Today’s News - Monday, October 4, 2010
• ArcSpace brings us an eyeful of Holl's Glasgow School of Art that "complements its neighbor, but moves forward using a new language of light."
• Stirling Prize-winner Hadid and her MAXXI, and new images of Lower Manhattan's Park51 Islamic cultural center (by a firm that may not actually do the final design) sucked much of the air out of the room over the weekend:
• Glancey and Hatherley both say Hadid was the right choice, and both explain why there's little chance of seeing a MAXXI in the U.K.
• Waite includes lots of quotes from Zaha's acceptance speech (oh, and by the way, Mather's Ashmolean Museum was the People's Choice winner).
• Baillieu bemoans a stifling of debate: "we have no inkling of why Maxxi toppled the Neus and the Ashmolean, and neither do the judges because of the ridiculous secret voting ballot that RIBA now insists on."
• A handful of notables offer their takes on the win (some thumbs-up, some thumbs-down).
• New sketches of the proposed Islamic Center "give an impression of translucence and 'moving toward the future.'"
• Pilkington and Glancey on Park51: the "drawings prove how far 'Ground Zero mosque' claims are from truth"; and "reveal a decidedly upbeat and glamorous building, more festive than threatening."
• The project looks like "something cosmopolitan and fun...it could fit in fine as an annex to Superman's Fortress of Solitude."
• BMW Guggenheim Lab will be "part architectural installation, part think tank, and part event hub...a vast and deliberately open-ended R&D project."
• That's all well and good, but "if you are interested in the work of architects who are making change right now, without all the jargon, white papers and gobbledygook," check out MoMA's "Small Scale, Big Change."
• McKnight says the timing of the MoMA is "just right," allowing the spotlight to shift from glitzy skyscrapers "to more altruistic undertakings" (terrific slide show!).
• Litt on Cleveland approving revised design for the new convention center: it adds $40 million "to improve the quality and functionality of the interiors" (but more moolah will be needed if they want more than just grass and trees on the mall).
• Behnisch Architekten's "Rubik's Cube" lab for Yale "undoes years of urban-renewal damage."
• Rochon hails "architecture's new rock star" and his Fogo Island Arts colony in Newfoundland: "Pinch me. This might be a rare utopia but it is not a dream."
• Auckland's mayor to create Honorary City Architect to "quality advice with fresh thinking and international perspectives" (no one named yet).
• Congress got an earful at a hearing highlighting the benefits of green infrastructure and innovative design techniques that "can provide a cost-effective and sustainable alternative for overburdened communities."
• NYT's Fall Design issue - Viladas, Ouroussoff, Lubell, Rawsthorn (Le Corbusier's "true colors," and a "San Francisco medical marijuana dispensary that is as elegantly designed as any fashion store") - it's a doozy of an issue, so plan to spend some time with this one.
• The stars came out to draw for Farnsworth House and Glass House for NTHP's benefit auction at Sotheby's this Wednesday (some very cool stuff; some - well...you decide).
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Steven Holl Architects: Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, UK: The new design complements its neighbor, but moves forward using a new language of light. |
Zaha Hadid's Maxxi was the right choice for the Stirling prize: Shame it could never have been built in Britain...No, Maxxi isn't a model for new primary schools in London. What it offers instead is an adventure in and through architecture. Criticise it all you like, but what Hadid's latest venture in Rome does is raise the stakes for the Stirling. By Jonathan Glancey- Guardian (UK) |
Our cheap old blocks: Again the Stirling prize goes to a building abroad. British clients prefer their architecture parochial...In the fearlessness and fierceness of her work, Hadid is James Stirling's heir, and this is surely one of the reasons why British clients avoid her. By Owen Hatherley -- Rick Mather; David Chipperfield; de Rijke Marsh Morgan (dRMM); Theis and Khan; DSDHA- Guardian (UK) |
Zaha Hadid wins Stirling Prize at fourth attempt: ...‘sinuous’ and ‘dynamic’ MAXXI Museum of 21st Century Art museum in Rome...Ashmolean Museum in Oxford by Rick Mather, voted the People’s Choice winner... By Richard Waite -- Chipperfield; DSDHA; dRMM; Theis & Khan- The Architects' Journal (UK) |
Stifling the Stirling debate: ...despite a very gracious and prepared speech by Hadid – who surely knew she’d won – we have no inkling of why Maxxi toppled the Neus and the Ashmolean, and neither do the judges because of the ridiculous secret voting ballot that RIBA now insists on. It was not always like this. By Amanda Baillieu- BD/Building Design (UK) |
Stirling Prize 2010: reaction on the night -- Alain de Botton; Patrick Theis/Theis + Khan Architects; Tom Bloxham/Urban Splash; Jack Pringle/Pringle Brandon; Ruth Reed/RIBA; Russell Brown/Hawkins\Brown; Alan Dunlop; John Assael/Assael Architecture; etc.- The Architects' Journal (UK) |
First Look Inside the Proposed Islamic Center: The planners of Park51 revealed sketches of the center, to be built near ground zero...The design was meant to show “hints of tradition,” while the use of modern materials and glass panels would give an impression of translucence and “moving toward the future"... -- SOMA Architects [images]- New York Times |
