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    Trahan Architects restores Superdome to be “microcosm” of New Orleans

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    Local studio Trahan Architects has finished an interior renovation of the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, completing a series of renovations launched after Hurricane Katrina that it claims will extend the stadium’s life by 25 years.

    Trahan Architects’ work on the interior is the latest upgrade since the studio was engaged on the Superdome restoration in 2005, after it was damaged by Hurricane Katrina. The building sheltered as many as 20,000 thousand people fleeing the storm.
    The Superdome was originally completed in 1975 by Curtis and Davis Associated and featured a dome and concave cylindrical facade clad with aluminium panels.
    Trahan Architects has completed the renovation of the Superdome stadium in New OrleansAfter Hurricane Katrina, Trahan Architects implemented an overhaul of the exterior, replacing all the panels with a rainscreen system made from anodized aluminium metal panels.
    The current phase of the renovation, which was completed in time for its first game of the NFL season, included the removal of the ramp circulation system on the concourse.

    This allowed for concessions to be pushed to the outside of the structure, as well as for the installation of atriums in the entry programs and for lounges to be installed.
    In total, the renovation opened up more than 100,000 square feet (9,290 square metres), according to the studio.
    It is the latest in a series of renovations undertaken after the stadium was damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005The removal of the ramps allowed for more shared spaces and circulation, according to the studio, which modelled the concessions and circulation on the community-oriented streetscapes of New Orleans.
    “With this interior overhaul, we wanted the building to feel like a microcosm of our city,” Trahan Architects founding principal Trey Trahan told Dezeen.
    “We thought of the design as a series of stacked neighborhoods or ‘faubourgs’ as we call them, all connected by generous circulation spaces that served them – aka ‘the street’.”
    Also important to the renovation was bringing the materiality used for the original facade inside.
    Both Trahan and studio partner Brad McWhirter told Dezeen that the original innovativeness of Superdome, structurally and materially, was important throughout the redesign process.
    Anodized aluminium similar to that found on the exterior was used to clad the atriums”The rich material language they worked with, having the exterior skin of anodized aluminum which ages beautifully over time, along with its elegant form, made us see it as a sculpture that needed to be expressed both inside and out,” said McWhirter.
    “Before, you never got to experience the shape of the building from the interior – they were treated as two completely separate elements.”
    This move is most obvious in the atriums placed at three corners of the structure, which are the most visually apparent interventions.
    Here, express elevators move up through the voids. The voids have walls clad with anodized aluminium rods and are crossed by thick metal-clad beams that reveal the structure.
    Trahan Architects removed the circulation ramps and added additional seating and concessionsPlanning for resiliency and bringing the structure to compliance with codes around ventilation and accessibility were also important in the redesign process.
    Trahan Architects worked with engineering firm Thornton Tomasetti to ensure the building could stand up to high winds – it was during this 3D modelling process that the voids covered by the circulation ramps were discovered, which led to their removal.

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    “You would walk up the ramps from floor to floor with an eight-foot (2.4 metre) ceiling height, to small, cramped concourses until you finally got to your seat for some relief,” said Trahan.
    “With the model, we could see the full breadth of the voids and wasted space that could be more useful for the public, building operations, and for incorporating new mechanical systems.”
    These processes all happened while keeping the stadium in use for the American football season. The studio also had to install accessible decks for movement-impaired people, all while making sure that new mechanical systems did not interfere too much with the aesthetic of the exterior.
    “This, and from a design standpoint, implementing universal accessibility within a 50-year-old building was very difficult.  We had to make up for a lot of lost time to bring the building up to today’s standards and go the extra mile to prepare for the future,” added Trahan.
    Escalators and elevators now provide the primary circulation to the upper levelsThese future-looking improvements included the aforementioned facade replacement and the inclusion of new emergency generators, as the loss of power during Hurricane Katrina created harsh conditions for those sheltering inside.
    The architects also lauded some of the original features of the structure, which were maintained.
    Accessibility decks were also added as part of the renovation”For instance, the ‘gutter tubs’ of the roof, hidden behind the lip of the facade at the top, manage stormwater such that draining a 10-acre roof doesn’t overload the city’s system,” said McWhirter.
    “This continues to work very well to this day – even with the incredible amount of development that’s occurred since the building first opened.”
    According to the studio, the total of the renovations since 2005 will drastically extend the lifespan of the stadium.
    “This comprehensive renovation is expected to extend the building’s lifespan by 25 years, allowing future generations to enjoy the same sense of community and excitement the New Orleans landmark has fostered for nearly half a century,” it said.
    Other restorations of iconic buildings include Foster + Partners’ interior overhaul of the Transamerica Pyramid skyscraper in San Francisco.
    Meanwhile, natural disasters worsened by climate change continue to be an impetus to design buildings better. In light of that, Dezeen launched a series last year called Designing for Disaster to highlight the different problems and solutions architects and designers face in the face of extreme weather events.
    The photography is by Tim Hursley.

