Archinect - News

A rustic ‘entertainment barn’ in California’s wine country is completed by Malcolm Davis Architecture

2024-04-19T11:31:00-04:00

San Francisco-based Malcolm Davis Architecture (MDa) has completed a rural timber home addition in Northern California Wine Country. Titled Wine Country Barn, the scheme is described by its designers as “a testament to modern architecture’s ability to blend harmoniously with nature.”

Image credit: Joe Fletcher

The project client sought a communal living space for weekends with family and friends. Originally imagined as a large addition to the original house, the projects evolved into an “entertainment barn and guest house addition.” For the scheme’s design, MDa drew inspiration from the region’s rustic barns, while incorporating modern detailing, including locally harvested redwood siding to reflect the area’s history as a mill town.

Image credit: Joe Fletcher

The resulting building features a guest suite, covered parking, and an outdoor kitchen and living space, with interiors by Grant Gibson Interior Design. The design unites the e...

Rafael Viñoly Architects designs vineyard atop an airport terminal in Italy

2024-01-25T11:47:00-05:00

Rafael Viñoly Architects has designed a new international terminal for the Aeroporto Amerigo Vespucci in Florence, Italy. When completed, the 538,000-square-foot terminal is expected to handle 5.9 million annual international passengers.

Image credit: Rafael Viñoly Architects

The airport’s most unique feature is a 19-acre vineyard gently sloping upwards atop the building, covering the terminal below. The landscape will see 38 rows of vineyards to both contribute to the airport’s LEED Platinum rating and symbolize “Italy’s rich traditions and innovative spirit.” Wine produced from the vineyard will be crafted and aged in specialized cellars beneath the terminal’s roof.

Image credit: Rafael Viñoly Architects

Inside, the airport will see an arrivals and departures area facing each other across a large public space, dubbed the ‘Piazza.’ at the center of the terminal. Circulation within the airport will also be reorganized to link to transport options such as a new light rail system, whil...

Look at the process behind Olafur Eliasson's colorful glass canopy in California Wine Country

2022-08-04T12:00:00-04:00

Work has been completed on the Vertical Panorama Pavilion in Sonoma, California. Designed by Studio Other Spaces, a Berlin studio founded by artist Olafur Eliasson and architect Sebastian Behmann, the pavilion will be used as a space for wine tasting by The Donum Estate, one of California’s leading Pinot Noir producers.

Image © The Donum Estate and Studio Other Spaces

The scheme was conceived through a deep reflection on the site’s natural elements, taking what the designers call a “vertical slice” through the site. Such elements include the crunching sound of walking on a gravel path, the fragrances of surrounding soil and flora, the sound of wind, grass, and insects, and the formations of clouds and fog.

Image © The Donum Estate and Studio Other Spaces

The pavilion’s defining architectural feature is its conical canopy with a northern-oriented oculus, clad with 832 colored laminated glas...

Chybik + Kristof Architects complete archetypal winery in the Czech Republic

2020-09-09T15:37:00-04:00

Chybik + Kristof Architects & Urban Designers have completed construction of the Lahofer Winery in the Czech Republic. Nestled in the Morovian countryside, the winery embraces the region's archetypal cellar design through a vaulted design that rests on a grid of arched beams housing three interconnected structures.

The production facility displays the wine-making processes and lies adjacent to the visitor center and tasting room. Above the the building lies the roof that serves as an amphitheater for cultural events open to the public. The seamless connectivity of the roof draping to the ground creates a fluid continuation of the buildings integration with the surrounding landscape.

Inside, the visitor center is enclosed in a glass facade and faces south, drawing in plenty of natural light, while highlighting the natural wood and concrete materials throughout the cellar.

"The design of the Lahofer Winery is deeply rooted in nature, and in the respect thereof," Founding Architects On...

Signum Architecture designs sustainably minded Napa Valley winery and office

2018-01-22T20:03:00-05:00

Built atop the rolling hills of eastern Napa Valley in California, the Odette Estate Winery was designed with sustainable farming and wine production in mind. Designer Signum Architecture was awarded as an Industrial Building category winner for the project in the 2017 American Architecture Prize competition.

Photo: Adrian Gregorutti.

With Signum Architecture partner Juancarlos Fernandez as design lead, the Odette facility features a green roof that appears to have emerged from the earth. At the front, sliding perforated aluminum screens veil the winery's covered crush pad and open-air workspace. The screens emit a back-lit glow in the evening, while the perforations allow for ventilation.

Photo: Adrian Gregorutti.

According to the architects, the sweeping graceful curves on the side of the building were inspired by a swan’s wing, a reference to the famous Tchaikovsky ballet character Odette. Behind the screens are three repurposed shi...

New Château Margaux wine bottle design features Norman Foster's architecture

2017-12-28T15:12:00-05:00

Pritzker Prize winning Norman Foster is the latest starchitect to work on a storied wine estate and his client is honoring him in a very special way. Château Margaux, one of Bordeaux’s oldest and most highly-regarded wineries, broke tradition and released a sleek, new bottle design featuring the British architect’s modern building etched in silver. The redesign for the 2015 Grand Vin is the first in Château Margaux’s 500-year history [...].

If you happen to be a wine-loving fan of Lord Foster's œuvre and are considering to add a bottle of Château Margaux 2015 to your collection, be prepared to (currently) shell out around $1,400 a pop.

Château Margaux's modern 2015 addition by Foster + Partners. Photo: Nigel Young.

Photo: Nigel Young.

The Architecture of Wine

2012-08-07T14:10:00-04:00

[...] the architecture of wine is faced with a much greater challenge than meeting the very specific technical requirements of winemaking, it has to celebrate the process. Nowadays, wineries like religious buildings, are the must-visit destinations for tourists, where people go in droves on alcoholic pilgrimages.

6 Napa Valley wineries architectural statements

2012-03-21T18:54:00-04:00

Contrary to first architectural impression, not every Napa winery is either a stylized barn too good to be true or an exercise in Mediterranean make-believe. There's austerity as well as opulence, understatement along with over-the-top. You simply need to know where to look.

Student Project Used by City to Define Its Future

2011-08-02T12:56:44-04:00

Councilwoman Diaz said she heard about the Cal Poly student's proposal accidentally during a chance encounter on a plane flight to the Bay Area.

I always tell graduating students to take their projects to real life and grass root campaign them. Well, so it happened to one Cal Poly, Pomona architecture student John Barlow, class of 2010 advised by professor Kip Dickson, when his project fell into the hands of interested Escondido City Council and the rest of the story is very inspiring for young graduates of design schools.

"City officials say a new proposal to have developers or venture capitalists build a cooperative wine-processing plant in Escondido could turn the city into a prominent wine-growing region."

See the pdfs of the project here.