How can a building integrate typicality with specificity? How can the inherent flexibility of contemporary workspaces be combined with an architecture that responds to the specificities of its context and the environment? What is the alternative to the failed model of a freestanding ‘glass box’? A proposal for a commercial building in the central Nicosia was an opportunity to address these issues.
Initially, vertical integration is addressed: a commercial facility on the ground floor registers as an independent volume below the six typical floors for workspace and a small annex on the top floor.
A strong contextual move manifests in the street façade which spans the whole width of the property and complies with the ‘building line’ of adjacent edifices, as per the provisions of the local policy. This makes the building more part of the street, than a freestanding element.
Architectural emphasis is achieved through the recess of the façade to accommodate vertical panels and plantation, protecting from direct sunlight. In each of the floors these elements are displaced enhancing a kinetic quality to the architecture.
The Project has recently been granted a Building Permit, and we are looking forward to its materialisation.
