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Editor's Picks Archive

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Editor's Picks #162

News
This week we say goodbye to Tobias Wong and David Dillon.

The Architect's Newspaper interviews the imam behind the proposal for a Muslim community center a few blocks from the World Trade Center.

That is an insanely huge hole...

There is a new architecture school on the block. It is the Architectural Institute in Prague (ARCHIP). Find out more here.

Orhan shares a link to a beautiful research entry and blog post by dpr-barcelona; Psychogeographic Map of Mexico City, Understanding, participating and portraying Mexico City.

Discussion Threads
Over on TC toasteroven shares a link to a report of interest to those policy wonk types out there, titled When Investors Buy Up the Neighborhood: Strategies to Prevent Investor Ownership from Causing Neighborhood Decline

juan moment trys to start a discussion regarding the final design for Renzo Piano's expansion to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, TX which was quietly released last week.

jk3hl updates us on their studio project regarding Distinctly 'American' issues regarding food production.

AfRoThUnD312 is trying to collate a list of all the design research labs that are out there. They have AA's MIT, ARUP's and SOM's, go add some more.

School Blogs
Nick Sowers posts the video from John K Branner Traveling Fellowship lecture titled "Military Atmospheres" given in the main lecture hall at UC Berkeley's College of Environmental Design.

Over at the Birmingham City University blog Abubakar Kumshe shares his thesis statement titled Productive Chaos which seeks to explore the possibilities of developing a Lagosian, market-based urbanism.

Jun 6, 10 1:09 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #163: Happy 2010 World Cup!

News
Eric Chavkin reviews THE ARTLESS DRAWING: NEIL DENARI, 1982-1996 at the Ace Gallery. I’m taken by it myself. The imagery is sublime if not beautiful. It’s a kind of science fiction film fetish that gave birth to the cult of Archigram and Buckminster Fuller. They are the parents. Jan Kaplicky, Luigi Coloni, and Syd Mead are the children. Each of them and Neil Denari too, are the great, great, great, great grandchildren of Jules Verne.

Übertect #4: ft Steven Holl's Linked Hybrid.

R.I.P. Bill Mitchell, former dean of MIT's School of Architecture and Planning.

I am still pulling for C. Portzamparc to win, although all signs point to DS+R.

Does Suburbia render a particular community or does it depict a social class? In 1972, Bill Owens then a news photographer for Livermore Independent, shot Suburbia in 52 days. AMERICANSUBURB X

More bad news.

Who partied with Archinect and Bustler?

Discussion Threads
Shay calls out www.quondam.com ??

Did anyone go and want to report back?

Anyone have an update on the Paolo Soleri Amphitheater.

School Blogs
Chris at Bartlett tells us what his favorite building in London is and check out this image of some real cool grating.

Heinz at GSAPP reports in from a project site in Newtown Creek, Brooklyn.

Jun 13, 10 1:24 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #164

News
In case you haven't yet heard, Archinect is co-hosting an exciting event next week at NYC's Center for Architecture. The panel discussion Shifting Paradigms: Design in Transition will be following the premier of (Re)centering the Square, a film about the Morphosis-designed Cooper Union building 41 Cooper Square.

This week, Need to Know, a new current affairs show and online news magazine on PBS, sat down with Frank Gehry to speak to him about the LEED controversy and ask what he "really thinks about green building, the LEED certification process and the future of sustainable architecture".

Holz FTW!

REX's Joshua Prince-Ramus discusses his work with Forbes magazine, which leads to a discussion about the real vs Howard Roark (straw man) architect.

Are childhood couch cushion architecture(s) what established the basic building blocks of our design logic?

Discussion Threads
danielusername is looking for info on a possible/obscure Corb project ie, what project, context, career stage etc?

I really hope this is not the case.

In her answer to a question about toilet-wall clearance guidelines Donna Sink has some excellent advice about moving beyond minimum codes/guidelines, drawings and just going and experiencing a space. Architects need to See the project from the user's view, not the godlike view we take on plans.

6-step makes a good point regarding being a 1099 independent contractor and taxes.

School Blogs
Nick says goodbye to his school blog and to his student life. He closes with a great quote from Bridge on the River Kwai: "Live like a human being, don't adhere suicidally to the rules."

Additionally
Check out RUX Design's winning entry in the Traffic design competition vol. 2 - design as reform titled, 'The Vanishing Mosque'. Via loudpaper's mimi zeiger.

Jun 20, 10 11:15 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #165

News
Orhan Ayyüce takes us on a fictional and literal tour of dingbat apartments, one the most common typologies of vernacular discount modernism in Los Angeles, in his newest feature.

While in our newest ShowCase feature SCI-Arc Faculty Members Ramiro Diaz-Granados (Amorphis), Heather Flood(F-lab), and Eric Kahn & Russell Thomsen (IDEA Office) collaborated to produce a retroactive urn for Kurt Cobain.

R.I./P. Mario L. Schack, noted architect, educator, design critic, dies at 81.

I was delighted to see John Devlin's moving story and beautiful drawings covered by BBC.

They may have promised us jetpacks but instead from Mitchell Joachim’s we get flocks of jetpacks and mass-transit blimps that look like flying monster jellyfish.

Another win for James Corner Field Operations, this time in Qianhai, Shenzhen, China. Is that landscape urbanism i see?

Between this announcement that University of California Berkeley, has chosen them to design the new Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAM/PFA) and the recent rumors of Eli Broad's interest in them for his newest musuem project, Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R) seem to be on a roll.

U Michigan Taubman College named John McMorrough Architecture Program Chair, Associate Architecture Professor. Discuss here.

These two news items seem related; Ego-seums (as in Museums) are In and REX's Museum Plaza Back From Dead?.

Discussion Threads
phivphan gets the Small Projects thread rolling again with some great projects by a clutch of Asian architects including Taira Nishizawa and Kengo Kuma.

jump sums up this weeks discussion at TC; lol. penguins, american political theatre, and words that sound imaginary but are real. so where do i sign up to pre-order philip's book?

kusa starts a thread to help him with his research on The Architecture of Architecture Schools.

C-anad wonders "What if I design a site plan without any GREEN spaces?". Personally, I am ok with it. If it means one less green roof on a student project just for "sustainability's" sake.

School Blogs
Lian at Harvard's GSD summarizes all he has been up to since his last post, which includes a trip to his PhD graduation at McGill along with the announecement that he received a graduation fellowship from McGill that will be funding some research travel in China this August!

John Tubles spent two very art filled days' in Tokyo hitting the musuems and galleries on his way to visit family in LAos Angeles.

Michael at UC Berkeley shares some sketches he made during his trip out West from Virginia.

Jun 27, 10 1:22 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #166

News
The first ever European Solar Decathlon ended yesterday in Madrid and Virginia Polytechnic State University's Lumenhaus took home the grand prize for most efficient home.

Orhan Ayyüce puts out a plea to help his friend Larry Totah (a long standing member of the Los Angeles architectural community) as he is battling with a difficult illness in these financially difficult times.

Jayne Merkel asks if we can return to Mies' ideal of less is more in the post bubble housing market? In the NYT.

Discussion Threads
shadowplay starts a great thread to find out the spectrum of written work people feel have influenced their work in Architecture the most.

kken needs help deciphering some terms from in s,m,l,xl.

Share some productive ways to spend new found time post-furlough.

School Blogs
Barry Lehrman gets all transparent, and posts excerpts of his student evaluations from one of his courses last semester.

Andrew who is studying landscape architecture at GSD reports back from a three day
Spatial Activisim Event at Olafur Eliasson's studio.

Jul 4, 10 1:45 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #167

News
Announcing the Archinect Summer '10 Travel Blogs, wherein Archinect has conscripted a few Yale School of Architecture students (class of 2011), awardees of various travel fellowships (George Nelson Scholarship, David M. Schwarz and Takenaka Fellowships), to blog about their experiences.

Übertect is back (after a short break) and this time he has set his sights on Diller Scofidio + Renfro's Alice Tully Hall...

R.I.P. Stephen Kanner.

This year—the Serpentine’s 40th Anniversary—the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion is designed by French architect Jean Nouvel. This 2010 Pavilion is the 10th commission in the Gallery’s annual series. It will be the architect’s first completed building in the UK. In his review Hugh Pearman writes, So it's a distillation of café life on the town square, really, nothing more intellectual than that despite his quoting of Baudrillard.

Orhan has two great posts; this ft the newly proposed Izmir Opera House and the other highlights the Conflict Kitchen’s first iteration, Kubideh Kitchen.

Discussion Threads
Spurred by the results of the recent Vanity Fair survey of the best architecture since the 1980s. Over on TC, barry lehrman and holz.box provided some alternate listings for the best green buildings from the last 30 years. They can be found here and here, respectively.

Who would you suggest for an architectural publishing house?

I assume that most everyone will be watching The World Cup Finale this afternoon. Discuss the game and results here.

Did you know one of those Russian spies who were traded back to Russia was allegedly a suburban architect.

School Blogs
Christ at Bartlett inspired by an article on sewer-panning for gold in India in the Christian Science Monitor writes, Now, I can't comment on the legitimacy or bias of the source, but it's such a dense, dynamic social set up; character surveillance, waste economies of geology, people as vehicles for invisible wealth - it's just crying out to be turned into a project.

Jesse at University of Hawaii checks in (after an extended period). He is getting ready to spend a year in Afghanistan working for the US State Department. As he writes So what do I hope to gain from this (besides an exceptional salary)? Unrestricted access to the architectural centers of America at war/nation building while they are living and breathing.

Additionally
Students at The Royal University College of Fine Arts in the Mejan Arc, Advanced Studies in Urbanism program will have the opportunity to investigate whether Goa can show the way for the rest of the country in a transformation from a rural to an urban economy, thereby offering a convincing urban alternative to the mega-cities? Could Goa’s biological and cultural diversity contribute to a resilient urban complex? Would such a hybrid be another way of understanding Urban life? Is the »forest city« a distant cousin to the mega-city’s urban jungle Furthermore, students will explore some of modernism’s lesser-traveled paths, ones in which the tropical climate informed another kind of architecture. We will investigate lifestyle patterns, innovation, food production in a local and global perspective, biomimicry and radical mapping. Go ahead and apply for the program, A Bio-topical-Goa. Hat Tip to Beyond the Beyond.

Jul 11, 10 11:14 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #168

News
Wow! Congrats to Lateral Office. In related news Lateral Office will be hosting a session at the 99th ACSA Annual Conference next March in Montreal, titled; Architecture’s Expanded Territories.

Günter Behnisch passed away this week, at age 88. simoneis who worked for Behnisch in the early 90s posts a touching and personal tribute to him. Discuss his passing here.

Roger Ebert tries his hand at some architectural criticism.

barry lehrman, makes a good point in his comment re: this article on how every city now"wants a Highline".

jargon, etc.5 lists 5 Frustrating Things about the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts.

Check out the new Korean Architecture (in English) website which finally launched. The writers saw a need for in discussing and documenting Korean architecture in the English language and created the site as an international platform.

Discussion Threads
Unicorn Ghost starts a thread to discuss the use of pneumatic and hydraulic systems within architecture. Which leads to holz.box posting this great video which highlights some of some pretty sweet pneumatic/mechanical stuff by Tom Kundig.

