Atelier Ars°: Levering Trade

Looking at the industrial structures photographed by Bernrd and Hilla Becher and at the work of Albert Kahn, Alejandro Guerrero and Andrea Soto conceived this warehouse in Mexico focusing on simple forms, without adding any decorative element.

Alejandro Guerrero and Andrea Soto. ATELIER ARSº, Levering Trade, Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico

For a new ecology of living

Ada Bursi’s legacy is transformed into an exam project of the two-year Interior Design specialist program at IED Turin, unfolding a narrative on contemporary living, between ecology, spatial flexibility, and social awareness.

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Atelier Ars’ project for this warehouse in Zapopan, Mexico, sets up a tectonic system of saw tooth roofs and vierendeel beams whose repetition along the facade make possible the character of the building itself and establishes a formal relation with a set of silos located a few meters from the plot.

Variations in that system allow manifesting in the facade, the different conditions and requirements of the inner space of the building, such as warehouse, private offices, meeting rooms and other spaces. The building was constructed with a very low budget and that is the reason for the materials used in it.

In the corner of the building there is a major variation in the tectonic system; the direction of the roof has changed to manifest the new relation with the side street where the entrance is located. Otherwise the slope of the roof could be seen from the street.

A steel lattice work was proposed to reduce solar radiation and also to protect the windows from possible vandalism due the marginal conditions of the zone at night.

The inner work space is described as a double height ward, limited by OSB panel walls that add a friendly atmosphere at low cost, and also maintaining the industrial character. It is possible to find craft workers on the streets of Guadalajara, weaving objects on request with different materials like plastic threads and many natural fibers. To add to the building a craftwork sample the architects decided to hire a team of weavers to work with the handrails, weaving its gaps with palm leaves.

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