Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Floriade Pavilions



At the Floriade my special attention goes to the design of the pavilions. They are very well situated within the larger park-framework and public spaces. My personal top 5 of the most attractive pavilions:

No5. The dutch pavilion -  a beautiful exterior with complex wooden panels, the largest drawback is the fact that the exposition inside is completely ignorant of the nice structure and the accompanying texts are very haphazard.
No.4 German pavilion – this wooden building is not only a pavilion, the wooden outdoor decks and integrated garden is a beautiful ensemble which makes the exposition subsequent.
No3. Estonia created a small wooden pavilion with a great eye for detail. The indoor – outside relation is great. Less is more...
No2. Spain has submitted a colourful building including public space. Inside the flooring is made from reused wooden packing materials.
No1. The general kiosks are my undoubted number one. The shops, toilets, restaurants all have the same horizontal wooden bars which makes them very recognizable as the facilities buildings. The details are simple but great.

Other honorable mentions:
The only, non-wooden pavilion: Nederland bloeit. The only pavilion in which the exposition is in line with the design. The sushi bar in the transparent building invites visitors in a nice ambience to learn more about a variety of dutch products.
Belgian pavilion with stunning green roof

Floriade 2012 - Venlo


 public space with waterworks - playground
 boulevard with floating terraces
 outdoor cinema
 wooden deck connecting thematic areas
greenhouses used for outdoor/indoor eating

The Floriade is the largest horticultural show in the Netherlands held every 10 years. This edition is located in Venlo, in the south of the Netherlands which seems a good choice when you see the diverse nationalities (German and Belgian) visiting the exhibition.  
The layout of the entire park is a great (landscape) design by Arcadis. The five thematic areas are each given an own identity (very clear in foothpaths and benches) and are divided by beautiful pieces of native forest accessible over a wooden deck.

Monday, August 13, 2012

Emma's Hof

Vandaag de stadstuin Emma's Hof bezocht in Den Haag. Een initiatief dat door buurtbewoners is bedacht en uitgevoerd. Echt een schitterend resultaat: de tuin heeft meerdere hoekjes waar je kunt zitten, je kunt er kruiden knippen, er is ruimte voor kinderen of een voor picknick. Door het hoogteverschil, "zithoekjes" en de natuurlijke routes klopt het ontwerp helemaal www.emmashof.nl

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

biennale Rotterdam

Op de valreep vorige week de internationale architectuur biennale (IABR) "Making Cities" in Rotterdam bezocht. Het valt me op dat de laatste 3 edities alleen maar stedenbouwkundige projecten belichten, de curators komen daarentegen niet altijd uit die hoek. Wellicht dat daardoor de gepresenteerde projecten weinig nieuws lieten zien? De indeling naar de "3 P's" (people, planet, profit) vind ik helemaal weinig origineel. Het (grafisch) ontwerp en de teksten (van Kossmann.de jong) vind ik daarentegen wel mooi.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

A-frame in Ouddorp: Catshuis



I proudly present the result of 4 months hard work in Ouddorp, my husband did most of the structural work with a lot of help from our friends and family. I'm very satisfied to see that the interior I imagined while we were making the plans has been completely realized. On our blog www.ourgreenempire.blogspot.nl more technical details and before-after photos are available.