{"id":39077,"date":"2024-11-15T15:00:26","date_gmt":"2024-11-15T14:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.architect-us.com\/blog\/2023\/12\/lot-ek-selected-projects-copy-2\/"},"modified":"2024-11-15T14:17:03","modified_gmt":"2024-11-15T13:17:03","slug":"lot-eks-selected-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.architect-us.com\/blog\/2024\/11\/lot-eks-selected-projects\/","title":{"rendered":"LOT-EK’s Selected Projects #3"},"content":{"rendered":"

History<\/strong> of LOT-EK<\/span><\/a><\/h4>\n

LOT-EK<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/a> is an architectural design studio that was founded in 1993<\/span> by Italian architects Ada Tolla<\/span><\/a> and Giuseppe Lignano<\/span><\/span><\/a>. After finishing their architecture studies in Italy, Ada and Giuseppe traveled extensively throughout the United States. Motivated by the natural and urban landscapes of America, they were awarded a scholarship to study at Columbia University<\/span><\/strong> for a postgraduate degree. This gave them the opportunity to encounter both the urban complexity of New York City and the experimental academic environment of Columbia. The main concept for LOT-EK<\/span> as a design studio was derived from the work they produced that year, which was collected into a book.<\/p>\n

Ada and Giuseppe established a studio in Naples after successfully submitting their dissertation in Italy. They began receiving commissions in the United States as a result of their work and connections made while at Columbia. Ada and Giuseppe decided to open another studio in New York City in 1995, and found a loft in the Meat Packing District. This strengthened the notion that their work is an artistic, practical exploration of the imaginative reclaiming of the industrial and manufactured.<\/p>\n

Ada Tolla and Giuseppe Lignano, Co-Founders of LOT-EK<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

The founders of LOT-EK, Ada and Giuseppe, have both grown up in Naples, Italy and have known each other since the age of sixteen (16).<\/span><\/p>\n

Both of them graduated from the Universita’ di Napoli<\/span><\/strong> in Italy in 1989 with a Master’s Degree in Architecture and Urban Design<\/span>. They also attended Columbia University<\/span><\/strong> in New York for postgraduate studies from 1990 to 1991. Not only do they oversee LOT-EK, but they also teach at the Graduate Department of Architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology<\/span><\/strong> in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation<\/span><\/strong> at Columbia University in New York.<\/p>\n

In addition, they have given talks at conferences and meetings on sustainability and the built environment, such as the Kyoto Institute of Technology<\/span><\/strong> (Kyoto, Japan) and the Holcim Forum on Sustainability 2010<\/span><\/strong> (Mexico City). Ada and Giuseppe also give lectures at universities and cultural institutions both domestically and internationally.<\/p>\n

[Do you want to keep up to date with new job opportunities with Architect-US Partner Companies like LOT-EK? Leave us your contact info<\/span><\/strong> here<\/strong><\/a><\/span>.]<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

Company Culture at LOT-EK<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n

As a studio, LOT-EK<\/span><\/strong> is dedicated to using clever and environmentally conscious building techniques. Through their research into the adaptive reuse, or “upcycling,” of industrial and structural objects, they have established a critical architectural practice. They are credited with starting the trend of using shipping containers to create architecture, and they have used this construction technology to great effect on a number of projects that have won awards.<\/p>\n

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Our experienced and energetic team is deeply collaborative with our partners and stakeholders\u2014from fabricators and manufacturers, to clients and collectors. We are interested in objects and operations, in technology and ecology, because we care even more about places and people.<\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Along with using containers as architectural components, LOT-EK<\/span> has also repurposed various items such as truck bodies, airplane fuselages, and repurposed wood or steel doors as structural additions to create buildings and interior designs. Their declared objective is to recycle not just the object itself, but also the intelligence that went into its creation.<\/p>\n

LOT-EK<\/span> has been conducting continuous research on the global proliferation, accumulation, overlap, and interference of man-made objects and systems with the built and natural environments.<\/p>\n

Architect-US<\/strong><\/a><\/span> works in close contact with LOT-EK<\/a><\/span><\/strong> as a host company for incredibly talented architects such as Romain Dubettier-Grenier<\/span><\/a>, <\/em>who participated in Architect-US’s J1 Visa Program<\/strong><\/span><\/a>!<\/span><\/p>\n

Romain Dubettier-Grenier<\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n

Swiss architect Romain Dubettier-Grenier is currently in the process of completing a 6 month internship program at LOT-EK<\/span>! He chose LOT-EK because he has been looking forward to learning from experienced professionals, gain practical experience in the field, and contribute his creativity to meaningful projects. Romain showcases an extensive and impressive education ever since High School, which he graduated with Honors from the Coll\u00e8ge<\/strong> du Leman<\/span> in Geneva, Switzerland. He passed the TOEFL IBT<\/span><\/strong> with a whooping 108 out of 120, and went on to work for his Bachelor of Architecture from the \u00c9cole Polytechnique F\u00e9d\u00e9rale de Lausanne<\/span><\/strong>, Switzerland. In 2024 he will be starting his Master’s in Architecture at EPFL<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

