[K. Michael Hays] represents an approach to teaching architecture and architectural theory that has held sway in the American academy for at least a generation. This approach doesn’t simply treat architecture as a discipline separate from the rest of the world, with its own passwords and protocols. It guards that separation with its life. — The Los Angeles Times
A spirited Christopher Hawthorne reviews Harvard GSD's first online course as taught by K. Michael Hays, who appears to prize obfuscation and condescension as teaching methods (Hawthorne does explain the history behind this autonomous pedagogy, which resulted from architects of the 1970s needing... View full entry
While the gapahuk (which in Norwegian means "a simple wooden structure with two or three walls and a roof") is not new, Snohetta's conceptualization of it as a multi-terrain, potentially solar-panelled off-the-grid insta-cabin is. The gapahuk has a purposefully tight layout to make it easy to... View full entry
The future of U.S. homebuilding depends on more people like Cyndicy Yarborough, a 26-year-old former Wal-Mart clerk with no background in construction. — Bloomberg
In modular construction plants across the nation, robots are putting together lengths of wall, floor and roof elements in panel form that are then shipped to construction sites to help speed up the onsite erection process. In the factories where this assembly takes place, a new breed of worker is... View full entry
New York architect and professor Diane Lewis has passed away, The Cooper Union announced in a statement today. She was the first woman appointed to the school's full-time architecture faculty and tenured in 1993. Since then, she was a “beloved and influential voice” in the community, wrote... View full entry
“How do you live with all that cement,” my schoolmates would ask. “With delight” was the only answer. They understood once they visited. — The New York Times
Part childhood memoir, part ode to brutalism itself, this piece by Blake Gopnik touches on his experiences living in Habitat 67 while celebrating the return of a form that many openly reviled for decades, but have now gradually come to like, even treasure. (Of course, not all is well for brutalist... View full entry
The AIA has announced that William J. Bates, FAIA, has been elected the 2019 AIA President. He will succeed Carl Elefante, the 2018 AIA President.Having served as a member of the Board of Directors since 2011, Bates has a good deal of experience working with the organization. He also served as... View full entry
The iconic NY State Pavilion in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park is set to undergo a $14.25M renovation funded by [NYC]. Repairs will begin next spring, which will include some structural conservation work and electrical and architectural improvements. The pavilion, which was originally designed for the 1964 World’s Fair by Philip Johnson and Lev Zetlin, has been ignored for the past few decades, largely in part because of the city’s failure to find the money for repairs. — 6sqft
A new era for an architectural icon is just over the horizon. View full entry
What will higher timber prices as a result of Trump's new tarriff mean for architecture? Dr. Warren Mabee, who is the Canada Research Chair in Renewable Energy Development and Implementation at Queen's University, told me over the phone that it will likely halt or significantly alter the design... View full entry
Vito Acconci, pioneering conceptual artist and architect, passed away today at the age of 77. After starting his career as a poet, Acconci gained recognition for his influential performance and video works. A man of many parts, he then transitioned into working with audio/visual installations... View full entry
The National Council of Architecture Registration Boards (NCARB) has tallied up the number of architects practicing in the United States, as well as each individual state. According to their 2016 survey, there are 109,748 architects in the U.S. It’s a drop from the previous year, although pretty... View full entry
When you think about diversity and globalization and urbanization, you can’t do it without a theoretical underpinning. You just can’t. And I think that what we’re seeing in the discipline at large is the limit conditions of thinking a-theoretically about urbanism, about inequality, about what we should do about environmental challenges and sustainability. We’ve got to address it through a theoretical lens. - Milton Curry — The Los Angeles Times
In this interview conducted by Christopher Hawthorne as part of his pithy Building Type column, the soon-to-be-Dean of USC's School of Architecture Milton Curry talks about reintroducing a theoretical emphasis to the school's programs. Curry, who in his time at University of Michigan experienced... View full entry
Ford thinks that hip-hop culture, from rapping to break-dancing, is the ultimate critique of midcentury modern vertical slums, and one that could be translated positively into new buildings and city plans [...] By promoting what he calls "Hip Hop Architecture," Ford is advocating an attitude and an approach more than a style. — Cleveland.com
After architect Michael Ford was inspired to enter the profession by Professor Dan Pitera, “a self-described ‘political and social activist masquerading as an architect’”, he is working on bringing Hip Hop Architecture nationwide to schoolkids everywhere. “Through his writing... View full entry
Repurposing and renovation have gained greater appeal in the years since the overwhelming success of The High Line, extending to a variety of applications and structures. At the recent Milan Design Week, MAD took this to a new level by showcasing their proposal for a new masterplan of Milan, which... View full entry
Six talented winners were revealed today for the 2017 Architectural League Prize for Young Architects + Designers. Established in 1981 by the Architectural League of New York, the Prize carries a legacy in that many now-well-known architects received the award at the start of their careers, like... View full entry
From winning the Pritzker to curating the Venice Biennale, the Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena had a pretty good 2016. Apparently, he’s still on a roll: Aravena has just been awarded the 2017 Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Design. Awarded each year to people or organizations for... View full entry
