- Sabine Drey
Large numbers of bicycles parked in the public realm are not a pretty sight. They block through access and take up a lot of space. A new underground garage accommodating 3,750 cycles at Amsterdam South station now brings relief for the much frequented forecourt there. The entrance is distinguished by a glazed cubic complex with a load-bearing structure consisting of stylized, hexagonal tree crowns on steel columns. A gently inclined moving ramp convey up to 1,620 cyclists per hour down to the parking level. Here, they pass the check-in area with its electronic card readers and automated machines. Large glass sliding doors separate the air-conditioned space from the garage. The 2.5-metre-wide entrance allows access to four bicycles next to each other, so that during peak periods up to eight cyclists per minute can check in. All other routes are meticulously dimensioned to serve a maximum number of users. The seven-metre-wide central lane acts as a distribution route for people with or without bicycles. Large figures on the floor, which is finished with an epoxy-resin coating, help users to find their bikes again on returning. An upward-moving ramp brings cyclists back to the main entrance in the square. Without their bicycles, people can leave the garage via a staircase at the opposite end.
The many light sources create a pleasant atmosphere: the entrance area is accentuated by a rear-lighted glass wall, for example, and the soffit lighting is dispersed by expanded-metal-mesh sails beneath the ceiling. These were placed at the top of the steel columns and set off from the concrete surface above by peripheral LED strips. Beneath the sails are parking stands for two cycles above each other. Free spaces are indicated by green LED lighting integrated in the columns.
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.