TC has a brief discussion regarding passivhaus and its strengths and limits...

School Blogs
Mark at Cooper Union catches us up on the 2010 spring semester.

Lian at Harvard GSD is off to China (for his first time) for a one month trip funded by his alma mater, McGill School of Architecture, with the only condition being that he bring back materials to hold an exhibition upon return.

Jul 18, 10 11:01 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #169

News
Orhan alerts us to the fact that one of Sci Arc's very original founders and great visionary architect Glen Small has started his own blog where he chronicles his work, story and views. Go read.

It's travel season on Archinect! In addition to the awesome new Archinect Summer '10 Travel Blogs (check them out if you haven't yet!), Marlin has just gifted us with episode 13 of his ongoing Archinect Travels series. In this episode he visits Jean Nouvel's Guthrie Theater, presented by local architects Ralph Nelson and Dan Clark of LOOM studio.

Donna is right this video of Bjarke explaining 8Tallet, Denmark's largest apartment complex designed by BIG whuch opens this fall, is awesome.

Snohetta has been selected to design the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art extension wing.

Discussion Threads
Holz.box starts aggregate passivhaus a passivhaus-centric thread for archinect..

New Songdo City is billed as the largest private real-estate development in history. Read about the project, billed as Korea’s answer to Shanghai and Dubai, and discuss.

Over on Google Map Tour Guide Central Barry Lehrman is recruiting folks to help create an LA/SoCal Landscape Architecture map.

Download a draft of the new 2010 California Green Building Standards Code and then discuss here.

School Blogs
John Tubles uses his latest post to verbally express his rants so he could be more productive and less distracted by all the stuff he has going on.

Mike at University of British Columbia goes on a posting spree and puts up nine (that's right) nine new post. They cover topics ranging from the Vancouver Winter Olympics to the project he worked on for the Gerald D. Hines/Urban Land Institute student urban planning competition and he takes us on a little architectural tour of Ottawa.

Additionally
AML hearts concrete.

Jul 25, 10 12:48 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #170

News
Check out Archinect's latest Showcase Plastic House a private residence located in Dublin, Ireland.

Twenty years after the passing of ADA: Monica Ponce de Leon discusses a counterpoint; universal design with NPR's "All Things Considered".

To help boost the "progressive upsurge" of their country, Georgian government selects a curvy building design to serve as a chechpoint between Georgia and Turkey at Sarpi. I liked Javier Arbona's comment here.

I also agree that meat wall section is awesome!

Discussion Threads
guess who's back...
Unicorn Ghost starts a thread to document sickest, hottest and most illegal post-modernism.

Shaner needs help finding a ceiling product that will 1. provide R30 insulation 2. be durable, easy to clean, easy to repair and CHEAP. 3. if possibly provide the FRR so we do not need to increase the thickness of our concrete deck above.

Watch out for the auto-start music on this thread. It's creepy.
azcue is compiling suggestions for the Starchitects - THE NEXT GENERATION

School Blogs
Micah at Kent State University reports back from a visit to treehugger: giant torus, a piece of inflatable architecture in the courtyard of the Sculpture Center in Cleveland.

Chris at Bartlett is giving us a chance to critique of a selection of projects from this graduating year of Unit 24 at the Bartlett.. The first one in the series PLEASE CRIT THIS is Tom Ibbitson's project: The Still Vessel.

Aug 1, 10 12:54 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #171

News
Don't miss the latest contributions in the Archinect Summer '10 Travel Blogs.



Poland's Katowice Railway Station, built in 1972 and designed by notable Polish architects Wacław Kłyszewski, Jerzy Mokrzyński and Eugeniusz Wierzbicki, is facing demolition. There is an appeal underway, spearheaded by Irma Kozina, art historian and the University of Silesia, Katowice-Poland. She has shared with us her call for support... take the jump to learn more.

Is Google turning evil??

Discussion Threads
jmanganelli needs assistance teaching integration with revit (with focus on sustainability).

Michael S Bergin wonders, What was your first experience with architecture like?

Anyone want to report in post-DesignDC?

School Blogs
Chris at Bartlett posts Part Two to PLEASE CRIT THIS-Kevin Kelly's Spatial Episodes of Hermitic Indulgence.

Additionally
For brevity’s sake, this tool for tweaking your psychogeography is focused on the art of the radonneur, which I am going to redefine for my own purposes as “sauntering on a bicycle”. The spell itself is quite simple.

From "How to Get Lost in Paris on Your Bicycle– or -Randonneur Psychogeography by Anthony Alvarad" Go to Arthur Magazine for more.

Aug 8, 10 2:07 pm  · 
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Next Editor's Picks #172

News
Check out Archinect's new Student Works: StalacTile, Tessellated Manifolds by students at Washington University in St. Louis.



We say goodbye to John Chase and Richard Ferrier.

Did you know Zaha Hadid is an "Arab architect"?

Clues to Open Helsinki is a collaboration between Sitra and OK Do, and consists of postcards featuring hints to how Helsinki becomes it 2012 self.

Discussion Threads
So far the votes seem to be for Kengo Kuma.

toasterovern has started Agriculture Central.

Where's the love?/ los angeles design community...

jk3hl is looking for sexy canopy precedents.

School Blogs
Stephanie at Kunstacademiets Arkitektskole reflects on her upcoming final year which starts in two weeks and also shows images of a chair she made out of rattan for last semester. While Max at Tokyo Institute of Technology shares final images for his adaptive re-use project for the Osaka CPO.

Nikhil at North Carolina State University catches us up on their last year which included working in California for a small firm, producing music, a crazy roadtrip with a good friend from los angeles. Now back to school.

James at Wentworth Institute of Technology wants the Boston Landmarks Commission "To Save the Pool" at the Christian Science Center plaza.

Additionally
Stefano Boeri wrote a Manifesto for a new idea of Localism "Any transformation of the space, even if it is provoked by global flows, incites and intercepts the device of local space , and inevitably conditioned by it. Local space, in other words, acts like the eye of a needle through which the thread of transformation must necessarily pass. For this reason, local space is not just a container for social, political and cultural processes that forge our contemporary world, but it is also their fundamental content."

Aug 15, 10 11:03 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #173

News
Our newest Showcase features the House in Hamadera. All that stained plywood sure makes for a pretty house.

Does LEED lead to bad indoor air quality?

Discussion Threads
Holz per usual posts some great photos in this discussion on skyways. Are skyways in direct conflict w/ urbanism You decided...

We discuss the controversy surrounding the proposed mosque adjacent to the WTC site

astew426 wants feedback on Catholic University's M.Arch program. All I know is they have the SPIRIT of PLACE / SPIRIT of DESIGN program. Which is a globally located design-build exploration program primarily for architecture students. The program also affiliates itself with the fields of anthropology, archeology, environment and the arts. The website can be found here. Architectural Record did a piece on the program a while back.

We also discussed some recent proposed masterplans, for the West Kowloon Cultural District and for the FRAMING A MODERN MASTERPIECE | The City + The Arch + The River, competition.

School Blogs
This fall Barry will be giving a guest lecture in CFAN 3480 Oil and Water: The Gulf Oil Spill of 2010, being taught by my new acquaintance, Robert Gilmer it will be a joint session with his own seminar, LA 4755/5755 Infrastructure, Natural Systems.

Anthony at GSAPP has a late review of PS1 Warmup featuring Pole Dance by Solid Objectives.



While John Tubles of Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University recently gave a lecture as part of his last 10 days in Japan.

Aug 22, 10 12:59 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #174

News
Archinects newest Showcase features the Mellat Park Cineplex project in Tehran is located in the far southwest side of Mellat Park, by Fluid Motion Consulting Architects.

Heather Ring report's in from the Venice Architecture Biennale with Venice Field Notes #1, Venice Fields Notes #2:, Venice Field Notes 3: and Venice Field Notes 4: Vacancies. Heather writes Kuzuyo Sejima’s 2010 selected projects for the 12th International Architecture Exhibition, People meet in Architecture, is as a whole joyful and responsive, considering ways we inhabit spaces and how they facilitate our interactions.

Member Ken Koense posts a news item regarding a fund raiser for Eliel Saarinen's Christ Church Lutheran.



Diller Scofidio + Renfro will design Eli Broad's art museum in downtown Los Angeles.

This piece about the Pelli Clarke Pelli-designed 15 Penn Plaza, which some charge will ruin iconic views of the Empire State Building,was posted into the news twice; here and here.

Paul writes What better way to spend $10 billion in Africa then remake cities into the shape of animals?

Discussion Threads
In this thread on whether or not the architecture billing index(ABI) really reflects the economy JoeyD asks a good question, The world experienced one of the greatest building booms ever and yet during 2004-2007 did wages really rise? Did architect's fees really go up proportionally? Did any of us gain any ground? My guess is any gains architectural workers saw during the "boom" went towards $4.00 gas to get to work.

Per this thread, the Samuel Mockbee/Rural Studio documentary is now available for viewing online here.

RoarksRevenge starts a discussion about Architectural Software and the'need' to be skilled in 'everything'. Is it simply a matter of being pro-technology or a Luddite?

Not sure what to make of this thread on FABULA architecture?

School Blogs
Jesse at University of Hawaii reports in from Kandahar and the Arghandab District Center.

Joshua at the School Of Architecture, RVCE reports on the visit to Bangalore by tutors from the Architectural Association.

Aug 29, 10 11:38 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #175

News
Announcing Archinect Sessions. The re-occurring sessions will take place at the Neutra VDL House in Silver Lake. Debate #1: will be on the The Future of Urbanism, and feature moderator Orhan Ayyuce, and guests Bryan Finoki (Subtopia) and Geoff Manaugh. Find out more here



Heather Ring continues her reporting from the Venice architectural Biennale with: Venice #6: Live Builds, Venice #7: Croatia stranded at sea, Venice #8: Nordics @ Work w/, Venice #9: USA bootstraps it, Venice #10: Street Training and Venice #11: 'Hylozoic Ground' .

Re: the news that Stefano Boeri will run for Mayor of Milan I agree with superinteresting!.

Autodesk has decided to reintroduce it's AutoCAD design software for Macs.

For the third year in a row Archinect is soliciting submissions for architecture school lecture posters.

Discussion Threads
graphite wonders if anyone out there can help them understand/explain/relate to an attraction towards Morphosis' presentations and drawings.

sublimespaces reawakens this old thread to give us their review of Reiser Umemoto's book Atlas of Novel Tectonics.

School Blogs
At Lawrence Technological University Constance Bodurow is heading up Randall's section of Urban Design which he finds exciting as her accomplishments echo a novel.

Michael at Architectural Association is currently in the process of compiling and sequencing a book of all the research his team has conducted over the last six months.

Additionally
Brute Force Collaborative has another great run in their Elevating the Discourse series
this time on Public Toilets: pt. 1 and pt. 2.

Sep 5, 10 10:14 am  · 
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holz.box

and part 3. thanks for the plug, nam!

Sep 5, 10 8:05 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #176

News
BRACKET [goes soft] and puts out a call for submissions for issue 2. BRACKET invites the submission of critical articles and unpublished design projects that investigate physical and virtual soft systems, as they pertain to infrastructure, ecologies, landscapes, environments, and networks. For more read.

