STAR » Competition

Regeneration of Grønmo Landfill – Norwegian Rhapsody

beatriz — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 19:30:25 +0000

July 2011, Oslo, Norway - HONORABLE MENTION

I died on January 2^nd, 2015. By that time I had read about GrønmoPark. I thought it was the most beautiful idea to deal with death and I fell in love with the thought of becoming part of the landscape. I spoke with my family and my beloved about it and they all seemed to recognize the beauty and the abstraction of it. We then visited Grønmo on a trip to Norway and we walked together on the grounds I would one day belong to.
While we were there we once heard the sounds of the pipes. It was mysterious. Somehow we knew that sound but it was different in Grønmo. It reminds one of a flute but more intense, as the sound of boats leaving harbour. It was accompanied by a quick and vibrant echo of little “dings”, like a choir of metal triangles. I wondered for a second what my sound would be.
Grønmo was extraordinary. My first view of it was from the plane. It was a clearing in the forest. Like a secret room, visible only from the air, from the sky. It looked so aggressively carved out in the Marka…but so soft and magical inside. I was captivated by that contrast. The resulting landscape was so expressive…
It was the result of forty years of human intervention. A completely artificial landscape built with the debris produced over decades. Like a piece of land art that took 40 years to be completed.
The designers of the plan decided to leave this surrealist topography intact, to preserve it as a monument to the way society dealt with its waste in the 20^th century. As if designed by Brunier its relation with nature was invariably aggressive, as if he wanted to rape nature, strip her of her natural character, and turn her into an expressionist object[1]. I recognized Munch on it too; the broad bands of garish colour, the way he painted the sky and the Oslofjord in The Scream… We were lucky to arrive in May. The fields were all in bloom, so colourful. I sensed an infinite scream passing through nature[2]. It was like observing a piece of the painting, but fifty times larger.

That day we stayed in Grønmo for 4 hours. It was so calm; we did not need to talk. Each of us was experiencing Grønmo differently, I guess. We walked separately for an hour. I was lying for two hours on a small mound looking at the surrealist landscape of young hills, as if waiting to grow into mountains. One day my ashes would be part of one of these. I found this the most beautiful option.
Grace preferred the wall. She liked the sense of timelessness of it, the absence of scale. She loved De Chirico paintings and the wall reminded her of his scuola metafisica. His dream-like paintings, as well as the apparently casual juxtapositions of objects, represented a visionary world which engaged most immediately with the unconscious mind, beyond physical reality[3]. Gunnar, instead, would have chosen the most abstract of all the options. He would scatter the ashes all over letting the wind decide. He thought it was the most poetic form of being all over the place…on every single bit of grass, of soil. So whenever he returned to Grønmo he would sit on a chair and feel me there, everywhere, but not in a specific place. I like that too… but I felt an illogical fear of disappearing…
- -
Grace and Gunnar come to Grønmo twice a year. They like to spend time here. They do not find this peace anywhere else. It is their ritual of tranquillity; it helps them to find harmony. When Grace comes in autumn she likes to approach Grønmo by the ski trail. She enters the little sauna after visiting Grønmo and relaxes while looking through the window. Gunnar buys a couple of white tulip bulbs and plants them in my hill for the next spring. He walks for about an hour along the route of meditation crossing the different landscapes. It really transports you for a moment to a different and scarily comfortable dimension. If he comes across another visitor they look at each other and smile. In spring he sits on the chair and reads for the entire afternoon. When it gets dark he stays in the cabin from where he looks at the stars until sleep takes over. Next morning, he likes to visit the surrounding area and the Marka and try some new food. He has met a couple in Mortensrud, who always offer him a room to stay, but Gunnar prefers to sleep in the small cabin at Grønmo – and they smile and understand.

1 Rem Koolhaas about Yves Brunier
2 Munch on his diary, 22.01.1892, about the inspiration for the Scream – Skrik
3 About Giorgio de Chirico, Wikipedia

>> Full information about the project coming up soon

- – - -

Title: Norwegian Rhapsody
Project name: Regeneration of Grønmo
Date: July 2011 – Results December 2011
Type: Open International Competition Europan11
Organizer: EuropanNorway
Participants: 33 – registrations: 62
Ranking: HONORABLE MENTION
Location: Oslo, Norway
Site: Grønmo
Surface: 45 Ha
Programme: Regeneration of a landfill into public spaces. Added programme: Sustainable Cemetery Park
Status: Competition
Client: Oslo Municipality
Budget: N/A
Awards: HONORABLE MENTION
Publications:
-Europan 11 in the Netherlands, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, March 2012
-Europan 11 Norway Book of Results, Europan Norway, Oslo, Norway, Dec 2011
Exhibitions: Mortensrud Kirke, Oslo, Norway – 33 Ideas for a Better Future – Grønmo, October 15-16, 2011
STAR Team: Beatriz Ramo, Francesca Rizzetto, Alexia Martha Symvoulidou
Collaborators: -
Consulting: -
Extra: -

Paseo de la Estación de Elche

beatriz — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 16:36:17 +0000

Feb– Aug 2010 / on going , Elche, Spain - FIRST PRIZE

Coming soon…

- – -

Title: Paseo de la Estación
Project Name: Reurbanization of the Station Avenue in Elche / Reurbanización del Paseo Histórico de la Estación de Elche
Date: February – August 2010 (Construction Drawings Phase) + October – December 2009 (Concept Phase)
Type: Commission after FIRST PRIZE in Open Competition
Location: Elche, Alicante, Spain
Site: Avenida del Paseo de la Estación
Programme: Public Space Sequence: Promenade area + New square + Green zones
Surface: Area 15.000 m²
Status: Approved + Tender – Construction expected in spring 2011
Client: Ajuntament d’Elx – City of Elche
Budget: € 3,5 Mill. Financed by Spanish Central Government
Awards: FIRST PRIZE in Open International Competition
Publications: See Mirador del Palmeral Publications
Exhibitions: See Mirador del Palmeral Exhibitions
STAR Team:
Construction Drawings Phase: Beatriz Ramo, Xiana Méndez, Elia Salcedo, Daniel Díez, Anna Dzierżon + last-week CAD assistance: Elena Barrigón
Concept Phase: Beatriz Ramo, Guadalupe Hernández, Jean-Vianney Deleersnyder
Collaborators: Installations: Grupo JG: José María Sancho; Architectural Techologist: Estudio M2 Oficina Técnica: Luis F. Perona, Francisco de Asís Pérez; Consulting/Support: Madhoc: Juan Tur, Carmen Pérez; Visualizations: Sander Lap + STAR
Consulting: Structure Advice: BOMA (Barcelona, España): Agustí Obiol, Lluis Moya
Extra: STAR won the competition for Mirador del Palmeral on July, 2009. The Reurbanization of the Paseo was one of the plans that STAR proposed as part of a full strategy for the redevelopment of the area.