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      Linehouse creates greenhouse-informed food market in Shanghai

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      Architecture studio Linehouse has wrapped a food market in a Shanghai laneway neighbourhood around a central atrium informed by Victorian greenhouses.

      Named Foodie Social, the 2,000-square-metre food market is located within the Hong Shou Fang community – a residential area in Shanghai’s Putuo district known for its classic “longtang” laneway architecture.
      The food market is in a two-storey grey brick building in ShanghaiThe entrance to the two-storey market was framed by a double-height arrangement of stacked recycled red bricks, with a corten steel canopy added to provide shelter.
      The same recycled red bricks sourced from demolished houses in China can also be found on the interior walls, stacked to create three dimensional patterns.

      The glass pitched roof is lined with a gently curved metal trussA large glass door can be pulled open on warm days, with patterned paving from the laneway outside extending to the interior of the market, fully connecting the interior and exterior.

      The interior of the market was designed to resemble a greenhouse, with shops and cafe’s arrranged around a central, double-height atrium.
      The glass pitched roof above the atrium was lined with gently curved metal truss, in reference to Victorian greenhouses, with three large fans hanging from the metal truss to improve the air circulation.
      Some vendors are designed to be retractable to allow flexibilityA cafe in the atrium, which contains an olive tree planted into the ground, integrates a metal staircase that leads to the upper floor.
      A area describes as a “stage” is located by the staircase with a series of undulating balconies wrapped around the atrium on the upper floor.

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      Various typologies of food vendors are arranged in the open atrium on the ground floor, some of which are designed to be retractable, allowing flexibility for different types of vendors as well as a large open event space to be formed at the centre.
      “This new typology brings together the local with more curated food offerings in a contemporary yet humble and sustainable way,” explained Linehouse’s Shanghai team who are responsible for the design.
      Recycled red bricks can be found both on the facade and interior wallsSmaller snack shops were positioned on the ground floor, while larger restaurants occupy the upper floor.
      Each stall was assembled from a kit of parts, so that the vendors are able to create their own signage and layout, but maintain a consistent material and lighting palette.
      Larger restaurants are located on the upper floorLinehouse is a Hong Kong and Shanghai-based architecture and interior design studio established in 2013 by Alex Mok and Briar Hickling. The duo won the emerging interior designer of the year category at the 2019 Dezeen Awards.
      The studio has also recently designed the facade of a shopping centre in Bangkok and the interiors for a Hong Kong residence that respond to coastal views.
      The photography is by Wen Studio.
      Project credits:
      Design principal: Alex MokAssociate-in-charge: Cherngyu ChenDesign team: Yeling Guo, Fei Wang, Wang Jue, Norman Wang, Aiwen Shao, Mia Zhou, Yunbin Lou, Xiaoxi Chen, Tom Grannells

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      REV Architecture decorates Carita Maison de Beauté with “translucent clouds”

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      Local studio REV Architecture has completed an interior renovation of the Maison de Beauté in Paris, France, for L’Oréal Luxe skincare brand Carita.

