This post is brought to you by Dwell on Design. In just two short days, Dwell on Design LA (DODLA), the largest design event on the West Coast, will kick off its eleventh and best show yet. Packed with inspiring onstage content, high-end designer home tours, live demos, art installations... View full entry
While pronounced ocular structural features are not unheard of (consider the exterior of DS+R's Broad Museum) Winy Maas, co-founder of MVRDV, is drawing attention to his firm's mirrored spherical auditorium sited in the almost complete 34,200 square meter Tianjin Library. “The Eye is the... View full entry
Saarinen’s work for the spy agency mostly involved designing models of buildings and weapons that had yet to be built. He even worked on designs for the original war room in the White House. And the people at OSS claimed that he was so good at his job that he could not be replaced. — Gizmodo
It's lucky for architecture that Eero Saarinen, who was known in the CIA as "Architectural Designer (Chief, Special Exhibits Division)" wasn't so successful at his work for the agency that he couldn't be replaced, although one wonders how much of that top secret work rubbed off on his later... View full entry
Leading Canadian contemporary design magazine Azure recently concluded another successful edition of their AZ Awards. Claimed to be Canada's only international, multi-disciplinary design competition of its kind, the awards welcome architects, designers, manufacturers, and students from all design... View full entry
When we first visited Bankside Power Station for the original Tate Modern competition in 1994, it seemed like the castle in Sleeping Beauty – an enormous urban mountain that was completely overgrown, surrounded by barbed wire and prickly roses, as if protecting the hidden beauty inside. It seemed dangerous. It is totally unimaginable now, but this was a huge chunk of the city that was totally excluded from public life, set back behind high walls. — theguardian.com
Read more on the Tate Modern:A look around the new Tate Modern extension"We can't sneer at developers": Herzog & de Meuron examine London's futureFirst look inside Tate Modern's new Extension View full entry
The original Tate Modern redevelopment was started in 1995 and since opening in 2000 has become the most popular gallery in the world. It made sense then for Herzog and De Meuron to return and finish the job. Their architectural evolution and legacy is now embedded in the London skyline, as is... View full entry
The government of Russia has announced a desire to build a 70km Hyperloop line on its Pacific Coast to link the port of Zarubino with China’s Jilin province, but wants China to help fund it. The link would be part of Russia’s plan to develop a series of transport corridors between its Primorye region and northeast China...The project’s cost has been estimated at about $500m...the ministry would try to interest China in co-financing the link as part of its Silk Road grand strategy. — Global Construction Review
More on Archinect:'Hyperloop as transportation’s new girlfriend: mysterious, unencumbered, exciting, expensive.'Bjarke Ingels Group + AECOM join forces with HyperloopHyperloop hopefuls turn to 'passive' maglev technologyMIT and TU Delft emerge victorious at Hyperloop competition; Elon Musk drops... View full entry
Upon first glance, the “Kurt Schwitters: Merz” exhibition is an enticing haven of artistic talent. The retrospective opened earlier this week at the Galerie Gmurzynska in Zurich.
An exhibition involving Zaha Hadid is sure to be a visual treat, whether it's her work that is on display or if she designed an exhibition's setup. Hadid's design for this particular exhibition...is the late architect's homage to Kurt Schwitters' famous Merzbau.
— Bustler
See more photos of the exhibition on Bustler.More on Archinect:Zaha Hadid's repertoire is a stunning display in Venice's Palazzo FranchettiOne of the late Dame Zaha Hadid's final designs will be built in West ChelseaInside the Zaha Hadid-designed $50 million High Line penthouse View full entry
Mr. Margolies, who died on May 26, at 76, was considered the country’s foremost photographer of vernacular architecture — the coffee shops shaped like coffeepots; the gas station shaped like a teapot (the Teapot Dome Service Station in Zillah, Wash.); and the motels shaped like all manner of things, from wigwams to zeppelins to railroad cars — that once stood as proud totems along America’s blue highways. — The New York Times
In memoriam, here are a few of Margolies' idiosyncratic finds, many of which were compiled into the 2010 book "John Margolies: Roadside America":Other architectural photographers who are still doing their signature thing:Photographer captures the beauty of Beirut's architectureBêka &... View full entry
When is a garden bridge not a garden bridge? When it’s a bridge garden, according to Allies and Morrison, the Southwark-based architects who have come up with a cheap and cheerful alternative to the eye-wateringly expensive, contractually dubious proposal by Thomas Heatherwick and Joanna Lumley for a floating forest across the Thames. — theguardian.com
Read related news here: London's garden bridge, the saga continuesWhy are Heatherwick's proposals succeeding in New York but tanking in London?Sadiq Khan investigates troublesome details in Thames garden bridge projectIs London experiencing a brick boom? View full entry
The show, curated by the V&A’s Maria Nicanor and Zofia Trafas White, is a fascinating exploration of the 20th century engineer’s life and work, and how it has influenced today’s practices in his field. Arup, fittingly argue the curators, was a true pioneer, championing real collaboration with architects, using a computer for the first time during the Sydney Opera House project in the 1960s – a hefty but fascinating machine called 'Pegasus', on display at the show. — wallpaper.com
Read more UK news here:This week's picks for London architecture and design eventsMuseum of London design shortlist revealedAuthor of 'Interactive Architecture' on the built environment in the age of ubiquitous computing View full entry
This post is brought to you by Splendid 4D Studio.The team at Splendid 4D Studio is partnering with architects and real estate companies to develop flawless apps for showcasing projects and properties. Leveraging virtual reality integration, Splendid 4D Studio takes presentations to the next... View full entry
Now that the iconic restaurant’s impending demise is only weeks away, its furniture, tableware, and custom-made Knoll furniture will be included in the 500 lots headed for auction next month on July 26. News had surfaced last summer when Seagram Building owner Aby Rosen did not renew the lease for the quintessential Midtown “power lunch” spot for the last decades of the 20th century since it opened in 1959. — 6sqft.com
Additional background on this news can be found here: Landmarked Four Seasons restaurant must not be changed, NYC landmarks commission rules View full entry
With a floor plan designed around the concept of petals furling outward from a flower's stem the anodized bronze-toned aluminum and glass tower known as Bryggeblomstem ("the Brygge Flower"), has been granted the "Best Residential Building" award by the Copenhagen Municipality. The... View full entry
What is the architecture of forward-thinking climate change? One example is the Svalbard Seed Vault, which when full will house roughly 3 million different species of plants in anticipation of a future that may be hotter, drier, or simply climatically different than the one we inhabit now.This... View full entry