Archinect - News

Paris Olympics Athlete's Village to cool without AC during summer games

2024-05-03T17:30:00-04:00

To combat the intense summer heat in France, a geothermal energy system will cool the athlete apartments in the Seine-Saint-Denis suburb. This technology utilizes natural resources and is expected to reduce carbon impact by 45 percent compared to traditional air conditioning systems. The system will maintain a temperature below 79 degrees Fahrenheit during the night, even in the event of a heatwave, according to Laurent Michaud, the director of the Olympic and Paralympic Villages.

The planned alternative system will distribute cold water from underground to cool through the floors of the apartments, which will later become home to more than 6,000 permanent residents after the more than 15,000 Olympic and Paralympics athletes vacate in September. The buildings all have green roofs and will reportedly be powered completely by renewable energy in line with Paris' 2050 principles. Their construction achieved a 30% reduction in its carbon footprint compared to other modern projects.

Other countries, meanwhile, have promised to bring their own portable systems as a backup as experts have forecasted another unusually hot summer for the continent.

Get Lectured: UCLA, Summer '23

2023-06-09T14:45:00-04:00

Summer is here, and schools like UCLA School of Architecture and Urban Design are preparing for their Summer '23 lecture series. To accompany its AUD summer programming (JumpStart and TeenArch Summer Institute), UCLA's upcoming lecture series "offers programming and conversation that is simultaneously fundamental and complementary to [our] Summer Programs pedagogy."

Starting on July 7, a lecture between NMDA's Niel Denari and ALLTHATISSOLID's Max Kuo will take place. FormlessFinder's Garrett Ricciardi will give a lecture on July 10, followed by a lecture from UCLA AUD IDEAS Technology Studio lecturer Laure Michelon and David Freeland of FreelandBuck on July 14.

Natalie Alima of BIOLAB Studio will present a lecture on July 17, followed by a lecture from LA-based duo Sean Boyd and Mora Nabi of Nabi Boyd. Concluding the lecture summer lectures series is a presentation from Harvard GSD Doctoral candidate Katarina Richter-Lunn and Joel Kerner of Studio Joel Kerner on July 24. On July 25,...

2023 summer programs from Archinect School Partners offer pathways to an architectural education

2023-05-31T13:03:00-04:00

Interested in exploring a career in architecture and design but want to develop foundational skills and grow your design portfolio? Below are featured architecture summer programs from our Archinect Partner Schools that are still accepting applications!

These nine summer programs are offered for kids, high school students, recent high school graduates, and adults. The courses and workshops listed below offer participants, even those without prior design experience, access to the fundamentals of an architectural education. Our list also includes programs for those with existing backgrounds adjacent to architecture looking to explore specific topics with a design emphasis.

SCI-Arc presents...

DID 2022 cohort works on "Make it COOL" shade structures on SCI-Arc campus. Image courtesy of SCI-Arc.

Design Immersion Days (DID) - Los Angeles, CA (In-Person)
Dates: June 10 – July 14

Details: "Design Immersion Days (DID) is an immersive four-week summer program that introduces high school stud...

UC Berkeley’s successful environmental design summer programs are back on campus

2022-05-03T16:15:00-04:00

This post is brought to you by UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design

The College of Environmental Design (CED) at UC Berkeley was the first college to combine architecture, landscape architecture, and city planning in one entity. This happened in the 1950s, and throughout the years, students have benefited from CED’s interdisciplinary approaches, as well as the strengths of the college’s individual departments alike. For example, CED has been consistently placed in the Top 10 QS ranking in the category Architecture & Built Environment.

In 2022, the CED Summer Programs are in their ninth year and continue to build their success upon the unique tradition and achievement of the college. Summer Program participants consistently give the programs and their instructors excellent reviews. Additionally, CED Summer Programs alumni have been admitted to graduate degree programs at Columbia, Cornell, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, UCLA, Yale, and last but not least, UC Berkeley.

The faculty a...

