Asked to design a structure providing two-thirds parking and one-third housing on a site area of 8,000 sq-m, BIG embarked on the project with one question. "How do you combine the splendours of the suburban backyard with the social intensity of urban denisty?" "Rather than two separate buildings next to each other - a parking and a housing block - we decided to merge the two fuctions into a symbiotic relationship," the architects explain. The northern and western facades are covered by perforated aluminium plates, which let air and light into the parking area. The holes in the facade form a huge reproduction of Mount Everest. In the day time, the holes in the aluminium plates appear black and stand out against the bright aluminium, making the gigantic picture look like a rough photo. At night the facade is lit from the inside and, since each floor in the parking area has a different colour, appears as a photo negative in a variety of colours. ...Collapse

Using the parking as a foundation for the housing, turned the block into an artificial slope upon which a grid was traced and apartments were distributed. Mountain concept gives nature pride of place as an integral component of the design. Only separated from the apartments by glass sliding doors, to let in as much light and fresh air as possible, the terrace gardens are made of untreated lpe hardwood, which requires very little maintenance while enhancing the connection with nature. They are orientated to maximise views of the old part of restaden and, seen from afar, create a remarkable disruption in an otherwise very flat landscape. To optimise the building's integration into its surroundings, the architects employed a stainless steel-look high-glass plate. The parking house aluminium facade faces the metro and fits in with the new industrial part of restaden. ...Collapse

BIG - Bjarke Group completed last August. Nominated for the Mies van der Rohe Award recently won the Best Housing Award in the World Architecture Festival. ...Collapse