David Chipperfield Architects

Construction of the Carmen Wrth Forum has reached a key stage with the topping out of the event and chamber music hall. The project, located adjacent to the Wrth headquarters in Knzelsau, Southwest Germany, was designed by David Chipperfield Architects Berlin. The building is embedded in the landscape and will create a new plateau, with two retaining walls made of in-situ concrete framing an open courtyard in front of the main entrance. This space can be used for open-air concerts and other activities. The large indoor event hall is accessed from a naturally lit foyer. While the lower part of this hall is sunk, the upper part is glazed and rises above the terrain. A small chamber music hall is placed adjacent to the main hall and is only perceptible from the outside as an undulation of the landscape. Completion of the event and chamber music hall is due in July 2017. A conference centre and a museum for the Wrth art collection are to follow in a second construction stage.

David Chipperfield will give the keynote lecture at the 6th Baltic Sea Region Cultural Heritage Forum in Kiel today. The conference aims to raise awareness of post-war built cultural heritage and brings together experts from the heritage sector, architects, planners, researchers, politicians, property owners, developers and other related professions.

Under the title: Restorations and reconstructions: reflections on Berlin, the lecture will centre on work in Berlin and specifically the 11-year restoration of the Neues Museum and the ongoing refurbishment of Mies van der Rohes Neue Nationalgalerie. The former is a balancing act between repairing, conserving, restoring and recreating while the latter is closer to the meticulous restoration of ancient monuments. Reflecting on different approaches the lecture will argue that energetic public engagement is crucial to the ongoing debate about the development and protection of our cities.

Image Jrg von Bruchhausen

Following a public talk given by David Chipperfield at the Haus der Kunst in Munich on Friday 16th September, this weekends Sddeutsche Zeitung featured an article on the practices vision for the renovation of the museum. In conversation with museum director Okwui Enwezor, David Chipperfield elaborated onissues surrounding the design and renovation of landmark buildings before presenting his draft concept for the Haus der Kunst. The article discusses plans to better integrate the building into the city fabric and to bring parts that have been closed off for years back into public use.

Two Valentino flagship stores in London and Rome are the subject of an extensive feature in this months Domus magazine. David Chipperfield Architects Milan has been working in close collaboration with Valentinos creative directors since 2008. The concept is centred on the idea of creating spaces of permanence and simplicity reminiscent of classical palazzi. The format replaces the usual superficial decoration and scenography often used for retail spaces with a timeless expression of architectural form in durable and solid materials. Both the London and Rome stores mark an important step in the store concepts evolution. The store on Bond Street occupies the entire building with a new faade which introduces Portland stone to the palette, while a core element housing the lifts and staircases is entirely made of oak. Returning to Valentinos original roots in Rome, new materials and local techniques have been added to the established vocabulary. Non-structural arches on the first floor have been finished with polished white plaster while on the ground floor double layers of brick combine both loadbearing and reinforcing arches.

A team from the University of Stuttgart led by Alexander Schwarz in collaboration with David Chipperfield Architects Berlin are one of three winners of the Piranesi Prix de Romes Imperial Forum competition. Organised by the Accademia Adrianea di Architettura e Archologia, the international ideas competition called for proposals that looked at the relationship between architecture and archaeology. The brief focussed on Romes central area, the Via dei Fori Imperiale which is situated between the Piazza Venezia and the Colosseum.

The design centres on the transformation of the 1930s urban axis and the historic excavation area into a central park. Inspired by the tradition of the romantic landscape garden, the different archaeological layers are modulated into a continuous topography. Six new buildings, including a museum, a new main entrance to the Forum Romanum, a restaurant, a caf and an underground antiquarium, are inserted into the landscape.

On Friday 16th September Haus der Kunst in Munich will host a conversation between David Chipperfield and museum director Okwui Enwezor. The talk forms part of a series of public conversations being hosted by Haus der Kunst on the state of the museum as a cultural and social conductor in todays global culture. The topic of the conversation will be 'Renovate/Innovate' and will look at issues surrounding the design and renovation of landmark buildings, the civic function of museums in the contemporary public sphere and the role of art institutions as spaces of creativity and production of cultural capital. In 2013 David Chipperfield Architects was commissioned to lead an extensive renovation of Haus der Kunst, and the series of talks marks the beginning of this process.