LAForum's 2020 Summer Exhibition “Every. Thing. Changes.” showcases the collective views of 20 Los Angeles-based designers and thinkers

2020-08-06T13:27:00-04:00

This post is brought to you by the L.A. Forum

The summer exhibition “Every. Thing. Changes.” by the Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design presents 20 new works documenting the collective view of life in Los Angeles in its new decade. The newly commissioned texts and visual works exhibited in “Every. Thing. Changes.” were developed over the course of spring 2020, and are the outcomes of a “call and response” process between five initial L.A.-based writers, their texts, and the visual responses of five L.A.-based collaborators (of the allied design disciplines: architecture, landscape architecture, urban design). The 10 writers/designers then chose one additional collaborator each to bring into the process, for a total of 20 new visual and text-based works.

Featured Participants:

Archinect looks back at the work of 2019's summer architecture school intensives

2019-08-28T16:15:00-04:00

Summer is a great time for aspiring students and professionals to enhance their skills and expand their portfolios. With the season quickly coming to a close and students ready to begin a new school year, let's take a look at a few of the architecture workshops and intensives around the world.

Spanning anywhere from one week to a full month, the following summer programs provide high school students, architecture students, and other adults without architecture backgrounds the ability to explore and expand their exposure to the field.

Program: Making+Meaning
Institution: SCI-Arc
Program Faculty: Alexis Rochas (Program coordinator)
Zeina Koreitem, Matthew Au, and David Eskenazi

"Most of our students come from incredibly diverse backgrounds—chefs, sociologists, physicists—with a piqued interest in what architecture is, but nobody really knows how to define it," Alexis Rochas, program coordinator for SCI-Arc's Making+Meaning program explains during the program final review. This year, s...

A fine-grained look at America's urban "heatscapes"

2019-08-13T18:37:00-04:00

As the United States suffers through a summer of record-breaking heat, new research shows that temperatures on a scorching summer day can vary as much as 20 degrees across different parts of the same city, with poor or minority neighborhoods often bearing the brunt of that heat.

Using a series of dramatic, color-coded maps, The New York Times highlights the growing disparity between exactly which neighborhoods in America feel the ever-increasing urban heat island effect. The report details stark temperature differences between the neighborhoods of several major cities, where temperatures can vary by as much as 20-degrees, depending on layout, urban design, and topography.

In Baltimore, for example, temperatures can range from 87-degrees in the city's wealthy suburban districts, where tree-lined streets and yards help to mitigate the heat island effect, to upwards of 101-degrees in the city's working class inner core neighborhoods, where tightly-clustered row houses and surface parking lots amplify the sun's power.

In Portland, Oregon, the temperature discrepancy between the city's leafy, park-adjacent westside and the industrial areas surrounding the airport in the northeast follows a similar trajectory. The city's massive Forest Park produces, according ...

View construction time-lapse of the National Building Museum's new summer installation

2019-07-11T12:36:00-04:00

Imagine bringing the feeling of summer indoors. In conjunction with the National Building Museum's annual Summer Block Party Installation, the Rockwell Group turned the museum's Great Hall into a green-hilled summer experience. Complete with painted murals of blue skies, plenty of space to lounge as well as fun summer activities, visitors can roam throughout the transformed hall. Thanks to EarthCam, time-lapse footage of the installation's construction allows for the public to go behind the scenes and witness the building process of the Great Hall transforming into a dreamy summer environment.

Lawn. Image © Timothy Schenck.

A great way to experience a summer day without breaking a sweat, the Rockwell Group aimed to make the installation as green as possible, literally. All of the materials used, from the artificial astroturf to the repurposing of the site's scaffolding. The artificial grass is made out of plant-based materials by SynLawn. In addition to the grassy slopes, the muse...

Pedro & Juana's “Hórama Rama” cyclorama opens at MoMA PS1

2019-06-28T14:15:00-04:00

After winning MoMA PS1's 2019 Young Architects Program this past March, “Hórama Rama” is now open to the public in time for summer festivities. Ana Paula Ruiz Galindo and Mecky Reuss of Mexico City-based studio Pedro & Juana designed the temporary installation as a 40-foot-high, 90-foot-wide cyclorama structure that immerses visitors into a jungle landscape.

