Archinect - News

A milkman's drawings capture Bristol through 8 decades

2016-06-02T16:38:00-04:00

[Garth England's] extraordinary drawings, made in Hengrove Lodge care home between 2006 and 2013 and published in a beautiful book called Murdered with Straight Lines, capture the changing city through the eyes of this post-war everyman. Born in Bristol general hospital in 1935, England spent most of his 79 years in the city’s suburban south: in Knowle West, Hengrove, Bedminster and Totterdown...

The essence of a city isn't just contained in its physical brick and mortar, but in the memory of its denizens. Garth England, who managed to see virtually every type of structure in Bristol in his work as a milk delivery man, began to draw his artistic recollections while in a retirement home, many of which are not only of historical architectural value, but incorporate stories of how certain objects and structures played a role in daily, intimate life:

As the piece notes, “There is something very truthful to Bristol’s suburban development in the details, almost like a social history,” says architectural historian Andrew Foyle, who lives in south Bristol. “What struck me was how extraordinarily accurate to specific houses a lot of Garth’s work is. If you put the Grange at 258 Wells Road, Knowle into Google Maps, for example, you can see he’s completely there.”"

For more on the intersection between art and architecture, check out these original Archinect features:

paraSITE: the bandage...

A closer look at riza3's low-cost housing plans for the homeless

2016-04-14T18:22:00-04:00

Last year, the team took part in the 'Tiny Home Community' competition, set up by members of the North Carolina branch of the American Institute of Architects. The competition was asking participants to design low-cost homes with prefabricated elements, that could house the homeless folk of Raleigh, North Carolina. More than 100 architectural offices from all over the world answered the call, including some well-established companies, but first prize was eventually awarded to riza3.

Although Elemental, the firm of Pritzker Prize winning Alejandro Aravena, released plans for "incremental" low-cost housing meant to be assembled partly by individuals and partly by a larger social infrastructure, they're not the only ones with ideas for long term sustainable housing. Greek firm riza3's competition winning ideas for low-cost houses differ in that they use prefabricated elements, and assume that there will be some integration into a preexisting urban fabric. Here's a look at a few plans and renderings:

The individual units, which measure 20'4" by 9'8" can be integrated into a community plan, with a separate work space and common area.

For more on homelessness and its possible solutions:

Need another last-minute holiday idea? Build your own Gingerbread Village with these architectural drawings

2015-12-23T14:57:00-05:00

If last-minute is your signature style for the holiday season, here's a crafty idea from a fellow designer that you can use to impress your guests or as a fun family-friendly activity. Robert Christo is a Brooklyn-based architect who enjoys building gingerbread houses with his family during this time of year. He decided to take the well-loved pastime a step further and draw some IKEA-like architectural drawings for a Gingerbread Village. With some frosting, a good amount of gingerbread, and whatever sweet edibles you need, use Christo's handy instructions as a guide to assemble your own festive town, including homes, shops, village green, a schoolhouse, and sledding hill. (Hopefully you won't need an Allen wrench in the process.)

Update: Robert Christo shared a few more drawings he sketched.

To zoom in on the drawings, click here.

If you still have some gift shopping to do, check out Archinect's holiday gift guides:

The 2015 holiday gift-giving guide for architects

Archinect's 2015 holid...

You Can Build a Brand New Richard Neutra Case Study House

2013-04-25T14:45:00-04:00

the Neutra Office (and Neutra's son Dion, a partner) has teamed up with the California Architecture Conservancy to offer the architect's plans for license. According to a press release, "For the price of what one would customarily pay for an architect to design and render supervising architectural services, you can build one of the mid-century modernist master's works of art and have Dion Neutra and the Neutra Office supervise the construction."

Press release from The Agency...

Richard Neutra’s Architectural Plans Available For First Time; Now Possible To Build Your Own “Neutra”

No longer are the architectural plans of mid-century master Richard Neutra merely curatorial elements of an architectural exhibition. Now, courtesy of a new partnership between Dion Neutra (Richard’s long-time partner in the Neutra Office), California Architecture Conservancy (CAC) and the Neutra Office, those plans can serve as the basis for your new home.

Neutra (1892-1970), who is perhaps the most important of the mid-century modernist architects, if not of the Twentieth Century as a whole, became famous for the simple geometries of his designs, which were often made of steel and glass, and the prefabricated elements that made them extremely easy to build with a modernist look. Several of his built designs were demolished or remodeled to the extent that they can no longer be considered true “Neutras.” And many more were drawn up, but neve...