Architecture studios Skidmore Owings & Merrill and Burckhardt+Partner have unveiled a hybrid mass-timber and concrete office block on the United Nations campus in Geneva.
The 24,000-square-metre office was designed for an organisation described by the architecture studios as a "non-profit humanitarian organisation in Geneva". However, the building appears to be Building H, which is located at the north of the United Nations' (UN) campus.
▲ 该项目是联合国园区的一座新建筑
Building H is the latest addition to the United Nations' campus
Designed by Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM) and Burckhardt+Partner to accommodate 1,500 staff, the building consists of a series of kinked blocks that were arranged around two diamond-shaped courtyards.
The blocks, which overlook Lake Geneva, step down the hillside and are topped with landscaped roofs to integrate the building into the landscape.
▲ 建筑周围环绕着两个庭院
The blocks are arranged around two courtyards
"It was paramount to us to design a building that is respectful to the environment, both in terms of sustainability and its visual impact on the surrounding park," said SOM design partner Kent Jackson.
"The great benefit of prioritising nature means that everyone who works in the new building has immediate access to fresh air and feels connected to the landscape around them."
▲ 在办公空间可以看到大量木梁
Mass timber beams are visible in the office spaces
开放式办公空间周围环绕着落地窗，拥有充足的自然采光，人们可以欣赏到日内瓦湖和阿尔卑斯山的美景。
每个楼层都拥有室外空间，其中包含有中央院落、屋顶露台和室外广场。
建筑入口处的阶梯型座椅区就如同一个“市政空间”，可以在这里举办非正式会议和演讲。
层压橡木楼梯连接着建筑的各个楼层。
The open-plan offices are enclosed by floor-to-ceiling windows that provide natural light and provides views of Lake Geneva and the French Alps.
Each floor has access to several outdoor spaces, including the central courtyards, rooftop terraces and external plazas.
A stepped seating area at the building's entrance, described as a "Town Hall space", will be used for informal meetings and presentations.
Throughout the building, the office floors are connected by laminated oak stairs.
▲ 座椅区域是办公楼的入口
A seating area is located at the office's entrance
Designed to meet Swiss Minergie sustainability standards, the building's structure is a hybrid of concrete columns with floors supported by alternating mass timber and concrete beams, which are visible in the offices.
Water from Lake Geneva will be used to heat and cool the building using hydrothermal technology developed by local company GeniLac, while solar panels mounted on the roof will contribute to the building's energy use.
Burckhardt+Partner Oliver Henninger事务所的合伙人说：“我们非常荣幸能够在日内瓦为该组织设计一座全新的建筑，并且这将带来全新的合作模式。”
美国SOM建筑事务所是全球最大的设计工作室，近期其完成的项目包含有美国陆军国家博物馆以及美国Daniel Patrick Moynihan火车站候车大厅。
摄影：Dave Burk
The office block forms part of an overall plan to renovate and modernise the UN's campus, which includes the historic art deco Palais des Nations building, which was originally built as the home for the League of Nations in the 1930s.
"We are delighted to have had the opportunity to realise the first new building for this organisation in Geneva for many decades and to be able to offer new and forward-looking forms of collaboration," said partner at Burckhardt+Partner Oliver Henninger.
American architecture studio SOM is one of the world's largest studios. It recently completed the National Museum of the United States Army and the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Train Hall in the USA.
The photography is by Dave Burk.
