We Build Drawings Mikkel Frost | CEBRA architecture
We Build Drawings Mikkel Frost | CEBRA architecture
CONTENTS 4
et your fingers L do the talking! Naturvidenskabernes Hus The Iceberg Købmagergade Magneten VÌksthuset Kloden Paletten Elbek & Vejrup Blinds Studio Experimentarium StreetDome
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20 30 38 46 54 62 72 80 88 98
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106 114 122
UDK HF & VUC Fyn Rebildporten Graadyb Halls of Residence Childrenʼs Home of the Future Centre for Early Childhood Development The Glades Qasr Al Hosn Æbeløgade The Villa(ge)
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140
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160 170 182 192
202 208
Project Index Credits 3
Contents
et your fingers L do the talking!
TEDxAarhus – talk by Mikkel Frost, 6th of October 2018
‘I’m sure a lot of you play music – maybe in your spare time, just for fun. But even if you do, you may not play it from notes. I play an instrument – not very well – and certainly not from notes. I just never got the hang of it. But if you’re a trained musician or a composer, you might simply look at the notes and hear the music inside your head. If you think about technical building plans you might say that they are the musical score of architecture. They too are an instruction. If you follow the instruction you’ll end up with a building. The bricklayers and the carpenters would be equivalent to the musicians. I, on the other hand, would be equivalent to the composer since I’m an architect. So when I look at these apparently flat plans, I literally see the three-dimensional spaces before my inner eyes. But I’ve come to understand that a lot of people outside of the building industry don’t fully read these drawings. It’s just like the musical notes – it takes practice and training. That’s why architects, including myself, do photorealistic computer renderings. Basically saying
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that if you decide to build the proposal, you should be able to go to the site and shoot a photograph looking roughly like it when the building is done. If we compare our computer visualizations with the finished buildings, I think it’s fair to say that the resemblance is pretty good. The computer renderings definitely serve a purpose. They show people what their building will look like, but they don’t say anything about why it should look a certain way. To explain that, I’ve developed a new drawing typology based on cartoons and comic books, a visual language people are familiar with. The idea is that if you cannot explain an architectural concept on a single sheet of A4 paper, you are either saying too much or it is too complicated. I’m sure that you can easily figure out that the facade of Rebildporten is inspired by tree branches. page 122 This makes a lot of sense because the building itself is an information portal telling visitors about a very special part of the Danish nature. Obviously, we weren’t allowed to build architecture in nature, so we built nature into the architecture. Another example is an office building we did for a local tech company. page 72 Since they work with data and software, we figured it would be really fun to take one of the oldest building components in history – the brick – and treat it like a digital pixel, creating a Minecraft-inspired kind of architecture. The watercolours, and I have done a number of them, are perfectly finished little pieces of art. They are not sketches, and they are certainly not spontaneous. In fact, they are done after the architectural concept has been conceived; they serve as conceptual full stops. During the actual design phase, however, I leave out colour and work a lot faster.
