Countless academic studies have argued that studying design at school can be hugely beneficial, even for students who have no intention of becoming professional designers, because it builds their confidence by teaching them communication, planning and visualization skills, which will be useful in any field. Yet relatively few students in America’s cash-strapped public school system are given the chance to study design, or art, especially in deprived areas like Bertie County — New York Times
Cities are very complex, and what the best designers illustrate is how to give form to sometimes very simple ideas. Good design involves bringing not just a fresh eye to problems but, most of all, listening to the people who live in those communities. We’re talking about a billion people living in informal settlements today — New York Times
Over the next 5-10 years, what does HUD need to know to improve knowledge gaps that are affecting the execution of good housing and community development policy and practice? — U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
From HUD: "PD&R is in the process of formulating our research agenda for the next 5-10 years and would like your input. We invite you to think critically about the following question and respond in one of the four targeted topic areas. To ensure consideration in advance of our upcoming... View full entry
"This year’s Solar Decathlon was a nail-biter of a competition, but in the end the University of Maryland team ultimately triumphed over all the other teams with an elegant, water conservation-focused home called the WaterShed." — Inhabitat.com
Changes to the ARE, according to NCARB, were meant to make the exam more flexible, and to unify it across jurisdictions, making it easier to get reciprocal licenses. But Tulane’s Kinnard says that those changes have had unintended consequences: “A careful analysis of the system we have in place today suggests that the regulatory bodies, with all the best intentions, have designed a system that could not be more complex.” — Architect Magazine
Elizabeth Dickinson is on the case of the 50 year old intern... Her essay questions the long term effects of more and more "young" architects deciding to not pursue licensing. Should we care about a decline in registered professionals? , What would this mean for the long term prospects of the... View full entry
Anthony J. Lumsden, a prolific Southern California architect who helped develop new ways of wrapping buildings in smooth glass skins, died Sept. 22 in Los Angeles. eric chavkin shared a personal memory “I remember Tony Lumsden. He taught 5th year studio at SCI-Arc , the time between Cesar Pelli and Alberto Bertolli...Lumsden's after work crits started from later afternoon and lasted to evening , always over-sketching on flimsy. A roll a night. One student after another.”
Sherin Wing, takes A Macro Look at Unemployment and the Economy. In the piece she examines what the architecture profession can do in the face of high unemploymentand the current macro economic conditions. Most importantly, she believes “First, they must stop simply... View full entry
We tend to underestimate The political power of physical places. Then Tahir Square comes along. Now it is Zucotti Park. — NYT
A recap of a recent community-facing installation at New York's P.S.1 explores the power of temporary design to create systemic change — www.domusweb.it
Related:2011 PS1 Young Architects Program People's Choice AwardPS1 YAP 2011 Wrap-up View full entry
Some robots are being trained to do digital design work now. The design-savvy robots in question are part of Southern California Institute of Architecture's (SCI-Arc) Robot House and they're around for the repetitive and extremely detailed movements that human artists find tedious or impossible. So your life of quiet painterly desperation and locavore vegan cocktails is safe for the time being. — blogs.laweekly.com
Here's some info about the Robot House, from SCI-Arc's website. View full entry
working with Bob Duncan, an architect with the Burlington firm Duncan-Wisniewski, the couple came up with the bridge house. It is built in such a way that the bridge might one day be removed and, with the addition of a kitchen, it could function as two separate houses — the smaller one being the sort of house Ms. Lanahan says she might want if she eventually found herself an elderly lady on her own. — NYT
Joyce Wadler interviews two Vermont artists, Eleanor Lanahan and John Douglas who recently moved in together, though they have dated for 18 years. However, in order to facilitate the move, their idiosyncratic spatial/studio needs and divergent aesthetic approaches, they ultimately built an... View full entry
The Paul Stallan Studio have been commissioned by the Diocese of Motherwell to prepare refurbishment and restoration proposals for Grade ‘A’ listed Gillespie Kidd & Coia R.C. Church St. Bride’s, in East Kilbride. This Scottish interpretation of the brutalist style of 1960’s architecture is one of the finest buildings to be produced by one of the most influential Scottish practice of the era. — Paul Stallan Studio
Arieff discusses how sustainability issues -- climate change, peak oil, declining resources -- suffer when they're thought of as trends; why Julius Shulman deserves to be in a sustainability hall of fame for his photographs showing how architecture is about buildings and people; and why, after years at the top of Dwell's masthead, she's done writing about gorgeous Italian closets and kitchens. — theatlantic.com
With the announcement of the prestigious Dutch Design Awards 2011 being only days away, we're happy to share videos and photos from three live performances created by Rotterdam-based Studio Dumbar. The performances are to promote the Dutch Design Awards categories: Spatial-, Product- and Communication Design. — bustler.net
See the videos of all three performances on Bustler. View full entry
If you dig a hole deep enough... is an installation by New York architects LEVENBETTS for The Solutions, the 2011 Chengdu Arts and Design Biennial, currently running through October 30 in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.
The impetus for LEVENBETTS' installation was the children’s adage in America that says that if you dig a hole in the ground deep enough you will emerge on the other side of the earth in China.
— bustler.net
The spirit of his midcareer buildings almost perfectly matches that of the Southern California of the time. They are buoyant, forward-looking and unburdened by the weight of history -- placeless landmarks for a placeless city. — L.A. Times
Anthony Lumsden, known as Tony, served as design director at Daniel, Mann, Johnson and Mendenhall, the large architecture and engineering firm, from 1968 to 1993. While there he designed or co-designed prominent buildings including the Manufacturers Bank in Beverly Hills, Federal Aviation... View full entry