Ecca collection

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.’

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Doha Pedestrian Bridge

The ruling family of the hydrocarbon-rich state of Qatar has decided to its capital city Doha as the centre of the Gulf region.

Doha’s growing corporate and commercial activity, which will include the FIFA World Cup 2022, has initiated a number of impressive construction projects, and the Public Works Authority (PWA) has recently announced that several “state-of-the-art” pedestrian bridges will be built around the city.

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Moscow Hospital

Fire-resistant aluminium cladding from Aluwall System, in a rainbow of bright colours, lends a fittingly childish appeal to Moscow’s new and innovative Federal Research Centre for Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Immunology. Primary colours and their complementary partners characterise the exterior and interior finishes of the blocks comprising this cheerful-looking hospital complex, each of which has been assigned its own, distinctive function.

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