37
ENGLISH
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 1
EDITORIAL
THE CHANGING FACE OF COPPER Just a cursory glance at the Contents page opposite illustrates the range of architectural expression enabled by copper and the enthusiasm of designers in seeking out new possibilities for the material. The growing diversity of surfaces and manifestations of copper and its alloys is impressive. But its enhancement of building typologies where copper may not have been considered before is also revealing, as our first project, a major sports stadium in Adelaide, Australia (page 4), shows. Other characteristics – notably transparency and transformation, using perforated copper alloy facades – are explored by both a modern infill building in historic Copenhagen (page 8) and a model B&O store in Herning, Denmark (page 12). Two residential projects, in Luebeck, Germany (page 16) and Ghent, Belgium (page 18), exemplify the flexibility of copper, allowing bold forms to be expressed with material continuity. Interestingly, both designs resulted from robust responses to local planning constraints. Our interview with the architect of another infill within an historic city streetscape, the UNESCO listed centre of Amsterdam (page 22), reveals an intriguing approach to contemporary design that respects its context without compromise. Two more uncompromising designs, a museum in Erding, Bavaria (page 26) and a theatre in Cergy Pontoise, France (page 28), share an exploration of surface texture using copper alloy shingles – an increasingly popular technique.
Our final two projects both focus on young people. A community facility in Denbigh, North Wales (page 32) maximises flexibility to provide a wide range of support services and uses a distinctive copper façade to create a strong local presence. In contrast, the design of a secondary school near Oslo (page 36) exhibits a rigorous interpretation of its programme, with a dark copper profile reflecting local industrial heritage.
ARCHITECTURAL AWARDS LAUNCH These projects clearly demonstrate that copper inspires architects – something that is also apparent from the growing number of impressive reference projects uploaded to our website. To celebrate the role of copper in current contemporary design, we are now launching the 17th iteration of the European Copper in Architecture Awards. The deadline for receipt of entries is 30th April 2015 and more details are available on the back cover and on our website copperconcept.org. We look forward to your Awards entries! The Editorial Team
Register for Copper Architecture Forum – copperconcept.org
Editor in Chief: Robert Pinter
View magazine back issues – copperconcept.org
Editor: Chris Hodson RIBA
Contact the Editorial Team – editorialteam@copperconcept.org
Editorial team: Ari Lammikko, Chris Hodson, Graeme Bell, Herbert Mock, Hermann Kersting, Irina Dumitrescu, Robert Pinter
Upload your project to the website – copperconcept.org See the European Copper in Architecture Awards – copperconcept.org Copper Architecture Forum 37, November 2014 Copper Architecture Forum is part of the ”European Copper In Architecture Campaign”. It is published twice a year and has a circulation of 25.000 copies. The magazine is distributed to architects and building professionals throughout Europe – and beyond – in English, Czech, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Russian and Spanish languages.
