CONTENTS
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place
Views of site Ambient light study shade study access/social luminosity
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idea
idea 1 idea 2 idea 3 reflection
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form
3d model plans, sections, elevations exploded perspective opacity
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material
aerial and ground views internal views construction detailing filtration
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Place
Maths lawn - university of adelaide
The Maths Lawn is part of University of Adelaide. It is an extended lawn area between the Barr Smith Library and Frome Road. The vista of the Barr Smith Libary from the street is heritage listed.
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aerial view
Aerial view from Frome Rd
Aerial view from Barr Smith Library
Ground view from Frome Rd
Ground view from Barr Smith Library
ground view
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Ambient light study n I G H T
The Nordpark Railway Station (Innsbruck, 2007) initiated a new period of light and fluidity in Hadid’s oeuvre. Here, light is not absorbed by concrete but is instead reflected by glass. Inspired by local glacial moraines and ice formations, Hadid has significantly increased the reflectance of her surfaces for stunning mirror images.
d A Y
The Nordpark Railway Station (Innsbruck, 2007) initiated a new period of light and fluidity in Hadid’s oeuvre. Here, light is not absorbed by concrete but is instead reflected by glass. Inspired by local glacial moraines and ice formations, Hadid has significantly increased the reflectance of her surfaces for stunning mirror images.
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Shade and shadow
winter 9Am 15 July
SUMMER winter9Am 9Am
1515 July July
winter 12PM 15 July
SUMMER 12Pm
15 July
winter 3Pm 15 July
SUMMER 3Pm
15 July
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ACCESS AND MOVEMENT The Nordpark Railway Station (Innsbruck, 2007) initiated a new period of light and fluidity in Hadid’s oeuvre. Here, light is not absorbed by concrete but is instead reflected by glass. Inspired by local glacial moraines and ice formations, Hadid has
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place PLACEsocial SOCIALcharacter CHARACTER The Nordpark Railway Station (Innsbruck, 2007) initiated a new period of light and fluidity in Hadid’s oeuvre. Here, light is not absorbed by concrete but is instead reflected by glass. Inspired by local glacial moraines and ice formations, Hadid has significantly increased the reflectance of her surfaces for stunning mirror images. The Nordpark Railway Station (Innsbruck, 2007) initiated a new period of light and fluidity in Hadid’s oeuvre. Here, light is not absorbed by concrete but is instead reflected by glass. Inspired by local glacial moraines and ice formations, Hadid has significantly increased the reflectance of her surfaces for stunning mirror images. The Nordpark Railway Station (Innsbruck, 2007) initiated a new period of light
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luminosity her early Vitra Fire Station to the world’s tallest atrium at the Leeza SOHO skyscraper, which collects an abundance of daylight, shows the remarkable development of Zaha Hadid’s luminous legacy.
leeza soho Zaha Hadid’s projects are remarkable not only for her innovative way of handling tangible materials but also for her imagination regarding the medium of light. Her theories of fragmentation and fluidity are now wellknown design techniques which enabled
her form-finding. However, her advances in using light to render her architecture have often been neglected—even though they became an essential element in revealing and interpreting her architecture. The three-decade transition from minimal light lines at
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The Phaeno Science Centre
The Phaeno Science Centre (Wolfsburg, 2005) was a decisive turning point in Hadid’s lighting imagination. The windows and luminaires in the building’s surface share the same form, creating a holistic design approach and thus moving on from Hadid’s earlier period of lines and sharp corners. The elevated concrete structure generates
a large shaded area, with the view to daylight on one side intensifies the impression of a dark void. As a counterpoint, diffuse ceiling luminaires intervene in the dimatmosphere. The diagonal building structure has been translated into rhombus-shaped windows for the façade. In contrast to earlier projects with sharp edges,
Hadid’s forms here took on curved shapes, marking a transwition to fluid designs. In order to form a coherent exterior surface, the rhombus contour has also been applied to the underside of the elevated museum. Thereby the visitors perceive a holistic formal approach encompassing both daylight and artificial lighting.
The Nordpark Railway Station (Innsbruck, 2007) initiated a new period of light and fluidity in Hadid’s oeuvre. Here, light is not absorbed by concrete but is instead reflected by glass. Inspired by local glacial moraines and ice formations, Hadid has significantly increased the reflectance of her surfaces for stunning mirror images.
Therefore the structure does not stand isolated in the landscape but has features of the local landscape embedded in it. While moving toward and around the station, complex mirror images stimulate the viewer’s perception. Illuminated at night, the station radiates an energetic glow. Years later, the glossy surfaces at the Serpentine Sackler
Gallery (London, 2013) are reminiscent of the floating ice structure in Innsbruck.
