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    Bureau de Change makes creative use of terrazzo in Frame House renovation

    London studio Bureau de Change has used different varieties of terrazzo to create a richly textured interior for a remodelled family home.Frame House is a Victorian terraced home in south London, renovated and extended by Bureau de Change for a property developer and her family.

    The ground floor of Frame House is split over three levels
    The project involved adding a rear extension, converting the loft and completing revamping the interior. But most importantly, the client wanted to give the home a distinct character and coherency throughout.
    The architecture studio achieved this with a carefully planned colour and material strategy, and through playful use of geometry.

    The lounge occupies the extended rear of the house

    “The brief was to create a coherent journey through all spaces and floors,” explained architect Billy Mavropoulos, who co-founded Bureau de Change with partner Katerina Dionysopoulou.
    “We needed a holistic design, looking at everything from the architecture of the extension, to the layouts and the way the spaces are used, down to the joinery handles and details,” he told Dezeen.
    “The client was after a rich palette of finishes and colours, but one that would feel consistently part of the same narrative.”

    Different varieties of terrazzo were chosen for different areas
    As is common with Victorian terraces, Frame House has a split-level layout that helps to make the floor plan more efficient.
    In the new layout, the ground floor is divided over three levels, comprising the kitchen, dining space and lounge. The two split-level upper storeys contain three en-suite bedrooms, a separate bathroom and a study room.
    Terrazzo was the material that Mavropoulos and Dionysopoulou chose to unite the various spaces. It is a material the pair are familiar with, having previously used it in another residential project, Folds House.

    Different shades of taupe feature on each of the ground floor levels
    Here, they decided to work with different varieties of terrazzo to give each space its own character, while subtly tying them all together.
    On the ground floor the flooring is a taupe terrazzo in three slightly different shades – one for each level. This creates a gentle transition from light to dark, starting with the kitchen at the front of the house and ending with the lounge at the rear.

    A green marble terrazzo was chosen for the staircase handrail
    “We chose them very carefully so that they are all of the same family but vary in darkness/density,” said Mavropoulos.
    “The colour difference is very subtle as we did not want the floor to take over. But when you look closely you notice the difference.”
    Other details have been picked out contrasting terrazzo varieties: a kitchen island features shades of red and black, the staircase handrails are a green marble terrazzo, and each bathroom has its own different shade.

    The master bedroom on the first floor features an en-suite with grey terrazzo
    The geometries of the design are based around the rear extension, which gives the occupants a large living space.
    Keen to avoid the 45-degree angled roof and frameless glass typical of infill extensions, the architects opted for a more cuboidal approach. Steel frames create staggered glass boxes, which Mavropoulos and Dionysopoulou liken to museum display cases.

    The new loft bedroom features an en-suite with pale terrazzo and pink walls
    “When we looked at the cascading volumes in plan and section, we felt there was an element of fragility to them, almost like a jewel stone, so we decided to make them out of glass to enhance that feel,” said Mavropoulos.
    “These distinctly cubist glass volumes are articulated through their bold steel-frame construction, expressing each edge in a manner that creates shifting patterns of light and space, and a paradoxical sense of both levity and solidity,” added Dionysopoulou.

    The terrazzo also extends into the garden, forming cascading planters
    These cascading box forms are referenced in other places, such as the proportions of the split floor levels, or the planting boxes in the garden. There’s also a glass display case in the dining area.
    Other details contribute to the personality of these spaces. The lounge room brings together a floral-patterned rug and a large cactus plant, while the dining space features a wall of shelving filled with various objects and books.
    The architects hope the result is one of “theatre and tactility”.
    Photography is by Gilbert McCarragher.
    Project credits
    Architect: Bureau de ChangeInteriors: Bureau de ChangeEngineer: SymmetrysM&E: MWLContractor: Argyll LondonLandscape: Tulip Landscapes

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    IE University taught me about strategic interior design says Araceli Torres Muñoz