Front Cover: Museum addition, Erding, Bavaria (page 26) Photo: Peter Franck
2 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
E-mail: editorialteam@copperconcept.org Address: CAF, European Copper Institute, Avenue de Tervueren 168 b-10, B-1150 Brussels, Belgium Publisher: Nigel Cotton, ECI Layout and technical production: ECI Printing: Copy & Consulting Kft., Hungary Editorial panel: Birgit Schmitz, De Kazimierz Zakrzewski, Pl Marco Crespi, It Nicholas Hay, UK Nikolaos Vergopoulos, Gr Nuno Diaz, Es Olivier Tissot, Fr Pia Voutilainen, Se, No, Fi, Dk Robert Pintér, Hu, Cz, Svk, Ru Yolande Pianet, Benelux
birgit.schmitz@copperalliance.de kazimierz.zakrzewski@copperalliance.pl marco.crespi@copperalliance.it nick.hay@copperalliance.org.uk nick.vergopoulos@copperalliance.gr nuno.diaz@copperalliance.es olivier.tissot@copperalliance.fr pia.voutilainen@copperalliance.se robert.pinter@copperalliance.hu yolande.pianet@copperalliance.eu
© Copper Architecture Forum 2014
CONTENTS
37
2 The Changing Face of Copper – editorial comment
4 –7 Copper Oval – redevelopment of one of Australia’s most iconic sports
venues, the Adelaide Oval
8 –11 A Modern Merchant’s House – an innovative, animated external
skin transforms this conversion from day to night
12 –15 Sound Design – a new Bang & Olufsen store epitomises the
company’s iconic brand and approach to product design
16 –17 Copper Villa – this apartment building is expressed as a single,
contemporary unit, reflecting the scale of its neighbours
18 –21 Deconstructing the Vernacular – copper is key to this
reinvention of the traditional house form
22– 25 Shadow Play – a new gabled town house takes a fresh approach to
contemporary design in an important conservation area
26 – 27 Modern Surface Expression – this new extension to a museum
optimises its constrained site
28 –31
Baroque Intervention – a bold new theatre, enriched by copper
alloy shingle facades, unites neighbouring public buildings
3 2 – 35 Copper Presence – a bold copper façade creates an urban
presence for this innovative facility for young people
3 6 – 39 A School of Thought – this competition-winning new school is
characterised by a clearly defined spatial strategy
40 European Copper in Architecture Awards – launch Read on iPad for free
© Copper Architecture Forum 2014
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 3
COPPER OVAL Bronze cladding and copper mesh help add an extra dimension of material quality to the sports stadia typology at the newly redeveloped Adelaide Oval – one of Australia’s most iconic sports venues, as Mee Kyong Kim of architects WALTERBROOKE (in association with lead architect Cox Architecture) explains 4 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
Photo: Chin Tan (Cox Architecture)
Internationally known as one of the most picturesque test cricket venues in the world, the Adelaide Oval sits amongst historical gardens and trees in the parklands on the northern edge of the city’s central area, with a mound of fig trees, a heritage scoreboard and the spires of St. Peter’s Cathedral as a backdrop. The Adelaide Oval redevelopment now provides 50,000 spectator seats and ancillary facilities for cricket and Australian Rules football, as well as other sports and entertainment.
The new south and east stands reflect the character of the western grandstand redevelopment completed in 2010. The design is conceived as a series of pavilions in a parkland setting and the two new stands consist of strong precast concrete bases, bronze and copper clad facades, glazed curtain-walling, expressed precast concrete seating tiers and diagrid PTFE roofs.
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 5
Photo: Orange Lane
The palette of façade materials includes sandstone coloured concrete, glass, bronze and copper. This palette was inspired by the local context: bronze and copper from existing bronze sculptures in the parkland, and the sandstone coloured concrete from the masonry stone bases of historic buildings nearby. The bronze and copper facades will gradually weather to a dark reddish brown colour which will sit comfortably within the park landscape.
The copper mesh wraps and meanders around the external facades and stairs as a gentle, curved veil along the radial grids. A series of solid bronze volumes protrude though the veil and curtain-walled envelope. Each one is oriented to optimise views to St. Peter’s Cathedral, the gardens, the riverbank and central area, from the dining rooms and members’ bars. This material language is also applied to the internal atrium space. Image: Cox Architecture
6 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
SUBTLE VARIATIONS IN TONE The distinctive façade of the William Magarey Room, above the entrance and ticket office, is expressed with doublecurved geometry and is inclined in a sectional plane. The overall scale of this façade dominates the south elevation and announces the main entry to the south stand. The curved form has been created from over 4,000 individual interlocking bronze panels. Each segment is exposed to different climatic conditions, generating subtle variations in weathered surface tones. The bronze cladding flows underneath to form a reflective soffit to the entrance, then into the interior to define the solid mass, while blurring inside and outside boundaries. Copper mesh forms a secondary skin to fully glazed façades offering privacy and screening internal spaces from the harsh Australian sun. The rib profile mesh also provides weather protection for the external egress stairs.
