Archinect - News

Editor's Picks #565

2024-12-02T00:55:00-05:00

The latest entry in the Deans List series, with USC Architecture Dean Brett Steele generated some discussion with Thayer-D and Will Galloway both ultimately agreeing that "North America cities are not being built in the nicest way right now. Lots of...car-dominated planning in general that does not compare well with what we did in the past…Somehow we seem incapable of that kind of outcome with our current planning laws and economy."

Plus, in celebration of International Coffee Day Archinect picked a few favorite examples of new café designs. Bench appreciated the "breadth of projects shown here across cultures. Really lovely work happening in far flung corners of the world that i never would have seen otherwise. Awesome article, more of this".

Mamonaku Kohi in Quezon City, Philippines

News

The new NCARB Competency Standard for Architects outlines 16 key competencies. Donna Sink felt "These all seem reasonable". For their part bennyc thought "16 is a big change and valuable addition"...

Editor's Picks #564

2024-11-05T12:29:00-05:00

As part of the Archinect In-Depth: Licensure series, Niall Patrick Walsh gathered perspectives from Mike Armstrong, CEO of NCARB, Pascale Sablan, President of NOMA, architect and author Melvin L. Mitchell, writer and editor John Parman, architect and Professor Emeritus at George B. Johnston and Peggy Deamer author and Professor Emerita at Yale University.

Later, Kate Wingert-Playdon, Senior Associate Dean and Director of Architecture at Temple University, made the case for "always working in collaboration. That is a strong theme here at Tyler...so many good results in the built environment rely on good relationships, including well-conceived contracts…Respect is a big piece of collaboration. This is not to say that all design comes down to a contract; it is still about creative thinking. But a good contract isn’t just about business and law".

News

The_Crow felt the Snøhetta-led expansion for The Joslyn Art Museum was "pretty corporate tbh". What’s your take?

Photo © Nic Lehoux, cou...

Editor's Picks #563

2024-10-07T21:02:00-04:00

ICYMI Niall Patrick Walsh started the State of AEC intended to "guide you through the latest analyses, indexes, and trends on how the architecture and construction industries are performing economically."

In reporting on the September U.S. Federal Reserve rate cut he pointed out "the Fed’s interest rate today sits at almost exactly the same level as it was in 2007, before a series of rapid cuts in response to the 2008 economic crash. Back then, the AIA’s Architecture Billings Index began a decline in January 2008 that lasted every month for two and a half years until July 2010."

Later, Niall also explored the impact of post-pandemic changes driving "what architecture studios are, and increasingly are not, commissioned to design". Will Galloway weighed in from Japan

"Interesting findings. I wonder if this is the new normal or still a period of settling into something new…Not sure where we will come down on this topic in the end, but I can imagine a quite different office set up in t...

Editor's Picks #562

2024-08-29T20:31:00-04:00

Earlier this summer, Archinect invited the community to share insights and feedback on the economic outlook of their firm and sector. Analysis of these results has been released in two parts. Part I and Part II

The "survey showed a significant divergence between the sentiments of owners and workers" in a couple of key areas, which made sense to Donna Sink "overall employees are more anxious than owners. Possibly because they're younger and more pessimistic about the future in general?...It's bleak out here."

Plus, Joseph Choma, Director of Florida Atlantic University's School of Architecture, explained the thinking behind FAU’s five-year BArch and their approach to AI, demystifying the digital, teaching "computation even though they are not using a computer" and how "One of the roles of the architect will be to create a web or network to connect the AIs together".

News

The United States Department of Defense finalized a revision to the fee limitations for federal design projects aft...

Editor's Picks #561

2024-08-05T19:55:00-04:00

Following its over-quarter-century run, Rene Peralta bid A Bittersweet Farewell to Woodbury University School of Architecture in San Diego. Janosh echoed his sentiments "Woodbury's SD campus represented an unusually thoughtful and conscientious moment in Architectural education".

Plus, Niall Patrick Walsh argued a "new DOE definition of a ‘zero emissions building’ is not only devoid of regulatory power; it is also a weak definition."

