In the mountains of Ecuador's Cymbayá valley stands Jean Nouvel's latest residential project, Aquarela. In collaboration with local architecture developer Uribe Schwarzkopf, a new complex will transform the area into nine residential spaces. Initial construction began in... View full entry
Inspired by some recent events, Margie Lavender reflected on the Progress and Equality of Women in Architecture. spiketwig commented "This really reflects my experience as well - for the most part I do not experience overt discrimination, but there have been the occasional incidents I've written... View full entry
Results of a new five-year study of recycled concrete show that it performs as well, and in several cases even better, than conventional concrete. Researchers conducted side-by-side comparisons of recycled and conventional concrete within two common applications -- a building foundation and a municipal sidewalk. They found that the recycled concrete had comparable strength and durability after five years of being in service. — Science Daily
Find the complete study Recycled aggregate concrete from large-scale production to sustainable field application by University of British Columbia Okanagan researchers here. View full entry
Although 2020 proved to be a challenging year, architecture students continued to push forward and create award-winning projects. The annual RIBA President's Medal awards program recognizes the best architecture student projects. This year the program received the highest number of project entries... View full entry
In just two days, Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) becomes the second Architects Declare co-founder to leave the advocacy group, following Foster + Partners' withdrawal yesterday. In a statement released by Architects' Journal, ZHA said that "climate change is a defining challenge of our... View full entry
One of the UK’s most famous architects has withdrawn from an environmental coalition in a dispute about the destructive role of aviation in the escalating climate crisis. [...]
The decision follows a row over Foster and Partners’ work on airports around the world – seen by critics as incompatible with tackling the climate and ecological emergency.
— The Guardian
Airport designs have been key projects in Foster + Partners' portfolio for years, with prominent recent commissions and competition entries in Saudi Arabia, Marseille, Chicago, Mexico City, and Beijing. Following Foster's decision to withdraw from his initial commitment, Architects Declare issued... View full entry
Commercial interiors product manufacturers are struggling to understand the best way to reach their customers with the product information they need to make recommendations and execute on solutions that support the health, safety and welfare of employees returning to the office. Design practices... View full entry
Shohei Shigematsu of OMA announces the firm's upcoming project, the ReefLine, in collaboration with cultural placemaker Ximena Caminos. Leading the project's masterplan and structural design will be Shigematsu and his team, while Caminos will lead as its artistic director. Known for its... View full entry
Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) researcher Junyong Zhu in co-collaboration with colleagues from the University of Maryland and University of Colorado, have developed a transparent wood material that may be the window of tomorrow. Researchers found that transparent wood has the potential to outperform glass currently used in construction. — USDA Forest Service
The abstract of the researchers' paper A Clear, Strong, and Thermally Insulated Transparent Wood for Energy Efficient Windows points out that besides its energy-efficient qualities, transparent wood is a "sustainable material, with low carbon emissions and scaling capabilities due to its... View full entry
Slowly, slowly, LA's new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures is inching towards its anticipated completion. The LACMA-adjacent, Renzo Piano-designed 300,000 square-foot museum campus on Wilshire Boulevard was forced to push back several official opening dates — most recently, the December... View full entry
Previously on Archinect, we reported the announcement of three architecture schools pledging climate action. Since then, two more schools of architecture have joined. On October 30th, US Architects Declare confirmed that Woodbury School of Architecture and the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee... View full entry
Mitsui Fudosan and Takenaka Corporation are planning to build a 17-story wood-frame office tower in Tokyo’s Nihonbashi district. With a proposed height of 70 meters, this would be the tallest wooden building in Japan. — Japan Property Central
Related: A much taller, 70-story wood-framed skyscraper was proposed by Sumitomo Forestry and Nikken Sekkei in 2018 to be built in Tokyo's Marunouchi business district by the year 2041. View full entry
Kunkel thinks a hybrid between Indigenous and Western architecture styles could lead to more sustainable designs, ones that incorporate modern technology to achieve the same qualities found in the place-based architecture perfected by Indigenous people over thousands of years. — High Country News
Spaces of Opportunity: Phase 1 (under construction)Jessica Kutz on how Phoenix and other communities across America, are already having to adapt to extreme heat plus other impacts of climate change. At the same time these communities are already developing solutions; from "smarter" cities... View full entry
It's safe to say that nobody knows what the future of architectural education will be. These days it's hard to know what next month will bring us. Few people would argue, however, that academia is ripe for change, as are many facets of modern life that have not evolved at the pace the world has... View full entry
We're already approaching the half-way mark of October, and there is still so much to discover during Archtober 2020, New York City's month-long celebration of architecture and design. For the tenth year in a row, Archinect & Bustler are proud to partner with Archtober and present you our weekly... View full entry
