VISION 31—RISING STAR
virtual iceberg with nine-tenths below the surface?
A
The lift goes down to car park basement level two, and is
designed to connect with the ground level, multi-event
space, mid terrace level and the roof top park. The flexible
design has provision to connect with a possible mid-level
if a future use dictates the construction of a new floor
through the space. Structurally the whole building is
ready for that. There's an incredible amount that goes on
in the building and incorporated into the design that you
never see.
This is a very complicated project.
Elements of the lift core had to work super hard.
The core incorporates space for future servicing, the café
exhaust systems, all waste and vent pipes up and down
the building are all reticulated through a side services
core. All of this is wrapped as delicately as possible.
The frit pattern on the glass helped dissolve the
glazing into the landscape.
And yet you would hardly want this camouflaged.
No, but we were also concerned it would be quite
dominant. The ceramic frit pattern glass layered over
steel and concrete, really helps reduce its effect on the
landscape by reducing its intensity a few notches and
really contributes to its delicacy.
What about the glazing? There’s nothing off-the-shelf
about this is there?
It’s a laminated glass system. We wanted as low
an iron content glass that we could and that is why we
chose Viridian SuperClear™. We solved this with a doublelayered system of SuperClear™ and tough fritted laminate
interlayer for extra strength. The frit is encapsulated
between those two layers—the frit is thus protected.
Elegant steel ‘bones’ reveal a great clarity of
workmanship, ideas and function for place.
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