Archinect - News

Editor's Picks #400

2015-01-06T11:52:00-05:00

For the latest Student Works: Amelia featured Cellular Tessellation, a pavilion done as a "collaborative research effort among students from Bond University, University of Technology Sydney, University of South Wales, and University of Sydney" for the Sydney Vivid Light festival of 2014.

Plus, Alexander Showcase:(ed) architect Jorge Mealha’s Óbidos Technological Park Main Building, sited in the countryside north of Lisbon.

News

Paul scoured the archives and website analytics in an attempt to most accurately represent 2014, month by month, by sharing the most popular stories, job opportunities and discussions. Reflecting on digital publishing trends he noted

"As the internet continues to move discussions away from publications to social networks, Archinect's increase in volume in the forum and comments sections proves that we're continuing to provide a platform to facilitate communication across diverse social circles".

Meanwhile, Nicholas Korody put together a list of what Randy Deutsc...

Editor's Picks #396

2014-12-05T14:37:00-05:00

Beth Mosenthal penned an Op-Ed: Response to Michael Kimmelman's Critique of 1 WTC. She writes "I can only imagine the list of priorities that 1 World Trade entailed, but am still celebratory of the feat that it was realized despite perhaps the greatest obstacles any project could possibly have—fear and memory".

Ken Koense chose to respectfully disagree with her "The building is a touchstone for the future of large scale bunker buildings in America...which will certainly preclude the kinds of mixed use that Kimmelman's real critique addressed...Thousands died, two wars waged, but we've got our post card view, our symbol, our icon, our Freedom Tower. How picturesque". Similarly Krimson struggles "to overlook the blatant closed off nature of the project".

Plus, the latest Showcase: features Sparrenburg Visitor Center by Max Dudler, a "brutalist, rammed concrete" addition to a historic castle/fortress.

News

Paul Katz, who as president and managing principal of KPF was the mastermind of m...

Editor's Picks #394

2014-11-21T12:30:00-05:00

The latest edition of Working out of the Box: featured Hendo Hoverboard inventor and co-founder of Arx Pax , Greg Henderson. You can hear the full interview with Greg with his wife Jill, co-founder of Arx Pax, as part of episode 4 of Archinect Sessions here. Click here to subscribe.

Meanwhile, the latest Showcase: - No.4 High School Fangshan Campus is located in Beijing and designed by local firm OPEN Architecture.

News
On episode 5 of Archinect Sessions co-host/NJIT grad Ken Koense took issue with NJIT's statement against Kean University's upcoming Michael Graves School of Architecture. Listen to Koense's take on NJIT's statement, or download the whole episode here.

Sebastian Mlekicki argued "Including NJIT there are already 7 NCARB accredited architecture schools in a 25 mile radius of NJIT, and there here have been less students signing up for architecture in NJ all together. How is adding another program economically feasible?".

On a visit to Cleveland, Monica Ponce de Leon made...

Editor's Picks #393

2014-11-14T13:38:00-05:00

"394,000 US$!! This is the budget of homes in America that are 1/10th of this quality. Perhaps it's for two people, who are empty nesters, and entertain for a large extended family. The simplicity of materials and form, is exceedingly elegant". - b3tadine[sutures]

The latest edition of Showcase: features Slate House, located on a site in Laval, a suburb of Montreal. Designed by Affleck de la Riva architects, it stands in sharp contrast to the tract houses that surround it.

b3tadine[sutures] exclaims "394,000 US$!! This is the budget of homes in America that are 1/10th of this quality. Perhaps it's for two people, who are empty nesters, and entertain for a large extended family. The simplicity of materials and form, is exceedingly elegant".

As part of Archinect’s continuing ACADIA 2014 coverage Amelia Taylor-Hochberg reviews the keynote by creator of SimCity Will Wright's, which she labels "almost a exegesis".

News
Mark Minkjan spoke with Rory Hyde re: the ongoing relevancy of the profession and Future Practice. Darkman felt the need to clarify "Most architects I know build schools, hospitals, churches, malls, apartment buildings etc. It's just the media that feeds us the Versaces...and Ivy League universities".

The Wall Street Journal published...

