Archinect - News

Knowlton School landscape architecture alum Bill Minadeo on his second Olympic skatepark design

2024-08-06T12:20:00-04:00

“We’ve done all the competitive events up to the Olympics so starting with Dubai this year and then through the Olympic qualifying series in Shanghai and Budapest,” he said. “There’s been a progression of design that goes through each of those different courses both in street and park that will ultimately lead up to the courses we’ve designed for Paris and the Olympics.”

Bill Minadeo, an OSU Knowlton School Class of 1991 landscape architecture alum, designed the first Olympic skateboarding park in Tokyo and the latest park and street courses in Paris. He said the park he created for this year’s competition, which is being staged outside the Place de la Concorde, was made “a little bit harder” for all 88 athletes while still retaining vital universal design characteristics. The Olympic skate park will be disassembled and reused in two permanent locations in Paris after the culmination of the medal round ends on August 11th.

Also of note, Team USA is participating this year without Alexis Sablone, the goofy-footed MIT School of Architecture alum who competed in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

Oliver Wainwright on Paris' claims to be the 'greenest Olympics yet'

2024-07-21T08:46:00-04:00

With its focus on mobility, greenery and renovation, the overarching legacy of the Paris Olympics looks set to be more promising than most, ultimately helping to stitch long-severed suburbs into the centre. The mental geography of most Parisians will expand, for the better. Perhaps that’s the most that could be hoped for: with its emphasis on speed and reliance on private developers, the Olympics can hardly be a vehicle for more equitable forms of development.

Oliver Wainwright unpacks the City of Lights’ vision for a green (some might say ‘greenwashed’) 2024 Olympic Games while complimenting some of the new architectural designs from Ateliers 2/3/4/, Kengo Kuma, and others. No survey would be complete, of course, without a site visit to the massive new Athletes’ Village master planned by Dominique Perrault for the gritty Saint-Denis suburb, where he counted several flaws.

“It follows a classic pattern,” author Justinien Tribillon tells him. “The development is designed to ensure that people with more money will move here, increasing local tax revenues, instead of building very ambitious, progressive, sustainable social housing for the existing inhabitants of Seine-Saint-Denis.”

The games' opening ceremony begins on the cleaned-up Seine River on Friday, July 26th, at 7:30 PM local time.

Christo and Jeanne Claude’s Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped to be recycled for Paris Olympic Games

2023-09-20T11:55:00-04:00

The Mayor of Paris has announced that Christo and Jeanne Claude’s Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped installation is to be recycled for use in the city’s upcoming Olympic and Paralympic Games. As reported by ARTnews, the effort will be led by the environmental organization Parley for the Oceans.

Under the plans, 269,000 square feet of blue polypropylene fabric and 9,800 feet of red polypropylene rope will be recycled. The recycling of the fabric and rope is in addition to the reuse of the wood and steel substructures which have already been reused by carpentry and steel producers.

Photo: Benjamin Loyseau. Copyright: 2021 Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation

“The fabric and ropes will be recycled into shade structures, tents or barnums for our next major events in Paris, in particular the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games,” Paris Mayor Anne Hildago said in a statement reported by ARTnews. “This is a very fine example of the art world’s ability to adapt to climate challenges.”

The installation w...

Will the 2024 Olympic flame be installed on the Eiffel Tower?

2023-05-26T15:02:00-04:00

Paris 2024 organisers have been planning to install the Olympic flame on the Eiffel Tower, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Monday. The source added that the flame would not be put at the top of the Eiffel Tower, for technical reasons, and it was not clear whether it would stay on the monument throughout the Games but the combination of two such iconic images would be a dramatic backdrop to the July 26-Aug. 11 event.

The new antenna array on top of the tower is the only thing preventing the flame from alighting (pun) on its freshly-painted pinnacle. The flame traditionally symbolizes the continuity of the ancient into modernity.

Notre-Dame Cathedral, meanwhile, will not have its own makeover readied in time for the 2024 summer games' commencement on July 26, as per the French government's latest update.