      Surrounded by other luxury brands along the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, the studio aimed for the space, which houses a hair salon and skincare treatment rooms as well as a restaurant and eye studio, to be an embodiment of the brand’s identity.
      REV Architecture gave the Parisian beauty house an update”Our aim was to convert a commercial space into a cultural space,” REV Architecture said. “We wanted the Maison Carita to stand out as a new must-go-to destination in Paris, with all the legend that goes with it to reflect what these modern, timeless women were like.”
      Design efforts focused on the 2,000-square-metre building’s former courtyard, which was restored to its original proportions by removing recent additions and raising the height of the glass roof.
      A raised glass roof extends across the renovated atrium”To transcend this heritage, it was necessary to identify the logic of the space,” the studio explained. “The architecture becomes the singular experience that leads to the discovery of the brand’s culture.”

      Natural light is filtered through what the studio describes as a series of “translucent clouds” – circular glass panels that overhang the length of the restored atrium.
      The portico entryway is defined by a series of staggered archesTo draw visitors in from the street, REV Architecture introduced a series of staggered arches along a portico leading from the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.
      “[The arches create] a subtly accelerated perspective that gradually reveals the vision of the atrium, the epicentre of the new Maison de Beauté,” the studio said.
      The studio incorporated a restaurant by French chef Amandine Chaignot into the designPublic spaces and private rooms are alternated throughout the layout, and are connected through the central atrium by a raised path network.
      “The different spaces of the Maison de Beauté are linked to the atrium by aerial paths, a unique architectural promenade [experienced] as a promise or souvenir of the visit,” the studio said.

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      Materials were selected to reference the white-and-black colours of Carita’s most iconic products, as well as to evoke their fluid textures and its brand identity.
      “We have cultivated a sense of natural materiality [and] tactile surfaces where charm, contemporary purity and responsibility come together; the sensuality of gypsum, white and black marble warmed by touches of pink onyx and chromed metal,” the studio said.
      “Sensitive, natural, responsible [materials] made more beautiful by the passage of time.”
      The treatment rooms were informed by the clean lines of the Carita brand logoThe studio was further informed by the Carita brand logo and how it could be fused with the forms of the renovated rooms and treatment spaces.
      “It is the lines and the femininity of this simple and poetic monogram that we have chosen to define the overall expression of the new architecture,” REV Architecture said.
      The house of beauty includes a salon by John NolletREV is a Paris-based architecture and design studio founded by Cristiano Benzoni and Sophie Thuillier. The project has been shortlisted in the health and wellbeing (interior) category of Dezeen Awards 2023.
      Other recent beauty and well-being projects include a beauty store which takes its cues from underground factories in China and a spa embedded in the Mexican jungle by Soler Orozco Arquitectos and Javier Sánchez.
      The photography is by Benoit Linero.

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      HawkinsBrown renovates Reading offices to create a “connection to nature”

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      A stack of meeting rooms and a moss-covered wall overlook the atriums of Here + Now, a pair of office buildings in England refurbished by architecture studio HawkinsBrown.

      Informed by changing attitudes to workplace design following the Covid-19 pandemic, the two buildings have been renovated with a focus on wellbeing and a connection to nature.
      They are located within a wider business park in Reading, formerly used by Microsoft.
      HawkinsBrown has renovated a pair of offices in Reading called Here + NowConnected by a bridge at their centre, the two buildings contain different facilities. One of them, named Here, offers space for more established companies, while the other, named Now, contains offices for smaller companies and start-ups.
      “Here + Now is located on a business park, not in a city centre, which provides users with a much closer connection to nature and therefore better opportunity for activity and wellbeing,” HawkinsBrown partner Massimo Tepedino told Dezeen.

      “The idea is that companies can scale up or down and thereby stay on the campus for longer – this ultimately helps to create a sense of community,” he added.
      A moss-covered wall overlooks an atrium in the Now buildingWhile the two buildings share a similar material and colour palette, the finishes of each were slightly different based on its tenants.
      The approach to the Now building focuses on more cost-effective, flexible spaces, while the Here building is finished to a higher specification.
      Wood has been used to form seating areas and quiet nooksEach of the two buildings features a large arrival atrium designed to evoke a sense of “wonder”.
      In the Here building, this space has a stack of meeting pods described by HawkinsBrown as a “treehouse”, while dehydrated moss-covered balconies animate the atrium in Now.

