Participants' projects are published selectively and without any preference for any particular project in order to demonstrate the variety of architectural and design solutions. An exception was made only for Russian works, each of which will be covered in current publications, regardless of the result typed. The resource www.copperconcept.org organized an alternative "popular vote", where everyone can vote for the work they like from among those who have reached the final of the Competition, and the winner based on the results of such a vote will be announced at the main awards ceremony on November 4, 2013 at the BATIMAT exhibition in Paris.
Clarion Hotel Post, Gothenburg, Sweden. Semrén & Månsson
After 20 years of neglect, the central post office in Gothenburg, Sweden, has been remodeled and transformed into the 500-room Clarion Hotel Post with modern additions that reflect the character of this vibrant city.
The original building was built between 1918 and 1925 by the Gothenburg architect Ernst Thorulf in the classic Mannerist style using brick with stone decorations and a slate attic roof with copper details, which over time turned into a green patina. The Post Office has now become an Official Historic Site. At first glance, the simple strategy of the architects Semren and Mensson was to cover the open space of the horseshoe-shaped building with a new object, and to find a use for the old loading yard of the post office, giving it new functions. The existing building has been restored and adapted to its new role while maintaining its original character, surface detailing and status. Part of the courtyard has received new commercial spaces to accommodate hotel rooms on the lower floors, and an atrium with a translucent roof.
New landmark
Intervention in the existing development in the form of eliminating the passage to the courtyard created a new, continuous facade on the eastern side of the building, overlooking Okerplatsen Square and Odinsgatan Street. For the visible part of the "insert" facade on the side of the copper-clad wing and the opposite wing with the slate cladding, the same materials were used as on the facade of the old post office. The new building is vertically aligned with the original cornices. Where the two wings of a building come together, their contours soar upward in a new monolithic pair, separated by a vertical strip of recessed glass. The 13-storey tower creates a new landmark in the urban landscape, and also points to an auxiliary entrance to the hotel: the main entrance, framed by luxurious golden mosaics, remained on the western facade of the existing building, overlooking the city square. The new additions do not conflict with the horizontal step of the window row of the old facade, and in the middle the tower is divided in half by a simple vertical line-deepening on the plane of the facade. The "halves" of the new façade themselves are made in the form of square panels with horizontal stripes of copper or slate and glass units installed in any order. According to the architects, the use of these crisp, flat, cross-striped surfaces was inspired by the design of the Lajasalo Church in Finland, namely its horizontal stripes of factory-patinated copper. But here the verticality is re-emphasized by the lines of the panel joints, each of which has its own shade. The corners are accentuated by a modern interpretation of the traditional vertical stone corners (as in the old building), expressed through thin stripes equal to the height of the panels, sometimes even with glazing amidst a riot of copper. The striped cross-sectional grid of the façade remains unchanged throughout, despite the rooftop sun terrace and outdoor pool overlooking Gothenburg.
Rich living copper surfaces
From the very beginning, the architects envisioned the new façade as a curtain-type ventilated structure. The solution involved the use of panels, each pre-assembled at the factory and then assembled to be hung on the wall to form the outer skin of the outer wall, regardless of the storey structure. This allowed for careful control of the design and geometry of individual panels as part of the total area of the entire curtain wall, with different sizes of glass panels and different shades of copper stripes. We used copper stripes with three widths - 200, 250 and 300 mm, and three different color intensities of pre-patinated copper, which made it possible to change the amount of green on a dark brown background. The combination of these two variable elements has created a rich, "living" surface out of real copper itself.
Public role
The Clarion Hotel occupies a key position in the very center of Gothenburg, next to the central station and the large Nordstaten shopping center. The new tower plays a significant role, linking together the visual and social axes of the city, which, I must admit, have not had a link for a long time. In the most obvious way, the hotel aligns with Odinsgatan, overlapping the view along its axis. Quite high for Gothenburg, the building rises above the old post office, and is visible from the main city square and other key places in the city center.
Used copper NordicGreen ™ Living
Football Academy, Krasnodar, from M. R. Architecture & Interiors - Russian project of the Competition
The complex of buildings of the Krasnodar children's "Football Academy" is located in a new developing area of Krasnodar. The aim of the project was to create a functional and harmonious environment for living and learning. The complex consists of a main building that includes schools, gyms, swimming pool, library, school club, medical center, and 8 dormitory buildings. An alley with living quarters on both sides turns into a square with a small garden, bounded by the massif of the main building on the east side.
The large number of training football fields form a rather uniform landscape, and define the location of the residential area and the main building on the artificial hill. It offers a vision of the true diversity of the landscape, and the ability to arrange (hide) technical floors underground. Because of this, buildings above the surface are predominantly two- or three-story, i.e. the whole complex is made on a human scale.
The spatial composition is based on a combination of simple shapes and volumes. The contrast of a smooth surface that is sparse in color variety is the main means of expression for architectural facades. Such surfaces include precast concrete panels and factory pre-patinated copper. The palette of colors used for finishing buildings refers to the official colors of FC Krasnodar.
Copper TECU used® - Patina
Text by Maxim Rymar, M. R. Architecture & Interiors
Popular vote
For the first time, everyone has the opportunity to choose their favorite project of the Competition "Copper in European Architecture" within the framework of the "popular vote". Choosing a project you like from among the finalists, you get a chance to win an iPad mini: everyone who voted automatically becomes a participant in the drawing of this gadget.
Only registered users on the www.copperconcept.org website will be able to vote. The popular vote "will end on October 31, 2013, and the building (project) the winner of such a vote will be announced at the award ceremony for the winners of the" Copper in European Architecture 2013 "Competition on November 4, 2013 at the BATIMAT exhibition in Paris. The iPad mini will be announced on the website, and the winner will be personally notified by e-mail.
NP "National Center for Copper"
www.copperconcept.ru
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