Concretestairsolutions

The Bonfim house is a reconstruction of a pre existing home in Porto, north of Portugal, dated from the late 70s. It is intended for a young family living in the city. This family wanted a functional home with large, cleared areas with 4 floors and about 450sq. Our project team developed a concrete building based on the existing basis of volumes. The main windows are coated with a wood skin based in surrounding colors and materials. More

Built in 1929 the property began life as two duplexes, one of which was originally inhabited by the famous artist Sunday Reed before her move to Heide Gallery. Positioned in Melbourne's Domain precinct, this residence meshes the character filled historic architecture with the crisp detailing of a modern addition. Restoration of the dwelling internally and externally and thus creating united spaces was a key driver with the project architecturally, with the former expressed as an imposing building in the streetscape composed of many forms, including French Chateaux, Edwardian and Victorian. The architectural masterplan sought to celebrate the original structure and well proportioned spaces whilst updating them to provide a cohesive s... More

House in Costa Brava with views to the sea Two-storey house overlooking the sea in a sloping plot, which is accessed by a gangway to the upper floor level, destined to private use. The ground floor shows itself completely open to the sea in the corner, enjoying a terrace with pool and chillout. The vertical communication is located in the central area of the house, through an expressive staircase. Externally, the house is painted in chocolate color, favoring its camouflage in the surrounding landscape of pine trees and rocks. The materiality of the railing of the balcony, very openwork, favors the big star of this home, which is the Mediterranean Sea, the reason why it has been built. More

Located in the center of Ho Chi Minh city in Vietnam, the house was designed for two families; a couple in their sixties and their son’s couple with a child. The plot has a bilateral character. It is in a typical developing and urbanizing area in the city, facing to a noisy and dusty street. But it is also very close to the river and the Saigon Zoo with a plenty of greenery. Against a backdrop of this duality of its setting, the concept of the house is to accommodate two different lifestyles in a tropical climate; one is a natural and traditional lifestyle, utilizing natural lighting and ventilation with water and greenery, and the other is a modern and well-tempered lifestyle with mechanical equipments such as air-conditioners.... More

The building is located in the Colonia Roma, a historic neighbourhood in the central sector of Mexico City. La Roma developed in the 19th century as one of the first extensions of the city centre, with an orthogonal grid of large houses inhabited by the upper classes of the city. With the emergence of suburban life in the 50s, la Roma decreased its population throughout the second half of the 20th century, getting to its worst with earthquake of 1985. Due to the location of la Roma in what once was Lake Texcoco, the subsoil is highly muddy, so seismic waves are amplified; thus, during the strong earthquake of 85, la Roma was one of the more affected areas of the city: many buildings collapsed, and many of those which resisted were abandoned... More

Semidetached house This property is located in the midst of a forest of oak trees and therefore it wasn't possible to free some of the land for landscaping. This matter conditioned the position of the house and how it linked to the exterior. Big windows like picture frames connected the interior to the exterior and viewing terraces were built on the upper floor. The staircase distributes the areas and exaggerates the different levels which characterize this plot of land. An award winning sustainably built house in Spain with a raw concrete central staircase. The suspended stairs link the entry and living room with the second floor. The finishings are smooth and there are no superfluous elements. The use of limestone with matte finish pr... More

This house is located on the tropical coast of Yucatan, Mexico, its keynote idea being to confuse the borders existing between the "inside" and the "outside". This duality gives rise to surprises and a constant awareness of situations occurring outside. Movement (motion) becomes particularly important, as does the change from day to night and the changing of seasons. In order to converge with the outdoors, the architectural layout is created from a rectangular prism where sections have been removed thus creating "open spaces or courtyards". These five inner courtyards are the architectural sources of the house. Through these, the indoor spaces benefit from natural lighting during the day, as well as cross-ventilation and privacy due to t... More

