Archiprix posters

Stacked
Dutch
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Design for a new Dutch embassy in Oslo
Patrick van Dodewaard
Stacked Dutch makes a statement on how the Dutch embassy in Oslo
can collaborate with companies. A new Dutch embassy is designed in
the centre of Oslo, Norway. By hosting Norwegian and Dutch start-ups
the embassy becomes profitable and relevant by acting as a catalyst inbetween both countries’ economies. The project becomes sustainable
due to the entire timber structure. Wood can be considered as a traditional
material, but even more as an innovative material as the design proves.
This duality adds to the ambitions of the embassy: innovating and
preserving traditions.
The answer of sharing a secured institute with start-ups is found in the
Dutch Identity. The Dutch Hofje (small courtyard with garden) form over
400 years a quiet, private and shared space for citizens. The properties
of hofjes are used to form a contemporary office concept with small
clusters of companies gathered around a shared central space. By scaling
the principle of the urban street and hofjes down to building level, and
by stacking them it is possible to create a public building with private
areas without demanding visible security measures. With maximum 40
employees per hofje the design is improving collaboration between
companies and avoiding anonymity. The embassy-unit is a special volume
in the centre of the building.
The structure exists out of stacked timber trusses, a sustainable system
creating strength, stability, and a certain flexibility on the floors. At night
the trusses show themselves through the translucent façade making the
building extra dynamic.
Stacked Dutch is a double graduation project, combining architecture and
structural design into an integrated design. It is a reinterpretation of the
functioning of a Dutch embassy, with the Dutch Identity and sustainability
as key elements for an innovative design, all together in a Norwegian
context.
1. Operahuset
2. Ferry Terminal
3. Opera Hotel
4. Stock Exchange
5. Harbour office
6. Central rail station
7. Barcode office project
8. Central library (under construction)
9. Munch Museum (proposed)
A
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Masterplan
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The Dutch relation with context, using
gesture to compete with the Operahuset,
and shaping, is a peculiar one. When the
right in front of the location. It comes to
Dutch start building embassies they often
no surprise that the design is very context
look very carefully to what they can use in
based and blending in the city instead of
the near surroundings. This very practical
overtaking it.
approach is one of the basics of the
masterplan design in which the embassy
The plot is on the border of the city
is a key element. Since the proposed
centre, forming a transition zone between
location is very dominant in the centre of
closed building blocks west and various
Oslo and too large for an embassy alone a
building typologies east. The masterplan
conceptual masterplan is developed.
is a modified building block, starting as a
Furthermore it would have been an arrogant
closed block and opening towards the sea
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Oslo city centre
1. Current Dutch ambassadors residence
2. Current Dutch embassy
3. Proposed new location
Floor plan level +1,5 m
A’
Section AA’ - Scale 1:300
to make the transition zone even smoother.
different perspectives create a soft edge
A high density mixed use program
for private and semi-private areas. It can
containing shopping, living, public parking
even be seen as a modern interpretation of
and the embassy result in an affordable
a Dutch hofje, creating a quite semi-private
masterplan, the building height is however
domain in the city centre.
limited to the near surroundings.
A public plaza is created in front of the
The masterplan plays with the border of
embassy to create the visual corridor to the
public and private areas on an urban scale,
Oslo stock exchange and a fantastic view
a theme which is translated in the embassy
on the Oslo Operahuset.
on a smaller level. Subtle elements such as
semi-lifted elevations, small corridors and
+21 meter
+17 meter
+13 meter
+10 meter
+6 meter
+1,5 meter
-3 meter
Stacked floor plans
Building
The new Dutch embassy uses a revisited
Sharing a building with several parties
strategy, the traditional strategy of
creates a security issue, introducing the
connecting companies is strengthened.
architectural paradox of private and public
The focus is even more on improving
spaces.
businesses, resulting in an open character
and better visibility of the embassy. The
Inspiration of treating the paradox in an
design goes even further, it can be seen
elegant way is found in the Dutch hofjes
as a research of how an embassy can
tradition, a semi-private urban domain with a
become profitable. In the revisited strategy
large social security. This typology forms the
the match-making role is increased to an
basis of the design using invisible security
embassy which even hosts start-ups and
measures. By creating several ‘office-hofjes’
small companies. A flexible office building
with typical shared elements it becomes
with shared facilities in which the embassy
possible to increase cooperation between
is close by for providing services to the
start-ups while anonymity is prevented.
companies is the conclusion.
