vers un climat building (with) the unstable an exhibition by AWP The nocturnal face of architecture: how buildings contribute to the urban nightscape awp (marc armengaud, matthias armengaud, alessandra cianchetta) The Hartell Gallery, Cornell University, USA 26 August – 16 September 2013
the lantern, norwegian wood sandnes, no
The nocturnal face of architecture: how buildings contribute to the urban nightscape
AWP presents Vers un climat: Building (with) the Unstable The Hartell Gallery, Cornell University, NY, USA 26 August – 16 September 2013 The night is a potent subject: its veil of darkness can hide imperfections and transform appearances. In cities it’s both the calm retreat from the bustling day and the beginning of social life, at a different pace.
(2003 – 2008) is an experimental project exploring mobility in urban spaces at night, while the design for the LAM Museum Sculpture Park (2010) springs from the desire to reinterpret, liberate and enhance the definition of outdoor spaces, strengthening their relation
AWP, Office for Territorial Reconfiguration, (Marc Armengaud, Matthias Armengaud, Alessandra Cianchetta) has spent several years looking at the ways in which climate, time, light and the atmosphere influence architectural design. The exhibition at Cornell is the culmination of a show at the Pavillon d’Arsenal (Paris La Nuit, Nocturnal Chronicles 23/5-6/10 2013) and a book (Nightscapes, nocturnal landscapes, 2009) which illustrate the nocturnal face of architecture, proving that buildings, like light, have the capacity to evolve, change, fluctuate and perform as active participants in our cities.
to architecture and sculptures; the design includes a luminous installation that enable a night program on site. La Defense Night-time Plan (2013) will also be featured in the exhibition, AWP’s master plan for the development of Paris’ Central Business District. The plan outlines a long-term evolution strategy for the site and identifies possibilities to develop a new night-time identity for the area, among many other issues. Academic and theoretical work will also be included from the Paris la Nuit exhibition, illustrating the challenges that night poses to urbanism, landscape design and architecture. Presenting carefully collated data on mobility, logistics, maintenance, employment, tourism, transgressions, services and culture, the exhibition documents and analyses the metropolitan Parisian nightscape from 1789 to today. Scholarly work from other AWP publications, including their book Nightscapes, will also be on show.
Featuring both realized and proposed projects by AWP, the exhibition also reveals the practice’s in depth research on the many ways in which the intangible dimensions of architecture – such as atmosphere, climate, and light materialize in buildings. Part of AWP’s ongoing challenge is to translate recurrent themes of impermanence, evolution, and the uncontrollable into design. Projects on show include The Lantern Pavilion in Sandnes, Norway (2008 – 2009), a striking combination of the avant-garde and the traditional: a transparent gathering space raised on wooden stilts. At night the structure’s interior lights reflect off the glass exterior to create a warm and welcoming glow. The Troll installation
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Vers un climat building (with) the Unstable TIME & PLACE 26 August - 16 September 2013 The Hartell Gallery, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA TYPE Exhibition GUEST CURATOR & graphic conception AWP (Marc Armengaud, Matthias Armengaud, Alessandra Cianchetta) AWP TEAM Marc Armengaud, Matthias Armengaud, Alessandra Cianchetta (partners) Dennis Brochard, Bérénice Gentil, Gemma Guinovart, Laureline Guilpain, Quentin L’Hôte, Dasha Mikic, Maya Nemeta (project team) IMAGES © AWP, Bosheng Gan, Marchand & Meffre, Anna Positano
la défense paris, fr
lam sculpture park lille, fr
Photo credit : Gregori Civera
AWP office for territorial reconfiguration Alessandra Cianchetta profile Alessandra Cianchetta is an architect and founding partner of AWP. Her portfolio of award-winning designs ranges from major, large-scale public projects to temporary installations, with a focus on public realm and cultural provision. Alessandra has also curated exhibitions for major cultural institutions, written books and essays, lectured, taught and exhibited her work at many architectural venues and universities worldwide. She was recently invited to join the architecture faculty at Cornell University, which was the genesis for the “Vers un climat” exhibition PRACTICE PROFILE AWP (Marc Armengaud, Matthias Armengaud, Alessandra Cianchetta) AWP is founded and directed by Marc Armengaud, Matthias Armengaud and Alessandra Cianchetta. AWP—office for territorial reconfiguration, has been exploring the urban nightscape since 2000. Authors of the book Nightscapes (GG, 2009) the three partners, have conducted research in 25 different night territories in Europe and North America. Recipients of Naja 2006, the French Ministry of Culture Prize for Best Young Architects, nominated for the Mies van der Rohe prize 2009, and awarded the French Ministry of Ecology, Sustainability, Transport and Housing PJU urban planning award in 2010, AWP is currently working on the strategic master plan for the development of the La Défense Central Business District in Paris. Other projects include: nomination for the Mies van der Rohe Award in 2009; master planning of public spaces and mobility for the 230ha PrailleAcacias-Vernets area in Geneva; construction of the Evry wastewater treatment plant in France; re-designing the public realm for Capodichino airport and the Ferro-Gomma Hub multimodal park in Naples (in collaboration with RSH-P); and a number of international high profile competitions. AWP’s client portfolio includes several European cities, metropolitan and regeneration authorities, cultural institutions and developers. The three partners have exhibited their work in and lectured at architectural venues worldwide and are respectively teaching at ENSA Versailles, ENSA Paris Malaquais and Columbia University. Their projects are part of the permanent and temporary collections of cultural institutions such as the City of Architecture and Heritage in Paris and the MOMA in New York. Fields of activity Architecture / Master Planning / Design / Landscape Architecture / Public Space / Urban research & Forecasting www.awp.fr
Cornell University
Cornell University has one of the oldest and most respected
architecture
schools
in
the
United
States. Cornell’s bachelor of architecture is ranked first amongst undergraduate
programs and the Masters
degree in architecture is now the fifth ranked postgraduate architecture program in the U.S. The Milstein Hall, that houses Cornell University’s leading architecture department, was designed by Rem Koolhaas and OMA and opened its doors to students in 2011. Hartell
Gallery,
where
AWP
(Office
for
Territorial Reconfiguration), will present their latest architectural work and explorations of nightscapes, has played host to significant exhibitions by prominent architectural theorists and partners including Richard Meier (2012), Marlon Blackwell (2012), and Ratan Tata (2011).
vers un climat building (with) the unstable an exhibition by AWP The Hartell Gallery, Cornell University, ithaca, ny, USA 26 August – 16 September 2013 AWP communication@awp.fr
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