TINTINNABULI Rakvere Vabaduse Park and St Paul’s Church Architectural Competition
Overview Our inspiration is drawn from local context and the deepest history to the site and country. It is also inspired by all that is around us, and how we can promote buildings which provide a compelling contribution to the ecosystem of nature. Tintinnabuli, the compositional musical style created by Arvo Pärt forms the mathematical, musical, spatial and physical ‘tempo’ of our minimalistic design approach. Masterplan The strong affinity to Arvo Pärt makes a significant contribution to the design proposals. The masterplan reflects that of ‘musical score’ with lines of music ‘staff / stave’ with water filled ‘notes’ dancing across the square. People will play an interactive part of this ‘music’ of people, nature, buildings and landscape and all come together to produce ‘New Tintinnabuli’ in this space. Site lines to the city and memorial are respectfully enhanced through the scheme’s ideology with specific and random route-ways. These route-ways will have architectural landscaped ‘events’ along its course and provide a captivating connection to open space and built forms through high quality landscape design. The public building is discreetly planned as an intensifier to the original context of the site. By amplifying the axes from the site to the memorials, its separated two towers’ strategy also symbolically responds to the steeples of the church, while the slowly inclined roof provides a broader and continuous public green landscape and observation platform. Low levels of car parking and access are provided but cycling, public transportation and walking is encouraged as part of the schemes overall ethos. Existing buildings The existing church will have a lightness of touch gentrified solution, which breathes life into this historic building providing a wonderful concert hall with retractable seating. This is in conjunction with elegant locally supplied timber detailing reflective of the site context. The building also incorporates the relevant functional services and facilities required, along with a Avro Pärt quiet contemplation room and adjacent external enclosed courtyard connection to our new building. New building Our new building crescendo’s the masterplan, playing with the ideologies of twisting keys providing a rhythmic cascade of simple built lines to express a musically and mathematically based solution to address the masterplan square. The scale of the proposals modestly respects the scale of adjacent buildings addressing the square on a low level and climbing away to the rear.
This new building provides the dance halls, smaller performance spaces, meeting areas, galleries and cafe spaces and required facilities which interweave in their connection to the existing adjacent St.Pauls Church connected with two lightweight floating wings enclosing a magical courtyard space for both buildings. Materials The masterplan landscaping is designed to complement the historic and the modern, in the same way that the new building and conversion responds to the existing conditions. This is a careful marriage of indigenous planting and modernist lines of architecturally led landscaping, whilst incorporating water features, stone, metal and lighting features that provide tantalizing displayed attractions to the visitors and passers by. The new building is proposed to be solar paneled metal cladding with triple glazed windows providing beautiful volumes of spaces and vistas symbolic of music, rhythm and energy. Lighting which highlights, but does not overly display, is proposed with elegant low level and general lighting to the square and buildings providing a safe and secure environment for all. Sustainability Our proposals look to provide fresh, innovative, timeless, high quality and sustainably led design solutions. Water harvesting, solar paneled metal roofing, sustainable ground water collection and centralized heat supply systems with natural ventilation provide a key role in our project. All lighting is proposed to be solar power generated. Grey water harvesting to WC’s, low energy specification to flushing, water use and lighting control is key to the success of the scheme. Conclusion Our proposals are bold, innovative, functional and engaging. Offering a new place where tradition and high quality modernism meet.
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