Arch Daily |
- Residential Building in Bucharest / Melon Design Studio
- f22 foto space / LAAB Architects + Carlow Architecture & Design
- Sora Data Centre / Shaw Architect
- Dürr Systems Headquarters Facility / SmithGroupJJR
- Fusion House / Dankor Architecture
- Orion Federal Credit / archimania
- These Competition-Winning Drawings Explore the Meaning of Island Utopias
- Whidbey Artists' Retreat / Prentiss + Balance + Wickline Architects
- Snøhetta Designs Sustainable Data Center as "The Body and Brain of Future Cities"
- Atelier Zarate / OC4 Constructores
- Spotlight: Alejandro Aravena
- The Benefits of Mass Timber Building on Show at AIA Conference on Architecture 2018
- 8 Treasured Historic Architecture Sites That Have Hosted Huge Rock Concerts
- Oasis House / Esquadra Arquitetos + Yi Arquitetos
- Photographic Gallery Captures the Rough Brutalism of Toronto's Andrews Building
- Adobe Recreates Lost Typography from the Masters of the Bauhaus
| Residential Building in Bucharest / Melon Design Studio Posted: 22 Jun 2018 07:00 PM PDT  © Cosmin Dragomir
 © Cosmin Dragomir Text description provided by the architects. The site is located on a quiet street with old houses, tall trees, lime and honeysuckle perfume, not far from Cotroceni Palace. The rear limit of the property is south and is bordered by a park with tall trees showing the silhouette of the Military Academy. The project is an attempt to address issues that are important to us: how can we compensate (at a small scale) the increasing shortage of green areas in Bucharest and the relationship between the interior/private space and the exterior/collective space.  © Cosmin Dragomir We tried to keep the building typologically and morphologically true to the surrounding space: residential neighborhood characterized by small streets with narrow plots. The aim of the project was an "alive" house able to offer visual, tactile and olfactory sensations, with garden - terraces and "tree tenants", with trellises for climbing plants and supports for caprifolium flowers. In time, all the above might form "live bio-skin structures", acting as cooling devices.  Street Section - North Facade The passage of outer space / public city space and interior / personal space is the architectural filter of the building. Terraces are precious elements that mediate and articulate the interaction between the collective space and singular space. The architecture reflects the inner life which evolves over time depending on how it is inhabited by the patina of materials and plant growth. It contains promises and uncertainties.  © Cosmin Dragomir The materials that were used for the construction are the ingredients that made the concept come to life. The use of materials becomes a "sincere" expression that does not hide imperfections and exposes the robustness of construction stages - exposed concrete, weldings, the assemblage of metals and glass. The result speaks through contrasts between materials, with reflecting lights and shadows that depend on the season and moment of the day.  © Cosmin Dragomir Wood is used as an "alive" material with special sensitivity, tactile properties, able to "attract" and induce a particular state. Its location is chosen to allow closeness, direct touch. Therefore the facade in the terraces area has vertical elements fully made of oil-treated wood. It contributes to the general composition of the house, yet it is accessible directly and at close range. Wooden ceilings are very visible from the street and very pleasant from the terraces, framed by edges of black metal plates. The wood and metal plates are carefully installed with grooves on walls, ceilings and decks allowing ventilation and dimension changes due to humidity and temperature variations.  © Cosmin Dragomir The 4 level building has one apartment per floor and a basement with an English courtyard. This building replaced an old building without architectural value and with serious structural problems. The difficult terrain - with a high water level and three active springs discovered during works - required controlled dismantling operations, consolidation and waterproofing the enclosure. From start to finish (1 year) the construction was supervised and managed in all phases directly by the architects.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| f22 foto space / LAAB Architects + Carlow Architecture & Design Posted: 22 Jun 2018 03:00 PM PDT _Photo_by_Otto_Ng_LAAB.jpg?1526433845 "© LAAB Architects") © LAAB Architects
