Architects still found new and innovative ways to use concrete this year, like using the ground next to the building to cast the concrete or using robotically milled formwork.
1. 35 Green Corner by Studio Anne Holtrop
The concrete facade elements were cast by Studio Anne Holtrop using the ground next to the building. This way each element has a unique imprint from the relief of the sand. The resulting concrete has a surprising rock-like appearance.
2. The Cloudscape of Haikou by MAD Architects
MAD Architects used what they call an "anti-material" approach to avoid expression of the structure. The fair-faced concrete of the sculptural library pavilion is interpreted by the architects as a liquid material to emphasize its flowing spatial experience.
3. Kunsthaus Göttingen by Atelier ST
Atelier ST aimed to embed the new building naturally into its historical setting and yet create a clearly recognizable house of arts. The monolithic facade, with only a few shimmering metallic openings, marks a contemporary venue.
4. INES by Pezo von Ellrichshausen
Primary shapes play a key role in Pezo von Ellrichshausen’s design for the INES innovation center, located on the Bío-Bío university campus in Concepción, Chile. The square floorplan has a circular atrium that runs through the entire building and oval bites taken out of the edges.
5. Little Island by Heatherwick Studio
Heatherwick Studio set the original brief to create a pavilion on an enlarged waterfront jetty aside for the opportunity to rethink what a pier could be. On top of the stumps remains of a former pier the studio realized a completely new park as an oasis away from busy city life.
6. Cusanus Academy by MoDus Architects
In Bressanone (South Tyrol, Italy), MoDus Architects have taken a subtle approach to the renovation of and addition to the Cusanus Academy, which is considered to be a modernist masterpiece.
7. Astrup Have by NORRØN
This new recreational farmhouse designed by Danish architecture studio NORRØN embraces Danish ruralism and bridges history and contemporary ways of living. Coined around concepts of biodynamic food production, freely grazing animals and farm to table, the design evokes the region’s vernacular building tradition and inquisitively reinterprets the traditional Danish farmhouse.
8. Tsuruoka house by Kiyoaki Takeda Architects
Tsuruoka House by Kiyoaki Takeda Architects is a concept that attempts to sustain not only people but also nature. Sites are usually divided into ‘gardens’ and ‘houses,’ resulting in a relationship of nature and architecture being next to each other. Here the idea of stacking ‘garden’ and house’ is explored through a cross-sectional plan.
9. House S2 by bellafilarquitectes
Located in the ‘Els Emperadors’ sector of l’Escala, Girona, Spain, House S2 by bellafilarquitectes was developed to respect the integrity of the site’s pre-existing trees, which form part of a broader extensive pine forest.
10. Casa en Tres Ríos by César Béjar Studio
Free of the ornamentation that different materials tend to evoke, the particular quality of Casa en Tres Rios by César Béjar Studio lies in its monochromatic nature. A solid mass inserted between party walls, the house finds lightness in its condition of being heavy, breaking with its surrounding through the use of colour, shape and texture.