For tickets and further information please visit the Haus der Kunst website.

Image Ute Zscharnt for David Chipperfield Architects

The topping out ceremony was celebrated this weekend for the new chapel and visitor centre of Inagawa Reien cemetery. Forty kilometres north of Osaka, the cemetery is situated on a steep mountainside of the Hokusetsu chain in the Hyogo prefecture. Thetwo buildingsare arranged around a new sheltered garden, serving as a threshold between the outer world and a quieter space for commemoration. Rough sandblasted red concrete volumes form an intimate complex that is in tune with the dominant slope of the site. Completion of the new building is due in 2017.

The German newspaper Tagesspiegel has published an article on the idea-finding process for a site in Berlins Tiergarten.

The investor F&B Group invited David Chipperfield Architects, Studio Libeskind, Herzog & DeMeuron, Sauerbruch Hutton and Hadi Teherani Architects to submit ideas for a new building.

The site is adjacent to Hansaviertel, a small district in central Berlin, which is characterised by the protected ensemble of buildings from the 1957 International Building Exhibition.

No decision has been reached yet.

A new edition of El Croquis was released this week, featuring work by David Chipperfield Architects between 2006-2014.

The bi-lingual 632-page issue is a consolidation of the two previous editions on the practice, covering projects from all four offices, with additional material and interviews by Juan Antonio Corts, Emilio Tun and Rafael Moneo.

We are pleased to announce a New Collaboration with Brioni starting with the Paris Flagship Store that opened in July 2016. Situated at 370 Rue Saint-Honor, the 590 sqm Flagship Store is the first to feature the New Concept developed by David Chipperfield Architects Milan as part of the new brand vision under the creative direction of Justin OShea. Depicting the contemporary essence of Rome where Brionis roots and tailoring tradition merge past and present, the design looks to combine ideas of luxury and simplicity, craftsmanship and industrialisation, tradition and a vision for the future.

Architectural elements are carefully articulated throughout the space, grey travertine - also known as lapis tiburtinus and a reference to ancient Rome - lines the floors and walls. A sense of grandeur is achieved by large marble columns that assume their tectonic value expressed by their differing colours. A wide stage-like staircase links the two store levels without disrupting spatial continuity. The semi-transparent metal mesh partitions and the slim floor-to-ceiling studs that are used for display form a delicate counterbalance to the gravitas of travertine and marble.

Image Paola Pansini

The successful first phase of the Ria de Arousa study was supported by numerous individuals and institutions who generously gave their time and ideas, these include the President of Xunta de Galicia, Alberto Nez Feijo; the mayors of Porto do Son, A Pobra do Caramial, Ribeira, Boiro and Rianxo; local fishermen and shipowners; entrepreneurs; the Architects Association of Galicia; professors from the departments of geography, architecture, economics and engineering at the universities of A Corua, Santiago de Compostela, ETH Zurich and ETSAB-UPC; the National Asssociation of Canneries; as well as the European Association of Archaeologists and the Spanish National Research Council CSIC.

The fifth and final week of the study of Ria de Arousa culminated in a weekend-long workshop with David Chipperfield, experts and local authorities. The team presented their conclusion, highlighting the areas dependence on natural resources and its direct effect on the economy. The marine ecosystem of the ria and the quality of water are crucial for both tourism and the local industry, in particular the shell fish and fishing sector. Through a discussion with experts from a diverse range of fields, including economy, urbanism, geography and cultural sectors, with representatives from the fishing industry, it was agreed that a catalyst was needed to address the problem and to initiate collaboration from all sectors.

The regional government and mayors gave their support to the future development of the study, ensuring financial contribution to continue the work. DCA will take part in the second stage of the study as it evolves in the next 12 months.

As the study of Ria de Arousa enters its fourth week, the team has focused on the final workshop and presentation with David Chipperfield, held 9-10 July with local authorities and the mayors of the five municipalities. A cross-disciplinary and diverse range of guests and experts will also participate, representing fields including urbanism, civil engineering, restoration, geography and economics, with representatives from fisherman associations, water quality control and food quality control.

The second workshop follows up on the concluding themes of the previous, seeking to create a foundation for a collaborative network to share ideas across sectors, and to encourage a permanent program to develop and protect the region, with particular focus on the preservation of the natural environment.

