NOTES
Terracotta block facade at street level

Dong Da, Hanoi, Vietnam

The Lantern

This new gallery and lighting showroom stands on a small inner-city plot behind a facade of perforated terracotta blocks.

The site was tight, with a busy street in front and a large tree beside it whose foliage hid the plot from the main road. Rather than fight the tree and the noisy context, the design team made the building a quiet backdrop to it while making the most of the usable space.

Visitors enter into a large void. The showroom is arranged around it so products can be taken in at a glance from the central stair. At the top, a gallery looks out over the tree, and slit skylights reveal the roof garden, giving architects and designers a place to meet.

Terracotta blocks of this kind were common before air conditioning. They let air through and screen harsh sun, and they are cheap: the 5,625 blocks used here cost about 2,350 GBP in all. A custom fixing system made assembly quick and simple.

By day, the tree throws moving shadows across the clean facade. At night the building glows from within, like a lantern on the street.

Project Information

Design studio
Vo Trong Nghia Architects
Time
2016
Type
Cultural, Retail
Primary materials
Glass, Steel, Terracotta brick
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Light through the perforated terracotta blocks
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Top-floor gallery with slit skylights
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Central stair seen from above
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Stair rising through the void
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Terracotta screen with foliage behind
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Roof terrace under the neighbouring tree
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Stair landing behind the terracotta screen
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Showroom floor beside the stair
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Close view of the terracotta blocks
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
The building glowing on the street at night
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Narrow terracotta facade from the side
Credit: Hiroyuki Oki, Trieu Chien
Ground floor plan
Credit: Vo Trong Nghia Architects
Second floor plan
Credit: Vo Trong Nghia Architects
Third floor plan
Credit: Vo Trong Nghia Architects
Fourth floor plan
Credit: Vo Trong Nghia Architects
Fifth floor plan
Credit: Vo Trong Nghia Architects
Roof plan
Credit: Vo Trong Nghia Architects
Section
Credit: Vo Trong Nghia Architects

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