Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Apartments on the Coast by Ofis

Ofis - This unique and colourful structure was constructed as a low-income residence for young families and couples in the industrial district of Izola on the Slovenian coast. Inspired by the rhythmic structure of honeycomb, the layout helps in solar shading, natural ventilation and offers great views of the sea. Balcony modules are designed to provide shading and ventilation for the apartments by having textile elements fixed on the front of the balconies which blocks direct sunlight and accumulates"air buffer" zone. During summer, the accumulated area behind the shadings is naturally ventilated through 10cm holes. During winter, the warm air stays in the area and provides additional heating. This social housing has been nominated for Mies van der Roche Award 2006 and I guess the idea of using honeycomb pattern as a design is really cool. If only the Housing Board in Singapore adopts such creativity, our flats wouldn't look so rigid. More info can be found here.

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