Wearing a new building like a hat

Even though one wouldn't guess so at first glance, the Faculty of Mathematics by Bevk Perović in Ljubljana (Slovenia) is actually an extension of an old edifice. On top of an existing, two story building, the new structure was placed - with a completely different programme. At a second glance, one could still see the old building shining through on the ground floor, retaining it's own identity whilst being absorbed into the new building.

Since the new building does not have a ground floor per se, the architects went for a different approach to create public spaces in the building: these large, transparent rooms are carved out of the building mass. By doing so, the second floor becomes what normally the ground floor would be: the public realm of the building. It consists of the lecture halls and the two larger communal areas of the faculty, with all the other programme of the school on the higher floors.


I found this through archdaily.com

A roof with a view

There are so many flat roofs everywhere, that aren't in use as roof-terraces. Whether it's because of regulations, or because of the costs attached to it, or whatever reason one could think of, many flat roofs just lie there without being in use for anything else than sheltering the people living under it.

There must be other ways, is what the architects of Kalhöfer-Korschildgen must have thought. So they came up with a mobile roof terrace. It is a bit like those mobile picnic tables that you can fold into a suitcase an carry with you. I this case, you can fold out a roof terrace from the inside out.
If the weather is right, you can open up the skylight in your house and unfold the roof terrace package out of it, and everything is there: chairs, table, tablecloth, plates, glasses and cutlery. A brilliant solution for roofs without permanent terraces.

The biggest parasite in the world

Looking at skyscrapers and dense urban areas makes one wonder: how could these become more sustainable in the future? It isn't that much about all the new skyscrapers that are being built - since "green" has become to mean "big bucks" all new skyscrapers are green in one way or another - but the existing urban structures. For the evolo skyscraper competition, Daewon Park has taken exactly this as his starting point, with another idealistic concept in the back of his mind: "a way to reunite the isolated city blocks and insert a multi-layer network of public space, green space and nodes for the city."

He designed a series of prefabricated, stackable modules, that can attach to existing structures. Thus, the new structure adds extra qualities: it could be either green space for gardening, wind turbines for renewable energy, or any kind of other green or sociable programme.

Sure, it's not the most realistic proposal in the world, and it is quite unlikely to ever be built, but that's not the point in an open idea competition. The point is that the concept is a refreshing look at the problems and difficulties of inner-city life in very dense areas. Just imagine that you could clip a parasite to your building to gain such an extra quality of life. Wouldn't that be great?

I found this project on treehugger.com.