Archinect - News

Fix Penn Station Now; Raze $1 Billion Knicks Garden Later

2013-05-15T12:12:00-04:00

It’s perched atop the depressing, low-ceilinged maze known as Penn Station, daily hive for 600,000 scuttling commuters. The Garden’s presence is one major impediment to the 25-year-old dream of turning the decrepit and overcrowded Penn station into a smoothly operating city gateway.

Defending the Former American Folk Art Museum Building

2013-05-13T14:01:00-04:00

It’s a relief on the block, representing the diversity vital to healthy streets — not a perfect building, not even its architects’ best work. But its unembarrassed, luxuriant materiality, its small scale and vulnerability, all qualities that the Modern now seems to reject, belong no less than the glass tower to the messy story of Modernism and city life.

MoMA reconsiders razing of Folk Art Museum, hands decision over to newly selected architects DS+R

2013-05-09T17:12:00-04:00

AFTER impassioned protests from prominent architects, preservationists and design critics, the Museum of Modern Art said on Thursday that it would reconsider its decision to demolish its next-door neighbor, the former home of the American Folk Art Museum, to make room for an expansion.

In a board meeting on Thursday morning, the directors were told that a board committee had selected the design firm Diller Scofidio & Renfro to handle the expansion and to help determine whether to keep any of the existing structure.

MoMA’s History of Demolishing Potential Landmarks

2013-05-03T19:50:00-04:00

MoMA’s plan can hardly be a surprise, because its entire history since 1937 is based on demolishing potential landmarks.

Eisenman's House VI, Venturi's Philadelphia House, and Louis Kahn’s Esherick House all set to hit the market

2013-05-01T18:18:00-04:00

Three of the most important modernist houses in the Northeast, including the 1964 house Robert Venturi designed for his mother, have been (or will soon be) put up for sale by their long-time owners, two of them without covenants that would ensure their preservation.

Venturi's Philadelphia House

Louis Kahn’s Esherick House

Barry Bergdoll talks about the decision to demolish the Folk Art Museum

2013-04-17T19:09:00-04:00

Barry Bergdoll, chief curator of MoMA's architecture and design department, told AN that the decision was an administrative, rather than a curatorial one. He called the decision “painful” for architects and others who appreciate Williams and Tsein’s work, and acknowledged that museums have a responsibility to the art in their care—including architecture.

He says the building “was designed as a jewel box for folk art,” and could not reasonably be altered to fit a different collection and a different purpose.

Melnikov House facing demolition

2013-04-15T20:45:00-04:00

The Russian avant-garde architect Konstantin Melnikov’s seminal cylindrical house in Moscow, which has inspired architects around the world for nearly a century, is gravely threatened by construction of a large multipurpose complex abutting its tiny backyard, Russian and international preservationists say.

#FolkMoMA

2013-04-11T14:04:00-04:00

Get it trending: #FolkMoMA

MoMA to raze ex American Folk Art Museum building

2013-04-11T00:39:00-04:00

MoMA officials said the building’s design did not fit their plans because the opaque facade is not in keeping with the glass aesthetic of the rest of the museum.

Robin Pogrebin reported that MoMA expects to have the building demolished by the end of this year.

h/t Donna Sink over at TC, who commented "It's tragic. We need to start a thread on it and call for a boycott of the new project by all architects. If MOMA moves ahead with this I will never step foot in their museum again"...

Municipal Art Society Challenges Architects for New Penn Station Vision

2013-04-03T20:38:00-04:00

The four firms — Santiago Calatrava, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, SHoP Architects and SOM — will have until May 29 to propose new designs that will be unveiled to the public that day at the TimesCenter on West 41st Street. “We’re really trying to unlock people’s imaginations about the very real potential of a new arena and of a new Penn Station,” said Vin Cipolla, the society’s president, in an interview.

Lawsuit dropped over Prentice preservation

2013-02-14T19:48:00-05:00

Two preservationist groups have dropped a lawsuit challenging the City of Chicago’s decision to deny landmark status to the old Prentice Women’s Hospital. Northwestern University plans to demolish the building in Chicago’s Streeterville neighborhood to make way for a new biomedical research facility. The decision to drop the lawsuit clears the way for Northwestern to carry through on it plans.

Paul Rudolph's Orange County Government Center to be saved

2013-02-13T17:38:00-05:00

The long, rancorous debate over the fate of the Orange County Government Center ended abruptly Wednesday, as a group of Republican lawmakers sided with Democrats to pass a proposal to renovate the 43-year-old complex.