    Dezeen promotion: graduating from the IE School of Architecture and Design provided the skills to design adaptable spaces for the post-pandemic workplace, according to designer Araceli Torres Muñoz.Torres Muñoz, who is a workplace strategist and designer at architecture studio Sshape in Washington DC, received a master’s in Strategic Design of Spaces from the IE School of Architecture and Design at IE University.
    According to Torres Muñoz, the skills she learnt during the course taught her to embrace change and utilise technology to develop her workspace designs.
    “It was there that I received the tools to react with agility and view change as an opportunity,” she said.
    “Technology has served as our ally in this change. This is an idea I’ve internalised since I completed the master’s at IE University. There, we were encouraged to integrate technology in all the phases of the design process – from analysis to development to execution of the project and, finally, to monitoring the project’s performance.”

    IE University taught Torres Muñoz to embrace change and utilise technology to develop her workspace designs. Photograph by Manolo Yllera

    This knowledge has become especially valuable over the past year as the coronavirus pandemic has forced numerous companies to adapt their workspaces and adopt digital working strategies.
    “Although we’d spotted this new style of work approaching on the horizon, we still weren’t prepared for it,” said Torres Muñoz. “In a blink of an eye, our work environments and lives were reduced to a screen and a keyboard. We were forced to go virtual.”
    “As a workplace strategist and designer at Sshape in Washington DC, I had to rethink my approach to work in that moment. I needed to provide solutions for my clients, who were facing an unforeseen situation with high levels of uncertainty,” she continued.

    Technology has become an essential tool for connecting employees to their workspaces, says Torres Muñoz. Photograph by Manolo Yllera
    Since the pandemic began, Torres Muñoz has observed that technology has become an essential tool for connecting employees to their workspaces.
    “Technology has become the link between designers and the users of the spaces; it is the open communication channel between both extremes,” she explained.
    “The immediacy and capacity for data collection and analysis that new technologies provide are the foundations an interior design strategy should be built upon,” she continued.
    “They allow offices to become efficient and, above all, flexible spaces that attract talent and respond to the needs of their users.”
    Below Torres Muñoz outlines four areas of strategic interior design where technology is driving change:
    Technology can confront uncertainty, measure change and predict the future
    “Anything that cannot be measured cannot be improved. Understanding how employees work, their needs, routines, timings, etc. is key to developing a knowledge base that serves as a foundation for strategic interior design,” she said.
    “Online survey tools help us perform these internal analyses and detect changes in work models. Additionally, they allow employees to express themselves freely and encourage all voices to be heard.”
    Technology to reinforce company culture and build engagement
    One of the principal problems of the shift to working virtually is the feeling of personal disconnect. Working from home can lead to isolation. For companies, this means that successfully transmitting their mission and values can be a difficult task.
    We use gamification techniques to increase engagement and ensure employees take ownership of the office design project. These platforms and activities give us an understanding of the company culture; the unwritten rules that define the behaviour of people in a group. This critical information helps companies build a more flexible culture that encourages continuous learning and lets interior design strategists design an office that transmits and reinforces its values.
    Technology and leveraging virtual reality for architecture
    Designing, and above all, explaining online projects can be complex. We often find that it’s difficult for customers to understand detailed plans and schematics from behind a screen.
    With the integration of the Building Information Modeling (BIM) methodology and virtual reality technologies, designers can offer companies virtual tours of their future workspaces. They can walk through the different areas, see what the materials will look like and experience the final result before even beginning construction.
    Space and technology: A perfect symbiosis
    The future of workspaces lies in flexible and connected spaces. We must emphasise the design of wireless spaces where walls, screens and furniture can move and adapt to the needs of the moment. We will see outlets and lights on rails, air stream systems integrated into each space and a generally flexible office space that allows its users to adjust it to their needs.
    For the hybrid work model to function, we have to implement a simple and efficient space-reservation system that can adapt to different teams during distinct project phases. This requires state-of-the-art technology that serves both people and spaces.
    Partnership content
    This article was written by Dezeen for IE University as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

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    The Brooklyn Home Company designs Passivhaus in Brooklyn

    American studio The Brooklyn Home Company has designed a Brooklyn townhouse using Passivhaus principles in New York’s Carroll Gardens neighbourhood.The Sackett Street townhouse comprises four storeys as well as a rooftop with views of the Manhattan skyline, along with a basement and a drive-in garage.