Córdoba Architecture Foundation

beatriz — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 10:00:56 +0000

January 2010, Córdoba, Spain
This project is a rejection of style, fashion, tectonics, and signature.
It is about the creation of space, illusion, and void.
It is the triumph of space over architecture.
A haven for opportunity, a place without restrictions, a white canvas that is free to change or to remain the same.
The Architecture Foundation will not be bound by style, fashion, name, or time.
It will be atemporal, universal, whatever it is wished to be, for as long as it is wished to be.
The façade offers one option only: an entry.
The foundation is a spatial connection. It brings you from the street into the secret garden.
The façade is only an entrance. The rest is an illusion.
The void is illusory, the perspective magically changes, the space expands, it grows and it changes; architecture disappears, and only space is left.
The only reality is the proportion of the façade: an A4.
Only three parts: programme, void, and circulation.
The void generates the building. The void is the connection between all the functions of the foundation. It is able to enlarge each programme. It will always be open, public.
All programmes can be fully connected or disconnected and never meet.
Front and back facade look the same, but only one is real. The other is an illusion. Nothing matters besides the void.

There are three parts: programme, void, and circulation. The installations run vertically in the perimeter walls. The circulations occupy the small appendix in the plan. The programme is the negative of the void; it is pure space. The void is the positive; the void is the street.

It will be atemporal, universal, whatever it is wished to be, for as long as it is wished to be.

-In summer, the cafeteria remains open until 3.00 a.m. On Saturdays and as today is Museum Night, the archaeological site will be lit up until that time. Today also saw the opening of the Le Corbusier exhibition.
The Foundation organized a dinner for the Chilean architects who came to visit Cordoba. While they were having dinner they were able to contemplate the archaeological remains. The ensuing cocktail party took place in the void. The bookshop was open until midnight and had placed all bookcases in the void. The office did not open today.
The Le Corbusier exhibition was a great success. A documentary on his house in La Plata was shown and later the director of the foundation gave a short speech. More assistants than expected were present but within seven minutes the annex meeting room was put into operation and the hall was enlarged to accommodate everybody. There is a couple on the roof terrace. They have been there for almost two hours, looking at the stars. Their friends are out in the Street of the Mirror, a small orchestra plays flamenco music…; locals and visitors have started to dance…It is an incredible night.

-There is only one entrance – or an exit – the remainder is free: free from shapes, styles, names, irony, fashion, and time.

-The bookshop is run by Javier. The bar is owned by Conchi, and his girlfriend takes care of the kitchen and menus. Ana is curator for the exhibitions of the foundation, and the archaeological site is supervised by Paco from the Municipality. The offices belong to the foundation; the void belongs to everybody.

-They are closing already…
-…. Let’s get down through the exhibition today

-I am waiting for my daughter. She met somebody at the Le Corbusier exhibition…
-I am just having a rest.

-…I like it more when the curtains are open.
-…not me… Everybody can see us

-The void generates the auditorium. It is a single space that will articulate the exhibitions, the lectures, the projections …
-Last time a curtain closed off the stage, like in the Kuntshal in Rotterdam

-This street seems pretty long…and it is only 20 metres…
-I love the space
-Borromoni used a similar trick in the small dome at San Carlo Alle Quattro Fontane in Rome
-yes…and in the Palazzo Spada too

The façade is just that: a façade. There is only one real element: a void…it will be always open.
The façade is a DIN A4.

Autonomy: Each function can be connected and work as one. But each function can also be completely independent and never meet up with another function.

Each programme can be enlarged; they open up to the void.

-The bookshop organizes there a fair, selling old magazine. The bar uses the void as a terrace… nicely shielded from the sun; today, the exhibition starts from here. Models and drawings are displayed in the void… luckily it is protected from the rain and the sun… The archaeological remains are visible from here as well…

Sustainability:
Economical: Flexibility in programme, ownership, and management.
Social: Urban strategy of connection with the garden. The façade can change according to participative strategies. The void is a public space.
Environmental: West facade is closed. The building only opens to the east and to the void, always shaded and thus cool, and it allows for fantastic cross ventilation to the entire foundation.

The plan is the same as the section.

-This building is fascinating…
-Spaces look much bigger or smaller than they really are…

-..Is there a ramp here?
-..I am not sure if it is the floor that slopes up or only the ceiling that is sloping down…

Archaeology:
The remnants of the roman circus are recovered and exposed. Glass walkways bring the visitors close to the ruin. Openings in the void, in the floors of the café and of the bookshop, and in the underground levels as well, allow the ruins to be viewed from street level.

-…the building seems to be buried deeply underground..
-yes, almost as much of it as is above ground…

Surroundings: The success of the interventions in the surroundings lies in the provision of storage space for each function. This allows for a rapid and versatile change of programmes.

Blind walls:
Day: hundreds of geraniums will be donated by the people to decorate the white walls. They will be like pixels.
Night: hundreds of low consumption light tubes will create an enormous installation of light

-…During the night, this place seems enchanted…

The Street of the Mirror: A mirror is placed in the blind wall. The cul de sac disappears.

Parking and stage: Car and bike parking lot can be transformed into a two-sided stage. Chairs are stored under the platform. Rails will hold the curtains to close off the space.

Access: Platforms and accessibility ramps easily lead from Capitulares Street into the secret garden through the void.

-… while walking through the void there is a charming illusion of confusion…

-This must be the entrance to the inner garden. Should we enter?