Discussion Threads
Elisabeth started a thread to discuss the winning entries of the Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design's Dingbat 2.0 Competition.

Unicorn Ghost started a thread to discuss thermal bridging and thermal breaks. Some great discussion about detailing, types of insulation, and placement vapor/air barriers.

jk3hl started a thread because she is looking for details or any sort of image that explains a bit more about the joints or connections between modules in various modular structures.

In this thread re: Autodesk's recent court case jmanganelli provides a list of free and cheap alternatives to AutoCad.

School Blogs
David Cuthbert who along with Barry Lehrman is one of the few Archinect school bloggers blogging from the otherside (meaning as teachers) reawakens his Caribbean School of Architecture blog and offers a manifesto of sorts, writing that his blog is a voice from the other side but not just as a teacher, but the other side of Jamaica and the Caribbean beyond sunshine and coconut trees.

John Tubles at Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University returns to the land of his birth The Philippines.

Lian at Harvard's GSD tells us what made his summer so rewarding, including teaching Career Discovery and a a month-long trip to China and Japan! He also posts this picture of Tokyo at night, as seen from Tokyo Metropolitan Government observatory.

Sep 12, 10 10:43 am  · 
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'Maximus

In my fair city, it is the best of times and the worst of times. while in fact, the whole world might be hurting a little bit on the heels of a GM bankruptcy. If all else fails, we here in the Motor City, at least may be able to fall back on our agrarian roots.

But in such chaotic times, it's often the simple things that we take comfort in. In my own architectural bubble, I debate whether a new building system can shave a few dollars off my budget, but when it comes down to it, I know the client will only want to make sure his ceilings are high enough.

In Louisville, such design contradictions are what make makes life sweet and gives our lives as designers a glimmer of hope for a better outcome.

And if all else fails, we can take solace in the church whether we are good Christian soldiers or just lovers of good design.

Sep 14, 10 2:25 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #177

News
In case you missed the debut Archinect Sessions at Silver Lake's Neutra VDL House watch a recording of Debate #1: The Future of Urbanism, featuring moderator Orhan Ayyuce, and guests Bryan Finoki (Subtopia) and Geoff Manaugh (BLDGBLOG.)

Also, don't miss Aaron Plewke's feature The Extraordinary vs. the Everyday Catastrophe: a discussion on Katrina, ongoing systemic failures, and the role for design and design education in addressing catastrophes of everyday life.

Plus, Heather Ring added two more entries to her collection of 2010 Venice Biennale Field Notes with Venice #12: Preservation and Venice #13: Places to congregate.

The Santa Monica firm of Pugh+Scarpa has announced that founders Larry Scarpa and Gwynne Pugh will move in different directions after 22 years of business.

Find out how to Eat Like an Artistic Vagabond in Berlin at the Pale Blue Door.

Discussion Threads
Paul Petrunia lets slip a word about the long-discussed Archinect 2.0 BTW: we are getting a new shipment of shirts soon. The t-shirt shop, along with the rest of the website, has been getting less attention lately as we've been preparing the new version of Archinect, 3.0 which is scheduled to launch in around a month.

Anyone going to Greenbuild 2010?

School Blogs
Samuel at University of Tennessee graduated this may with my b.arch from the University of Tennessee and was hired by the College of Architecture and Design (at UTKnoxville) to continue work on a design/build effort funded by the EPA, to design and construct a sustainable home in Norris, Tennessee.

Stephanie at Kunstacademiets Arkitektskole is working on an urban project focused on lighting/furniture in public spaces this semester, called 'Furnishing the Townscape'.

Candace at University of Illinois at Chicago is back and she writes As of this year, I've made a pact with myself to not sit around and drone on about architecture and the properties it contains. But, it is difficult to make this effort when the people I'm spending most of my time around only talk about studio, their architecture jobs (past and present), and don't understand why I'm so resistant to the constant chatter of our work.

Mike from UBC shares his Summer Research in Marrakech.

John Tubles at Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University wonders How do you summarize a year in a blog…

Sep 19, 10 2:01 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #178

News
Heather Ring interviews Joshua Foer of the Sukkah City Competition on the Sukkah City Competition, public space and radical gestures are discussed.

Guy Horton reviews Architecture and Beauty: A Troubled Relationship” a recent panel discussion at SCI-ARC moderated by Yael Reisner’s and featuring Hernan Diaz Alonso, Frank Gehry, Greg Lynn, Thom Mayne, Eric Owen Moss and Peter Cook.

Don't miss the latest Working out of the Box featuring Margarita Mileva and her M2 rubber band necklaces.

Also, in our latest In Focus feature Archinect talked to Portuguese photographer Nelson Garrido.

John Jourden suggests Log 20 is Required Reading... The issue takes a look at the expanding ideas of curating architecture at a moment when its traditions and trajectories can no longer go unexamined. The proliferation of museum architecture departments and architecture biennials since the 1980s and the broadened use of the term curating to encompass artistic, architectural, and academic practices have today influenced the very idea of cultural production: Everyone is a curator and everything is curated. What does this mean for the architecture curator and for architecture? More Log 20 here.

While over at Domus Web Carson Chan examines exhibiting architecture: and writes that curators should show, don’t tell. Therein he writes Fundamentally, the curator mediates between and makes available the exhibited objects and ideas and their relevance to an audience. The exhibition context provides one of the few venues where cultural artifacts are given a voice, and where the public is encouraged to collectively ascribe meaning and significance to the products of human culture. Particularly for architecture, the curator’s role is even more crucial.

Movingcities.org publishes an interview of Zhang Lei Atelier ZhangLei, wherein Zhang Lei states I would never create a fancy image without comprehending the construction behind the image. To make an interesting image is not a challenge; our students can do that. The question is: why do you make it? What is the logic? I would not draw a ship, give it to manufacturer and say: just make it.

Discussion Threads
Archinect discussed the Sukkah City competition here.

Nalina is looking for examples of American contemporary regionalism.

cosmoe32 is trying to do a quick comparative visual study of contemporary Russian architecture. Anyone know of some sites/blogs that might have such a survey?.

MixmasterFestus wonders whether he should Maintain Legacy LEED AP, or opt into the new credentialing system? Thoughts, or suggestions welcome.

Additionally
Announcing Once upon a Place – haunted houses & imaginary cities an international conference devoted to an emerging theme, as an associated event of the Lisbon Architecture Triennale 2010 and matching its official opening and exhibitions. The event is dedicated to architects, historians, researchers, essayists, artists and authors, aiming at the reunion of a critical and creative international group for the cultural studies in architecture. What kinds of stories do spaces and buildings “tell” us? What insights on architectural knowledge and experience can literary forms convey? Are designs, buildings and cities somehow a fabrication on the world? Does form follows fiction? Can fiction foresee architecture and urban futures? The conference will tackle the reciprocal influences between architecture and fiction, whether they emerge under literary forms or other means related to visual narratives and popular culture. More here. Via Bruce Sterling

Sep 26, 10 1:08 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #179

News
School bloggers John Tubles and Scott Kepford summarize link their impressions of the 2010 AIA/LA Home Tour and the featured homes for us.

Archinect's newest showcase feature is a two parter, featuring the work of LA based firm BplusU. Part 1 features their Frank & Kim Residence. Part 2 features their “City Futura” proposal a visionary urban design proposal for an expansion of the City of Milan set in the year 2210.

Architecture for Humanity's Open Architecture iPad app has just hit Apple app store. Learn more here.

Discussion Threads
Anyone have a line on some old Lego Modulex architects M20 bricks, Karyn is looking for some...

Share your thoughts on the recent announcement by Se4attle's Department of Planning and Development regarding the selection of James Corner Field Operations as lead designer for their plans to create a Great Central Waterfront with the Seattle Central Waterfront Project.

k4dm0Nk3y is trying to design a house for his/her family. Feedback welcome. Check out this weird site aerial



School Blogs
Faysal at AA is thinking about thesis decides that it is about rigorously working at creating opportunities that are unashamedly thought of as impossible.

Lian at Harvard's GSD features a guest post from some friends in the MDESS, MLA, and upper-year MArch programs, who are embarking on the injection of the GSD into the arts-science-technology-design-branding fest that is the Lab at Harvard. Their project is a spatial tasting experience.

Antonio at Kunstakademiets posted some images from his summer travels including to Stockholm and Finland. While there he visited Alvar Aalto's Saynatsalo Town Hall.

Oct 3, 10 11:26 am  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #180

News
Archinect's Fall 2010 Lecture Poster collection is now online.

Zaha Hadid Architects finally won the RIBA Stirling Prize 2010 for MAXXI, the National Museum of XXI Century Arts in Rome while Sir David Chipperfield CBE was awarded the Royal Gold Medal.

Two years ago architects Mabel O. Wilson and Peter Tolkin traveled through Ghana, documenting mostly modernist mid-century buildings, designed by architects from Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Lebanon, Italy and Ghana. Read more about this African side to “Tropical Modernism.”

I didn't realize Antoine Predock’s Classroom Laboratory Administration complex was featured in Gattaca, did you know?

Discussion Threads
In this economic environment is the solution to your employment woes to stupify your resume and credentials?

Interested in working in Mexico? Discuss here.

abhilasha has questions about intelligent architecture and wonders can architecture respond to change?.

Phillip Crosby who has recently been reading and writing about Aldo van Eyck's Amsterdam playgrounds shared this poem by van Eyck over on TC

"To consider the city is to encounter ourselves.
To encounter the city is to rediscover the child.
If the child rediscovers the city,
the city will rediscover the child—ourselves.

LOOK SNOW!

A miraculous trick of the skies—a fleeting correction.
All at once the child is Lord of the City.
But the joy of gathering snow off paralyzed vehicles is
short-lived.

Provide something for the human child more permanent
than snow—if perhaps less abundant.

Another miracle."


School Blogs
Lian from Harvard's GSD returned to Montreal and posted some photos of Montreals BIXI bike share system in action and also posted some rough models made from a quick charrette for a community performing arts center.

Anthony at Columbia University's GSAPP talked about a recent class project Backpack. where they along with fellow students he had to design a backpack that could filter water.

Marc Syp at Knowlton School of Architecture developed a Grasshopper plug-in for Rhino which makes use of Realtime Physics for Space Planning.

Additionally
Via Bruces Hey urbanists: Renew Newcastle is coming to America.

Oct 10, 10 11:56 am  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #181

News
Paul posted a bunch of updates regarding BRACKET, including the fact that the website is now open to membership registration plus, check out previews of BRACKET [on farming] and more.

Plus this snapshot of the first, upcoming issue was loaded to the gallery recently


Orhan Ayyüce interviewed Coy Howard.

Guy Horton attended a panel talk on the State of the Industry at the Architecture and Design Museum Los Angeles. He found that Undoubtedly, digitization and the internet have enabled firms to be more agile and responsive to fluctuations in demand. The ability to mobilize a firm quickly and from long distances makes it easier to reach out. While this model liberates them from being geographically fixed, the tactic is still the same: go where the work is. But there has to be available work in the first place.

Read about a house with a staff of 600. Discuss here.

Discussion Threads
mixologist is wondering does hiring come to a halt after Thanksgiving and start only in mid Jan?

