Month: January 2020

While we wait for summer 2020 and another chance to watch the medal counts climb and cheer on our home countries in the next Olympics, a different type of international contest has tallied its scores and the United States has taken the gold in the World Design Rankings, with China and Japan following for second and third place respectively. Sponsored by the international A’ Design Award and Competition, the world’s largest and most diverse design accolade, the World Design Rankings are compiled based on the number of designers from each country granted an A’ Design Award.

Tonkin Zulaikha Greer have redesigned a historic hat factory in Sydney’s Surry Hills to become a new hotel. The design transforms the handsome Henderson Hat manufacturing warehouse building to act as a catalyst for connecting and reactivating the surrounding public domain. The hotel would add two additional levels to the existing six-story Edwardian building.

From hospitals and retail stores to large commercial facilities and school buildings, resilient flooring is a popular choice for its durability. Yet like any material, it is subject to human error and neglect; if not properly maintained, even resilient flooring may deteriorate (in aesthetics, function, or both) before its time. 

Throughout the last 12 months, the architectural community has responded in various ways to the Climate Emergency. From innovative proposals that tackle the sustainable design of healthy cities, to collective political action and lobbying, 2019 saw a continued mobilization of ideas, opinions, and actions on how architecture can be used as a tool to help the planet.

When I first met Carolina and her husband Carlos we spoke about three fundamental and unique attributes she dreamt of her house: a stone wall, an olive tree and on the top of everything, no big windows.

The Canine & Feline Hotel is located in Parada, Vila do Conde and the main program consists of temporary dog and cat accommodation, a hotel where the animals stay for a few days, during holidays or professional travel of their owners. The remaining program is a complement to the space’s activity, with a veterinary office, a grooming room, outdoor training areas and a swimming pool for pets. The program is distributed over three buildings that are interconnected, allowing to create three different areas. This way we got to separate the cat zone from the dog zone, avoiding the meeting of both and reducing the animal noises. In another building we find all the public service spaces. In combination with the programmatic layout needs, the three volumes were designed to reduce the impact of the construction area in order to improve its landscape integration.

The Canine & Feline Hotel is located in Parada, Vila do Conde and the main program consists of temporary dog and cat accommodation, a hotel where the animals stay for a few days, during holidays or professional travel of their owners. The remaining program is a complement to the space’s activity, with a veterinary office, a grooming room, outdoor training areas and a swimming pool for pets. The program is distributed over three buildings that are interconnected, allowing to create three different areas. This way we got to separate the cat zone from the dog zone, avoiding the meeting of both and reducing the animal noises. In another building we find all the public service spaces. In combination with the programmatic layout needs, the three volumes were designed to reduce the impact of the construction area in order to improve its landscape integration.