Montenegro Residences by BIG

"The Montenegro Terraces are located in a scenic bay between Budva og Svedi Stefan. The site is located on a steep incline and incorporates 8,000 m2 of holiday homes.

In an effort to combine maximum density with minimum impact we created the residential architecture by turning the topography in to the masterplan. Like a naturally generated desgin we made every 4th topoline the facade of a terrace house. The facades follow the natural curvature of the mountain terrain providing large private gardens with apnaromic views of Aegean Sea.

The result is a landscape of inhabited ricefields. Topography as architecture."

Simple concept, but couldn't agree more to it. Topography as architecture, as a paragon of Organic Architecture.

"So here I stand before you preaching organic architecture: declaring organic architecture to be the modern ideal and the teaching so much needed if we are to see the whole of life, and to now serve the whole of life, holding no traditions essential to the great TRADITION. Nor cherishing any preconceived form fixing upon us either past, present or future, but instead exalting the simple laws of common sense or of super-sense if you prefer determining form by way of the nature of materials..." - Frank Lloyd Wright, An Organic Architecture, 1939

This, aesthetic is to appreciate from the inside, which is the exact function of the built environment. For being used, not being seen. deeply intergrate with the Genius Loci( the steep incline clif-like hill) on the other hand capture the most essential element of the Site, blue sea which a total horizon.

Shang Hai Ren Building By Bjarke Ingels

Architecture in China never ceases to amaze us—case in point—the REN Building. Copenhagen’s Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) proposed this eye-catching design over a year ago to coincide with Shanghai’s “Better City, Better Life” 2010 World Expo . The building takes its form from the Chinese character for person 人 (”ren”) and combines two buildings (one symbolic of mind and the other symbolic of body). We love the poetic inspiration that reflects both site and cultural sensitivity.

“The first building, emerging from the water, is devoted to the activities of the body, and houses the sports and water culture center. The second building emerging from land, is devoted to the spirit and enlightenment, and houses the conference center and meeting facilities. The two buildings meet in a 1000 room hotel, a building for living.”

It’ll be exciting to see if the plans for the project are approved. Check out more views and an animated fly-through of the project below.

Mountain Dwelling, Copenhagen by Bjarke Ingels

Architect: BIG
Project: Mountain Dwellings
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark
Partner-in-Charge: Bjarke Ingels
Project Leader: Finn Nørkjær
Project Architect: Jakob Lange
Project Manager: Jan Borgstrøm
Contributers: Annette Jensen, Dariusz Bojarski, Dennis Rasmussen, Eva Hviid-Nielsen, Henrick Poulsen, Joao Vieira Costa, Jørn Jensen, Karsten V. Vestergaard, Karsten Hammer Hansen, Leon Rost, Louise Steffensen, Malte Rosenquist, Mia Frederiksen, Ole Elkjær-Larsen, Ole Nannberg, Roberto Rosales Salazar, Rong Bin, Sophus Søbye, Søren Lambertsen, Wataru Tanaka
Client: HØPFNER A/S, Danish Oil Company A/S
Collaborators: JDS ARCHITECTS, MOE & BRØDSGAARD, FRODE MADSEN RÅDGIVENDE INGENIØRER ApS
Size: 33.000 m2
Expected completion: June 2008

Right next to their VM Housing project, BIG is currently finishing their new project: Mountain Dwellings. But this time, the client asked for a specific program with 2/3 parking and 1/3 living. Rather than doing 2 separate buildings, BIG decided to combine the splendours of the suburban backyard with the social intensity of urban density, resulting on a terraced housing over the parking area.

The parking area needs to be connected to the street, and the homes require sunlight, fresh air and views, thus all apartments have roof gardens facing the sun, amazing views and parking on the 10th floor. The Mountain Dwellings appear as a suburban neighbourhood of garden homes flowing over a 10-storey building - suburban living with urban density.

The residents of the 80 apartments will be the first in Orestaden to have the possibility of parking directly outside their homes. The gigantic parking area contains 480 parking spots and a sloping elevator that moves along the mountain’s inner walls. In some places the ceiling height is up to 16 meters which gives the impression of a cathedral-like space.

The north and west facades are covered by perforated aluminium plates, which let in air and light to the parking area. The holes in the facade form a huge reproduction of Mount Everest. At day the holes in the aluminium plates will appear black on the bright aluminium, and the gigantic picture will resemble that of a rough rasterized photo. At night time the facade will be lit from the inside and appear as a photo negative in different colours as each floor in the parking area has different colours.