Today’s News - Thursday, August 23, 2018

EDITOR'S NOTE: We're taking a break next week, and will return Tuesday, September 4. We bid a not-so-fond farewell to a long, hot, wet, quaking, flooding, volcano-erupting, burning summer - or winter, depending on your hemisphere. (Is this what Chicken Little meant when crying: "The sky is falling! The sky is falling!??!)

●  Patel parses her research into gender pay gaps among British firms and finds that, "with a few honorable exceptions, practices aren't doing enough to address gender disparity - the profession could learn from the successes, and failings, of the NHS Agenda for Change."

●  Alter ponders "why it's so hard to get high quality, efficient and healthy buildings built these days" (value engineering and consultants who "relegate the architect to the role of exterior decorator"), and Wigglesworth, who "bravely discusses the problems with a recent project of hers."

●  Scharmen launches into a long look at "the shape of space," and "what the orbital space habitats designed for NASA in 1975 can teach us about living in new geometries" (great images!).

●  Dibbs brings us eyefuls of Foster's Bloomberg HQ in London that "draws together impressive sustainability credentials and ingenious human-centered design strategies."

●  A great profile of young Cambodian architect/entrepreneur Hok Kang, who launched a real-estate development company to "show people that architecture matters and that architecture makes an impact. Say yes first and figure out how to do it later."

●  Misra talks to the experts about "risky' playgrounds making a comeback - the modern playground has become mind-numbingly standard-issue. Critics also argue that concerns about actual harm are overstated."

●  One we couldn't resist: Wilson brings us eyefuls of self-described "architect + procrastinator" @Robyniko's take on famous modernist homes getting "a horrifying Thomas Kinkade makeover" in the artist's "treacly, generic style. It's strange. It's wrong. And it's hilarious."

Deadlines and shortlists:

●  Call for entries: A|N 6th Annual Best of Design Awards.

●  Call for Proposals: Grants for the CCA's Centring Africa: Postcolonial Perspectives on Architecture, "a multidisciplinary research project on architecture's complex developments in sub-Saharan African countries after independence."

●  Dezeen Awards 2018 interiors shortlist "spotlights the best indoor spaces on the planet."

●  Dezeen Awards studios shortlist of "architects and designers competing to be named best established or emerging studios."

Weekend diversions:

●  Schleider explains why the "beautifully filmed and written" documentary "Biophilic Design: The Architecture of Life" is "a journey worth taking" - architects and interior designers "are embracing biophilic design, and the results are extraordinarily beautiful and healthful."

●  A good reason to head to Copenhagen next week: CHART DESIGN "will present an exclusive selection of the top design galleries from the Nordic region," and FRAME, OPEN RESOURCE - pavilions by the five winning teams in the CHART Architecture Competition for young architects."

●  Marx, of Form4 Architecture, is inspired by Burning Man: "It serves to teach us about community and kindness. As architects and as citizens, we might benefit from embracing the concept of design value across a much broader spectrum than we currently permit," or "we may find ourselves to be irrelevant to the people we have pledged to serve."

●  Green brings us eyefuls of the gigantic (and wonderful!) trolls made of recycled wood now invading the Morton Arboretum, 25 miles west of Chicago, in "Troll Hunt," an "inspired exhibition" by Danish artist Thomas Dambo.

●  Sayer parses Zaha Hadid Architects' "Digital Turn" at The Building Centre, London, which "presents promise and peril of parametric design. While interesting and insightful - the most recent ZHA projects still feel like a vision of the future from the 1990s"; "when coupled with derisory remarks from Schumacher," the show "leaves a bitter taste in the mouth" (a "welcome palate cleanser can be found" in Hannah Rozenberg's show).

●  Beesley "unpacks the science behind his current Royal Ontario Museum" show, "Transforming Space," an "experiential, futuristic forest embedded with artificial intelligence that can learn, adapt" - which "allows us to suggest what next-century architecture - our future environment - might be like" (fab photos).

Page-turners:

●  Murphy pairs "eight films with four sets of readings - each examining a different type of 'space' women might occupy in the cinema as well as contemporary life."

●  An excerpt from Gee's "Los Angeles City Hall: An American Icon" + Q&A re: his film "Iconic Vision: John Parkinson, Architect of Los Angeles."