Yesterday the Mayor of Lyon, Grard Collomb, announced DCA London as winners of the competition for the development of a site on the Confluence area of the city. Uniting the work of British, Portuguese and Swiss architects for a French city and developer, the project is one of many examples of the importance of European collaboration.

A mixed-use development of 12 buildings is planned for the 27,000 square metre site that sits within the wider masterplan designed by Herzog & de Meuron. DCA will coordinate the development and design some of the buildings, working closely with Portuguese practice Aires Mateus who have been appointed to carry the designs for 40% of the buildings. The team will also be joined by a Lyon-based architecture practice yet to be named.

Museo Jumex in Mexico is exhibiting Peter Fischli and David Weiss: How to Work Better. Opening this month, the exhibition offers the most comprehensive overview of their artistic collaboration to date.Occupying every corner of the museum, the exhibition features more than 200 sculptures, photographs, slide projections and videos from the Swiss duos 33 years of partnership. Arranged without any chronological order, the display reflects the timeless dialogue of their work and responds to the spatial conditions of the museum. The first floor multifunction space is used to display Suddenly This Overview, flooded by natural daylight. The series of miniature clay sculptures depict arbitrary everyday events, each exhibited on a single plinth arranged like a city scape. The darker and more enclosed spaces of the second level features Questions, a slide-show projecting hundreds of philosophical questions to the wall, in four different languages. At the very top of the building, the gallery space has been arranged into three separate rooms, showing the pitch black Rubber Sculptures, cast directly from domestic or natural objects, Airports, conventional photographs of airplanes, with sculptures ofCars. With constellations of mundane objects and popular culture symbolism, Weiss and Fischli ponder questions on reality and perception, the banal and the sublime.

The exhibition is open until 4 September.

For the Ria de Arousa studys third week, the team has prepared for the first of two workshops with David Chipperfield and guests, held on 24-25 June. The team outlined key areas felt to have been exploited by a lack of overview and misguided priorities and looked in depth at how this had affected the natural, agricultural, industrial and built environments.

Day one of the workshop, the team presented their work to David Chipperfield, Fermn Vzquez (Visiting Professor at University of Barcelona and co-collaborator with DCA on the City of Justice), Simon Kretz (Senior Assistant and Lecturer for Urban Design at ETH Zurich) andHans-Jrgen Commerell (Partner at Architekturforum Aedes, Berlin).

The second day of the workshop included additional input from Carlos Seoane (Teacher of Construction at University of Corua , Juan Creus (Head of Project and Urbanism Department, University of Corua), Xose Lois Martinez (Teacher of Urbanism at University of Corua) andFernando Agrasar (Director of School of Architecture, University of Corua). The discussions identified the scope and potential of the workshop and final presentation. The team proposes that the preservation of the quality of the natural environment, particularly water, is of central importance to all sectors, helping to restore a more harmonious relationship between nature, economy, and development.

ImageDavid Chipperfield Architects

The front cover of Qianjiang Evening News, one of the most widely read newspapers in China, features office building Moganshan Road being shortlisted for the RIBA award for international excellence.The Hangzhou-based newspaper reports the local ten-storey construction belongs to the 30 best buildings in the world, following RIBAs shortlist of their first international prize. DCA has two other buildings on the same list, Museo Jumex in Mexico and Saint Louis Art Museum in the US. The winner will be announced in December 2016.

Please remember to vote on Thursday 23 June.

Read David Chipperfield's statement why he is voting to for Britain to remain in the EU on dezeen.com

Image Wolfgang Tillmans

After spending the first week travelling around local municipalities and collecting information, the Ria de Arousa workshop group are now based in Ribeira where they are collating their findings and developing a methodology for protection and development strategies. Looking at the challenges and potentials of the territory, the team are focusing on three main areas: how best to promote a productive fishing culture; the impact of urban development on the local ecosystem; and an assessment of local industrial development across various sectors.

Alongside this research, the team continue to strengthen key connections with the community of the Ria and engage with wider discussions. Towards the end of the week Colectivo 1aun, a young practice from A Corua, shared their extensive research on the Ria de Arousa with the group. In addition, Cristina Garca Fontn, a teacher in urbanism at the University of A Corua, also shared some of her projects with the workshop, and provided key advice on research methods and presentation techniques.