The Nordpark Railway Station 11
idea idea 1
seek light is discovery
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contextualising idea on site Zaha Hadid’s projects are remarkable not only for her innovative way of handling tangible materials but also for her imagination regarding the medium of light. Her theories of fragmentation and fluidity are now well-known design techniques which enabled her form-finding. However, her advances in using light to render her architecture have
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idea 2
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contextualising idea on site Zaha Hadid’s projects are remarkable not only for her innovative way of handling tangible materials but also for her imagination regarding the medium of light. Her theories of fragmentation and fluidity are now well-known design techniques which enabled her form-finding. However, her advances in using light to render her architecture have often been neglected—even though they became an essential el-
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idea 3
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contextualising idea on site
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reflection reflection
adelaide hospital research centre For an Australian science facility the veil has even fulfilled the task of protecting against the harsh sunlight. The architects Woods Bagot erected an urban icon with enveloping the entire building with aluminum sunshades, each individually computer modeled, for the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute in Adelaide. Some forms of sparkling reflective patterns are even able to initiate political discussions and influence the names of buildings. The “Fernsehturm Berlin� is an excellent example of this, with its reflection in the form of a cross emanating from the sphere. Built in 1969, the socialist and atheist party of the German Democratic Republic erected the tower to resemble the Russian satellite Sputnik. Located in the historic center of former East Germany next to a medieval church, the tall tower was intended as a political statement addressing the deconstruction of the old city. But the selection of pyramidal stainless steel panels led to an unintended effect: The reflections of the sun create a clearly visible cross pattern on the sphere.
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elbphilharmonie hamburg Undoubtedly the glass façade at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg by Herzog & de Meuron refers to the visionary glass culture of Scheerbart, and indirectly to the golden shimmering skin of Berlin’s Philharmonic by Hans Scharoun as well. Inwardly and outwardly curved glass elements distort the perception of the city, water and sky. They build a fresh contrast to the uniform plane glass curtains of the International Style. The environment is not appreciated as a clear mirrored picture, but instead goes through a process of modification and reproduction. Due to the curves of the balconies, the building reflects points or lines of brilliant light streaks. With a blue or diffuse sky the distinctive curves reflect the light as bright lines, similar to the horizontal lines seen in the designs of the automotive industry. Under direct sunlight, bright glossy points appear and evoke a jewel-like shimmer. Additionally, the vertical and horizontal convex curves of numerous single glass elements reinforce the shiny distorted reflections of the sky.
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Form
p l a n 1 : 5 0 0
section AA 1:500
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elevation east 1:500
elevation west 1:500
section BB 1:500
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opacity her early Vitra Fire Station to the world’s tallest atrium at the Leeza SOHO skyscraper, which collects an abundance of daylight, shows the remarkable development of Zaha Hadid’s luminous legacy.
dybkaer church The Scandinavian countries have developed great buildings that resonate with both the scarce light in winter and the long summer days. Henry Plummer, Professor Emeritus at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has very carefully studied the various daylight phenomena in the Nordic countries, with extensive photo journeys and brilliant writing that combines an analytical perspective with a poetic touch. His view of daylight looks beyond the practical advantages of using reflective white spaces to facilitate bright rooms; the passionate photographer is much more interested in the light effects that play with the local beauty of nature and touch the human soul.
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nordyjllands art museum The extreme changes in weather and daylight have led to unique light situations in Scandinavia, where architects have played with white surfaces to counterbalance the long and dark winter days. The low position of the sun in northern regions creates long shadows and therefore daylight enters the buildings more from the side than from above. In contrast, summer evenings emanate a diffuse light. In his book “Nordic light: Modern Scandinavian Architecture,� Henry Plummer points out that although Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland are dissimilar in topography and vegetation, they share the same subdued light.
The concept of white diffusion, using white-painted plaster, white-enamelled steel and white linoleum, was introduced by Alvar Aalto for the Paimio Sanatorium in the 1930s, and achieved a peak at the Nordyjllands Art Museum in 1972, according to Plummer. Shades of white cover the walls, floors and ceilings as well as the expressive daylight scoop. However, the power of pure white volumes is not the only characteristic of the Nordic built environment. The pulse of nature with vibrating patterns of light or the transiency of dramatic light and shadow belong to the distinctive Nordic light approach as well.
hyvinkaa church 23
material aerial view
Aerial view from Frome Rd
Aerial view from Barr Smith Library
ground view
Ground view from Frome Rd
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construction detailing
Detail glass in concrete
Concrete stair details
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filtration For his three sacred buildings, Le Corbusier has played masterfully with orientation, openings and textures to create kinetic architecture with daylight. His pilgrimage chapel at Ronchamp, the monastery of Sainte Marie de La Tourette, and the parish church of Saint-Pierre in Firminy reveal distinctive and individual approaches that each render contemplative spaces with light. In his book “Cosmos of Light: The Sacred Architecture of Le Corbusier,� Henry Plummer, Professor Emeritus at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has analysed these projects with outstanding photographs taken over 40 years and brilliant writing.
church of saint-pierre
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Light has been linked with divinity and holiness in many different religions. In Christianity the Bible speaks of God who “is light” or Christ as “the light of the world”. Even if the divine light and visible light are not the same, visible light appears as the most similar to the heavenly and thereby links both spheres. Each epoch has formed a new language of light: The glow of the Romanesque apse, the golden shimmer of Byzantine mosaics or the luminous walls of Gothic stained glass. As an artist as well as an architect, Le Corbusier expressed an exceptional sensitivity for the interaction of colours and light in his sacred buildings. His position as an outspoken agnostic seems very ambivalent in combination with his desire to open the soul to poetic realms. Studying Le Corbusier’s sacred buildings for more than four decades has led to a deep fascination for Henry Plummer regarding the transformative power of light: “Instead of serving as a tool of religious persuasion, as it generally has in the past, light has become a quiet force to visually resist and elude, erode and outshine, the Church´s mandate.
ronchamp light/ light la tourette 27