●  Waldek wades into Gordon's "Arquitectonica": "the groundbreaking architectural firm has been eschewing a formal design theory in favor of simply designing beautiful buildings."

●  ICYMI: ANN feature: Weinstein welcomes two new books: Frampton's new edition of Kengo Kuma's works, and Franklin and Till's "Radical Matter," a global survey of novel thinking about sustainable materials, offer new slants on how materials matter.

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To subscribe to the free daily newsletter click here Abigail Patel: Do the right thing: With a few honourable exceptions, practices aren’t doing enough to address gender disparity. The NHS offers lessons on an industry-wide approach: ...my research into the gender pay gap...found that many of the practices now required by law to publish their gender pay gap information were reporting figures above the national average.The architectural profession could learn from the successes, and failings, of the NHS Agenda for Change.- RIBA Journal (UK) Lloyd Alter: Why it's so hard to get high quality, efficient and healthy buildings built these days: Architecture is a tough profession these days; there is a consultant for everything now and some have relegated the architect to the role of exterior decorator. It’s particularly difficult in the era of “value management”...Sarah Wigglesworth...bravely discusses the problems with a recent project of hers, Umpire View. [images]- TreeHugger.com Fred Scharmen: The Shape of Space: What the orbital space habitats designed for NASA in 1975 can teach us about living in new geometries: How we visualize “outer” space, and how we choose to talk about it, can influence how we think about environmental conditions on and off our home planet. [images]- Places Journal Jason Dibbs: Bloomberg’s New European Headquarters: ...drawing together impressive sustainability credentials and ingenious human-centred design strategies. The result is an award-winning building...achieving a score of 98.5% and an ‘Outstanding’ rating against the internationally recognised BREEAM sustainability assessment method...has garnered an enormous amount of international attention and accolades for Foster + Partners... [images]- ArcSpace The architect who dreamed of building a brighter Cambodia: When 35-year-old Hok Kang launched his career a decade ago, he wanted to change Cambodians’ perception of architecture and how it differs from engineering. Since then, he has...trained up young architects at his own firm and ventured into high-end real-estate development by founding UrbanLand: ..."to really show people that architecture matters and that architecture makes an impact, I’ll just venture into real estate development and I’ll build it myself...Say yes first and figure out how to do it later.” -- Hok Kang Architects/HKA- Southeast Asia Globe magazine Tanvi Misra: ‘Risky’ Playgrounds Are Making a Comeback: The modern playground has become mind-numbingly standard-issue. There’s a movement afoot to bring “adventure” back into play: ...pushback against the overly sanitized playground has grown considerably, with new research supporting the importance of play...Critics also argue that concerns about actual harm are overstated. -- Tim Gill/Rethinking Childhood; Reilly Wilson/play:groundNYC; Meghan Talarowski/Studio Ludo [images]- CityLab (formerly The Atlantic Cities) Mark Wilson: Famous modernist homes get a horrifying Thomas Kinkade makeover: Where steel and glass meet cobblestone paths: The Eames House is a stalwart of midcentury modernism...Let’s add a cobblestone path, a drinking well, and hydrangeas as far as the eye can see - all set to the hue of a permanent 7 p.m. sky. It’s the Eames House rendered in Kinkade’s treacly, generic style. It’s strange. It’s wrong. And it’s hilarious...developed by architect @Robyniko. [images]- Fast Company / Co.Design Call for entries: A|N 6th Annual Best Of Design Awards (international): 44 categories; projects submitted must be located within North America (U.S., Mexico, Canada); deadline: September 29- The Architect's Newspaper Call for Proposals: Grants for the CCA's Centring Africa: Postcolonial Perspectives on Architecture, "a collaborative and multidisciplinary research project on architecture's complex developments in sub-Saharan African countries after independence"; deadline: October 31- Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA) Dezeen Awards 2018 interiors shortlist spotlights the best indoor spaces on the planet: ...including a London church converted into a home, a gallery in a former sex shop in Japan and a multicoloured exhibition in Sweden...41 projects across eight categories... [images]- Dezeen Dezeen Awards studios shortlist reveals biggest design talents of 2018: ...the architects and designers competing to be named best established or emerging studios...33 studios and individuals...compete for six awards, which will be given to the best established and emerging talents in architecture, interiors and design. [images]- Dezeen Steven Schleider: “Biophilic Design: The Architecture of Life” - It’s a journey worth taking: It’s the title of a documentary about the relationship between the natural world and built environment...There is a burgeoning trend among architects and interior designers who are embracing biophilic design, and the results are extraordinarily beautiful and healthful...The benefits...are numerous and compelling...The documentary...is a beautifully filmed and written journey...a journey worth taking.