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In the northern part of Valle de Bravo, Mexico, known as La Peña, a complex of four houses seems to naturally rise from a mountainous, rocky landscape. Called Las Rocas, the project was designed in collaboration by architecture firm, Ignacio Urquiza Arquitectos, and interior design studio, Ana... View full entry
Unlike traditional swimming pools, which contain chlorine, natural pools rely on plants and rocks for filtration instead. An underwater retaining wall separates the swimming area (where humans — and sometimes fish — swim) from the regenerative zone, which closely resembles wetlands filled with aquatic plants like water lilies or water lotus. Pumps, and sometimes waterfalls, keep the water moving, and the rocks and skimmers filter sediment and large debris. — The New York Times
The alternative pools gained popularity in the UK before the trend was imported here. Costs range from between $50,000 to $200,000 to install and have the added bonus of self-winterization. One drawback might be the intrusion of some unwanted animal guests; however, the Times says: "Natural... View full entry
Mexico City-based Estudio Atemporal has completed a tranquil home in San Simón el Alto, Mexico. Named Casa Cono, the home was designed for a young couple seeking refuge from city life, merging living, working, and leisure within the forest environment. Image credit: LGM Studio Image credit: LGM... View full entry
The latest addition to Hollywood’s famous Sheats-Goldstein Residence and Estate has been completed by Los Angeles-based firm Conner + Perry Architects. Named Club James, the new annex was originally envisioned by mid-century architect John Lautner and estate owner James Goldstein. Image credit... View full entry
A 74-square-foot apartment design in Rotterdam, the Netherlands’ second-largest city, has captured attention for its innovative use of space, as featured on Archinect. Image: © Ossip van Duivenbode The Cabanon, as its architect-owners Beatriz Ramo and Bernd Upmeyer prefer to call it, takes... View full entry
Following our previous visit to New York-based Perkins Eastman, we are moving our Meet Your Next Employer series to California this week to explore the work of Koch Architects. Founded by principal Joanne Koch in 1998, the Berkeley-based firm has developed a portfolio ranging from small... View full entry
The first eight 3D printed homes from construction tech company ICON’s new CODEX architectural catalog are coming to Wimberley, Texas, as part of an initial release intended for the Austin area market.The single-story homes, currently under construction, belong to the TexNext and AlphaBeta... View full entry
SO – IL’s next NYC residential project is wrapping up for client Tankhouse. Their design for the 14-story, 53,820-square-foot Nine Chapel residences features a perforated metallic facade system that reflects both seasons and the sun’s position while creating a permeable veil for the loggias... View full entry
One major consequence of this difference in design is that the North American double-loaded corridor buildings are much worse at providing family-sized units. To illustrate the point, we’ll go through the different sized apartments one by one, and compare the floor area and design. You’ll notice that the American plans have significantly more floor area for the same number of bedrooms, and have much more lightless interior space up against the common corridor to fill. — Center for Building in North America
Stephen Smith is a former journalist and the Executive Director of the Brooklyn-based Center for Building in North America. His analysis of spatial challenges created by multifamily apartments and zoning conditions was featured recently in Bloomberg's Odd Lots podcast. This is an adroit relaying... View full entry
The balance of power in the market for residential conversion projects in the United States has shifted from offices to hotels for the first time, according to new statistics included in RentCafe’s latest market snapshot report for 2023. Per their analysis of Yardi Matrix data, 4,556 of the... View full entry
Frida Escobedo’s first American residential commission has been revealed as a block-scale condominium project in the Boerum Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn. The designer of the new Modern and Contemporary Art Wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (in which she has set up a working studio) will... View full entry
Goldstein and his team of architects, builders, engineers and landscape designers have been working on the Lautner house addition since 2003, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Goldstein’s property, which he has been tinkering with for more than 50 years. [...]
“The purpose of all of this was to make the inside feel like it was outside,” said Goldstein, who describes a very collaborative working relationship with Lautner until the architect’s death, at 83, in 1994.
— The New York Times
Sam Lubell examines half a century of renovations of and recent additions to James Goldstein's compound surrounding the famed John Lautner-designed Sheats-Goldstein Residence in Los Angeles. Big kudos to the Times for referencing Lautner’s 1960 (now-demolished) Concannon House with a link to our... View full entry
The next new project from Zaha Hadid Architects will renovate major elements of the historic Le Schuylkill Tower in Monaco. Built as the principality’s first high-rise in 1963, the aging 25-story residential tower overlooks the Mediterranean and Monte Carlo’s Port Hercule and boasts... View full entry
Toronto-based Studio AC has offered a look inside their “unapologetically” residential scheme in the Canadian city. The three-story home reads as a series of stacked boxes from the outside with echoes of traditional residential forms. Image credit: Doublespace Photography Image credit... View full entry
Tokyo-based Ryuichi Sasaki Architecture has completed a residential scheme in the western part of the Japanese capital defined by an exposed concrete structure on a constrained site. According to the designers, the three-unit scheme “emphasizes maximal utilization of natural energy and pursues... View full entry
