The Architecture Lobby is an organization of architectural workers advocating for the value of architecture in the general public and for architectural work within the discipline. […]
The Architecture Lobby survey that is being distributed here gathers information that provides evidence for ourselves and for the public about the nature of our work and where we do and do not place value; where we could and should demand respect.
— The Architecture Lobby
UPDATE: Please take the Archinect/Architecture Lobby survey on job satisfaction here.---Frustrated by a lack of professional agency and fair compensation, an organization of architectural workers known as the Architecture Lobby are vying for a renewed critical appreciation of the architecture... View full entry
Using digital fabrication and some clever tricks we're able to manufacture beautiful, low cost structures which easily bolt together. You design for it like it's a big imaginary 3D printer then you and your friends get together and bolt your house together! [...]
It works like a techno version of a barn raising.
— Arcology Now
Architecture start-up Arcology Now wants to provide an alternative to 3D printing building technologies, focusing on reliable materials and elbow grease. The Phoenix, Arizona group has developed a digital fabrication software that generates a framework for any 3D surface out of steel tubes and... View full entry
Phyllis Lambert, 86, announced Wednesday she is retiring as chair of the board of trustees of the museum and research centre she founded in 1979.
A tireless defender of Montreal’s built heritage, Lambert has taken an active role in every major urban planning debate in the city in the last four decades, from redeveloping the Old Port to protecting Mount Royal.
— Montreal Gazette
Phyllis Lambert, founder of the Canadian Centre for Architecture, is stepping down as chairperson. She had also served as Director of the CCA until 1999. Toronto architect Bruce Kuwabara will succeed her as chair of the world-renowned museum and research center. Before becoming an architect in... View full entry
Indeed, one of the main criticisms of such design is that it aims to exclude already marginalised populations such as youths or the homeless...Preventing rough sleeping is a recurring theme. — BBC Future
Frank Swain discovers the "unpleasant designs", of modern cities. He talks with Selena Savic, a PhD student at the Ecole Polytechnique Federerale de Lausanne in Switzerland, who co-authored a book on the subject this year. h/t Bruce Sterling View full entry
At the intersection of these two domains – technology and civic life – a small and fascinating sector has been taking root for the last few years. [...]
Together, these types of companies and organizations have loosely come to define "civic tech" – and the potential for a future where technology finally, seamlessly, significantly alters how we relate to government and our neighbors.
— The Atlantic Cities
Not without its growing pains, the U.S. government is slowly learning to effectively use technology to connect to its citizens. The expanding field of "civic-tech" focuses on the sharing and distillation of government data, to grease the bureaucratic wheels and ramp up personal civic engagement... View full entry
"It looks like a prison to be honest with you," said Lynda Johnson, an assistant professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology and editor and founder of KidStyleSource.com who has owned a townhouse on St. Nicholas Place for 20 years and is a member of the Hamilton Heights Homeowners Association.
Some feel the design does not fit into the context of the nearby Hamilton Heights-Sugar Hill Historic District, which is filled with Beaux Arts and Queen Anne-style 19th-century row houses.
— dnainfo.com
And just like that, it's already December. For the last two months of 2013, let's have a look at our favorite picks from Archinect's curated Kickstarter page. 1. 'REM' - Rem Koolhaas Documentary by Tomas Koolhaas Directed by Rem's son, Tomas Koolhaas, this feature-length documentary has two... View full entry
Archinect recently took a field trip to Playa Vista, a quiet community minutes from the ocean in west Los Angeles, to check out UCLA’s new satellite architecture campus, IDEAS. Entirely housed within a 13,000sqft airplane hangar, the campus is used by architecture students in the... View full entry
Once a bustling and stylish avenue, now a street that no longer knows its identity or purpose, no other street in Rotterdam provokes as much discussion as the Coolsingel. — Sculpture International Rotterdam
The Coolsingel is Rotterdam's civic artery, a 1km street home to the city's economic, commercial and political focal points. But despite its central position and function for the last century, the street has suffered a bit of an identity crisis, and lacks the vibrancy it once channeled. To... View full entry
Two academics wondered about the number of swimming pools in the L.A. Basin. They got their answer with computer mapping, but [...] along the way, they discovered something more than just the real-world versions of the iconic David Hockney pool utopias. Their project also proved that two non-experts were able to take a massive amount of freely available data to peek into other people's lives. — Los Angeles Times
Authorities in Brazil's largest city, Sao Paulo, have fought a major blaze at a landmark building designed by architect Oscar Niemeyer.
A large plume of smoke billowed from the Latin America Memorial, a cultural centre which hosts an art gallery, an auditorium and other facilities.
— bbc.co.uk
The Freedom Ship would be home to 50,000 people and have its own airport, casinos and shopping centers. The Florida-based company behind the city of the sea says it is hopeful it can raise the $1 billion needed to begin construction on the massive vessel. — nydailynews.com
Are you interested in visiting South Africa? Interested in seeing the real South Africa? Interested in experiencing how the real people live? Interested in tasting the poverty and hardship of life in a shanty town? And—most importantly—are you fearful and white? Congratulations! You're a perfect guest for the Shanty Town at Emoya Luxury Hotel and Spa, where, for less than $100 a night, you can get the authentic experience of living in a shanty town—without the bothersome shanty dwellers. — gawker.com
"Born in 1907, as the son of the famous political man, statesman and man of letters Moḥammad Ali Foroughi, Mohsen Foroughi is one of the pioneer of modern architecture in Iran. an influential professor of architecture at the University of Tehran, and a noted collector of Persian art. He was... View full entry
My big vision is for urban districts developed on a bicycle mobility platform. What does that mean? Well consider: Venice was built around boating; Singapore has been built around transit and driving; LA has been built around driving, and the "bike city" of Groningen NL, was built around walking and horses. My work is in imagining new layers of cities, built by redeveloping brownfields and connecting them up, with unique forms, because they respond to the unique attributes of bicycle motion. — cycle-space.com
For more about Steven Fleming read Working out of the Box: Steven Fleming View full entry