- – -

Title: FAC Cordoba
Project Name: Sede de la Fundación de Arquitectura Contemporánea y Entorno de la Manzana de San Pablo en Córdoba. (Contemporary Architecture Foundation + Reurbanization of San Pablo District, Córdoba)
Date: January 2010 / Results May 2010
Type: International Open Competition in two phases
Organizer: Fundación Arquitectura Contemporánea
Participants: 218
Ranking: Last rounds + Selected for publication
Location: Córdoba, Spain.
Site: Manzana de San Pablo. Calle Capitulares 2 – 4
Programme: Exhibition rooms, bookshop, café, administration offices, archeological museum + re-urbanization of interior gardens.
Surface: 1226 m² (building) + 10.000 m² (garden)
Status: Competition
Client: Fundación Arquitectura Contemporánea
Budget: N/A
Publications: Concurso de Idea, Sede de la Fundación Arquitectura Contemporánea, Córdoba, Spain, July, 2010
STAR Team: Beatriz Ramo, Guadalupe Hernández, Xiana Méndez, Elia Salcedo, Daniel Díez.

46 Noise-Proof Houses in Maastricht

beatriz — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 23:11:24 +0000

June 2009, Maastricht, the Netherlands - FINALIST

The redevelopment of the Belvédère area links up with Maastricht’s policy for the next 20 years to develop into a regional commercial centre. Belvédère will host 4000 new homes and knowledge- and service-based businesses.
The Sphinxkwartier Masterplan, located within this area, presents a big problem as it places four blocks right next to the Frontensingel. This road causes heavy noise pollution and current regulations do not allow opening any window to this side. This fact definitely compromises the quality of the housing. The design of Block 11 aims to provide a successful solution to this challenge and serve as a model to the rest of the blocks affected. It will host 46 apartments and will integrate the existing Brikkengebouw in its plan.

The urban planner:
As urban planners we are of the opinion that a different Master plan could probably have solved the noise problem better, trying to minimize as much as possible the facades exposed to the noise. A neighbourhood consisting of low, row houses eliminates the façade exceeding the existing perimeter wall. Another solution would have been to assemble all the houses in two or three mega blocks, distant enough to not be affected by the noise from the Frontensingel.
However, expert studies show that these two types are not what the market demands. The typologies needed are blocks of four or five floors within a high-density Master plan. Due to this fact, it is almost unavoidable that certain façades will be affected by the noise.

The engineer:
As engineers, we could have simply placed a glass sound barrier, 15 metres in height, and the problem would have been solved but, on the other hand, terribly emphasized. Not to mention the appeal of such a glass wall to graffiti artists… We could also ignore the problem and simply add artificial ventilation in every bedroom or living room facing the Frontensingel as the windows could not be opened there. These solutions decrease the quality of the housing and therefore their price in the market.

The architect:
As architects, we felt challenged by the task of the project: designing good housing within very strict limitations that forbid the use of windows that open in the facades concerned. We were also against spending money on extra acoustic isolation. Therefore, we proceeded as follows:
1-Rethink the location of the different functions in a house. In the façade we place the toilets, wardrobes, and kitchens. By doing so we create and activate a wall of services that protect the living areas from noise. These facilities can function with artificial ventilation
2-We create patios and big terraces for each house so we ensure natural ventilation and direct light. The surfaces consumed by these outside spaces are compensated by the minimization of the circulation areas. We attempt to ensure that as many house as possible have independent access from the ground floor
As each house enjoys its own garden, the block 11 could be looked at as a stack of villas. Within the very strict limitations, we manage to design 46 different houses that can accommodate 46 very different kinds of users. The houses range from 48 m2 to 145 m2. We integrate the old Brikkengebouw in the block, which shares the circulation core with the rest, and we transform its ground floor into a café that faces the new square of the Masterplan.

↑ image above: Common garden

Sphinxkwartier, Existing Brikkengebouw standing alone in front of Frontensingel road

Conventional organization vs. proposed organization

Block 11 from the South-East. The renovated Brikken Gebouw appears in the front ↑

Active Ssound-proof wall. Facades affected by the noise

Utopian Skyscraper from, Life October 1909

Gardens for everybody – Aerial view of patio houses in level +10.00 and +13.10

Common garden and first floor bridge

More than half of the houses have access directly from the ground floor – Vertical Circulation + entrance from the square

46 different houses for 46 different homes

Level ±0.00m

Level +3.95m

Level +7.00m

Level +10.05 m

Level +13.10 m

Level +16.15

- – -

Title: 46 Solutions Maastricht
Project name: Residential block at Sphinxkwartier
Date: June 2009 – Results January 2010
Type: Open International Competition Europan10
Organizer: Europan Nederland
Participants: 54
Ranking: FINALIST
Location: Maastricht, the Netherlands
Site: Sphinxkwartier
Programme: Residential block + Reuse of existing building + Urban study of the surroundings
Surface: Housing 4.711 m², private gardens 649 m², common garden 518 m², plaza 1.419 m², bar 98 m²; Total 8.103 m² + Study Area: 1,5 Ha
Status: Competition
Client: BPF Bouwinvest – Wijkontwikkelingsmaatschappij Belvédère
Budget: N/A
Awards: FINALIST
Publications: Europan 10! in Nederland, by Europan and SUN, Rotterdam (the Netherlands), January 2010
Exhibitions: Informatiecentrum Belvèdére in Maastricht, Nederland, 2-31 March 2010
STAR Team: Beatriz Ramo, Jean-Vianney Deleersnyder, Jordi Milà, Albert Perez, Luca Vandini; model assistance: Laura Mayoz

Flexible Housing in Liège – The Room That Was Always There

beatriz — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 22:53:52 +0000

June 2009, Liège, Belgium

Imagine what it would be like to find a new room in the house where you had been living your entire life… Imagine the possibilities.
Instead of enlarging the urban tissue, the project is placed in an existing “hidden” urban area, activating a room that has always been there. With this gesture, not only do we increase the density of the Balteau area that will profit from the existing infrastructure, but we help the regeneration of this degraded neighbourhood of Liège as well. The proximity to the new Calatrava station and the river, as well as the works in the esplanade, make the situation of our project of great interest.
Former industrial urban blocks such as the Balteau site were too large to be friendly to pedestrians. We divide up the block into six smaller ones, bringing public space to the inside, and producing a tighter network of mainly pedestrian and bicycle paths in the area. Each of the six resulting blocks of the Balteau site will be a mix of existing and new houses.
The resultant smaller scale reminds us of Liège city centre, a tight urban fabric composed of houses of almost identical proportions and façade composition. Also, we will use one single module for the development of the entire block. This will allow for flexibility in use and construction.
The new houses will shape the inner streets of the Balteau, whose atmosphere will be serene and tranquil. Balteau will be a secret village right in the centre of the city.
Originally, the Balteau site was generated from its core where the factories used to be. We create a square in this area. It will be the meeting point of the Balteu. Just as Piazza San Marco in Venice has its campanile, or Liège its Perron in Place du Marché, we maintain the tall chimney of the Balteau site as its reference point on the square
Housing:
The module that will accommodate all the situations inside Balteau is 4,5 m x 13,5 m in plan by 10,5 m in height. An oversized free room height of 3,2 m will increase the spatial quality and its future adaptations. We listed four different situations with regard to the orientation of the modules and the open and closed surrounding walls.
Due to these different conditions, we arrive at 10 different housing types ranging from 45 m2 to 150 m2. 132 modules will be built, and depending on the type used, 500 to 800 new residents will move to the Balteu. Each module is accessible from the street, and has a private roof garden, and some offer the possibility of an independent office space inside the house. A large underground parking will cover the needs of the Balteau site and the design centre. The remaining parking lots may be rented out to third parties to help financing the operation.
Design Centre:
The main access to the Balteau is at the Rue Paradis. We place the required Design Centre as a gateway to the room that has always been there, reinforcing the axis between the new station and the river. It is split in two volumes. The bottom volume will help to frame the door, while the top one, cantilevering over the Rue Paradis will catch the attention of the pedestrian visitors arriving from the station.

