Courtyard architecture

The new vocational school for construction trades is located in a central area of Zurich, Switzerland. Gunz & Künzle Architects designed the building to maximize the number of classrooms while also creating valuable public spaces for the neighborhood. The slender building follows the street and creates a spacious courtyard that connects to the public functions on the school's first floor. Federico Farinatti Federico Farinatti Federico Farinatti Federico Farinatti Federico Farinatti Federico Farinatti Federico Farinatti Federico Farinatti This piano nobile, which acts as a truss frame structure, is suspended over the gymnasiums that extend from the basement to the ground floor.  While th... More

This holiday villa is located in the rural area of Pudong, Shanghai. The owner plans to demolish the old house and construct a new one to accommodate two families. When they return from urban life to the countryside, they can spend weekends and holidays with the grandparents. The extended family can gather together, enjoy the tranquility of rural life, and unwind in a natural setting. WM STUDIO WM STUDIO Our main design strategies include the following elements. “Green” is placed first. Although the site overlooks an orchard and has a ground area in front of the building area that could serve as a garden, we aim to weave greenery throughout the house to dissolve the boundaries and isolation between interior and exteri... More

In the new urban district on Amsterdam’s Oostenburgereiland, a compact residential ensemble was realised on an exceptionally narrow plot along the blind side wall of a high parking building. Common Practice and Studio AAAN made the masterplan with 64 dwellings around a striking courtyard and designed two apartment buildings with special mid-rent housing, in which as many collective and private spaces as possible have a relationship with the serene courtyard. Max Hart Nibbrig Within the complex conditions, the plan seeks to find human scale and a special living experience with various architectural interventions. The mass is divided into four buildings, each with its own entrance hall, typology and character, and at the same time... More

For some years a Sydney-based family had enjoyed their holidays in a tiny pre-fabricated house on the beachfront lot but had finally outgrown it. They wanted to improve the accommodation and take better advantage of the opportunities of the location and aspect while retaining a relaxed, simple pattern of inhabiting the site.The design response was to retain the open, exposed, and windswept nature of the site, and to allow the envelope of the house to provide privacy, security, and protection from the elements, literally the house as a fence. Prue Ruscoe Prue Ruscoe The desire for a modest and unassuming presentation to the street drove the idea of the house as an object which had weathered in place in the dunes. The slanted roof... More