Archinect - News

PRAXIS 15, "Bad Architectures," Now Available

2019-10-14T07:00:00-04:00

This post is brought to you by Northeastern University

Issue 15 of the architectural journal PRAXIS has just been released. A grant from the Graham Foundation helped support the final issue of the award-winning publication.

At a time when the precarity of the present is too often met with ironically predictable responses, this last PRAXIS, “Bad Architectures,” instead magnifies the wrinkles, ripples, disturbances, disruptions, and glitches within the field, framing them as opportunities and alternative ways of working or thinking.

“Bad Architectures” is co-edited by Amanda Reeser Lawrence, PhD, Associate Professor of Architecture at Northeastern University and Program Coordinator for the Master of Architecture program; Ashley Schafer, Professor of Architecture at The Ohio State University and Lecturer at Harvard Graduate School of Design; and Irina Verona, Principal at Verona Carpenter Architects, New York, and Adjunct Assistant Professor at Barnard. PRAXIS was founded by Lawren...

Texas has more design dialogue going on than Denver

2016-07-03T13:29:00-04:00

Who will replace the voices of architects like Jeff Sheppard, Gary Desmond and Brian Klipp? Before us, it was George Hoover, Cab Childress and Peter Dominick. They were all incredibly passionate about architecture

A survey of current industry conditions in Denver. As a result of; M&A activity, a generational transition and changing firm culture, there is a concern for the next generation of engaged civic leadership.

Editor's Picks #444

2016-04-13T17:48:00-04:00

ICYMI Amelia Taylor-Hochberg published a 3 part interview with Coy Howard, by students in John Southern's “Architectural Media and Publishing” Cultural Studies seminar at SCI-Arc. Ewa Lenart was impressed "Great Work and greatly inspiring teacher!"

Plus, Nicholas Korody explored ‘Inventing the Future: Postcapitalism and a World Without Work’ by Nick Srnicek and Alex Williams. Chris Teeter thought it was "good work...very interesting...these guys are 100% correct about scale".

News
Dame Zaha Hadid DBE passed on March 31st. Frank Gehry remembered "she was one of the guys...[That’s] sexist in its own way I suppose. I don’t mean it that way...She was undaunted by all the stuff that would be against a woman coming into a field at that level. She didn’t pay attention to it…She was very confident."

Daniel Elmore criticized some of commentary "She deserves to be remembered not as one of the best 'female architects' but one of THE BEST architects of our time...A visionary before her time and a...

Editor's Picks #437

2015-12-16T11:51:00-05:00

Nicholas Korody penned a double review; of 'The Geological Imagination' and 'The Underdome Guide to Energy Reform'. He finds "The two books also help illuminate some of the difficulties in perceiving climate change, while offering some potentials for movement" and goes on to reference "enmeshment", systems thinking and dark ecology.

Plus, Robert Urquhart took stock of how The Bartlett and the Architectural Association are "bringing emerging technologies into the UK's architecture education".

News
Denise Scott Brown, along with her husband Robert Venturi, have won the 2016 AIA Gold Medal. Snubbed of the 1991 Pritzker Prize when Venturi was named as the only laureate, Scott Brown is the second female recipient of the Gold Medal.

In honor of the happy and historic occasion, Denise Scott Brown appeared on Archinect Sessions #45.

To DWLindeman it "is splendid good news, and a long overdue award...Robert Venturi was right to say to the AIA ‘not without Denise.’ This is also a very significan...

Archinect chats with Benjamin Gilmartin, Diller Scofidio + Renfro's new partner

2015-10-26T17:52:00-04:00

Last week, Diller Scofidio + Renfro announced that Benjamin Gilmartin had become their fourth partner. I had a chance to ask Gilmartin about his past history as a writer, how that has influenced his working relationship with DS+R, and what the future holds for both him and the firm.

JI: You've been with DS+R since 2004, and been a principal there since 2011. What is the biggest change now that you're partner?

BG: I think day-to-day not a lot. [laughs] I've been collaborating with Liz, Rick and Charles for years on most of the projects that go through the studio, and that continues to be the case. I think that in truth there's not really a plan for the studio but there's a sense that there's a potential future beyond the founding partners. That's not for sure, but there's definite optimism about the possibility of that.

JI: You wrote for PRAXIS. How did writing shape your concepts of design, and what did you bring from that experience into the design process with your new partners?

BG:...