This project is the first of a series of desert dwelling prototypes that comprise an ongoing body of research into off-grid living in a relatively extreme climate. All three research sites are located in the remote community of Los Zacatitos, in Baja California Sur, Mexico. The project's four detached buildings and their related exterior spaces are carefully arranged around the contours of a natural bowl on the four-acre site so as to catch prevailing breezes, allow seasonal arroyos to flow freely, and in response to existing granite outcrops and desert flora. Two smaller villas with sleeping accommodation flank the principal living space with a garage / utility structure placed behind these buildings forming an entry court. Each vi... More

Zellweger Park, a former industrial site in Uster, Switzerland, has been converted into a mixed-use neighborhood featuring high-quality architecture and contemporary art. Within this framework, Herzog & de Meuron have completed a building containing 32 apartments in the mid-range price segment. It is adjacent to the administrative headquarters and showroom pavilion of Zellweger Luwa, designed in the 1960s by the Swiss architect Roland Rohn. The eight-story cube is situated in the middle of the park on the shores of the Herterweiher. It stands at an angle to the neighboring buildings to maximize the orientation toward the sun. The apartments, with a square ground plan, are placed in the corners one above the other, affording views in two... More

Discover Issadesign's brand new offices Coveniently located in an ever growing neighborhood a step away from downtown, the headquarters of Issadesign are expending and reinventing themselves. Initiated since Spring of 2015, the reorganisation allows the separation between work space and the greet and meet point. Conceived on two floors, the new offices offer an inspiring and pleasant space for both clients and employees. On the first floor awaits a nest of creativity with at its center a long rallying conference table, surrounded by a selection of samples to inspire clients and contributors. Thanks to the cozy and intimate atmosphere, creation in symbosis and cooperation becomes completely natural. All dressed in white and bat... More

The design of Archipelago – Contemporary Arts Center – maintains the industrial character of the whole and highlights the dialogue between an existing building (former factory of alcohol / tobacco) and the new construction (arts and culture center, storage facilities, multipurpose hall / performing arts, laboratories, artist studios). The design does not exaggerate the differences between the old and the new buildings. On the contrary, it seeks to unite the different scales and times of its parts throughout a pictorial manipulation of the form and materiality of the buildings - the existing buildings demarked by the volcanic stone masonry and the new buildings characterized by an abstract form, without reference or allusion to any la... More

Located in the Swiss Alpine village of Lumino, just north of Bellinzona, this house stands as a monolithic element, quietly complementing and echoing its context. The surrounding area is characterised by traditional stone built houses, many of which date back centuries and are marked by their use of this single construction material. The new house is intended as a relevant response to and contemporary interpretation of the vernacular; its exposed reinforced concrete form recalls the revered strength and resonates the presence of these old stone houses. Sitting on the edge of the old village, the house acts as a sort of bastion between the old core and the modern residential expansion. In addition to the local scale references and materi... More

The harmony of contrasts... The own house as an architect´s confession The old house Two hundred years ago there was built a small and simple colony of houses called „Among Cottages“ aimed for poor workers in old village called Hloubětín in the East neighbourhood of historical Prague City. The village developed and joined the concept of „big Prague“ in 1922. Though the city grew around, the heart of the Cottages remained the same. So a1 could find a site in 2003 with a house still not even connected to the main city infrastructer with original latrine etc. The place has such a unique atmosphere, that one feels beeing in a countryside yet the underground station is 7minutes walk. The main feature of all the houses there is their pure si... More

The Cereza20 Residential Project consists of a versatile architectural program proposal for an adult couple. The housing conditions are optional. This means that the usage of the place may be either occupied entirely; or for future opportunities, it can be isolated depending on the conditions of the users. The program consists of 220 m2 area on a plot of 216 m2 surrounded by houses and buildings that can limit the view and illumination input, which is why the project’s proposal includes inside green areas made of patios and terraces in both floors. As the main focus of the project, the first floor central space of the house is designed as a double height lobby and includes the inner green patio spaces overlooking a glass wall through... More