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High school Clouet
'Transformation' is a word that is used too commonly in schools, but in the case of the high school Francois Clouet in Tours, central France, it is appropriate. The original school, built in the 1960s, was constructed inexpensively, and it showed. Now architect Dubosc & Associés has retained and upgraded one of the buildings and built two new ones, giving the school an entirely new look and feel. 'I must say - with a little pride,' said Eric Dubosc, ‘that the teachers and the pupils, who did not like the old school at all, adore the new one.'
Architect Dubosc & Associés Location Tours - France -
Aluminium Centrum
Few buildings evoke the universal response ‘how on earth does it stand up?’ but the Aluminium Centrum in Houten, the Netherlands, is one of them. A flat simple slab of a building (although not as simple as it first looks) is supported on the slenderest possible of supports coming up out of the water. On a day when the light is right, with reflections in the still water, the effect is of the tentacles of a jellyfish – not the most structurally rigid of concepts.
Architect Abbink X De Haas architectures (Micha de Haas) Location Houten - The Netherlands Company involved 3A Composites Website http://www.3acomposites.com -
Maritime Centre Vellamo
A giant wave appears to rise 30 m from the waterfront in Kotka, southeastern Finland. Set in the area that has been the heart of the town since the 1870s, this is Maritime Centre Vellamo, a dominating steel structure with a multi-coloured surface that reflects and changes with the light.
Architect Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architectys Location Kotka - Finland Company involved Rautaruukki Website http://www.ruukki.com