Architects: Cox Architecture as lead architect in association with WALTERBROOKE and Hames Sharley Copper Installer: Cladding & Roofing Contractors PTY Copper Products: Nordic Bronze and TECU® Classic Rib Mesh
Photo: Chin Tan (Cox Architecture)
The construction details of the copper mesh were developed to suit the local conditions with close collaboration between the architectural team, contractor, cladding installer and structural engineers. The main structural design driver of the fixing methods was the extremely high summer temperature in Adelaide. The stair screens were fabricated as cassette panels while the screens in front of the glazed facades were constructed as full height panels clamped tightly with continuous copper strips along the vertical panel edges. The Adelaide Oval Redevelopment project is characterised by its landscape context, expressive facades and roof forms, and the application of rich, natural materials.
“The bronze and copper facade systems used on the new pavilions add an extra level of quality and finish that is atypical for stadia projects, enabling the new buildings to age gracefully in their parkland setting”
Photo: Chin Tan (Cox Architecture)
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 7
8 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
A MODERN MERCHANT’S HOUSE With this conversion of a 1960s office building, BBP Arkitekter have used articulated, perforated golden copper alloy elements to animate and dramatically transform the external skin to suit different operational and lighting conditions, as they illustrate here Located in the Nyhavn district of central Copenhagen, this conversion forms the new headquarters for the Danish jewellery firm Trollbeads, who are known for their glass and gold beads. It is a high security building, organised like an Italian Renaissance merchant house with goods loaded safely at the ground floor, stock and offices above, and – at the highest level – a residence for the owner with a roof terrace.
Reconciling Modern and Historic The challenge was to make a building that respects its typology as a contemporary curtain-wall building, while at the same time relating to the historic houses on either side. How do you reconcile modern design with the scale and character of an 18th century townhouse? To achieve this, the original curtain wall was removed, the existing concrete structure stripped, then extended 2.5 m towards the street and a new skin of glass and perforated copper alloy added to cover the facade, roof and a small courtyard at the back. The building is defined by the two party walls, which have been raised and reshaped so as to follow the line of the neighbouring mansard roof. Typically of visible party walls in the city, the exposed wall has a different logic to the facade, with small, round windows forming a random pattern.
Copper Alloy Curtain Between the two curved party walls, a skin of glass is stretched to cover the roof and facade. On the outside a golden copper alloy ‘curtain’ is hung, making a kind of inverted curtain-wall. Areas of the copper curtain can simply fold up to generate a pattern of fenestration matching that of the adjacent buildings and giving continuity to the streetscape. When closed, the curtain becomes homogenous and impenetrable – but then dissolves to reveal the interior with lighting at night. Architect: BBP Arkitekter Copper Installer: Art Andersen Copenhagen & Hunter Douglas Architectural Projects Scandinavia Copper Product: TECU® Gold Photos: Jens Markus Lindhe
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 9
The new façade addresses the fractured street frontage of the original concrete building. The converted building now respects the massing, scale and urban context of its historic neighbours 10 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
COPPER CLOSE-UP
ANIMATING ARCHITECTURE
Every morning half the curtain opens, creating fenestration set into a ‘massive’ wall like the adjoining houses.
After working hours the curtain closes automatically and the building is transformed into a secure vault.
After dark dim lighting turns on inside, revealing a modern glass house behind a veil of translucent copper alloy.
The pattern of perforations in the curtain was inspired by a hedge of thorns guarding a treasure and was developed by textile designer Lene Toni Kjeld together with architect Ebbe Wæhrens
Movable elements are hinged but when the curtain is closed there is little visible difference across the facades
At the third floor the curtain is folded down to align with the roof cornice of the adjacent house. The curtain also lifts up at the entrance, forming a canopy in line with a cornice on the neighbouring buildings
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 11
12 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
SOUND
DESIGN by Chris Hodson
The first new Bang & Olufsen store based on the company’s latest retail design concept epitomises this iconic brand with its deceptively simple, golden copper alloy and glass form A team headed by Johannes Torpe, B&O’s Creative Director, was behind the new store concept which aims to deliver a fresh sensory experience through sound and design. The architectural interpretation of this concept by Arkitec A/S for a store in the Danish town of Herning, is an understated, curved-edge box, reminiscent of B&O’s minimalist products. Although thoroughly modern, the store’s design recognises its sensitive location on the town’s central square – dominated by the church – with restraint and modest scale.