NYC Landmarks Commission Debates New Annabelle Selldorf Building

2013-02-12T18:46:00-05:00

"The changes to the plans...were not enough to assuage the doubts the Commission had the first time around (although most of the commissioners did agree that significant improvements had been made). The alternations to the plans included stretching the double hung windows vertically in order to give the building less of a squat look, raising the base by six feet...and moving the tower forward slightly."

New York City's Landmarks Preservation Commission met to discuss a proposed Annabelle Selldorf building at 42 Crosby Street for the second time, and sent Selldorf away for the second time.

Fendi To Rescue Crumbling Trevi Fountain

2013-02-07T11:47:00-05:00

Luxury fashion will meet Roman architecture as Italian fashion house Fendi has pledged €2.1 million to restore five of Rome’s beloved fountains, including the iconic Trevi Fountain. Fendi, founded in Rome in the 1920s, is now part of French luxury giant LVMH. The fashion house opted to invest in restoring one of Rome’s architectural treasures due to a self-described “deep bond with the Eternal City.”

Government Offers to Swap for a New F.B.I. Headquarters

2013-01-31T18:05:00-05:00

For nearly 40 years, the F.B.I. has had its headquarters in a massive example of Brutalist architecture on Pennsylvania Avenue. But the federal government hopes to swap the building and its prime location for a sprawling new home in the suburbs, and there seem to be plenty of developers eager to help make that happen.

The General Services Administration, the federal government’s landlord, held an “industry day” this month to lay out its wish list for new F.B.I. headquarters, drawing more than 450 interested developers, architects, brokers and consultants.

Richardson-Olmsted Complex Reuse to Include Boutique Hotel

2013-01-28T15:29:00-05:00

The redevelopment of the Richardson Olmsted Complex will...transform the former Buffalo State Hospital from a place of healing to one of hospitality. The design builds upon Olmsted's original intent while conserving existing resources, preserving the fabric of the space, and creating connections and purpose.

In Buffalo, One Man's Living Museum

2013-01-24T00:16:00-05:00

In 2009, Dennis Maher... bought an abandoned property from D’Youville College for $10,000...After he sorted through the junk he found inside, he began to build, reconfiguring the pieces of things like a home entertainment center...and dollhouse furniture... He attached the structures he created to the floors, walls and ceilings, like Joseph Cornell sculptures run amok...You can sense dust bunnies everywhere swelling with importance.

Preservationists get 30 days to fix suit on old Prentice Women's Hospital

2013-01-14T13:05:00-05:00

A judge on Friday gave preservationists 30 days to amend their legal challenge to a landmarks commission ruling that would appear to doom old Prentice Women's Hospital, but strongly hinted that time is running out for the Streeterville structure.

Cyclorama building at Gettysburg will be demolished

2013-01-11T13:58:00-05:00

The National Park Service said Thursday that it would begin demolishing the Cyclorama building as soon as February, clearing the site ahead of the 150th anniversary commemoration of the battle. The site will be restored to its 1863 appearance, complete with a period apple orchard and replicas of the wood fences that once crisscrossed the fields, park spokeswoman Katie Lawhon said. The massive painting that the building once housed has been separately preserved.

Preservationists say rehabbing rather than demolishing Prentice Hospital would mean more revenue and jobs

2013-01-04T20:12:00-05:00

The study argues that re-using Prentice and developing a new facility would generate more money and jobs than demolition and new construction. The study claims the rehab would generate one-time taxes and temporary jobs, in fields ranging from construction to finance and insurance. And a re-designed, multi-purpose Prentice would mean 980 permanent jobs and just over $1 million a year in local tax revenues.

The reuse alternatives for Prentice were unveiled at a press conference on January 3, 2013. You can view the presentation here (PDF file).

David Wright House Saved - Preservation Success

2012-12-20T17:25:00-05:00

The Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy has facilitated the purchase of the David and Gladys Wright House in Phoenix, Arizona, through an LLC owned by an anonymous benefactor. The transaction closed on December 20 for an undisclosed price. The property will be transferred to an Arizona not-for-profit organization responsible for the restoration, maintenance and operation of the David Wright House.

