Today’s News - Monday, April 13, 2015
• ArcSpace brings us Scholz's thoughtful Q&A with Enrique Norten re: his recent projects and his approach to architecture: "It is not a magical inspiration. It's not a doodle on a napkin. It's a lot of work."
• Rinaldi cheers Denver's top architect's brave essay re: the city failing at design: "Architects won't lead the charge because they don't want to bite the hand that feeds them. They are a notoriously silent bunch. He's taking a business risk" in "sounding the alarm."
• Schumacher denounces critics who denounce starchitects and starchitecture for being "superficial and ignorant" when they should be "mediators between the discourse of architecture and the interested public."
• Dittmar cheers the Page\Park pick to rebuild Mackintosh's Glasgow School of Art: "the recreation of what was lost can be an important statement for continuity of life, of heritage and of culture."
• Crow croons over Piano's new Whitney, "a vast space designed to wow artists as much as audiences - old-guard institutions may have to adopt a similar philosophy: Have art, bring sledgehammer" ("funky elevator interiors" included).
• The jury has picked a winner, from an impressive shortlist of five, to design the new $450 million Sydney Modern - but we won't know who until late May.
• Hume and Bozikovic weigh in on the winning design for Toronto's Jack Layton Ferry Terminal: it "wasn't the most exciting entry, but it was the most elegant and practical."
• Saffron has high hopes (and some serious concerns) about Hargreaves' four proposed "diagrams" for Philly's LOVE Park: "while there are some smart ideas, we're still a long way from having a worthy design - don't be surprised if the next version is 'none of the above.'"
• The shortlist for the St. Petersburg Pier competition is whittled down from seven to three.
• In nearby Tampa, Kiley Garden fans push for its restoration; opposition "comes largely from those who enjoy concerts at the now treeless park. But restoration does not require replanting all the trees. We just need to bring back its integrity."
• DiCaprio (yes, as in Leonardo) plans to build a Belize eco-resort that "will adhere to the Living Building Challenge," and use "the concept of sacred geometry in his designs - where the proportions of buildings are derived from mathematical proportions found in nature."
• Brownlee explains why the Golden Ratio is "an urban legend, a myth, a design unicorn," and those who believe it "is the hidden math behind beauty are falling for a 150-year-old scam" (perhaps DiCaprio and his architect McLennan should read this?).
• Schumacher offers an optimistic (with a touch of the skeptic) take on the Milwaukee Bucks arena: "Are we in for a touch of kitsch? I'm intrigued. I dare you to think about the beautifully crafted radios of the 1950s and not see a kinship."
• Wainwright weighs in on the U.K.'s new pylons that look "a bit like a ski lift mast adorned with two dangly diamond earrings."
• Heathcote offers a fascinating history and current status of atomic energy plants: "it seems that architecture is no longer considered important as a vehicle for reassurance - it does seem a shame that the architects' role has been reduced to choosing the paint."
• How Macedonia's capital has become "Europe's new capital of kitsch: Skopje's new neo-classical splendor is divisive and expensive - not to mention of questionable taste," but it is "a truly surprising and impressive spectacle."
• Cheers to the winners of the RAIC President's Award for Media in Architecture: "It is increasingly rare for any newspaper to support architectural criticism. It is extraordinary to see a newspaper support two popular journalists who engage the public about design."
• Call for entries: STITCH II - an AIA Portland Ideas Competition to successfully inhabit the unused land under a bridge + Deadline extended for Architect magazine's 2015 R+D Awards.
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Interview: Enrique Norten/TEN Arquitectos: ...his recent projects and general approach to architecture..."It's a process and a lot of it is trial and error...It is not, as you say, a magical inspiration. It's not a doodle on a napkin. It's a lot of work...architecture is a group effort." By Morten Wilhelm Scholz [images] |
Why you should email Jeff Sheppard: It's a big deal when Denver's top architect [says] this city is failing at design...Architects won't lead the charge because they don't want to bite the hand that feeds them. They are a notoriously silent bunch. That's what makes his essay so interesting. He's taking a business risk...he knows his stuff, and he's sounding the alarm. By Ray Mark Rinaldi -- Roth Sheppard; Tres Birds Workshop- Denver Post |
Patrik Schumacher: “The Denunciation of Architectural Icons and Stars is Superficial and Ignorant”: ...critics “should perhaps slow down a bit in their (pre-)judgement and reflect on their role as mediators between the discourse of architecture and the interested public.”- ArchDaily |
Sometimes rebuilding is the right thing to do: Hank Dittmar hails the appointment of Page\Park by Glasgow School of Art and makes the case for reconstruction: ...the recreation of what was lost can be an important statement for continuity of life, of heritage and of culture. -- Charles Rennie Mackintosh- BD/Building Design (UK) |
The New Whitney Marks a Change in Museum Design: ...a vast space designed to wow artists as much as audiences...a facade that does double duty as a canvas, a vast gallery with no columns, funky elevator interiors and tantalizing hidden passages...old-guard institutions may have to adopt a similar philosophy: Have art, bring sledgehammer...Overall, the effect of the architecture is snugly understated, particularly in a city dominated by skyscrapers. By Kelly Crow -- Renzo Piano [images]- Wall Street Journal |