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 13
Unique Visual Characteristics After exploring a range of other high quality façade materials alongside the generous glazing, a consensus was reached on the golden copper alloy for its sustainability and unique visual characteristics, complementing the warm brown brick prevalent around the square and copper details on the church. Without compromising the clean lines of the building, an additional surface treatment was applied to enrich the copper alloy’s appearance and an apparently random pattern of wavy lines added, generated by varying circular perforations through the material. At night, soft LED backlighting shines through the perforated patterns, dematerialising the building’s form. Programmed to dim randomly, the glowing façades create an intriguing rhythmic animation and focal point to the town square.
Architect: Lars Sternberg, Arkitec A/S Copper Installer: RMIG and AS Facader Copper Product: TECU® Gold Photos: ©Arkitec A/S – Lars Sternberg
14 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
Different sized circular perforations create random wavy patterns...
Photo: KME
...which then come alive at night with animated LED backlighting
Photo: KME
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 15
COPPER
VILLA 16 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
Conceived as a modern villa, this apartment building in Luebeck, northern Germany, is an example of a design informed by local planning constraints – influencing its positioning, proportions and even roof pitches. The pre-patinated copper superstructure above a solid brick base and a creative use of fenestration belie the linear plan forms of the three apartments stacked within. KBNK Architekten describe their design
The site of the JWS 2b building in the St. Gertrud quarter, not far from the historic city centre, offers a prime location with exceptional views to the river Wankenitz. Our design is a cubic form and a fresh interpretation of the surrounding buildings. Sloping, gabled roofs, a clear differentiation between ground and first floor and a limited selection of high quality materials underline the villa character of the building. The ground floor facades, terrace, garage entrance (serviced by a vehicle lift) and garden walls are all united by a homogeneous brick texture. The upper two floors use a copper-clad, lightweight timber construction, enhancing sustainability. Private outdoor areas are clearly differentiated from open semi-public space such as the main entry and garden to the north of the site. The building is completely committed to the principles of sustainability. By using optimized day-lighting, controlled ventilation and established technologies, environmental emissions and costs have been kept to a minimum. Architect: KBNK Architekten Copper Installer: Bauklempnerei Clemens Neumeister jun. Copper Product: TECU® Patina Photos: Markus Dorfmüller | Markus Kröger | Johanna Klier
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 17
DECONSTRUCTING THE VERNACULAR 18 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
Local planning demands also influenced the design of this family home, sparking a subversion of the ‘room in the roof’ house typology without resorting to ubiquitous dormer windows or rooflights. Instead, an ingenious deconstruction of a vernacular form has been generated, split open by fissures of generous glazing providing discreet views to both levels. The copper skin – unifying walls and roofs – proved central to the concept, explains Basile Graux COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 19
DEVELOPING THE DESIGN - RESPONDING TO SITE CONSTRAINTS Skylights Dormer windows
SITE
SINGLE STOREY + pitched roof
1 BUILDABLE AREA
2 BUILDING VOLUME required area
MODIFICATION of building volume
3 NEW building volume
Architect: GRAUX & BAEYENS architecten Copper Installer: Platteau bvba Photos: Filip Dujardin
20 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
VIEWS
4 REINTEGRATED into buildable area
This single, family house is located in Destelbergen, just outside the Belgian town of Ghent. It is close to the remains of a castle destroyed in the Second World War, although parts of its surrounding wall still stand as a silent historical reminder. House VDV appears simultaneously familiar and strange. The basic volume, consisting of a ground floor and upper level within a pitched roof, alludes to familiar archetypes such as the rural farmhouse or barn. Yet, at the same time, the simplicity of the volume is broken up by large glass facades, establishing relationships with the surrounding trees and listed castle wall. Mandatory planning requirements for the plot made sure that the house was conceived as a pavilion. Our solution is essentially a garden-house with no front or rear but, instead, two identical facades and a 360-degree experience of the entire plot. The untreated copper cladding will continuously change colour over the years, from bright in the beginning to brown and eventually green at the end. It gives the project a poetic impermanence, which is echoed in the reflection of the surrounding trees in the glass facades.
