Archinect - News

Norway is building a salmon-inspired floating exhibition center

2022-01-27T14:59:00-05:00

The epicenter of salmon farming in Scandinavia is about to break the waves on an eye-catching new aquatic addition thanks to a creative new convention center design from Kvorning Design & Communication.

A subsidiary of the group named Marketex Marine is behind the scheme that will bequeath Norway’s spectacular Hardangerfjord with a floating exhibition hall they call the Salmon Eye. The 1,000-ton structure is only accessible by boat and is located in the middle of a commercial fishing operation run by Eide Fjordbruk. Marketex was selected for their expertise in off-shore engineering projects but says the Salmon Eye will constitute a new scale in terms of their design experience.

Image courtesy Kvorning Design & Communication

“The implementation of such a project requires the highest level of commitment from each of the participants involved, as nothing remotely similar we have constructed before,” Marketex’s Fjodor Kvitš noted in a statement. “The entire construction is a combinatio...

MAD Architects unveils design for 2024 Paris Olympics' Aquatic Center

2020-07-20T18:37:00-04:00

MAD Architects, led by Ma Yansong has been selected along with French architectural firms, Jacques Rougerie Architecture, Atelier Phileas Architecture, and Apma Architecture to design the Aquatic Center for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Located in the Saint-Denis district of Paris, the design team's concept envisions the Aquatic Center as a piece of a public artwork. Aesthetically, the facility flaunts a translucent curved facade that appears to be floating, giving the structure a sense of lightness with a rippled reflexive effect. The building is expected to hold 5,000 spectators during the Olympics, and has been designed to reduce in size by 50 percent once the games are over.

70 percent of the structure is constructed from wood, aligning with the 2024 Paris Olympics' environmental protection considerations and sustainable development. The facility also uses solar panels to reduce light and energy consumption; rainwater collection systems also recycle water to irrigate the landscaping ...

Researchers 3D-print coral reef homes for aquatic inhabitants

2019-10-18T11:27:00-04:00

In their ongoing work, the researchers are now analyzing field data from Fiji, where they deployed the 3D-printed coral made from biodegradable cornstarch filaments after determining it was safe to use.

The study has been led by researchers at the University of Delaware. The home is that this artificial solution will help address the "devastating acidification" that coral reefs across the globe are facing, reports CNET. 3D-printed solutions have become mainstream in architecture and design, but how might the architecturally minded begin to think about solutions that address a different kind of end-user?

UD researchers cast the coral models using a 3D-printer, filaments made from different materials and a special mold created from images of an actual coral skeleton. (University of Delaware)

Artist Stephen Talasnik considers the legacy of mid-century design Russel Wright

2015-06-29T15:17:00-04:00

It was the slow retraction of glaciers over centuries that shaped the Hudson Highlands into their gentle, undulating forms, later represented in soft grays and blues by the painters of the Hudson Valley School. By the 19th century, humans had started to hollow them out from below. The hills were extensively quarried, their stone pulverized and turned into asphalt or brought down by train to New York City to be recast as architecture.

In 1942, the noted industrial designer Russel Wright and his wife purchased 75 acres of devastated property and shifted directions, beginning a slow process of collaboration with the land. Wright redirected streams to cascade into the gaping pit of the quarry and built a home intended to seamlessly fit into the landscape. Today, the Manitoga estate’s current artist-in-residence Stephen Talasnik continues Wright’s legacy with Sanctuary, a large-scale installation of aquatic architecture floating in the Quarry Pool.

“The responsibility of the artist is to t...