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In announcing the stamps, Royal Mail said that they celebrate excellence in contemporary architecture and engineering in the United Kingdom and “the renaissance in architecture of the past two decades in Britain.” — Linn's Stamp
One strip of five pictures includes Zaha Hadid's London Aquatics Center, the Library of Birmingham by Mecanoo, Glasgow's SEEC Amadillio by Foster + Partners, Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh designed by EMBT and RMJM, and the Giant’s Causeway Visitor Center in Northern Ireland by Heneghang... View full entry
As many onlookers cheered Friday, a crane hoisted the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee from the top of a monument in New Orleans.
It is the fourth, and final, Civil War-era landmark the city has removed since late April.
The effort to remove New Orleans' monuments has been part of a nationwide debate over Confederate symbols, which some argue represent slavery and injustice and others say represent history and heritage.
— CNN
On Friday, the final Civil War-era landmark in New Orleans, a statue of the Confederate general Robert E. Lee, was taken down. This was the fourth, and final, Civil War monument that the city has removed since late April after voting in 2015 to remove the Confederate markers. Many have argued that... View full entry
Frrank Lloyd Wright was never one to fret about meeting deadlines, sticking to budgets or roofs that leaked. So there is something fitting about the delayed, but altogether triumphant, restoration of Wright's Unity Temple, [...] the finest public building of Wright's Chicago years and home to one of the most beautiful rooms in America.
Instead of finishing on schedule last fall, the $25 million project is wrapping up just in time for the 150th anniversary of Wright's birthday, June 8.
— chicagotribune.com
"Success, it's often said, has many fathers, and so it is with here," Kamin writes. "A team of consultants led by Chicago's Harboe Architects has lavished exacting care on every aspect of this project, from the restoration of jewel-like art glass to the recreation of textured plaster walls." View full entry
“Gateways to Chinatown” is a newly launched initiative seeking design proposals for a new neighborhood landmark at New York City's Canal Street Triangle, between bustling Chinatown and the southern entrance to Little Italy’s Mott Street. The NYC Department of Transportation, the Chinatown... View full entry
Built in the 14th century on the Jutland peninsula in Denmark, the Kalø Castle ruins is one of the country's most iconic landmarks and tourist hotspots. But the medieval tower was largely inaccessible to the public, and lacked any internal structure for centuries. That all changed with a crafty... View full entry
The Midtown building formerly known as Citicorp Center has just been designated a city landmark. ... The 59-story office and retail tower, designed by Hugh A. Stubbins & Associates, was completed in 1978 [and] was considered quite innovative for its time, with distinctive features that included a 45-degree angular roof and a base of four stilt-like columns. The latter allowed it to cantilever over Saint Peter’s Church, also on the site. — 6sqft
Pictures of a planned £10m revamp of a Manchester landmark described as a "concrete monstrosity" have been revealed.
Manchester City Council said it had taken public opinion into account to remove the current wall and pavilion in Piccadilly Gardens.
It said it will improve the quality and safety of the area.
The plans, to be funded by leaseholders Legal & General, will go before the executive committee on 16 November.
— bbc.co.uk
Read more UK related stories here:Zaha Hadid Architects to design new stadium for the Forest Green RoversConstruction of the 'Pinnacle' to continue despite referendum resultZaha Hadid Architects just opened a new office in DubaiBritish transport minister decries "cult of ugliness" in brutalism... View full entry
Mr Shan Jixiang, head of the Chinese Society of Cultural Relics, said many of the selected structures tell abundant stories and are witnesses to key events in the nation's history.
He added that the new list will make people aware of the need to preserve more recent architectural sites for future generations. [...]
"Masterpieces of the 20th century prove that Chinese architects' spirit and techniques are well inherited. And they deserve to be passed on to modern times."
— straitstimes.com
98 sites make up China's first 20th-Century Chinese Architectural Heritage List, issued by the Chinese Society of Cultural Relics and the Architectural Society of China. The announcement comes about half a year after the country declared an official end to "weird" architecture.It's not exactly... View full entry
Richard Herber, owner of the [Frank Lloyd Wright-designed] home at 3901 N. Washington Road, said he wanted the [historic] distinction pulled because he wanted to sell the house for the best price.