News

The Oklahoma City Council approved a request for unlimited building height by the development team behind the proposed 1,907-foot-tall Legends Tower. monosierra is a skeptic: "still think the ultimate plan is to just build the low to medium rise podium buildings and leave it at that. But to get financing...the developer decided to hype up the project...for maximum PR. The trick to getting financing is to convince skeptical FOMO investors".

‘Nectors reacted to the "Allegations of executive misconduct on the part of American Institute of Architects (...

Editor's Picks #560

2024-06-26T16:33:00-04:00

Jamie Chan connected with sixteen women, ranging from current and former students, professors and deans, about What It Means To Be Female in Architecture School.

"What is clear is that we are in the midst of a generational shift, with more people paying attention to female leaders in the field" yet she acknowledges "that there is much work to be done."

Sitting Duck felt it "A comprehensive audit of testimonies of where we stand" and while Janosh seemed to agree, also suggested "it would have been great to hear some acknowledgement that the high cost of architectural education and its failure to prepare individuals for practice is a major contributor to the lack of diversity in practice."

Plus, Archinect released a new anonymous survey "in order to assess the profession’s current economic condition" with promises to "present our findings and analysis" once enough responses are gathered and the data has been compiled.

News

‘Nectors were fans of SOM's Schwarzman College of Computing a...

Editor's Picks #559

2024-05-23T20:53:00-04:00

Niall Patrick Walsh wrote the final (of 26 features) chapter of Archinect In-Depth: Artificial Intelligence.

Therein “New contributions on the topic from Autodesk's Mike Haley and Superusers author Randy Deutsch are joined by earlier reflections from throughout the series by Richard Saul Wurman, Carlo Ratti, Bjarke Ingels, and Molly Wright Steenson." One key takeaway: “AI will not replace architects, but architects who use AI will replace those who do not."

For those who’d missed any of the series, Will Galloway felt it a "Great summary" and wondered "If we do go all in to the AI future our role as creatives may be simply to feed the new infrastructure of information…How does the economics of that world even work? Will we be the tool users or the material that tools are made from?"

News

After seeing their new carbon analysis tool reallynotmyname opined "I don't know why Autodesk is obsessed with automating pre-design and conceptual tasks. This particular tool seems to emanate from a...

Editor's Picks #558

2024-04-18T15:38:00-04:00

Back in March, Niall Patrick Walsh published a chat with Melodie Yashar Vice President of Building Design & Performance at the construction technologies company ICON. At one point he quips "That’s a shame. Destructive testing would make for great TikTok content".

Later Melodie reflects "The most important thing, from my perspective…is to maintain a willingness to learn and listen to others from disparate fields…to keep an open mind, to be sure that the right people are at the table…to ensure we are not becoming siloed".

CarbonX material testing. Photo credit - ICON

News

Olson Kundig completed a series of eight custom single-family homes, in West Hollywood, collectively named ‘The Houses at 8899 Beverly’. Janosh agreed with jimblake, at least in terms of the "underlying sentiment. I like their work but in the same way some other people admire supercars. They are handsome, have nothing to do with my life and are not at all sustainable simply based on their size and resource consumpti...

Editor's Picks #557

2024-03-12T15:03:00-04:00

For the first Studio Snapshots of 2024, Alexander Walter had the pleasure of chatting with Brent Linden and Chris Brown, founding partners of Portland, Oregon-based Linden, Brown Architecture. Noah Walker liked what he saw: "Beautiful work."

Plus, Niall Patrick Walsh lays out how Creativity Won’t Protect Architects from Automation — But Labor Unions Might. Responding to Thayer-D’s comment, Janosh writes: "Unions make a ton of sense in disciplines where there is significant profit being inequitably distributed - that's definitely not the case in Architecture as profit margins continue to fall".

News

Steven Holl Architects Terezín Ghetto Museum project in the Czech Republic is getting closer to groundbreaking. Gary Garvin is hoping "Holl redeems himself here…I'm curious about the interior."

