The City of Calgary opened up its New Central Library this past week on November 1st, 2018, after a five-year construction process.
Designed by Snøhetta (design architect) with Dialog (architect of record) and Entuitive (structural engineer), the building was previously named one of “the 12 most anticipated buildings of 2018″ and one that will surely serve as a landmark for the city.
One of the most interesting things about this project, for me, is how it both gives back and integrates with the broader urban fabric.
It is both a library and public plaza, and it sits atop the city’s busiest LRT line. About 40% of the site area is taken up by tracks (and probably setback), which means that the structural system of the building was forced into 12m (~40 foot) clear spans (done in concrete). It is the first time in the city’s history that an active LRT line has ever been encased and built over.
It is a magnificent building and reason enough to visit Calgary, if you aren’t already there. I am hoping to get out there and photograph this project sometime soon.
Over the years on this blog I have posted the occasional “Project Profile”, where I have shared a noteworthy development project, an interesting piece of architecture, or some other kind of project that I thought would interest all of you. Everything is now a project.
This morning I decided that I should do that more often. I’m not sure if it will be every week, but hopefully it’ll be fairly regularly. I also have a few other alliterative blog series that I have started in the past and should continue.
This week’s Project Profile is the Pavillon du lac in Quèbec (somewhere) by Montréal-based Daoust Lestage. All of the photography used in this post is by Adrien Williams.
The first thing you may notice is that it is evocative of Philip Johnson’s Glass House and Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House (1951) – but probably more the latter.
The City of Calgary opened up its New Central Library this past week on November 1st, 2018, after a five-year construction process.
Designed by Snøhetta (design architect) with Dialog (architect of record) and Entuitive (structural engineer), the building was previously named one of “the 12 most anticipated buildings of 2018″ and one that will surely serve as a landmark for the city.
One of the most interesting things about this project, for me, is how it both gives back and integrates with the broader urban fabric.
It is both a library and public plaza, and it sits atop the city’s busiest LRT line. About 40% of the site area is taken up by tracks (and probably setback), which means that the structural system of the building was forced into 12m (~40 foot) clear spans (done in concrete). It is the first time in the city’s history that an active LRT line has ever been encased and built over.
It is a magnificent building and reason enough to visit Calgary, if you aren’t already there. I am hoping to get out there and photograph this project sometime soon.
Over the years on this blog I have posted the occasional “Project Profile”, where I have shared a noteworthy development project, an interesting piece of architecture, or some other kind of project that I thought would interest all of you. Everything is now a project.
This morning I decided that I should do that more often. I’m not sure if it will be every week, but hopefully it’ll be fairly regularly. I also have a few other alliterative blog series that I have started in the past and should continue.
This week’s Project Profile is the Pavillon du lac in Quèbec (somewhere) by Montréal-based Daoust Lestage. All of the photography used in this post is by Adrien Williams.
The first thing you may notice is that it is evocative of Philip Johnson’s Glass House and Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House (1951) – but probably more the latter.
I’m not a very good golfer (probably because I don’t golf), but this clubhouse in Montréal has me wanting to try my hand at the driving range again. Designed by Architecture49, the clubhouse itself is 855 square meters, but the roof area is around 1,800 square meters – so more than double as a result of the overhangs that protect golfers from poor weather. Black zinc panels and pale wood get me every time.
Images: Dezeen
Le Pavillon du lac was completed in 2015. It has 2 bedrooms and is about 1,240 square feet. The entire glass pavilion is housed between two thin flat slabs with cantilevering overhangs on two of its elevation. They create a kind of portico that frames views of the water. All of the glass is triple-glazed.
One of the key distinctions for me is how the house sits on the ground. As is the case with the Farnsworth House, le Pavillon du lac sits on stilts, elevated off the ground. The ground floor slab is then able to ignore whatever topography there may be beneath it.
At the same time, there are elevations of the house where the ground has been carved into (see below). This creates a small moat around the perimeter and roots the building within the landscape.
For more photos of le Pavillon du lac, click here.
I’m not a very good golfer (probably because I don’t golf), but this clubhouse in Montréal has me wanting to try my hand at the driving range again. Designed by Architecture49, the clubhouse itself is 855 square meters, but the roof area is around 1,800 square meters – so more than double as a result of the overhangs that protect golfers from poor weather. Black zinc panels and pale wood get me every time.
Images: Dezeen
Le Pavillon du lac was completed in 2015. It has 2 bedrooms and is about 1,240 square feet. The entire glass pavilion is housed between two thin flat slabs with cantilevering overhangs on two of its elevation. They create a kind of portico that frames views of the water. All of the glass is triple-glazed.
One of the key distinctions for me is how the house sits on the ground. As is the case with the Farnsworth House, le Pavillon du lac sits on stilts, elevated off the ground. The ground floor slab is then able to ignore whatever topography there may be beneath it.
At the same time, there are elevations of the house where the ground has been carved into (see below). This creates a small moat around the perimeter and roots the building within the landscape.
For more photos of le Pavillon du lac, click here.
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