Archinect - News

Gettin' fleshy with it: "Skin" sculpture is both critique and kinda creepy

2016-10-27T13:12:00-04:00

Oh, functionalism: enough already with the developer-driven efficiency that puts dollars ahead of human livability. Or so goes the critique that underlies the sculpture by NEON known as "Skin," a six-sided grid strung with 1800 pairs of skin-colored tights.

Inadvertently reminiscent of films like "Cube" and "Hellraiser," "Skin" is intended to start conversations about the human dimension in architecture. As a press release elucidates:

"From within the sculpture also imitates the aesthetic of human flesh to create a feeling of immersion with the inhabitant losing all sense of where their body ends and architecture begins. It is intended that this approach will create a strong physical and emotional connection between the inhabitant and the architectural space. This sense of being physically and emotionally present is particularly important in a world where technologies continue to erode our sense of personal space."

For more on innovative fabric-based architecture:

A wrap-up of Vancouver...

Winning SKIN installation 3xLP to begin tour this Fall in Texas

2014-04-03T17:35:00-04:00

Since 3xLP by Christopher Romano and Nicholas Bruscia won the most recent TEX-FAB SKIN Digital Fabrication competition, the installation was exhibited at TEX-FAB 5 in Austin and will travel to Houston and Dallas along with the other competition finalists this fall. The SKIN competition paired emerging design research practices with fabrication industry leaders to create innovative solutions for facade systems using digital fabrication and parametric design tools.

Find out more on Bustler.

Saving face: Prêt-à-Loger designs solar-powered skin to preserve Dutch row houses

2014-02-26T18:13:00-05:00

How do you transform over 2 million Dutch terraced houses into more spacious, neutral-energy homes while they're still being inhabited? According to a team of TU Delft students, a solution to that is Prêt-à-Loger.

Translated to "ready to be lived in," the Prêt-à-Loger model was developed to preserve the historic Dutch row house, which was mass-produced for the middle class during the post-war period. The row house remains as the most common house typology in The Netherlands and is a cultural icon for many Dutch residents.

Trying to preserve and sustainably enhance the houses to modern-day standards, the Prêt-à-Loger team designed an adaptable "skin" made of solar panels and smart technology that can be applied to the house's facade. The skin can be customized to the various shapes and sizes of the homes.

The team recently celebrated the official kick-off of Prêt-à-Loger. With the support of partner organizations, they plan to implement the concept to a local neighborhood in Honselersdi...

3xLP wins SKIN Digital Fabrication Competition

2013-11-05T20:56:00-05:00

3xLP by Christopher Romano and Nicholas Bruscia has been announced as the winner of SKIN, the international digital fabrication competition from the TEX-FAB Digital Fabrication Alliance. The competition began with 68 entries from 14 countries from which four finalists and four honorable mentions were selected by the First Round Jury back in July. Out of the four finalist entries, which were all exhibited at the ACADIA Adaptive Architecture conference, the Second Round Jury decided on 3xLP.

Previously: SKIN Digital Fabrication Competition Announces Four Finalists

Doris Sung's Living Architecture Morphs To Protect From The Elements

2013-10-10T14:30:00-04:00

When Doris Sung was growing up she had several ideas about how architecture was supposed to be. From what she knew it was static, immovable, and didn't allow much room for experimentation and creativity. Fast-forward several years later, and Sung is now wildly experimenting with building mediums and metals, computer software, and nature itself to create interactive designs that respond to environmental stimuli, essentially coming to life.

SKIN Digital Fabrication Competition Announces Four Finalists

2013-07-17T15:02:00-04:00

Four Finalists and four Honorable Mentions have been selected in TEX-FAB Digital Fabrication Alliance’s 2013 international digital fabrication competition, SKIN.

UPDATE: 3xLP wins SKIN Digital Fabrication Competition

Southern California architect dies at 83

2011-10-10T15:17:49-04:00

Anthony J. Lumsden, a prolific Southern California architect who helped develop new ways of wrapping buildings in smooth glass skins, accelerating a shift that reshaped skylines around the world, died Sept. 22 in Los Angeles. He was 83.