That’s exactly what Avril Corroon, an art student at Goldsmiths, has done for her final project. Taking samples from the most cursed fungal growths she could find in rented accommodation around London, Avril made a selection of artisanal cheeses that look good enough to eat. Except, they’re not; they’re stinky reminders of just how terrible rented accommodation can be in one of the richest cities in the world. — VICE
Art student, Avril Corroon has decided to take an unfortunate situation and make a statement through art. "The idea is to juxtapose precarious living standards with that of wealth, gentrification and thinking about where money is invested and where it is disinvested, and how often products are all... View full entry
Emily Helen Butterfield, born August 4, 1884, was the first licensed woman architect in Michigan. Butterfield grew up in Detroit with a love of watercolor painting, and eventually studied architecture at Syracuse University, where she was a founding member of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority... View full entry
After a six-month closure, James Turrell's site specific installation Meeting (1980-86/2016) reopens at MoMA PS1! Captivating audiences with his mesmerizing light installations, Turrell's piece was previously closed in January due to an unwanted construction scaffolding seen through the... View full entry
A year ago, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals told Boise that it’s unconstitutional to stop the homeless from sleeping in public spaces if there’s not enough shelter available for them. Now Boise wants the U.S. Supreme Court to have a look at that decision. — The Los Angeles Times
A recent Los Angeles Times opinion piece takes a look at the ongoing legal battle regarding whether criminalizing homelessness constitutes "cruel and unusual punishment" under the United States Constitution. Two constitutional lawyers, Theane Evangelis and Theodore B. Olson, discuss the... View full entry
In particular, the new numbers confirm that there is a major slowdown underway in the creation of jobs making things: manufacturing, mining and construction.
Those “goods-producing” sectors, as Labor Department classifications call them, added an average of 58,000 jobs a month in 2018. That is now down to 23,000 a month thus far in 2019 — and a mere 15,000 in July.
— The New York Times
The New York Times reports that as most economic figures remain steady, a look at some of the "fine print" of recent economic data might be cause for concern, particularly within the manufacturing and construction sectors, which are seeing lagging job growth. According to The New York... View full entry
Central Park Tower, aka 217 West 57th Street, has surpassed the 1,450-foot-tall Willis Tower (née Sears Tower) to claim the title of highest roof in the Western Hemisphere. The Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill-designed supertall is being developed by Extell and will soon top-out at 1,550 feet tall over Billionaires’ Row. — New York YIMBY
Once the world's tallest building from 1974 to 1996, the 1,450-foot-tall Willis Tower in Chicago is, little by little, kicked out from top placements in various height-record categories by the new kids on blocks all over the world. After losing the overall height crown to the twin Petronas Towers... View full entry
What does an architect look like? How would this architect act or sound? Comedian Arturo Castro skillfully portrays a fictional "visionary architect" in his humorous sketch series, Alternatino. The new series airing on Comedy Central illustrates a self-absorbed, pretentious "genius."... View full entry
Architect Carlo Ratti's design studio has utilized drone technology to produce a crowdsourced work of art in Turin, Italy. Measuring in at 46 x 39 feet, the project was developed as part of UFO-Urban Flying Opera, a participatory technology and art project funded by Compagnia di San Paolo. Created... View full entry
LAVA, in partnership with ASPECT Studios, had the winning concept for a new 16-hectare, central park in Ho Chi Minh City. The scheme features gently elevated, curving pedestrian walkways, sunken gardens that form performance and play spaces, and artificial trees that provide shade and harvest... View full entry
The rankings are in! With the upcoming school term quickly approaching, where do the world's master of architecture programs stack up? This year, Best Architecture Masters Ranking (BAM) has released their list of top programs. Coming in at the top once again is Harvard GSD's Master's degree... View full entry
In May, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority approved a $48.7 million contract for The Boring Company (TBC) to design and build a short underground transit system at the city’s Convention Center, using Tesla electric vehicles running through narrow tunnels. — TechCrunch
The Boring Company (TBC) has submitted construction drawings for their new tunnel system in Las Vegas. The plan is to "construct one pedestrian tunnel, two 0.8-mile vehicle tunnels and three underground stations, as well as modify and test seven-seater Tesla cars to carry up to 16 people," reports... View full entry
For the sixth year in a row, the Pickathon Music Festival, which opens Friday, August 2 at Pendarvis Farm in Happy Valley, Ore., will feature a brand-new, temporary performance venue designed and built by Portland State University School of Architecture students from reused materials.
This year’s rendition of the Treeline Stage utilizes 160 wooden apple-harvesting bins to create an immersive environment suggesting an orchard of towering trees—reaching 40 feet high at the tallest point.
— Portland State University School of Architecture
Faculty members Travis Bell and Clive Knights have led a group of Portland State University Architecture students in the design and construction of an original, temporary Treeline Stage at Pickathon Music Festival. View full entry
In his book Four Walls and a Roof – The Complex Nature of a Simple Profession, Reinier de Graaf paints an honest picture of what it is like to work as an architect today. De Graaf, who is a partner at OMA and director of AMO, the office’s think tank, provides engaging stories about the banal, everyday reality of working for an acclaimed firm. — Failed Architecture
When pursuing a life of architecture, it's hard not to become jaded by the peculiarities of the profession. A career path not for the faint of heart: architects often dream of using their skills to "change the world." However, as mystical and alluring the profession may appear to be, architects... View full entry
From the Jane Drew Prize to the Soane Medal, Denise Scott Brown has been on a roll winning notable architecture accolades. Most recently, the influential architect, planner, urban designer, educator, writer, and theorist was announced as the 2019 recipient of the Lisbon Triennale... View full entry
More than 11 billion tons of ice was lost to the oceans by surface melt on Wednesday alone, creating a net mass ice loss of some 217 billion tons from Greenland in July.
The scope of Wednesday’s ice melt is a number difficult to grasp. To understand just how much ice is being lost, a mere 1 billion tons—or 1 gigaton—of ice loss is equivalent to about 400,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools, the Danish Meteorological Institute said.
— The Associated Press
The Associated Press reports that a summer heatwave that recently scorched Europe has moved north to Greenland, where the elevated temperatures have produced record glacial melt. While 82-percent of Greenland is covered in ice, nearly 60-percent of the island's total ice sheet is showing... View full entry
