• Home
• Past Issues

Specifier Magazine Issue 90

• 

  San Paulo Parish Complex by Massimiliano & Doriana Fuksas

  An earthquake is one of nature’s most wrathful disasters. There is, of course, the emotional horror of injury and death, but the most obvious horror is that of physical destruction: of buildings – homes, shops, schools, and churches – lying in ruins. Edifices that we prefer to think of as indestructible, rendered nothing more than a pile of rubble. In the words of Massimiliano Fuksas, architect of the new San Paulo Parish complex in earthquake-ravaged Foligno, Umbria, Italy, an earthquake is “a disaster of incredible dimension”. But even after the aftermath, there is the challenge of rebuilding; and in reconstruction, it is the role of architecture to embody the reestablishment of strength and belonging.

  read more »
• 

  Rolex Learning Centre by SANAA

  With its timeless view over Lake Geneva and its ranking (alongside Cambridge) as Europe’s number one university for Engineering Technology and Computer Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) simply demanded a dramatic, high-tech architectural statement for its new learning centre. And that being the case, renowned Japanese practice SANAA was the ideal architect for the job.

  read more »
• 

  ‘One Ocean’ Thematic Pavilion by Soma

  The ocean is at once an endless surface that stretches from one horizon to the other, and yet also a compartmentalised grid, divided by name, geography, politics and tectonics. It is vast on the surface, yet also very deep. Korea itself is a marine nation, a peninsula surrounded on three sides by an ocean that has supported its people, culture and industries for thousands of years. But, the ocean, of course, has a deeper significance: it is the crucible of all life on earth; unfathomably rich in its ecosystems, and responsible for the weather patterns that make (and keep) our planet the way it is.

  read more »
• 

  The University of Western Australia, Business School by Woods Bagot

  Too often, university architecture focuses on classrooms and lecture halls, while neglecting the human factor. Students arrive, attend lectures, then leave again. Or they visit the library, collect some books, and go elsewhere to study. Study groups meet off-campus. They rush from one end of the campus to the other, and then leave when class is over. In this sense, there is a big difference between “being at university” and being “at” university.

  read more »
• 

  Faculty of Law, University of Sydney by Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp (fjmt)

  When Sydneysiders think of the words ‘Sandstone University’, they think of Sydney University: its beautiful Neo-Gothic Grand Hall and Oxford-esque Main Quadrangle, designed by Edmund Blacket from 1854-62, are treasured landmarks for the city, and one of the reasons students love to study at the institution. But until very recently, students and staff in the University’s Law Faculty were located off-site at the University’s Phillip Street campus, half the city away in a brutalist CBD tower block. They missed out on the beautiful atmosphere and architecture of the main campus, so the announcement that a new Law Faculty building was to be built on the main campus was greeted with much enthusiasm, and there was a great eagerness to see its construction completed.

  read more »
• 

  All Saints Primary School by Candalepas Associates

  It is a truth generally acknowledged that as a society we work hard to ensure that our children are given the best possible education in their youth, so as to set them on the path to living even better lives than we do. Whilst the learning process itself is one of great importance, the environment in which children learn the skills and information they need in later life is arguably just as valuable. This supposition is what Sydney-based architectural firm Candalepas Associates have taken into account, with their design for a new upgrade to All Saints Grammar in Belmore, NSW.

  read more »
• 

  Leaf House by Undercurrent Architects

  The art of architecture can take its followers on a majestic voyage, featuring projects that require painstaking restoration or remarkable transformation. The dedication in converting an obsolete, timeworn construction into a glorious architectural artwork is a skill not many can boast. Being able to complete such a radical change, whilst simultaneously creating an artistic masterpiece in its own right, is something that most architects strive for.

   

  read more »
• 

  Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre by Joint Venture Architects Woods Bagot and NHArchitecture

  Conference centres can be horrible, soulless places with dark, windowless lecture halls and endless monotone furnishings. Plain and utilitarian. Designed for high turnover practical durability and nothing more. But this is no ordinary conference centre. The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre was envisaged and built in an attempt to transcend these traditional convention centre stereotypes. And transcend it does. This PPP (Private Public Partnership) venture between the State Government of Victoria and the Plenary Group has delivered a building that truly belongs to the public and cultural life of Melbourne.

  read more »