Tokyo's 1964 Olympics architecture remembered

2020-07-31T14:12:00-04:00

The coronavirus pandemic has forced the Olympics’s first postponement: Tokyo 2020, its name unchanged, will now take place in July 2021 if it takes place at all. Yet all around the Japanese capital is the legacy of another Olympics: the 1964 Summer Games, which crowned Tokyo’s 20-year transformation from a firebombed ruin to an ultramodern megalopolis.

NYT art critic Jason Farago takes a look back at the now iconic architectural and visual design — and its transformative power — of the 1964 Olympic Summer Games in the Japanese capital, 19 years after WWII had ended.

"Those first Tokyo Olympics served as a debutante ball for democratic, postwar Japan, which reintroduced itself to the world not only through sport but also through design," writes Farago.

Take a look at Canada's Olympic House at the 2018 PyeongChang games

2018-01-09T14:18:00-05:00

With only one month to go until the 2018 Winter Olympics officially kick off on February 9 in PyeongChang, South Korea, athletic teams from around the world prepare to represent their nations in front of an international audience. Canada isn't limiting itself to sporting competitions alone to promote all things maple leaf but just announced plans for 'Canada Olympic House,' a gathering place for the team's fans, coaches, athletes and their families & friends.

Image: Canadian Olympic Committee & Sid Lee Architecture.

Designed by Montreal-based Sid Lee Architecture in collaboration with the Canadian Olympic Committee, the 12,000-square-foot house will be located near Gangneung Olympic Park which is going to host (surprise!) the hockey competitions.

Guests can watch Team Canada compete via the CBC/Radio-Canada broadcast, kick back with some Canadian drinks and food (poutine anyone?), purchase merchandise at the retail store, and celebrate athletes and all things Team Canada at a varie...

Populous' Paris 2024 Olympics scheme striving to create “the most sustainable Games ever”

2017-09-20T17:49:00-04:00

According to the team, the designs for both the new and temporary venues and facilities ‘will seek to shape and integrate sporting spectacles in the city’s urban landscape while supporting Paris 2024’s commitment to be the most sustainable games ever’.

As seen in Rio 2016 to London 2012, sustainability is an ongoing issue for cities hosting the Olympic Games. Recently, Populous and consultancy group Egis unveiled the first rendering of their design for the Paris 2024 Olympics, stating that their concept will help create “the most sustainable Games ever”.

“Our mission was to understand how each sport and discipline could best function in existing venues, new buildings when required as legacy and temporary modular sites, identifying the best option in each case,” says Egis' Diogo Taddei, who supervised the work of the consortium. “One of the biggest challenges was to transform illustrious Parisian monuments into sports venues, adapting them to the requirements of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”

Los Angeles to host 2028 Summer Olympics; hopes to cut costs by using existing venues

2017-08-01T13:40:00-04:00

After weeks of negotiations with the International Olympic Committee, Los Angeles officials have reached a deal to host the 2028 Summer Games under terms they hope will generate hundreds of millions in savings and additional revenues. The agreement will bring the Olympics back to Southern California for a third time, after Los Angeles hosted in 1984 and 1932. It also opens the door for the 2024 Games to be held in Paris.

Spiraling costs and notorious budget overruns have discouraged other cities from pushing towards being a host to the 2024/28 Summer Olympics, but Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti thinks otherwise and hopes to avoid unpredictable spending by reusing existing venues and infrastructure.

As the Los Angeles Times reports, "Olympic experts have said that L.A. could be different because its plan relies on existing venues such as Staples Center, Pauley Pavilion and the Coliseum. It avoids spending billions to construct new stadiums and arenas. Further savings would arise from housing athletes and the media at UCLA and USC rather than building expensive villages."

LA officials aren't only hoping to cover the cost of the games but actually generate a surplus — emulating the success of the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.