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Let your fingers do the talking
I do numerous sketches mostly in my sketchbooks – either in the office or on the go – and then I scan or simply photograph them and send them off to staff or clients. Sometimes the sketches are answers to simple questions. For instance, from officials at the Aarhus municipality, who recently asked me where people can sit to take a rest in a street that we are designing. Instead of writing half a page of text, I simply drew up a sketch and sent it off, which totally did the trick. page 191 At other times I might just be doodling away on my own, trying to figure out how I can reinterpret a traditional roof and turn it into something personal and contemporary. page 189 Or I might stumble upon something that I find inspiring, like a date palm tree, and to make sure I don’t forget about it, I simply draw it and add a few notes. These drawings are very simple and most people should understand them, but the best way to communicate an idea is to talk and draw simultaneously, whenever that’s possible. The great thing about it is that people don’t have to look for information within the drawing – they just need to follow the pen. And since I cannot allow myself to take the time to add little details or hatching, the drawings become a lot simpler – almost primitive. But the best thing about it is that watching a drawing come to life seems to be almost hypnotising for people – it is to me. I simply need to see where the lines go and what it all turns into. Let me give you an example. Roughly a decade ago we were asked to design a housing block at the new Aarhus harbour development. page 20 The masterplan, designed by another architect, suggested
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a perimeter block, which makes sense as it’s a very successful typology in Denmark and it’s been around for centuries. However, we soon found out that we had a water canal running along the north side of the site and another canal running along the south side. On top of that, the plot faced the Aarhus bay. With water on no less than three sides, we knew that we had to open up the rather introvert perimeter block. Somebody in the office came up with the idea of parallel L-shaped wings – kind of spooning towards the corner of the site – and with that move, we managed to open up to the surroundings. We eliminated draft problems, and with all of the corners pointing straight to the north, the wings seem to almost embrace the daylight as the sun moves from the east to the west. Still, it didn’t quite do the trick as we didn’t create enough views for the future residents. So we started pulling up points and pushing down others, transforming the wings into zigzagging lines or chains of gable houses. From each of these peaks, the residences face the bay between the others – because the peaks are constantly shifting. Going through these iterations, we ended up with a rather surprising volume seemingly shooting out of the water. The most surprising thing about it was that it looked like something we’d seen before – we thought it looked like an iceberg. We never intended to design one, that was never the inspiration. It just kind of happened. But once we named it, it became really easy to decide on colours and materials. Obviously, it had to be white and then we started adding ice blue balconies. What I really want to say is that the people who hire architects are usually not architects themselves. They can be, but mostly they’re not. But they
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Let your fingers do the talking
do commission the work and they pay for the music, so obviously they want to know what their building will look like. More importantly, they need to understand why it’s a great idea to build an iceberg instead of the good old trusted perimeter block. That’s why I draw: to make sure that everybody is on the same page. Having learnt that the best way to share an abstract architectural idea is with simple hand drawings, I often encourage my colleagues, staff members and students to carry a pen with them at all times to use whenever they get a chance. If you’re thinking: “Well I’m not an architect, I’m not even going to hire one, why should I care?” I want to say that the idea of supporting the spoken word with simple hand drawings is something that can be applied to any professional field or situation. So if you’re a lawyer, a doctor or school teacher, you should give drawing a chance, and you’d see that people might understand you better. All of what I’ve just said – my entire talk – can be boiled down to one simple sentence: If you have an idea to share, let your fingers do the talking.’
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Dedicated to Zorglub, the Nordjyllands Kunstmuseum and 1993.
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Mikkel Frost | CEBRA architecture
The Iceberg
he Iceberg is one of the first completed projects in T the redevelopment of Aarhus’s former container port. Like many other run-down industrial harbour fronts, the area is being transformed into a dynamic new neighbourhood that on completion will be home to 7000 inhabitants and provide 12,000 workplaces. Its total site area of 800,000 m2 makes it one of Europe’s largest harbour front city developments. At this prime location, with its spectacular view across the bay, the seemingly simple task was to maximise views and sunlight for every apartment. Instead of following the masterplan made up of primarily closed blocks, The Iceberg is laid out as four L-shaped wings in which the street spaces between the parallel wings open towards the water. To obtain optimal daylight conditions and views over the bay, the angled volumes are cut up by a jagged roof profile. The L-shapes are arranged like carefully organised mountain peaks and valleys allowing even apartments in the back row to enjoy generous natural lighting and fantastic views of the rising peaks and the water. The simple algorithm used in the design results in a stunning structure of eleven white peaks – like floating icebergs that constantly refract one’s gaze.
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Commissioned to work on one of the Dubai islands – in this case ‘Switzerland’ – we decided to further investigate the mountain typology.
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Related Project
The idea of sloping mountain buildings has been a recurring theme for CEBRA and many other studios over the last decades.
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Related Project
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The Iceberg
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The Iceberg
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The Iceberg
Centre for Early Childhood Development The project is the first of its kind in Abu Dhabi and will serve as a pilot project for future childcare centres in the region. The institution contains a kindergarten, spaces for physical activity, a pedagogical research centre and a centre for social education. The design is based on an architectural reinterpretation of several cultural anchors, and routed in Abu Dhabi’s history, cultural heritage and nature. It consists of a tent-like exterior of undulating shapes, inspired by the Bedouins’ traditional tents (khaimah). The roof’s sweeping peaks mimic the desert’s dune landscape, pierced by three large ‘super trees’ – an adaptation of the local wind towers (barajeel) that provide natural ventilation and double as playscapes for ropes, swings and climbing. The building has a complex outer shape but it can, in fact, be perceived as a rectangle, based on the region’s traditional courtyard house (bait al sahel). Three of the four corners contain a pod – a group of classrooms placed around a common indoor play area with double height zones. Each pod has a garden of its own right next to the common area so in winter these can function as one unit when doors are opened. Children within each pod can interact even if they do not belong to the same classroom.