_Photo_by_Otto_Ng_LAAB.jpg?1526433645 "© LAAB Architects") © LAAB Architects Text description provided by the architects. f22 foto space is a one-of-a-kind cultural hub in Hong Kong dedicated to photography and design. It offers exhibition, a photo book shop, a Leica camera boutique and a lovely cafe. _Photo_by_Otto_Ng_LAAB.jpg?1526433451 "© LAAB Architects") © LAAB Architects We took inspiration from photography and worked closely with our structural engineers to translate camera elements into spatial experiences. To create a cinematic entrance, we studied camera development and used design elements from various generations of camera lens to design the door. The overhead aperture controls the amount of light at the entrance space as it rotates. _Photo_by_Otto_Ng_LAAB.jpg?1526433592 "© LAAB Architects") © LAAB Architects  Plans _Photo_by_Otto_Ng_LAAB.jpg?1526433557 "© LAAB Architects") © LAAB Architects Inspired by camera aperture, the circular staircase plays with light, shadow and speed. Both the door and the stairs are fabricated using brass and painted in black. Over time, the black paint would wear off, revealing the brass underneath. Just like a black- painted camera that documents its interaction with the photographer; f22 also documents its interaction with time and people. _photo_by_DCinematics.jpg?1526433696 "© DCinematic") © DCinematic .jpg?1526433336 "Stair") Stair _Photo_by_Otto_Ng_LAAB.jpg?1526433813 "© LAAB Architects") © LAAB Architects The two galleries are designed in black and white, forming a dialogue between the two floors. CAFE 22 offers a nice gathering place for cultural activities. It has an exhibition space for budding photographers to organize their first exhibition. A mirror is installed behind the counter, visitors can watch the baristas perform. There is a square table in the middle of the café for visitors to gather and talk about photography and design. .jpg?1526433325 "Courtesy of LAAB Architects + Carlow Architecture & Design") Courtesy of LAAB Architects + Carlow Architecture & Design  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Sora Data Centre / Shaw Architect Posted: 22 Jun 2018 01:00 PM PDT  Courtesy of Shaw Architect
 © Leang Wai Loon Sora  © H. Lin Ho  Ground Floor Plan  © Leang Wai Loon Dynamic Space  Courtesy of Shaw Architect Building Envelope  © H. Lin Ho Architectural Language  © Leang Wai Loon  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Dürr Systems Headquarters Facility / SmithGroupJJR Posted: 22 Jun 2018 12:00 PM PDT .jpg?1479152254 "© Justin Maconochie") © Justin Maconochie
.jpg?1479152125 "© Justin Maconochie") © Justin Maconochie Text description provided by the architects. The consolidation of three locations in metro-Detroit led to a new headquarters, engineering, research and equipment testing center in Southfield, Michigan, for this German based company that engineers and provides robotics and prototype testing for paint systems. Leaving a traditional workplace environment, the new space provides an efficient, light-filled workplace for about 500 employees in 92,000 gsf of office and 100,000 gsf of Training, Research and Assembly. The resulting campus is a center of excellence has already seen increased collaboration, communication and creativity, benefiting employees and customers alike. .jpg?1479152112 "© Justin Maconochie") © Justin Maconochie "The Dürr Group has been present in Southeast Michigan for almost 45 years. This substantial investment highlights our commitment to the North American market, our customers and our employees," said Dave Meynell, Chairman, Dürr, Inc.  Plan 1 The facility was expanded to include a new validation building together with a testing and training center. By reusing the existing structure and incorporating innovative, cost-effective energy-saving technologies, Dürr is demonstrating its commitment to sustainability and energy conservation. .jpg?1479152077 "© Liam Frederick") © Liam Frederick Product Description As an energy leader in the manufacturing area Dürr wanted to maximize the energy efficiency of the new and renovated facility. A new vision for the building was also desired, so the majority of the existing exterior skin of the building was removed and replaced with a contemporary curtain wall and insulated metal panel system by Kingsan. These insulted metal wall panels provide levels of thermal (R-value) and airtightness performance over the service life of the building along with reducing operational costs for energy maintenance. These panels helped achieve the overriding goal to unify the appearance of the competed facility, blending the existing structure and new addition into a cohesive whole. The main entrance was also moved to the north side and highlighted with an exterior canopy using the same Kingspan product. .jpg?1479152060 "© Justin Maconochie") © Justin Maconochie  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Fusion House / Dankor Architecture Posted: 22 Jun 2018 10:00 AM PDT  © Dan Korman