    The four-storey townhouse has views of the Manhattan skyline
    Stairs from an outside decking area lead to a back garden, and a private terrace is accessed from the main bedroom.
    Passivhaus is a recognised European energy standard for homes that require minimal energy to heat or cool and promote high indoor air quality.

    The Sackett Street townhouse’s back garden

    For the townhouse project, The Brooklyn Home Company used an energy recovery ventilation (ERV) filtration system.
    “The air quality brings health and cognitive benefits that the developer believes will become the new standard for home building in New York City,” co-founder of The Brooklyn Home Company William Caleo told Dezeen.
    “The homes also maintain humidity levels to prevent virus spread, which is common in both dry and cold weather. In short, our opinion is it’s the best way to build new homes,” he said.

    A living room leads to the back garden
    Adopting Passivhaus principles addresses two of society’s greatest threats, argued William Caleo.
    “As society grapples with not only the current public-health crisis but the reality of climate change, builders and home designers are using Passivhaus design as an alternative technique in the wake of Covid-19.”

    The house’s walls are painted in white Farrow and Ball paint
    William Caleo and his sister Lyndsay Caleo Karol worked closely with his sister’s husband, Fitzhugh Karol, the studio’s in-house artist, to design the interiors.
    Madera white oak hardwood floors and walls painted with white Farrow and Ball paint were chosen to create a “bright and airy” home.

    A hand-crafted bed by Fitzhugh Karol in the main bedroom
    Hand-crafted pieces of furniture designed by Fitzhugh Karol include the wooden four-poster bed in the main bedroom.

    VonDalwig Architecture brightens Brooklyn townhouse House 22

    Other one-of-a-kind pieces include a bespoke dining table and a dresser, and the elegant twin beds in the children’s room were also made bespoke for the property.

    The twin beds in the children’s bedroom were made especially for the house
    The townhouse’s open-plan kitchen is a mixture of exposed beams and custom built-in wood, also designed by Fitzhugh Karol. A reclaimed ceiling by The Brooklyn Home Company hangs overhead.
    These rustic features are offset with sleek Pietra Cardosa countertops and a range cooker by La Cornue. Hardware fixtures by Waterworks and Restoration Hardware tie the space together.

    The property’s kitchen is a mix of rustic and polished features
    Selected artwork is also integral to the townhouse’s interior atmosphere. A notable piece is Tyler Hays of BDDW’s painting of a woman, made of puzzle pieces, which hangs in the dining room.
    Artistworks by Jen Wink Hays, Paule Morrot and Caleb Marcus Cain also decorate townhouse’s light and open rooms.

    Artist Tyler Hays’ puzzle painting adds depth to the dining room’s white walls
    The Brooklyn Home Company has recently launched 25 new homes also built according to Passivhaus principles across two Brooklyn developments in South Slope and Greenwood Heights.

    More Passivhaus projects outside of Europe include the upcoming 1075 Nelson Street skyscraper in Vancouver, designed by UK studio WKK Architects. When completed, it will be the world’s tallest Passivhaus building to date.
    Photography is by Matthew Williams and Travis Mark.

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    Five architecture and design events this January from Dezeen Events Guide

    A virtual version of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) plus remote site visits with SO-IL and David Adjaye as part of The World Around summit are among the events listed in Dezeen Events Guide taking place in January.

