Thermal Baths, San Pellegrino

earlier this year, dominique perrault architecture was selected as the winner of the international competition to design the thermal baths of san pellegrino in italy. their plan presented a city plan which created a new quarter in the town. in this new quarter they proposed a main building which would add to the cities other main structures, the grad hotel and the casino. the architects used the landscape and geography as a key reference point for the designing of new structures. buildings are made to look like stone blocks, as if they have fallen from the nearby mountains. all the windows on these stone-like buildings are coloured to let in a mild glow for the thermal baths and other spa areas. the interior emphasizes serenity, contrasting to the jagged exterior. the project is slated for completion in 2010.

Thermal Baths, San Pellegrino, Italy

Earlier this year, Dominique Perrault architecture was selected as the winner of the International Competition to design the thermal baths of San Pellegrino in Italy. Their plan presented a city plan which created a new quarter in the town. in this new quarter they proposed a main building which would add to the cities other main structures, the grad hotel and the casino. The architects used the landscape and geography as a key reference point for the designing of new structures. Buildings are made to look like stone blocks, as if they have fallen from the nearby mountains. All the windows on these stone-like buildings are coloured to let in a mild glow for the thermal baths and other spa areas. The interior emphasizes serenity, contrasting to the jagged exterior. The project is slated for completion in 2010.

JeJu Island Heritage Center

South Korea’s Jeju Island is known for its outstanding aesthetic beauty — it’s an area that bears testament to the compelling natural history of our planet. Listed as a UNESCO site, the island will soon be host to a new World Natural Heritage Center. The center is anticipated to become a meeting place set to educate and promote the importance of preserving the island and its heritage for future generations to come.

As one would rightly assume, building on a UNESCO site is a delicate issue. Designed by Kyungam Architects and Sun Architects & Engineers, the structure fits amicably within the existing landscape, following the natural undulations of the surrounding hills and volcanic mountains. The outer walls utilize Materuak Hyunmuam, a local material, and the building features a large open cut roof and glass windows that improve natural light and ventilation.

The World Natural Heritage Center will consist of areas dedicated to exhibition, education, research, and maintenance. The building will be crowned with an expansive green roof that accounts for the displacement of the existing vegetation of the site, while providing panoramic views of the much celebrated Halla-san Volcano.

Boh Visitor Centre

Building Structure

The choice to use metalwork was based strictly on the need to reduce on site construction activities. We were also contemplating to expedite erection of steel frames in order to mitigate delivery problems of the tea leaves to the currently operating factory nearby. The structural components were kept very simple, using mainly standard section sizes. No major welding were done, except for smaller components. The side windows and facade were fabricated off site and assembled quickly and put into place between posts on a span of 9m grid. The steelwork is limited strictly to the upper storey structure, this is then assembled in situ to sit atop a reinforced concrete frame consisting on 350×1000 deep beams spanning the 9m grid. The floor slabs are then finished in exposed but sealant treated cement render. These were applied a dark receding colour. The ramped concrete floor allows for a truck and general vehicles to pass under for the next phase of construction.

Roof Structure

Roof is constructed of a simple mild steeel edge capping assembled to terminate the open trussed metal beams. Such devices were used to reduce the weight of the structure overall and also to ease the distribution of services inside the voids between the trusses. A sligth slope towards the back allows draining of the rainwater of the roof towards only one side of the roof which simplifies building elevation treatment.

Holocaust Memorial, Germany