Melnikov House in danger of collapse

2012-12-12T15:26:00-05:00

The house is still inhabited by Viktor's daughter, Ekaterina Karinskaya. Ever since Viktor died in 2006, there have been plans to turn the building into a museum, but a family dispute involving Ms Karinskaya, her sister, the Moscow government and a multi-millionaire has meant that no progress has been made. Preservationists say a nearby construction site has caused the foundations of the Melnikov House to be put in danger.

18th-Century French Chateau Razed 'By Mistake'

2012-12-05T11:45:00-05:00

The mayor's office in Yvrac said Wednesday that workers who were hired to renovate the grand 13,000-square-meter (140,000-square-foot) manor and raze a small building on the same estate in southwest France mixed them up. "The Chateau de Bellevue was Yvrac's pride and joy," said former owner Juliette Marmie. "The whole village is in shock. How can this construction firm make such a mistake?"

Via rfuller in the Forum: Chateau de Bellevue destroyed by idiots.

Paul Rudolph’s Brutalism, reworked, at UMass Dartmouth

2012-11-26T17:28:00-05:00

Designed in the late 1960s by one of the most inventive architects in American history, Paul Rudolph, the campus is a powerful, muscular pile of raw concrete. It’s an example of an architectural style that’s known, for better or worse, as Brutalism. Now one of the major chunks of UMass Dartmouth is being transformed. That’s the Claire T. Carney Library, which is being renovated and enlarged — redesigned, really, in many ways — by a talented Boston architecture firm that calls itself designLAB.

DC's Lorton Prison to be converted into apartments

2012-11-26T15:38:00-05:00

At one time, the dorm housed as many as 40 or 50 prisoners packed together like sardines, according to Caperton. The plan is to convert the space into two or three one-bedroom apartments, which is a considerably more comfortable arrangement than the last residents of the building had. Caperton says that in the 1980s and '90s Lorton Prison had a reputation for being dangerously overcrowded.

Philadelphia dreams of a low-line too

2012-11-19T12:26:00-05:00

The idea of creating a low-line companion to Philadelphia's planned high line has so gripped imaginations that a team of top designers has volunteered to sketch ideas for a belowground trail on the west side of Broad St. Tours are now practically weekly events conducted by Paul van Meter, who first proposed a low-line park. There's one hitch: A new city plan just earmarked the low-line trench for a high-speed bus route that would connect a string of cultural venues to the heart of downtown.

Prentice Women's Hospital gets a temporary reprieve

2012-11-16T17:55:00-05:00

A judge Thursday gave at least a temporary reprieve to old Prentice Women's Hospital by stopping the city from issuing a demolition permit to Northwestern University until it can be determined whether the process by which the building was denied landmark status was properly carried out. Circuit Judge Neil Cohen said the public's interest would be harmed if the building came down before the merits of a lawsuit filed by preservationists were considered.

The city’s vintage town houses aren’t getting any younger.

2012-11-15T00:14:00-05:00

“In historic districts, the commission always regulated the entire lot,” said Sarah Carroll, the director of preservation at the agency. “But in the last decade we’ve been seeing more applications for rear-facade changes, particularly in Brooklyn, where there hadn’t been as many changes in the rear yards as in the past. And so we’ve been focusing more on the interiors of blocks.”

Constance Rosenblum reviews a number of recent examples of "contemporary" brownstone renovations in NYC. The article refers to work by Michael Rubin Architects, Rafael Viñoly, Rogers Marvel Architects, Kinlin Rutherfurd Architects, David Hecht and Brendan Coburn Brooklyn architects. One basic point is that the town-house typology, proves very adaptable. However, there is a tension between flexible accommodation and rigid preservation-ism, in terms of aesthetic conservation.

Buyer drops bid to purchase David and Gladys Wright House

2012-11-13T17:23:00-05:00

“While the prospective buyer strongly supports efforts to preserve the David and Gladys Wright house, he has concluded that for personal and business reasons, this is not an opportunity he will pursue at this time. He has every confidence that a preservation minded buyer will be found, and that the house will be preserved," representatives of the prospective buyer told Joffe.

Video tour of the David & Gladys Wright House

2012-11-06T18:22:00-05:00

The David & Gladys Wright house has recently sold and we were able to tour it in June of 2012 - Immediate Community support is needed to ensure the future of this very significant home.

As reported yesterday, a buyer was found to save this Frank Lloyd Wright house. Twitter user @jculpjr just pointed out to us this video walkthrough of the property.