Editor's Picks #385

2014-09-18T17:50:00-04:00

The latest entry in the Showcase: series featured Barkow Leibinger 's Stadthaus M1, located in the "sustainable model district" of Vauban in the already so-called "green city" of Freiburg.

Plus, Nicholas Korody looked at Factory Berlin, a "start-up campus" hosted by Google, built on a site where "a section of the Berlin Wall...once housed a German Democratic Republic (GDR) watchpost". Chris Teeter recommended "if you want to keep the political going in your architecture crit, you could probably look at what I have considered the 3 downtowns of Berlin; look at them historically maybe - Kuferstendamm (west), Alexander Platz (east), and Potsdamer Plat (unified)".

News
Mildred Friedman, a curator at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis in the 1970s and ’80s who helped both the museum and the contemporary design and architecture it celebrated become objects of international acclaim, died on Sept. 3 in Manhattan. She was 85.

Until October 31, the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation is...

Editor's Picks #379

2014-08-06T11:44:00-04:00

The latest Show Case: featured a holiday home modeled after the Dutch vernacular ‘schapenboeten’, designed by Benthem Crouwel Architects.

Donna Sink wondered "what makes fishing nets a good cladding material? Isn't the purpose of a net pretty much exactly the opposite of the purpose of a cladding? I want insane rationalism". Non Sequitur added "The colour coding is nice but I was really hoping to see fishing nets used as interior walls".

News
George Lucas announced, an architectural team for his planned museum on Chicago's lakefront. davvid was impressed "Chicago has really made a commitment to creating great new buildings. I recently visited the WNS Boathouse and Nature Boardwalk structure in the Zoo, both by Studio Gang. Its very exciting and I hope it spreads to cities across the US".

NYT’s Roberta Smith reminded readers, of the upcoming opening for Aspen Art Museum’s new Shigeru Ban’s-designed building. boy in a well was excited by the "wood!" and believed that a few winters in Col...

Editor's Picks #361

2014-04-01T17:34:00-04:00

The latest ShowCase: was a private residence in Weinheim by Wannenmacher-Möller Architekten. megan_eleven commented "I like the interior. The outside looking, I think, is not like a home, not warm enough~ I still prefer a house giving people warm and love.......This one, it looks a little cold~Just my opinion...."

Plus, the eleventh edition of Screen/Print: featured an article by Juhani Pallasmaa published in 2013 in OASE #91: "Building Atmosphere". The essay examines the "haptic and ‘dense’ spaces" found in Frank Lloyd Wright’s buildings and the "the importance of atmospheres in architecture".

News
Justine Testado reported the news that Shigeru Ban was announced as the 2014 Laureate of the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

For his part Peyton Westlake felt it was a "Savvy choice by the Pritzker; award an architect who does projects for all social types (disaster and ny condos alike) in beautifully constructed and detailed ways...Still, it feels about five years late".

Patrik Schumacher off...

Editor's Picks #359

2014-03-19T12:34:00-04:00

The latest edition of ShowCase: featured Casa H by Bojaus Arquitectura. Located in a typical suburban area near Madrid, the proximity of the houses that surround the plot lead Bojaus Arquitectura to develop a system of voids, deep windows and patios which would allow large openings without neglecting the equally important need of privacy.

Plus, the tenth edition of Screen/Print: highlighted: "Utopia" published by Zawia a multi-national collaboration based in Egypt. Specifically, Amale Andraos’ piece, "Visionary Urbanism and Its Agency" which dissects five myths long associated with a concept she calls "Visionary Urbanism".

News
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) have committed themselves to timely passage of the National Design Services Act (NDSA), which will give architecture students the same relief from crushing student loan debt, which is already granted young lawyers, doctors and others – in return for community...

Editor's Picks #352

2014-01-28T00:14:00-05:00

vado retro is moved to wonder "with the rash of notable building demolition that has and continues to occur, is there a checklist of what makes a building valuable enough not to demolish?...is it because buildings are more about image and visuals than spatial experience that we are willing to rid ourselves of award winning pieces of architecture/art?...maybe buildings don't really matter that much"

The latest edition of ShowCase: features Pocinho Rowing High Performance Center by Alvaro Andrade.