Balteau entrance – Calatrava Station at the back

type A1

The Design Centre appears in the foreground on the esplanade

type B2

type B1

type A2

type D2

type C2

Balteau Site from Rue Paradis

- – -

Title: The Room That Was Always There
Project name: Urban Regeneration of Liège Block at Guillemins
Date: June 2009 – Results January 2010
Type: Open International Competition Europan10
Organizer: Europan Belgium
Participants: 55
Location: Liège, Belgium
Site: Guillemins district
Programme: Regeneration of an existing urban block + Urban study of the surroundings
First phase: Housing 6.156 m², design center 2.778 m², kindergarten 170 m², parking (162 lots) 4.251 m². Number of apartments: 33 to 99, depending on the typology
Second phase: housing 24.901 m², design center 2.778 m², kindergarten 1.674 m², restaurants 492 m², public space 7.990 m², parking (627lots) 14.683 m²
Number of apartments: 132 to 396, depending on the typology
Surface: Study site: 2,5 Ha, Project site: 0,6 Ha
Status: Competition
Client: The City of Liège and private individuals
Budget: N/A
STAR Team: Beatriz Ramo, Jean-Vianney Deleersnyder, Jordi Milà, Albert Perez

The Park of the 99 Gardens – Valdebebas Park

beatriz — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 10:00:45 +0000

April 2009, Madrid, Spain

We create a strategy of colonization, rather than a plan.
Carpet: As a tapestry, the new park will be delicately placed as a tapestry respecting the existing topography.
Artificial: The topography is the only natural thing. Artificiality will reign in the park. The visitor is aware that he is in an urban park. Orthogonal lines will contrast with the sinuosity of the adjacent Forest Park, and they form a transition to the new grid of the future city of Valdebebas.
Unstable: The combination of different species, deciduous and perennial, contributes to the unstable image of the park, which will change each season. The ‘garden of the question mark’ will forever be changing according to the decisions of its users.
Unfinished: The Park can start operating as soon as one of the 99 gardens is finished. Thereafter it will forever be a process of change – always unfinished.
Recognisable: The 99 squares, and the 1km bench, shape the image of the urban park. This will be recognised as well by the thousands of air passengers from terminal 4 next to the park that will view the park from the air, either right before landing or right after leaving Madrid.
Framed: Each garden has a completely different atmosphere. The visitor moves in an unfixed way, from room to room, without passing through a transitional space.
Narrative: The 99 gardens are inspired by 99 stories. These stories will be explained on a panel in each garden. The visitor, moved by curiosity, might delve deeper into the story after his visit.
Imaginative: Some of the gardens have no specific predetermined use, so the visitor will be inspired to use it as he wishes in unexpected ways.
Chaotic: The 99 gardens are 99 decontextualized landscapes.
Organized: The 99 gardens are clearly organized in an orthogonal structure following the rules of proportionality.
Contradictory: the garden combines instability with specificity; control and un-control; flexibility and rigidity; reality and fantasy; improvisation and discipline; realism and surrealism…
Resistant: The design strategy is resistant to changes of programme, usage, material, budget, planning, and design…
Illusory: Illusions of memory, history, order; illusion of a park.

The 1km Bench:
The orange bench is 1362 m long, and runs parallel to the main path. It is the only common element in the enormous existing diversity of the Park. Depending on the area, the bench may be used as table, path, bridge, stage, etc.
↑ image above: Le déjeuner sur l’herbe. 1862 – Manet

Mondriaan, 1921 - Marrakech – The Earth from Above - Tulips field – the Netherlands

↑ Site of Valdebebas Urban Park. Terminal T4 from Madrid Barajas Airport on the right
99 Gardens:

Phases and uses:

The 1 km Bench:

- – -

Title: The Park of the 99 Gardens – Valdebebas Park
Project name: Parque Urbano de Valdebebas – Valdebebas Urban Park
Date: April 2009
Type: Open International Competition
Organizer: OCAM + City Council of Madrid
Participants: 160 from 25 countries
Location: Madrid, Spain
Site: Valdebebas, area limited by: north with La Moraleja and the Encinar de los Reyes; south with IFEMA, and the Barajas Airport; west with Sanchinarro.
Programme: Urban park for sports, leisure and culture
Surface: 80 Ha
Status: Competition
Client: Junta de Compensación Parque de Valdebebas
Budget: N/A
Publications: Parque Urbano de Valdebebas, COAM, Madrid, Spain, September 2009
STAR Team: Beatriz Ramo, Jean-Vianney Deleersnyder, Jordi Milà, Albert Perez, Luca Vandini

Offices in Leganés

beatriz — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 10:00:34 +0000

February 2009, Leganés, Madrid, Spain

Leganés is a satellite city belonging to the Greater Madrid Conurbation. The city has numerous sports areas and urgently needs a place to centralize all management: the CRD (Centro de Recursos para el Deporte).
The City Hall owns a site, shaped as a quarter-circle, on the intersection of two busy streets. The regulations about alignments, setbacks , and occupancy applicable to this site, are strict and determinant. The total surface area of the required programme is not stable and might double in a few years, or shrink, as the case may be.

This will be the generative concept of our proposal: a building that can grow and shrink gracefully within short periods of time.

