Cool Design News

Cool Design News featuring great design, architecture, fashion, graphics and innovation from across the globe.

 
The Renovation of Ankang Library Building

The Renovation of Ankang Library

The original Ankang Library was opened in 1984, and it’s facilities had fallen behind the information age before the renovation. The renovation project has rejuvenated the old library into a new, open and welcoming community space, highlighting and creating a strong contrast with its existing context. Since opening, the new library has reactivated the cultural life of the local community, and the number of daily visitors has increased from 10 people to 3,000 people.

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Royal Time Residence Display Center

Royal Time Residence

Royal Time Residence is a display center in Suzhou, China. The project consists of three separate buildings of different shapes and sizes, placed around an open inner courtyard. Transitional spaces and rain corridors connect the buildings and form a modern courtyard for rest and social contact. The showroom, the fitness club with a children center, and the book bar all open toward the courtyard. Large U-profile glass panels, rose-gold aluminum panels and local clay bricks form the facades. The layout recalls the fluid circulation of the classical gardens of Suzhou.

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Next Hub Mixed Use

Next Hub

Next Hub is a mixed use complex in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, that combines hospitality, administration, entertainment, retail, food and beverage and recreational zones. The composition explores the relation between solid and void. Building volumes enclose a central open plaza, recalling traditional markets and creating an urban experience with social interaction. Internal courts bring natural ventilation and daylight into the hotel and administration buildings. Finishes include honed travertine stone, black steel and double glazed glass.

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Peloponnese Rural Residential House

Peloponnese Rural

A plot situated in a remote village of Kalamia, with view to the Gulf of Corinth, is a setting for a family retreat. The morphology of the place led to the decision of creating a house with humble appearance from the street side, while developing in a two-level construction from the garden. Natural materials applied are inspired by industrial feel of the rural Peloponnese traditional stone stables. Built according to sustainable standards with restricted means, the custom-made dwelling has been playing major role in the 2020 pandemic situation, providing its inhabitants safety and comfort.

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Tanjing Sales Center

Tanjing

Tanjing is a sales center located in the Taijiang District of Fuzhou, China. The building stands north of the historic Guangming Port and next to the Three Lanes and Seven Alleys historical area. Two centuries-old banyan trees on the site are preserved, and the building is wedged into the plot in a U shape to form a semi-enclosed courtyard around the trees. Local stone and brick form the external walls, and the cross-woven bricks let the facade breathe. The roof shapes follow traditional Fuzhou buildings. Sales, art exhibitions and leisure spaces are combined within the building.

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Jolab Factory

Jolab

Jolab is a skincare factory designed as an art gallery in Kaohsiung. Each floor has a height of eight meters, so the production areas, the research and development center and the display area are presented to visitors like artworks. A double-tier hanging garden sits above the cleanroom, and visitors walk along aerial walkways and look down through double-layer glass, which insulates heat and prevents fog. The path of the sun was studied to keep the windows shaded. Seamless walls were built with heat-resistant styrofoam.

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