Over on Thread Central toasteroven points us to 99% invisible a project of KALW, the American Institute of Architects, San Francisco and the Center for Architecture and Design. Its a short podcast which tries to comprehend the 99% invisible activity that shapes the design of our world.

George85 has questions about Space frames and their potential in architecture ?

There are some great examples/pictures of column designs that start engaging and producing the spaces they inhabit? in the thread started by Hugoistique12.

School Blogs
Dorothy at University of Michigan TCAUP will in an attempt to document her thesis project be posting about her progress over the next couple of months. First up are her thoughts on her site (territory las vegas, nevada to los angeles, california) in relation to infrastructural networks.

Samuel at University of Tennessee posted a short time-lapse film condensing the two day installation process of the prefab home by Clayton Homes, on-site in Norris, Tennessee.

Lian at Harvard GSD shared some photos of two recent food-and-architecture events that she attended: MXT at McGill University School of Architecture, and Three States of Hors d'oeuvres by the GSD's Project on Spatial Sciences.

John Tubles at Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University is thinking of designing a "mixed use" crematorium for his thesis. The crematorium would bve below ground and then there would be a "live" program above ground.

Additionally
Announcing the conference - Superstructural Dependencies The conference brings together international practitioners and thinkers to discuss both the growing dependency of urban societies on their technological superstructures as well as the phenomena of massive online virtual environments with their unstable population and continuous reformulation of their own raison d’etre. Via Bruce Sterling

Oct 17, 10 11:49 am  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #182

News
Please note The right of photographers to stand in a public place and take pictures of federal buildings has been upheld by a legal settlement reached in New York.

LA's new Holocaust Museum opened this week with a striking building, designed by Belzberg Architects.



Discussion Threads
Phillip Crosby is looking for examples of "Water Cleaning" Landscapes.

outed alerts us to the fact that the aia billing index was/is up for the first time in 2 years.

cadcroupier wants to get peoples feelings were on the topic of engaging a collection agency to collect on delinquent clients. Any small practitioners have good results with this? I understand its not the best approach for maintaining client relations. However if they aren't paying for services rendered, should I really care what they think?

holz.box and phuyaké restart the with some great additions ft work of Scarpa, Gottfried Bohm, Takuro Yamamoto and Kevin Low of Small Projects.

School Blogs
David Cuthbert Archinect's now sole teacher school blogger clarifies the facts for anyone who has the general misconception that university lecturers tasks are limited to teaching and coordinating lessons.

Joanna at USC is taking a housing studio.

Thomas at Boston Architectural College is working on a Life Center in Needham, MA which will at least in part be situated on an existing park and thus care must be taken to not fill in all open space.

Lian at GSD writes about the first overhaul of the workspaces in Gund Hall since its opening in 1972.

Stephanie at Kunstacademiets Arkitektskole reviews the English Masters program and vents All told, it feels as if this 'international masters' is an afterthought at this institution. She also wonders if you have a night-mare crit scenario? If so she'd love to see it!

Oct 24, 10 12:36 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #183

News
The newest Showcase Y-House by IDEAoffice in Tokyo is an example of existence minimum architecture.

Archinect's most recent entry in the UpStarts series features William Galloway interviewing 5468796 Architecture. Amongst other things they discuss the current trend towards green/sustainable design and the engineer’s disease opining "Everyone wants to be sustainable but the way to get there is through mechanical components instead of looking at yourself in the mirror and seeing how much you really need."

This week, the Australian Institute of Architects presented the winners of the National Architecture Awards. I was particularly struck by this project.


The Harry Seidler Award for Commercial Architecture: 5-9 Roslyn Street Kings Cross (Sydney, NSW) by Durbach Block Architects, Photo: Anthony Browell

Discussion Threads
Michael S Bergin is looking for a 'laboratory' where an architectural project can be produced at a real-world scale and tested out before it is built?.

outed has an idea for a project for all you young enterprising types.

Nasim Adab wants to talk about getting around Toronto by streetcar, bicycle and car.

farwest1 has some questions on fair use of images and attribution of design contributions regarding work for previous employers.

School Blogs
Dorothy at University of Michigan TCAUP shares a mapping of the view out the car windshield along a vector.

Lian at Harvard GSD went to "performance-talk" called Sermons on the City by Theaster Gates. Also, she defends the pre-renovation homasote pin-up boards and individual shelters in Gund.

Greg at Columbia Graduate School of Architecture responds to Charles Holland, director at UK based firm FAT Architecture recentish Dear other architects letter re: competition as a business strategy or lack thereof.

Max at Tokyo Institute of Technology attended the Setouchi Art Festival about 2 months ago and provides some images.

Additionally
Discovered via Thread Central back in 2003, Edward Tufte wrote about why Powerpoint is Evil and David Byrne
wrote Learning to Love Powerpoint.

Oct 31, 10 2:10 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #184

News
Archinect's latest In Focus features the work of American photographer Kevin Bauman of amongst other things the 100 Abandoned Houses project.

And our latest ShowCase project is Briefcase House a house within a house, by Jimenez Lai.



Anyone want to report in from USC's recent discussion, Taking the Long View: Design and the Nonprofit, featuring Cameron Sinclair and Lily Jencks?

MONU - magazine on urbanism has announced its new call for submissions for #14 on the topic of Editing Urbanism.

We have added to the Lecture Posters 2010 collection. Some of my favorites include those by, Barcelona Institute of Architecture, OTIS College of Art and Design, Princeton University, Academie van Bouwkunst, UC Berkeley, Princeton University and Cal Poly Pomona.

Since 2004, when DesignIntelligence began ranking undergrad and grad programs separately, Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design has been number 1. So it is interesting that University of Michigan’s Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning nudged Harvard out of No. 1 this year.

Discussion Threads
harold want to know if anyone knows of any buildings or urban plans specifically designed to stimulate and contribute to racial and ethnic integration?

jk3hl is looking for examples of vertically oriented museums.

vado retro writes The day our concerns shifted from championing architectural ideas to a focus on the drudgery of waterproofing, was a dark day indeed. Over on this thread.

ichweiB wants to know more about Target Value Design.

School Blogs
Min wook,Choi at Inha University - D lab, alerts us to the fact that Yusuke Obuchi / Prof. The University of Tokyo will be lecturing and leading an upcoming workshop at Inha University, entitled Critical Mass which will explore the conflict between local and global orders exist in the city of Seoul and develop design proposals as projective urban strategies.

Lian at Harvard's GSD informs us that Preston Scott Cohen makes his provocations with a smile, because he enjoys the game of playing Scott.

After leaving Malta Antonio at Kunstakademiets Arkitektskole visited Roma, Milano and Venezia. with stops at the MAXXI and the Venezia Biennale.

Additionally
Places Journal, published, two excerpts from BRACKET [on farming] Issue #1 which is available now for pre-order from Amazon. In the first Mason White reviews the history of 20th-century design histories and practices and suggests a lineage of urbanism as productive, from post-Victorian efforts in hygiene, Buckminster Fuller’s hopes for a total inventory or the contemporary modern, industrial strength landscape of the River Rouge Complex. In the second Charles Waldheim explores the history of urban form as shaped by an agrarian suburbanized regionalism exemplified by three projects: Frank Lloyd Wright's "Broadacre City" (1934–35), Ludwig Hilberseimer's "New Regional Pattern" (1945–49), and Andrea Branzi's "Agronica" (1993–94), and its further development, "Territory for the New Economy" (1999).

Nov 7, 10 10:55 am  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #185

BODY
News Lovers of the "minimal detail " discussion thread and related SpaceInvading post, here's some more crack for you: German practice jonek + dressler architekten's thoughtful renovation of an 80-year old multi-family house in Bielefeld, Germany. Archinect T-Shirts are back in stock and on sale. Including my favorites The Love Movements series. The Durst Organization is teaming up with Bjarke Ingels (BIG) for a huge residential complex on Manhattan's Far West Side. From this thread, sevensixfive's comment FTW. Discussion Threads le bossman started a thread devoted to talking about all things stair related. archNRE wants to know is a egress stair: is a grand stair in the lobby qualifed as a means of egress?. Orhan Ayyüce starts a thread for architects on Archinect to Post picture(s) from projects you have designed under your responsible control. School Blogs Susan at Yale School of Architecture snapped a photo of Alejandro Zaera Polo who lectured on "Envelopes" Thursday, November 4. Greg at Knowlton School of Architecture announces the launch of a student publication One:Twelve. He also reviews the recently held Envisioning Organization: Architecture and Information conference. Lian at GSD attempted to live blog Scott Cohen's discussion with Bjarke Ingels. Bjarke talked amongst other things about evolution and the mating (iteration) of models. Vieiwing Bjarke's presentation led her to write a post on the function of folly. John Tubles at Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University is back in Manila this time for research on social housing and cemetery squatters. Additionally Over on ICON Magazine Kieran Long looks back on the 2010 Venice architecture biennale. Concluding I left wondering where the troublemakers have gone in our architectural culture, such as the late Lina Bo Bardi and Cedric Price. They’re not in Venice, either among the press corps or the exhibitiors.

Nov 14, 10 1:09 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #186

News
Archinect Does Dallas

There are two upcoming Bracket book launch events in NYC & LA, both to be held on Dec 10. For more.

Read about how, confronting a shortage of home-grown architects, the Canadian government is making it easier for foreign-trained designers to work there. Discuss here.

Watch William H. Whyte's Social Life of Small Urban Spaces

Discussion Threads
tman would like to know about artists that have done public infrastructural works (lights, trash recepticles, benches, piers, etc.).

Marlin is stuck in the Bay Area and is looking for San Francisco's equivalent to Reyner Banham's Four Ecologies, so he can get to understand the city better. Any suggestions?

jplourde suggests that Verisimilitude is a defining characteristic of contemporary architecture and talks about hegemony.

Image Gallery


Holland's National Automobile Museum, by Michael Graves & Associates

School Blogs
Anthony at Columbia University GSAPP writes about a discussion with one of his professors re: rationalization: We concluded that it's not good in a learning institution to try to use emotions to verbalize a project because it doesn't help the student to rationalize ideas.

John Tubles at Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University shares some amazing pictures from his research in Manila, into low-cost housing and cemeteries as slums.

Lian at GSD interviews one of her classmates Caroline Shannon, who was a member of the Campus Catalyst team which won the World Architecture Festival's, AECOM-sponsored Urban SOS competition called “Transformations. They talked about the teams award winning project and the work of MASS whose motto is “We Build Social Value Through Design”.

Plus, three new Archinect school bloggers put up there first posts: Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago, Andreas in GSD's Urban Design program and Emma at Ohio State University.

Nov 21, 10 11:10 am  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #187

News
Bruno Mori took a look at Fallen Fruit’s recuration of the permanent collection and garden structures Let Them Eat LACMA, closing Fallen Fruit’s EATLACMA, a yearlong investigation of food, the natural growth cycle, and the social role of art.

Winners of the 2010 Aga Khan Award for Architecture were announced.
I still like the Bridge School, Xiashi, Fujian, China



Aaron, told us to check out BI BLOG, a new form of collaborative design blogging. Eschewing the singular author, each thematic exchange presents, in tandem, two unique points of view on a single architectural topic.

