2014 – Phoenix Palace _ Fengshan Taiwan
Project District around a train station
Program Offices, leisure, equipment, housings and commercial areas
Floor area 35 000 m²
Place Fengshan, Taiwan
Owner Competition – 3rd prize
Team Eric Cassar, Elena Varela, Veneta Vladimirova, Francine Rizzon, Lucie Rieutord
Local architect RHT Architects and associates
General principles
We decide to create an entire district using reused shipping containers. Recycling containers provides both a good project economy and sustainability.
The phoenix is a symbol of the rebirth
- the rebirth of the train station, of the city cultural history, of the shipping containers, of the gathering, of the forest, of art ;
- the rebirth through time and space based on a global idea of sustainability…
The phoenix palace is connected to the surrounded area thanks to footbridges, its fragmental form is easy to adapt depending on specific urban needs.
We define the program and mixed the different uses taking into account the specific space atmosphere requirements.
BRICK = CONTAINER
The containers are reused as a brick and revive with golden and steel colors.
They shape a mega-structure and define both inside spaces and outside structural spaces. They generate a variety of environments. The assembly of the containers create a new typology.
THE « CORE » SYSTEM
Assisted by intelligent technology, Fengshan station is connected to Fengshan district and global transport information.
The access to all spaces and to the informations always integrates an artistic connotation with its pragmatic aspect. Architecture will instigate the 5 human senses and will be accessible to all kind of people. Information will be clear and easily explored.
VARIETY OF ENVIRONMENTS
The container nature and their assembly provide different typology of environments
1- Inside spaces : air conditioning controlled through The « Core System ».
2- In-between/ inside spaces : hybrid ventilation, high ceiling, huge volume, photovoltaic panels.
3- In-between/ outside spaces : natural ventilation, sound control, water recuperation, humidity control on in-between spaces, rain protection, wind energy.
The phoenix palace is made of three main parts : the base, the structure and the feather…
THE BASE
The base of the Phoenix palace is made of concrete and reused bricks. It is a pragmatic construction including car parking, bike park, bus stop, delivery access, station halls, reserve and technical areas. This base acts as the enclosure walls of the phoenix castle. Inside those walls, there is an hidden wild forest with meditation places. It acts as a green lung, a place which welcome flora and fauna. Outside the existing canal becomes similar to moat surrounding the castle.
THE STRUCTURE
On top of this base, reused containers revive with golden and steel colors. They form a mega-structure and define both inside spaces and outside caves, a wide variety of what we called in-between spaces. Some of them are public, others are private, some of then are closed others are opened… They are connected to others spaces physically and virtually thanks to new technologies (nspaces). In term of program : offices, leisure activities, equipment, housings, commercial areas are mixed together…
THE FABRIC
Over this container structure, we fixed the fabrics. The fabric are the phoenix palace feather. They bring it its shape, its sense, its beauty, forming one of the main identity of the project. They play with specific color range. But they are not only aesthetic, they create shade and special light games dealing with a variety of patterns both in term of size and form. They regulate the global temperature of the place. Most of those fabrics are movable, they can open or close themselves.
The Phoenix palace does not look the same during the summer or during the winter. It adapts and changes its form according to the season. In the distance, the building identify the place, it looks like a flying phoenix changing through time. An architecture in connection with past and future, earth and sky…
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