 © Dan Korman Text description provided by the architects. The overall feeling of the house is dynamic movement – the façade is on a steep angle slicing into the existing dwelling and pulling away from the original building. The idea behind the proposed three bedroom extension to a single story 1970s single story brick dwelling, was to embrace the original design while simultaneously creating a bold new, contemporary, form. We wanted to create a tension between the 'old' existing condition and proposed 'new' addition.  © Dan Korman To continue the tension between the original built form and the new extension we designed the timber lining boards on an angle, slicing into the 1970s plastered walls. Timber battens on the ceiling and interior walls created a contrasted the white monochromatic interior of the original dwelling.  Floor Plan  Sections Finally, we wanted to create a seamless transition between interior and exterior. To achieve this we designed the cavity sliding doors to seamlessly recessed into the façade and open each bedroom directly onto the yard.  © Dan Korman  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Orion Federal Credit / archimania Posted: 22 Jun 2018 08:00 AM PDT  © Hank Mardukas
 © Hank Mardukas Text description provided by the architects. A Credit Union had a history of building individual relationships between its staff and its members, and between its brand and the larger community. The Credit Union wanted to establish a presence on a small corner lot (formerly housing a gas station) within the Memphis Medical District.  © Hank Mardukas The design strategy uses bands of material that stretch across the site, creating spaces for pedestrians and vehicles and weaving surrounding context to exterior and interior spaces. The building massing is comprised of two interior volumes linked to two covered exterior spaces. The volumes, one glazed open banking hall, and one more closed support structure, slide past each other along the site's bands. The open glazed volume is positioned closer to the corner, addressing the corner and welcoming pedestrians. The closed volume slides away from the street, creating a pocket park between the parking area and the covered building entry. The closed volume's canopy creates a space for drive-through banking. An undulating zinc panel system traces the outlines of the interior and exterior building volumes, and touches down once at the corner of the open banking hall. Brick forms support the curtain and create a variety of interaction spaces from inside to out.  Material Diagram The linking of materials and spaces to the landscape and the landscape to the context creates a larger impact for a smaller building, and a connection between an institution and the community it serves.  © Hank Mardukas The final construction cost is $1,576,478 or $372/sf. The total building area is 4,237 sf. Consultants for the project included Haltom Engineering for mechanical, Ozeryansky Structural Engineering, Powers Hill Design for civil and DePouw Engineering for electrical. Grinder Taber & Grinder, Inc. was the general contractor for this project. All photos by Hank Mardukas Photography.  © Hank Mardukas  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| These Competition-Winning Drawings Explore the Meaning of Island Utopias Posted: 22 Jun 2018 07:00 AM PDT  Bankgkok Domestic Tastes / Antonio Bernacchi and Alicia Lazzaroni. Image © Antonio Bernacchi and Alicia Lazzaroni Architectural print studio Desplans in collaboration with Library Illustrazioni have published the results of their architectural drawing competition titled "The Island: Between Utopia and Metaphor for Reality." The competition asked participants to submit drawings and text interpreting the meaning of islands and utopias, considering "the double value inherent in the utopia" between aspiration and limitation. The entries were judged by a jury of figures from Library and Desplans, with one winner and 12 honorable mentions selected. The winning entries were chosen with attention given to the relevance of the theme, dialogue between text and image, graphic research, and quality of reflection. The winning drawing will be edited in a limited edition of Desplans Fine Art print and made available for sale. Below, we outline the winner, and 12 honorable mentions for you to find inspiration. First PrizeBankgkok Domestic Tastes / Antonio Bernacchi and Alicia Lazzaroni  Bankgkok Domestic Tastes / Antonio Bernacchi and Alicia Lazzaroni. Image © Antonio Bernacchi and Alicia Lazzaroni The winning prize was given to Antonio Bernacchi and Alicia Lazzaroni, students and teaching assistants at INDA (International Program in Design and Architecture), Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. Their submission "Bangkok Domestic Tastes" focuses on secluded islands created by the real estate market in Bangkok, portraying the lifestyle that each compact condominium sells. The submission demonstrates a double value of utopia, with an external projection of aspiration and obsession contrasted by an inward-looking, isolated tension. The graphic is inspired by traditional Thai mural paintings, with "hybridizations of typical urban animals recalling the iconography of folkloric mythological creatures."