Editor's Picks #430

2015-09-29T13:21:00-04:00

Amelia Taylor-Hochberg, Editorial Manager for Archinect, reviewed "Shelter" the debut exhibition at the Architecture and Design Museum’s new location in Los Angeles' Arts District. Despite what you might assume

"Shelter isn’t about designing for the 21st century family, or the millenial, or the homeless, in Los Angeles – it’s about forming new expectations of how housing and the city should interact...housing imagined in Shelter is about merging L.A.’s residential spaces with its civic topography, forming a less privatized residential existence in the city".

The winners of Archinect's Dry Futures competition were selected. In the "Speculative" category "Grassroots Cactivism" by Ali Chen took first place. While "Liquifying Aquifers by Lujac Desautel won first place in the "Pragmatic" category.

Deane Madsen was impressed "A timely and relevant competition with thoughtful responses. Well done, all around!"

News
Dame Zaha Hadid was announced as winner of 2016 Royal Gold Medal. Sir Peter C...

Editor's Picks #427

2015-08-17T23:40:00-04:00

For Screen/Print #36: Amelia Taylor-Hochberg highlighted an essay by "Well, Well, Well", the fortieth issue from Harvard Design Magazine, which is focused on the "landscape of health and illness".

News
Carter B. Horsley criticized The New LaGuardia Airport: as being Not Functional, Not Inspiring, Not an Icon.

midlander countered "I'd love to see some plans - it's hard to figure out the scale of things or the circulation strategy from these little renderings...While I appreciate Horsley's criticism, he seems to be missing a sense of perspective on this. For example when he suggests adding a direct subway link to Manhattan would be an inconsequential couple million. Off by a factor of 5,000 or so I think."

J. MAYER H. founder Jürgen Mayer H., shared his list of places to see and places to eat at in Berlin. Stephanie Braconnier thought it was a "Sweet list" but warned "I wouldn't go to teufelsberg anymore unless you are willing to pay one of the scary thugs who hang around to let you in"...

Editor's Picks #423

2015-07-13T00:47:00-04:00

Julia Ingalls explored how a firm the size of Gensler manages to maintain a cohesive studio culture. midlander wondered "when did Gensler get so big? I feel like I never heard of them until 10 years ago, then suddenly they were everywhere? Was it organic growth or have they been buying up local firms to expand?"

News
The NYT reported the Studio Museum in Harlem, will construct a new $122 million home designed by the British architect David Adjaye on West 125th Street.

SALT released Global Tools 1973-1975 (a free downloadable book) which compiles/archives the lessons of the "non-school", founded by members of a radical Italian pedagogy group from the 1970s.

One year after Operation Protective Edge, Haaretz examined what (if anything) has changed since the 50-day conflict between Israel and Hamas, and asks "If we don't learn from our wars, are we doomed to repeat them?" +A ziz thinks "Gaza might as well be the saddest place on Earth…"

Anna Daugherty penned a eulogy for Francis Tsai, previo...

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 #380

2014-08-13T20:11:00-04:00

For the latest edition of Student Works: Justine Testado spoke with project architect, Duncan Baker-Brown, about The Waste House, designed/built by faculty and students from the Faculty of Arts and City College Brighton & Hove.

Olaf Design Ninja_ did some quick math "The numbers tell quite the story...an average of 8 people per work week day for the 15 month project duration. Compared to an equivalent wood frame house in the US that could be an entire subdivision. This should tell you how far industry has to go to do the right thing".

Plus, elementary school librarian, Jennette Neville, shared her top 15 recommendations of architecture books for young children.

News

The NYT published a letter To the Editor: Less Ego in Architects by Peggy Deamer, a partner in Deamer Architects and professor at the Yale School of Architecture. Editors saw an opportunity to start a Sunday Dialogue, and a week later published responses and a rejoinders. davvid had a thought "Architecture firms are alrea...

Editor's Picks #365

2014-04-30T15:24:00-04:00

News

Dave Heller spoke with Inga Saffron about not just architecture but "city life criticism". Evan Chakroff asked for tips "Has anyone compiled a good 'top ten' of her articles?"

Quondam replied "Links to Saffron's articles appear almost weekly within ArchNewsNow's daily collection of worldwide architecture news. The articles themselves, however, may not have a broad audience appeal because they are, for the most part, very Philadelphia centric. What is significant though, is that a local newspaper still publishes the work of a critic that is so in tune"...

Referring to the Catalog #1 of the Los Angeles Biennale of Architecture/Urbanism Orhan Ayyüce warned interested buyers "for now, the aim is first limited and numbered edition of 100".

The NYT published an editorial by John Freeman Gill, which points out similarities between the fate of the Laing Stores (sometimes called the Bogardus Building) and the current FolkMoMA discourse/proposals. Steven Ward proposed a future PS1 competi...