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Today's News - Friday, June 1, 2007

Is it eco-architecture or greenwashing in Asia (and a snapshot of some Asian green-building ratings systems). -- A war of words between Murcutt and client over eco-resort. -- Farrelly fumes over East Darling Harbour scheme: "a committee-designed camel" (never mind winning designers are mentioned only in past tense). -- Valencia steps into the international spotlight (not all are pleased). -- ROM's Crystal may sparkle, but any tower plans should be "equal in beauty and sustainability to the best new skyscrapers in the world." -- Pearman purrs about Royal Festival Hall: "historic modernism reinvented." -- And cheers for its old glory returned, "but not in a spirit of shallow retro fetishism." -- Lacayo finds Nelson-Atkins addition "haunting and luminous" and puts Holl's "career in a whole new light." -- Russell minces no words about the sad state of affairs swirling around Ground Zero; "whatever power the memorial's "austere grandiosity once conveyed has been eviscerated." -- Univ. of Chicago picks Williams and Tsien for skyscraper that "that stretches a ground-hugging arts center into the sky." -- Michigan State museum expects "eye-bending, innovative" design. -- Ageing concrete slab apartment buildings would have new life with retrofitting. -- Libeskind tapped for another Colorado project (opinions are mixed). -- Calatrava on his Grand Canal bridge project: "unsubstantiated challenges...have been extremely disappointing and professionally embarrassing. It is now time to respond to the misrepresentations in the press..." -- Will a new county administrative building revive a downtown or "make everybody glum for 50 years?" -- Attention tower builders: Bird-Safe Building Guidelines (please heed). -- How could we resist: Harry Potter theme park in Orlando and a UFO-themed amusement park in Roswell (where else?!!?).

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Eco-Architecture Takes Hold in Asia: ...most architecture firms in Asia aren't quite there yet, architects and urban planners say. One problem: No one can agree on what a green building is...biggest obstacle by far, however, is the reluctance of developers. -- Woods Bagot; Kenneth Yeang; EDAW; Arup Group- Wall Street Journal

Architect pans project 'debacle': Six years after being commissioned to design a set of five luxury lodges and a three-storey eco-hotel at Moonlight Head...Glenn Murcutt...claims his drawings and designs were "unilaterally" not followed and says he has never been treated so "shabbily".- The Australian

Rhymes with kangaroo but mishmash won't do: East Darling Harbour scheme...promises a porridge of hotchpotch, mishmash and willy-nilly...The winning architects, Hill Thalis, Paul Berkemeier and Jane Irwin...only appearance, in any current document, is in the past tense. This cannot be a good sign. By Elizabeth Farrelly- Sydney Morning Herald

Showboating for tourists: The America's Cup coincides with a tourism boom in an ancient city in western Spain: Forget Barcelona, Bilbao or Seville. Now it is Valencia's turn to bask in the international limelight. -- Santiago Calatrava; Norman Foster; GHT; Jean Nouvel (AP)- Daily Press (Virginia)

Give the ROM's Crystal a chance - but demand the best: Though architectural mediocrity should be combatted everywhere in the city, a ho-hum skyscraper...is absolutely unacceptable...We should hold the ROM's feet to the fire...until the museum brings us a proposal equal in beauty and sustainability to the best new skyscrapers in the world. By John Bentley Mays -- Libeskind; Foster; Calatrava- Globe and Mail (Canada)

The Royal Festival Hall, London: historic modernism reinvented...On the whole I've been encouraged by my various visits to the RFH in the run-up to re-opening...It is all terribly British, isn't it? By Hugh Pearman -- Allies and Morrison; Larry Kirkegaard; Gross:Max [images]- HughPearman.com (UK)

Back to the future: Lynsey Hanley cheers the reopening of the refurbished Royal Festival Hall but is it still a people's palace?...The hall has been lovingly returned to its old glory, but not in a spirit of shallow retro fetishism. -- Leslie Martin/Robert Matthew/Peter Moro (1951); Allies and Morrison; Larry Kierkegaard- New Statesman (UK)

Light at the Museum: Beauty is an argument that doesn't take no for an answer. And when you're confronted with something as haunting and luminous as the Bloch building...what other word will do? By Richard Lacayo -- Steven Holl- Time Magazine

Top-Secret $510 Million Ground Zero Museum Wallows in Grief: I'm not sure a museum can help us come to terms with 9/11's losses. It's the role that Arad's memorial should have played, but whatever power its austere grandiosity once conveyed has been eviscerated. By James S. Russell -- Michael Arad; Howard & Revis; Snohetta; Davis Brody Bond; Thinc Design; Local Projects- Bloomberg News

U. of C. picks design for arts skyscraper: Chicago is about to get an innovative new skyscraper, one that stretches a ground-hugging arts center into the sky...$100 million creative and performing arts center... By Blair Kamin -- Tod Williams Billie Tsien- Chicago Tribune

New art museum is biggest gift in MSU [Michigan State University] history: The Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, a lavish facility...will break ground in fall 2008...All the finalists in the international competition are known for eye-bending, innovative architectural design... Zaha Hadid; Coop Himmelblau; Morphosis; Kohn Pedersen Fox; Randall Stout- Lansing City Pulse (Michigan)

Concrete slab apartments gain new life with retrofits: Architect argues city's aging buildings can be saved by adding cladding to house latest building features...city could promote measures that would "green" the buildings for generations to come. -- Graeme Stewart/E.R.A. Architects- Toronto Star

Libeskind Designs Condos For Edwards [Colorado] Developer: The proposed buildings' curves and angles are unusual for the area and are generating mixed opinions. [video link]- CBS4 (Denver)

Statement From the Office of Santiago Calatrava: Quarto Ponte sul Canal Grande, Venice: ...the many delays during construction and the unsubstantiated challenges to the design and engineering have been extremely disappointing and professionally embarrassing. It is now time to respond to the misrepresentations in the press, and to address the questions which persist.- PRNewswire

Building's design hits clinker: A major government building can inspire. It can help revive downtown Stockton. Or it can make everybody glum for 50 years. -- Fentress Bradburn [image]- The Record (Stockton, California)

Bird-Safe Building Guidelines: 55-page manual for architects, landscape designers, engineers, glass technicians, developers, building managers, city, state, and federal officials, and the general public.- New York City Audubon

Harry Potter theme park planned: The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter will open at the Universal Orlando Resort, in Florida, in 2009.- BBC News

Line up for an alien abduction: Roswell, NM, plans Alien Apex Resort...a UFO-themed amusement park, complete with an indoor roller coaster that would take passengers on a simulated alien abduction...RFPs will be advertised next month.- CNN

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