Honorable Mentions9 26 am / Federica Scalise  9 26 am / Federica Scalise. Image © Federica Scalise Duckutopia / Coci Studio  Duckutopia / Coci Studio . Image © Coci Studio Dystopia / Michai Pecko  Dystopia / Michai Pecko. Image © Michai Pecko Insula in mari nata / Valentina Merz  Insula in mari nata / Valentina Merz . Image © Valentina Merz Island! Island! / Daniele Zerbi  Island! Island! / Daniele Zerbi. Image © Daniele Zerbi Nine Islands / Fabio Alessandro Fusco  Nine Islands / Fabio Alessandro Fusco. Image © Fabio Alessandro Fusco Silenzio / Alore Studio  Silenzio / Alore Studio. Image © Alore Studio The Floating Island / Arianna Boccalatte  The Floating Island / Arianna Boccalatte. Image © Arianna Boccalatte The institution of the Void / Olivier Jauniaux  The institution of the Void / Olivier Jauniaux. Image © Olivier Jauniaux The sea field / Cecile Brissez  The sea field / Cecile Brissez. Image © Cecile Brissez Trampolisland / SY architects (Rodrigo Schiavoni and Adan Yenerich)  Trampolisland / SY architects (Rodrigo Schiavoni and Adan Yenerich). Image © Rodrigo Schiavoni and Adan Yenerich Trigger / Marion Konirsh  Trigger / Marion Konirsh. Image © Marion Konirsh You can learn more about the winning drawings and competition details on the official website here. News via: Desplans and Library  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Whidbey Artists' Retreat / Prentiss + Balance + Wickline Architects Posted: 22 Jun 2018 06:00 AM PDT  © Steve Keating
 © Steve Keating Text description provided by the architects. Nestled into a second growth cedar forest on a 10 acre Whidbey Island parcel, this project consists of two artist's studios, a house and a garage. These buildings are carefully arrayed around the site's high point, each focused outward toward a distinct view of the adjacent cedars, gullies and small meadow. The buildings are expressed as industrial objects within the landscape, eschewing the idea of 'blending' with the surroundings and, instead, striving for a harmonious composition of elements in the forest - an arrangment encouraged by the adventurous aesthetic of the artist clients.  © Steve Keating A neutral material palette of concrete, galvanized metal and polycarbonate is punctuated by moments of saturated color. The warm spectrum of colors was chosen with the clients on-site to compliment the cool palette of the surrounding woods and other exterior materials.  © Steve Keating Double sloped roofs cap simple rectangular volumes, creating dynamic forms that respond to topography and light. Clerestories of polycarbonate panels fill the volume left by the elevated roof edge, admitting diffused light and obscuring the landscape into an artistic abstraction. The double slope roof is applied uniformly to the primary spaces yet the orientation varies to enhance the program of the associated space.  © Steve Keating Concrete floors, white walls and warm wood tones provide a quiet and light filled interior, with art and furniture providing splashes of color. The entry is located at the intersection of two rectangular volumes, delineating the public and private spaces.  © Steve Keating  Main house plan  © Steve Keating The studios mix fine detailing with an industrial aesthetic, as LVLs and pipe railings trace the edges of the lofted office space and exposed TJI's sit on crisp, white walls. Long gallery walls provide space to hang the work, while the double height space, polycarbonate clerestory and skylights create an expansive space filled with natural light.  © Steve Keating  Studio plans  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Snøhetta Designs Sustainable Data Center as "The Body and Brain of Future Cities" Posted: 22 Jun 2018 05:00 AM PDT  Courtesy of Snøhetta/Plompmozes Snøhetta has released images of its proposed sustainable data center concept, named "The Spark." The project seeks to address the typical high-energy-consuming typology of the data center, transforming it into an "energy-producing resource for communities to generate their own power." The proposal is adaptable for a wide range of contexts and can be scaled for any location around the world, fueling connected cities with energy from the center's excess heat.  Courtesy of Snøhetta/Plompmozes The Spark has been designed in response to the exponential growth in global digital data use, with the world's data storage demands due to reach 44 zettabytes (that's 21 zeroes) by 2020. Although considered to be floating in "the cloud," in reality this data is housed in a global network of energy-guzzling data centers, often built in secure isolation from the urban environment, while connected to cities via a network of fiber optic cables.  Courtesy of Snøhetta/Plompmozes The Spark reimagines the data center typology as an integral community-orientated part of the "Power City," energy-positive cities which produce more energy than they consume over a lifetime. The design team describes The Spark as "the body and the brain" of Power Cities, with the brain represented by the storage of data and potential for data-driven urban smart systems, while the body represents the data center's circular energy concept. The circular energy concept of The Spark strikes an analogy of blood traveling through the human body, with energy from the data center circulating through buildings and infrastructure. Having gradually lost heat to schools, apartments, sporting facilities, and hospitals, energy returns to the data center and efficiently cools it down.  Courtesy of Snøhetta/Plompmozes
