Some plants have burrs, prickly flowers with outer bracts ending in hooks. After the flower head dries, the hooked bracts will attach to humans and animals in order to transport the entire seed head. The interesting bit here is the connection between the flower and the environment which happens via tentacle-like bracts. Imagine now, related but quite a different situation, if these bracts may be informed to find the most suitable way to connect with the given environment and if their growth and anchoring would be a defining force behind the flower form. Any such form would then come into being as a result of the real-time adaptation process. Its constitution would accurately correspond to what is found in its surroundings; and if one could remove its surroundings with the magical wand, the form would then represent the accurate memory of that space. This is what we tried to achieve with the project. At first formless piece of textile equipped with tentacles is suspended in the air. The structure is then starched in a form-finding process, according to available space and anchoring points. In the final stage epoxy resin adhesives are used to stiffen the canvas and to achieve structurally autonomous shape. The project is done for the promotional purpose of Ceresit, Henkel Building Systems at 2011 Mikser Festival with the help of students form University of Belgrade.

More images on our flicker page.

In 1968 local kids have erected the first structure on this spot, like a retreat and without a building permit proper. Not only the natural setting is intriguing but also the fact that it sits on the river which now represents border between two countries, territory not belonging to either jurisdiction, sort of duty free zone.  The structure was rebuilt several times since then. Whenever torrential rain and flood take the structure down, one of the original builders, Milija Mandic Gljiva, would build a new one. This year, rain and flood have done it again and for the seventh time, Mr. Mandic now in his sixties, has started preparing for the construction works. Here is the video of the structure just before it was demolished by flooded river and the video of the actual demolition moment. Having heard about the story, we have met up with him and have jointly developed a concept on how to build a structure from locally available materials and workforce which would be able to withstand torrential floods by letting water through its own interior. The idea is that structure would remain a bathing place and a local retreat with protection from sun and rain.

Proposed structure  letting water through the interior.

Plan and section of the new proposal with the axonometric scheme of the timber construction method.

Like many other cities, Belgrade too is lacking green space. In particular it needs equipped and maintained green areas that are open to public. We have joined non-governmental organization Supernatural in an initiative to create a series of such spaces across the town. The first one is a small lot of land located next to the Kula Nebojsa and river Sava.

The idea was to involve public and gather citizens who would bring a plant each to create a park within a day. Over the time the plan evolved with corporations chipping in to support the idea. Telenor, mobile operator, have acquiring large number of plants to be planted by their employees. Totaling number of plants grew over five hundred and benches, solar lights and homes for birds were included. The design is based on the idea that park should be created as a consequence of collective action. We have provided some framework concerning the choice of plants and creation of the central green area with circulation routes, but have relied on individual preference for the position of the plants.
The first day at Supernatural Park.

Design sequence: a. proposed topography b. land infill  c. planting grid d. approximate plant disposition c. circulation and paths

Final plan for one day planting action.

Visual made for fund raising and promotion purposes.

Workshop drawings for the bench.

Workshop drawings for the bird’s house.

Responsive solutions in building industry are normally associated with high budgets. In contrast, this is a low-cost application of adaptable architecture. Proposed design is not site specific; it is configured to suite different surroundings and varied demands. For practical reasons, it is based on the use of a single component designed for infinite growth within a recursive geometric pattern.

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The idea behind modular configuration is to define a spatial solution which would be able to grow and adapt according to the changing need; or according to varied conditions at different locations. Notionally, if more and more modules were to be added, the clinic facilities could grow infinitely but always confined the circular matrix, defined by three differently sized courtyards.

Use the green slider to reverse the growth sequence.

Use the green slider to explore relationship between the individual component and the overall geometric configuration.

Proposal for the phase one satellite clinic entails ten modules grouped around two circular courtyards, while phase two configuration will need twenty modules grouped around five circular courtyards.

Number and disposition of courtyards is associated with the organizational logic of the clinic and has formative influence on the relationship between outdoor and indoor space. Phase one proposal envisages one larger courtyard surrounded by childbirth (inpatient) facilities and disease prevention (outpatient) facilities; and another smaller courtyard to be surrounded by outdoor family area. We would like to encourage full use of the outdoor areas with and without shadow, as a natural extension of the indoor facilities. In our design we would like to promote ways of social interaction by planning for integration between spaces for education, recreation and living.

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All facilities are facing the courtyard to allow trouble-free orientation for the patients and if needed to provide easily secured environment. With the single point of entry to the clinic and clearly defined belonging outdoor space, clinic facilities should help create strong sense of security for its users while presenting inviting appearance to the outside world.