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Inspired by the extreme climate of the UAE, right from the start simple shading devices became important design components of the project.
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Centre for Early Childhood Development
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Centre for Early Childhood Development
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To crettively fuel CEBRAʟs fi rst UAE commissions, ten culturtl tnchors were drawn for inspiration – tent structures and geometries were one of them.
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Related Project
Qasr Al Hosn
CEBRA was commissioned to revitalise the 160,000 m2 site surrounding the Qasr al Hosn Fort. As the city’s oldest building, the fort has been the seat of power in the Emirate for centuries and literally constitutes the birthplace of the city of Abu Dhabi. In collaboration with the client, TCA Abu Dhabi, the project task is to reinstate the fort as Abu Dhabi’s cultural heart while also celebrating modernisation and urbanisation within a city in rapid growth. Our project provides a culturally appropriate setting by means of a new public park around the building, and through the revamping of the adjacent Cultural Foundation Building (CFB). The site becomes a place for the celebration of Emirati heritage and identity. The masterplan is notionally divided diagonally into two areas with distinctive identities. On one side is a modern heritage area around the CFB with a more man-made, geometrical expression of hard surfaces for a series of activities. On the other side, the traditional heritage area around the fort aims at re-establishing the original setting of a solitary building on a sand plane. Two different geometries accentuate this duality – an urban/cultural city grid structure versus a more organic and natural mud crack coastal desert landscape. The park starts out as a flat surface to the south and rises to the north where it forms a series of buildings for different cultural activities, which are subtly integrated into the park’s surface, blending into the landscape.
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We sketched up quite a few concepts for the Qasr Al Hosn project, but all of them were based on the initial simple diagonal division of the site.
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Qasr Al Hosn
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Our preoccupation with Voronoi architecture led to this villa concept. The polygonal geometries now become three-dimensional rock-inspired formations.
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Related Project
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Voronoi geometries tre incredibly fl exible. Throughout the design process we made hundreds of variations for pocket spaces and street furniture.
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Qasr Al Hosn
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Qasr Al Hosn
The musalla is an integrated part of the site topography – even on the inside, the polygon shtpes of the desert ltndsctpe retppetr ts fi xed furniture.
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Qasr Al Hosn
PROJECT INDEX
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NATURVIDENSKABERNES HUS
Location Bjerringbro, Denmark Client The Foundation Naturvidenskabernes Hus Function Educational centre for science Area 2500 m2 Year 2006
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THE ICEBERG
Location Aarhus, Denmark Client PensionDanmark Function Residential complex, 208 apartments Area 22,000 m² Year 2007 – 2013
30
KØBMAGERGADE
Location Copenhagen, Denmark Client Copenhagen Municipality Function Pedestrian street, three public squares Area 25,000 m2 Year 2007
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38
MAGNETEN
Location Malmö, Sweden Client MKB Fastighets AB Function Residential development including swimming pool, hotel and retail Area 15,000 m2 Year 2007
46
Location Client Function Area Year
54
Location Client Function Area Year
62
VÆKSTHUSET Aarhus, Denmark Aarhus University Greenhouse 2750 m2 2008
KLODEN Hou, Denmark Egmont Højskole Accessible sports 5500 m2 2009
PALETTEN
Location Vonsild, Denmark Client Kolding Municipality Function Daycare centre Area 1200 m2 Year 2009 – 2010
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Project Index
72
Location Client Function Area Year
80
ELBEK & VEJRUP Aarhus, Denmark Elbek & Vejrup Office building 5600 m2 2009 – 2018
BLINDS STUDIO