Image courtesy Steven Holl Architects and SKUPINA

KPF released new images of a supertall tower, 520 Fifth Avenue, currently under construction in Midtown Manhattan. gwharton tried to summarize folks...

Editor's Picks #556

2024-02-19T15:42:00-05:00

Architects Orange have developed a proposal for Oklahoma City featuring what could become the "the tallest building in the United States and currently fifth tallest in the world." thom.Bohlen@pima.gov agrees "with the previous negative design comments, and would add that the 1,750 ft tower element appears to be an afterthought, and not the driver of the design."

Most everyone is excited about plans for the redevelopment of the soon-to-close Santa Monica Airport by Sasaki Associates, who are now the lead consultants for both the design and public outreach process.

via https://santamonicanext.org/2023/12/council-votes-for-airport-outreach-plan-process-will-be-led-by-sasaki/

The American Institute of Architects (as well as a couple of ‘Nectors) welcomed a revision to fee limitations, from 6 to 10 percent of total estimated construction costs, on all federal design and construction contracts undertaken with the Department of Defense.

Oana Stănescu is the curator for the Beta 2024 Timișoa...

Editor's Picks #555

2024-01-22T20:16:00-05:00

In the second to last installment of the Deans List in 2023, Paul Petrunia explores the vision of Quilian Riano, newly appointed at Pratt Institute's School of Architecture.

Orhan Ayyüce appreciates how "Quilian always preached and expanded on community impact on architecture. ‘His legacy’ from my point of view, would be a perpetual citizen architect for doing the talk and the walk for the greater good."

Plus, Niall Patrick Walsh spoke with Alisa Andrasek about "the relationship between computation, data, and architecture" et al.

Cloud Pergola designed by Alisa Andrasek, the Croatian Pavilion for the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale. Image credit, Luke Hayes

News

Last year MVRDV completed the colorful (as in "eye-catching canary color finish") HAUS 1 office conversion in Berlin. Gary Garvin was definitely a fan "++++".

Image courtesy of MVRDV

A team led by Shigeru Ban constructed Paper Log House a prototype for wildfire-ravaged Maui.

Kimberly Dowdell was inaugurated as the AIA's fi...

Editor's Picks #554

2023-12-29T00:45:00-05:00

In a conversation with Niall Patrick Walsh, Natasha Sandmeier considered the potential up-side(s) to the growing abilities of Artificial Intelligence "I do not believe there are many creatives who aspire to draw door details for three months or to endlessly clean up red-line drawings. Yet, these constitute the majority of tasks for many architects...If we can outsource such taxing labor, whether door details or miscellaneous writing, AI has the potential to impact our workflow positively while also opening new doors and avenues of exploration for the profession."

Via by Jiaqi Kang, Deeksha Harish, Yilan Huang (UCLA AUD Entertainment Studio 2023).Via follows a group of cloaked wanderers who drift across landscapes and seasons, finding balance between humans and nature. In a far distant future, post-AI, the wanderers migrate past electrified fields, examples of a new nature.

Plus, the folks from Archinect HQ shared what they are Thankful for in 2023. Of note, founder Paul Petrunia took...

Editor's Picks #553

2023-12-11T17:04:00-05:00

As part of Archinect’s In-Depth: Artificial Intelligence series, Niall Patrick Walsh reported out from a conversation with Morehshin Allahyari about among other things a "re-figuring of the past…about technological relationships as well as the power relationships in which technology plays a role."

Image credit; Miriam Hillawi Abraham and Areej Al Musalhi

Niall also chatted with Miriam Hillawi Abraham "a multidisciplinary designer and researcher based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia".

News

NCARB and ARB released reciprocal licensure guidelines for architects in the US and UK. One of the first to comment was josephestefanos who has "just completed this process. Now…licensed in both countries, which is awesome! It's pretty seamless and quite easy procedure. It took almost 3 months start to finish." Contra some folks he argued "it's not BS. The codes are so close. It totally makes sense. In both countries, Architects go through some rigorous measures to get qualified. It used to take years and...

