Inhabitat » Daylighting

Rathaus Terraces: Mixed-Use Development for Medieval German City

Weilburg, a medieval city not too far from Frankfurt, has announced plans to demolish a parking structure on the edge of its dense core and replace it with a mixed-use development with retail, residential and park space. Recently they revealed this beautiful proposal from ACME, which won the all-important public vote and second place from the professional jury. Inspired by the nearby Baroque terraced-landscape design of the Weilburg Castle Gardens, the Rathaus Terraces will feature green roofs, as well as natural ventilation and daylighting.

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Lessons We Can Learn From Old Buildings And Apply to New Ones

by Lloyd Alter, 10/15/09

Buildings consume 76% of electricity generated; they create 48% of our greenhouse gases; a quarter of our waste in landfills comes from construction. Yet we continue to tear down perfectly good ones and replace them with new ones that don’t perform as well and don’t last as long. If we understood what old buildings are saying to us, we would be less eager to rip them down, and perhaps might even emulate them in our new buildings. Read on for examples.

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Mason Lane Farm Showcases Beautiful Bamboo Construction

by Bridgette Meinhold, 10/06/09

Farms are close to nature – places to harvest the fruit of the land and care for animals and livestock. As such they should be built and operated with respect for life through sustainable construction and operation. The Mason Lane Farm Operations Facility in North Carolina is just such an example. Designed by De Leon & Primmer Architecture Workshop out of Louisville, KY, the beautiful eco farm facility supports 2,000 acres of agriculture, recreation, wildlife habitat and conservation land as part of the University of North Carolina. Two barns were designed and constructed on a well planned site using sustainable materials like locally-sourced bamboo and prefab panels and trusses.

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Manuel Villa’s Habitable Polyhedron – A Family Garden Retreat

by Beth Shea, 09/22/09

We’ve seen our fair share of backyard retreats, but Manuel Villa’s Habitable Polyhedron shapes up to be one of the most unique dwellings we’ve come across. Designed as an escape for young families: parents and their newborn, the Habitable Polyhedron offers respite from day to day household activities in a family’s back garden in Bogota, Columbia. One windowed side of the polyhedron opens to a teak deck leading into nature; and a skylight casts natural light on a workspace and sofa inside. Once the child grows up, the space may accommodate him in the same manner as would a treehouse or playhouse.

Herzog + de Meuron’s Hamburg Philharmonic Concert Hall Breaks Ground

Officials have recently unveiled the new design for the Elbphilharmonie, the new home for the Hamburg Philharmonic to be inaugurated in 2012. The concert hall is currently being constructed in the industrial quarter of HafenCity, an area undergoing major revitalization with the conversion of hundreds of dated warehouses. As one of the more understated German cities, Hamburg is hoping the striking design by architects Herzog + de Meuron will bring the sort of landmark cultural transformation that was seen more than a decade ago in Bilbao, Spain with the opening of Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum. But such a transformation won’t come cheap, with a price tag upwards of 323 million Euros, some are asking “Is it really worth it?”

Foster + Partners Unveil Energy-Efficient Heathrow Airport Terminal

Heathrow Airport is the world’s busiest airport for international travelers, and anyone who has flown through Heathrow knows it can be a bit chaotic there. BAA, who owns and operates Heathrow, recently unveiled a massive renovation project worth £4.8 billion that includes completely rebuilding Terminal 2 to help ease the congestion. Designed by Inhabitat favorite Foster + Partners, the new super-efficient, solar and renewable energy powered airport terminal will cost £1 billion and will produce 40% less carbon than the existing building.

The Sage Residence: Super High Scoring LEED Platinum Home

LEED residences are becoming a standard item these days, but this particular residence hit our radar because of the high LEED score and its stunning appearance. The Sage Residence in Eugene, Oregon was designed and built by Arbor South Architecture, and received an impressive score of 110 in the LEED rating system — higher than USGBC founder David Gottfried’s LEED Platinum home, which only received 106.5 points. Beautiful inside and out, the home is a perfect example of how green homes can be beautiful, energy efficient and create minimal impact on the environment.

Renovated Herbert Art Gallery Fuses Modern with Medieval

The Herbert Art Gallery recently received a stunning renovation by Pringle Richards Sharratt Architects that fuses a modern extension with the walls of an ancient medieval city that once stood on its site. The £20 million refurbishment and extension incorporates an ancient vault and includes 8 new permanent galleries, spaces for temporary exhibitions and events, educational gatherings and a new History Center along with Herbert Media Studios. The most notable addition is the 500 square meter glazed glass-covered court which lets in plenty of daylight from sunrise to sunset and is supported by the new prefabricated gallery extension.

Green-Roofed Airport Training Center Achieves LEED Silver

In 1999, The Greater Toronto Airport Authority (GTAA) set out to create a revolutionary fire and emergency services training facility that uses the newest and most innovative environmentally-conscious building standards. The result is this $13.5 million state-of-the-art training facility designed by Kleinfeldt Mychajlowycz Architects, which was awarded the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) Silver Rating. The structure not only provides a healthy place to live and work, it reduces waste sent to landfills, conserves energy and water, and reduces harmful greenhouse gas emissions.

