a grid of closed balconies

Urban Spaces 6 – Pipera 55

Client: Urban Spaces
Project duration: 2020 – in progress
Total built area: 57615 + 19155 (basements) m²

This project proposes an intermediate space typology on a large scale, an inside and outside as an extension of dwelling, while experimenting with a particular architectural image whose possibilities they define, but whose definitive shape will only be articulated by individual users. 

The habitable space is extended through balconies with a depth of 1.8 meters, to which a closing system can be added. 

The option to close the balconies may also serve as an adaptation to the climate, as open outdoor spaces become unfriendly and more challenging to use on the higher floors. Levels with continuous balconies alternate with those where the slab features cutouts, yielding double‑height outdoor spaces that can accommodate taller vegetation. The arrangement and lengths of the balcony slabs have been designed so that each apartment has the option to close this space using a purposefully designed system. Each of the three volumes presents a floor positioned between two continuous terraces, where virtually all outdoor spaces can be completely closed. The solution aims to emphasize horizontal registers, which on the short façades translate into a series
of profiles.

The possibility of transforming outdoor spaces into an all season extension of the living area reveals an excellent grasp of local living habits, offering an architectural answer to a common practice—as the clumsy, often aggressive closing of balconies is all too common around here—and it gives the end‑user the tools to appropriate their space. It remains to be seen how the skin that envelops the project will look like, once defined by its inhabitants.

PROJECT TEAM: 

Authors: 
Andrei Șerbescu
Adrian Untaru

Bogdan Brădăţeanu
Cezara Țînțăreanu

Collaborators:
Alina Olteanu
Valentina Ţigâră
Elena Zară
Vlad Căpitanu

Ştefan Diaconescu
Amina Alchihabi
Raluca Ioana Dumitrescu
Adrian Vieza

Renderings:
Arendering