Getting the property off the historic list was the only way to “cast a wider net to the widest number of people,” he said. [...]
Not everybody is a candidate for buying a home that’s historic, ... but those who are know exactly what they’re doing.
— journalgazette.net
More on the sticky business of historic preservation:The Seagram Building after the Four Seasons: maintaining a costly landmarkFrom Minnesota to Pennsylvania: moving a Frank Lloyd House halfway across the countryRIP: Bruce Goff's Bavinger House demolishedNo guarantees for historic residential... View full entry
Architects and non-architects alike sent their boldest ideas on how they would revive the Philip Johnson-designed [New York State Pavilion] into a contemporary public space.
From a burger museum to a Metro station to variations of botanical gardens, after reviewing over 250 submissions the jury awarded the coveted first prize to “Hanging Meadows” by Aidan Doyle and Sarah Wan of Seattle.
— Bustler
The results are out for the New York State Pavilion Ideas Competition! As expected, the open ideas competition attracted an interesting mix of submissions envisioning how the New York World's Fair icon should be repurposed. Here's a glimpse of the top three prize winners.1ST PLACE: Hanging... View full entry
Mr. Rosen would not mind getting a little credit for maintaining the 59-year-old building, a landmark inside and outside, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Philip Johnson. With its rich materials and exquisite detailing, the building demands scrupulous attention. And money.
RFR executives estimated that it cost about 20 percent more to maintain the seemingly spartan Seagram Building than it would a typical office tower of roughly the same size and age. Less is more.
— nytimes.com
Related stories in the Archinect news:Iconic furniture, art, tableware and even a sausage grinder: hundreds of lots from Philip Johnson's Four Seasons head to auctionModernist treasures from Philip Johnson's iconic Four Seasons Restaurant headed for auctionLandmarked Four Seasons restaurant must... View full entry
If you've got a few thousand dollars lying around and want to grab a piece of lunchroom history, now's your chance.Perfectly summed up by Vanity Fair as “Absolute ground zero for power lunching”, Philip Johnson and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's iconic Four Seasons restaurant will end its lease... View full entry
It’s shaping up to be one bummer of a summer for Marina City, where some residents have been banned from their balconies.
City inspectors discovered trouble with nearly 2,000 balcony railings [...] While crews work to fix 1,920 handrail posts, 1,300 balusters and 1,020 bottom rails, some residents have been banned from using the balconies for four months or longer. [...]
“What’s worse is that we’re not allowed to open the door to the balcony to let the breeze in.”
— DNAinfo
The iconic Marina City towers—now officially a city landmark—recently in the Archinect news:Chicago's Marina City designated official landmark status — it's about time!Only one vote left before Marina City can become official city landmarkChicago's famed Marina City seems destined for... View full entry
If someone told you today that a new, brightly lit neon sign was going up across the street from where you live, you might react with disgust at the thought of such a commercial eyesore invading the skyline of your community. Yet when some older sign or billboard is threatened, everyone is suddenly up in arms, rushing to its defense. How does something as mundane as outdoor advertising grow to become considered an essential piece of the urban fabric? — Consumerist
“They become landmarks, loved because they have been visible at certain street corners — or from many vantage points across the city — for a long time,” writes Michael J. Auer in the brief. “Such signs are valued for their familiarity, their beauty, their humor, their size, or even their... View full entry
The uncertainty looming over the building’s future is serving as a call to action for preservation groups in Atlanta and around the world who are beginning to mobilize. [...]
Ironically, to gain the Breuer building, Atlanta lost its original Carnegie Library. [...]
As evidenced by the transformation of the former Whitney Museum into the Met Breuer, it is clear that with a careful restoration, Breuer’s works can be an iconic piece of the urban fabric in which they reside
— artsatl.com
The Architecture and Design Center has begun a petition to protect the library, and has since garnered 1,023 signatures of 2,000 needed.The petition states: "We ask that the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System Board of Trustees take actions to protect the Central Library and Library System... View full entry