Editor's Picks #552

2023-11-13T15:24:00-05:00

Compared to the Summer 2020 survey, the latest Archinect community mental health survey results show a moderate recovery since the COVID-19 pandemic, "although 34.1% still rate theirs at 5 or below".

For instance, h0wl works for "a pretty progressive company" and they still "feel burnt out" which makes sense since as gwharton noted "Unmanaged free-floating anxiety seems to be a significantly increasing problem. I'm not sure what to even do about that, since it seems to be a general symptom of modern living."

via https://archinect.com/features...

News

The Chicago Athenaeum and the European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies announced a group of Turkish architects and human rights activists as the 2023 European Prize for Architecture laureates. Orhan Ayyüce applauded "Gezi Park activists have no place in prison and harsh terms. Wonderful award to the right people. Gezi Park is modern times' first urbanist revolt and the government uses it to punish valuable intellec...

Editor's Picks #551

2023-10-03T20:30:00-04:00

As part of Archinect’s Studio Pin-Ups series, Katherine Guimapang featured work from NYIT’s ARCH 802 Design-Research Studio "Designing (Inter)Scalar Domains".

Reimaging Social Infrastructures Urban Conservation - Coexisting Ecologies by Kaymar Thomas via NYIT

Plus, for the latest Studio Snapshots she highlighted the work of Studio MUKA, a West-coast based boutique-sized firm with a team of 4–6 people, founded in 2021.

via Studio MUKA

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UC Santa Barbara's released an RFQ for the "construction of the UCSB Student Housing Infill and Redevelopment Project" which appears to confirm a turning point in the history of the hotly contested and breathtakingly window-deprived Munger Hall proposal.

Madrid-based Nieto Sobejano Arquitectos won the Reimagining the Dallas Museum of Art International Design Competition. While some were disappointed monosierra was at least willing to "see how Nieto Sobejano develops this."

Bank of America awarded a $1 million grant toward...

Editor's Picks #550

2023-08-28T12:36:00-04:00

ICYMI, Niall Patrick Walsh spoke with Liam Young as part of the Archinect In-Depth: Artificial Intelligence series.

Liam offered a reality check "AI is a dangerous distraction from the pressing issues defining our generation. The world is on fire and we are worried about whether AI is going to write the first draft of our screenplays. The scale of climate catastrophe enveloping us right now is crazy…We need radical, systemic, planetary change, but in our popular cultural visions of the future, everything that operates at that scale is dystopian."

Donna Sink commented "This is such an amazing interview and Liam you are doing such poignant and difficult work! Gait detection terrifies me; it’s part of why I love wide-legged pants and big gauzy shirts".

News

archanonymous penned a ChatGPTish paean in response to Adjaye Associates' 130 William debut. Then news broke and as Gregory Walker summed up "adjaye's own actions here…are speaking as to the severity of the allegations and...

Editor's Picks #549

2023-07-25T13:44:00-04:00

Niall Patrick Walsh spoke with Neil Leach, author of Architecture in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: An Introduction to AI for Architects, as part of the ongoing Archinect In-Depth: Artificial Intelligence series.

Therein he provocatively suggests:

"I think the model of the self-driving car is important for architects because just as a self-driving car doesn’t need a driver, so a fully capable AI AEC tool doesn’t need an architect…personally, I take the view that insurance premiums will encourage the phasing out of human architects, not protect them...The most important advice I have is that right now for architects is that they need to design not just another building but the very future of their profession itself…if architects do not move with the times in the age of AI, they risk the danger of becoming extinct."

It doesn’t sound like Chad Miller is personally worried yet: "ANI is a tool, no different than modeling or drafting software. It' neither good or bad. Ultimately it's...