Each office cluster contains private offices
gathered around a central space with
shared facilities, connected by a small
corridor or gate to the public routing system. the building in half it becomes clear how
the public, semi-private and private areas
The hofjes structure (semi-private spaces)
are continuously intersecting each other
combined with the street (public routing
creating a very dynamic building.
system) make the building. The urban
typologies are stacked upon each other to
The ambassador functions are designed
form a compact and spatial composition.
as a compact and private volume in the
Each hofje in the building is clearly different
middle of the building. Spaces which can
from the public parts of the building so
be shared are removed from the volume
the visitor has the feeling of being a guest
so only the most important rooms remain.
when visiting one, this feeling is created by
Very recognizable as being different and
proportions, colour and materialisation.
important, the embassy volume creates a
proper finishing to the stacked composition.
The public routing system circles through
The architectural elaboration of the building
the building with different perspectives
is explained in the orange thesis.
(Upper) Revisited strategy
The embassy facilitates companies (both Norwegian
and Dutch), in this way the embassy becomes more
efficient and the services become more relevant for
the various companies.
1. Concrete cores
3. Embassy volume in the middle
2. Stacked office hofjes
4. Routing system
Spatial system of hofjes
Shared office clusters, inspired by the Dutch hofjes,
are designed to share and to secure a building in a
passive way. By scaling the urban typology down to
building level and to stack them a statial composition
is created.
Routing system
The routing system inspired by the urban typology
‘street’ circles through the building with various views,
and spatial experiences.
Embassy volume
3D section of the embassy office unit. A private volume with
two public assessable cut-outs creating a solid and private
element in the building dominated by semi-public spaces.
and spatial experiences. When cutting
Structural Design
The structure can be seen as a collection
a routing system in between the office
offices, which make it a tangible element
loads. This is by far the most efficient way
by the concrete structure of the basement.
of stacked timber trusses. The trusses
clusters without creating difficult cantilevers,
of the space. The diagonals in the trusses
of constructing these kind of dimensions
Furthermore the cores create a safe fire
perfectly match the hofjes concept creating
which are unsuitable for timber structures.
are designed in a way that they transfer
in wood. The dominant truss connection
escape routing and a suitable place for
the loads under compression. Makes the
is calculated to prove that the structure is
elevators, making every floor accessible by
actually possible as a timber structure.
elevators.
Stability is provided by the trusses, stacked
The embassy unit is treated as an unique
a clear structural system and the possibility
to create large spans and flexible floor
Giving the office hofjes identity with the
connection between the diagonals and the
plans. All to strengthen the individualistic
present diagonals the trusses hardly
chords more more convenient.
appearance of each hofje without losing
interrupt daylight. By placing them behind
grip on the total composition. The trusses
a partly glass and partly translucent façade
The connection is designed using a steel
perpendicular to each other. The wind loads
element in the building and so is the
are stacked and connected with small steel
makes the gesture more subtle since the
tube, making equilibrium. Therefore the
are transferred by the trusses and stiff floors
structure, the embassy is hanged at the
columns creating a desired skylight above
trusses will not be very visible from the
connection becomes flexible and can be
to one of the two cores. The floors of the
steel trusses spanning from core to core,
each hofje with a minimal interruption,
outside. This appearance differs from
used for each truss under every load angle.
hofjes are made stiff by the use of timber
creating a column free area in the middle of
increasing the individualism of a hofje. It is
the appearance at night, when the total
Steel plates are connected to the tube and
beams in combination with cross laminated
the building. The structural elaboration of the
even more increased by the rotations in the
structural system is becoming clearly visible.
to the timber elements by bolts. Therefore
floor plates. The cores are connected to
building is explained in the blue thesis.
structure. This adds the possibility to design
The timber trusses are placed inside the
the timber elements only transfers normal
each other by steel trusses in the roof and
(Upper) Steel-timber truss connection
The steel elements of the truss connections are
modelled in SCIA engineer to get a clear view of the
stress distribution of the connection. The tube and
plates distribute the loads to the timber members.
(Upper) Truss connection
3D rendering of the timber truss connection.
(Left) Technical section
The system of stacked trusses in combination with
timber walls and floors create a very convenient way
of detailing making it possible to shift the volumes
without extensive thermal bridges.
3D model structure
The hofjes (office clusters) are completely
constructed out of timber beams and trusses forming
a tangible structure. By stacking trusses it becomes
possible to have flexible interiors, a skylight in
between the clusters and an expressive structure
with a simple layout.