Architecture critics are in a particular bind. Like art critics but unlike, say, those of film, they must swim in the same social sea as their targets. Further, because useful architectural criticism requires experience of the design process, they must also be prepared to offend those by whom they might otherwise be employed. — theage.com.au

Style among the office's 60 employees tends to favor clean lines and a neutral palette. "The rumor is that you have to wear a white top with black—commonly what Richard himself wears," said Alison Macbeth, a junior designer at the firm. "But it's not that way." — The Wall Street Journal

What might happen at Seattle Center when Memorial Stadium goes away? Are there imaginative and unique uses for a large urban park? What is the Jelly Bean and why is it floating next to the Space Needle?
Join us Friday, May 11, for presentations by the finalists of a design competition, Urban Intervention, that explores the future of Seattle Center and public space. The lecture is free and open to the public, but tickets should be reserved in advance. — AIA Seattle

My business cards say FASHION ARCHITECTURE BASKETBALL. When people ask me what I do, they’re usually trying to ask how I made my money, not what my job is. In my mind, what I do is those three things. They occupy most of my time: fashion, going around to all the fashion weeks and being such a fanatic when I pick out my clothes, trying to be in the latest fashions. Architecture, which you can see here, with this house. And basketball, which is another full-time occupation for me. — interviewmagazine.com

In Frank Lloyd Wright: Graphic Artist (public library), Penny Fowler examines Wright’s ingenious and bold graphic work — his covers for Liberty (some of which were so radical the magazine rejected them), his mural designs for Midway Gardens, his photographic experiments, his hand-drawn typographical studies, the jacket designs for his own publications, including The House Beautiful and An Autobiography, and a wealth more. — brainpickings.org

Though it pervades the landscape of many of our cities, we rarely appreciate how window units continue to shape our homes and street walls. The basic design of a window unit has remained mostly the same since it appeared on the market in 1935 – that is to say, functional and bland. But instead of designing a more elegant object, we have allowed AC units to become visual background noise. — urbanomnibus.net

The Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York will celebrate outstanding achievement in design this fall with its 13th annual National Design Awards program. Today, CooperHewitt Director Bill Moggridge announced the winners of the 2012 National Design Awards, which recognize excellence across a variety of disciplines. The award recipients will be honored at a gala dinner in mid-October in New York. — bustler.net

After spending last year traipsing below the border to break ground on his first few projects in Mexico, Richard Meier is heading below the equator to start his first South American project: a light, modernist office building in the beach-lined metropolis and future Olympic host city Rio de Janeiro. — ARTINFO

Designed primarily by Roland Genick, chief architect for rail and transit systems at Parsons, the huge Pasadena-based construction conglomerate, the new stations are topped by undulating light-blue canopies of perforated metal panels that are not only dated — bringing a public-art project from the early 1990s to mind — but provide almost no shade or rain protection. Or solar power, for that matter, though from certain angles the stations look a bit like they're covered with photovoltaic panels. — latimes.com

... instead of drawing his inspiration from buildings in his portfolio, Gehry designed the various pieces of this chess set based on their role in the game. So the soft curves of the queen contrast the sharp angles of the king, while the pawns have all been equipped with cannons atop them. Unfortunately the set, which is made from fine bone-china, is only available from Tiffany & Co. as a special order for a staggering $25,000. A check-mate to the bank account for most of us. — gizmodo.com

The fact that one of Britain’s most exciting new design practices is named after a social research organization formed in the 1930s is not a coincidence. The photographer Theo Simpson and the graphic designer Ben Mclaughlin founded their London studio, Mass Observation, last year with a mission to examine everyday experiences and surroundings. Their expanding portfolio of self-published books and print editions investigates contemporary social, political and economical issues... — tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com

As contemporary governments and citizens increasingly demand that reclaimed landfills be many things to many people — energy producers, social nodes, memorials — and also that they interface with local infrastructure, we would do well to study the historical precedent of Monte Testaccio... [whose] longevity and vitality make it an ideal model of what a landfill can become: an agent of civic engagement and an urban catalyst. This is the promise of landfill reclamation. — Places Journal

The American Academy in Rome recently announced the winners of the 116th annual Rome Prize Competition. Recipients of the 2012-2013 prizes are provided with a fellowship that includes a stipend, a study or studio, and room and board for a period of six months to two years in Rome, Italy. — bustler.net