Park51 drawings prove how far 'Ground Zero mosque' claims are from truth: ...proposed scheme...is strikingly modern and in keeping with the spirit of New York's most cutting-edge design...First illustrations of the 15-storey development planned to house the Islamic centre reveal a decidedly upbeat and glamorous building, more festive than threatening. By Ed Pilkington and Jonathan Glancey -- Soma Architects- Guardian (UK) |
On paper, NY Islamic center looks modern, secular: ...project the development team's desire to build something cosmopolitan and fun on a site now known only for controversy...As for the look of the place, it could fit in fine as an annex to Superman's Fortress of Solitude, with white walls and floors and a crystalline feel..."We want to do something that is green and cool"... By David B. Caruso -- Soma Architects- Associated Press/AP |
Guggenheim, BMW Detail Plans for Global Urban Lab Project: BMW Guggenheim Lab...part architectural installation, part think tank, and part event hub to nine cities around the world over the next six years...a vast and deliberately open-ended R&D project...will consist of three globe-hopping mobile structures... -- Atelier Bow-Wow; Sulki & Min [images, video, links]- UnBeige |
An Urban Laboratory: BMW Guggenheim Lab, a six-year initiative to "engage a new generation of leaders...who will address the challenges of the cities of tomorrow by examining the realities of the cities of today"...But if you are interested in the work of architects who are making change right now, without all the jargon, white papers and gobbledegook, head to the Museum of Modern Art for "Small Scale, Big Change"...forward-looking projects need not be confined to the lab...- The Economist / Intelligent Life (UK) |
"Small Scale, Big Change" at MoMA: The timing...seems just right...have we reached a point when architects are no longer seduced by the chance to design glitzy skyscrapers...It’s unlikely. But the slumped economy has put a halt to the big-building extravaganza, allowing the spotlight to shift to more altruistic undertakings. -- Diébédo Francis Kéré; Anna Heringer/Elke Roswag; Elemental; Hashim Sarkis; Frédéric Druot/Anne Lacaton/Jean Philippe Vassal; Michael Maltzan; Noero Wolff; Jorge Mario Jauregui/Metropolis Porjectos Urbanos; Rural Studio; Estudio Teddy Cruz; Urban-Think Tank; Architecture for Humanity; Public Architecture; 1% Program; Brad Pitt/Make It Right [slide show]- Architectural Record |
Cleveland City Planning Commission approves revised plans for convention center: Revisions added $40 million...thanks to structural changes needed to improve the quality and functionality of convention center interiors...to begin detailed discussions on designs for the surface of the downtown Mall, which could require money beyond the $465 million if the city and county want more than grass and trees. By Steven Litt -- LMN Architects; Gustafson Guthrie Nichol- Cleveland Plain Dealer |
Mending the Urban Fabric with Healing Steps: Behnisch Architekten's lab for Yale New Haven Hospital undoes years of urban-renewal damage...Called alternately the Rubik’s Cube or the Kaleidoscope Building, the Park Street Laboratory stands out among its neighbors with its multi-patterned and colored facade. The building isn’t just meant to show off, though. By Alan G. Brake -- Svigals + Partners [images]- The Architect's Newspaper |
Architecture’s new rock star: Newfoundland’s (and Norway’s) Todd Saunders: Hooked. On architecture. That’s what you’ll be feeling after the Fogo Island Arts colony is done with you...Pinch me. This might be a rare utopia but it is not a dream...to provide visiting writers and artists time and space to do their work while breathing new life into a community... By Lisa Rochon -- Shorefast Foundation; Saunders Architecture [images]- Globe and Mail (Canada) |
Auckland Mayor John Banks to Create Honorary City Architect: ..."someone who is able to provide the Mayor’s office with independent advice on design and architecture. Quality advice with fresh thinking and international perspectives will be welcome in my Mayoral office."- Scoop (New Zealand) |
Congressional Hearing Highlights Green Infrastructure Benefits: Innovative design techniques can provide a cost-effective and sustainable alternative for overburdened communities. -- David Yocca/Conservation Design Forum- American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) |
T Design Fall 2010: Design & Living...looks at different visions of domestic bliss...Pilar Viladas visits an airy, open house in Italy by the superstar designer Patricia Urquiola for Patrizia Moroso...Nicolai Ouroussoff considers...a seven-sided house [by] Michael Maltzan...Sam Lubell takes measure of the incredible shrinking house...a San Francisco medical marijuana dispensary that is as elegantly designed as any fashion store... -- Taalman Koch Architecture; Dirk Denison; Dean Nota; Make Architects; LeanArch; XTen Architecture; Duo Dickinson; Architecture W; Apparatus; Path Architecture; Sand Studios; Le Corbusier [images]- New York Times Style Magazine |
Viewing Modernity: Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House and Philip Johnson's Glass House inspire 90 works of art...National Trust for Historic Preservation...asked some of the leading creative figures of our era to contribute works of art...exhibited on October 6th at Sotheby’s, New York, before they go under the hammer. -- Tadao Ando; Maarten Baas; Zaha Hadid; Fritz Haeg; Gary Hilderbrand; Ronald A. Krueck; Richard Meier; Toshiko Mori; Mohsen Mostafavi; Thom Mayne; etc. [images, links]- Metropolis Magazine |
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