We attempt to occupy as much of the surface area as possible in order to be able to arrange the entire programme over two floors, rather than the expected three, thus minimizing the use of elevators and stairs. This will offer more flexibility as the building is less fragmented. Following the strict regulations of alignments and setbacks we create a smooth curvature of the site outline. A continuous polycarbonate facade will draw the perimeter in, folding in the corners, to avoid useless angles, and folding in the middle to manifest clearly the entrance to the building. It also creates an welcoming inner courtyard protected from the busy avenues, which will bring light and ventilation to the entire building and will satisfy the regulation concerning the maximum area to be built.

The façade has an air chamber acting as a chimney that will avoid the loss of heat in winter, and attracting heat in summer

To grow or to shrink. Economic Sustainability.
By elevating the ground-level of the building one metre off street level we bring natural light and ventilation to the basement, which may be used for office and working space in the future, adding more than 40% extra surface area to the administration programme. A second patio, connected to the main one, will reach the basement to give it more light and spatial quality. We oversize the room height up to 3,2 m in order to adapt better to a possible future change of programme. The only fixed elements in the building are the façade line, composed of 70 thin metallic pillars, and the three concrete cores of the circulations, which provide stability to the building and contain all the installations and services, freeing up the remaining space and allowing maximum flexibility to be completely diaphanous or compartmented.
If, by contrast, the CDR needs to shrink, the geometry in the plan makes it possible – practically from one day to the next – to change the building to be rented by three different parties, each of which will have one of the service-circulation cores at his disposal.
Sustainability is understood as an intelligent strategy for durability. We are tired of the growing downgrading of this concept.
This will be presented in 4 proposals, according to four levels of investment, that all fulfil the required demands. The difference between them is related to the amount of future surface area available for growth. We decide to develop option D, the option realising the biggest potential.

Site: Geometry Quarter of circle
Regulations: Setbacks and maximum occupancy
Quality: Patio brings light to -1, 0, +1
Smoothening: Generation of the access + public space, elimination of useless corners

options A, B, C, and D

- – -

Title: Suave
Project name: Center for Sports management in Leganés
Date: February 2009
Type: Open International Competition
Organizer: OCAM
Participants: 210
Location: Leganés, Madrid, Spain
Site: Corner between Avenida del Rey Juan Carlos and Avenida de Europa
Programme: Offices for sports management, medical center, outdoor spaces, parking
Surface: Total 3.070 m²; above ground: 1.743 m², underground 1.326 m²
Status: Competition
Client: Leganés City Council
Budget: € 3,6 Mill.
Exhibitions: Leganés: Deporte y Gestión, OCAM, Madrid, Spain. March 26 – April 20, 2009
STAR Team: Beatriz Ramo, Simone de Iacobis, Jean-Vianney Deleersnyder, Iñigo Paniego

Mirador del Palmeral

beatriz — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 15:29:15 +0000

Feb-Apr 2009 / on going, Elche, Spain - FIRST PRIZE

In 2009 STAR won the International competition for the Mirador del Palmeral (Palm Grove’s Viewpoint) with the simplest proposal, yet the most controversial project the office had ever undertaken.
The two-phased competition received a lot of attention, not only because renowned firms such as: MVRDV, SANAA, Foster, Abalos+Sentkiewicz, and Lapeña&Torres were invited to participate, but because STAR, as the office getting through the first-open phase, won the competition with a strategy, rather than a design. STAR trusted the simplicity of a Ferris wheel to meet all the requirements of the brief and more, which surprised and convinced a jury of reputable professionals and the City Mayor, who became one of its strongest supporters, that strategies more than shapes provide the best solutions.This project unleashed an avid debate among architects, who either quickly became loving supporters of the project, or turned into strong opponents alleging that the project was not ‘architectonic’ enough. But what is and what isn’t architecture? Even assuming that it isn’t architecture, is there something bad about that? The media had reported that: STAR’s proposal was – having overcome the outdated debate about the Icon – a step forward in many ways. The development of this competition brief was the ultimate proof for STAR that architectural thinking is stronger than even architecture itself.

Elche´s Wheel
The Design of an Oxymoron.
Thousands of words have been written on the influence of the current economic crisis on the construction business. However, we think that this event has accelerated the birth of a new form of architectural thinking that – when applied to architectural production – will generate intelligent and substantial ideas, and leave behind the sensationalistic architecture of quick consumption. We believe more than ever that strategies, rather than shapes, are the only valid answers to the demands of the city of today.
The Mayor of Elche organized the competition with the requirement that the project should “provide the city with an EMBLEMATIC element to contemplate and promote the Palmeral of Elche” (quote from the competition brief). This raised the challenge of designing a humble icon, which is a true oxymoron. How to design an icon with the purpose of diverting attention towards something else?
In our careers as architects, the competition for the Mirador del Palmeral was our first chance to create an emblem for the city in which the landscape plays a crucial role, whereby evoking admiration for this landscape is the raison d’être of the icon.
Moreover, in this period of financial collapse and extreme preoccupation with sustainability, it would be hypocritical to close our eyes and produce another icon similar to all the previous ones. Let’s take this chance to think profoundly; to focus our intelligence on a strategy rather than on the egocentric and frozen architecture (icon) so characteristic of recent times.
The cultural landscape of palms that constitutes the Palmeral of Elche dates back to the 10th century, when much of the Iberian Peninsula was under Arab rule. This great patchwork of agricultural plots (huertos) was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the year 2000. The palm grove extends over approximately half of the area of the city. Due to the loss of its original use, it is becoming more difficult to integrate the Palmeral into city life. Apart from some huertos that were transformed into parks (losing their initial configuration in the process), remain empty and are deteriorating. Most of the Palmeral, mainly the most authentic parts, passes unnoticed to inhabitants and tourists, who misunderstand that the real value of the palm grove is not in the palm tree itself but in the ordered system of its plantation. There is not a single viewpoint in the city where the huertos system of palms can be seen and understood. The highest public point is the tower of the Basilica, but viewed from there the Palmeral is mistakenly understood to be a random forest of trees.
Within certain restrictions that apply to acting on a World Heritage Site, UNESCO supports interventions that enhance the universal value of the site. We believe that by building this viewpoint, tourists and inhabitants will be able to understand the Palmeral of Elche for the first time as a system of huertos, and recognise its strong presence in the city. Although the intervention should not eclipse or even compete with the importance of the Palmeral, it should be significant enough to attract tourism and regenerate the economy of the City.
Thus, we searched for an atemporal emblem; intelligent and flexible; capable of fulfilling these requirements within a budget of €10 million. We need an imaginative solution.
We propose a wheel for Elche. The wheel is a strategy. The wheel is resistant to fashion, style, and time. Its assembly is completely reversible and therefore the wheel has no permanent impact on the points where it touches the ground. As the wheel does not consume the total budget, we can also invest in the creation of adjacent public spaces. Moreover, with money made by selling tickets for the wheel, it is possible to recover the initial investment in less than three years. The wheel is an intelligent and rational structure; representative and beautiful, powerful and transparent.
The Wheel is the perfect union between FORM and FUNCTION.