Studio Banana TV interviewed Ole Bouman, director of the Netherlands Architecture Institute (NAI), Holland.

Need a job? The rumors are true, this January and for six months, the Van Alen Institute is opening a new project space dedicated to thinking, speaking, discussing, reading, touching and selling architecture publications. The space is currently being designed by an architectural firm known for its boldness. The task will vary from organizing the curatorial program of events, selecting inventory of publications, attending the book store and more. Learn more.

Discussion Threads
Orhan Ayyüce is asking for help locating examples of architectural nicknames given by popular media and real estate industry for local residential projects: ie "Salad Spinner house".

Nasim Adab wonders, What kind of urban elements, services and spaces do you think are the illustration of a healthy and democrat society?.

jakob knulp announced the launch of LUMHOR an online magazine that aims to develop critical discourse and creative thinking about architecture and urbanism in Cambodia.

Outed, wants to talk about new business models.

School Blogs
Andreas at Harvard GSD visited the Museum of Fine Arts' (MFA) new Arts of Americas wing which opened last weekend.

Lian at Harvard's GSD lists When a medical student friend tells me that she'll be working 80 hours a week for her residency, I accidentally offend her by responding "oh, that's not so bad." , as number 7 in her list of Ten signs that the GSD has ruined me. She also posted some snippets from last week’s discussion between Reinhold Martin and Jeff Kipnis. I particularly like how Kipnis concluded his presentation, by asking “So are we going to be better off trying to understand the neurophysiology of how we perceive things, or are better off seeing that we’re the magicians?”.

Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago provided a definition of Eisenmania.

Nov 28, 10 4:55 am  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #188

News
Just a reminder, the deadline from Bracket 2 on Soft Systems is December 10th! To Submit, please visit http://www.brkt.org/.

Ann Lok Lui a 5th year student at Cornell poses some very questions about the validity of the DI Ranking system in her piece The Mathematics of the Ideal Education; Debunking the DesignIntelligence Best Architecture & Design Schools Rankings. Discuss here.

In response to a recent report by the Index of Economic Freedom on the 30 most dynamic cities in the post-recession world, which lists Istanbul as #1, Shenzhen as #2 and Lima as #3 Orhan Ayyüce wonders about a reversal of fortunes.

Denise Scott Brown recently published an article, "Questions of Style" in Artforum. In the piece on shelves now, she discusses her and Robert Venturi's fourth renovation of modernism. She writes "Our approach to style is broad and deep. It's nonjudgmental at first, to make subsequent judgment more sensitive.

Image Gallery


Light Frames, an installation by Los Angeles architect Gail Peter Borden

Discussion Threads
mdler wants to know if those in school have an accurate picture of the state of the architectural profession. are professors and schools being about the huge numbers of unemployed/underemployed etc...

holz.box started an aggregate thread, to collect all previously started threads about starting a firm.

in this thread on canonically white buildings started by alucidwake, 207moak shared this delightful anecdote I remember a quote from an architect installing an exhibit at Maison LaRoche (was it Hejduk?) He was surprised to see red dust from the cay tile core coming out of the hole he was drilling in the wall as he expected it to be white all the way through and said "I made Corbu's building bleed."

Gotan in preparation for a trip early next year, wants to know about great modern architecture in Hokkaido region.

mixologist is looking for Short Bridge Precedents.

School Blogs
Lian posted some photos of places she has been recently including: the Boston conservatory, Harvard's Loeb Theater, Boston Symphony Hall, Gehry's InterActiveCorp Headquarters, Preston Scott Cohen's canopy at the Goldman Sachs building, the High Line, Alice Tully Hall and the New Museum. She also presented a delightful photographic narrative of a semester at GSD.

Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago has to write a projective history based on a found document for his Theory class with Robert Somol. In his case the found document is a "Found" Casino Map.

Stephanie at Kunstacademiets Arkitektskole talks about delusions.

Additionally
Urea garden(s) and ruminant cargo(s) brilliant.

Dec 5, 10 1:08 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #189

News
Archinect talked to Tokyo-based German architect Thomas Volstorf for the latest In Focus.




The ALGAE Garden a submission by a team comprised of amongst others, Archinects own Heather Ring is one of three projects selected for the 2011 Edition of the International Garden Festival at Metis.

Paul's comment for the win. Also, doesn't this announcement somehow just seem fitting?

Write a classified for New City Reader at http://lgnlgn.com/. The classifieds are anonymous (so get creative) and for any location. The NCR Classifieds will be produced in the New Museum by LGNLGN December 30, 2010–January 6, 2011. More here

Discussion Threads
ReflexiveSpace is planning a visit to New Orleans and is looking for information on visiting the Make it Right houses and more generally, architectural tourism in NOLA.

Orhan Ayyüce and larslarson amongst others have a serious yet agreeable discussion re: the recent announcement that Qatar will host the 2020 World Cup.

architracteur is trying to coordinate a visit to the Ircam (Institute for Research in Music) designed by Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers.However he needs to find people for complete a group for the visit (maximum 18 people, 66 euros for the whole group). Anyone interested and available at the beginning of January 2010?

School Blogs
Emma at Ohio State University talks about final reviews.

Greg Columbia Graduate School of Architecture writes We recently registered for next semester's classes and it sort of hit me that this is coming to an end soon.

Zhao at University of Tokyo is working on a project in which he has to create a "performative ceiling" system for Tokyo Station to solve problems. Also, Peter Cook will be giving a lecture entitled From Archigram to Crab.

Anthony at Columbia University GSAPP and the rest of his studio had to design an Air Laboratory for scientists at Peck Slip, Southside Seaport NYC.

Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago designed a house in which the transverse section only changes in scale as it moves through the house.

Dec 12, 10 11:58 am  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #190

News
Just in time for the holiday gift giving we have new t-shirts and an advanced copy of BRACKET [on farming].

Orhan gives us an inside peak at USC's school wide final reviews held on the 50 & 51st floors of a downtown Los Angeles building. Meanwhile, we also get hipped to images from University of Kentucky College of Design's Brown-Forman Urban Design Studio final review.

Re: this news about Dai Haifei, 24, a newly graduated architect, who made an egg-style home, I will say it again I would love to see a whole urban district of these.. Or refugee camps maybe. Seems like a pretty cheap and renewable answer to at least temporary low cost housing.


Photo/Beijing Times

Discussion Threads
rockaway wants to move his professional career from doing higher end mixed use projects to a professional career centered around improving the quality of life for people in lower-income, impoverished areas and wants to know some high profile firms/architects doing this type of work.

Two related discussions, the first about suggestions on other fields/professions aside from architecture and second then white collar professional job security.

Archinecters sound off about where they live here.

School Blogs
Roberto at University of Edinburgh begins posting, says hello and Joao at Canterbury School of Architecture also posts his first, calling himself a Fresher.

Nikhil at North Carolina State University got feedback via checklists after his final review?

Lian at Harvard GSD pinned up the following statement as part of her final review presentation When we understand ourselves as actors in the public sphere instead of private citizens or consumers, we are able to lead better lives., which leads to a 'discussion' about private vs public...

Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University at John Tubles at took 20 units this quarter and he writes the epitome of the term “archi-torture”. He also reviews the quarter in photos.

Thomas + at Boston Architectural College played around with foam, hot wire and a robotic arm.

Dec 19, 10 12:41 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #191: Happy Holidays!!!

News
The shape of entropy?

Bryan Finoki alerts us to Danish attempts to resocialize inmates via prison design.

A physicist thinks he has solved urban issues of scaling.

Discussion Threads
In our discussion of the movie Tron Legacy, in terms of the fold, DeLueze and networked culture, jk3hl coins the term tron-tecture.

spacefraud wants to know if craft is back in where did craft go?.

From the title sounds like we can expect more pieces. Sort of a short piece of investigative design fiction?

Over at TC, Diabase clues us in to what he has been working on for a bit - ARKit. ARKit designs and manufactures factory-built buildings using a wall panel system they designed themselves that incorporates sustainable materials and achieves a high degree of thermal performance.

School Blogs
Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago points us to the work of Daniel Starcher a second year M.Arch student, who designed some pink bridge-like structures.

A new blogger Jemuel at Pratt Institute talks about protomorphs and generative operations.

Additionally
The hauntology of contemporary urbanism seemed to be popular this week. From ghost cities in China where there are by some estimates up to 64 million vacant homes, to Spanish new development busts. Meanwhile the BBC sees ghost estates ahead instead of business as usual for the foreseeable future ... Even perhaps, the future ghost cities of America?

Dec 26, 10 10:50 am  · 
 · 

i just realized picks are over three years now. wow! every weekend! thanks for doing it nam, it is really great..

Dec 26, 10 12:12 pm  · 
 · 

Orhan,
Thanks, for allowing me to takeover from you. Sometimes, i worry that i have made it to regular and not diverse enough of a thing. But then again it is just tough to do every weekend.

And for anyone who might be reading this and is interested in doing a guest editor's pick, just email me for details etc.

Dec 26, 10 6:10 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #192: Let us all have a great 2011 !!!

News
U.S. architecture billings highest since 2007.

Orhan highlights three recent instances of art censorship aka 'the nightmare of safe art'. Meanwhile, uxbridge started a related discussion here.

Nicolai Ouroussoff took a break from reviewing new cultural buildings and such in the developed West and instead explored two examples of urban redevelopment in the Middle East. The first in Allepo Syria and second in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

Discussion Threads
We discuss Acura's gingerbread house commercial.

ADavin tips us off about an article in the NYT re: a five day urban spelunking expedition in NYC.

In a discussion resulting from a question about Structural window systems in non-orthoganol geometries syp suggests that Assigning an aesthetic or "artistic" egoism to tectonics is absurd and obsolete.

School Blogs
Henry at Woodbury University posts for the first time. He talks about The Threshold:Hive a project by Austin Wilson, Ehson Hoarpisheh and himself which was a digi-fab, cardboard based structure.

Mike at UBC assisted on a design build project which used some of the hundreds of sheets of wheat board left over from the construction of the Vancouver Olympic village. The boards were used to create a created a 6 x 7 x 14m artwork, specifically in the shape of a giant bulldozer. He also had a piece published in the Canadian journal On Site Review in its 24th issue on migration, which drew on his research in Marrakech's Jemaa el Fna square.

Anthony at Columbia University GSAPP categorizes the various participants of the 2011 M.Arch applicants, commiserate here! thread.

Mark at Cooper Union is now one of the first official graduates of Cooper's M.Arch II program. He therefore takes the opportunity to sign off and reflect back on Cooper Union's new degree program. Interestingly, he writes Drawing was a focus so much that the idea of having a 'project' or something you can call architecture was completely dismissed. To focus to quickly on 'architecture' was a big no-no in my studios.

Michael at UC Berkeley praises Berkeley highly for allowing him the opportunity to choose classes that made his studio experience truly ‘comprehensive’.

Roberto at University of Edinburgh reflects on "Christmas, Nazis, and Processional Architecture".

Jan 2, 11 1:01 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #193

News
Recently, on a fact-finding mission for his new book Forms of Spirituality: Modern Architecture and Landscape in New Harmony, Ben Nicholson interviewed Richard Meier concerning his radical 1976 project for the city of New Harmony, Indiana - the Athenaeum. They spoke of collage, movement and the 'tragedy of Utopia'. During their discussion Meier also opined, I think that as far as I am concerned, in terms of my architecture, obviously I would not work for, or take on, a client whose beliefs I felt were counter politically to what I believe. Their full discussion can be found here.

