Reflecting on the site of Farnsworth House, an obvious floodplain, toasteroven wondered "who pushed siting the building where it is - the client or mies?". To which snooker-doodle-dandy replied "don't believe Mies would ever let a Client tell him what to do. In fact if they tried, he would most likely stuff out his Cuban cigar on their forehead"

German architects von Gerkan, Marg and Partners (gmp) have won the first prize in the international design competition for the new exhibition center in Tianjin, China. gmp beat out tough competition from Fuksas, HHP, NBBJ/BIAD, and others. — bustler.net

While the old-school images might seem odd, the new production method and a barrage of features both seen and unseen will make the licenses, officials say, virtually impossible to forge. — nytimes.com

Big Air Package is the latest project from artist Christo installed at the Gasometer Oberhausen in Germany, a facility that still holds the record as the largest disc-type gas holder in Europe that was converted into an exhibition hall in the 1990s. Big Air Package is the largest ever inflated envelope without aid of a skeleton (Gasometer Oberhausen bills it as the largest indoor sculpture in history) and reaches 90 meters high, with a diameter of 50 meters and a volume of 177,000 cubic meters. — thisiscolossal.com

and I watch everybody, every move. It's nerve-wracking, your blood pressure goes up ten points going through the door... - Jim Fahey (Assistant Chief in the Operation Control Center) — Charlie Rose

“Any change in the way you do business involves some concerns and issues,” said Richard T. Anderson, the president of the New York Building Congress...“If for New York City construction, business as usual is a challenge, you need to change some of the basic ingredients, and labor and management needs to address this.” — NYT

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) today issued the following statement in opposition to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Completion Act, introduced Wednesday by Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah). Among other things, the legislation would mandate an alternative to architect Frank Gehry's design for the Eisenhower Memorial and would eliminate further federal funding for the project. — aia.org

The 4,230-square-foot, four-bedroom, four-bath home—currently on sale through Crosby Doe Associates for $4,495,000—offers a rare opportunity to lay claim to a unique piece of Wright history. The house, located in Pasadena, California, was originally built for book dealer Alice Millard for $17,000. Wright once said, "I would rather have built this little house than St. Peter's in Rome." — online.wsj.com

Above freezing temperatures and continued rainfall has left the Fox River that runs next to the Farnsworth House in a state of rising flood waters today, March 11, 2013. The house is fully surrounded by river water, but neither the lower deck nor the upper deck has yet to be breached. — miesglasshouse.wordpress.com

Tokyo has a new skyscraper: the Japan Post Tower, a 38-story high-rise building designed by Helmut Jahn's Chicago firm in collaboration with Mitsubishi Jishu Sekkei, will hold its official grand opening for all commercial space Friday, March 21, 2013. — bustler.net

When Hurricane Sandy wiped out the lifeguard stations and public bathrooms on many of New York City’s beaches, the city found itself in a bind. How could it rebuild these necessary facilities in time for the summer of 2013? — Inhabitat

Our friends at eVolo Magazine just announced the winners of the 2013 Skyscraper Competition. The annual award, established in 2006, recognizes design visions that rethink the conventions of vertical living and the use of technology, materials, programs, aesthetics, and spatial organizations. [...]

The winners were selected for their creativity, ingenuity, and understanding of dynamic and adaptive vertical communities. — bustler.net

To conclude our mini-showcasing of the 2013 AIA New York Chapter Design Award winners, here are now the two Honor and five Merit award winners in the category Urban Design selected by the jurors David Coomes, Kathryn Gustafson, PLA, ASLA, Hon. FRIBA, and Alex Krieger, FAIA. — bustler.net