Hórama Rama by Pedro & Juana, presented as part of the Young Architects Program 2019 at MoMA PS1. Photo: © Rafael Gamo.

Hórama Rama by Pedro & Juana, presented as part of the Young Architects Program 2019 at MoMA PS1. Image courtesy MoMA PS1. Photo: Kris Graves.

The cyclorama has a panoramic image of a jungle on scaffolding that sits above the PS1 courtyard, which reconfigures the courtyard space into an immersive environment that allows visitors to move in and out of. To add to that, the installation features a functioning, cooling waterfall and hammocks that were made in the south of Mexico. Wooden “bristles” protrude from the s...

Taco Bell to open a hotel in Palm Springs

2019-05-16T19:38:00-04:00

Get ready for “Bell”hops and Baja Blasts, Fire Sauce and Sauce Packet floaties, because The Bell: A Taco Bell Hotel and Resort is opening for a limited time in Palm Springs this August, meant for 18+ superfans. Complete with exclusive Taco Bell menu items and plenty of surprises, The Bell is sure to be the spicy twist of your summer. So pack your swimsuit, mark your calendars and start the countdown, because The Bell is about to make all of your taco dreams come true.

for a limited pop-up run this August, Taco Bell will open a hotel in Palm Springs (not to be confused with their permanent wedding chapel in Las Vegas).

Photo courtesy of Taco Bell

The Taco Bell-themed hotel is just one example of many recent strategies for well-established brands to develop interactive spaces as methods of promotional marketing. We recently covered a more permanent version with the recently opened Shinola Hotel in Detroit.

8 featured architectural internship job opportunities across the country, from Seattle to New Orleans

2019-05-16T15:14:00-04:00

Continuing with our internship roundup, we've gathered 8 internship opportunities available across the country. From Seattle to Boulder, Houston to New Orleans, firms are seeking the right candidate to grow with their team through summer internships as well as full-time internship opportunities.

Madison Alpine Garden by Wittman Estes Architecture + Landscape. Image by Andrew Pogue

Wittman Estes Architecture + Landscape seek a Summer Intern
Location: Seattle, WA
Wittman Estes Architecture + Landscape is seeking a designer intern to work with our practice in Georgetown. Founded in 2012, our work is based on the belief that buildings and landscapes can be combined into one interconnected whole. Candidates must be currently enrolled in or completed a professional degree in Architecture. The interdisciplinary nature of the office includes both architecture and landscape project types, from small structures to large public spaces. Current projects include: new residences, multifamily housin...

Summer in Bryant Park rendered as a Voronoi Diagram

2017-08-08T14:40:00-04:00

Instead of the usual snap of people lounging in the sun in Bryant Park, visual effects artist Rod Bogart has created a Voronoi diagram of the outing and posted it to his Twitter account. When asked how he had placed the center points of the diagram, Bogart tweeted that "I used Illustrator to drop points and then just ran a plugin that created the Voronoi for me. It was pretty quick to do, to be honest."

New Rooftop Observatory launched at Bold Tendencies

2017-07-25T05:36:00-04:00

Peckham’s famous multi-storey car park has a new addition; a new viewing gallery created by Cooke Fawcett. The young practice, based in London’s creative Clerkenwell, was formed just two years ago, by directors Oliver Cooke and Francis Fawcett, after working on the Tate’s Switch House at Stirling-prize winning practice Herzog & de Meuron.

This project, a spectacular kiosk and viewing gallery for arts space Bold Tendencies, will not only provide breathtaking views of London but also act as an interactive setting for installations and specially commissioned art pieces. This arts-focused structure joins (and benefits from) Peckham’s famous rooftop hangout, Frank’s Bar. Over the past decade, the Peckham multi-storey car park has been slowly transformed by Bold Tendancies, through a programme of culture. Immersive public space and unique views have drawn over a million visitors south of the river, to this unlikely home of the arts.

Francis Fawcett: “For an avant garde cultural institut...

Urban Arts Collective to kick off 2017 Hip Hop Architecture Camps for under-represented youth

2017-06-05T18:26:00-04:00

Non-profit organization Urban Arts Collective is about to kick off their 2017 youth Hip Hop Architecture Camp, a one-week experience that introduces under-represented youth to architecture, urban planning, and economic development — all through the lens of hip hop culture and its historic relationship with the built environment.

