Little Copenhagen in Prague
The residential blocks will rise on the right side of Nádraží Žižkov and will be the flagship of Sekyra Group within the Žižkov City development. In a small competition team, we designed the massing, corner height accents, rational division of the condominium sections and active parterre animating the street life within one month.
The space between the blocks has been sensitively expanded, made more pleasant and supplemented with front gardens with entrance to the ground floor flats. The result is a residential street with a Scandinavian feel, serving as a social axis. The street has become a link between two green semi-private inner blocks. These green oases contribute to the efficient retention of rainwater and improve the microclimate of the entire neighbourhood.
Take the clue not the mouse
Once the form and the desired flatmix was ready, three days of intense work, brainstorming and creativity ensued. The goal was clear, to design the facades for the different flat sections and modify the form to give it a human scale. 14 colleagues kicked off our first Perspektiv Hackathon. How would you start yours ? Some took ink and paper, others opened up their autocads, scrolled the internet, researched the site and looked for contextual inspiration.
It was interesting to see how everyone took to designing with enthusiasm and “spirit” and especially in different ways. We enjoyed the discussions and the silly moments together with a lot of fine delicious cakes. Sweet was needed.
Ability to narrate your concept
Here we go! It’s time to evaluate this 300 hour investment. Our 4-member jury settled down in the comfort of the showroom’s bay window and watched the design presentations intently. Adam’s tower and neck impressed the jury the most. Aside from some beauty flaws in the layout, they recommended this red gem be worked to perfection. The second, smaller tower was refreshed with arched windows and a distinct verticality based on Dora’s design. We will build the central facade using design principles from Oksana, Tomas, Samuel and Matthias. Oksana brought a simple yet very elegant and contemporary Prague house. With Tomáš we were attracted by the sliding shading system and the work with texture. Samuel presented a strong sense of composition and layout of balconies that create both views and privacy. Matthias intrigued us with the idea of moving the facade with waves. We would like to translate this principle to the rear façade towards the courtyard.
The jury selected the principles so that each part of the house is specific and yet the challenge will be to match the facades so that they fit together. The jury felt that the grid was used as the most distinctive façade element and many of the façades looked similar. On the other hand, the jury was pleasantly surprised by innovative approaches such as – ceramics, pitched roofs, colour palette or plasticity of the façade.
Sprint!
But that was far from the end. The winning designs served as the conceptual basis for the final design of the facades. We created a new team of people to take on this challenging task. The three architects matched each other with design details that make the idea a masterpiece. With time running out before the deadline, we finalised floor plans, sections, schematics and presentation panels. We needed to link the 3d model through revit, sketchup and rhino. It was steaming out of computers and heads. We managed it. Finally and slack landed beautiful visualizations and everything fell into place.
The Hackathon was open to anyone from our studio who is keen to immerse themselves in design, sketching and modelling. When architecture, speed, and competitive spirit come together, ideas that push boundaries are born. We were thrilled with the variety of solutions and the courage of the participants. Thank you to everyone who participated and I look forward to next year’s event! Join us, and convince us that your design is the best!