 Courtesy of Snøhetta/Plompmozes The Spark is capable of reducing the energy consumption of data centers by 40%, in a world where 2% of global greenhouse emissions come solely from data centers. The proposal relies on low-embodied materials such as wood surrounding a structural core made of local stone, giving aesthetic variation depending on location. For the concept's development, Snøhetta worked in collaboration with real estate developer MIRIS, Skanska, Asplan Viak, and Nokia. The first pilot study will be located in Lyseparken, Norway, where The Spark's feasibility will be tested on a real site. If successful, this may make Lyseparken the first energy-positive town in the world. The project joins another major investment in data centers by Norway, with the world's largest and most secure data center set to be built in the northern part of the country. News via: Snøhetta  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Atelier Zarate / OC4 Constructores Posted: 22 Jun 2018 04:00 AM PDT  © Patrick López Jaimes
 © Patrick López Jaimes Text description provided by the architects. The guiding idea of the project arises from the specific need of the chef Fernando Zarate to create a place to host his cooking studio in which to experiment with ingredients, techniques and technology to present his guests with unique dishes.  © Patrick López Jaimes El Atelier was designed over a construction site that was originally a household then adapted to become a breakfast diner. The current project kept a good number of the existing spaces; the new architectonic concept was approached by conceiving the users of the place immersed into the dining experience as a whole. Each corner of the site has a purpose and provides the guests with a personal and exclusive experience of the place.  © Patrick López Jaimes  Plan  © Patrick López Jaimes This experiencing approach defines the place and design; those aspects give a first glance and create the prefect preamble for the user. The neutral colors intend to transmit a sensation of simplicity and elegance at the same time, wood breaks with the coldness of the space by giving it a warming touch while the green accents reflected by the peaceful water become witnesses of each moment.  © Patrick López Jaimes The simplicity of the structure and the walls of the place, make allegory of the dinnerware where dishes are served, while state of the art engineering technology such as the automation of some of the systems and top of the notch equipment are imperceptible to the users, those elements are the ingredients which make the project breathe and come to life.  © Patrick López Jaimes  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 22 Jun 2018 03:30 AM PDT  Innovation Center UC - Anacleto Angelini. Image © Nico Saieh As founder of the "Do Tank" firm ELEMENTAL, Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena (born on June 22, 1967) is perhaps the most socially-engaged architect to receive the Pritzker Prize. Far from the usual aesthetically driven approach, Aravena explains that "We don't think of ourselves as artists. Architects like to build things that are unique. But if something is unique it can't be repeated, so in terms of it serving many people in many places, the value is close to zero." [1] For Aravena, the architect's primary goal is to improve people's way of life by assessing both social needs and human desires, as well as political, economic and environmental issues.  © Andrea Avezzù  Villa Verde Housing. Image © Suyin Chia Born in Santiago de Chile, Alejandro Aravena graduated from the Universidad Católica de Chile in 1992. While teaching at Harvard University between 2000 and 2005, he met engineer Andres Iacobelli, with whom he founded ELEMENTAL on the premise to develop social housing in Chile. From 2010 to 2015, he was a Pritzker Prize Jury member, after which he was selected as the Pritzker Prize Laureate in 2016.  Constitución Cultural Center. Image © Felipe Díaz Contardo At his Quinta Monroy social housing project, Aravena implemented for the first time one of his signature ideas: the concept of "incremental housing." Given a minuscule budget, instead of designing row houses or small detached houses he proposed to build "half a good house" for the same cost. ELEMENTAL provided a basic house with the necessary sanitary equipment and two rooms for an overall floor space of 40 square meters. With this frame, families took over to build the rest of the house after saving enough money, and progressively changed their homes from low-end social housing to a more desirable unit.  Las Cruces Lookout Point. Image © Iwan Baan Aravena further developed incremental housing when designing projects like Lo Barnechea, Monterrey and Villa Verde. The latter was built after the 2010 Earthquake and tsunami that destroyed the city of Constitución. For Aravena, "there is nothing worse than answering well the wrong question," which is why he involved all inhabitants in the design process. In doing so, he learned about the need to protect housing not only from tsunamis, but also from recurring floods. Residents highlighted the need for public spaces, and for access to the Maule river. Aravena balanced urgent social needs with individual desires by placing a forest and public walkway between the river and the housing units—an effective design solution that also turned out to be the cheapest.  Innovation Center UC - Anacleto Angelini. Image © ELEMENTAL l Nina Vidic Beyond social housing, Aravena has developed buildings for universities and municipalities, where he demonstrated his ability to interpret a context and to understand what resources are available. At the Innovation Centre UC, Aravena questioned the need for office buildings to feature glass skins on their facades. He turned this usual typology inside out, designing massive external walls to prevent from overheating, with an open atrium at the core of the building which allows natural light to penetrate into the space. Cross ventilation was possible by opening exterior windows, and the open internal structure created visual connections among employees at different floors.  