Mohammad Hadi Ataei really liked it commenting "Great minimalist work".

Additionally, - Mike "The Poet" Sonksen, @mikethepoetLA published Take a Walk: on L.A.'s Grand Avenue. Eric Chavkin posted a critique "As much as I like poetry I m dont read any poetry in this.Maybe because there are no poetic devices like metaphors or simile. Maybe because there isn't any 'poetic' mood or poetic structure in the form of presentation...I dont see much difference between this and straight descriptive reportage".

News

Mark Lamster, architecture critic for The Dallas Morning News, decried the 3-2 vote, by Oklahoma City’s Downtown Design Review Committee, green lighting destruction of the Stage Center aka Mummers Theater designed by the late John M. Johansen.

He writes the building which "will be replaced by a glassy office tower of no particular distinction... is the second major blow to a regional lan...

Editor's Picks #350

2014-01-14T13:15:00-05:00

The latest edition of ShowCase highlights CRAB Studio’s Abedian School of Architecture in Queensland, Australia.

Plus, the fourth installment in Screen/Print (Archinect’s experimentation in translation across media) features "fruity labors" from the quarterly journal MAS Context's 20th issue, Narrative.

News
Architect Magazine reported the American Folk Art Museum will be razed for a Diller Scofidio + Renfro's designed MoMA expansion.

Amelia Taylor-Hochberg Editorial Manager for Archinect, went to the trouble of gathering "a slew of responses to the proposal, both indignant and accepting, from Archinect contributors and beyond".

HotelSphinx thought the excuses/reasons given for demolition were ironic "DS+R is a firm that made a building out of fog for the Expo in Yverdon-les-Bains in 2002. Yes, fog. But aligning floor plates is too difficult? They have got to be joking me".

Meanwhile, Mason White of Lateral Office was perplexed.

"Architects revolt about 2 high-society architecture firms in...

Editor's Picks #342

2013-11-19T12:40:00-05:00

The latest edition of Showcase; featured a complete redesign of the Law Faculties and Central Administration Buildings at the Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU), by CRAB Studio.

News
With Architecture for Humanity's experience helping communities beyond the relief phase of disaster, they are currently mobilizing to assist in long-term reconstruction. Through speaking with local stakeholders and construction professionals, they are working to begin understanding the on-the-ground situation to prioritize rebuilding needs and help affected regions build back better and stronger.

Donate now and help support Architecture for Humanity's response in the region affected by Super Typhoon Haiyan.

Last week Bustler.net highlighted the winners from the 39th annual KRob Architectural Delineation competition, the longest running architectural drawing competition in the world. Six winners, three juror citations, and 21 finalists were selected this year.

While he ...

Interview with CASE-REAL, architects of "Restaurant on the Sea"

2013-11-13T17:54:00-05:00

Recently featured as part of our ShowCase series, "Restaurant on the Sea" by CASE-REAL is an elegant restaurant located smack on the coastline of Teshima, a tiny island in Japan's Seto Inland Sea. Opening for the Setouchi Triennale, the restaurant continues to serve local Japanese fare to the island's 1,000 inhabitants, after the art-seeking tourists' exodus.

The modest project description left us wanting more, so we asked CASE-REAL to comment on a few of the restaurant's details.

Archinect: What kind of food will the restaurant serve?

CASE-REAL (Ritsu Shibata): You can eat Japanese food in this restaurant, using the local ingredients including seafood from Setouchi Ocean. The restaurant serves a lunch menu, along with a prix fixe dinner menu (only with reservation).

Archinect: What was the inspiration behind the public kitchen?

CASE-REAL: The idea of the "public kitchen" was originally requested by the owner, Ms. Mitsuko Fukutake, who is also a councilor of Fuku...

Editor's Picks #293

2012-12-11T02:07:00-05:00

For the latest in the Showcase series Archinect featured Villa Solaire by JKA + FUGA as well as Folkwang Library by Max Dudler. The Folkwang Library took advantage of a special photographic/glazing technique to create the illusion of the facade being fashioned from the stone material itself. Save Western pointed out "It looks like the original proposal was for actual marble, which came back astronomically expensive, so they VE'd to curtain wall instead."