    Above: A representative of Virgin Hyperloop will discuss autonomous transportation at CES 2021. Top image: The World Around summit will see Ryue Nishizawa present his House in Los Vilos. Image is by Cristobal Palma
    Consumer Electronics Show (CES)11 to 14 January
    The world’s most influential technology fair is taking place entirely in the digital realm this year, opening up its programme of product showcases and more than 80 panel talks and keynotes to a global audience.
    Highlights include a reflection on the first year of 5G with American telco giant AT&T, Virgin Hyperloop’s take on the future of autonomous transportation and a discussion about privacy and trust with representatives of Amazon, Google and Twitter.
    This regularly scheduled programming is accompanied by a host of sessions about the ongoing pandemic, including a discussion with British pop star Dua Lipa about how immersive, digital experiences are allowing her to stay connected to her fans while music venues are closed.
    In/Visible Talks14 January
    In/Visible Talks is a design conference all about the creative process, which means that after a day’s worth of talks and discussions the event will culminate in practical workshops about everything from blind contour drawing to the design of exhibition layouts.
    For its fourth-ever and first virtual edition, the event is focusing on how design can be a medium for societal change by exploring what true diversity in the industry would mean, how graphic design can facilitate better representation and the best ways for creatives to collaborate with nonprofits.

    Norwegian designers point the way towards a circular economy

    DesignTO22 to 31 January
    Canada’s largest annual design festival will spotlight the work of more than 800 local artists and makers, including a showcase of furniture made from native timber and an archive of modernist Canadian graphic design.
    For its 11th edition, DesignTO is going “distanced and digital”, with window displays allowing those in Toronto to experience the event safely and in-person while a virtual programme will ensure that everyone else doesn’t have to miss out.
    Oslo Design Fair27 to 29 January
    Set inside the Norges Varemesse congress centre in Lillestrøm, the Oslo Design Fair has expanded beyond the standard categories of furniture, lighting and interiors.
    Under one roof and across four different exhibitions halls, it will bring together everything from Norwegian jewellery and fashion designers to gardening brands, illustrators, candlemakers and other craftsmen.

    David Adjaye will give a remote tour of his Winter Park Public Library complex in Florida

    The World Around30 January
    Now in its second year, The World Around forum has recruited some of the most innovative architects working today to discuss their latest projects via on-site presentations and guided tours.
    These are set to be broadcast on Dezeen from 14 international cities and will include Ryue Nishizawa presenting his House in Los Vilos, SO-IL showcasing recent work in Shanghai and New York and David Adjaye giving a remote tour of his Winter Park Public Library complex, which is under construction in Florida.
    Other speakers will include Francis Kéré and Counterspace founder Sumayya Vally, while Liam Young will present his latest short film in collaboration with the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV).
    The World Around aims to explore how architecture can tackle some of the most pressing issues of our time, from indigenous rights and racial justice to the environment. Earlier this year, the organisation held a symposium to mark Earth Day at Dezeen’s Virtual Design Festival, featuring talks, interviews and short films from the vanguard of ecological design.
    About Dezeen Events Guide
    Dezeen Events Guide is our guide to the best architecture and design events taking place across the world each year.
    The guide is updated weekly and includes virtual events, conferences, trade fairs, major exhibitions and design weeks, as well as up-to-date information about what events have been cancelled or postponed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
    Inclusion in the guide is free for basic listings, with events selected at Dezeen’s discretion. Organisers can get enhanced or premium listings for their events, including images, additional text and links, by paying a modest fee.
    In addition, events can ensure inclusion by partnering with Dezeen. For more details on inclusion in Dezeen Events Guide and media partnerships with Dezeen, email eventsguide@dezeen.com.

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    Studio Hallett Ike expands ER Residence in London with charred larch extension

    Minimal white living spaces lie behind the blackened timber facade of this extension that Studio Hallett Ike has added to a Victorian flat in north London.The flat, which has been titled ER Residence, occupies the ground floor of a Victorian terrace. Studio Hallett Ike said that, prior to its intervention, the flat had a well-proportioned layout, but unfortunately was only able to accommodate a single bedroom.
    Now, thanks to a rear extension, the flat contains a second bedroom – which doubles up as a study – and a dining room.

    Beams of charred larch clad ER Residence’s extension

    “Essentially we wanted to create a property that would work for a young family living in London that wants an aspirational, clean, minimal design whilst retaining a realistic project budget,” the studio’s co-founder, Madeleine Ike, told Dezeen.
    “The idea being that it could act as a case study for other London residents in the same situation without a huge budget.”