Mathematical school. Image © Tadeuz Jalocha In 2016, Aravena curated the Venice Biennale "Reporting the Front," where he asked practitioners to report from projects that successfully investigate new fields of action—housing shortage, migration, urban slums, waste and natural disasters among others. The exhibition questions each of these social, economic, and environmental issues individually, but also collectively as Aravena highlights that "architecture is called to respond to more than one dimension at a time, integrating a variety of fields instead of choosing one or another." Aravena insists that these complex issues can only be addressed by synthesizing information into one clear design strategy. "If there is any power in design, that's the power of synthesis," says Aravena, but "scarcity of means requires from the architect an abundance of meaning. The power of architecture is the power of synthesis, to say what you want in two words instead of three, to achieve a solution in as few moves as possible." [2] .jpg?1466082814 "The \"Reporting From the Front\" exhibition. Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu") The "Reporting From the Front" exhibition. Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu Overall, Aravena shows how the quality of a design does not necessarily depend on costs but on the design's intrinsic meaning. A focus on the resouces available can ensure sustainability, as Aravena proved when designing forms that respond to the potentials of nature, common sense and self-construction.  Las Cruces Lookout Point. Image © Iwan Baan See a selection of Aravena's buildings featured on ArchDaily via the thumbnails below, and further coverage of him at the links below those: Alejandro Aravena Wins 2016 Pritzker Prize Alejandro Aravena's Pritzker Prize Acceptance Speech Alejandro Aravena Wins 2017 Gothenburg Prize for Sustainable Development AD Interviews: Alejandro Aravena TED Talk: My Architectural Philosophy? Bring the Community Into the Process / Alejandro Aravena It's Elementary (Not): On the Architecture of Alejandro Aravena Critical Round-Up: Did Aravena's 2016 Venice Biennale Achieve its Lofty Goals? Alejandro Aravena Is Profiled by Michael Kimmelman for T Magazine Alejandro Aravena on Design, Venice and Why He Paused His Career to Open a Bar ELEMENTAL Releases Plans of 4 Housing Projects for Open-Source Use Why Aravena's Open Source Project is a Huge Step Toward Better, Cheaper Housing for Everyone Three Years in Villa Verde, ELEMENTAL's Incremental Housing Project in Constitución, Chile Video: Alejandro Aravena on PRES Constitución and Rebuilding After Disaster New York Times Names Alejandro Aravena Among 28 "Creative Geniuses" of 2016 Surface Magazine Examines Alejandro Aravena's "Architecture of Improvement" References:
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| The Benefits of Mass Timber Building on Show at AIA Conference on Architecture 2018 Posted: 22 Jun 2018 02:45 AM PDT  Brock Commons Tallwood House | Photo: KKLaw; Prefabricated panels aid in a project's efficiency. Wood as a building material is experiencing a bit of a renaissance. Though elemental and deceivingly simple, applied technology has transformed the building material. If you have questions about how to choose and use wood, Think Wood's mission is to provide access to the expanding pool of research and information. In support of this year's AIA theme, Blueprint for Better Cities, Think Wood is at the AIA Conference on Architecture to share research and resources on the benefits of wood and how it offers better solutions for the communities where we work, live and play. If you're at the conference be sure to stop by the Wood Pavilion at booth 757. If you can't make but are interested in learning more, read on to see the benefits of wood.  WREN in Los Angeles is a 515,700-sf project with five stories of wood-frame construction over two levels of concrete. Wood was chosen for its cost competitiveness and speed of construction. Photo: Kevin Korczyk With mounting pressure to reduce the carbon footprint of the built environment, smart designers are finding ways to build more responsibly while still meeting operational and structural needs:
Architects across America are increasingly incorporating wood in their designs for its promising potential to transform the way we build cities, while at the same time offering a safe and responsible alternative to traditional building materials.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 8 Treasured Historic Architecture Sites That Have Hosted Huge Rock Concerts Posted: 22 Jun 2018 02:30 AM PDT  © <a href='https://www.flickr.com/photos/thejointstaff/35142775934'>Flickr user thejointstaff</a> licensed under <a href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/'>CC BY 2.0</a> Thanks to their loud, brash, and nocturnal nature, rock concerts are often held in dark bars and nightclubs designed to withstand the abuse of rowdy fans and guitar-smashing rockers. But as musicians earn a following, they eventually graduate from beer-soaked basements to prestigious theaters, outdoor amphitheaters, arenas, and stadiums. For performers and music fans alike, playing or attending a show in a space like Carnegie Hall, the Royal Albert Hall, Madison Square Garden or Colorado's Red Rocks Amphitheater can be a momentous, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that ties together the sublime power that great music and architecture can both evoke. As rare as these opportunities are, an exclusive group of iconic musicians have managed to reach an even higher level of prestige by organizing one-off performances amid humanity's most treasured historical sites—from the Acropolis and ancient Mayan cities to the Colosseum and the Eiffel Tower. While these special concerts