Today’s News - Tuesday, October 26, 2010
• Long live long journalism (x 5!): Katharine Jose offers an amazingly in-depth look at why NYC hasn't (and probably won't) produce the innovative architecture it was once known for (though the city's architects are certainly coming up with some, chances are it won't be built here).
• Hillary Brown offers principles to guide the construction of greener and more efficient infrastructure at a time when the public seems "more focused on shrinking government than on endorsing investments in 21st-century infrastructure."
• Cusato's Home for the New Economy "is the latest iteration of a well-designed, ecologically sane, decidedly livable house," but will anyone buy it? (so much for the small-house utopia, it seems).
• Kennicott looks deep into what makes Bing Thom tick (no "crass salesmanship" or "narcissistic display" here), and why he "may be thinking about adopting Washington...a city that has long been content just to build buildings and muddle through with little magic or fantasy."
• Another long take, this time on Robert Stern and his success as a traditionalist: "A good way to go forward is to go back" (along with his "taste for Gucci loafers and natty suits" - who knew?).
• It looks like London's skyline is on the rise again (great slide show).
• Chaban on opposition to plans to remove the grand marble staircase in Lower Manhattan's Winter Garden, rebuilt after 9/11: "It is a noble gesture, but ultimately a backward-looking one"; there is "much to be gained by going ahead with this simple, subtle, spectacular project" (with slide show - you decide).
• Now is the time for urban green roofs, but "Australia is lagging well behind the rest of the world in promoting them."
• Q&A with Bill McKibben: is a project like Masdar City an appropriate solution to global warming? "I think it's a powerful demonstration of what is possible...the technology developed there will need to be applied in more real-life situations."
• ASLA survey finds steady economic improvement for landscape architecture firms, though it has not necessarily meant new jobs.
• National Building Museum's "Intelligent Cities": a year-long investigation to "make technology and data more useful to urban planners, professionals in the design and building industries, and the public."
• Balmond tapped for public art project at Casper College (amid grumbles about why a local Wyoming artist wasn't chosen).
• Qatar University and Dohaland set up Chair in Architecture - to be shared by Salama and Makower - that will give "students will have the opportunity to be part of the design of the Musheireb project."
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Has New York architecture missed its moment? Despite a long history of innovative building, New York, for a number of reasons, hasn’t produced much in the way of interesting architecture in the last 50 years...Luxury buildings by big-name architects are “wonderful to look at"...but not truly innovative. By Katharine Jose -- Alex Garvin; Center for Architecture; Frank Gehry; Herbert Muschamp; Nicolai Ouroussoff; Richard Meier; Sara Hart; Vishaan Chakrabarti; Jane Jacobs; Ada Louise Huxtable; Philip Johnson; etc. [images, links]- Capital New York |
Infrastructural Ecologies: Principles for Post-Industrial Public Works: A public that has misconstrued a short-term stimulus as a long-range solution seems more focused on shrinking government than on endorsing investments in 21st-century infrastructure...several principles to guide the construction of greener and more efficient infrastructure. By Hillary Brown/New Civic Works- Places Journal |
The Elusive Small-House Utopia: At 1,700 square feet, the Home for the New Economy is the latest iteration of a well-designed, ecologically sane, decidedly livable house. Is anyone going to buy it?...“Builders have tried quality rather than size, but they always fail,” says Witold Rybczynski... -- Marianne Cusato; Sarah Susanka; Andrés Duany- New York Times Magazine |
Vancouver architect Bing Thom: ...determined to steer a path independent of the crass salesmanship, egoism and narcissistic display that defines some of the more glamour-hungry architects of the past decade...He may be thinking about adopting Washington, a city stultified by decades of colorless, inoffensive architecture...And he may already be working on solutions. By Philip Kennicott- Washington Post |
The Traditionalist: Robert A.M. Stern’s 15 Central Park West is new without being avant-garde, and that, along with limestone surfaces and a lot of bathrooms, is what the wealthy want...“A good way to go forward is to go back...You can bypass the trendiness of the moment and find a new path to move forward.”- New York Times Magazine |
London's rising skyline: Various new buildings are popping up in the capital's financial area – many of them with a distinctly futuristic look...Cheesegrater project has been revived...Land Securities...said it would restart work on a 37-storey...Walkie Talkie... -- Rogers Stirk Harbour; Rafael Viñoly; Grimshaw; Foster + Partners; Renzo Piano; Herzog & de Meuron; Jean Nouvel [slide show]- Guardian (UK) |
Stairway to Headache: Why We Need to Rethink the Winter Garden: Sure, we could cling to these stairs and what they symbolize...It is a noble gesture, but ultimately a backward-looking one, not the progressive vision the city needs...there is nothing to be lost and much to be gained by going ahead with this simple, subtle, spectacular project. By Matt Chaban -- Caesar Pelli; Rafael Pelli [slide show]- New York Observer |
Architects hit grass ceiling in quest to tame urban jungle: ...advocates say the living roof's moment has come...Roofs are also being used for urban agriculture...but Australia is lagging well behind the rest of the world in promoting them...planning bodies should provide incentives to developers to include green roofs on their buildings... -- Raphael Garcia/Rana Creek; Green Roofs Australia- Sydney Morning Herald |
Interview: Bracing For A Warmer Future With Bill McKibben: Do you think that projects like Masdar City in Abu Dhabi – which aims to be (a very expensive) zero-carbon, zero-waste initiative – are appropriate solutions to our problems? "I think it’s a powerful demonstration of what is possible...the technology developed there will need to be applied in more real-life situations."- Green Prophet (Middle East) |
Survey Finds Steady Economic Improvement for Landscape Architecture Firms: Meeting government requirements, saving money on utility or maintenance costs are top reasons clients choose sustainable design options...The relative optimism has not transferred into new jobs...- American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) |
National Building Museum Launches "Intelligent Cities" to Reveal New Insights about Urban Life: ...a year-long investigation into how data and technology inform the look, feel, and function of our cities...goal is to make technology and data more useful to urban planners, professionals in the design and building industries, and the public.- National Building Museum (Washington, DC) |
Public art chosen for college Gateway Building: Casper College is soon to be the home for an environment changing art project...would span the two-story high entrance lobby, and a connected open space on the second floor...called the “Gateway Galaxy" -- Cecil Balmond [image]- Casper Journal (Wyoming) |
Qatar University , Dohaland set up Chair in Architecture: ...to support the development of qualified architects who can own and further Dohaland’s new architectural language...QU head of Architecture and Urban Planning Ashraf Salama and Allies and Morrison architect Tim Makower...will act as co-chairs in the position for one year...students will have the opportunity to be part of the design of the Musheireb project...- Gulf Times (Qatar) |
Book Review: "The Architecture of Patterns" by Paul Andersen and David Salomon...considers how the Modernist adage "form follows function" has stuck around in a whole new guise. By Ann Lui [images]- ArchNewsNow |
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BIG: 8 House, Copenhagen, Denmark: "... a three-dimensional neighborhood rather than an architectural object." -- Bjarke Ingels Group |
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