Back when architecture was an Olympic competition

2016-08-26T14:42:00-04:00

It may be a part of the Olympics the world forgot, but from 1912 to 1948, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) handed out medals across five creative arts categories including architecture...Following the 1948 games, the IOC abandoned the Olympic art competition due to the significantly high number of professionals entering, which went against the spirit of the games being an amateur competition.

More on Archinect:

Climate change will make finding a host city for the 2088 Olympics incredibly difficult

Now that the Olympics have ended, what's in store for Rio's stadiums?

How are London's Olympic grounds being used 4 years later?

On decentralizing the Olympics

Climate change will make finding a host city for the 2088 Olympics incredibly difficult

2016-08-15T17:53:00-04:00

As our planet grows warmer over our lifetimes, the number of cities that will be cool enough to reasonably host the summer games is going to rapidly dwindle. And that doesn’t just mean Atlanta or L.A. According to an analysis published in The Lancet last week...only three plausible host cities in the entire continent of North America may still be low risk by 2085 (or the summer games of 2088): San Francisco, Calgary, and Vancouver.

There may be zero in Africa or Latin America, and only two in Asia (Bishkek, in Kyrgyzstan, and Ulaanbaatar, in Mongolia).

As the article notes, the really disturbing implication of this research is less about athletics and more about day-to-day work. Half the world's population works outside, and temperatures that are too high for a marathon will be too high for laboring.

For more on the Olympics, check out these links:

Come on in, the water's fine: Rio sailors say worries about water quality overblown

2016-08-09T19:04:00-04:00

Despite reports of dangerous levels of pollution in Rio's Guanabara Bay and concerns that floating garbage could damage or slow competitors' boats, sailors at the 2016 Olympics are showing little or no fear of getting into the water [...] Many said the dangers of sailing in Rio have been overblown and worried that the water concerns are overshadowing some of the most exciting and challenging sailing of their lives.

So far, the Rio Olympics seem to be going pretty well. But before they opened, a series of issues plagued the preparations. For some background, check out these links:

Hit or miss?: Oliver Wainwright reviews the designs of the Rio Olympics

2016-08-09T13:13:00-04:00

he collapsed sailing ramp has been hauled out of the water, a Russian diplomat has heroically killed a carjacker (or maybe not), and 450,000 condoms await action in the leaky athletes village. Beset by construction problems and delays and with preparations decreed the “worst ever” by the International Olympic Committee, how is the architecture and design of the XXXI Olympiad shaping up so far?

The Olympics are in full swing. Here's how to watch them. Interest in more Olympics architecture? Check out 10 notable projects from past Olympic Games here.

This month, Archinect's coverage includes a special focus on all things related to games. Check out some related articles here.

How are London's Olympic grounds being used 4 years later?

2016-08-03T19:52:00-04:00

Just in time for Friday's Rio Olympics, it's time to take a look back at former Olympic villages: specifically, what good are they post-games? In London, the 560 acres of the East End that was transformed into the grounds for the 2012 Olympics have undergone the Olly Wainwright examination in his latest piece for The Guardian. As he writes,

That London has a lasting physical inheritance from its two-week £12bn jamboree is indisputable, but what kind of place is the promised Legacy-land turning out to be? So far, it’s an odd one. It is somewhere that feels more like an accidental suburban campus than a real piece of London – a place where the different functions that make up a city have been separated out, each built without much thought given to how they relate.

Good news: there is some affordable housing among the leftovers/adjacent proposed developing properties loosely branded as Olympicopolis, but there could be more (as ever).

More Olympics news:

Rio's streets clog with traffic as ...

A look at penda's elegant San Shan Bridge

2016-07-28T14:55:00-04:00

It's rare that spectacle and nuance combine effortlessly, but an exception can be made for the lithe sculptural form of the San Shan Bridge. The bridge, which translated into English means "three mountains," will serve as a shapely conduit between Beijing and the river valleys of Zhangjiakou during the 2022 Olympic Winter Games. According to architects penda, "the formal inspiration for the San Shan Bridge is a conjunction of its undulating surrounding and the meaning of the Olympic symbol, which consists of ﬁve interlaced rings of equal dimensions... ‘Entering the rings’ on the way to the Olympic competitions, should be seen as an contextual icon for the Games."