    The extension contains an additional bedroom
    The extension is rectilinear in form and clad with beams of blackened English larch, which were charred by hand on-site.
    “Doing this, rather than painting or staining, allows the texture and grain of the larch to feel very present, and to age and patina over time,” the studio explained.
    “The colour changes depending on the weather and time of year; during the winter months it has silvery hues, but evolves to appear warmer in the summer.”

    A desk in the bedroom offers a place for inhabitants to work
    Two different-sized windows also punctuate the extension’s exterior, which are both framed with aluminium.
    The slightly wider window looks through to the bedroom-cum-study, which has been finished with clean white walls.

    The extension also plays host to a dining room
    A wide panel of Douglas fir wood has been set at the rear of the room, serving as a headboard for the bed. To the side of the room is a three-tier shelving unit and a desk where inhabitants can sit and work.

    Burnt House is a charred wood extension that looks like a Japanese tea house

    The narrower window in the extension offers a view of the dining room.
    Douglas fir has been used here again to create a seating bench – a cut-out in the shape of a cat’s head has been made in the bottom corner, through which the owners’ feline companion can crawl to access a cosy cubby.

    The dining room table is accompanied by a Douglas fir bench
    Studio Hallett Ike has continued the colour and material palette of the extension through to the rest of the home. The updated kitchen, for example, boasts Douglas-fir cabinetry and a white terrazzo splashback.
    Grey terrazzo has then been used to line surfaces in the bathroom.

    Terrazzo appears in the flat’s kitchen, and the bathroom
    Walls in the living area have been coated with a pale grey plaster that stops just beneath the room’s original plaster cornicing. The existing wooden floorboards here were also preserved and sanded down to expose more of their natural grain.
    Black-metal furnishings such as the coffee table and overhead lighting fixture were included to “give weight and depth” to the space.

    Pale grey plaster coats walls in the living room
    “The overarching design approach was to carry out a small number of strong but simple moves that are consistently applied, sitting at the heart of every design consideration,” added the studio.
    “These come together to create an overall impression that is minimal and timeless, exuding an assured and understated elegance.”

    The living room also features the flat’s original wooden floorboards
    Studio Hallet Ike was founded by Madeleine Ike and Jonty Hallett in 2018. The studio’s ER Residence isn’t the only London property to feature a charred-wood extension – Rider Stirland Architects added a blackened timber volume to a house in Ladywell.
    Will Gamble Architects also used scorched wood to create a Japanese tea house-style extension for a home in Fulham.
    Photography is by Ståle Eriksen.

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    David Chipperfield, Yinka Ilori and Ilse Crawford recognised in Queen's New Year Honours list

    Architect David Chipperfield has been given one of the highest awards available to a British citizen while designers including Yinka Ilori, Ilse Crawford and 6a Architects have received honours in the 2021 New Year Honours list.Chipperfield was added to the elite Order of the Companions of Honour in the annual list of awards given for achievements by British citizens.
    Interior designer Crawford has been awarded a CBE, 6a Architects co-founders Thomas Emerson and Stephanie Macdonald OBEs and London designer Ilori an MBE.

    David Chipperfield has designed numerous cultural buildings including the renovation of the Neues Museum. photo is by Joerg von Buchhausen

    British architect Chipperfield joins Richard Rogers in the order Order of the Companions of Honour, which is limited to 65 members and is awarded “for having a major contribution to the arts, science, medicine, or government lasting over a long period of time”.
    RIBA Gold Medal-winner Chipperfield established his studio David Chipperfield Architects in 1985.
    He has designed numerous significant cultural buildings in the UK including the River and Rowing Museum in Henley-on-Thames and Hepworth Wakefield in Wakefield, which were both shortlisted for the Stirling Prize, as well as the Turner Contemporary in Margate.

    Chipperfield designed the Hepworth Wakefield in Yorkshire. Photo is by Iwan Baan
    Chipperfield, who has an office in Berlin, also completed numerous cultural buildings in Germany including the Museum of Modern Literature in Marbach, Germany, which won the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2007.

