rubio Arquitectura's winning proposal, “Hidden Design”:

“The primary protagonist is the noble Hall of Realms, a monument which has gathered many layers o...

Salk Institute to be refurbished by The Getty Conservation Institute

2016-09-27T14:38:00-04:00

Fungal biofilm and water sealant failure have added a black patina to the Salk Institute's iconic teak paneling, making the material vulnerable to decay. In order to save what is considered to be one of the world's finest architectural projects (and coolest structural alignment of the sunset save for perhaps Manhattanhenge), the Getty Conservation Institute undertook three years of careful study and is now ready to start implementing those improvements.

According to Getty Conservation Institute project specialist Sara Lardinois, “The GCI sought to address issues on a long-term basis while preserving cultural significance and addressing the needs of those managing the site. Our aim was to help the Salk Institute incorporate a conservation approach into its overall site management at a critical point in the building’s history—the 50-year mark often coincides with the need for a first major repair in modern buildings.”

For more on all things Louis Kahn:

Kimbell’s $135 Million Expansion ...

Ackroyd + Associates design technically advanced photographic studio at Alva West

2016-08-18T12:15:00-04:00

Alva Studios is a well known photography studio company known for providing the most technically advanced facilities. Their new studio, a large refurbished warehouse, in West London is designed by the architects Ackroyd + Associates. Together they are working to create London's most pioneering photographic facility, with an array of one-off features such as an automated adjustable ceiling, mechanical green screens and automated daylight control.

The scale of the studios is epic, but the ancillary spaces - the lounges, restaurant, galleries, and snugs - are intentionally designed to a more human scale.

The luxurious aesthetic for these spaces is derived from a contemporary interpretation of the industrial warehouse; polished screeds, full height pivoting crittal glazed screens, and distressed timber.

A+A worked with closely with steel fabricators, joiners and craftsmen to achieve the highest quality of finish. Many elements were prototyped to ensure that they had the correct feel and t...

What does a $1 million dollar staircase look like?

2016-06-01T13:50:00-04:00

The new building design introduced massive 40 foot sliding glass doors that could one day turn that store into an iCar showroom if they wanted to. The estimated breakdown of the costs started with the shell of the building costing Apple $19 million. Some of the other costs included $1 million on the staircase alone. If there's 30 stairs that $33,333 per stair.

While Norman Foster's "spaceship" design for the Apple Campus has attracted its own share of critiques for possibly reviving older corporate design models, this newly refurbished Apple Store appears to be heading for a far more multi-faceted (and luxurious) future. In an era where many prefer to order online than trek in person, must a brick and mortar store necessarily be flashier to attract and maintain a customer base?

Apple, in the news:

Breaking CAD: from meth house to Ball State studio project

2016-04-06T18:17:00-04:00

A group of fourth-year Ball State architecture students are refurbishing a former meth house in the Thomas Park-Avondale neighborhood in Muncie as a studio project. The studio class is working with ecoREHAB, a local nonprofit that provides sustainable rehabilitation of housing and neighborhoods. “The whole goal is to revitalize the community more so than to earn money,” said Taylor Sheppard, a senior architecture major.

For more on drugs in architecture:

U.S. Capitol building to receive much-needed facelift

2014-03-27T13:42:00-04:00

Since the Civil War, the majestic dome of the U.S. Capitol has symbolized the unity of the United States, despite the discord in the government it overlooks. [...] But the dome has lately grown as fractured as the federal government, and Tuesday the Architect of the Capitol announced that a $59 million project to save it would begin next month. [...] There are now hundreds of cracks and deficiencies, and water already has stained parts of the Capitol’s interior.