The bridge is a fresh and visually striking play on the use of Olympic imagery: as it crosses the Gui River, it not only makes reference to the well-worn ring symbol, but has a certain DNA helix quality. Vegetation flanks the alabaster pedestrian walkways, which expand into viewing platforms.

Aside from its sculptural elegan...

On decentralizing the Olympics

2016-07-21T14:23:00-04:00

More broadly, this reconfiguration would make the games, for the first time, a truly global event. Dozens of countries that could never afford to host the Olympics in their current form – Kenya, Thailand, Chile, to name a few – might easily host a single Olympic sport. Rather than being an occasion for nationalistic displays by a single, powerful host country, the Olympics would become a celebration of human diversity.

With overwhelming evidence that hosting the Olympics is a huge burden for several cities, Paul Christesen, a Professor of Classics at Dartmouth, makes a case for the possible advantages of having Olympic sports competitions take place in different cities throughout the globe. He also makes suggestions on how decentralizing the Games can be carried out to other aspects of the event.

More on Archinect:

Rio mayor admits Olympics were a “missed opportunity”, but believes the city has been unfairly portrayed

The rapid gentrification of Rio's favelas in advance of the Olympics

California pledges to pick up (some of the) cost overruns of LA 2024 Olympic bid

Logo design chosen for 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Tokyo Olympics refusing to pay Zaha Hadid for work on the national stadium

Rio mayor admits Olympics were a “missed opportunity”, but believes the city has been unfairly portrayed

2016-07-14T17:49:00-04:00

“This is a missed opportunity,” Paes acknowledged. “We are not showcasing ourselves. With all these economic and political crises, with all these scandals, it is not the best moment to be in the eyes of the world. This is bad.” But he also believes the problems are exaggerated by the press in a way that unfairly portrays Rio to the outside world...“There has never been so much transformation for poor people [in Rio]...The Olympic Games are a great inspiration to get things done.”

More on Archinect:

The rapid gentrification of Rio's favelas in advance of the Olympics

Rio Olympics "must be postponed, moved, or both" due to Zika threat

11 workers have died so far during Rio Olympic construction, audit finds

With the Rio Olympics opening in less than four months, sports federation concerned over problem with venues

The rapid gentrification of Rio's favelas in advance of the Olympics

2016-06-15T13:22:00-04:00

For decades, state neglect forced a pace of progress that was slow and painful in Rio’s favelas, which – unlike many other informal settlements around the world – have a largely stable population. While some residents express satisfaction that state involvement has brought new income streams and improved security, there is anger that changes are imposed from outside, without consultation with residents.

For more on the upcoming Rio Olympic Games, check out these links:

11 workers have died so far during Rio Olympic construction, audit finds

2016-04-26T13:46:00-04:00

Eleven people died while working on Olympic facilities or Games-related projects between January 2013 and March 2016, according to a report released Monday by Rio de Janeiro's Regional Labor and Employment Office. The report, released by Elaine Castilho, the auditor for the Rio Olympic Games works, also notes that no workers died in the preparations for the 2012 Summer Games in London.

Logo design chosen for 2020 Tokyo Olympics

2016-04-25T14:15:00-04:00

Tokyo 2020 Olympics organizers on Monday chose logo A — a stark indigo-and-white checkered circle — as the games’ replacement emblem after the original design was scrapped last year amid claims of plagiarism. The Tokyo 2020 Logo Selection Committee chose the logo from a shortlist of four following a competition open to any resident of Japan aged over 18. Almost 15,000 entries were submitted. The winning logo was designed by Asao Tokolo, a 46-year-old artist [...].

"The design comprises 45 interconnecting pieces forming a checkered pattern known as ichimatsu moyou. Use of the color indigo is intended “to express a refined elegance and sophistication that exemplifies Japan.”"