The jury is in on the future of NSW's Art Gallery, but the public won't know the winner until late May: ...$450 million Sydney Modern – which would double of the size of the gallery – would change the look of Sydney and create another huge highlight... -- Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa/SANAA; Kengo Kuma & Associates; RMA Architects; Sean Godsell Architects; Kerry Hill Architects- Sydney Morning Herald |
Ferry dock set to become TO's urban living room: Winning design team envisions...new Jack Layton Ferry Terminal that blurs the distinction between architecture and landscape...wasn’t the most exciting entry, but it was the most elegant and practical...will draw even those uninterested in riding the ferry. By Christopher Hume -- West 8; KPMB Architects; Ken Greenberg Consultants [images]- Toronto Star |
Winning design announced for new Toronto Islands Jack Layton Ferry Terminal: ...“it was easier to find the money” to fund the competition than it will be to fund the project...Harbour Landing...among a short list of five...others ranged wildly in scope and ambition; the winning scheme combines one big architectural and landscape element with other more modest moves. “There are the bones of a really practical, pragmatic project"...By Alex Bozikovic -- KPMB Architects; West 8; Greenberg Consultants [images]- Globe and Mail (Canada) |
Waiting for a design to LOVE: This may sound like carping, but those images are not designs - they're diagrams...once you start calling something a design, it takes on an air of finality. So, while there are some smart ideas...we're still a long way from having a worthy design for this important public space, formally called JFK Plaza...don't be surprised if the next version of the LOVE Park is "none of the above." By Inga Saffron -- Hargreaves Associates; KieranTimberlake [images]- Philadelphia Inquirer |
Top Three Design Concepts: 7 St. Petersburg Pier Design Concepts were discussed in detail...committee eliminated four designs, leaving the following three designs for consideration. -- Alfonso Architects; St. Pete Design Group; Rogers Partners Architects+Urban Designers/ASD/Ken Smith- City of St. Petersburg, Florida |
Fans of Kiley Garden push for its restoration: ...opposition to restoration comes largely from those who enjoy concerts at the now treeless park...But restoration does not require replanting all the trees...“People think when you talk restoration that means it has to be look exactly like it did...Not at all. We just need to bring back its integrity.” -- Dan Kiley [images]- Tampa Tribune (Florida) |
Leonardo DiCaprio unveils Belize eco-resort plans, designed by Jason F. McLennan: Dubbed ‘Blackadore Caye, a Restorative Island’, the environmentally friendly project will offer 68 villas spread across its 104 acres...will adhere to the Living Building Challenge...using the concept of sacred geometry in his designs – where the proportions of buildings are derived from mathematical proportions found in nature. [image]- CLAD (Community of Leisure Architects & Designers) |
The Golden Ratio: Design's Biggest Myth: The golden ratio is total nonsense in design. Here's why: ...an urban legend, a design unicorn...There's also no science to really back it up. Those who believe the golden ratio is the hidden math behind beauty are falling for a 150-year-old scam. By John Brownlee -- Richard Meier; Alisa Andarek/Biothing; Giorgia Lupi/Accurat; Yves Béhar/Fuseproject [images]- Fast Company / Co. Design |
Milwaukee Bucks arena plan raises optimism, questions: Are we in for a touch of kitsch? I'm intrigued...There's something quite intoxicating about employing a design language that reeks of Brooks Stevens, Eero Saarinen, Frank Lloyd Wright and Santiago Calatrava...I give the Bucks and the architects enormous credit for being...candid about how much work is still to be done. By Mary Louise Schumacher -- Populous; Eppstein Uhen Architects [images]- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel |
New style of UK electricity pylon launches: National Grid begins construction on T-pylons, designed to have less impact on the landscape: ...looks a bit like a ski lift mast adorned with two dangly diamond earrings...may be more compact than lattice pylons, it seems more chunky and clunky. By Oliver Wainwright -- Bystrup Architecture [images]- Guardian (UK) |
Atomic architecture’s mission invisible: How power station designs reveal our changing attitudes to nuclear energy: ...it seems that...architecture is no longer considered important as a vehicle for reassurance, or that our culture has changed so radically that we now accept banality as an expression of safety...it does seem a shame that the architects’ role has been reduced to choosing the paint...Nothing to see here. By Edwin Heathcote -- Claude Parent (1960s); Grimshaw Architects; Rudy Ricciotti- Financial Times (UK) |
How Skopje became Europe’s new capital of kitsch: Skopje’s new neo-classical splendour is divisive and expensive – not to mention of questionable taste. But one thing’s for sure: it’s made the Macedonian capital a truly surprising and impressive spectacle...in a completely new-look city centre. [images]- Guardian (UK) |
RAIC announces winners of the President’s Award for Media in Architecture: “It is increasingly rare for any newspaper to support architectural criticism...It is extraordinary to see a newspaper...support two popular journalists who engage the public about design.” -- François Cardinal; Lucie Lavigne; La Presse- Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) |
Call for entries: STITCH II - an AIA Portland Ideas Competition: ideas to successfully inhabit the unused land under the I-405 bridge, connecting the bustling Pearl District with the NW Alphabet neighborhood; cash prizes; deadline: June 1- AIA Portland (Oregon) |
Call for entries - deadline extended: 2015 R+D Awards (international): to recognize the most innovative building research, materials, and technologies at every scale; deadline now: April 24 (late deadline: April 29)- Architect Magazine |
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