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'The New Inflatable Moment' at BSA Space will explore the role of pneumatic architecture in envisioning utopia

2017-04-25T12:21:00-04:00

Pneumatic architecture—aka inflatables—have been a mainstay of avant-garde and experimental architecture for decades. Back in the ’60s, figures like Buckminster Fuller and Frei Otto, alongside radical practices like Haus-Rucker-Co, Utopia and Ant Farm, pioneered the use of these structures. They’ve also been used by more mainstream studios, from Diller Scofidio + Renfro to Grimshaw.

Now, they’re the subject of an exhibition at BSA Space in Boston. Entitled The New Inflatable Moment, the exhibition, which opens on May 3, “will explore inflatable structures used in architecture, art, and engineering since the emergence of the hot air balloon,” with a particular focus on their role in “envisioning utopia.”

The exhibition is inspired by a recently-released book, The Inflatable Moment: Pneumatics and Protest in ’68. It looks at renewed interest in the architectural media within this historical context.

“With this exhibition, we revisit the moment of the 1960s explored by Dessauce to sugges...

Bigger than a Breadbox winner "The Pulp Canopy" will be showcased at Boston Society of Architects in June

2015-05-14T20:27:00-04:00

Khôra exhibition curators Robert Trumbour and Aaron Willette organized the Bigger than a Breadbox, Smaller than a Building competition as a means to explore the medium of installation in the architectural realm, specifically the medium's increasing appeal among emerging architects and designers due to its dual spatial-artistic qualities.

For the competition, entrants had to further develop a previous proposal into a new site-specific installation for the Boston Society of Architects gallery lobby. Now that the winning submissions have been chosen, they will be realized in preparation for the "Bigger than a Breadbox" exhibition, opening on June 17.

The top-winning proposal, "The Pulp Canopy", by Katie Donahue and Mason Limke of MYKA investigates the architectural applications of cellulose fiber (paper pulp), which is considered to be the "most abundant raw material on the planet". Originating from its earlier form as The Pulp Wall, The Pulp Canopy consists of discarded paper products t...

Boston Society of Architects presents the 2013 Design Award Winners

2014-02-05T13:26:00-05:00

Recognizing the best design throughout Massachusetts and the New England region, the Boston Society of Architects (BSA) revealed the winners of the 2013 BSA Design Awards. Winners received awards in several Programs like Accessible Design; Education Facilities Design; John M. Clancy Awards for Socially Responsible Housing; Sustainable Design; Unbuilt Architecture and Design; Honor Award for Design Excellence; and the Harleston Parker Medal.

Check out a selection of the winning projects.

Pictured above: Honor Awards for Design Excellence, Honor Award Education Facilities Design (K-12 Facilities Design) and Winner of the Harleston Parker Medal: Jonathan Levi Architects with Stantec Architecture for Roger E. Wellington Elementary School

Honor Award Education Facilities Design (Higher Education Facilities Design): Leers Weinzapfel Associates for University of Connecticut Social Sciences and Classroom Buildings, Oak and Laurel Halls

Honor Awards for Design Excellence: Flansburgh Architects for American International School of Johannesburg New Aquatics Center.

Honor Award John M. Clancy Award for Socially Responsible Housing: Dattner Architects and Grimshaw Architects for Via Verde—The Green Way.

Honor Award Unbuilt Architecture and Design: over,under and Harry Gugger Studio with Seis Arquitectos for Museo Maya de America

Find the full list of winners on Bustler.

Winners of TIMBER New England Design + Fabrication competition

2013-08-23T20:45:00-04:00

The winners for the TIMBER New England Design + Fabrication competition were recently announced on TIMBER's website. Entrants had to propose a site specific installation inspired by traditional New England building and crafting, using engineered lumber or heavy timber. Each winning team will be paired with an architectural firm, a structural engineer, and a material supplier—and $7,500—to have their proposals realized at the URBAN TIMBER exhibit at BSA Space, opening in February 2014.

Here are the winning projects and teams:

Four Corners by Ultramoderne
Coopered Column by Timothy Olson
Duck-Work by Sean Gaffney and Christina Nguyen
M2X3 by Gen Y Design Collaborative / Jeffery Lee, Christopher Taurasi and Lexi White

The mentoring firms who will help the winners develop their project installations are: NADAAA (Boston), Anmahian Winton Architects (Cambridge), Gray Organschi Architecture (New Haven), and Waugh Thistleton Architects (London).

In Boston, architects design a public face for the profession

2011-11-29T11:54:00-05:00

Howeler + Yoon won the competition to design the center, named BSA Space, which will include gallery, office, multimedia and meeting spaces for members, potential members and the general public. The two story, 17,000 square foot center will give the BSA a very public presence in an area with lots of foot traffic among restaurants, stores, and public transportation in the Fort Point Channel district.