Entire structure and shell envelope of the phase one clinic may be packed into a single container measuring 4mx3mx2.4m or volume of 28.8m³. Such package of corrugated steel sheets and I-beam structure could be easily delivered by land or air to most secluded locations. From thereon construction process will relay upon very basic skill and gradual introduction of other components such as flooring, insulation, windows and doors, finishes, furniture, equipment…

Our response to the design brief was to come up with an efficient proposal. As in disease treatment where success is directly dependant on the fast response, we thought of architecture which would be quick and straightforward to build by locally available skill and easily transportable material. So we based our proposal on the modular element, made of corrugated steel shell and I-beam structure. Its polygonal footprint of 27m² has all of the nodes positioned on the perimeters of the two concentric circles. Set out and construction sequence is made easy via seven steps shown on the diagrams.

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Fenestration design is relative to the Sun and we plan for good air circulation to help against overheating and best possible use of daylight. Perforated steel sheets are used to provide mobile protection from sun for doors and window; and other particular walls which are there to define outdoor areas. Roof surface will host photovoltaic panels to generate electricity from solar radiation.

High surface to volume ratio of our proposal is geared for better rain water harvesting. Water is collected by entire roof surface and then channeled via gutters to storage tanks located in the courtyards.  Rainwater collection from roofs can be calculated using the formula: 1 millimeter of rain on a 1 square meter surface yields 1 liter of water. Therefore our proposal for phase one would generate 270 liters of water per 1 millimeter of rain. Such supplies could be used for drinking if suitably treated or domestic water, or water for small irrigation.

The building named ’Danube Flower’ was built some thirty-five years ago to become a landmark at Belgrade waterfront. It used to house an exclusive restaurant which was a segment of a larger recreational centre accessible to the public. The project was sponsored by the communist government of the time and endorsed by then ubiquitous president J.B.Tito, who was the first guest at the restaurant on November 22^nd 1973. It was a famed hangout spot until its decay in the nineties and its final closure which coincided with the start of the civil war in the country. For the period of fifteen years building was not in operation and has deteriorated considerably.

In many ways the building is particular but above all for its synthesis between architectural and structural reasoning. The main volume of the building, triangular in plan, is elevated some fifteen meters above the river and the ground level with the pedestrian esplanade. It is supported solely by the central core which contains two elevator shafts and double spiral staircase.

Cantilevers are reaching out some twelve meters giving a levitating feel to the building. In addition one more structural move is crucial for seamless interaction between exterior and interior of the building. Concrete floor-slab and ceiling shell are not connected at the perimeter of the building, allowing for the continuity of the glass façade to the full extent. Uninterrupted glass strip, with the total length of 150 meters, is wrapping around the building to give constant presence of the Danube River in the interior, with sweeping views reaching far out, both upstream and downstream.

Originally, building was planed on the grid of 7.3m equilateral triangles which defined its organizational and structural regularity, but with the different brief now we were looking for a change. Defining moment of the new spatial expression is the ceiling. Its design is the sequence of geometric transformations and subdivision applied to the original grid. As a result, approximately 390 backlit panels with the finite variation in shape and size are suspended from the triangular steel construction.

Click on the OPTION button to explore  differences between the three ceiling configurations considered.

The idea was to create light and spacious space so that visitors should be getting an impression of entering a cloud on arrival.  In response we have opted for reflective resin floor finishes throughout and semi translucent ceiling; both aiming to expose sleek forms of Technogym training equipment in the open plan arrangement.

Dramatic temperature changes, sudden rainfall and rapid changes in pollutant levels – our cities’ climates are becoming more and more difficult to predict. Architects and planners are faced with increasingly complex and uncertain information when shaping tomorrow’s cities. Does this mean there should be a radical rethink of how we develop urban space? –Introduction from the Dana Centre – May 2008.

The landscape of Snow City is a representation of a world inundated with snow and reshaped accordingly. How might the world respond to various climatic conditions, and specifically to snow? In order to understand this premise, it is necessary to look to the natural environment and how geography is constantly transforming itself with the forces exerted in the course of seasonal and long-term changes.

Mountains form from constant erosion due to wind, rain, snow, glaciers and geologic shifts. They have their own dynamic forces attributable to the direction and grade of their surfaces in response to the constant of gravity. But the mountain itself is the structure upon which the heavy blanket of snow rests. The snow firmly settles onto the mountain but does not take its direct shape. It forms a new, more distributed landscape of smooth surface modulating the distinct geometry of the mountain below.