Designed for middle school and high school kids, camps take place in Los Angeles, Austin, Atlanta, and Detroit through August. Youngsters will get to work with architecture and design professionals, community activists, and hip hop artists to form their own visions for their communities, including building physical and digital models, and having fun creating their own hip hop architecture track and music video summarizing their designs.

It's no surprise that the camp has received overwhelming interest, so potential participants must apply for the limited spaces available in each city. You can find the application forms for each location and further info at h...

The National Building Museum's blockbuster ball pit is coming to Tampa next month

2016-07-19T18:35:00-04:00

How can anyone forget Snarkitecture's giant monochromatic ball pit that took over the National Building Museum's Great Hall last summer? Following a wildly successful run that attracted a record-breaking 160,000 visitors, The BEACH is making a comeback at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida starting August 5. Plus, general admission is free!

Photos by Noah Kalina.

It also looks like the installation is coming back bigger than before, spanning 15,000 square feet with a 75-foot-wide “shoreline”, and comprising 1.2 million of the antimicrobial plastic balls. The NBM version was 10,000 square feet, and its more than 650,000 plastic balls were reused in Hou de Sousa's winning design of the Dupont Underground's Re-Ball! competition. No word as of yet if and how the Tampa installation will be recycled.

If you plan on diving into the ball pit at the arena, keep a close watch on your loose belongings when “splashing” around. The Tampa Bay Times writes that more than 1,000 items were lost at the...

Marina City balconies off-limits to residents during prolonged repair work: 'Summer Bummer'

2016-07-11T15:36:00-04:00

It’s shaping up to be one bummer of a summer for Marina City, where some residents have been banned from their balconies. City inspectors discovered trouble with nearly 2,000 balcony railings [...] While crews work to fix 1,920 handrail posts, 1,300 balusters and 1,020 bottom rails, some residents have been banned from using the balconies for four months or longer. [...] “What’s worse is that we’re not allowed to open the door to the balcony to let the breeze in.”

The iconic Marina City towers—now officially a city landmark—recently in the Archinect news:

Dive into James Corner's field of ICEBERGS, now at the National Building Museum

2016-07-06T20:07:00-04:00

Walk into the Great Hall of Washington D.C.'s National Building Museum right now and you'll find a glacial landscape of geometric "icebergs" floating before you. Landscape architect James Corner worked alongside the NBM to design the chilling scene, as part of the museum's 2016 Summer Block Party. In the past, the yearly series hosted Snarkitecture's monochromatic BEACH and BIG's gigantic maze.

Opening this past Saturday, ICEBERGS lets visitors catch a break from D.C.'s hot, humid summers. The installation is based on themes related to physical experience and landscape representation, according to James Corner Field Operations, welcoming visitors with an “interactive and playful space of respite and reflection”.

Encased in a large blue net, the installation comprises over 30 prismatic triangular pentahedrons and octahedrons constructed from translucent polycarbonate panels, and range from 16-56 feet in height.

Visitors can cool off as they lounge on chunky, triangular beanbags strewn a...

Cool off at James Corner's ICEBERGS at the National Building Museum this summer

2016-03-09T17:45:00-05:00

James Corner Field Operations is transforming the National Building Museum's Great Hall into a glacial landscape of ICEBERGS for the museum's annual Summer Block Party installation, following two wildly successful years with Snarkitecture's monochromatic BEACH and BIG's gigantic maze. Today, James Corner revealed their initial concept for the collaborative project.

ICEBERGS emphasizes the themes of landscape representation, physical experience, geometry and construction, according to the architects. Once the installation opens on July 2, people will get to wander through an immersive underwater-world of geometric icebergs, with the tallest "bergy bit" towering at 56 feet to the third-story balcony of the museum.

The 12,540 square-foot installation will be comprised of more than 30 prismatic triangular pentahedrons and octahedrons made from reusable translucent polycarbonate panels, with some hanging from the ceiling to appear as if they were floating. A "water line" suspended at 20 f...

