Despite the 90-day hold on demolition permits for buildings determined to be historic by the city, Miller says that some city council members have used aldermanic prerogative to fast-track the eventual destruction of significant structures. But more often than not, Miller says that communities and preservation advocates simply do not have enough time to line up a buyer or produce a plan for adaptive reuse when demolition threats surface. — Chicago Magazine
With all its rich architectural history, is Chicago facing a preservation crisis? In recent years, many of the city's most historic buildings — despite being flagged by preservationists for their architectural or cultural significance — are being abruptly demolished. According to Ward... View full entry
A bizarre building in the middle of Albania's capital, the Pyramid of Tirana has been the site of continuous debate over its uncertain future. Built as a monument to the country's Stalinist leader, Enver Hoxha, construction of the pyramid-shaped structure completed shortly before the collapse... View full entry
In case you haven't checked out Archinect's Pinterest boards in a while, we have compiled ten recently pinned images from outstanding projects on various Archinect Firm and People profiles. (Tip: use the handy FOLLOW feature to easily keep up-to-date with all your favorite Archinect profiles!)... View full entry
Francis Kéré is the latest architect commissioned to design a new permanent pavilion on the grounds of the 10,260-acre Tippet Rise Art Center in Montana. Nestled in a cluster of aspen and cottonwood trees on the banks of a flowing stream, the design of the 1,900 square-foot pavilion is derived... View full entry
The Royal Academy of Arts in London is in extraordinary party mode: to celebrate the institution's 250th anniversary, the RA will host a weekend-long art festival on May 19 and 20 with plenty of events, tours, performances, tours, displays, and DJ sets. At the heart of the festivities is the grand... View full entry
"Housing design is equally a design territory in which we believe the school can contribute to both a regional and a national conversation for the betterment of our society" says Peter MacKeith, the Dean of the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design. Located in Fayetteville, Arkansas, the... View full entry
“From Bauhaus to Our House,” Mr. Wolfe attacked modern architecture and what he saw as its determination to put dogma before buildings. Published in 1981, it met with the same derisive response from critics. “The problem, I think,” Paul Goldberger wrote in The Times Book Review, “is that Tom Wolfe has no eye.” — The New York Times
Tom Wolfe, an innovative journalist and novelist, died on Monday in Manhattan at the age of 88. Wolf lived in New York since joining The New York Herald Tribune as a reporter in 1962, and went on to influence what is known as New Journalism. Inciting hostile reactions to some of his work, Wolf... View full entry
Foster + Partners' new Hong Kong luxury hotel, The Murray, is now fully open to the public. Formerly a 1970's government office building, the firm has transformed these 25 stories into a unique urban experience for visitors. Reception area of the Murray Building, renovated by Foster + Partners... View full entry
The long-awaited vision for the 2.2-acre site along the Chicago River and Lake Michigan, unveiled in the first community meeting for the project, is toned down a bit from the 2,000-foot-tall Spire plan that stirred emotions but never advanced beyond a 76-foot-deep foundation hole. The design, by One World Trade Center architect David Childs, includes a south tower rising 1,100 feet and an 850-foot north tower. — Chicago Tribune
Ever since work on Santiago Calatrava's 2,000-foot-tall Chicago Spire came to a halt in 2008 due to financial troubles, the city was left with a gaping hole in the ground rather than the nation's tallest building. Rendering: Related Midwest.A new proposal by Related Midwest for a pair of towers... View full entry
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston will celebrate the inauguration of the Glassell School of Art this Sunday, May 20, marking the completion of the first phase of the museum's 14-acre redevelopment. The first phase also includes the BBVA Compass Roof Garden designed by Steven Holl Architects and... View full entry
While some were delighted that at least a small part of the architectural heritage of Robin Hood Gardens was being preserved for posterity, others were furious that the V&A – a so-called ‘arms-length’ body, governed by a Board of Trustees appointed by the Prime Minister – considered the estate valuable enough to collect, but not valuable enough to help save from demolition in the first instance. — frieze.com
The story behind London's brutalist Robin Hood Gardens reveals issues pertinent to our current housing crisis. Crystal Bennes unpacks the V&A's decision to preserve and display a section of demolished housing in this year's Venice Architecture Biennale, revealing condemnation of the building... View full entry
As hospice design becomes more formally ambitious — and standardized — we should remember there is no universal model for ‘dying well.’ — Places Journal
What is the ideal setting for the end of life? The dominant templates of the mid-century mega-hospital and the domestic hospice set the rational spaces of medical institutions against the familiarity of home. Yet, we are increasingly seeing hybrid forms that deviate from these two distinct... View full entry
The Transart Foundation for Art and Anthropology merges two fields not often associated with one another, supporting experimental work at the intersection of art and anthropology. Previously a nomadic space, the multidisciplinary institution recently found a permanent home in Houston, Texas, in a... View full entry
A hardscrabble half-mile stretch along the Chicago River's South Branch would become a vibrant neighborhood of cutting-edge architecture, parks and a riverwalk in the plans a developer unveiled Thursday for the last big piece of empty land near downtown.
Developer Related Midwest plans a transformation of the vacant, relatively isolated 62-acre site into a vibrant neighborhood of homes, restaurants, cultural institutions and businesses...
— chicagobusiness.com
The currently undeveloped site along Chicago's river has been named "The 78", declaring its scale large enough to add to the city's official number of 77 neighborhoods. The site is also rumored to be a contender for Amazon's HQ2 if the city is chosen, which would require reworking current plans. ... View full entry
Drilling holes—for windows, granted—into famed architect Marcel Breuer’s final project could cost $1 million, and preservationists are peeved such plans are still on the drafting board.
But despite community pushback, the window plans are still very much alive.
Tuesday night, a crowd again convened at downtown’s Central Atlanta Library, a Breuer-designed Brutalist building, to argue against aspects of the $50 million plan to renovate the 38-year-old structure.
— Curbed Atlanta
Current state of the Atlanta-Fulton Central Library building. Photo: Aleksandr Zykov/Flickr. To drill or not to drill—that's at the center of a heated debate between the Atlanta–Fulton Public Library System, who would like to see additional windows to bring some natural light into their... View full entry