  COPPERCONCEPT.ORG  21
22 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
SHADOW PLAY Within the Seventeenth-Century Canal Ring Area of Amsterdam – added to the UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2010 – is an intriguing new building that respects the history of its location while exploring contemporary, deconstructive design. Architect Elsbeth Falk discusses this modern take on the traditional gabled merchant house with Chris Hodson
Chris Hodson: What is the story behind this project? Elsbeth Falk: Bergstraat 6 was a small plot of derelict land waiting to be developed for years. The original gabled house from 1724 burned down in 1946. Then, in 2010, there was at last an opportunity to develop the plot and reinstate the streetscape. CH: How did you approach the design? EF: Our concept was to create a shadow of the building that once stood there. It's a wink to the past, showing respect for its context but in line with aspirations for the future.
A flat façade, completely covered with dark, pre-oxidised copper and black aluminium window frames, provides an abstract view of the former buildings. We wanted to create a contemporary translation of a facade with traditional proportions, seamlessly incorporated into the street. CH: How did you know what the original facade looked like? EF: Our research led us to original drawings of the street and old photos of the building before demolition. This evidence and the shadow concept using copper underpinning our design were presented to the local municipality, convincing them that this solution was right for such a sensitive, protected area.
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 23
LONG SECTION
ATTIC
2ND FLOOR PLAN
1ST FLOOR PLAN
GROUND FLOOR PLAN
BASEMENT
24 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
CH: How is the building used? EF: It is now used as an office but the concept was that it could also become a family home. A good design should be able to handle both. CH: Why did you choose pre-oxidised copper for the street facade? EF: It seemed a natural way of achieving the dark 'shadow' finish we sought but also because we could design ‘flat’ details – almost as if there were no details at all. And we really like the fact that copper ages slowly and gracefully. CH: The copper façade appears disconnected from the rest of the new building. EF: Yes, this was our clear intention. The one visible side wall is light grey mineral render with grey metal cladding to the top floor and zinc roofs, providing a neutral backdrop for the dark street façade surface to stand-out against. CH: Although the street façade is conceived as two-dimensional, it does have thickness. EF: That’s true, although our detailing of the copper surface aims to create a consistently thin, distinct façade element, detached from the rest of the building. Architect: Hund Falk Architecten (project architects: Elsbeth Falk and Annelies Schellekens) Client: ForReal Investments Amsterdam Copper Installer: De Ridden geveltechniek Copper Product: TECU® Oxid Photos: de Beeldenmakers and Hans van Meerwijk
COPPER IN DETAIL
Y X
X
Y
STREET ELEVATION
REALISING THE CONCEPT The 'shadow' facade with its pre-oxidised copper surface (shown coloured on the drawings) has been carefully detailed to create a completely flat 'shadow' plane with only recessed joints between panels. The consistent thickness of the copper facade element is expressed by shadow-gap details to the adjacent building and rendered side wall. Simple, dark windows with copper reveals minimise visual impact and copper shutters sit flush with the facade when closed.