UrbanCampsite Amsterdam lets visitors camp in style in these artsy "tents"

2015-07-24T15:41:00-04:00

If you happen to find yourself wandering IJburg's Centrumeiland artificial island in Amsterdam this summer, you might encounter a peculiar group of art installations randomly camped out in what feels like the middle of nowhere. Although the installations alone are enough to draw in passers-by, they're actually part of UrbanCampsite Amsterdam, an outdoor public exhibition wherein you can, yes, go camping.

Founders Annette van Driel and Francis Nijenhuis launched UrbanCampsite Amsterdam this past June after a successful first exhibition last year. As a way to brighten up the "sandy piece of wasteland" on the IJburg island and attract visitors to the developing neighborhood, the project offers all the basics of outdoor camping — but appeals to anyone looking to add a "luxurious" artsy twist in their experience.

The campsite features 12 very different installations mostly built out of waste materials. With an Airbnb reservation, a lucky number of visitors can spend the night in these char...

LEGO Architecture launches new student acoustic-design challenge to restore a destroyed music theater

2015-07-22T14:29:00-04:00

Following a successful inaugural event last year, LEGO Architecture is presenting another opportunity for architecture students in the Villa Pennisi in Musica 2015 summer workshop to hone their acoustic-design and LEGO-building skills in the upcoming #FILLTHETHEATRE challenge.

Taking place in August at the Villa Pennisi in Italy, the workshop challenge is part of the 15-day Villa Pennisi in Musica festival that brings together classical music, architecture, and performance design. Attendees get to check out live music performances, exhibitions, lectures, and presentations by major classical musicians and notable practitioners in architecture and sound design.

Using the 1,200-piece monochromatic LEGO Architecture Studio sets, students will build scale models of indoor structures that will amplify the acoustics of the historic Teatro Bellini of Acireale, a baroque theater that was destroyed in a fire in the 1960s. The theater was only partially reconstructed, but is no longer in use due...

REMINDER: The 2015 AA Summer DLAB :: RED application deadline is July 20!

2015-07-14T17:25:00-04:00

There's still time to apply for the AA School of Architecture 2015 Summer DLAB :: RED workshop. Starting July 27 through August 14, the summer program emphasizes the integration of algorithmic / generative design methodologies and large scale digital fabrication tools. Student participants get to explore natural formation processes and interpret them as innovative architectonic spaces.

Continuing its yearly color-based agenda with RED, the 2015 Summer DLAB will investigate the phenomenon of decay in nature.

The program is open to all current architecture and design students. The application deadline is July 20. (Application form below)

By investigating the process of decay across various scales in natural organisms, DLAB participants will formulate rules of generating decomposition as their design research area. These rules will then evolve into design strategies for the creation and fabrication of a large-scale prototype. The design and fabrication process will be informed by the use ...

Snarkitecture's 10,000 sq ft indoor BEACH at the National Building Museum

2015-07-07T14:07:00-04:00

Following Bjarke Ingels Group's wildly successful BIG Maze last summer, one could only wonder how Washington D.C.'s National Building Museum would one-up itself this time around. Enter Alex Mustonen and Daniel Arsham of Snarkitecture, who envisioned the 10,000 square-foot indoor BEACH that opened on July 4 in the Museum's Great Hall.

Decked out in Snarkitecture's all-white aesthetic, the monochromatic installation has beach chairs and umbrellas on the "shoreline" and an "ocean" of nearly 1 million recyclable translucent plastic balls for visitors to "splash" in, facing a mirrored wall that creates the illusion of a vast expanse. The Museum commissioned Snarkitecture to design the giant ball-pit — which was first announced back in April — for the annual “Summer Block Party,” which consists of various public programming, exhibitions, and events.

'We see the commission as an exciting opportunity to create an architectural installation that reimagines the qualities and possibilities of ma...

Make Music NY crowdfunds upcoming youth archi-music show "Concerto for Buildings"

2015-06-11T09:04:00-04:00

The architecturally and musically inclined can join in on Make Music New York festivities this year with a special orchestral performance called "Concerto for Buildings" on Sunday, June 21. Make Music New York is a one-day music fest on the first day of summer that boasts more than 1,000 free concerts, which all take place throughout NYC's five borroughs.