For the latest in the Showcase series Archinect featured Villa Solaire by JKA + FUGA as well as Folkwang Library by Max Dudler.

Villa Solaire in Pied de La Plagne, Morzine, France is an ancient farmhouse converted into a luxury rental villa. The project made use of a traditional technique of decorative cut-outs within the wood strips resulting in a uniform perforated cladding, which wraps the whole facade.

The Folkwang Library located in Essen-Werden, Germany is an institutional project which , combined musicological programs/collections from three institutions under one roof. The Folkwang Library also took advantage of a special photographic/glazing technique to create the illusion of the facade being fashioned from the stone material itself.

royc commented "it's a bit too literal of a reinterpretation for me...I love the knife edge though, it's nicely done. I'd be really interested to see the interior of that space, with the stairs/atrium". Save Western pointed out ...

Editor's Picks #273

2012-07-15T11:00:00-04:00

Rusty Shackleford quipped "I wonder what the realtor spin will be with these units... ‘Japan style luxury!’ ‘MINI COOPER with plumbing! Going fast!’ ...I lived once in 275sg.ft. place in NYC. A more appropriate name for this housing type would be JAIL." KarjaCH countered "if properly designed with great attention paid to detail, 300 sf can be the most amazing place to live". Meanwhile hanque helpfully pointed out "if you look at the RFP they've already been designed."

Archinect’s latest project featured in the Showcase series is the House in Ovar, Portugal, by architect, Paula Santos.

News
NYC launched the adAPT NYC Competition, a pilot program to develop a new housing model for the City’s growing small-household population. adAPT NYC seeks to create additional choices within New York City’s housing market to accommodate the city’s changing demographics. The focus being on developing new proposals for a rental building composed primarily, or completely, of micro-units -- apartments smaller than what is allowed under current regulations.

Rusty Shackleford quipped "I wonder what the realtor spin will be with these units... ‘Japan style luxury!’ ‘MINI COOPER with plumbing! Going fast!’ ...I lived once in 275sg.ft. place in NYC. A more appropriate name for this housing type would be JAIL." KarjaCH countered "if properly designed with great attention paid to detail, 300 sf can be the most amazing place to live. I spent a year in a 275 sq ft ...

Editor's Picks #246

2012-01-15T13:46:00-05:00

Archinect member applet sounded offended by Sherin’s focus on passive technologies writing "The information you are writing is so main stream and only shows you are just discovering things known to first year architecture and design students". Yet, as Amy Leedham, correctly pointed out "While the passive strategies here sound obvious and simple, most people are not using them, hence the need to remind people."

Sherin Wing, brought the research for the newest installment of the COUNTOURS feature, wherein she looks at New, Energy-Efficient Technologies, in which she explores passive technologies such as the solar shading CRATE system, developed by a team consisting of Professor Ryan E. Smith, graduate students, and researchers from 3form.
Since it is titled Part 1, I look forward with interest for the rest of the installments.

However, Archinect member applet sounded offended by Sherin’s focus on passive technologies writing "The information you are writing is so main stream and only shows you are just discovering things known to first year architecture and design students. Just don't lecture architects about them". Yet, as Amy Leedham, correctly pointed out "Architects may have been employing passive strategies for 'thousands' of years but clearly many forgot most of these lessons since the invention of electricity as evidenced by the numerous glass boxes designed for the desert ...

Faculty Club, Tilburg University, by Shift architecture urbanism

2011-06-21T18:30:35-04:00

Tilburg University has extended its campus with the Faculty Club, a multipurpose pavilion for the academic staff and their guests. Shift architecture urbanism took the initiative to reanimate the quintessential quality of the Tilburg campus: strong solitary buildings in the green. The monumental modernism of Jos Bedaux served as a frame of reference. Bedaux designed the first - still the best - buildings for the university in the sixties.

By creating a strong formal relation between the existing university buildings and the new Faculty Club, an ensemble of omni-directional solitaires is created. This enables one to recognize the Faculty Club as part of the university, despite its peripheral forest location and exclusive program.

The Faculty Club is designed as a carved-out-monolith, one simple box in which transparency and massiveness melt together. The central restaurant is carved out from the centre, creating a tunnel-effect in the front façade. In order to strengthen ...