Award-winning International firm Graft Architects has designed Vertical Village, a residential, hotel, and entertainment complex in Dubai.The building, which resembles a giant flower, is designed to optimize exposure of the gigantic solar panels that make up the petals. Energy consumption within the facility is vastly mitigated and the perhaps equally importantly, the thing looks awesome.
In celebration of the announcement that the esteemed architect I.M. Pei will receive the Royal Gold Medal, an enormously high honor bestowed upon distinguished architects (pervious winners have included Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier, and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe among others), the man who nominated I.M. Pei for the honor, British “starchitect” and artist David Adjaye, had this to say:
“When I began my studies in architecture, I. M. Pei was already a giant in the cannon of greats. His work seemed effortlessly capable of creating extraordinary clarity out of complex and conflicting demands. His is an agile ability, working with Heads of State, Kings and Queens, ‘hard nosed’ developers and non profit institutions, in each case creating revealing, extraordinary works of precision with quality and detail.”
A slideshow after the jump.
Award-winning Rotterdam architecture and urban design firm MVRDV has just commenced building of Norwegian bank dnb’s Oslo headquarters.
It’s a steel rack enrobed in a “stone skin.” Think a gargantuan rock with a metal barcode in it—denoting commerce within a natural, but formidable context. The elegant yet substantive citadel does not however compromise the “intangibles” that bolster worker productivity.
“2,000 flexible work spaces the building contains a panoramic 140-seat canteen on the top level, the executive lounge with a view over the fjord… These collective elements are connected by a staggered continuous internal route of terraces, encouraging informal meetings and communication between employees.”
View of the fjord? Wall Street, eat your heart out.
The Green Label Artlog is where Dew broadcasts its favorite finds in the worlds of art, lifestyle and creative culture, along with news and updates on the 2008 Green Label Art program, artists and events.
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