Maximum Potential: Mirador + Station, the greatest welcome to Elche
To explore the full potential of the intervention we propose three scenarios with different levels of investment. They range from the initial requirement of a single Mirador (viewpoint) project to a common building, housing the Mirador and railway station, with a connection to the platforms and the underground parking.
Our design places the Mirador at the former site of Elche’s Railway Station, which was demolished in the 1970s. The new railway station was built on the same avenue, 100 metres to the East. The spatial quality of the building leaves much to be desired, and it is in poor condition. There is an investment of €6 million for its renovation already in place. We believe it does not make sense to invest in that building; rather we propose a much more efficient and comprehensive operation. We plan to make a common investment of €16 million, including the budget for the Mirador, for a new common building where both programs can benefit from shared functions. This idea is feasible because the project is located within the double platform area of the train tunnel. In this way, the Railway station comes back to its original place: at the end of the Paseo it is named after. The Mirador and the Palmeral will be the image of arrival in the city.

Strategy in the immediate surroundings: Re-creation of Elche’s Palmeral
As we don’t consume the entire initial budget with the Mirador we propose to invest the remainder on the creation of a large public space in the current Paseo de la Estación, and a big square in place of the current traffic roundabout in front of the new Mirador-Station.
From the beginning of the 20th century until the 1960s this avenue was an elegant elevated Paseo Salon where the inhabitants of Elche enjoyed walking. It formed the main connection between the Railway Station and the City centre. With the prominence of the car in the 1960s, the elevated Paseo was demolished and transformed into a three lane road. This, together with the displacement of the railway station, damaged the character of the Paseo as a civic public space.
After studying the current traffic patterns in the area, we propose restricting vehicular access to public transportation and bicycles.
Once the Paseo is free of cars not only do we improve the sequence of public spaces on the North-South axis, the spaces between the city and the new Mirador+Station, but we also link the two parks that are currently disconnected on the East-West axis. Both parks are former palm huertos. This operation will unlock the enormous potential of the area as a public space right in the centre of the city. The construction of the Mirador-Station to the North of the Paseo will frame the views and will relocate the station in its former location.
We propose to keep the Paseo as a “hard” surface so it may host a large number of events, which would be impossible in a green area. Moreover, due to the dry weather of Elche, a green Paseo would require a significant amount of maintenance.
We have minimized the Paseo’s design to avoid compromising its potential. This design will only affect the surface; we have created a great carpet of tiles representing a pixelated aerial view of the Palmeral.
This large mosaic will be visible from the wheel as an enormous piece of urban art.

- – -

El chapuzón – Museo Escolar Agrícola de Puçol

East view of palmeral

Site within the Palmeral – UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000

Brief demands:

Contradiction:

Current phenomena of Superstar architects / Iconic buildings

Invited architects for phase II:

Dilema: compromise?

Solution: Form+Function

Wheel vs. Traditional viewpoint typology

Wheel vs. Iconic Building

We undertsand the wheel as a programme, not as a design. We will develop option 3, to test its feasibility

View from Altamira Palace

The square determines the maximum dimension of the wheel

Elevation from the Paseo

€4 million to invest in the creation of new public spaces

New public space

Maximum potential:

In red: current location of Elche Railway Station

Elche Parc – Elche Railway Station

Current arrival at Elche’s station

Proposed arrival at Elche’s station

Proposed building: Mirador + Station + Parking

Station elevation

Shading study

With the wheel, it will be the firts time that Elche will be able to see its most famous view from a public place:

- – -

Title: Mirador del Palmeral
Project name: Mirador del Palmeral de Elch
Date:
First phase: February 2009 – results March 23, 2009
Second phase: May 2009 – results July 17, 2009
Type:
First phase: Open International Competition, selection of two teams from 56 participants (145 registrations).
Second phase: Invited Competition (2 teams from first phase + 5 invited teams: SANAA, MVRDV, Foster & Partners, Lapeña & Torres, Ábalos & Sentkiewicz + Teresa Galí-Arquitectura Agronomía)
Organizer: OCOA – Oficina de Concursos Comunidad Valenciana
Position: FIRST PRIZE
Location: Elche, Alicante, Spain
Site: Avenida del Paseo de la Estación + Roundabout with Avenida del Ferrocarril
Programme: View point + Reurbanization + Proposed: Railway Station, Parking, Cultural Centre, Strategy for the reintegration of the Palm Grove in the city
Surface: 15.000 m² of public spaces + 1200 m² of exhibition rooms + Mirador –Viewpoint + Railway Station 1.100 m² + Parking 7.800 m²
Status: Construction Public Spaces expected spring 2011
Client: Ayuntamiento de Elche (Elche City Council)
Budget: € 10 Mill. + € 6 Mill. – Already reserved for the Railway Station
Awards: FIRST PRIZE
Publications: Selection:
- Arquitectos Movilidad, Madrid, Spain, June, 2011
-A New Generation in Architecture. West Arch vol.1, Berlin, Germany, September, 2010
-Met Stip 2010, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, June, 2010
-Architectuur NL #06, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, May, 2010
-TC Cuadernos, Concursos #94, Valencia, Spain, May 2010
-AV Proyectos #35, Madrid, Spain, March 2010
-AWM – Architectenweb Magazine #31, Bussum, the Netherlands, February 2010
-Arte y Cemento #2109, Bilbao, Spain, December 2009
-Paisajismo #31, Barcelona, Spain, November 2009
-Mark Magazine #22, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Sept/Oct 2009
-A10 magazine #29, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Sept/Oct 2009
-Cyan Magazine #5, (Spain), Sept/Oct 2009
-a+u. Architecture and Urbanism #468, Tokyo, Japan, September 2009
-Space Magazine #502, Seoul, Korea, September 09
-Design ReportMagazine # Spanien, Leinfelden, Germany, September 2009
-AD Algeem Dagblad #230709, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, July 2009
-Diario La Verdad #180709, Elche, Spain, July 2009
-Diario Información #180709, Elche, Spain, July 2009
-Diario Información #050609, Elche, Spain, June 2009
-Diario La Verdad #050609, Elche, Spain, June 2009
Exhibitions: Selection:
-West Arch – A New Generation in Architecture at the Ludwig Forum für International Kunst, Aachen, Germany, September 12 – November 14, 2010
-Traveling Exhibition Elche, Spain June 29–17 July 2009
-Lonja del Ayuntamiento, Elche, Spain June 5 – 29, 2009
-Solo Presentation at Menage a Trois in Matadero, during the Madrid Architecture Week, October 5, 2010
-Solo Presentation at FITUR 2010, IFEMA, Madrid, Spain, January 20, 2010
STAR Team: First phase: Beatriz Ramo, Jean-Vianney Deleersnyder, Simone de Iacobis
Second phase: Beatriz Ramo, Jean-Vianney Deleersnyder, Jordi Milà, Albert Perez, Luca Vandini
Collaborators: Competition phase: Logistics: Javier Ramo, Ana López – Angulo, Bernd Upmeyer (BOARD) Model: Vincent de Rijk + STAR; Text Editing: Maarten Doude van Troostwijk; Model 2011: Vincent de Rijk + STAR (Philip Vandermey, Francesca Rizzetto, Genoveva Carrión)
Consulting: ARUP España, Project director: Ignacio Fernández Solla (Associate Director) Coordinator: Fernando García Colorado, Structure: Patricio García Hernández, Kayin Dawoodi; Sustainability: Ramón Rodríguez Cabezón (Associate), Albert Hassan, Susana Saiz Alcázar; Electrical installation: Pablo Checa Sanz (Associate), Valentín García Rasero
- – -