Regarding this news about Eli Broad's new DS+R designed museum, as Orhan says, art + auction + elevator music.

For their latest feature Studio Banana TV interviewed Bjarke Ingels of BIG. The 4 minute piece includes words from Bjarke about his practice, footage of his Copenhagen office and recent projects.

Orhan suggests we all watch BorderLINE Architecture.

Discussion Threads
spacefraud has a good suggestion for a new Archinect t-shirt,"wallpaper sucks".

gondol3 wonders what are the 7 Wonders of contemporary architecture? and what are the 7 Wonders of modern-postmodern-contemporary architecture?

according to a newly released study from job site CareerCast.com, posted to the WSJ re: best jobs, draftsman beats out architect. discuss here.

jakethesnake is putting out the call I'm putting together a symposium dealing with urban design across the the globe. Anyone know of any young urban designers developing interesting projects in Asia, preferably China?

School Blogs
Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago shares some more images of Daniel Starcher's project which featured pink bridges/passages.

Samuel at University of Tennessee continues work on www.thenewnorrishouse.com and list all the upcoming tasks for this semester.

Zhao at University of Tokyo took some pics taken during his 15-day holiday...

Additionally
Over at Places Journal Jim Williamson tells a story "What Passes for Beauty: A Death in Texas", which for those who know a at least a little about both Texas and architecture, is really a sort of myth. An intersection of human beings with place, grounded as much in our imagination as in reality. It is also a coming of age story: the story of his first job and first project.

Jan 9, 11 1:02 pm  · 
 · 

Editor's Picks #194

News
Matthew Lynch described the Industry Outlook for 2011. Meanwhile, Orhan Ayyüce re-visited the Episcopal Church of Pacific Palisades by Moore Ruble Yudell's.

We found out PennDesign Professor Detlef Mertins has passed away.
Read an old interview Geoff Manaugh did with Detlef back in 2006, wherein Professor Mertins said I see schools as an infrastructure that enables both faculty and students to pursue their own agendas - where students can, in fact, develop their own agendas and establish a relationship or orientation to the world of architecture.

These five groups of architects do not constitute a movement. They do not have a polemic, a style or a grand theory. But they share a mood, of getting back to the basic pleasures of building. They are opposed to the computerised, corporate, compartmentalised ways big buildings are built now. The preceding passage seemed a fitting conclusion to Rowan Moore's of the UKs most exciting young architects.

According to Nicolai this is some digitally filmic architecture, which effectively blurs the boundaries among architecture, film and viewer.

Discussion Threads
Uxbridge wants to discuss about Envy in architecture

We discussed Witold Rybczynski's article in Slate on How the Great Recession has changed architecture—for the better.. Weigh in here.

toasteroven starts a thread to discuss Sam Jacobs of FAT Architecture's recent Obituary for Minimalism originally published in the Obituaries issue of the New City Reader.

School Blogs
Samuel at University of Tennessee posts a picture of the siding work in progress at the www.thenewnorrishouse.com.

Roberto at University of Edinburgh lets us know that for this semester his design unit will be The Language of Stone with Dr Dagmar Motycka Weston.

Marc Syp at Knowlton School of Architecture recently produced a video for NBBJ's Qingdao Campus Masterplan competition entry.

Anthony at Columbia University GSAPP) posts a collection of animations done by 1st Semester AD&R GSAPP students for viewing.

Additionally
Check out Lauren Beukes' Ghost Girl. Which Bruce Sterling described thusly *Whaddya know. Look at that. South African prose-narrative architecture-fiction.*It’s in a fantasy publication, and it’s got a Gothic ghost in it, but basically, it’s all about architecture and urban planning.

Jan 16, 11 9:24 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #195

News
The biennial Solar Decathlon Competition, put on by the US Department of Energy, has received a major blow this year by getting denied the use of the National Mall for presenting the homes. Help support sustainable innovation in architecture by signing the petition...

Founded three years ago by six Harvard GSD students, MASS Design Group has transformed the lives of 400,000 Rwandans.

Check out Immersive Kinematics, a Research Group at the University of Pennsylvania directed by professors Simon Kim and Mark Yim. This group is a collaboration between Penn Engineering and Penn Design and expands the roles of architecture and engineering focusing on integrating robotics, interaction, and embedded intelligence in our buildings, cities, and cultures.

Discussion Threads
Greg Walker tells us to come work in Switzerland

Uxbridge wants to discuss this news item about Gov. Brown's proposal to ax CRAs.

tagolong wants to talk about current trends in rendering.

Kite wonders whether to stay in academia, in current adjunct teaching position with possible tenure track? Or return to old firm?

Image Gallery


New skylights in a remodeled 1940's bungalow in Tucson, Az by Ben Lepley

School Blogs
Two new school bloggers put up their first post. Shannon at University of Manitoba is working on a MArch and notes that her thesis is a collaborative effort with a fellow student named Jordy, who also happens to be my boyfriend. While Bo at Kansas State University CAPD writes that as he has progressed in his architectural education he finds himself interested in “political economies of space,” or how can architecture seek to pacify and create opportunity for two competing interests?

Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago posts a photo he took at Seagrams this last summer whilst Archinerding around New York.

Samuel at University of Tennessee discusses his role in the selection and installation of the lines for the heat exchange fluid (glycol) between the energy pack and the solar panel on the roof.

Lian at GSD Harvard is back from break and talks about her upcoming Spring 2011 semester.

Jan 23, 11 12:21 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #196

News
BIG + realities:united + AKT + Topotek 1 & Man Made Land have been selected to design the new Waste-to-Energy Plant that doubles as a ski slope for Copenhagen’s citizens and its visitors by 2016.
I think this is a wonderful concept. For two reasons. First, it seems to offer a great way to go beyond simply creating a solitary object and almost by definition integrates the building into the larger urban fabric/public realm. Moreover, it seems a perfect way to extend the architects role into post-occupancy programming. In other-words simple by combining multiple programs into their design, they are able by default to direct post-occupancy use.

Per this post by Harvard GSD school blogger Andreas, we read in China Daily that this news item about plans to merge nine cities in the Pearl River Delta region into a super-sized metropolis, is in fact not accurate.

Both Christopher Hawthorne and Nicolai Ouroussoff reviewed Frank Gehry's newly opened, New World Center in Miami Beach, which sits in a park designed by West 8.

Discussion Threads
Steven Ward restarts Hand Drawing is dead thread.

For those of you wondering what happened to Archinect Sessions after the first one. Orhan lets us know that there was a break for personal reasons but they will be starting back up again, soon(ish).

We discuss Autodesk's Project Vasari. difficultfix thinks Vasari is opening a huge door for bim, energy modeling within Revit.

Barry Lehrman wants to discuss the four finalists in The Minneapolis Riverfront Design Competition.

School Blogs
Bo at Kansas State University CAPD has arrived in Itlay where he will be studying this semester. He has spent some of the last weeks pondering Is it worth it to give up aspirations and the ability to create "high architecture" in order to live a sustainable and enjoyable life? Would I be eschewing some kind of moral responsibility I have to create the most powerful and important work that I can? Or is that an argument that I've created to justify some need for recognition or propaganda that I've believed?

Lian at Harvard GSD talks about her studio this semester. The project is entitled The project is called 'CITY/CODE' and the studio is a big change for her and the other students because: Unlike the work in landscape architecture, our training in architecture generally doesn't deal with the spatial and temporal indeterminacy of flows and systems. And since we're also not urban planners, the scale of our site--a ginormous (and this proves my point: I don't even know how to verbally convey the square footage of a site this size) tract of land across Willets Point in Corona, Queens--is unsettling. We are also not accustomed to working in groups for studio. Group work is common in courses, but not in the sacred ground of studio, and we are in teams of three for the ENTIRE SEMESTER. We're even spending a week collaborating with our colleagues in the landscape program.

Andreas at Harvard GSD is taking Peter Rowe's seminar on modern Chinese architecture and urbanism and planning on cross-registering for a MIT seminar dealing with Asian cities in a more thematic manner.

At University of Illinois Chicago, Matthew's studio this semester is ARCH 552. This studio is based on the exploration of formal language though intensive modeling and diagrammatic drawing. The structure of the class involves weekly full class pin-ups and she posts images from the first two weeks of pin-ups.

Dorothy at University of Michigan TCAUP is in the third week of her thesis semester and is reading Foa's Phylogenesis on multi-layered infrastructure, mike webb's Temple Island on ridiculous drawings and Neil Denari's Gyroscopic Horizons on placelessness v. place without limit[/i]

Jan 30, 11 12:45 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #197

News
Archinect's newest Working out of the Box feature profiles Kim Knollenberg, an architect turned organic farmer.

Barry Lehrman makes a pun.

Orhan provides a BIP to assist with understanding the last weeks of events in Egypt.

Archinectors have begun sharing their predictions for this year's Pritzker Prize. Some popular picks include TWBTA, Steven Holl, and Charles Correa. Put in your 2¢ here.

School Blogs
Roberto at the University of Edinburgh visited Siccar Point the site for the project in his Design Unit entitled Language of Stone.

Danny at Cooper Union wonders how with only one post last year, he had the third most popular school blog. He also fills us in on what he did last year. Which included; working at Lyn Rice Architects, at the Architecture Archive of the Cooper Union where he worked on building a model for the Paul Rudolph Lower Manhattan Expressway exhibition, helping a friend install their entry for the Sukkah City competition and riding his bicycle over summer break, 1800 miles from Ohio to New Orleans.



Lian at Harvard GSD does the school blog equivalent of a drunk dial does the school blog equivalent of a drunk dial.. For now, I just wanted to tell you that this is where I'm at. This doesn't change the fact that I'm going to work as hard as I can, and learn as much as possible, in studio and in my other courses. But it means that I'm no longer going to ask myself to chase a goal that, if I think honestly about my priorities right now, isn't really my goal.

Shannon and her boyfriend at University of Manitoba continue with her poetic dismantling of her thesis site.

Joao at Canterbury School of Architecture discusses his approach to thesis work Discussing, questioning and making proposals, some of them more realistic, others more utopian. The important thing is that after reading it, leaves no doubt that is as interesting as useful. The thesis should be, in my point of view, a challenge. Present a problem and ascertain responsibilities. In addition, submit a strategy. An interventional strategy.

John Tubles at Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University recently met with his professor and it sounds like he was given a reality check re: his thesis Cemetery/Crematorium/Housing Project.

Bo at Kansas State University CAPD has been sidelined by an injury and the lack of mobility has made him think about the tension between accessibility and defensibility. Especially in an old city like Castiglion Fiorentino, in Italy.

Discussion Threads
Cherith Cutestory points out the bleak business landscape facing California visual effect firms as a result of cheaper foreign competitors. Then wonders can it be long before we start outsourcing the grunt work to other countries?