    “I feel like a bit of a fake” says David Chipperfield in Dezeen’s latest podcast

    A further four buildings designed by the studio in the country have been shortlisted for the Stirling Prize with the prestigious renovation of the Neues Museum in central Berlin being nominated in 2010. The building won the EU Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award in 2011.

    Yinka Ilori was made an MBE
    Alongside Chipperfield, several other architects and designers were recognised on the New Year Honours list.
    Rising star Ilori has been made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) for his services to design. Known for his colourful style, the designer began making furniture and has more recently creating larger installations including a summer pavilion in Dulwich and the renovating an underpass in Battersea.

    Yinka Ilori designed the Colour Palace in Dulwich with architecture studio Pricegore
    Writing on Instagram after receiving the award, Illori revealed that he almost gave up being a designer five years ago.
    “In 2015 there were sometimes thoughts of giving up designing due to the frustration and feeling people didn’t understand the designer I wanted to be,” he wrote.
    “The driving force behind me to continue and push through was always the desire to make my parents proud,” he continued. “They had given up so much of their own lives to make sure me and my siblings had the best in life
    “No matter what situation you are in it is never permanent. Keep pushing because if a young kid like me from Islington can do it so can you.”
    This year, Ilori won the Design Museum’s Emerging Design Medal, designed a colourful skatepark in France and created a message of hope in support of the UK’s National Health Service.

    Ilse Crawford has been awarded a CBE
    British interior designer Crawford has been made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE). Crawford, who was made a Member of the British Empire in the 2014 New Year Honours list, runs multidisciplinary design studio Studioilse and was the founder of the Man and Wellbeing department at Design Academy Eindhoven.
    She was recently profiled in Netflix’s Abstract: The Art of Design series and spoke to Dezeen during Virtual Design Festival.

    6a Architects designed the MK Gallery
    Also honoured on the list were 6a Architects co-founders Thomas Emerson and Stephanie Macdonald, who both were given the Order of the British Empire.
    Emerson and Macdonald founded 6a Architects, which is best-known for designing cultural buildings in the UK, in 2001. The studio recently extended the MK Gallery in Milton Keynes and previously renovated the Raven Row contemporary art gallery in east London and expanded the South London Gallery.
    Its design for a photography studio for Juergen Teller was shortlisted for the Stirling Prize 2017.
    The Queen’s New Year Honours are awarded each year in December. Together with the Birthday Honours given out on the Queen’s birthday in June they make up part of the British honours system.
    In last year’s New Year Honour list, architect Jamie Fobert and graphic designer Peter Saville received CBEs, while designer Sadie Morgan received an OBE.

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    Freadman White completes Napier Street apartments in Melbourne

    Architecture practice Freadman White has created an apartment block in Melbourne’s Fitzroy neighbourhood, finishing its interiors with gleaming brass accents.The Napier Street apartments were designed by Freadman White for property developers Milieu. It is situated directly beside Whitlam Place, another residential block designed by the practice.

    The Napier Street apartment block has a simple off-white facade
    Whilst Whitlam Place has a green-hued exterior clad with corrugated panels of oxidised copper, Napier Street features a plain off-white facade punctuated by wide windows.

    Freadman White creates new layout for extended 1930s house in Melbourne

    Freadman White says the building’s pared-back aesthetic draws inspiration from Heide II – a modernist Melbourne home designed in 1963 by Australian architects David McGlashan and Neil Everist, which has masonry walls and expansive panels of glazing.

    Rooms feature concrete ceilings and oak floors

    An equally refined material palette has been applied throughout the interiors of Napier Street’s 14 apartment units. Each home boasts oak flooring and exposed concrete ceilings, which rise up to 2.9 metres in height.
    Kitchens have been finished with wooden cabinetry, white-tile splashbacks and countertops crafted from pale Elba stone.

    Brass shelving and door handles have been incorporated throughout
    There are some decadent touches in the apartments – for example, some of the bedrooms are closed off by glossy, full-height black doors.
    Golden-hued brass has also been used to create door handles, shelves and vanity units inside the bathrooms, which are otherwise lined with grey terrazzo tiles.