Beirut House of Arts and Culture

beatriz — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 21:25:12 +0000

January 2009, Beirut, Lebanon - SECOND PRIZE

The House of Arts and Culture appears at exactly the right moment to boost the already sizzling creativity of Beirut ever since the end of the period of violence in Lebanon between 1975 and 1990.
Beirut never ceased to be a place of freedom of thought. Beirut was home to the first universities of the Middle East and was the birthplace of modern Arabic literature. The sultanate of Oman granted USD 20 million to help funding the House of Arts and Culture.

After studying the brief of the competition, it was a surprise not to encounter the word Icon once. The brief talks about a strong presence, a recognisable character, an exceptional architecture …but also about banning words such as: rigidity, routine, or static. The current architecture production of icons has resulted in rigid and static buildings that somehow quickly became part of the routine.
The architecture of The House should not restrict or confine any potential for creativity. It should allow maximum flexibility and it should represent the dynamism of Art and Culture in Beirut day after day.
Let us escape from the conventional and megalomaniac icon and reinvent the way a city and its culture are represented. The House of Arts and Culture cannot be a static depiction of a single moment in time. It must be dynamic, changeable; like a machine, it should reveal the essence of transformation.

The site of the House of Arts and Culture will be surrounded by iconic towers in the near future. The area will have a high density of occupation. The Masterplan by Solidere does not contemplate the creation of a public space to act as a connector of all the elements, to provide a place for public life in the area.
By studying meticulously the required programme we find the optimal organization, which is effective and compact, and therefore we can free half of the area from the height of 10m to transform it into an elevated Plaza that will work with the small existing square, creating a vital public space in the neighbourhood. This urban strategy and the extremely versatile design of the main performance box were the features that won the project a prize in the competition.

Horizontal and Vertical: The Box and the Plinth
The programme is grouped according to its qualities. By dividing the functions into two categories according to their requirements on height and street interaction, we obtain two volumes: a tall Box and a low Plinth. By keeping the plinth as low as possible, we ensure maximum urban conditions, both in the surroundings and within the plinth itself.
The Box can host hundreds of different event configurations (Italian, kabuki, No theatre, techno party, mega banquet, exhibitions, conferences, lectures, dance evenings, poetry recitals, fashion shows, concerts, markets, fairs…).
The Plinth hosts all the programmes on two levels, connected physically and visually, allowing for the maximum interaction between the functions on the inside and maximum connection with urban life outside. By concentrating the entire plinth programme on two levels, we minimize the use of the elevator so functions can be continued without interruptions.

Urban context
The urban context of the House is shaped by a very busy road, a small quiet plaza, and two as yet unknown future iconic buildings of 40m and 150m in height.
The back of the Box will be facing the ring road. Its closed façade will block out the noise of the road and the southern sun while it becomes a large billboard visible from thousands of cars and pedestrians along the ring. It can act as a screen for a projected movie, or be rented for advertisements on certain occasions to generate extra funding
The elevated Plaza in the north is protected from the noise and the afternoon heat – and enjoys the morning sun. At a height of 10 m the Plaza becomes a podium for concerts, a platform for exhibitions… a lively space, facing the existing square.
The exhibition hall, the lounge, and the café are placed along the pedestrian route in the East, animating the future street, once the tunnel under the ring is open. The foyer of the halls will run at 10m height parallel to this street. The service entrance and the delivery zone will be on the west side, which will be almost closed to avoiding the strong sun radiation.

The House can work as one single building with a main entrance hall that gives access to each function: exhibition, café, shop, library, performance halls, etc… But it can also work as seven independent elements with direct access from the outside. This contributes to the easy management, allowing one or many parties.

Reinvention of the performance hall: the Magic Box
The performance hall of The House in Beirut demands a large number of possible configurations each of different character and with different requirements. None of the existing theatre models can accommodate such a range of events; therefore, we need to look for a new one. We call it The Magic Box. Just a few changes in the traditional box will be enough to make it flexible and much more useful:
A- Keep the fly tower height in the entire room, to liberate the position of the stage.
B- Lift floor system in the entire room, not just the stage.
C- Provide the hall with the possibility of enlargement by placing the other rooms adjacently, so that on certain occasions their dividing wall can be opened and they may be combined to host larger events in a spectacular configuration.
The big performance hall enjoys a free height of 20 meters. In this way, we no longer distinguish between fly tower, stage, and the stalls; these three elements can change location for each new performance.

