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Pireaus Tower 2010-Changing the Facade
Pireaus Tower 2010-Changing the Facade
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Pireaus Tower 2010-Changing the Facade
CONTEXT
The urban
landscape of the city of Pireaus is old, composite and zipped up. The Pireaus tower
is standing next to the sea port and marks the edge of the city, Pireaus. The
tower is surrounded by heavy traffic roads, with all the transitions around seeming
naked and exposed and pushed up against each other. Low rise almost pebble like
white blocks, located in the vicinity, make a contrast to the huge silvery
smoke stacks from the embarked ship.
This tower is a
reference point in all the visual approaches to the Port of Pireaus. This
characteristic external environment has led us to imagine a symbolic chameleon
building, designed not to make the existing one disappear but rather to wrap it
to express the changing perception of it.
CONCEPT
The modified tower
is a semi-transparent structure made to let the air flow into it. The proposal
operates in terms of solids and voids, combining transparency and reflection,
brightness and depth. The wire gauze, which the built volume is sheltered in,
appears or disappears according to the orientation of the sunlight or to
nocturnal illumination of the tower. The variation in the presence or absence
of this metallic skin acts like a lighthouse that sweeps the pathway leading to
its surroundings. The function of the metallic mesh is reversed – it does not
enclose space but visually frees it and makes space available beyond the
obvious use of classic transparent materials. Moreover, the facade is no longer
the limit; it is a transitory point. From a functional point of view the
metallic filter provides enormous comfort as a sunscreen.
The mesh is
aerial and delicate; it gives way to the underlying supporting structure. The
facade finds itself supported as per a grid pattern by a new under covered
structure. The supporting structure is festive and is designed to provide a
truly phenomenal viewpoint of the interior life of the tower. It intentionally
reveals the dynamics of movement though the use of coloured linear elements
that demonstrate directions and intensities in the inner part of the building.
Altogether the
mesh gives way to the vibrations between interior and exterior. It reveals a
sensation of floating and forms an exaggeration in Pireaus urban landscape. It
exists as an installation of poetry, a seemingly schematic structure which
houses complex mechanisms. Overall, our driving concept is always at the base,
a simple but never simplistic vision around which we built a series of actions.
MATERIALS
The materials are
chosen to emphasize the intricate relationship between matter and light. The
sun, being a very important element of the environment in Greece, highlights
this notion of the various possible interpretations of the tower’s architecture.
COATED PERFORATED
METAL (DuPont ALESTA ARCHITECTURAL COATING)
Transparency
becomes reversible. In daytime the metallic mesh that encloses the tower
disappears and reappears through interplay with natural light and reflection.
The immersion into the night of the metallic mesh wrap transforms the building
into a light box, a potential landmark. It is both a layout device and a
material with its metal grating that completely change our perception of
geometry. The facade folds at the top of the building forming one continuous
element. Consequently, the roof of the tower has a perforated canopy which
gives an impression of a gradual transition of the building into the sky. The
kinked shape of the canopy adds a dramatic effect to the building.
CORIAN
This
material has the qualities which allow to create a frozen moment
within a dynamic sequence of transformations. The sculptural interpretation of
the base showcases the amazing performance of DuPont Corian and highlights its
ability to modify perceptions of space and form, therefore, the base
gives versatile impressions from various proximities. Specifically, it has a
rather brutal rock-like appearance from distant view, alluring the coastal
landscape meanwhile correlating with the pebble-like residential blocks in the
area. On the other hand, the base yields a friendlier environment at a closer
glimpse: an inside interaction space of an alcove shape and the different,
contrasting tactility of the material itself.
The urban
landscape of the city of Pireaus is old, composite and zipped up. The Pireaus tower
is standing next to the sea port and marks the edge of the city, Pireaus. The
tower is surrounded by heavy traffic roads, with all the transitions around seeming
naked and exposed and pushed up against each other. Low rise almost pebble like
white blocks, located in the vicinity, make a contrast to the huge silvery
smoke stacks from the embarked ship.
This tower is a
reference point in all the visual approaches to the Port of Pireaus. This
characteristic external environment has led us to imagine a symbolic chameleon
building, designed not to make the existing one disappear but rather to wrap it
to express the changing perception of it.
CONCEPT
The modified tower
is a semi-transparent structure made to let the air flow into it. The proposal
operates in terms of solids and voids, combining transparency and reflection,
brightness and depth. The wire gauze, which the built volume is sheltered in,
appears or disappears according to the orientation of the sunlight or to
nocturnal illumination of the tower. The variation in the presence or absence
of this metallic skin acts like a lighthouse that sweeps the pathway leading to
its surroundings. The function of the metallic mesh is reversed – it does not
enclose space but visually frees it and makes space available beyond the
obvious use of classic transparent materials. Moreover, the facade is no longer
the limit; it is a transitory point. From a functional point of view the
metallic filter provides enormous comfort as a sunscreen.
The mesh is
aerial and delicate; it gives way to the underlying supporting structure. The
facade finds itself supported as per a grid pattern by a new under covered
structure. The supporting structure is festive and is designed to provide a
truly phenomenal viewpoint of the interior life of the tower. It intentionally
reveals the dynamics of movement though the use of coloured linear elements
that demonstrate directions and intensities in the inner part of the building.
Altogether the
mesh gives way to the vibrations between interior and exterior. It reveals a
sensation of floating and forms an exaggeration in Pireaus urban landscape. It
exists as an installation of poetry, a seemingly schematic structure which
houses complex mechanisms. Overall, our driving concept is always at the base,
a simple but never simplistic vision around which we built a series of actions.
MATERIALS
The materials are
chosen to emphasize the intricate relationship between matter and light. The
sun, being a very important element of the environment in Greece, highlights
this notion of the various possible interpretations of the tower’s architecture.
COATED PERFORATED
METAL (DuPont ALESTA ARCHITECTURAL COATING)
Transparency
becomes reversible. In daytime the metallic mesh that encloses the tower
disappears and reappears through interplay with natural light and reflection.
The immersion into the night of the metallic mesh wrap transforms the building
into a light box, a potential landmark. It is both a layout device and a
material with its metal grating that completely change our perception of
geometry. The facade folds at the top of the building forming one continuous
element. Consequently, the roof of the tower has a perforated canopy which
gives an impression of a gradual transition of the building into the sky. The
kinked shape of the canopy adds a dramatic effect to the building.
CORIAN
This
material has the qualities which allow to create a frozen moment
within a dynamic sequence of transformations. The sculptural interpretation of
the base showcases the amazing performance of DuPont Corian and highlights its
ability to modify perceptions of space and form, therefore, the base
gives versatile impressions from various proximities. Specifically, it has a
rather brutal rock-like appearance from distant view, alluring the coastal
landscape meanwhile correlating with the pebble-like residential blocks in the
area. On the other hand, the base yields a friendlier environment at a closer
glimpse: an inside interaction space of an alcove shape and the different,
contrasting tactility of the material itself.
Product Spec Sheet
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