VERTICAL SECTION Y-Y
HORIZONTAL SECTION X-X
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 25
MODERN SURFACE EXPRESSION by Chris Hodson
The first of two projects characterised by bold forms and facades enlivened with golden copper alloy shingles, this new addition to a Museum in the Bavarian town of Erding makes the most of its constrained site
26 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
COPPER SHINGLES The new addition adjoins the eastern side of a protected historic building – home to the Erdinger Museum’s collection since 1986 and currently under renovation – with a glazed link maintaining a respectful distance between them. The taller, upper level main exhibition space is a simple, flat-roofed cubic form. It is encased by unbroken surfaces, relieved by the strong geometric texture of large interlocking shingles manufactured from a golden copper alloy. This bold, golden form floats above the generously glazed lower level which houses a new entrance, café, training rooms, offices and special exhibition spaces. The new addition is thoroughly modern but does not attempt to compete with its historic host.
Architect: Walbrunn Architekten Copper Installer: Hermann Häckl & Sohn Spenglerei Copper Product: TECU® Gold Photos: Peter Franck
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 27
28 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
COPPER SHINGLES
BAROQUE
INTERVENTION Our second golden shingle example – this time in Cergy Pontoise, France – takes an even bolder stance, explained by its architects GPAA, based on their entry for the 2013 European Copper in Architecture Awards Théâtre 95 is housed in the third building of the new town that arose in the 1970s. This emblem of the town’s history was once the home to the Cergy Pontoise School of Architecture and Urban Planning, before becoming an arts school and then being transformed into a theatre. The new addition is a complex project, framed by more general considerations about emerging social and urban developments and cultural practices. The aim is to invite the wider public to discover new strategies to reinvent the town. The building’s pleated, gabled roof first strikes the visitor’s eye: this is the outline that the new intervention has borrowed to link old and new. The connection exists in a ‘semi-public’ hall-atrium, which follows the "Fil D'Ariane" – a public footpath that winds its way, without interruption, from the south-east to the north-west of the town and is thus ‘integrated’ into the building. The saw-tooth outline of the existing roof is continued over the hall-atrium volume, where it transforms into juxtaposed strips creating shafts of light entering the hall. The pleated forms are also echoed in the auditorium addition, facing south. Here, they create a new rhythm, emphasizing the orientation of the new structure out of line with Cergy's traditional orthogonal grid. The pleated outline has become the "crown" of the volume of the new auditorium. The auditorium rises in an almost baroque posture, as if in confrontation with what is already there. The existing building conserves its identity, with the atrium linking it to the new 400-seat auditorium, setting up a ‘face-off’ relationship between two visions that mix, stand in opposition and join together in a boldly chaotic statement. The auditorium addition is a blind mass, covered with golden scales that add light to this fairly colourless urban environment.
Architect: Gaëlle Peneau architecte et associés (GPAA) Copper Installer: RAIMOND SAS Copper Product: TECU® Gold Photos: 11h45, Paris
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 29
4 1
3 2
3
2 2 PLAN 04 1- dressing rooms and artistic annexes 2- storage area
3- auditorium 4- void over existing stage
5
3
4
7
6
8
9 10
6
1
SECTION OF THE ATRIUM TOWARDS THE NEW AUDITORIUM
2 PLAN 03 6- bridges in the atrium 7- collective dressing room 8- existing auditorium 9- bookshop 10- hall
1- auditorium 2- control room 3- caretakers room 4- technicians office 5- void over storage areas
SECTION OF THE ATRIUM TOWARDS THE EXISTING BUILDING
10 3 3
3
3 8
2
5
4 6
LONGITUDINAL SECTION OF THE HALL AND THE CONROL ROOM
9
1 4 7 1- auditorium 2- proximity dressing room 3- storage area 4- atrium 5- library
PLAN 02 6- bar 7- foyer 8- existing auditorium 9- hall 10- service area
30 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
TRANSVERSE SECTION OF THE HALL TOWARDS THE CONTROL ROOM
COPPER SHINGLES
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 31
COPPER PRESENCE A long, pre-oxidised copper rain-screen detaches from its host building, creating an impressive urban presence for this innovative community facility for young people in North Wales. Julien Denis of John McCall Architects tells us more 32 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
Architect: John McCall Architects Client: Grŵp Cynefin Contractor: Anwyl Construction Copper Installer: Varla UK Copper Product: Nordic BrownTM Light Photos: John Garon Photography
Inclusive and Accessible Hwb Dinbych is a multi-purpose facility for young people, incorporating supported housing. It is located on the outskirts of a housing estate and only a few yards from the historic town centre of Denbigh. The building provides learning spaces for vocational skills and gives access to business advice, counselling and mentoring, as well as supporting other services for young people, ranging from 11 to 25 years old. It also includes six self-contained 1-bed apartments for affordable rental by 16–25 year olds.
