https://www.architecturalrecord.com/rss/1431 en-us A small dwelling in France is expanded and reinvented in a masterful response to strict regulations on a prized site.

]]> http://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/13386 Tue, 01 May 2018 08:00:00 -0400 https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/13386-maison-malecaze-by-rcr-arquitectes The house’s main level, above the garage, conforms to the rolling hills it sits upon. Photo © Pep Sau The main entrance is beneath a large hood. Photo © Pep Sau The concrete striations give way to loosely spaced vertical metal rods over existing walls and windows. Photo © Pep Sau One of the two courtyards is planted with a cherry tree. Photo © Pep Sau A fireplace defines a small nook off the large living area. Photo © Hisao Suzuki Views from that main living space are compressed by the swimming pool’s underside above the terrace. Photo © Hisao Suzuki Concrete is variously utilized within the house to form washbasins in the master bath, to embed the cantilevering counters in the kitchen, and to alternate the treads of the steps that separate the master suite from the spinal corridor. Photo © Hisao Suzuki Concrete is variously utilized within the house to form washbasins in the master bath, to embed the cantilevering counters in the kitchen, and to alternate the treads of the steps that separate the master suite from the spinal corridor. Photo © Hisao Suzuki Concrete is variously utilized within the house to form washbasins in the master bath, to embed the cantilevering counters in the kitchen, and to alternate the treads of the steps that separate the master suite from the spinal corridor. Photo © Pep Sau A canyon-like staircase leads to the rooftop pool and its views over the valley of the Garonne River. Photo © Pep Sau A canyon-like staircase leads to the rooftop pool and its views over the valley of the Garonne River. Photo © Hisao Suzuki Image courtesy RCR Arquitectes Drawing courtesy RCR Arquitectes Image courtesy RCR Arquitectes A star Catalan chef cum restaurateur enlists this year’s Pritzker Prize–winning firm to create an engaging environment for an innovative culinary experience in Barcelona.

]]> http://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/12938 Fri, 01 Sep 2017 08:00:00 -0400 https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/12938-enigma-restaurant-by-rcr-arquitectes-and-pau-llimona Inside, the curving entry ramp offers a disorienting transition. Walls of sintered stone are faced with molded-glass panels for added shimmer. Photo © Pep Sau Enigma occupies the raised ground floor of a nondescript office building in central Barcelona. Guests gain access via a PIN code. Photo © Dámaso Pérez Molded glass screens add to the mystery of the spatial layering, within the interstitial spaces, and between the dining room and kitchen. Photo © Pep Sau The dining room, with sintered stone floors and walls veiled in glass, has stormy ceilings of crumpled steel mesh with LEDs. The architects designed the clear resin furniture and waitstaff uniforms. Photo © Pepo Segura Surfaced with sintered stone, the kitchen is visible to diners. Rear glazing screens it from the workshop where new dishes are tested. Photo © Dámaso Pérez Surfaced with sintered stone, the kitchen is visible to diners. Rear glazing screens it from the workshop where new dishes are tested. Photo © Dámaso Pérez   The Teppanyaki Grille, one station of the peripatetic meal, is lit from above with subtle accents of red. (Other stations feature blue and lilac light.) Photo © Dámaso Pérez Image courtesy RCR Arquitectes and Pau Llimona A museum in southwest France made of dramatic weathering steel volumes celebrates the monochromatic career of French abstract artist Pierre Soulages.

]]> 1408-soulages-museum-rcr-arquitectes.asp Sat, 16 Aug 2014 12:00:00 -0400 https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/7521-soulages-museum-by-rcr-arquitectes Soulages Museum Visitors enter the museum from a park and encounter the mostly windowless, quiet, sculptural volumes that contain galleries. A glimpse of the town and countryside can be seen beyond.   Photo © Pep Sau Soulages Museum The museum is set into—and cantilevers over—a hillside. A stair connects the park that lies beyond it to the town below.   Photo © Hisao Suzuki Soulages Museum Simple weathering steel forms provide the perfect backdrop to the Gothic Roman Catholic Rodez Cathedral nearby.   Photo © Pep Sau Soulages Museum The architects used steel plate for most surfaces, as in the gallery shown here, attaching artwork to the walls using a magnet system.   Photo © Hisao Suzuki Soulages Museum In the temporary exhibition gallery, paintings from the artist’s Outrenoir (“black-light”) series are hung from cables as freestanding objects, as Soulages intended (they are finished on the back with blank canvas).   Photo © Hisao Suzuki Soulages Museum Image courtesy RCR Arquitectes Soulages Museum Image courtesy RCR Arquitectes Soulages Museum Image courtesy RCR Arquitectes Soulages Museum Image courtesy RCR Arquitectes Soulages Museum Image courtesy RCR Arquitectes Contemplative and enigmatic, the Lagares Showroom in Girona, Spain, bears greater resemblance to a highbrow gallery installation than a sales floor.

]]> 1209_lagares-showroom.asp Sun, 16 Sep 2012 00:00:00 -0400 https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/6625-lagares-showroom-by-rcr-arquitectes