Previously: 2020 Tokyo Olympics panel launches nationwide call for new logo design

More stories about the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the Archinect news:

California pledges to pick up (some of the) cost overruns of LA 2024 Olympic bid

2016-04-14T18:19:00-04:00

The Associated Press reports a California legislative panel advanced a bill Tuesday committing the state to cover up to $250 million in cost overruns as part of Los Angeles’ bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics. The Senate Governmental Organization Committee approved the bill in a 7-0 vote after proponents said they’re confident they can provide the Games without the serious deficits that have challenged other recent host cities. They pointed to Los Angeles’ profitable hosting of the 1984 Olympics.

Previously in the Archinect news:

LA 2024 plays up a sunny disposition in their logo for the Olympic bid

2016-02-17T19:13:00-05:00

'Every day people follow the sun to our city in pursuit of their dreams,' bid committee chairman Casey Wasserman said in a statement, adding: 'We're inviting the world to follow the sun to California in 2024.' The Olympic movement takes such things seriously. In the past, millions of dollars have been spent on the design of emblems and the often-ridiculed mascots.

You can read LA 2024's full press statement about the logo's unveiling here, and watch the promotional video below.

More on Archinect:

L.A. seeks to accelerate infrastructure projects in advance of potential Olympics

2020 Tokyo Olympics panel launches nationwide call for new logo design

Zaha Hadid issues disappointed statement on Tokyo Olympic Stadium decision

Will Rio's Olympic venues be ready in time for the 2016 Games?

2020 Tokyo Olympics panel launches nationwide call for new logo design

2015-11-24T13:58:00-05:00

'We’re expecting at least 10,000 applications this time,' said Ryohei Miyata, head of the selection committee. Only 104 applications were accepted for the previous competition. Applicants this time only have to be 18 or older and a resident of Japan. The committee will accept an entry by a group if the leader of the group meets the age and resident criteria, meaning that people younger than 18 can still take part.

After the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee ran into accusations of plagiarism with their first logo for the Games, the committee is at it again with a second call for submissions. But this time around, they're inviting virtually all residents of Japan to submit their ideas for a new logo, regardless of design experience.

More recent news on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics on Archinect:

Tokyo's 2020 Olympics won't have Zaha, but it's looking like there will be "Robot Taxi"

Zaha Hadid ineligible to participate in Tokyo Stadium design-build competition

Japanese government hopes to cap Olympic stadium costs at US$1.28 billion

Another Olympics, another story of displacement

2015-10-01T13:00:00-04:00

[...] Team China beat out Team Kazakhstan to host the games. Zhangjiakou, a city of 4 million people in the mountains of Hebei province, will host the games alongside Beijing. [...] They're worried I'll talk to people like Lu Wanku, who will be forced to move to make way for the region’s investment boom. Lu herds cattle and has lived in his tiny brick home for more than 20 years. His home is now in the way of a Four Seasons Town Dream Resort ski run. [...] Lu has two weeks to move out.

Related in the Archinect news:

LA mayor Garcetti confident that 2024 Olympics in his city would pay for themselves

2015-08-11T19:51:00-04:00

As Los Angeles moves closer to bidding for the 2024 Summer Olympics, officials said they can host the massive 17-day sporting event for $4.1 billion and offered to guarantee that the city will cover any cost overruns. [...] Garcetti and his team have proposed to spend $500 million less than what Boston had planned and expect to finish with a $150-million surplus by generating billions in broadcast and sponsorship revenue.

Related Olympic news on Archinect:

Will Rio's Olympic venues be ready in time for the 2016 Games?

2015-08-06T10:19:00-04:00

'When these [2007 Pan Am] venues were built the government told Brazilians that these would be Olympic-ready, and there would be a rather smooth and efficient transition to eventually hosting the Olympics,' explained Rio-based reporter Taylor Barnes...'But, these venues have instead had some pretty checkered after-lives.'