Singapore’s Energy Efficient Green Heart Center

The very heart of Singapore beats green, thanks to the new design for the National Heart Center conceived by Ong & Ong with medical planning and interior consultation by multinational firm Broadway Malyan. The ambitious 35,299 square-meter building at the center of Singapore General Hospital’s Outram Campus redevelopment plan will hopefully score high green marks with its unique design that places people first. Recognizing that the medical world advances quite quickly, the design incorporates modular building methods to ensure that the structure of the building remains flexible and adaptable both internally and externally, easily and efficiently allowing for future growth.

Wimbledon Set to Debut Innovative Retractable Roof

Soon, playing tennis at Wimbledon will no longer depend on the weather forecast, nor will spectators have to entertain themselves while they wait for the rain to stop and the courts to dry. A new retractable roof has been installed over Centre Court and the air management systems are currently being tested in preparation for its official debut in May. This new roof will is made out of translucent fully recyclable fabric, minimizing building materials while allowing daylight to stream down from above. The design will conclude the All England Club’s Long Term Plan, providing greater security for the grass courts, decreased play delays and more comfortable viewing for fans.

RESIDENCE: A House with A Tree Tattoo

Most of the time, when we want to limit the amount or intensity of light as it streams into our homes, we install blinds or hang curtains. Not so with this house extension in Victoria, Australia designed by Andrew Maynard Architects. The owners of the home wanted to add a kitchen and living space to their home that would be full of natural light — a desire easily met with glass facades that would allow light to stream in. However, in order to save the interior from baking in sunlight and to comply with local regulations, Andrew Maynard Architects decided to take a cue from nature and attach large, tree-shaped stickers that would filter the light as it entered the interior. With this clever addition, the interior receives ample daylighting through static “tree branches” that provide leafy shade and subdued privacy all year round.

Abu Dhabi’s Spiraling Helix Hotel

The Helix Hotel in Abu Dhabi’s Zayed Bay doesn’t have floors like we’re used to – instead it spirals in sections of a corkscrew from top to bottom with no clear breaks, flowing from retail to residential, and hotel suites to saunas. The hollow center keeps foot traffic flowing while infusing interior spaces with coastal air and natural light, while on the outside GROW panels are fast at work harnessing solar and wind energy. Because of its unique design, every room has a slighly different view — perfect for watching over the contruction of Zaha Hadid’s Sheikh Zayed Bridge just next door.

Passive (X) House for the Ordos 100 Village

The beautiful and expressive (X) House designed by Multiplicities is one of 100 entries that have been cleared for construction in Inner Mongolia as part of the Ordos 100 project. Conceptually designed as a white lung wrapped in a black skin, the house employs a series of barriers to filter air, light, and rain, and features a smart passive design that will allow it to weather the harsh climate of Inner Mongolia.

Denmark Renovates Water Tower Into Green Student Housing

Water towers, TV antennas, parking garages and other structures tend to be ignored within the ubiquitous context of their surroundings, however these oft-overlooked structures can offer amazing opportunities for renovations. Take this water tower turned student housing complex in Jaegersberg, Denmark. This once practical structure was left unused until Dorte Mandrup Arkitekter ApS won a competition to renovate it into a multi-purpose building for student housing and a youth center.

Shanghai Dragon: Futuristic Office by Morphosis

On the western outskirts of Shanghai, China, a dragon is coming to life. Constructed of concrete, steel and glass, the new corporate headquarters of Giant Pharmaceutical Corp looks for all the world like something between a sci-fi battleship landing on a highway, and a steampunk dragon frozen in time. L.A.-based architectural firm Morphosis is focusing on the building’s sustainability as much as its aesthetics, with a green roof, generous use of skylights, and advanced insulation materials like cement-fiberboard paneling and a double-layer, fritted-glass curtain wall.

Beautiful Dairy Barn Renovation in Somerset

This stunning home designed by Skene Catling De Le Peña was once a barn for a dairy farm. Now renovated into a 5-bedroom house with a small pool, the home re-used as much material from the original building as possible. Originally, the owner’s plan included tearing down much of the lean-to sheds to create a house with well-proportioned rooms, better circulation and more new construction. But as the design formed, the owner changed his vision and wished for a secluded retreat that would mold in with the original layout of the barn. Upon completion, the room layout and sizes may not be ideal, however the architects were able to preserve a sense of the old barn.

Scottsdale’s Arabian Library Wins Smart Environment Award

Borrowing books from the library is the responsible and environmentally friendly thing to do, and this new library in Scottsdale Arizona makes us want to use the library all the time. Designed by Richärd + Bauer, the Arabian Library utilizes great green building design and innovative new thinking to encourage people to lend from the library. Not only that, but the building is gorgeous, inviting, brightly lit, and a recent winner of the 2008 IIDA/Metropolis Smart Environments Award.