have given fans the chance to experience music history firsthand, many have also been mired in scandal as local officials and residents have raised concerns about potential damage to the sites or inappropriate commercial misuse of treasured cultural landmarks. Despite these legitimate and often justified concerns, these nine iconic sites have hosted some of the most ambitious concerts in the history of popular music: 1. Odeon of Herodes Atticus, The Acropolis, Athens © <a href='https://www.flickr.com/photos/carolemage/14006718245/'>Flickr user carolemage</a> licensed under <a href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/'>CC BY-SA 2.0</a> Located on the southern edge of the Acropolis of Athens, the steep-sloped Odeon of Herodes Atticus—originally constructed in the year 161 CE and left in ruins by 267 CE—was renovated in 1950 and began hosting concerts shortly thereafter. Frank Sinatra performed a pair of benefit concerts at the ancient theater in 1962, and the venue has since welcomed acts like Andrea Bocelli, Elton John, Diana Ross, Jethro Tull, Foo Fighters, Yanni, Sting and two separate performances by operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti in 1991 and 2004. 2. Piazza San Marco, Venice Screenshot from video of event <a href='http://cinefacts-forum.kino.de/78186-pink-floyd-live-venedig-1989-a.html'>via CineFacts Forum</a> In one of the most infamous examples of a rock concert causing problems on a treasured historic site, the psychedelic rock legends Pink Floyd organized a free concert in Venice's Piazza San Marco in 1989 which attracted such a large audience that the stage had to be moved onto a floating platform moored in the water beside the Basilica di San Marco. Without proper facilities and crowd control measures, the crowd of 200,000 caused significant damage to the Renaissance-era basilica and adjacent areas. Surviving news footage shows destroyed masonry details throughout the site and audience members urinating against the cathedral doors in absence of proper toilet facilities—an original sculptural figure was even broken off of the Basilica by crowd members climbing the facade for a better view. 3. Chichen Itza, Yucatán Peninsula © <a href='https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pl%C3%A1cido_Domingo_CH.jpg'>Wikimedia user William</a> licensed under <a href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en'>CC BY-SA 4.0</a> Built around 600 CE, the ancient Mayan city of Chichen Itza survives as one of most significant ancient historical sites left in North America. The sacred site hosted a large scale performance among its stepped pyramids by opera star Placido Domingo in 2008, followed quickly by a concert with pop icon Elton John in 2010. 4. Giza Pyramid Complex, Egypt © <a href='https://www.flickr.com/photos/dungodung/2714816217'>Flickr user dungodung</a> licensed under <a href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/'>CC BY-SA 2.0</a> Living up to their reputation as one of the most adventurous live acts in rock history, the Grateful Dead became the first rock band to perform at the foot of the Sphinx of Giza when they travelled to Egypt for three concerts in 1978, culminating their cosmic adventure with a final show performed during a full lunar eclipse. Dead bassist Phil Lesh still reflects on the experience with awe decades later, musing in his 2005 memoir: "our performance lit a fuse, and myth descended into reality." Following their lead, the Giza Pyramid Complex has since hosted performances by Sting in 2001 and Yanni in 2015. 5. Circus Maximus, Rome © <a href='https://www.flickr.com/photos/vendin/11554596825'>Flickr user vendin</a> licensed under <a href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/'>CC BY 2.0</a> Originally laid out in the sixth century BCE and used as a stadium for Ancient Roman chariot races, the Circus Maximus hosted one of ten simultaneous benefit concerts known as Live 8 in July 2005, featuring Duran Duran as well as a lengthy lineup of Italian acts. The English band Genesis, featuring drummer Phil Collins, would attract a crowd of 500,000 fans to the Circus Maximus for a concert on their 2007 reunion tour, and the Rolling Stones also performed on the site in 2014. 6. The Colosseum, Rome © <a href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Interior_of_the_Colloseum%2C_Rome.png'>Wikimedia user bjf</a> licensed under <a href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/'>CC BY-SA 3.0</a> While they have not yet reached the scale of concerts held at other historic sites, the Colosseum's newly appointed chief caretaker has announced his desire to re-activate Italy's most visited historic site by staging rock concerts on a wood-planked section that once served as the stadium's floor. So far the Colosseum has housed a benefit concert featuring Elton John, Andrea Bocelli and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, as well as an intimate 400-seat performance by Paul McCartney in 2003. 7. Red Square, Moscow © <a href='https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moscow_RedSquare.jpg'>Wikimedia user Laban66</a> licensed under <a href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en'>CC BY-SA 3.0 Flanked by the colorful onion domes of St. Basil's Cathedral, the Kremlin and the mausoleum of former Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin, Red Square has hosted a number of western rock acts since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, including shows by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Paul McCartney, Roger Waters of Pink Floyd, Placido Domingo and Dutch electronic dance DJ Tiësto. 8. Eiffel Tower, Paris © <a href='https://www.flickr.com/photos/thejointstaff/35142775934'>Flickr user thejointstaff</a> licensed under <a href='https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/'>CC BY 2.0</a> With space for performances at the foot of the tower and in a reception space inside in the tower itself, the Eiffel Tower has been the site of historic concerts like French new age musician Jean-Michel Jarre's 1995 concert that drew 1.25 million fans to the base of the tower, as well as recent performances by Alanis Morissette, Justin Bieber, David Guetta and the prog-rock band Muse.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Oasis House / Esquadra Arquitetos + Yi Arquitetos Posted: 22 Jun 2018 02:00 AM PDT  © Joana França
