Chinese architect Wang Shu was this week named the 2012 Pritzker Prize winner. Will Galloway commented "unexpected but very coolio. i met wang shu last year at conference held by my uni her in tokyo. nice guy and very impressive presentation. love his work and his approach. i like that pritzker is not going after the usual suspects, personally."
Woody Evans a librarian living on the south side of Dubai., recently interviewed Sophia Vyzoviti an assistant professor of architectural design methodology at the Department of Architecture, University of Thessaly Greece, about Building Between Dimensions. They discussed augmented reality... View full entry
After getting her Masters of Architecture from MIT in 2001, she was an architect for Delson or Sherman, and then was a designer for Fresh, but she gradually started to lose interest in her projects at work.
“I decided I wanted to turn this passion of mine, to give my dog a well-balanced complete meal that made her healthy again, into a full-time job,” Liao said of her decision to quit her job at Fresh almost two years ago to start her own company.
— parkslope.patch.com
The Interior Design Department at New York's Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) has announced Diller Scofidio + Renfro as this year’s recipient of the Lawrence Israel Prize. [...]
Each year, the award recipient is invited to give a public talk on their work. Diller Scofidio + Renfro's talk will take place on Thursday, March 15 at 6 pm at FIT in the John E. Reeves Great Hall, Fred P. Pomerantz Art and Design Center, Seventh Avenue at 28th Street.
— bustler.net
Last week's LA Times article, "Architect of Hollywood Hills mansion damaged in fire, is charged in firefighter's death," stirred discussion, particularly among architects, as the individual who designed the home was not a licensed architect. Aside from requesting that the LA Times retract the word "architect" from the article, the [AIA|LA], in conjunction with [AIACC] Executive Vice President, Paul Welch, Hon. AIA, have released the following statement... — AIA|LA
Previously: Architect charged for the death of a firefighter Statement from AIA|LA... Editor, The recent Los Angeles Times article concerning the negligent activities of an individual purporting to be an architect, and how those activities resulted in the tragic death of Los Angeles Firefighter... View full entry
![Ricardo Porro, School of Fine Arts, Cuban National Art Schools. [Photo by Belmont Freeman]](https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/pf/pfyvgnfof2pmak5e.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=514 "Ricardo Porro, School of Fine Arts, Cuban National Art Schools. [Photo by Belmont Freeman]")
After I mentioned attending a screening of the new documentary film, Unfinished Spaces, about the National Art Schools in Havana, [my dinner companion] burst out: “What is it about the Art Schools? Why do foreigners love them so much? There’s nothing Cuban about those buildings. They’re ridiculous architecture for Havana and I always hated them.” — Places Journal
On Places, architect Belmont Freeman reconsiders the National Art Schools in Havana — the subject of John Loomis's groundbreaking book Revolution of Forms, as well as a new documentary film and an opera, and a cult favorite among architecture buffs. Does the North American obsession... View full entry
Life Architecturally follows internationally acclaimed husband and wife team, architect Robert McBride and interior designer Debbie Ryan... This intimate documentary observes the pressures of building a multi-story, twin-tower development; revolutionary new schools, one in the shape of an infinity symbol, and the ongoing construction and design of their own family home – which is on the backburner once again due to how busy they are. — vimeo.com
Architect Michael Graves considers the Portland Building one of his top achievements even though the building is still controversial. mdler thinks "this thing is a POS" and elletoman commented "gross". Donna Sink disagreed arguing "I love the Portland building and most important I love that this building happened.
For the latest Showcase Archinect talked to Iranian-Canadian creative director and photographer Sam Javanrouh. He provided two images of Daniel Libeskind's Crystal for the Royal Ontario Museum; one titled Jumping Girl, the other portrays the space without people. So we asked, him "What are... View full entry
Wang Shu, 49, deftly melds tradition and modernity, often by reusing bricks and tiles from demolished buildings in such bold new designs as a history museum in the Chinese city of Ningbo.
Wang calls his office the "Amateur Architecture Studio," yet that name is far too modest, the jury that selected him said in its citation.
His work "is that of a virtuoso in full command of the instruments of architecture — form, scale, material, space and light," said the jury...
— chicagotribune.com
Note: as the.rkitekt points out below in the comments, "Wang is NOT the first Chinese architect to win the Pritzker as so many writers are mentioning. I.M. Pei won in the 80's and while living predominantely in the US, he was born in Guangzhou, China. Wang is the first China based Chinese... View full entry
Without access to the grid, the Alonsos added photovoltaics and hydro power and worked to ensure the home wouldn't use much energy. The original position of the stable worked to their favor. The southern exposure allows for the sun to be the main source of heat during the winter.
The Alonsos also added large wooden shutters that slide closed like a second skin, covering the large windows at night to trap in most of the home's daily solar heat gain.
— http://faircompanies.com
Modern Tide: Midcentury Architecture on Long Island explores the work of the region’s best postwar architects and designers, including Albert Frey, Wallace Harrison, Herbert Beckhard, Frank Lloyd Wright, Horace Gifford, Edward Durrell Stone, Marcel Breuer, Andrew Geller, Philip Johnson, Charles Gwathmey, Barbara and Julian Neski, and others. The film features interviews with architects and historians, as well as friends, families and clients of these influential designers. — vimeo.com
The whole thing reads more like Rate My Professor than WikiLeaks, which is great, since the general consensus these days is that architecture school is the new English major (not even Diller Scofidio+Renfro recommend going). — Art Info
Janelle Zara covers the Archleaks website for Art Info. Archleaks claims that it "Reveals the hidden beneath the Architectural Studios in EU and US". Don't assume the site is simply about mudslinging though, as it clarifies "Archleaks moderates the comments that are sent. This is made... View full entry
“It had such a low budget. I was criticized for putting the windows in too small, but it got more expensive the more glass I had. I wasn’t the one who put the workers near the windows, limiting the light let in. Most people don’t realize I didn’t design the interior.”
Despite proceeding to design award-winning buildings and products worldwide, Graves holds the Portland Building as one of his greatest achievements. He still enjoys talking about the sculpture that sits in front, Portlandia.
— djcoregon.com
From patterns in a trail of caterpillars in Spain to the geometry of a whitewashed house on the Greek island of Rhodes, renowned British architect John Pawson’s personal photographs reveal the visual details that intrigue him. Known for a minimalist aesthetic that places emphasis on light, material and proportion, Pawson has lent his modernist sensibility to everything from a Cistercian monastery in the Czech Republic to countless private homes, luxury yachts, and the Calvin Klein store in NYC. — nowness.com
Spanish architect Luis Moreno Mansilla has passed away at the age of 53. Mansilla was a founding partner of Mansilla+Tuñón, whose work includes the Fine Arts Museum in Castellón, the Auditorium of Leon, and the Museum of Contemporary Art of Castilla and Leon MUSAC, which received the Mies van der Rohe Prize.
Mansilla, was a professor at the School of Architecture in Madrid, and had been a Visiting Professor at Princeton University.
— El Pais
This is incredibly sad. He was part of the most promising office in Spain. I saw him lecturing in Princeton while I was a student there, and he was extremely intelligent. But most of all he was a very kind soul, something difficult to find these days in this business. View full entry
For three straight months now, the Architecture Billings Index — a measure from the American Institute of Architects — has shown slight increases in work levels at architectural firms, with the latest figures showing a score in January of 50.9, compared with 51.0 in December.
... the index tends to provide a decent lens into the mood of the real estate world, and an increase may lay the groundwork for new construction projects months down the road.
— blogs.wsj.com