Norman Foster’s Sperone Westwater Gallery Hits the Bowery

The Sperone Westwater art gallery in New York City recently filed plans for an incredible new gallery on the Bowery designed by none other than Inhabitat favorites Foster + Partners. Envisioned as a stacked set of lucid glass rectangles suffused with daylight, Foster + Partners’ design features an innovative layout that allows the interiors to change and morph to accommodate different exhibitions. The 9 story art gallery will also boast a moving exhibition hall that can be raised to any of five levels of public gallery space, and is set to be completed by December 2009.

Copenhagen’s Stunning Carbon-Neutral Sundial Structure

The Danish are known for their trendsetting fashion and wind energy industries, and they soon may be just as famous for their sustainable and carbon neutral buildings. Just last week the University of Copenhagen and Christensen & Co Arkitekter A/S, broke ground on a stunning new Faculty of Science building, dubbed the Green Lighthouse. This carbon-neutral building makes excellent use of natural light and will feature solar panels, LED lighting, and scores of other sustainable strategies.

SOM’s Stunning Cathedral of Christ the Light

Throughout time, cathedrals have signified some of the human race’s most awe-inspiring architectural endeavors. Continuing this trend, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill recently completed construction on their incredible Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland. If you have been searching for religious -or architectural- inspiration, check out their awe-inspiring cathedral. The stunning structure makes beautiful use of glass, fly ash concrete, and fsc-certified wood, but we were most impressed by its incredible use of natural light. SOM is well known for its work on many other large projects such as offices, airports, islands, museums, and skyscrapers.

Colombia’s Finca el Retorno Eco-Shelters

This striking slate gray structure unfolds from its verdant environs with a low-profile envelope that rises out from under a grassy hill. Constructed by G ateliers Architecture in Guatapé-Antioquia, Colombia, it’s one of a series of 8 ecological shelters that make strident efforts to seamlessly integrate modern architecture with local topography.

INDIA TOWER: India’s Greenest Skyscraper?

Green skyscrapers seem to be all the rage these days, and now India is jumping on the bandwagon with FXFowle Architects’ India Tower, currently being built in South Mumbai to house a new Park Hyatt Hotel. According to the designers, India Tower will be the greenest skyscraper in the entire country, boasting rainwater harvesting, green materials, and a possible US LEED Gold rating.

BLOCH BUILDING by Steven Holl

Architect Steven Holl is no stranger to remarkably lit gallery spaces, and his latest addition to the Nelson Atkins Museum in Kansas City, Missouri is a notable display of his talents in using architectural daylighting to create stunning interior spaces. Free to the public, the Bloch Building uses every facet of natural light to a variety of gallery spaces bringing perfectly balanced illumination to both a Noguchi Sculpture exhibit and another gallery with historic pictures that requires a low-light atmosphere. The light in the Bloch building, whose walls consist of large amounts of translucent glass, have been perfectly calibrated along with the use of fluorescents to account for the varying luminosity from season to season, and even from day to night. We were lucky enough to get a private viewing of the museum prior to its June opening to the public.

COLD LIGHT – Fiberoptic lamp brings sunlight indoors

The Cold Light, a new fiberoptic sunlight tranport device, is the main attraction on display in Vienna at the Haus der Forschung. Called “0-24 Licht,” the design is the combined work of an architect and an artist named Angelo Stagno and Andrea Van der Staeten, who have won a design competition run by BIG, a development company in Austria. “0-24 Licht” is simple in concept: it uses a system of mirrors to focuses natural daylight through a fiber optic cable which can then be applied to many different lighting designs – producing interior lighting without any extra heat, hence the moniker Cold Light.

Cold Light

SOLAR TUBE SKYLIGHTS

Skylights are a great addition to any house, as they bring in more natural light – cutting down on artificial light electricity costs, as well as promoting good health for a home’s occupants. Unfortunately, however, skylights are hard to install in most pre-built homes because they require so much roof real estate. Also, unless the sun is at the right angle and there are absolutely no clouds in the sky, skylights don’t always illuminate a space in a way that makes their cost worthwhile. Thats why we love Solatube – a smart technology which takes skylights one step further by refracting, reflecting and concentrating solar light into a small tube using mirrors and lenses.

GREEN BUILDING 101: Environmentally Friendly Lighting

Lighting is one of the most critical – and most visceral – qualities of an indoor space. The difference between good and bad lighting can make or break comfort, mood and overall happiness in your home. Exposure to natural light

SUNLIGHT DIRECT – Sunlight Transportation for the home

Nothing in the realm of new technology gets me more excited than sunlight transportation. Since sunlight is our most infinitely renewable resource, I am amazed that it has taken us so long to start developing hi-tech lighting and energy systems around it. Like …

PARANS SUNLIGHT TRANSPORT SYSTEM

When I first saw discovered this amazing technology, I instantly wondered why no one has come up with a sunlight transport device before. The technology has been around for awhile, and the idea is so fabulous, you would think we would all have these in our homes by now. Swedish company Parans has developed a system of rooftop solar panels that collect sunlight and then transport it via fiber optic cables to …