From the Prada Museum to the “upside-down” skyscraper in China – you are invited to dive into the following in-depth article and discover how alloy is being incorporated into projects overseas.
“Gold-plated building”, Spain
In an industrial area located in the south of Milan, there is an art museum named after the Prada brand. The complex, which in the distant past served as a distillery, has been converted into an art center with galleries that display the impressive art collection of the foundation associated with the brand. The old distillery has been renovated into three buildings, including a unique building whose facade is covered in 24-karat gold foil and next to it silver alloy tiles in a large bubble pattern. The combination of the two has created a look that maintains the industrial “appeal”, while at the same time leaving room for glam and luxury.
“Architecture Inspired by Sand and Sea”, Mallorca
We will continue east from Spain and reach a stretch of coastline laden with palm trees. The Palma Convention Center in Mallorca serves as a central venue for hosting events on the island: from congresses and social events to exhibitions and car launches. This spacious four-story building with a capacity for more than 2,000 people was designed inspired by elements characteristic of the Bay of Palma. The closure of the building, which was designed with geometric lines, incorporated glass windows with a bluish hue like the waves of the sea, while the facades, interior walls and ceiling were covered with illusion tiles in a pattern of closed and dense bubbles that imitate the texture of fine sand unique to the beach. The tiles are cut in asymmetrical shapes that “break” the straight lines of the geometric architecture and add interest to the appearance of the building.
“Black Monolith”, Italy
We continue east on the continent and arrive at a country full of fashion and innovation, the “NOI” complex, which in Italy used to be an aluminum factory, but has now become a crossroads of innovation with over forty laboratories and about seventy high-tech companies. The development of the complex included the renovation of two existing buildings and the construction of a new third building, which together are called “The Black Monolith” for their shape that resembles a sculpture made of a single stone. As a tribute to its role in its previous incarnation as an aluminum factory, the facades of the building were covered with Illusion tiles, made of foamed aluminum, painted black in order to highlight the building as a modern monument standing in the center of the complex.
“Horizontal Skyscraper”, China
The last location is on the other side of the world, in the city of Shenzhen, China. In the commercial area of the city stands an unusually wide horizontal structure, resting on eight legs and appearing to “float” above the green hills. The Vanke Center is a residential and “wobble” complex that includes a hotel, spa rooms, and a luxurious auditorium space. This auditorium has seats decorated with green angora in the shade of the meadows outside, and polygonal walls reminiscent of the mountain slopes adjacent to the complex. Illusion tiles with closed and dense pores were chosen for the acoustic treatment of the space. The almost uniform appearance of the tile surface, combined with a dense installation and no zero lines, created a continuous appearance with the mountain and hill landscape outside the building, thus connecting the interior to the exterior.