Image David Chipperfield Architects

The new Rome Flagship Store is situated on Piazza di Spagna, next to the historic creative headquarters of Valentino Maison. The Flagship is an important step for the development of Valentinos worldwide retail and marks a key moment in the evolution of the store concept first developed by David Chipperfield Architects Milan together with Valentino Creative Directors, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli in 2012. Returning to Valentinos original roots in Rome, new materials and techniques have been added to the established vocabulary.

Image Santi Caleca

Lastweek, the art gallery in Margate greeted its 2 millionth visitor since the opening in 2011.

Turner Contemporary has exceeded its visitor target eight years ahead of prediction with 400,000 yearly visits, beating the original forecast of 150,000 per year. It is estimated that for 120,000 of these guests, Turner Contemporary was their first visit to an art gallery.

Currently showingaresculptural workby Yinka Shonibare and the exhibition Seeing Round Corners: The Art of the Circle, which features more than 100 historical and contemporary works centred around the circle.

Image Paul Riddle

"The EU protects your rights against these enemies of freedom.To leave the EU now, in these dangerous political times, is not patriotic, its simply foolish and it would send the wrong message to the enemies of European values. The EU is not perfect and it never was designed to be that way. The very way of it being a negotiating chamber of 28 nations, is the key to its success. It is not in the security interests of the UK to weaken the EU at this point in time. Whatever your feelings towards the EU, be aware that voting for Brexit has catastrophic repercussions for the whole of Europe and the world."

Wolfgang Tillmans

Last weekend members of DCA London visited The Hepworth Wakefield to celebrate the gallerys fifth anniversary. The project architects led a tour of the building and reflected on its development from the early design stages to receiving the first visitors in 2011, as well as the buildings performance over the last five years. Since opening, the gallery has attracted 1.5 million visitors and its permanent collection has continued to grow through acquisitions and gifts.

Currently on display is a collection of works from the Kettles Yard gallery in Cambridge, 100 works from the recent bequest to the gallery by Tim Sayer, and a display of photographs by Martin Parr entitled The Rhubarb Triangle and Other Stories.

Image Rik Nys

Royal Academy Summer Exhibition features the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park competition submission by David Chipperfield Architects, in collaboration with Harry Gugger Studio and Robbrecht en Daem architecten, with Vogt Landscape Architects, Arup, Publica and Alinea Consulting.

It includes a 1:1000 jesmonite scale model with a drawing demonstrating a continuous public route that runs through the entire length of the project on a single level.

The exhibition is open from 13 June and runs until 21 August 2016.

The team of graduates and students participating in the study for environmental development and protection of the Ria de Arousa area have gathered in Galicia to begin their research. During the first week the group visited various municipalities and met with local authorities and stakeholders to gain an understanding of the current state of the industry, ecosystems, cultural heritage and urban planning in the area, as well as the complexities of their interdependence. Among the places visited were the fishing port of Portosin, a shellfish cultivation area in Boiro, canning factories near A Pobra la Caraminal, the Patho Goian historic manor building, new urban developments in Allariz, and the Ecoespazoecological farm.

Over the coming weeks the group will collate their observations to define the key focus of the study.

Image David Chipperfield Architects

David Chipperfield Architects is coordinating a 12-month study of the coastal area of the north side of Ria de Arousa estuary in Galicia, North West of Spain. The study will consider the natural and built environment and bring together the needs of local industries and the often conflicting needs of development and protection.

A team of graduates and students are currently based in Ribeira in offices provided by the mayor and will present their work in a series of public workshops in June and July. It is foreseen that the study will be further developed in collaboration with the local administrations over the next year.

The deadline to register to vote for the EU referendumhas now been extended to midnight Thursday 9 June.

The two-storey flagship store in Beverly Hills is the third to feature the new concept developed by David Chipperfield Architects Milan since November 2012.

The store is located on North Rodeo Drive in a three-block stretch between the Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards, where David Chipperfield Architects Milanalready designed flagship stores for Dolce&Gabbana and Valentino. North Rodeo Drive is renowned internationally for its luxury-goods stores and forms part of the larger business district.

Externally, the flagship features a two-storey monolithic faade in red marble (Languedoc) incorporating a series of large openings that reveal the depth of the faade.

Excerpt from:
David Chipperfield Architects