For its ninth year, MMNY set up an Indiegogo campaign with a flexible goal of $7,000 to reel in further support for Concerto for Buildings. The musical showcase stars two NYC youth orchestra ensembles, Face The Music and Mantra Youth Percussion, and four composers: Paula Matthusen (winner of the 2014-2015 Rome Prize), Scott Wollshleger, Daniel Goode, and Face the Music student-composer Elijah Valongo. Surrounded by SoHo's historic cast-iron buildings, the performers will play their hearts out as they take advantage of the structures' percussive qualities, thus transforming them into a complementary musical backdrop.

Funds from the In...

Have a seat at the "Urban Reef" installation in downtown Vancouver, Canada

2014-08-12T18:52:00-04:00

Meandering down a section of Robson Street on the iconic 800 block in downtown Vancouver, passers-by can sit, relax, play, and socialize on the "Urban Reef" installation. Designed by Kaz Bremner and Jeremiah Deutscher with local furniture collective Higher Works, Urban Reef won the inaugural VIVA Vancouver: Robson Redux design-build competition out of 78 submissions worldwide.

The competition had entrants create a temporary urban installation to transform the block to a welcoming public plaza from Canada Day (July 1) until Labor Day (September 1).

More details on Bustler.

Check out a timelapse video and the making-of teaser below.

A preview of the VIS-Á-VIS performance series at Materials & Applications in Los Angeles

2014-08-06T15:07:00-04:00

Materials & Applications in Los Angeles has some fun social Saturday night events lined up for the entire month of August! The four-part VIS-Á-VIS performance series will include dance, music, a video and sound installations, and a film screening.

Starting August 9, all events will take place in the Materials & Applications space at the La Cage aux Folles, a 346-piece metal pipe temporary playground installation designed by Warren Techentin Architecture.

August 9: LA Fort Presents: Daedelus (DJ set), Lawrence Lindell, Matt McGuire and Will Walden (StaG) - experimental + electronic music performance

August 16: Tracy Abbott Szatan / IN/VISIBLE - video installation and performance

August 23: bel-air / New York Memo - sound recording installation

AND Ear Cleaning Workshop with Greg Ruben, based on the teaching methodology by Canadian composer R. Murray Schafer (spaces limited)

August 30: Eugene Kotlyarenko presents: "Nobody Wants to Play With Me" (Werner Herzog)+rare feature film - a film screening curated by L.A. filmmaker Eugene Kotlyarenko.

Head over to Bustler to learn more about each event.

The reUNION Public House

2012-07-13T21:27:00-04:00

Remember how four years ago French architecture collective EXYZT and filmmaker Sara Muzio created the acclaimed Southwark Lido, a temporary bath in the heart of London? Well, they're certainly back - this summer with...BEER! The reUNION Public House sets out to celebrate a "cornerstone of British life" and will be serving a selection of London's finest micro-brewed beers while hosting neighborhood feasts, live music, and film screenings.

According to the organizers, "The reUNION will go further in testing the economic sustainability of pop-ups, and their potential influence on permanent urban development."

The reUNION is free and open to everyone. Check the event website for opening hours and directions.

Click here to revisit the Southwark Lido Showcase Feature from July 2008.

From the School Blogs: Slow summer...slummer

2011-08-18T12:43:08-04:00

Do you remember when you took driving lessons and the teacher said to be particularly careful about your speed when you're exiting a highway, because you've adjusted to its high speeds? Same thing here, the other way around. And the lazy pace of a summer of glorious unemployment surely also helps, but a walk to the gym, to the river, or to see friends a few blocks away is enough for me at the moment.

Unpaid Interns, Complicit Colleges

2011-04-03T18:29:56-04:00

ON college campuses, the annual race for summer internships, many of them unpaid, is well under way. But instead of steering students toward the best opportunities and encouraging them to value their work, many institutions of higher learning are complicit in helping companies skirt a nebulous area of labor law.