 © Joana França Text description provided by the architects. Situated in a 27,000 sqm lot, within a small gated community of 8 lots, this project has the premise of striking a balance between integrating the neighborhood and the maintenance of the dwellers’ privacy. For this reason, a courtyard connects the 3 blocks that constitute the plan. To the east, the bedrooms; to the west the BBQ grill, to the north the living room, and to the south the courtyard, which opens itself to the cerrado forest, a green area of another 2.500 sqm.  © Joana França  Ground Floor Plan  © Joana França A one-story house, the structure has a mezzanine modeled to a room for watching television, from which the street, the swimming pool, and the high ceiling living room can be seen. In order to define the relationship between the central block and the lateral blocks, a roof covering with large overhangs which highlights a veneer of laminate wood, and a metallic contour finish was conceived. In addition, stones of rustic marble cover the stairway tower, and a water reservoir, and large wooden brise-soleils, a water pond turned into a mirror by a black bottom, and the prevalent green from the landscape are features of this structure. All these elements define an architectonic object with its specific significant when the house is viewed from the outside.  © Joana França Once within the house, a different priority is evident, which can be seen in the interaction between the different. The living room is opened to the swimming pool; the swimming pool is integrated to the BBQ area, and the BBQ area is connected to the kitchen. From the private lounge of the bedrooms, one can proceed to the courtyard, from where he/she can interact with the mezzanine’s veranda. In the courtyard no longer the elements of the building are important, but the environment created by the lack of such elements.  © Joana França  Section  © Joana França Thus, the common living area is defined as a refuge, a living area, versus the street as a place for observation.  © Joana França  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Photographic Gallery Captures the Rough Brutalism of Toronto's Andrews Building Posted: 22 Jun 2018 01:00 AM PDT  © Ruta Krau Toronto-based photographer Ruta Krau has captured stunning photographs of the Andrews Building, one of Canada's most noted brutalist buildings, and a celebrated part of Toronto's concrete architecture. Designed by John Andrews, architect of Toronto's iconic CN Tower, the Andrews Building embodies the Modernist ethos of connecting with the surrounding environment, balanced above a ravine and emerging as a stepped pyramid from a natural ridge. Krau's photographs capture the rough, natural aesthetic of the Modernist building, with béton brut concrete stamped with the patterns of the timber used to mold the poured-concrete structure. Visible on both the interior and exterior, this texture compliments terra-cotta-colored floor tiles and wood-paneled feature walls.  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau  © Ruta Krau Ruta Krau's gallery of the Andrews Building and further works can be found here. News via: University of Toronto Scarborough  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Adobe Recreates Lost Typography from the Masters of the Bauhaus Posted: 21 Jun 2018 11:00 PM PDT  Bauhaus Dessau. Image © Nate Robert via Flickr Licença CC BY-SA 2.0 The idea of a total work of art - Gesamtkunstwerk - guided several schools and movements in the 19th century, including the Bauhaus, which brought the term into the modern era. With the school's unstructured architecture and avant-garde furniture design came new ways of designing clothing, graphics and painting, etc. In the Bauhaus different fields influenced each other, diluting the border between art and industry as they evolved together. When the school was closed 1933 many projects were left unfinished. In order to revive some of the work begun at the Bauhaus, Adobe launched the Hidden Treasures project to revive five fonts inspired by the original designs of five of the school's masters: Joost Schmidt, Xanti Schawinsky, Reinhold Rossig, Carl Marx and Alfred Arndt. Adobe partnered with the Bauhaus Dessau Foundation to select five design students to recreate typefaces based on the historical materials found in the school's archives. Led by the specialist in typography Erik Spiekermann, the project has already made available two of the five fonts, one inspired by Schmidt's ideas and the other by Schawinsky.  Joschmi Font, via Adobe Hidden Treasures The Joschmi typography, inspired by Schmidt, is perhaps the most emblematic of the two and resembles stencil blocks. Its digital version was redesigned by the Brazilian designer Flavia Zimbardi based on only six letters found in the archives of the German school. The Xants font, inspired by Schawinsky and redesigned by designer Luca Pellegrini, presents a more curvilinear and thin design.  Xants Font, via Adobe Hidden Treasures Eventually, all five of the fonts will be completed and made available to Adobe Creative Cloud users. Follow the project here.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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