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Two Housing Blocks
The housing designed by Dubosc & Associes in Montargis, France, is certainly uncompromising. Clad entirely in metal, it eschews any of the conventional domestic touches but it does so in a manner that is refreshing and bright. The only punctuation to the neutral metallic colour comes from the front doors in a cheerful red, with large painted numbers, and sensibly generous vision panels. There is no chance here of forgetting where you live, and the sloping external staircases are both inviting and, argues Eric Dubosc, important places of social interaction. ‘People never talk on internal staircases,’ he says. ‘Here they are out of doors, so they talk and their children play together.’
Architect Dubosc & Associes Location Montargis - France -
China Pavilion - Shanghai Expo
One of the most striking pavilions at last year’s Shanghai Expo came, appropriately, from the home country. It was obvious immediately that it was Chinese, through both the inverted pyramid of its shape, with strong horizontals, and the bright red that is immediately reminiscent of monuments such as Beijing’s Forbidden City. The horizontals, with ends cantilevering a short distance beyond the supporting elements below, pay homage to one of the most typical forms in traditional Chinese architecture, interlocking ‘dougong’ brackets. These were always realised in timber but here, in this modern interpretation, are clad in aluminium.
Architect South China University of Technology Institute of Architectural Design (He Jingtang) Location Shanghai - China Company involved Hunter Douglas China Website http://www.hunterdouglasgroup.com -
Carton Levert House
A house and office in County Donegal, in the west of Ireland, make a refreshing change from much of the depressing housing that has gone up in the country in the last few decades. Responding to very specific requirements from the clients for notions of retreat and also flexibility, the buildings are uncompromisingly modern, while making deliberate references to the material palettes of local agricultural buildings.
Architect MacGabhann Architects Location County Donegal - Republic of Ireland Company involved Tata Steel Website http://www.colorcoat-online.com