    Glossy black doors conceal the apartments’ bedrooms
    Elements in the apartment block’s communal areas such as the front gate and mailboxes are also made out of brass.
    “Napier Street is a symphony of robust materiality displaying organic, muted beauty carried from the exterior through to the interior experience,” concluded the practice, which is led by Ilana Freadman and Michael White.

    More brass detailing appears in the terrazzo-lined bathrooms
    Freadman White’s Napier Street and Whitlam Place projects both made it to the longlist of this year’s Dezeen Awards. The practice has previously renovated a 1930s home in Melbourne’s Elsternwick neighbourhood to include an angular grey-brick extension.
    Photography is by Gavin Green.
    Project credits:
    Client: Milieu PropertyBuilder: Atelier ProjectsStyling: Hub Furniture

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    Anupama Kundoo's handmade architecture features in Louisiana Museum exhibition

    A major exhibition at the Louisiana Museum in Denmark shines a spotlight on Anupama Kundoo, an Indian architect with an unique knowledge of traditional materials and craft traditions.Anupama Kundoo – Taking Time offers an insight into the ideas driving Kundoo’s “slow architecture” approach, which she has applied to both housing and community infrastructure.

    The first room, The Architecture of Time, is dedicated to archive material
    Favouring hand-made elements over mass-produced components, her work centres around ongoing, intensive research into sustainable practices and materials.
    This is revealed here through the inclusion of Kundoo’s architectural archive, which not only contains a number of intricate models but also various construction tools and material samples.

    Architectural models reveal the design of Kundoo’s own home, Wall House

    Exhibition highlights include a full-scale mockup of Kundoo’s affordable housing concept, Full Fill Home, which debuted at the Venice Architecture Biennale in 2016.
    There are also detailed models of Kundoo’s own home, Wall House, a building that champions regional building traditions like achakal bricks and terracotta roofing systems.

    Wall House was built with local traditions like achakal bricks and terracotta roofing
    Anupama Kundoo – Taking Time is the latest instalment in a series of exhibitions titled The Architect’s Studio, curated by Kjeld Kjeldsen and Mette Marie Kallehauge. In each, the aim has been to reveal the process behind the buildings.

    Ten key projects by Indian architect Anupama Kundoo

    “Kundoo tries to return qualitative time to the production of architecture – by human work and human hand, which naturally takes longer than machines but involves a far better sense of materials, detail, space and the building’s relationship to the site,” said the curators.
    “Looking at Kundoo’s buildings, it is impossible not to sense that they are unique works, the epitome of site-specific architecture.”

    There is a full-scale mockup of Kundoo’s affordable housing concept, Full Fill Home
    The exhibition consists of two parts. The first room, called The Architecture of Time, is dedicated to archive material. Here, 13 building models are displayed alongside an assortment of artefacts.
    There are three tables of materials: one featuring a mix of natural stones and wood, one covered in earth (both rammed and fired), and one exploring cement and concrete.
    Also in this room is a model of the Volontariat Homes for Homeless Children, a cluster of dome-shaped housing units made from handmade mud bricks, and Hut Petite Ferme, the first house Kundoo designed for herself.

    Other featured projects include the domed Volontariat Homes for Homeless Children
    The second room, titled Co-creation, hones in on Auroville – the city where Kundoo has been based for the majority of her career, and where many of her buildings are located.
    Here, the focus is on Kundoo’s largest project to date – the 240,000-square-metre housing development, Lines of Goodwill. A large model, along with 1:1 scale material samples, reveals Kundoo’s strategies for environmentally sensitive homes that connect residents to nature.

    The Co-creation room reveals Kundoo’s masterplan for Lines of Goodwill in Auroville
    This is the fourth exhibition that the Louisiana has hosted as part of The Architect’s Studio series, following retrospectives of Chinese architect Wang Shu, Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena and Mexican architect Tatiana Bilbao.
    “Of course, the whole exhibition series is to do with different cultures,” Kjeldsen previously told Dezeen.
    Anupama Kundoo – Taking Time opened on 8 October and continues until 31 January at the Louisiana Museum. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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