His Professional experience certainly does not pale in comparison to his education. Ever since Romain was younger, he volunteers his Summers to work as a bookstore manager at his former high school. On top of that, he participated in a Wooden Workshop<\/span><\/strong> where he developed a project that was part of the Open House exhibition<\/span><\/strong> in Geneva in 2021. Romain also took part in the “Making the campus of tomorrow” Workshop at EPFL<\/span><\/strong> where he had to analyze thermal performances of the buildings of EPFL via a specific software and then develop a proposition of a rehabilitation project on one of the main avenues of the campus.<\/p>\n

[Let us take on the work of finding your dream job for you and\u00a0join us<\/span><\/a> today!]<\/strong><\/p>\n

LOT-EK’s Selected Projects<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/h4>\n

Irving Place Carriage House – Brooklyn<\/span><\/h4>\n

Irving Place Carriage House is the home of an artist, a gallerist, and their daughter. The project entailed remodeling a 1930s two-level carriage house and adding a penthouse above. The layout of the room is achieved by inserting a single vertical volume that traverses the whole house from roof to ground. Remodeled from four shipping containers, the penthouse offers access to the shaded and decked roof.<\/p>\n

The carriage house is intersected by an orange vertical volume that houses the mechanical space, kitchen, bathrooms, and stairs. The incline of the stairs creates all of the diagonal cuts in the structure. Additionally, this volume divides the area into two sections: the upper level has the master bedroom in the front and the children’s bedroom in the back, and the ground level has the dining\/living area in the back and the entrance\/mud room in the front.<\/p>\n

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\"\"Photos by LOT-EK<\/span><\/p>\n

ISTANBUL EARTH CENTER – Istanbul, Turkey<\/span><\/h4>\n

The Istanbul Earth Centre is a competition entry and it is designed to resemble an abstract landscape, with the structure growing organically from the ground and paying homage to the ancient Cappadocian mountain ranges in a modern way. They visualized a large mass of earth being raised or taken out of the ground. Instead of giving in to the urge to design a vertical object, they decided to strive for a strong connection with the earth by designing the structure in direct relation to its site, ground, and surrounding area.<\/p>\n

A robust, sloping incline that appears to be a man-made hill from a distance characterizes the sculptural volume of the Istanbul Earth Centre, which is made up of vertical steel shipping containers put together in a dynamic honeycomb pattern. As visitors approach and start interacting with the structure, this incline and the ensuing overhang provide strong interaction. The ground plan of the building provides direct access to a number of locations that are significant to the everyday lives of Istanbul residents. For example, the pedestrian plaza adjacent to the main entrance connects to the proposed mosque directly next door. Furthermore, a plaza located on the other side of the building provides cover for parking spaces and additional entry points. In essence, the Istanbul Earth Center becomes a new location and a hub for activity within the altered topography.<\/p>\n

The structure is mainly dependent on the known strengths of individual containers, the shear and axial transfer between them (at force levels much lower than those encountered in a heavy sea), and the fundamental structural concepts that support beam action, cantilevered structures, and arches. The center’s assembly, which is almost entirely made of Corten steel, results in a robust and long-lasting structure that can withstand a variety of harsh adverse conditions, including wind, earthquakes, and fluctuating temperatures. This creative recycling of the shipping container captures the spirit of innovation and dynamic energy that the Istanbul Earth Center represents.<\/p>\n

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\"\"Photos by LOT-EK<\/span><\/p>\n

PIER 57 – SUPERPIER MARKET – Hudson River, New York City<\/span><\/h4>\n

The goal of Pier 57’s conversion is to turn the once-utilitarian industrial building into a public space that seamlessly integrates indoor cultural and recreational activities with the outdoor surroundings of Hudson River Park. A 170,000 square foot covered outdoor food and retail market is part of the program; it will be New York’s first significant concentration of reasonably priced, year-round workspace for small businesses and artisans. Moreover, the building will have restaurants on the ground and second floors. A boat marina with caf\u00e9s lining the exterior esplanades. And a park with an outdoor amphitheater for performances and movies on the roof.<\/p>\n

An interior ramp that currently connects the ground and second floors is preserved in the design and is extended as an open public street from the second floor to the roof. Additionally, the diagonal path, which runs parallel to the Hudson River Park promenade and passes through the building straight from the main entrance, is an inclined extension of 15th Street. And the interior architecture of the retail\/urban market is articulated through the reuse of shipping containers. Which is both a sustainable practice and a nod to the river’s shipping history and the pier’s previous port function.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"\"\"Photos by LOT-EK<\/span><\/p>\n

We will be posting more projects by<\/span> LOT-EK<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>in the upcoming weeks and months, so keep an eye out for more of their incredible work! Every Friday we will be posting a new Featured Company<\/strong>, so join us again next week!<\/span><\/p>\n

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