This summer house in Denmark was designed as a second home, a retreat from everyday city life. Located only 300 m from the coast, the house nevertheless stands in an area that resembles a suburban estate of uniform detached houses rather than an idyllic piece of nature. To retain some sense of the rural surroundings, therefore, the structures were designed with a covering of climbing plants trained over a layer of preoxidized steel mesh. The passing seasons determine the coloration and density of the enveloping vegetation. When the owners are in residence, the natural curtain can be opened in various ways, affording views in and out. The summer house consists of three volumes: a slender bedroom tract, a broader living tract, and a linking section containing the entrance and sanitary facilities. Set three steps lower than the other areas, the living quarters convey a sense of spaciousness, despite the flat soffit that has been inserted. Large areas of glazing behind fold-up sections of the curtain of plants allow links with the outdoor space. The bedroom tract has a few, small side-and-bottom-hung windows.
The simple timber frame construction is lined internally with laminated wood boarding and plasterboard and has an external cladding of high-density sealed mineral-wool panels. The brick sanitary tract stands on strip foundations and forms a stabilizing core for the timber-frame structures.
Lava architecten transformed an old mission building in Leuven into a place where circus arts, music, theatre, and dance coexist under one shared roof. Effective soundproofing is the precondition for the shared use of the facility.
The Jewish Museum in Šeduva commemorates the culture of Eastern European towns before World War II. With their building, Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects from Finland reimagine the small-scale structure of one such village. Its residents were murdered in 1941 by Nazis and their local collaborators.
The new UCCA Clay Museum advances the millennia-old tradition of artisanal ceramics the Chinese metropolis Yixing is renowned for. An armour of red clay tile encloses the exhibition spaces and the open timber roof constructions above them – an expressive space for the presentation of modern ceramic art.
The Glasshouse Theatre adds a fifth venue to the heritage-listed Queensland Performing Arts Centre. It can be flexibly used for concerts, operas, and dance and theatre performances. The glass facades of the deeply cantilevered foyer visualise the theatrical art of illusion on the exterior.
In their restoration of the Monastery of Santa María of Sijena, Pemán y Franco and Sebastián preserve traces of destruction, rebuilding, and decay spanning 800 years. Recently, they remodelled the east and north wings into an exhibition space for the convent’s valuable artworks.
Housing for the homeless often consists of stacked contain ers. While the overnight shelter designed by Hild und K utilises prefabrication, thoughtful details adorn the robust building through which the Munich-based office conveys impres sions of warmth and home.