Despite a murky past of broken promises in addition to recent water-safety concerns and rampant economic turmoil, Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes claims construction of the venues are on schedule and will be delivered on time for the 2016 Olympics -- which will begin one year from now. Public Radio International interviews Rio-based reporter Taylor Barnes, who gives a glimpse into the reality of the situation.

More Olympic news on Archinect:

Boston backs out of 2024 Olympics bid

Toronto ventures into sixth bid to host Olympic Games

Zaha Hadid reportedly not giving up on Tokyo stadium plans

Zaha's Tokyo Olympic Stadium cancelled – Abe calls for a redesign from scratch

Toronto ventures into sixth bid to host Olympic Games

2015-07-27T15:44:00-04:00

'Given the way that bids in the last few years, even the last decade, [have] attracted opposition in liberal democratic countries, the IOC is going to insist upon some clear measure of support — not just a council voting yes — but some demonstration of popular support...And to get that together in a few months is going to be a challenge,' said Bruce Kidd, [University of Toronto professor and member in two previous Olympic bid teams].

The president of the Canadian Olympic Committee confirmed this past Saturday that the office will support Toronto's bid for the 2024 Olympics. But given the outcomes of Toronto's last five attempts — plus a fast-approaching September deadline for cities to register their intent to host, prospects are hazy.

More on Archinect:

Zaha's Tokyo Olympic Stadium cancelled – Abe calls for a redesign from scratch

David Manfredi, the architect behind Boston’s 2024 Olympic bid

Boston wins U.S. Olympic Committee's bid for 2024 Games

Racing to Get Ready: Rio 2016 Olympics

Populous’ Fisht Olympic Stadium for Sochi Winter Games

David Manfredi, the architect behind Boston’s 2024 Olympic bid

2015-06-15T19:37:00-04:00

Two years later, Manfredi’s focus on Olympics facilities is much more than professional curiosity. He is an essential member — and a public face — of a planning team racing against a June 30 deadline to deliver a new venue plan for Boston’s bid for the 2024 Summer Games. [...] “It has benefitted enormously from time,” said Manfredi, a principal of Elkus Manfredi Architects, referring to the pending 2.0 plan, in development for months.

Previously:

Diller Scofidio + Renfro named as design architect for U.S. Olympic Museum in Colorado Springs

2014-11-04T18:49:00-05:00

Diller Scofidio + Renfro was announced as part of the winning team who will design and build the new U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum and Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs, Colorado...the $60 million project will display artifacts, media, technology, tell the stories of American Olympic and Paralympic athletes, and share the historical significance and national pride spurred by the Olympic Games.

The winning team includes:

Diller Scofidio + Renfro from New York (design architects)
Anderson Mason Dale Architects of Denver (architect of record)
Gallagher and Associates from Washington, D.C. (exhibit designers)
Pacific Studio of Portland, Oregon (exhibit fabricators)
GE Johnson of Colorado Springs (general contractor)

On the other hand, some members of the local Colorado Springs design community were critical in that museum officials seemed inclined toward selecting an out-of-town design architect during the request for proposals.

Ten years on, Athens 2004 gives Greece little to cheer

2014-08-11T18:50:00-04:00

It was billed as a chance to transform Greece's image abroad and boost growth but 10 years after the country hosted the world's greatest sporting extravaganza there is little to celebrate at the birthplace of the modern Olympic Games. [...] For Greeks who swelled with pride at the time, the Games are now a source of anger as the country struggles through a six-year depression, record unemployment, homelessness and poverty. Greece has struggled to generate revenue from the venues.

Row over Olympic cauldron design settled out of court

2014-07-25T13:15:00-04:00

The startling cauldron of copper petals that rose up to form a flaming flower at the climax of the ceremony had been hailed as one of the most original in the history of the Games, and another triumph for the highly regarded British designer Thomas Heatherwick. But two years on, Locog has acknowledged in a statement that New York-based practice Atopia came up with five design principles that would go on to become defining characteristics of the cauldron.