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Britain’s decades-long planning “chaos” has left London a city of great individual buildings, such as the Gherkin and the Shard, standing in a sea of “woeful” architecture, the Government’s design czar said today.
Marylebone-based architect Sir Terry Farrell called for a “revolution” in the planning system, to end the culture of Nimbyism and put the creation of well designed places to live, work and shop at the heart of policymaking.
— London Evening Standard
Farrell 's remarks certainly aren't limited to contemporary architecture in London: “If you dump yourself in any town centre and look at what the end of the 20th century and start of the 21st century has brought, it is woeful.” View full entry
Archinect's Architecture School Lecture Guide for Winter/Spring 2014Archinect's Get Lectured is up and running again for the Winter/Spring '14 term! As a refresher from our Fall 2013 guide, every week we'll feature a school's lecture series—and their snazzy posters—for the current season. If... View full entry
Seventy-six people were injured when part of the roof came down during a performance of The Curious Incident of The Dog In The Night-Time in December.
BBC Radio 4's You and Yours has seen a letter from Westminster City Council saying hessian wadding embedded in the ceiling was getting weaker over time.
The material's deterioration led to the collapse, the council said.
— bbc.com
Previously: London theatre collapse: scores injured at Apollo in West End View full entry
The White House may be the centre of great power, but it is not in itself that big or that shouty. It’s just a nice, white house, rather elegant, with a fine sweeping drive, but utterly dwarfed by the US Treasury next door – a fact that is, in itself, a bit of a clue to the relative significance of wealth in American society. [...]
If the White House gleams simply because of the influence of the man inside it, the rest of the Washington complex is designed to make its case for significance.
— telegraph.co.uk
[...] Dutton and Piper have traced a path, broadly following the Meridian, extending from the 02 Arena in Greenwich across the Thames by cable car to the Olympic Park in Stratford: a largely flat and buggy-friendly three-hour meander through an extraordinarily varied and little-known urban landscape that will be punctuated by striking pieces of modern sculpture. They’re calling it the Line, and the hope is that it will be up and running by midsummer. — telegraph.co.uk
Up until recently Canary Wharf was the only place for skyscrapers in London. [...]
Now it seems that London is going to receive a more cohesive skyline, with a new study produced by the New London Architecture (NLA) thinktank suggesting that at least 236 tall buildings (those over 20 storeys in height) are currently proposed, approved or under construction in the capital.
— independent.co.uk
Related: London's Current Obsession: Its Own Identity Crisis View full entry
Is London in danger of losing its soul? The question may sound melodramatic, but this is just what many of the British capital’s commentariat have been discussing over the past few days. [...]
Barely a day goes by without a local news story about the phenomenal rise of London property values. In just the past few weeks, we've learned that price levels are "approaching madness." [...]
London buyers start to bid consistently 25 percent above the asking price.
— theatlanticcities.com
Chilean architect Smiljan Radic was commissioned by Serpentine Gallery to design the 2014 Serpentine Galleries Pavilion. Designed by big-name architects since 2000, the temporary pavilion has become a major summer attraction in London's Kensington Gardens for the London Festival of... View full entry
London’s 200 new towers are something different. Virtually every one contains “luxury” apartments. This new residential upsurge in London is echoed across the Atlantic in New York – as property in both cities becomes a global reserve currency. New York, once the city of the commercial skyscraper, has become the city of the condo tower and the penthouse. But where does that leave commercial architecture? — ft.com
London's Natural History Museum recently revealed five shortlisted teams that still have a chance to redesign the historic museum in the Civic Realm competition...Teams will present their designs to the jury on March 13, and the winner is expected to be announced in April 2014. Designs are currently on exhibition -- with team names hidden -- at the Museum until March 11. — bustler.net
The five shortlisted teams are:BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) with Martha Schwartz PartnersGrant Associates with Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios Niall McLaughlin Architects with Kim Wilkie Land Use Consultants (LUC) with Design Engine Stanton Williams Architects with Bradley-Hole Schoenaich Landscape... View full entry
London's iconic Crystal Palace just moved one step closer to its magnificent resurrection with the announcement of six shortlisted design teams, all vying to rebuild The Crystal Palace and the surrounding public park as a major landmark. — bustler.net
The list of selected architects to move on to the next competition stage reads like a who's who in British architecture:David Chipperfield ArchitectsGrimshawHaworth Tompkins ArchitectsMarks Barfield ArchitectsRogers Stirk Harbour + PartnersZaha Hadid Architects with Anish Kapoor View full entry
In many of our bigger cities, the drinking fountain disappeared along with police boxes, mile stones and horse troughs. However, a new initiative is attempting to revive this public utility, with the help of some of London’s best design talent.
Six of the city’s leading architectural firms have designed a series of new drinking fountains, as part of the Kiosk Challenge.
— phaidon.com
Flaring its muscular grey wings like a stingray leaping out of the river Lea, the Aquatics Centre was planned as the showpiece of the London 2012 Olympic Games, a piece of liquid drama designed by the country's most celebrated queen of the curve, Zaha Hadid. [...]
"I didn't mind the seating stands so much," shrugs Hadid, sitting poolside beneath the bulging belly of her building, which finally opens to the public on Saturday.
— theguardian.com
In a new exhibition, Michael Pawlyn lays out his vision for architecture inspired by the natural world – including biorock buildings grown entirely underwater and whole office blocks being lit by learning from the blind sea star. [...]
“All my work is driven by a frustration with the word ‘sustainable’,” he says. “It suggests something that is just about good enough, but we need to be looking at truly restorative solutions.
— theguardian.com
Nominations were announced for Designs of the Year 2014 -- the event where work from the "cool kids" in the big world of design are sure to be found [...] A total of 76 nominees include international stars, crowd-funded start-ups, and student projects. A winner in each category and one overall winner will be announced later this year.
All nominations will be exhibited at London's Design Museum starting March 26 - Aug. 25, 2014
— bustler.net
Here's a small selection of this year's nominated designs.Architecture - MAKOKO FLOATING SCHOOL - Designed by NLÉ, Makoko Community Building Team Photo by NLÉFurniture - NEW INTERIOR FOR UNITED NATIONS NORTH DELEGATES’ LOUNGE (NEW YORK) - Designed by Hella Jongerius, together... View full entry