CASALGRANDE OLD HOUSE DESIGN BY KENGO KUMA & ASSOCIATES

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CASALGRANDE OLD HOUSE BY KENGO KUMA & ASSOCIATES

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CASALGRANDE OLD HOUSE BY KENGO KUMA & ASSOCIATES

A rural Italian villa converted into a showroom for ceramics company Casalgrande Padana design by Kengo Kuma & Associates. The refurbished brick building provides an event space and a series of galleries for product displays.

Large white tiles placed onto pebble-covered floors mark pathways through the building, while some other tiles provide the treads for a staircase that leads to the two upper floors.

More tiles hang from the ceiling as decoration, plus some mounted onto bookshelves function as louvered lighting screens.

KENGO KUMA’S EXPLANATION ABOUT PROJECT

Casalgrande, Reggio Emilia, Italy

We converted a private brick house in Reggio nell'Emilia’s grassland to a gallery run by Casalgrande Padana, a tile manufacturer. In its adjacent rotary, we had designed a monument called “Ceramic Cloud” using large-sized tiles.

The design theme for both the Old House and Ceramic House is lightness, thinness and strength of the tile. In 20th century, tile was used as a finishing material for concrete, a kind of cosmetics in architecture.

However, with the development of technology in recent years, they now produce denser, stronger, and larger tiles. Our objective was to create a light, “particled” interior space using those larger tiles.

The tiles are used mainly for treads of the stairs, bookshelves, tables and reflective plates to disseminate light. In each purpose, we pursued delicate details to emphasize the thinness and lightness of the tile.

Adding “lightness” of the tile onto the “weightiness” of the old brick house would be an interesting way to conserve historical architecture. This came from my notion that nature itself could be gradational, and I began to think how we could make things gradational.

If people’s activities also can be described gradational, so would be their houses, in various parameters.

http://www.dezeen.com/2012/02/24/casalgrande-old-house-by-kengo-kuma-and-associates/

http://kkaa.co.jp/works/casalgrande-old-house/

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KENGO KUMA

BIOGRAPHY

2008   Established Kuma & Associates Europe ( Paris, France)

1990   Established Kengo Kuma & Associates

1987   Established Spatial Design Studio

1979   Completed the Master Course, Department of Architecture, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo

1954   Born in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan

TEACHING & PROFESSORSHIPS

2009 - Present - Professor at the Graduate School of Architecture, The University of Tokyo

2007 – 2008 - Visiting Professor at the School of Architecture, University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign ( Chicago, USA )

2001 – 2009 - Proffessor at the Faculty of Science and Technology, Keio University

1998 – 1999 - Proffessor at the Faculty of Environmental Information, Keio University

1994 -  Lecturer at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, Columbia University ( New York – USA )

1985 - 1986 - Visiting Scholar Graduate School, Columbia University and Asian Cultural Council ( USA )

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATION

First class Architect in Japan

Architecte DESA ( Diplome de l’ Ecole Speciale d’ Architecture

Architecte Inscrit au Tableau de l’ Ordre des Architectes

International Fellow for Royal Instıtute of British Architectes ( RIBA )

Honorary Fellow fort he American Institude of Architects ( AIA )

Received a Ph D from Keio University

AWARDS ( For Kengo Kuma )

2012   The 6th ASIAGRAPH Award

           Japan Information – Cultuology Society Award

2011   The Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’ s Art Encouragement Prize for ‘’ Yusuhara Wooden Bridge Museum ‘’

2010   Mainichi Art Award for ‘’ Nezu Museum ‘’

2009   Decoration Officier de L ‘ Ordre des Arts et des Lettres ( France )

2008   Energy Performance + Architecture Award ( France )

           Bois Magazine International Wood Architecture Award ( France )

2002   Spirit of Nature Wood  Architecture Award ( Finland )

2001   Togo Murano Award for ‘’ Nakagawa – machi Bato Hiroshige Museum ‘’

1997   Architectural Institute of Japan Award for  ‘’ Noh Stage in the Forest ‘’

           First Place , AIA Dupont Benedictus award for  ‘’ Water Glass ‘’ ( USA )

http://kkaa.co.jp/about/kengokuma/

ETERNIT LOOP CHAIR DESIGN BY WILLY GUHL

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ETERNIT CONCRETE LOOP CHAIR DESIGN BY WILLY GUHL

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ETERNIT CONCRETE LOOP CHAIR DESIGN BY WILLY GUHL

Eternit, made and imported from Switzerland. 

The Willy Guhl Loop Chair: legendary for a reason! The Willy Guhl Loop Chair is the eternal classic modernist outdoor lounge chair. The Loop Chair is a timeless modern chair with a distinctive and convincing structural clarity, a beautiful lounge chair. It is perfect for both indoor- and outdoor spaces. 

The Loop Chair was designed in 1954 by Swiss designer, Willy Guhl, for Eternit in Switzerland. The Loop Chair is handmade of eternit: a light gray, cellulose infused fiber cement like concrete, which is nearly indestructible. It is an elegant piece of outdoor furniture that's indifferent to harsh outdoor elements including sun, snow and hail. Willy Guhl's loop chair is made with a single self-supporting fiber cement loop, hence its name, the Loop Chair. The chair, which would look amazing at any pool side, garden terrace or in a large loft space. It is lightweight and easy to move around, making it a perfect lounge chair. 

Our Willy Guhl Loop Chair is handmade and imported from Switzerland.

The self-supporting and stable looped-form construction is a milestone in the history of design. The so-called “beach chair” even became part of the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

www.eternit.ch

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'' We can make anything we want, we just have to have ideas. ''

WILLY GUHL

WILLY GUHL 

1915 - 2004

CAREER / EDUCATION 

Born in Stein am Rhein in 1915

1930 – 1933 : Apprenticeship as a cabinet maker in Schaffhausen 

1934 – 1939 : Attended the course in interior design at the KGSZ

1939 : Own studio

1941 : Teacher for interior construction at the kgsz

1951 : Invited to take up a position at the federal akademie der künste stuttgart – guhl turned down the offer

1951 – 1981 : Head of the course on interior construction at the kgsz

died in 2004 

AREA OF EXPERTISE  

Taught at the Kunstgewerbeschule Zurich. 

As attested by his work, Willy Guhl was open to the use of new materials. His works were characterised by their simplicity, usefulness and self-evident function.

IMPORTANT WORKS / PROJECT

Various projects as teacher at the KGSZ. 

Garden exhibition G 59, project with the KGSZ

Various objects in collaboration with eternit (switzerland) AG 

Various objects in collaboration with dietiker table factory 

From 1968, projects with agricultural machine manufacturer AEBI

Various competitions and exhibitions

Cofounder of the VSI and SID (swiss association of industrial designers)

DINSTINCTIONS

The plant containers rondo and excenter received the award “die gute form” in 1966.

http://www.garden-styling.ch/designer_guhl