The city has formed a crystalline shape that does not enjoy the flexibility of natural geography. And naturally the heavy loads of snow are not welcome in the urban landscape of the city. Our cities disregard the qualities of such a landscape by flattening our experience. Snow City looks to explore the relationship created when a city is transformed into a smooth world transformed by the heavy load of snow. The city is then described by a different form of crystallization, one closer to smooth and continuous surfaces.

Snow City uses a faceted geometry to describe the smooth surface of the new urban condition. It uses the smooth surface to create continuous buildings and landscapes that would force a constant interaction.

The purpose with Snow City is to inject a cataclysmic climatic condition onto the ‘city’ in order to register an urban architectural response. The current fascination with the development of the city lies purely within the rules which govern its growth. Existing planning, legislation, political will, lines of sight and the flexibility of the open plan to absorb any potential tenant; all of this combined with an economic drive towards the indistinguishable office building form the backdrop of the cities’ development and design. Snow City takes the physical position that what determines the ‘architecture’ is a material organization based on an external force and condition. We have used snow as the exerting force as it embodies an immediate transformation as well as a continuous shift from one state to another. It is precisely because the problem is urban, climatic and external and embodies a range of forces that we have created Snow City. It is the formulation of the problem to help derive the understanding.

If a condition of climate could fundamentally shift the nature of a city then the city itself would need to re-understand its built form. In the Snow City model we re-create city with the new terrain of frozen geometry. The existing condition knows nothing of the impending changes, It has no relationship to the event and therefore no preparations have been made to adjust and understand the forces and geometry. As the storm settles upon the city at once it is transformed by an external force. It takes new shape and its logic becomes that of the terrain of the mountains and valleys. It has no choice but to immediately comprehend, reconfigure and absorb this new quality so that the city is still recognizable. While the city can still be seen as functioning, the architecture has now become a landscape of folds and geometries far beyond the realm of any urban policy.

Artificial landscapes are coherent spatial systems. They proliferate infinite variations rather than operating via the repetition of discreet types. The model of Snow City demonstrates how such a landscape would operate. At present our cities are not built as coherent spatial systems. They are in constant ignorance of the current condition in favour of the past although their geological relevance does not carry the information of ages past. Instead, they formulate a repetition of a nostalgic built form. Within Snow City we see a new possibility working its way forward. That possibility is that the city begins to understand its own configuration by creating itself as already deformed by the uncompromising forces of climate. It builds on the geological information, but does not follow repetition of elements or types in order to exist. This new geometry folds the surface into slopes of varying segments. They form an upper segment consisting more commonly of edges, a middle segment of more constant slope and a lower segment of concavity becoming an undulating valley of public configuration. The valley is understood as a constant space where the shifting material settles and forms the soft surface of public realm. The variations of the mid-slope are the most fluctuating as they receive and give away material in a constant exchange. Their ‘erosion’ provides the valleys with new material and themselves with a powerful means of reconfiguration. The craggy upper sections of Snow City are the identifiable edges within the soft surface. They help us understand position and orientation within the landscape.

Artificial landscapes produce extreme conditions with gravity defying formulations. They are spatial puzzles carrying a catalogue of possibilities where the architecture and landscape perform as an entity rather than a juxtaposition of two separate elements. The built becomes interwoven within landscape and landscape defines built form in a choreography of surface.  Nate Kolbe

Traditionally, mountain homes in this region are built around the same formula with characteristic roof geometry. This one takes the idea to the extreme; roof planes are dominant while external walls are omitted altogether. Front façade is the glass screen oriented toward hilly landscape. Existing planning code and client’s preferences are translated into the design rules for relational modeling resulting with a number of possible configurations

The building is located at the rim of the national park, and within the largest ski resource in the country. Planning code in this area is stringent and meant to preserve nature form unrestrained growth and stipulate development of the rural ambiance. Yet in reality, it has failed immensely. The area is overcrowded with buildings producing a surreal catalogue of planning evasions, all possible because of the local authorities turning a blind eye to what is going on and also because the planning code itself is the nonsensical interpretation of what the traditional mountain habitat is. The code stipulates the following: building height, relative occupancy of the lot, degree of inclination for the roof planes and the choice of several materials for the external finishing. Its straight forward interpretation leads to the production of pitched roof houses with no contextual or environmental awareness.

Looking elsewhere for the incentive to start the project, we came across the traditional mountain homes scattered in the region, recognizable for their timber structure and characteristic roof geometry geared to provide usable attic space with no excessive volume.  We thought that such model would be energy efficient and well suited for its owners, keen skiers. The roof has become the dominant feature with its planes reaching the ground while the walls are omitted altogether. Its geometry shields the house from its neighbors while it frames the unobstructed view of the rolling hills on the southern side. Consequently, the entire building is oriented toward this side via large glass screen and cantilevering terrace.