The aim of the project was to create a centre that will provide support to young people in general, particularly those at risk of under-achieving in life, and to reduce homelessness amongst the young. The project aims to be inclusive and accessible to the whole community, attracting a broad crosssection of Denbigh residents, particularly young people. The design concept, derived from the client’s aspirations, provides openness, visibility and accessibility from the street, as well as ‘ownership’ by the young. The building is flexible and able to respond to different users’ needs, allowing local training and support services to be delivered and links with local businesses to be fostered.
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 33
BREEAM Rated Care has been taken to ensure that the ecological and environmental impacts of the redevelopment are positive. The building has achieved a BREEAM “excellent” rating for energy use and “very good” rating for the overall scheme. Copper and other materials were carefully selected for recyclability and reduced environmental impact, in line with ‘The Green Guide to Specification’. In compositional terms, the design defines two main masses: the copper-clad volume of the Youth Enterprise Centre/ College and the concrete-faced volume of the supported housing block. The main entrance of the complex is through a glazed atrium which links the two parts across a doubleheight reception space. SECOND FLOOR PLAN
FIRST FLOOR PLAN
Summertime overheating is minimised by overhanging the first floor and providing a colonnade along the front of the building. Floor levels dictated by flood risk alleviation resulted in the base of the building jutting out of the ground as the site slopes downhill, giving the eastern end of the building elevated views to the surroundings. Precast concrete facades were selected to reference the local stone and traditional pebbledash rendered houses, allowing the building to blend in with its surroundings. The coppergreen coloured, V-shaped columns add a playful note to the composition.
Copper Ribbon The pre-oxidised copper rain-screen of the front elevation extends past the glazed wall of the atrium to provide some solar shading and to frame views of the nearby castle. Tall windows in this copper ribbon also reflect the medieval architecture of the castle. The prominent sign above the entrance was also made of copper to match the main elevation.
GROUND FLOOR PLAN
34 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
Particular care was taken with the rhythm of the copper standing seams to avoid formality and repetition, and give the main street elevation a natural feel. This is further reinforced by the use of box seams at corner junctions and at either side of openings. Box seams were also employed on the end elevation to highlight the location of curtain wall members on the larger opening of the Arts & Crafts workshop.
COPPER IN DETAIL
EXAMPLE COPPER CLADDING PANEL WITHIN RECESSED BLOCKWORK ELEVATION C
A
cavity tray over compartment fire barrier
A
joint in copper at tray position
lintel over full width of recessed panel B
insulated steel lintel B helping hand bracket
vertical standing seam copper continuous sill
continuous sill
C SECTION C-C
helping hand bracket
140 mm insulation 50×50 mm vertical battens 18 mm plywood membrane vertical standing seam copper
PLAN A-A
aluminium window copper returned into reveal
continuous sill PLAN B-B
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 35
36 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
A SCHOOL OF THOUGHT This compact, low energy secondary school for 450 students uses pre-oxidised, profiled copper cladding to celebrate its locality. Thomas Landenberg, a partner in White arkitekter AB, describes its competition-winning design and rigorous response to the programme The new school – Bråtejordet skole – is situated in Strømmen, an old industrial town around 20 km northeast of central Oslo and considered a part of Greater Oslo. Strømmen has its origins in sawmills along the local river and, later on, in heavy industry. The school is built on top of sloping farmland, right next to an old farmhouse. It is the first building in what will be a new housing area and east of the school there will be a new kindergarten. The view over the surrounding open landscape is one of the main qualities of the site. The client wanted a school with a hundred year life-span and copper provided a long-term facade solution that combines a living material, developing its beauty over time, with the feeling of a lightweight box hovering over the plateau. The pre-oxidised copper box’s impact is reinforced with matching dark window frames and sun shades, and also by the returning copper soffits above the entrance opening.
