Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
The Vibes Co-Space is a one-of-a-kind office space located in a residential area of Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam’s largest city that includes a bioclimatic interior and exterior design by Ha Hong Linh and Nguyen Vinh Hoang of Infinity Architecture for The Vibes.
For its commitment to ecological and biophilic design, The Vibes has recently been awarded a 2022 International Architecture Awards Honorable Mention by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
The Vibes is a bioclimatic office building with a diverse range of open spaces and greenery, creating a tranquil and peaceful resort vibe right in an urban area.
However, its location on a narrow residential street is a weakness that required an adaptation from a dwelling neighborhood into an atmosphere more suited to working.
From this context, the designers proposed a multi-zoning masterplan with the main elevation of the building located on the inside.
Therefore, the approach to the lobby became a transition of many different spatial enclosures: the buffer front garden, the shaded entranceway, and the central garden.
They also organized indoor public spaces in combination with natural airflow, which are entirely naturally ventilated.
This transitional space planning creates gradual adaptation for the temperature to remain comfortable between adjacent places.
Additionally, the bamboo sunshade skin of the building reduces most of the thermal radiation on the glass facades of the office areas, minimizing operational energy consumption.
The provision of a sizeable reflective water feature and a system of shady open-air areas on many floor levels positively contributes to the microclimate improvement of the outdoor spaces under the heat of the south Vietnam sun.
The outdoor atmosphere is embedded with the sounds coming from the performance of the percussion balls integrated into every internode of the bamboo skin.
This mechanism is similar to a Vietnamese traditional musical instrument called Trưng, an instrument similar to the westerner Vibraphone.
The interactive vibration sound of 20-30 decibels in light breezes brings tranquility to the open spaces.
This implementation is an experiment in giving architecture a performative role, in terms of motion and sound.
Project: The Vibes Co-space
Architects: Infinitive Architecture
Lead Architects: Ha Hong Linh and Nguyen Vinh Hoang
Design Managers: Tran Kim Ngan and Ha Hong Linh
Interior Design Manager: Nguyen Vinh Hoang
Design Team: Nguyen Tuan Hoang, Pham Do Dang Khoa, Doan Minh Phuc, Le Dinh Nguyen Vu, Nguyen Van Thai Nhat, Nguyen Thi Dieu Thuong, Nguyen Truong Nguyen, Nguyen Trong Nhan, and Le Dinh Hung
General Contractor: Infinitive Co., Ltd.
Client: The Vibes
Photographs Courtesy of the Architects