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Released this month, California Concrete: A Landscape of Skateparks, takes the birthplace of skateboard culture and celebrates the dynamic landscapes created by Cali's expressive skateparks. Amir Zaki, creator of the book, is an artist and photographer who grew up skateboarding and has spent... View full entry
The point is, skaters made that area safe; in the old days it was cardboard city. That is what skating does: it fills the cracks in society left by capitalist development … that is where skating exists. It’s like a fungus, it’s like moss, it just grows in the corners where no one else wants to be. — The Guardian
Back in 2004, two-thirds of a popular skateboarding site at the Southbank Centre in London was destroyed. In 2014, the final third of the site was on its way to closure when the property management changed hands. Seeing the turnover as an opportunity, a campaign—Long Live Southbank—began that... View full entry
With the growing trend towards hostile architecture now openly admitting its political incentives, are we in an age of transparent hostility? [...]
Whereas other instances of hostile architecture are marked by their deliberate obscurity, the Camden Bench was developed, constructed and deployed in plain sight, making it an all too visible reminder of persistent negligence, raising the question: will hostile architecture become an accepted feature of the built environment?
— failedarchitecture.com
Related stories in the Archinect news:Amid London's austerity measures, "defensive design" becomes even more hostileLAPD directs officers to treat homeless people “with compassion” in new vague policyArchitecture of paranoia View full entry
Moscow's landscape is filled with Soviet-era buildings, many of them shuttered after the privatisation programme of the Nineties. Built for the people's benefit, they are now shut away off from public access, patrolled by security guards, most of whom never dream of exploring the upper floors.
But it is the roof of the Moscow pavilion that brings us here. Because of its concave shape the roof looks like a giant skate ramp. My friends and I want to see if it can perform like one too.
— calvertjournal.com
Head over to Calvert Journal for many more stunning photos by Pasha Volkov.In other daring-Russian-kids news on Archinect:Skywalking - hacking architecture in RussiaHong Kong, from the perspective of crazy, fearless Russian kids View full entry
As a nod to skate culture innovation, the New Museum in New York collaborated with U.S. skateboard manufacturer Chapman Skateboards to create a limited-edition skate deck shaped as the iconic staggered-block building that was designed by Japanese firm SANAA.Inspired by a New Museum Store window... View full entry
Architectural anomalies which delight skaters, as captured by Spain’s journeyman snapper. — redbull.com
While collaborations between architects and skaters aren't too rare, the symbiosis typically happens in the realm of ramp/rail/ledge/obstacle design. To have an architectural heavyweight like Rem Koolhaas come out and give his blessings to a skateboard deck design, which pays homage to OMA's... View full entry
Anyone who has ever walked through an urban center and seen preteens careening off railings and steps can attest to the fact that skateboarding is an occupation marked by creativity. When a city wants to build a park to contain its resident skaters, it turns to California Skateparks, one of the best skate park designers in the world. — wired.com
Remember your mama always telling you not to skateboard inside the house? Well, think again, mom: Francois Perrin of LA-based Air Architecture has shared with us some pretty impressive photos of his latest production, PAS House, a full-scale, 753.5-square foot prototype for a house he is... View full entry