While the dark box blends with the landscape, it contrasts with the interior, which is bright with a white terrazzo floor forming the plateau. The ‘green roof’ – covered with Sedum planting to collect water – is formed from a series of wedge shapes, maintaining a low height but avoiding snow and rain problems. It incorporates a number of long rooflights, providing natural lighting to the main space and stairs, as well as adding to a sense of connection with the outside. Together with the distinctive roof forms, the corrugated copper façades are also contextual, connecting with the old industrial sheds of Strømmen. But even more important is the way the copper reflects light as students are welcomed by the north-east façade glimmering in the morning sun.
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 37
C SECTION A-A
A B
B C
D
SECTION B-B
D A
SECTION C-C
38 COPPER ARCHITECTURE FORUM 37/2014
SECTION D-D
The competition project was called “Rammer og Nivåer” or “Frames and Levels”. Our design concept was centred on a clearly defined spatial hierarchy. This sequence from larger to smaller provides the structured teaching environment required by the teachers and headmaster. It defines clear spatial thresholds:
YARD
- between the town and the school
A vegetated ‘filter’ with trees of different heights defines the school yard. Passing through this filter you leave the town and enter the school. The density and height of the filter is adjusted to the view and surroundings. The yard itself is divided into ‘fields’ – referencing the agricultural landscape – serving different functions, including social spaces close to the building and sports and play further away. The building is located near the road, distancing itself from the old farm and also sheltering the yard from road noise. The angled building shape also creates a warm and sheltered microclimate in the yard.
PLATEAU
– between ground level
common areas and upper level units for each grade
The entrance is on a plateau, two metres above the new road, creating a level change as you enter the building. Various specialist rooms – including workshops, studios and the library – and administration areas form an angle around the school yard and the central space. This central space acts as the entrance, meeting and assembly hall, as well as the canteen. This space is extrovert, public and transparent – connecting with the schoolyard to the south and views to the north, and defined by full-height glazing, differentiating it from the upper level: the box.
BOX
– between the units
The classroom level is a raised, introverted copper box. Inside there are different spaces for study, work and concentration, again forming an angle around the main space. The three different grades are located in each corner of the building and every grade has its own area with a teacher’s room, distinct social space and separate stairs down to the entrance level. Every classroom is connected to a smaller room for working in groups, as well as a toilet, so that students do not have to leave the teaching area: one of the programmatic demands of the competition.
ROOM
– between the classes
All the classrooms are orientated north, avoiding direct sunlight but with views over the surrounding open landscape. This is where students and teachers spend much of their time, so most of the classrooms have high ceilings following the angular roof, as well as concrete walls, giving them a spacious and distinctive character.
Architect (and Landscape Architect): White arkitekter AB Contractor: Betonmast AS Copper Installer: Storo Blikkenslagerverksted AS Copper Product: Nordic BrownTM Light Photos: Ivan Brodey
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG 39
WINNER 2009 WINNER 2011
WINNER 2007
2015 ARCHITECTURAL AWARDS LAUNCH Entries are invited for the 2015 European Copper in Architecture Awards – a showcase for architects designing with copper and its alloys to promote their work to an international audience. Final deadline for receipt of entries: 30th April 2015
WINNER 2013 All entries must incorporate facades, roofing or other architectural elements of copper or copper alloys. Any scale or type of project can be entered – from major landmark buildings to modest schemes. Architects and critics, drawn from a panel including some of the most influential designers in Europe, will judge all the entries on their architectural qualities from graphic submissions. For more information on entering the 2015 Awards-17 and on previous awards entries and results, visit: www.copperconcept.org/awards
COPPERCONCEPT.ORG