We discuss Steven Holl's approved design for a new library in Queens. Which prompts Steven Ward to respond to a questions about Holl's 'fame' by saying i' think that IS why aspect. the simplicity of the work that we see on paper and in models yields a material, spatial, and functional complexity in reality. i never underestimate the skill and effort it takes to keep things in such an essental form: it's hard as hell, and holl is a master at it.

p2an starts a thread to discuss (hidden) projects. Meaning small or non-glamorous projects by 'high profile' firms, which pay the bills but don't get publicized, even on firm's website. For instance a supermarket in holland by UN Studio.

Additionally
Bruce Mau in Architect Magazine challenges architects, You Can Do Better!!! If you realize your colleagues have been so busy policing the fence of exclusivity that they forgot to open the door of possibility, then get in the game. If you understand that the practice of architecture—the practice of synthesis that generates coherent unity from massively complex and diverse inputs—just might be the operating system that we need to solve the challenges that we face in meeting the needs of the next generation, then join the movement.

Feb 6, 11 12:20 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #198

News
The 2010 Branner Fellows have each shared a summary of their last year of travels and research.

Adriana Navarro-Sertich's is entitled Favela Chic. In it she identifies seven common architectural tools based on comparative field studies in South America (Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, and Venezuela): Plug-in Services, Urban Connectors, Icons, Skin+Sign, Dirty Works, Housing/Relocation, and Tectonic Uplift.

In Aging Modernism, Melissa Smith explores Incremental evolution in self-correcting cities and the importance of everyday architectural acts in the continual re-formation of the modern cityscape.

Finally, Drip | Dry : Systems that Seep Eleanor Pries, explores fourteen select water systems around the world. These systems convey, filter, and store rainwater and groundwater. One big aim became to understand how the materials could inform absorptive building systems.

Orhan Ayyüce, Michael Rotond documented the adventures of Homeboy

We discuss the news that TLS/KVA team won the Minneapolis Riverfront Design Competition.

Discussion Threads
MixmasterFestus compiles some previous threads on urban design and questions what kind of Stuff "urban designers" should know? and what the workflows and types of analysis involved would be?

shinyapple is looking for precedents of floating stages.

NoNameNum3 wants to find architect/artisan teams in which the architect willingly gives up some measure of control to the fabricator, resulting in something unexpected. Go give some help.

School Blogs
Lian at Harvard's GSD notes that Elizabeth Federic and Laura Harrison's 2008 documentary, Ant Farm, was screened last night in an inflatable 'pavillion' made for the event.



Micah at Kent State University has begun working on his IDC project. The site is located is Washington D.C. On the Anacostia river waterfront within the The Yards currently being developed by Forest City as part of a larger scheme to redevelop the waterfront through the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative.

Feb 13, 11 11:20 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #199

News
My favorite part of Interboro's winning PS1 scheme, is their "new take on recycling".

Quilian points out an unflattering and perhaps unfair portrayal of what's going on in Braddock PA, but what he considers an important case study/lesson for anyone that wants to work in challenging urban conditions. From the NYT magazine...

Discussion Threads
In our discussion of generic architecture dsc_arch, relates a quote from an old professor at USC Gramme Morland Is generic architecture a chorus building? Should all buildings beat their chest?...

glitter centaur questions whether the recent news, based on the 2010 US Census Chicago's Population has sunk to 1920s levels Could planned demolitions be underway?.

As citizen wistfully says this is the kind of good old-fashioned building-related thread that's so much fun to read on Archinect.

School Blogs
Micah at Kent State University highlights a call from Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative. They want to know if you have a story about a Cleveland place - past, present or future. Fact or fiction. Funny, sad, exciting...it's up to you
DO YOU HAVE A CLEVELAND STORY TO TELL?

Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago reports in from the dregs of winter. He lets us know about how his classes are going. Some like Sean Lally's Tech class, "Envelopes and Environments," where he is studying implications of smell and its uses in design or Alexander Eisenschmidt's theory class where he is working on their "Visionary Chicago project are going well. Others like his studio class are not. As he writes [I personally have not had a single critique, desk or pin-up, go particularly well.[/i]

Greg at Knowlton School of Architecture is taking a studio with visiting professor Jason Payne. The research is focused on surface sublimating form and the explorations of fur in architecture.



Additionally
Vishaan Chakrabarti has a timely and topical piece over at Urban Omnibus on Liberation Squares. In it he writes And perhaps this is the primary lesson about public space. That beyond our day-to-day needs for it be clean, amenable, and safe, it also has to allow for the expression of instability, for the expression of a world ever in need of change. Change is the essence of urbanity, and Egypt has reminded us that urban space can drive us towards a changed, perhaps unstable, but in the end better world.

Feb 20, 11 11:23 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #200

News
Archinect is pleased to announce the PS1 People's Choice Award, an honor bestowed upon the PS1 competition entry that will be selected by public vote as the architectural community's favorite.

eric chavkin reviews Art Center Pasadena's MADE UP: DESIGN FICTIONS exhibit.

Orhan Ayyüce offers a rejoinder to Professor Lisa Findley essay A Tale of Two Apartheid Museums, in which she contrasts the only two museums dedicated to a national, South African, narrative of apartheid.

The Department of Energy and the Department of the Interior this week announced that the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2011 will be held at the National Mall’s West Potomac Park, on the banks of the Potomac River along the path between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials.

Discussion Threads
Sarah Hamilton over at TC shared a link to a Yahoo news slide-show entitled Three-story house has twist: Indoor slide which features LEVEL Architects, nakameguro house.



tyvek has been worrying about the possibility of a period of high inflation (which people far brighter than me seem to say is coming) and it's effect on his small office.

cecilystt asks for examples of box and egg buildings.

BOTS wants to know if anyone has used the Augmented Reality plugin for Sketchup for client presentations.

School Blogs
Samuel University of Tennessee posts some images showing the progress made on siding and interior of TheNewNorrisHouse.

Shannon at University of Manitoba writes about the efforts involved in using the deconstructed house as a source of fuel to create fire and smoke. The end result is a smoke drawing.

Greg at Knowlton School of Architecture wasn't able wasn't able to live blog the Toshiko Mori event, due to wifi and power issues. However, he did out up a post summarizing the first half of the day. He writes She discussed the intimacy of residential client relations with a warm sense of humor saying, "It's like you don't want to know where they store their socks in their closet, but you kind of do." She explained that architects have a very distinct power that should not be abused; that we not only create buildings, but we choreograph people's lives.

Emma at Ohio State University also was not able to live blog, but she did write more generally about overarching concepts gathering in her head, resulting from Toshiko Mori's presentation. This includes the view that "an architect's birthright is teaching" and that architecture is not autonomous but a social contract.

Additionally
Adam Greenfield looks beyond the consultant driven boom led by IBM, etc and asks what might lay Beyond the 'smart city' Technologies like high-resolution positioning and algorithmic facial recognition are destroying any promise of anonymity we thought the metropolis offered. It is only by consciously and carefully transforming the urban landscape into a meshwork of open and available resources that we can redress this imbalance. This transformation would neither have to be directed from the top down, nor accomplished all at once. But the greater the number of resources available, the greater the extent to which they are described properly and are capable of being used without further configuration, the better off we’ll all be.

Feb 27, 11 11:44 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #201

News
Javier Arbona dissects Michael Maltzan's new commission in SFSU but points out urban studies is still on the chop block.

From the recent crop of competition news I want to highlight the Urbanite Project: Open City Challenge, a project of Urbanite which has a deadline for entries of June 3. Urbanite is a yearlong Exhibition Development Seminar at Maryland Institute College of Art, D center Baltimore, the Maryland Transit Administration, and the Baltimore City Department of Transportation. For the Open City Challenge self-organized teams are invited to compete for $10,000 in prize money and the chance to implement their solution to the quality-of-life issues brought about by the construction of the Red Line.

Discussion Threads
BOTS directs our attention to the recent EXECUTIVE SUMMARY for a proposed LAS VEGAS NATIONAL SPORTS CENTER.

ichweiB is Sick of Archinect Discussions about how bad the Architecture profession is. Do you agree or disagree. Voice your opinion here.

Sounds like wood+zapata is closed? But partners are still doing good work?

School Blogs
Jemuel at Prat Institute puts up some first year first semester drawings: both inverted and non-inverted, including this one.

Lian at Harvard GSD reflects on a recent presentation/lecture by Vito Acconci. She wonders Is this the same guy who masturbated under the floor of an art gallery and heckled visitors for some ten hours straight? The arc of the lecture was surreal. It was amazing to see how continuously Acconci reinvented himself, becoming a different artist in response to the project before it and reflecting the questions and preoccupations of his time.. Watch the lecture for yourself.

Now that's a eye-catching title: Rome and the Mnemonic City. Bo at Kansas State University is inspired by a recent reading of Timeless Cities by David Mayernik in which Mayernik describes the city as a giant mnemonic device. The post includes the word mnemotectonics.

Additionally
David Gissen proposes three exhibition ideas for some ambitious curator of architecture and design to mount; “Hilberseimer’s City”, “Peter Eisenman (1967-),” and “Building Books” which would be an enormous survey from the 15th century to the present and look at the importance of books to architecture.

Mar 6, 11 12:11 pm  · 
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Lisa Diane

Such a very amazing link!
Thanks you for the post.
__________________
watch movies online for free

Mar 9, 11 4:59 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #202: Sorry for the late one guys.....

News
Bernard Cywinski, founding principal of Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, passed away on March 2 from cancer.

Katharine Jose of Capital New York talks with Interboro Partners and Lateral Office, after attending the first night of lectures by recipients of the 2011 Architectural League Emerging Voices award. She wonders is the next generation of architects really ready to build? In that sense, the new generation is approaching a totalizing sort of architecture: There is nothing that is outside its purview. And that would look, to our friends from the New York 5, very undisciplined and frightening, and, in a strange sort of way, perverted. "Will our colleague firms be calling themselves planners two years from now?" Weisz asked rhetorically. "In addition to architects,” she said, refining the point. “I mean, I think one could have a couple of theories. And i think one of them may be that between quicker communication and the tools you have, all of these fields are easier to think about together. And then I think kind of a design approach is actually being applied to many fields, including business and law and other things, and that architects are starting to realize again that they’re sot of needed, in terms of critical thinking.

Foster + Partners has been selected for the design of the 40-hectare master plan for West Kowloon Cultural District. Discuss...

Rowan Moore makes the case for the far-reaching benefits of a beautifully designed school.

Japan was hit by a 8.9 earthquake. To which Lian one of our school bloggers responds with a thoughtful post exploring her own reactions to the news and offers her thoughts and prayers for all those effected, especially those living near the Fukushima nuclear power station.

School Blogs
Lian also recently interviewed John McMorrough, Chair of the architecture program at University of Michigan Taubman College, when he visited her GSD studio last week. They discuss pedagogy and the future of practice. McMorrough has this to say about the 'fabrication project', I think the fabrication project is now at the cusp of going from skin projects, into just general forms of having an imagination about systematicity, aggregation. I can’t point to an exact result of this yet, but that’s the general direction. Because at some point, one has to realize that we’re not training craftsmen, but architects, so it has to have a level of abstraction.

Dorothy at University of Michigan's TCAUP shares images from midway through her thesis semester including:



Discussion Threads
There were a variety of professional practice threads this last week on topics ranging from: bid rigging, Ethical Realities of Codes and Clients, Billable rates for a three man firm, to a question about a Contractor wanting to take drawings and get them permitted. Does this mean business is slowly coming back?

