Architecture has a habit of adapting its aesthetics to new technologies, whether consciously or unconsciously. Some of the most beautiful buildings of the Industrial Revolution -- the cantilever Forth Bridge, for example -- were designed by engineers, not architects, for example. Architecture quickly absorbed the idea of buildings that reflected their purpose. — wired.co.uk

At a festive ceremony yesterday afternoon, the Los Angeles Business Council unveiled the winners of its 2013 Los Angeles Architectural Awards. The program recognizes buildings from throughout the region for their excellence in design, commitment to sustainability and impact on the community.

Architectural icon and SCI-Arc founder Ray Kappe was honored with the L.A. Architectural Lifetime Achievement Award. — bustler.net

Canadian firm 5468796 Architecture has been selected for the WAN 21 FOR 21 Award by World Architecture News in London, UK. 5468796 was one of five emerging architectural practices chosen from over 150 entries and a longlist of 50 firms from around the world. — Canadian Architect

The LEGO Group today revealed the design of the experience center “The LEGO House”. The center, which will be built in Denmark, illustrates the systematic creativity of LEGO bricks and is expected to attract 250,000 visitors annually. — aboutus.lego.com

As many as 10 people are believed to be trapped in the rubble of a building that collapsed Wednesday morning in Philadelphia, city Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers said, according to CNN affiliate WPVI.

The building collapsed at the corner of 22nd and Market streets in Philadelphia's Center City area, WPVI reported. — cnn.com

The Walled City's gardens and squares are now obscured by illegal shops and businesses, the skyline cluttered by unplanned tenements and bundles of cables. For many of the 200,000 inhabitants crammed into these 4sq km, a fraction of Lahore's 7m population, drinking water is a rarity.

But last month the new Walled City of Lahore Authority met for the first time. The body oversees the ambitious plan to restore the past glory of the city's oldest neighbourhood. — guardian.co.uk

French-Californian practice Sériès et Sériès has shared with us its entry to Taiwan's Taichung City Cultural Center competition [...]. The design team's engineering partner was Buro Happold. — bustler.net

Occupying some 350 square-metres of lawn in front of the Serpentine Gallery, Sou Fujimoto's delicate, latticed structure of 20mm steel poles will have a lightweight and semi-transparent appearance that will allow it to blend, cloud-like, into the landscape and against the classical backdrop of the Gallery's colonnaded East wing. Designed as a flexible, multi-purpose social space - with a café sited inside - visitors will be encouraged to enter and interact with the Pavilion... — serpentinegallery.org

The company will be moving all of its teams from its current office near Grand Central to two floors at the new office, the interior of which architect Frank Gehry has agreed to design.

Gehry is already leading the expansion of Facebook's headquarters in Menlo Park, CA. A source familiar with Facebook's plans said the company is "extraordinarily pleased with [Gehry's] ability to delivery an incredible quality of design at a remarkably efficient price"... — mashable.com

Five teams have recently been shortlisted as stage one winners in the international architecture competition for the design of a new City Cultural Center in Taichung, Taiwan. Taichung, after the merger of Taichung City and Taichung County the third largest city in Taiwan, established this competition to distinguish itself from the other major Taiwanese cities, Taipei and Kaohsiung. — bustler.net

Danish schmidt hammer lassen architects together with local architects East China Architecture and Design Institute, and Shanghai Expo Construction Development Company last week celebrated the ground breaking for, and start of construction of, the new Green Valley project on the site of the former 2010 Shanghai Expo. — bustler.net

"Bracingly forward-looking, Zumthor's design for LACMA would give the city a much-needed jolt of architectural energy." — Los Angeles Times

When it was built, it held the Guinness World Record for the "tallest fully-rotating tower" - although to be fair, there was not much competition for that particular accolade.

The 127m-tall (416 ft) steel and glass tower, the highest building in Scotland, was the only structure in the world able to rotate fully through 360 degrees from base to top.

Neil Baxter, secretary of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland says the idea was unique: "Nobody had ever tried to do that." — bbc.co.uk

The Denver Architectural League recently announced the winners of their Micro Housing Ideas Competition as well as seven formal recognitions. Inspired by a concern about the lack of innovation in Denver's existing multi-family housing market where many banal apartment, townhome and condo complexes continue to be built, this competition offered designers an opportunity to engage in reinventing the notion of "responsible affordable housing" with an emphasis on regenerative design. — bustler.net

... we have turned the Gherkin into the worlds tallest penis. A penis that is being gratified by our parliament with a sexual act. A 180m high erection for deregulation and global capitalism. We have created this art work for all those that are suffering cuts to their budgets, benefits, working hours, rights, freedoms and quality of life as Parliament perpetuates the age old practice of taxing the poor for the mistakes of the rich. — vimeo.com