- New York Real Estate Journal CHART DESIGN, in conjunction with CHART ART FAIR, will present an exclusive selection of the top design galleries from the Nordic region in the beautiful setting of Den Frie Centre of Contemporary Art in Copenhagen; includes FRAME, OPEN RESOURCE - pavilions by the five winning teams in the CHART Architecture Competition for young architects; August 31 - September 2- CHART Art Fair John Marx: Desert City, City of Culture: I went for the Art, for a vague sense of the “hip-cool” countercultural presence...One might ask what this has to do with architecture? When we broadly look at what gets built by architects, we can sometimes fall short...Burning Man, on the other hand, succeeds on a level we can only admire in wonderment...[it] serves to teach us about community and kindness, through participatory art...As architects and as citizens, we might benefit from embracing the concept of design value across a much broader spectrum than we currently permit. If we ignore this, we may find ourselves to be irrelevant to the people we have pledged to serve. thru September 3 -- Form4 Architecture [images]- Canadian Architect Jared Green: Trolls Invade Morton Arboretum: ...six wooden trolls have taken over, thanks to the inventive Danish artist Thomas Dambo. Each is about 30-feet-tall, except for a reclining one that is 60-feet long, and made of recycled wood. These installations are part of "Troll Hunt," an inspired exhibition...They have been stirring our imagination for centuries - and in Morton Arboretum the myth is so much fun. [images]- The Dirt/American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Jason Sayer: Zaha Hadid Architects exhibit presents promise and peril of parametric design: "Digital Turn" at The Building Centre, London...While nonetheless interesting and insightful, some physical design aspects...feel as if they belong in the past, in a similar vein to the most recent ZHA projects which still feel like a vision of the future from the 1990s...coupled with derisory remarks from...Patrik Schumacher, on social housing and desire to privatize cities, leaves a bitter taste in the mouth...A welcome palate cleanser can be found...at The Building Center...Hannah Rozenberg, who won this year’s Student Prize for Innovation..."Building Without Bias: An Architectural Language for the Post-Binary"... thru September 14 -- ZHCODE [images]- The Architect's Newspaper "Philip Beesley: Transforming Space": Architect unpacks the science behind his current Royal Ontario Museum exhibition: The environment is an experiential, futuristic forest with hovering canopies, tangled thickets, and soaring clouds created from 3D fabricated forms...embedded with artificial intelligence that can learn, adapt and even show curiosity as it evolves...This exploration of the question of whether buildings could “know” us, “talk” to us, and even “care” about us allows us to suggest what next-century architecture - our future environment - might be like. thru October 9 [images]- Canadian Architect Amy Murphy: Reading List: Women, Space, and Place: Four Cinematic Pairings: ...eight films with four sets of readings - each examining a different type of ‘space’ women might occupy in the cinema as well as contemporary life.- Places Journal Stephen Gee: "Los Angeles City Hall More Than A Building - It Is An American Icon": ...a bold symbol of the forward-thinking ambition of America’s most progressive city. excerpt from Gee's book + Q&A re: his film "Iconic Vision: John Parkinson, Architect of Los Angeles"- The Planning Report Stefanie Waldek: Celebrate Four Decades of Arquitectonica’s Striking Structures: The Miami-based firm is renowned for its modern designs around the world: "Arquitectonica" by Alastair Gordon; foreword by Ian Volner...For more than 40 years, the groundbreaking architectural firm has been eschewing a formal design theory in favor of simply designing beautiful buildings. [images]- Architectural Digest ANN feature: Norman Weinstein: Welcome New Books Reveal the Heart of the Matter in Architectural Design: Kenneth Frampton's new edition of Kengo Kuma's works, along with Kate Franklin and Caroline Till's global survey of novel thinking about sustainable materials, offer new slants on how materials matter. [images]- ArchNewsNow.com

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