Then again there are threads like this or this one, on reforming architecture school.

Additionally
Check out Compensation Trends: Encouraging but Conservative, a great article on compensation trends amongst architects, based on results from the DesignIntelligence “2011 Compensation and Benefits Survey. Does it give lie to the idea that architects can't make good money? As it notes The gross revenues projected for 2011 per full-time employee in this year’s research is $204,279. Via Stephen Becker

Mar 13, 11 3:25 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #203

News
I discussed What is a Park - Landscape or Infrastructure, with Gerdo Aquino, president and principal of SWA Group's Los Angeles studio.

For those interested in the ongoing reconstruction and recover efforts in post-disaster Japan: Cameron Sinclair, of Architecture for Humanity, was featured on CNN talking about AFH's planned reconstruction efforts in Japan. Also, Wataru Sakaki and the people in the office of Shigeru Ban Architects are developing developing simple shelters for the displaced Japanese.

The submission entries selected for BRACKET [goes soft] were announced this week. Check them out here.

Discussion Threads
Over on TC there was a good discussion about the pros and cons regarding The Barnes Foundation planned move from Merion into a new location with building(s) designed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects. Issues discussed include materiality, context and cultural homogenization...

junihaoni wants to talk about What do we eat when rushing for due dates?

hibz is looking for contact information for Eduardo Souto de Moura's office in Porto.

dominiond is looking for a job and would prefer the option of telecommuting. But notes that many offices don't offer this option as they insists we have a collaborative environment so working from home on a regular basis isn't that easy even though technology makes collaboration from any location easy and there are environmental reasons to encourage telecommunication.

School Blogs
Stephanie at Kunstacademiets Arkitektskole shares her thesis work to date. Titled, Urban Nature the Inhabitable Edge, the project explores how to create a more ecological, self-sustaining, public space along the shores of Copenhagen's urban lakes.

Andreas at Harvard GSD posts the first of a number of posts about his studio trip to Beijing at the end of February. In this first post he reports in from the site of the 2008 Olympic Stadium, which he refers to as eerie and dystopian.

Mar 20, 11 11:49 am  · 
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Editor's Picks #204

News
Anyone want to report back from the March 22nd event, Urbanism Now: Philadelphia2035.

Cherith Cutestory makes a few points regarding Gehry's recently completed Beekman Tower in New York.

Discuss François Roche's recent cancellation of an upcoming exhibition and lecture at Sci-Arc.

From the recently posted list of Competition registration deadlines approaching & new competitions to announce... I want to highlight two in particular that I will be watching. First, is the Van Alen Institute's Life at the Speed of Rail competition and then SOILED's call for submissions dealing with the theme Skinscrapers.

School Blogs
Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago writes that after a mid semester that review wherein crits talked too much about "formal symbolism" he is going to take more personal control of his projects design process. This means I am not giving up on trying to move forward within the paradigms of the studio, but rather my responses to criticism are going to change. For those not keeping up the studio this semester focuses on analyzing and interpreting Eisenman's House VI.

At Columbia University's GSAPP, Anthony recalls a conversation about architecture that he had a while back with a friend and colleague at GSAPP, whilst on the roof of her apartment in Morningside Heights, drinking Shoju. They talked amongst other things about the architectural collective hive mind and Anne is quoted as saying We are all tumbling blindly in some direction but then our individual voices within that is what gives it so much beauty and depth. So I’m interested in this project to articulate that and delineating the individual and the collective.

Lian one of our two Harvard GSD blogers, live blogged a lecture by Junya Ishigami. Junya talked alot about column(s), which are featured prominently (although perhaps in a every minimalist way) in many of his projects. The word was used by my count (at least in her live blog text) ten times....

Daniel at University of Oregon writes about Resilient Urban Morphologies which is a fancy way to refer to the way how an urban area adapts and maintains it's vibrancy through the years.

Stephanie at Kunstacademiets Arkitektskole discusess the challenges of thesis. Specifically, why many professors think If you aren't drawing, you aren't working, which emphasizes the need to express your idea(s) effectively and this leads Stephanie to suggest that the key to succeeding at architecture school, then, is learning to placate the unimaginative with visual aids.

Shannon at University of Manitoba tests for cyanotypes and shares some images of process: Removing lath, Demolishing drywall and De-nailing shiplap.

Discussion Threads
Hawkin notes that Zaha Hadid announced plans to make 100 staff redundant. Read more about the story in BD Online.

Instead of just bitching Matt_A posted a link to a recent report/appeal for transparency called Concerning Licensure which he sent to all architect members of each state licensing board, as well as the members of the boards of the AIA, NCARB, NAAB, AIAS, and the ACSA. Have your say here.

futureinthepast wants to discuss a report entitled Will architects exist in 2025? which is available via the RIBA website. I found this quote from RIBA's site provocative The greatest threat was envisaged for medium sized practices, who were considered likely to threatened by larger practices with an established commercial approach towards clients, and global interdisciplinary consultancies for their ability to quickly complete different scale projects at low cost, leading to a polarisation of practices by size.

Zsnype, wonders how the hell would they make that friggin sphere float? with regards to BIG's recently announced stockholm master plan.

Continuing the discussion TC had last week re: the current plans for the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia to move to a new location on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, emergency exit wound posts some old thoughts by Rita Novel on the Barnes Foundations planned moves.

Additionally
And in a bit of interesting parallelism in an article entitled Eccentricity Gives Way to Uniformity in Museum, found in the Sunday NYT weekend review section, Nicolai Ouroussoff explores how across the country some of the most original and idiosyncratic art institutions have embarked on major expansions which seek to greatly transform their identities. The key graph: Yet even more striking is what these transformations suggest about what we’ve become as a culture. The three museums’ iconoclastic collectors, and the institutions they built, embodied an America that still embraced an ideal of stubborn individualism. That spirit is now mostly gone, a victim of institutional conventions and corporate boards, and by a desire for mainstream acceptance that has displaced a willingness to break rules.

Mar 27, 11 1:50 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #205

Sorry for the delay I was canoeing down a river....

News
As leaked in Archinect's forum over last weekend, Portuguese architect Eduardo Souto de Moura has taken this year's Pritzker Prize.

April Fools. It took me a moment to catch on.

From the Image Gallery


ALEF Corporate Offices, in Mexico City by Art Arquitectos

Discussion Threads
go do it wants to come up with a better term than value engineering!

over at TC, toasteroven posts a link to paintings of 1960s retro-futurism, done for Motorola as part of their consumer products ads series, “Fresh from Motorola... new leader in the lively art of electronics” by artist - Charles Schridde. I particularly liked these: one, two, and three.

There were four threads where necters are looking for product/vendor sourcing, suggestions/information: for laminated glass fins, perforated shutters as used by Herzog and De Meuron at the Funf Hofe in Munich, street lights from the ancoat neighborhood of manchester and finally kitchen faucets without "penis-head".

School Blogs
Andreas at Harvard GSD continues his reporting from studio trip to Beijing. He discusses his studio's tour of several of Beijing's hutong neighborhoods.

Lian at Harvard GSD begins her Live Blog: of the Eclipse of Beauty, vol. II symposia with the line Here we are in Piper for more blah blah blah. This passage seems telling Question from the audience: "As a student, we see that each school has a system, a kind of consensus of what is generally found to be aesthetically pleasing. But I'm curious, as are several academics, why academia on the whole has not been effectual in the classification of taste and beauty?" Douglis: "Hm, I see that Mohsen moved, and so did Scott.".

John Tubles at Cal Poly Pomona / Kyushu University just got back from spring break, is entering the final (10 weeks ) of architecture school and has been participating in "design bootcamps".

Daniel at University of Oregon discusses his current studio dealing with Adaptive Reuse in Downtown Portland. The site is adjacent to Pioneer Square and also adjacent to a hole in the ground, which was the location of a stalled project by studio teachers, TVA Architects.

Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago talks about the candidates for the Professor in Practice position UIC is looking to fill and an upcoming exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art the Department of Urban Speculation of which he is a part, put together.

Apr 3, 11 5:49 pm  · 
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Editor's Picks #206

News
Sky1, reports back from day two of the University of Toronto's Out of Water conference. The conference prompted sky1 to ask It seems the gap between academia and real-world development even today in the world of integrated design, is unbridgeable. While some extremely intelligent people are brilliantly envisioning alternative futures for urban development, highly conscious of limited natural resources- in this case water- but ignoring the complexity of the economies behind their execution, others are busy developing instant-money generating yet environmentally responsible forms of urban development, decorated by solar panels and energy saving strategies. Who should be the one apologizing really?

UC Berkeley Prof. Ronald Rael of Oakland-based Rael San Fratello Architects has developed a proposal, Border Wall as Infrastructure. With the proposal Professor Rael seeks to do something intelligent, something incredible? I envision not just a ‘dumb wall,’ but a social infrastructure that connects and improves lives on both sides For more information see link.

Norwegian practice A-lab won the open international ideas competition on climate efficient urban development on Furuset area in Oslo. The project goal is to condense the suburb Furuset i Groruddalen outside Oslo with 2,500 new homes and 1,500 new workspaces, and to reduce CO2 emissions by 50 percent by 2030.

The Animal Architecture Awards was just added to Bustler's list of upcoming competitions. Animal Architecture invites your critical and unpublished essays and projects to address how architecture can mediate and encourage multiple new ways of species learning and benefiting from each other – or as we say it here: to illustrate cospecies coshaping.

School Blogs
Now that just screams FAT doesn't it? At least more than this one.

Lian at Harvard's GSD live-blogged Ryue Nishizawa's lecture at MIT. This lead to a small discussion re: non-native language lectures and the tension between a straight forward vs theory heavy lecture and Q+A. Is their an obvious innocence" to SANAA's work and design process that is transparent or can it be interrogated?

Anthony Columbia University GSAPP just had his 3/4 review and for his thesis will be designing a book decomposition factory in the mid-manhattan library and examining urban strategies and applying it to a building.

Matthew at University of Illinois Chicago provided bit more info on the Department of Urban Speculation and describes their current project on view at the Museum of Contemporary Art, the UBS 12x12 exhibition.

Stephanie Kunstacademiets Arkitektskole continues the discussion from last week which started in the comments of her last post regarding words vs visuals. She writes What I would like to see more in design schools is the encouragement of students to clarify their ideas through writing.

Shannon at University of Manitoba has finally deconstructed their house/thesis project enough that Daylight and black out coexist for the first time in our images




Discussion Threads
sevensixfive wants to talk about how the artist Ai Weiwei was taken into custody last sunday, and his studio has been raided by Chinese police: Specifically 765 is interested in what others think, here at what feels like a transitional moment, of Weiwei's relationship to architecture? Especially given the explicit hopes voiced by many western architects in the first half of the last decade, that bringing new form to China would help engender the emergence of new social structures?

changeup11 is looking for the pros and cons of starting a career abroad.

St. George's Fields is curious if there are Any precedents out there (other than the Russian Pavilion at the World Expo) using gold leaf in modern and contemporary architecture?

pass_mal wants to talk grey and black water recycling.

Apr 10, 11 11:09 am  · 
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