Building/Ground: Changing Topography 2

Source: predock.com

Spencer Theater for the Performing Arts , Alto, New Mexico, USA, 1998 designed by Antoine Predock Architect

The Spencer Theater for the Performing Arts represents the convergence of the theater of landscape and the theater of performance. 

The wedge-like form of the theater suggests a monolithic piece of stone that has forced its way up from beneath the crust of the mesa.-- architect's web site

Source: archdaily.com

Oslo School of Architecture, Oslo, Norway, 2001 designed by JVA

An access court has been cut out of the existing 1st floor slab, marking the entrance and bringing daylight in to the ground floor foyer. A strip has been cut out of the existing slab along the inside of the existing building, bringing daylight to the surrounding functions. A simple U-shaped circulation zone is established along the strip. A new string of teaching rooms completes the U and forms a bridge across the entrance area. -- ArchDaily

Source: archdaily.com

Oslo Opera House, Bjørvika, Oslo, Norway, 2007 designed by Snøhetta

As early as the competition entry, Snøhetta proposed that the roofscape should be openly accessible to the general public and that it should be clad with white stone. Today the building’s defining feature is the characteristic geometry of the roof as it rises from the fjord and is laid out like a carpet over the public areas. -- ArchDaily

Read an article from Architectural Record

Source: FS+SG archdaily.com

School of Music In Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal designed by João Luís Carrilho da Graça

The clearest statement of this project was the creation of an exterior space – a large patio covered with grass – formed by a volume that gradually increases in height and protects it from the exterior noise. As the top of the building gently slopes upwards, the rooms grow successively higher, from smaller classrooms meant for instruments that produce a weaker sound (the flute, for instance), to larger rooms meant for percussion instruments. -- ArchDaily

Source: Tamas Bujnovszky archdaily.com

Faculty of Informatics, Debrecen, Hungary, 2011 designed by Peter Kovacs DLA + Istvan Lengyel

There is a glassed, two-story bridge on the east and a huge beam element on the west. The auditoriums took their places in the courtyards: on the east side creating a small slope, one of them slides halfway under ground level and effects a roomy yard; on the west side, sliding above each other in both directions, the two-story auditoriums are tightly placed among the wings. -- ArchDaily

Source; Bruce Damonte archdaily.com

Wolfe Center for the Arts, Bowling Green, Ohio, USA, 2011 designed by Snøhetta

Snøhetta has created a grand open hall that greets the visitor from the main entrance. Sunlit and spacious, the lobby provides views upward to the lounges, classrooms and studios of the art, music, and drama departments on the second level. -- ArchDaily

Source: Adam Mork archdaily.com

Plassen Cultural Center, Molde, Norway, 2012 designed by 3XN Architects

The architectural solution is a structure where almost all surfaces and spaces have more than one function. Together with the building's roof, an existing staircase next to the building constitute a total of three outdoor amphitheatres that collectively accommodate several thousand spectators. During the day the roof offers a cafe with outdoor seating, a recreational area with splendid views and exhibition space for the building’s gallery; while the staircase on the side of the building is an essential link between the city’s upper and lower districts. -- ArchDaily

Source: Hufton + Crow archdaily.com

Giants Causeway Visitor Centre, Antrim, Northern Ireland, UK, 2012 designed by Heneghan & Peng Architects

The proposal for the new visitor facilities can be understood as two folds into the landscape. One folds upwards revealing the building and the second folds down to form the carpark and shield it from view of the approach road and coastal path. Between the two folds, a ramp leads to the coastal ridgeline which is restored at this location. -- ArchDaily

Source: Georges Fessy archdaily.com

Palais des Sports de Rouen, Rouen, France, 2012 designed by Dominique Perrault Architecture

The functions are very clearly distinguished. Sports areas are situated in the central part of the building, the reception space is in the south wing of the building along the Lillebonne Street and the administrative and services areas in the north wing. -- ArchDaily