... much of the capital's ancient architecture will soon be no more than a memory, according to one of the world's leading authorities, Niels Gotschow, as haphazard urbanisation and a desire for modernity change Kathmandu.
"To put things into a book is an act of preservation because one day this will be the only way to remember," says Gutschow, who has dedicated the last four decades to chronicling and preserving Nepal's architectural treasures.
— mysinchew.com
-- asked what bugged him most. “Ninety-nine percent of all cars,” he said. “Ninety-nine percent of all sneakers. Ninety-nine percent of all cellphones. Ninety-nine percent of all door handles.” — New York Times
Can a building ever be compared to Lady Gaga? Most experts may say no, but they obviously haven't seen the New Museum, one of the best looking museums ever made according to Delaine Isaac. — youtube.com
Perhaps emboldened by the success of the atheist bus, or his own Living Architecture initiative (in which top architects design desirable holiday homes), or the fact that he's got a new book to promote, Alain de Botton is now proposing a series of temples for atheists to be built around the UK. — guardian.co.uk
In August 2009 the editorial of MONU #11 on the topic of "Clean Urbanism" started with the lines "Do we simply have to stop having sex to produce Clean Urbanism..." — MONU
These lines are now featured on a bag designed and produced by MONU Magazine. The bags were produced in a limited edition of 50 pieces. To get a bag please e-mail your order to [email protected] . Text on MONU Bag: "Do we simply have to stop having sex to produce Clean Urbanism - i.e. an... View full entry
Breaking Out and Breaking In is an exploration of the use and misuse of space in escapes and heists, where architecture is the obstacle between you and what you're looking for. — bldgblog.blogspot.com
Evidently an impressive transformation is taking place – creating a truly modern metropolis. However Mr Hopkinson alludes to an almost cancerous growth on the outskirts of the nation’s capital city, and states that new builds fail to represent Chinese culture and imagination. Building projects on the outskirts of the city are viewed on an individual basis, without context and appear to result in “grids of square buildings of equal height, in a square plot, with uniform facades”. — blogs.independent.co.uk
I am not stupid, you know. Of course I know what I am doing. — NYT
The structures in Architecture Without Architects reveal a kind of purposeful, iterative, social design process that, while dating back centuries and originating in primitive cultures, offers a powerful parallel to contemporary shifts towards collaborative creation. — theatlantic.com
... the 8,400-square-foot residence known as the Andrew Fuller House and designed by modernist A. Quincy Jones may be doomed to a wrecking ball. The city has issued a demolition permit to the Frost Bank trust department, which is officially listed as the owner but is acting on behalf of Amon Carter III, the grandson of former Star-Telegram Publisher Amon G. Carter Sr. — star-telegram.com
Human beings and their communities are fragile because they are sustainable only within a narrow range of conditions and possibilities. It is the main task of architecture to maintain this range or to create it where it has not existed before. To some extent it is also architecture’s responsibility to expand this range when people require it not only for survival but also to flourish within the demands of change brought on by catastrophic events such as earthquake and tsunami. — lebbeuswoods.wordpress.com
LoLo, which stands for Lower Lower Manhattan, is one of the first proposals from the Center for Urban Real Estate, a new research group at Columbia University. The neighborhood would be created by connecting Lower Manhattan and Governors Island with millions of cubic yards of landfill, similar to how Battery Park City was born in the 1970s. Over 20 to 30 years, the center estimates, LoLo would create 88 million square feet of development and generate $16.7 billion in revenue for the city. — nytimes.com
Tegeler, 57, has turned her home in rural Virginia into a "survival center," complete with a large generator, portable heaters, water tanks, and a two-year supply of freeze-dried food that her sister recently gave her as a birthday present. She says that in case of emergency, she could survive indefinitely in her home. And she thinks that emergency could come soon.
"I think this economy is about to fall apart," she said.
— reuters.com
The Rupp Arena, Arts and Entertainment District Task Force hired Gary Bates and his firm, Space Group, as master planners for the district. The group's final report to the Urban County Council and Lexington Center Board is scheduled for the end of January.
The initial results from Space Group's study are compelling and should be implemented. How that might happen, and more importantly, how the proposals will be funded, are questions now on the table.
— kentucky.com
UK/CoD Dean Michael Speaks discusses the value of Space Group's Rupp Arena proposal. Previously: Arena master planner: Rupp could be renovated if convention center moved View full entry
Today's the day the Chinese welcome the Year of the Dragon, which you'll probably notice if you live anywhere near a Chinatown. Those Chinatowns remain symbolically important to Chinese-Americans.
But not as many are calling them home.
— marketplace.org