Editor's Picks #548

2023-06-20T19:15:00-04:00

Phil Bernstein speculated on the set of opportunities "that architects will see in the next decade as such systems (AI language transformers and image generators) become more capable and available" and proposes "five strategies to guide its future". As he sees it, this future will be one not of "BIM monkeys" but "AI Monkey Trainers." If nothing else Gary Garvin appreciated the optimism

"It looks like the architect's job, or at least the lead architect's, will become more demanding, hopefully more rewarding, with more effective and useful and beneficial results."

Plus, Amanda Wasielewski cautioned that "text-to-image generators have no…spatial awareness or understanding, and we cannot take for granted that they ‘perceive’ space in two-dimensional images the same way we do." Their "blind spots and limitations" in this area include the inability to count, problem rendering hands and the Escher-esque stairways they generate.

Donna Sink couldn't help but wonder whether "as the generate...

Editor's Picks #547

2023-05-17T13:25:00-04:00

Katherine Guimapang provided an overview of the projects at Exhibit Columbus’ University Design Research Fellows showcase. Steven Ward chimed in "All excellent presentations and projects, and each remarkably (strangely?) appropriate to what I know about the schools from which their authors hail - from the enigmatic tech-box out of MIT to the precision and bespoke nature of the installation(s) from UVA. I'm most excited, though, about the Altshuler/Morrison/UIUC project as vital public space-making bringing new life to a bleak corner site."

Plus, while at the 2022 World Architecture Festival, Niall Patrick Walsh was able to have a conversation with Mario Cucinella the architect behind TECLA, the earthen 3D-printed house of COP26 fame.

News

A new report predicts that the global market for artificial intelligence in construction will experience significant growth (34.1% by 2031). monosierra commented "The report doesn't seem to be saying anything that hasn't been extensively reported a...

Editor's Picks #546

2023-04-19T23:06:00-04:00

ICYMI, for the latest entry in the Dean's List series Katherine Guimapang interviewed Cal Poly Pomona's new dean of the College of Environmental Design, Mary Anne Alabanza Akers.

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The International Code Council is revising their code development process with changes starting in 2024. Both Janosh and Chad Miller felt it was "good news" as "Hopefully it will encourage more architects to participate in the process. It's often much easier to make positive changes in the building codes at the ICC level than it is locally".

British architect Sir David Chipperfield will get the 2023 Pritzker Prize. Most ‘Nectors think it is "Well deserved!" and pandahut even offered first a paean and later a rap, to the "bare essentials" and "precision" of his firm’s work.

The Hepworth Wakefield, photo courtesy of Iwan Baan

A survey by students from the Harvard Graduate School of Design found most architectural tasks (they reviewed data for 36 tasks across 6 project phases) can be done remotely. Will Ga...

Editor's Picks #545

2023-03-07T16:59:00-05:00

For the latest installment of Archinect's Studio Snapshots, Katherine Guimapang connected with Stephen Wilder, Principal of Think Wilder Architecture.

Melvin L. Mitchell, FAIA, NCARB, NOMA was struck by the length of Wilder’s journey from school to licensure “Insightful. Pride-evoking (a fellow Howard Bison). But depressing…Recent NCARB changes now facilitate an 8-10yrs path, potentially for 60-75%+ yield thru the deployment of the Integrated Path to Accelerated Licensure (IPAL) program. Unfortunately, there has been a confluence of events that have led to the reasons why the 7 HBCU-based programs all continue to cling to outmoded models and behavior that results in the same depressingly deteriorating outcomes of the past three decades."

ICYMI, as outlined in his entry to Thesis Review, SCI-Arc EDGE graduate Jimmy Wei-Chun Cheng is "working on building a few new design platforms/software that enable designers to work more efficiently and continue to research the potential of AI and ...

Editor's Picks #544

2023-02-13T12:30:00-05:00

As part of the Thesis Review series Katherine Guimapang connected with Gehry Prize winner and recent M.Arch graduate Sophie Akoury, to discuss her project, 51mi + 25km = 13ft, which explores "the city's infamous LA River and how its physical and historical existence parallels Lebanon's Beirut River."