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      Shared by both buildings are a range of on-site amenities, including a gym and treatment rooms, as well as a “lifestyle manager” who organises events and workshops.
      “The benefit of having two buildings share amenities is that office spaces can accommodate a wide range of budgets, while everyone benefits from best-in-class amenities and the opportunity to socialise with established professionals and young entrepreneurs,” explained Tepedino.
      The two buildings are connected by a bridgeThe glass and metal structures of the existing buildings have been treated internally with wooden panelling, which complements new wooden seating areas and nooks.
      Particular attention was paid to the colour scheme, with a muted palette intended to evoke the nearby natural landscape and create a relaxing atmosphere.
      The project is located on a business park”We know that colours can facilitate, regulate, and even influence people’s behaviour – our colour palette takes its cues from the natural landscape and compliments the neutral tones of the existing buildings,” explained HawkinsBrown.
      “The bathrooms take inspiration from spas and hotels, with green shades and bold graphics create a strong visual connection to nature and a calming environment.”
      Here + Now has been shortlisted in the large workplace interior category of Dezeen Awards 2023.
      Other projects recently completed by HawkinsBrown include a student hub at Queen’s University Belfast with RPP Architects and the transformation of the historic Central Foundation Boys’ School in London.
      The photography is by Jack Hobhouse.

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      M Moser Associates transforms historic power station in Singapore into Dyson HQ

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      International practice M Moser Associates has repurposed a former power station in Singapore to create the global headquarters for technology company Dyson, with interiors blending the station’s industrial heritage with contemporary materials.

      The transformation provides Dyson with 140,000 square feet (13,006 square metres) of office space. The design was both shortlisted and recently named public vote winner in the large workspace interior category of Dezeen Awards 2022.
      Amphitheatre-style seating encourages informal gatheringOriginally built in 1926 in the Edwardian style, the coal-fired St James Power Station was Singapore’s first municipal power plant and remains an important heritage landmark, decommissioned in 1976 and used as a warehouse for nearly two decades.
      During the transformation of Singapore’s industrial harbourfront into a commercial area in the 1990s, the plant became a bustling nightlife venue before closing in 2018, with the project to redevelop it beginning in 2019.
      A sculptural spiral staircase frames the former turbine hallThe focal point of M Moser Associates’ design was the former turbine hall, which has been used to create a dramatic, four-storey atrium framed by exposed black steelwork and a sculptural spiral staircase.

      Sheltered underneath tall trees in raised planters that double as desks, a cafe sits alongside an area of amphitheatre-style seating to encourage informal gathering.
      Employees enter through the turbine hall”A dramatic four-storey industrial space, inspired by the quadrangles of university campuses, this central space serves as a circulation hub, connecting all areas,” explained the practice.
      “Employees enter the Turbine Hall as they head to work, [and] are greeted with a symbolic reminder of the building’s new revitalised purpose – to spark design and technological innovation,” it continued.
      M Moser Associates created a mixture of spaces insideOrganised around this central space, four levels are zoned into a mixture of offices, laboratories, and social spaces, designed to provide a range of more private, quiet spaces and collaborative areas.
      On the top floor, spaces benefit from higher ceilings underneath the exposed, black steel trusses of the plant’s roof structure, and above this, a landscaped rooftop terrace provides external gathering space overlooked meeting rooms with full-height glazing.

