“Words like ‘holocaust’ have been used in reference to the idea that our house could inspire a rash of tear-downs which could then be replaced with modern homes. I designed my house specifically within the design guidelines of this historic district and to be compatible, a good neighbor. But the term ‘modernism’ just clicks a switch in people’s brain and they can’t see the house for what it is.” — nytimes.com
Previously: Architect Fights for His Home View full entry
Some have already joked about the city's future three million square foot "wellness district,” saying it is being designed for those who shop not only for new outfits, but also for new bodies.
According to the project's press release, the domed wellness area "will offer a holistic experience to medical tourists and their families, ensuring access to quality healthcare, specialized surgical procedures and cosmetic treatments."
— RT
And thus we have the blueprint of the 0.1%'s vision of the future. An 'ideal' world existing inside a bubble, safe from the starving, diseased masses. View full entry
"I love the metaphor of Twister," he says. "When you begin the game, it's simple – put your left hand there, right foot here. But as you start piling on demands, you force architecture out of its box, and the building ends up bending over backwards in its efforts to please every single criteria and it ends up looking different. Maybe it's being from a Danish background, with the ultimate culture of consensus, but I always see the potential for synergy or harmony..." — Bjarke Ingels, independent.co.uk
The exploration of new ways of thinking about the built environment is at the heart of a new exhibition at St. Louis', MO Bruno David Gallery which opened June 27.Key piece of the show is M-velope by artist Michael Jantzen (read Archinect's 2009 interview with Jantzen here), an art retreat... View full entry
Billboards are commanding territory all over the world, offering just a blaring message in their occupation. Some designers have been looking at how to better use this advertising infrastructure, with Slovakia’s Designdevelop proposing a use for the space as small-scale residences for the homeless. — Hyperallergic
Street furniture is mostly used during the day and not used during the night, except by some homeless, who spend the night on the public benches in parks and on squares. RainCity Housing, a non-profit that provides specialized housing for people living with mental illness and addiction, has launched multi-functional street furniture that can be used as seating during the day and ‘comfortable’ sleeping places for the homeless at night time. — popupcity.net
Previously: Anti-homeless spikes are just the latest in 'defensive urban architecture' View full entry
Architects are the highest paid group of designers, and they are also generally the most highly educated. Architects employed in firms earned median hourly wages of $35.30, while their self-employed counterparts earned $22.90. But, when looking in terms of concentration, the nation’s leading clusters for architects may not be what you think. — citylab.com
Kite Bricks has developed "Smart Bricks" (S-Bricks) made out of high-strength concrete that can be used to make buildings rapidly, cheaply and energy efficiently.
The bricks -- which are patent pending -- are much like Lego in that they come in a variety of forms for different purposes and can easily connect together, with rows of knobs along the top of bricks that slot into voids along the bottom of other bricks.
— wired.co.uk
Check out this video explainer for the S-Bricks: View full entry
Scientists have discovered that scorpions design their burrows to include both hot and cold spots. A long platform provides a sunny place to warm up before they hunt, whilst a humid chamber acts as a cool refuge during the heat of the day. — Science Daily
This recent discovery of scorpion architecture adds to a sizeable list of impressive non-human architecture.Anthills consist of a complex network of paths. Comparative to the size of an individual ant, these structures are mega-skyscrapers.Likewise, termites build huge structures that have been... View full entry
The museum teamed up with international architecture firm BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group to construct a maze right in the Great Hall. [...]
The museum’s “ubergoal is that people walk out of here looking at their built world differently,” Frankel says. “We think this is sort of on the microlevel of that — forcing people to look up [as they navigate the maze] will make them look at our building differently.”
— washingtonpost.com
If women can’t always rely on legislation to support their cause, could they rely on architects? [...]
Brown says it’s time for the design community to take a stand on women’s reproductive rights. “Architects have to become more politically engaged in our built environment.” To that end, Brown is helping organize a design competition that will rethink a privacy fence for Mississippi’s only abortion clinic.
— fastcodesign.com
Previously:Debating abortion rights and free speech on the sidewalkThe Architecture of Abortion Clinics View full entry
Situating The Mound of Vendôme, the current exhibition on view at the Canadian Centre for Architecture, requires looking back into Paris' history after the French Revolution. For a tumultuous two months in 1871, the city was under the control of the Commune de Paris, a socialist revolutionary... View full entry
The city of Boston has been the stage for a long history of experiments with public space. Most notably, the Boston Common is the oldest public park in the country – and perhaps the first public urban park in the world. Originally a shared cow pasture until overgrazing led to a real-life example... View full entry
Sixty-five international designers created 22 garden installations at the 15th International Garden Festival, which opened this past weekend at the iconic Reford Gardens (aka les Jardins de Métis) in Quebec, Canada. Established in 2000, the event is one of the biggest garden festivals in the world. Located along the edge of the St. Lawrence River, the various installations are a playful reminder about the value of landscape architecture and nature in everyday living. — bustler.net
See more projects on Bustler. View full entry
The piece was completed last Friday and it consists of a single, diminutive swimming pool located somewhere in the southern Mojave Desert between Joshua Tree and Apple Valley. The public is allowed to use the pool, but in order to do so visitors need the key that unlocks it (it is kept covered) as well as the GPS coordinates. Only once you have the key, which is kept at the MAK Center, are you given the coordinates. — latimes.com