Image: World Architecture Festival

Plus, Niall Patrick Walsh attended the 2022 World Architecture Festival and found that while

"The pandemic offered the architectural community an insight into what a digital version of WAF could be, and for now, the community remains unconvinced…retrospective reviews or analyses of an event do little to inform the event in real-time, nor do they offer the architectural community-at-large an opportunity to experience the social serendipity or critical acclaim that the physical WAF can so effortlessly execute. A widely-disseminated digital event is evidently not the current solution to this conundrum".

News

Harvard Business Review shared lessons from Fra...

Editor's Picks #543

2023-01-10T14:45:00-05:00

For one of the last features of 2022, Daniel Vella explained why It’s Time To Consider the Refugee Camp as a City.

Orhan Ayyüce "couldn't agree more with the main idea" and noted that in fact "Turkey is building extra story addable, planned, cmu based cities in Idlib to accommodate refugees who want to return to Syria…In this aerial view, there seems like some commercial, possibly public spaces start to establish themselves per the planned layout which fascinates me as the seed."

Plus, Niall Patrick Walsh chatted with WilkinsonEyre Sports Director, Sam Wright. Who accepted "Clearly the current FIFA World Cup format is not sustainable" but added "The unsustainable stadiums are the ones that have no potential to grow, and end up being carved up or torn down in short time...As architects involved in these discussions, it can be difficult to force change from the bottom. At some point, legislation has to force you to do it. Until you get to that point, you are relying on a well-informe...

Editor's Picks #542

2022-12-08T20:43:00-05:00

Saad Rajan penned an editorial about The Revival of Human-Centered Architecture. In it he praises the works of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture (AKAA) "hidden gems…from unexpected places" which have "had a transformational impact on how we reward, understand, analyze, appreciate, and create human-centered architecture. All the while bringing awareness to architecture in the Muslim world and perhaps reigniting a design mecca that was seemingly forgotten."

While some folks thought the piece was lacking a cogent, coherent argument marymery32 was more appreciative "YES, to partnerships, YES to storytelling, but let's start by expanding the roles of architects in society, diversifying what it is taught is architecture school to have a wider discipline".

Plus, Emilie Taylor Welty, Tulane School of Architecture's new Director, chatted with Katherine Guimapang.

News

ahhhhh reacted to the first UK salary transparency data published by group The Pay 100 "Sheesh, absolutely abysmal pay. I'v...

Editor's Picks #541

2022-11-16T17:47:00-05:00

Niall Patrick Walsh had A Conversation With Ma Yansong. Critics raised questions over current/past pay practices. However, folks jumped in to defend MAD Architects

"Can confirm he's been paying interns since at least 2009" and "I had multiple classmates work at this office for co-op semesters and were definitely paid. Ironically, the classmates who went to work for very famous starchitects in the country next door were not paid at all."

‘I Seek To Create an Escape From Everyday Life’; A Conversation With Ma Yansong of MAD Architects. Ma Yansong. Photo credit: Greg Mei

Plus, work from Cal Poly Pomona's Department of Architecture (CPP ARC) First Year Spring Studio was featured in the second of the Archinect Studio Pin-Ups series.

News

Henning Larsen will design a new church in Copenhagen, the Danish capital’s first in over 30 years. ‘Nectors thought it both "spectacular" and "beautiful" with some also "curious how the architects will detail the spaces between the volumes in order to sh...

Editor's Picks #540

2022-10-24T11:30:00-04:00

Katherine Guimapang kicked off Archinect Studio Pin-Ups, a new series highlighting architecture studios focusing on new and thought-provoking topics. The first edition featured work from the University of Texas at Austin's Advanced Spring 2022 Studio - GreenCore.

Image courtesy of UT Austin GreenCore Studio

News

The New York Times reported that workers at New York firm Bernheimer Architecture have formed the first functioning union at a private-sector architecture firm in the United States. Most ‘Nectors were excited and thought it long overdue. Gregory Walker was also "interested to see what their CBA looks like - hopefully it will be something particular to their office but also applicable to other firms/situations."

