#greenbuilding

Rediscovering the traditional market hall

SuperHub is a sustainable, flexible and even demountable mixed-use building designed by De Zwarte Hond for the district of Meerstad in the Netherlands. Inspired by conventional market halls, it is innovative with a remarkable timber design.

#city planning

“Mainz is sexy and debt-free”

Mainz used to have distinctly less economic clout compared to nearby Frankfurt, Wiesbaden and Darmstadt. But now, its improved Prognos ranking makes it the big winner among Germany’s cities. Located on the banks of the Rhine, Mainz has experienced a veritable turnaround.

#city planning

A whole town built of wood

Wendelstrand near Gothenburg is a new community and housing development with social and ecological sustainability, sited in a disused quarry. The master plan and Lakehouse by the architects at Snøhetta show how urban planning and housing construction can be reimagined.

#greenbuilding

Timber design with therapeutic effect

Copenhagen is fighting the rise in lifestyle diseases with a holistic approach. Its Centre for Health, designed by star architect Dorte Mandrup, is one of the city’s new facilities in this area. Spectacular timber architecture allows the building to contribute its own positive impact on human health.

#architecture

A church that stores carbon

As the first church to be built in Copenhagen for 30 years, it may well become an icon. Ørestad Church is a sculptural timber construction designed by Henning Larsen. A kind of “Church 2.0”, it is also a modern community centre that reaches out to everybody regardless of their belief.

#greenbuilding

A temple for start-ups

The German city of Heilbronn is home to a remarkable timber structure. Innovation Factory 2.0 displays a new kind of aesthetics, both on the inside and outside. This sophisticated paradise for innovation displays precision craftsmanship from Switzerland.

#city planning

Reclaiming a harbour

The Torshavn ferry terminal is set to give the Faroe Islands a new architectural landmark with a hybrid timber-concrete design. With architects Henning Larsen on board, it also re-opens the harbour to the islanders.

#hotel

Between blue skies and rice fields

The boutique hotel Suiden Terrasse is situated in the middle of the expansive rice paddies on the west coast of Japan. This unique timber structure was designed by Pritzker prizewinner Shigeru Ban. He explained his design strategy to ubm magazine.

Boola Katitjin, Perth, Australien, Holzbau, Lyons Architects

#greenbuilding

University breaks timber construction record

Perth is home to the largest mass-engineered timber building in the southern hemisphere: the university complex named Boola Katitjin. Designed by local firm Lyons Architects with a length of 180 metres, the building used prefabricated elements sourced from Europe.

Timber Pioneer, Musterbüro, UBM Development, Frankfurt, Holzbau

#greenbuilding

Why wood is so good for us

Wood doesn’t just improve creativity and performance, it also boosts the immune system and reduces stress. The research project HOMERA based at the Technical University of Munich has supplied extensive scientific evidence here.

#greenbuilding

A bridge to the future

As Dusseldorf’s Theodor Heuss Bridge needs a complete overhaul, the team at RKW Architektur + put their heads together – and produced a spectacular new design. It is literally packed with potential.

Winterquartier Circus Knie, Raumfindung, Wagen SG, Schweiz, Holzbau

#greenbuilding

A circus chooses timber construction

The new winter quarters for Circus Knie leave no doubt that a storehouse can be an attractive piece of architecture. Whereas the existing building had to be demolished after 60 years, the new timber design is expected to last much longer.

Zaishui Art Museum, Rizhao, Provinz Shandong, China, Junya Ishigami

#architecture

Merging architecture with the landscape

Japanese innovator Junya Ishigami has again produced a rethink in architecture, this time with the Zaishui Art Museum. As probably the longest museum in the world, its dimensions are oriented on the surrounding natural landscape.

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