A new public space and a big billboard:

Entrances and connections:

Programme, circulation, and bioclimatic concept:

Green hair is not enough… Sustainability Revisited.
Sustainability should be divorced from its well-known “trees-on-the-roof” image, but should be understood globally, beyond the usage of renewable energies alone. Sustainability must go hand in hand with durability. We provide the design within an environmentally friendly strategy and with the possibility of adaptation to new, future circumstances so The House does not become obsolete and inadequate.

Entrance hall

Extending, annexing, adding, attaching, including…it is all possible.
In order to avoid mono-functional spaces, the distribution of the programme is such that one programme may be extended into the next. For example:
-The performance halls and the meeting rooms are placed together so their dividing wall can be opened to host larger events. In the warm months, such events could even be continued onto the elevated Plaza.
-The restaurant-café of The House is placed next to the lounge area of the exhibition space so both can be enlarged and work together for a big banquet that can be extended into the exhibition hall.
-The exhibition space is connected with the reception hall so the surface area for exhibitions could be increased at a certain point by 50%.
-The foyer of the performance halls can be opened entirely to the elevated Plaza during the warm months.
-The art workshops may continue in the patio at +6m, like an outside exhibition…

plan ± 0,00 m

Reception desk

plan + 6,00 m

Exhibition room

plan +15,90 m

plan + 27,20 m

Connection between hall 1 and 2

Theatre Foyer

Access to elevated public space

Street level

Elevated public space

- – -

Title: House of Arts and Culture
Project name: House of Arts and Culture
Date: January 2009 – Results March 23, 2009
Type: Open International Competition
Organizer: GAIA Heritage + Ministry of Culture
Participants: 388 entries – 757 registrations from 63 countries
Ranking: SECOND PRIZE
Location: Beirut, Lebanon
Site: Lot 128-4 Downtown Beirut
Programme: Museum, Theatre, Exhibition, Library, Offices, Commercial space, Documentation Centre, 200 Parking lots
Surface: Site Area 3.800 m², Gross Floor Area 16.000 m²
Status: Competition
Client: Ministry of Culture, Lebanon
Budget: $20 Mill. – Granted from the Sultanate of Oman to the Lebanese Ministry of Culture
Awards: SECOND PRIZE
Publications:
-Future Arquitecturas #China, Hangzhou, China. February 2011
-Competition Architecture, Salenstein, Switzerland, January 2011
-Met Stip 2010, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, June 2010
-TC Cuadernos, Concursos #94, Valencia, Spain, May 2010
-New Generation in Architecture. West Arch #1, Berlin, Germany, September 2010
-Architectuur NL #06, May 2010
-Pasajes de Arquitectura y Critica #108, Madrid, Spain, June 2009
Exhibitions:
-West Arch – a New Generation in Architecture at the Ludwig Forum für International Kunst, Aachen, Germany, September 12 – November 14, 2010
-Forum de Beirut, Lebanon. March 24 – April 5, 2009
STAR Team: Beatriz Ramo with Jean-Vianney Deleersnyder, Simone de Iacobis, Iñigo Paniego

Icon – Revisited

beatriz — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 10:00:41 +0000

December 2008, Dubai, UAE – United Arab Emirates

Dubai is filled with landmarks. How to create an icon that represents Dubai?
Unfortunately, contemporary icons are usually corrupted by trends, framed in time, quickly consumed, unsustainable economically, and irrational.
In the land of the superlative to go for the tallest, the biggest, the most expensive, yet again … would not make sense.
We choose the sublime rather than the superlative.
And to deflect all the curses that icons have to face, we decide for the simple.
An icon that represents them all

I- The pure icon
As colours – black and white.
As form – the square.
As process – the extrusion.
As organization – the grid.
…
The seven towers will resist strongly the concepts of time, style, fashion, mode, type…
As if born out of the Theory of Forms by Plato, they possess the highest and most fundamental kind of reality. The towers will symbolize all buildings of Dubai, all colours and all plans…

II- The endless icon
An icon cannot be framed. It cannot be limited in time or space. It is timeless because it will never be old-fashioned. It is endless because the water reflects the towers during the day, and during the night, the light will extend them up to the sky.

III- The narrative icon
The most significant fact of the history of Dubai is its phenomenal development and construction activity. This creates a drawing of Dubai. It is leaving its mark on the ground. We use these traces to create the patterns that will be engraved on the facades of the towers. Like a column of text, they will tell the history through the images.
We use urbanism as an ornament. As in the old temples and churches where they used figurative motives to inform the people, the seven towers will tell the history of Dubai through its urban footprints, as an architectonic tale.
We show in the façade what a pedestrian can never see, what is only visible from a plane or through earth viewer applications. Urban planning elevated to art.

IV- The sustainable icon
How to make a sustainable icon?
Icons often look outdated the moment they are created given the speed of trends in taste and fashion.
We present the design within an environmentally friendly strategy that generates more energy than it needs, and with an appearance that will not look old-fashioned ever. The seven Towers remain neutral between the past and the future, between day and night, between colour and black & white pictures, and between fashions and trends…The seven towers resist strongly the concepts of time, style, fashion, mode, type…
Each tower integrates a wind turbine that generates enough energy for its own lightening needs and services, and generates a surplus that will be transferred to the city. The electricity will be transported to the net and taken up during the night when the towers will light the sky. The towers are orientated in a North-Southerly direction. We will integrate photovoltaic cells in the patterns of the facades. They will be placed proportionally to the best possible orientation.

V- The rational icon
The grid is made out of plants, water, trees, sand… The grid follows a North-Southerly direction. It is a delicate layer added to the park. It preserves all its existing elements and integrates them into the squares. This superposition reinforces the sinuosity of the park and the rationality of the grid. The visitors pass through an architectonic promenade of squares and towers experiencing the contrast of this skyline in a park.

- – -

Title: Icon Revisited
Project name: Dubai Icon – ThyssenKrupp Elevator Architecture Award
Date: December 2008 – Results April 2009
Type: Open International Competition
Organizer: ThyssenKrupp
Participants: 926 (Registrations: 4.651 architects from 108 countries)
Location: Dubai, UAE – United Arab Emirates
Site: Za´abeel Park in the centre of the city
Programme: Landmark, Viewpoint, Visitors Centre, Restaurant, Library
Surface: 1600 m² (4 floors 20×20 m)
Status: Competition
Client: Dubai Municipality
Budget: N/A
STAR Team: Beatriz Ramo, Simone de Iacobis, Iñigo Paniego