In the search for the perfect roof form, a design protocol is set to accommodate changing values of its key parameters, taken as a combination of planning regulations and client’s preferences. Use the green slider to view a series of models, regarded as a sequence of possible solutions varying in their shape but sharing the same characteristics. In the end, subtle differences did make the difference and some models were more attractive then others. Naturally, a decision was based on the client’s preference. In parallel and out of curiosity, we have opened a public pole on our blog with twelve models on display. Surprisingly, the public (possibly entirely made of architects) has endorsed a different model.

The building consists of two mirrored units, planed for two well acquainted but independent owners and their families. Their insistence on two identical units causes the symmetry and the verticality of the internal organization with the central structural element acting as a divider. Both units are granted a complete privacy but large sliding door is left as a possibility of uniting their living rooms, for the purpose of a communal entertainment or large gatherings.

Structural concept places significance on the dividing wall to get lateral stability. Entire body is made of the visible timber structure, and laid on the concrete foundation. The building is sunk into the landscape, with the terrace platform resting on two massive girders cantilevering up to four meters.

Another mountain home project revokes experiences gained from the house at Kopaonik, but adopts explicitly different strategy. Internal space is organized around centrally positioned core with structural, heating and ventilating purpose. The building is than oriented toward idyllic surroundings with its external walls and the roof seamlessly combined to form an energy efficient envelope. The owners are calling it Yurt home in reference to a portable, felt-covered, wood lattice-framed dwelling structure traditionally used by nomads in the steppes of Central Asia.

The design is getting developed around the intention to build a comfortable mountain home and numerous constructive debates we are having with the client. In result, the building is being formed in shifts by two extremes: architectural fanaticism on one side and the owner’s skepticism toward the unknown on the other.

At the very beginning the owners were keen on the centrally positioned fireplace to become a dominant feature in the interior, but also to provide heat to all rooms in the house. They have seen it working in the nearby building and thought they would like to have same. For us, the architects, this was a sensible departing point and an opportunity to develop energy efficient strategy along the very same principles defining the structural and organizational logic of the building. And indeed, the fire place is in the center, its chimney is the main structural element providing for lateral stability and supporting radial configuration of the beams spanning toward the outer walls. Roof structure, including eight beams and numerous joists, is all made of wood and will be visible in the interior to emphasize the organizational logic. Accordingly, building’s internal space is subdivided into the rooms of which only the guest bedroom is permanently isolated. The main bedroom is easily connected to the living and kitchen area when sliding partition is not closed. This way we have gained largeness of the interior in what surely is a small house. Entire floor area net is 76m2, excluding the terrace and the technical basement.

The building’s footprint is compact and its volume is compressed. In effective, this is a way of dealing with the mountain climate. It reduces the heat exchange between the exterior and the interior. Extending the concept further we have omitted the roof eave, and have established seamless connection between the wall and the roof planes to form an envelope entirely clad with affordable but durable bangkirai, wood based product. The roof geometry consists of eight sloping planes with their creases coinciding with the position of the main beams. Such faceting configuration permits fluctuation of the building’s height according to the varied of use in its segments. For instance, living area is the highest while storage room on the diagonal end has the lowest ceiling. This way volume is reduced where appropriate to optimize the use of the heating energy and help reach zero carbon target.

The building is located on the rim of the national park and its immediate relation to the surrounding nature is the most important reason behind the project. Yet its immediate environment, now designated for development, is endangered with inappropriate building activity with the neighbors competing for the space. In all of this, views out from the house became the leading preoccupation and means of capturing contextual benefits. A large corner window is facing west with the unobstructed view of the surrounding peaks covered with the pine forest. Glass corner, rather then two side windows, is meant to provide spatial rather then flat and two-dimensional views of the landscape.  Shear size of the opening, its floor to ceiling height and its width of almost four meters, is meant to enhance contact with the surrounding nature.

The building’s compact envelope is designed to transform itself from completely open to entirely closed condition with the use of low-tech and affordable solutions. The corner window and all other fenestration are equipped with the sliding shutters for the use during the periods when building is not in use. Covered terrace, traditionally integral element of the mountain homes in this region, is contained within the envelope and protected with the porous partition. If weather permits the partition may be opened with the use of garage-like mechanism and terrace will extend into the lawn.

Moved by two motives, desire to achieve very dense development* and the need to create socially sustainable environment, we looked at the historic model of urbanization found in the neighboring towns, whereby network of narrow streets and squares is laid out in conjunction with the topographic conditions to result with the diversity of public spaces and formidable proximity of individual dwellings individual .