Location Randers, Denmark Client Debel Function Showroom Area 600 m2 Year 2009 – 2011
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EXPERIMENTARIUM
Location Copenhagen, Denmark Client Experimentarium Function Science centre Area 25,000 m2 Year 2011 – 2016
98
STREETDOME
Location Haderslev, Denmark Client Haderslev Municipality Function Street sport centre and skate park Area 6000 m2 Year 2011 – 2014
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We Build Drawings
106
UDK
Location Client Function
Holstebro, Denmark ATP Ejendomme Office building and citizen service centre 4600 m2 2011 – 2012
Area Year
114
HF & VUC FYN
Location Odense, Denmark Client HF & VUC Fyn Function Adult education centre for 1300 students Area 12,500 m2 Year 2012 – 2014
122 Location Client Function Area Year
130
REBILDPORTEN Rebild, Denmark Rebild Municipality Visitor centre 540 m2 2012 – 2013
GRAADYB HALLS OF RESIDENCE
Location Esbjerg, Denmark Client Housing Association Ungdomsbo Function Halls of residence, 57 student dwellings Area 3000 m2 Year 2012 – 2014
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Project Index
140
CHILDREN’S HOME OF THE FUTURE
Location Kerteminde, Denmark Client Kerteminde Municipality Function Care centre for marginalised children Area 1250 m2 Year 2012 – 2014
150
CENTRE FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT
Location Abu Dhabi, UAE Client Undisclosed Function Kindergarten and centre of excellence for early childhood development Area 8000 m2 Year 2013
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THE GLADES
Location Moscow, Russia Client PIK Group Function Residential development, 1256 apartments Area 95,000 m2 Year 2014
170
QASR AL HOSN
Location Abu Dhabi, UAE Client Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority Function Cultural centre and landscape Area 162,500 m2 Year 2015 – 2019
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182
ÆBELØGADE
Location Aarhus, Denmark Client Cosmo Property Invest Function Residential development, 160 dwellings Area 11,800 m2 Year Under construction
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THE VILLA(GE)
Location Abu Dhabi, UAE Client Undisclosed Function Single family home Area 2200 m² Year 2017 – 2019
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Project Index
CREDITS WE BUILD DRAWINGS Mikkel Frost | CEBRA architecture Publisher Frame
Trade Distribution USA and Canada Consortium Book Sales & Distribution, LLC. 34 Thirteenth Avenue NE, Suite 101 Minneapolis, MN 55413-1007 T +1 612 746 2600 T +1 800 283 3572 (orders) F +1 612 746 2606 Trade Distribution Benelux Frame Publishers Luchtvaartstraat 4 1059 CA Amsterdam the Netherlands distribution@frameweb.com frameweb.com
Author Mikkel Frost Production Ana Martins Graphic Design Barbara Iwanicka Prepress Edward de Nijs Printing Tuijtel This book is published with the support of the Danish Arts Foundation.
Trade Distribution Rest of the World Thames & Hudson Ltd 181A High Holborn London WC1V 7QX United Kingdom T +44 20 7845 5000 F +44 20 7845 5050 ISBN: 978-949-2311-38-2 Š 2019 Frame Publishers, Amsterdam, 2019 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, or any storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, Frame Publishers does not under any circumstances accept responsibility for errors or omissions. Any mistakes or inaccuracies will be corrected in case of subsequent editions upon notification to the publisher. The Koninklijke Bibliotheek lists this publication in the Nederlandse Bibliografie: detailed bibliographic information is available on the internet at http://picarta.pica.nl Printed on acid-free paper produced from chlorine-free pulp. TCF ∞ Printed in the Netherlands 987654321
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Credits
When I speak of ‘thinking by hand’, I have in mind the wonderful drawings and buildings of Mikkel Frost, cofounder of architectural office CEBRA. Part of the collection of the Museum for Architectural Drawing in Berlin, surrounded by original works of historical and contemporary masters, his drawings will strike you as both fresh and very unusual. They combine a decidedly independent vision with the traditions and techniques of distant cultures, such as Japanese woodblock printing. From their composition, a unique architectural language ensues. I am very pleased that this book will now make Mikkel’s works accessible to a broad public. Sergei Tchoban, architect, artist and founder of the Tchoban Foundation - Museum for Architectural Drawing in Berlin.