Sixteen Deans released a statement criticizing and opting out of DesignIntelligence school rankings/surveys. natematt was pleasantly surprised as they "Came here expecting a bunch of schools I've barely heard of...found most of the schools getting airtime from DI. Kud...

Editor's Picks #539

2022-09-20T12:18:00-04:00

Now that the "dust has settled" Niall Patrick Walsh caught up with "three firms in differing parts of the U.S. to hear their reflections on how the profession fared during the pandemic, and where it goes next". Plus, for a broader perspective, he spoke with AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker.

There was a definite theme to the commentary with archinine confused "Why is it so complicated? Money. Pay people a living wage and they will work. Licensed architect with 7-10 years of experience here. The so called unicorn. I do NOT work in an architecture firm". hkcasi agreed "Why are there so few people sitting around in bottom tier positions in offices for 7+ years? Because we can't afford to!"

News

Construction has begun, on the Skanderbeg Building by MVRDV, that will provide functional housing and be one of the world’s largest buildings that double as a sculpture. Orhan Ayyüce shared the opinion of an Albanian American architect he knows "This is incredibly infantilizing, insulting, and da...

Editor's Picks #538

2022-08-31T18:22:00-04:00

ICYMI, back in July Alexander Walter featured sekou cooke STUDIO in a Studio Snapshot. When asked to describe his work/practice in three words Sekou answered "Build dope shit."

News

Eric Owen Moss shared photos of his self-designed private residence overlooking the coastline on a small 30’ by 50’ plot in Pacific Palisades/Santa Monica Canyon. To Daniel Shirk it was "exactly the cool yet quirky design you’ve come to expect from EOM. I love the geometric gymnastics of the massing…The interior is a Piranesian delight". proto felt "There are so many really terrible structures going up in socal I have to admire getting something so odd & peculiar constructed with high quality. Not a fan of the space making, but impressed with the project nevertheless". x-jla added "I actually really like the color. The yellow/green makes the house fun and gives some vibrancy to the community."

Later the big green head offered an explanation for their moderation on the post.

"We removed all comments that...

Editor's Picks #537

2022-08-02T16:20:00-04:00

For 2022's first entry in the Thesis Review series, Katherine Guimapang highlighted Temples of Consumerism: Undertaking Thailand’s Political Tactics through Bangkok Shopping Mall by Syracuse University B.Arch graduate Pin Sangkaeo and her collaborative research partner Benson Joseph.

via Pin Sangkaeo and Benson Joseph

News

Theaster Gates' Serpentine Pavilion a 'Black Chapel' in London's Kensington Gardens, opened June 10th and runs through October 16th. archanonymous had to admit there's "Something about roof membrane as wall cladding really gets me going…certainly more poetics at play here than some other recent winners (BIG, SelgasCano) and for that I applaud it". Yet, many of the reviewers criticized it as "a bit too slick" with "strange commercial constraints" that "clipped the wings" of Gate’s concept.

Gary Garvin offered up a deeper reading "One of the greatest strengths of the building is how it focuses on and charges three elements, the bell, the whitish textured paintings, ...

Editor's Picks #536

2022-07-11T17:57:00-04:00

ICYMI, Niall Patrick Walsh spoke with IAMAW union organizer, and former SHoP employee, Andrew Daley, as well as Peggy Deamer, founding member of The Architecture Lobby, about the recent resurgence of interest in and organizing around Unionization in Architecture.

Gregory Walker had a few "earnest, not rhetorical" questions including "What are the top conditions a union would want to fix? Specifically - what is the proposed remedy at a place like SHOP"? b3tadine[sutures] offered a lengthy response which concluded "The effort to create stable labor relations, is fundamental to the future of the profession. Workers have a right to safe work environment."

Plus, inspired by Disney’s Encanto, Sean Joyner reflects on the "agency of architecture" and "identity-enhancing places" arguing for an architecture which transcends "the traditional western lens that overemphasizes purism and a kind of fundamentalist formalism” instead aiming for an “architecture that enables, edifies, and enhances."

...