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      Externally, the building’s brick and paintwork has been restored with Dyson’s logo emblazoned on a chimney, and the new material choices seek to reference this industrial heritage.
      A simple palette of dark stone, wood and metal complements and celebrates the contrast with the exposed structure, such as in an atmospheric meeting room housed at the base of one of the brick chimneys.
      An atmospheric meeting room is housed at the base of one of the brick chimneys”Concrete flooring and black metal speak of the building’s past, while technical materials like polycarbonate, metal mesh and mirrored cladding announce its new future,” said the practice.
      “This sympathetically repurposed building is a rare example of architectural renewal and urban sustainability,” it continued.
      Concrete flooring “speaks of the building’s past”In London, another historic coal-fired plant – the iconic Battersea Power Station – has recently reopened following an extensive redevelopment by WilkinsonEyre, and now houses shops, office space and apartments.
      The images are courtesy of M Moser Associates. 

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      Hariri Pontarini rethinks cold medical interiors at Barlo MS Centre

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      Canadian architecture studio Hariri Pontarini has completed a clinic in Toronto for multiple sclerosis patients that features warm wood tones and spaces designed to feel like “first-class airplane lounges”.

      The Barlo MS Centre is Canada’s largest clinic dedicated to those with MS, a complex autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system.
      The BARLO MS Centre was designed with atypical colours, materials, textures and lightingNamed after its two biggest donors, the Barford and Love families, the centre occupies the top two floors of a new 17-storey tower at St Michael’s Hospital in Downtown Toronto.
      The 30,000-square-foot (2,790-square-metre) facility was designed by local studio Hariri Pontarini Architects, which aimed to rethink sterile-looking healthcare spaces and focus on patient wellbeing through the use of atypical colours, materials, textures and lighting.
      The clinic’s two storeys are connected by a staircase that rises through an atrium”Canadians are particularly prone to MS for reasons that are unclear,” said the studio.

      “This hospital’s mission is nothing less than to transform MS care and become the world’s leading MS centre through research and clinical treatment.”
      Circular consultation rooms are partially clad in walnutTaking cues from the hospitality industry, the team aimed to create a “comfortable and welcoming environment” by filling the spaces with daylight and offering views of the skyline.
      The two floors are connected by a double-height atrium, topped with an oculus that allows more natural light in from above.
      The wavy panels conceal the rooms from the main circulation corridorA staircase rises up through the atrium, curving towards the top with a glass balustrade to follow the shape of the opening.
      Downstairs, the atrium connects to a lounge at the corner of the building and a reception area anchored by a curved white counter.
      Infusion pods are given privacy by pale wood screensA wide corridor leads past a series of cylindrical consultation rooms that are partially glazed, but screened where they face the circulation area by wavy walnut panels.
      On the other side of the floor plan, smaller and more open consultation booths named infusion pods are still offered privacy with curved pale wood screens.
      Different varieties of wood give the interiors a warm tone”The infusion pods where patients may sit for up to eight hours are modelled to resemble a first-class airplane lounge and provide complete control over their environment,” the Hariri Pontarini team said.
      Various light-toned woods are used for wall panels and balustrades, as well as thin slats that extend across the ceilings.
      The atrium connects to a lounge and waiting areaAll spaces were designed with durability and accessibility in mind, considering that some MS patients have vision and cognitive loss, fatigue and impaired coordination.
      Bronze-coloured handrails were installed along the majority of walls and partitions, while anti-slip porcelain tiles cover the floors to aid patient mobility.

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      The centre also includes a gym, a mock apartment adapted for MS patients, and rooms for meetings, research and administration.
      Together, it provides patients with a space to see a dedicated healthcare team in one location and clinicians the state-of-the-art resources to offer the best possible treatment.
      An oculus above the atrium brings daylight into the centre of the buildingHariri Pontarini Architects was founded by Siamak Hariri and David Pontarini in 1994.
      One of the studio’s most recognisable buildings is the Bahá’í temple in Chile, featuring torqued wings made of steel and glass, while its work closer to home includes the glass-wrapped Tom Patterson Theatre in Stratford, Ontario.
      Handrails are provided throughout the clinic to aid patient mobilityThe Bar MS Centre is one of five projects shortlisted in the Leisure and Wellness Interior category of the Dezeen Awards 2022, along with a Shenzhen cinema and a spa in the Maldives.
      See the full Interiors shortlist and vote now for your favourites.
      The photography is by A-Frame.

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