The family of products that encompass mass timber –including Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT), Glue-Laminated Timber (Glulam), and Mass Plywood– is increasingly becoming a viable construction alternative for the AEC industry. Timber has been a structural material for thousands of years, but these engineered wood products have broadened the field of options and provided a solid basis for architectural designers to work with, expanding upon their range of materials and finishes.
A form of artistic expression mediated by a technical apparatus, photography has conquered its place among the arts, being, together with cinema, the one that can most faithfully register reality and, therefore, architecture. From large wooden boxes carrying silver emulsion plates to digital cameras and finally our smartphones, there is no doubt that photography has become more accessible to people, who step by step went from spectators to authors of images.
To celebrate World Photography Day, we invite our readers to share with us their photographs of works of architecture and cities. Without distinguishing between enthusiasts, amateurs, or professional photographers, you are invited to send photos that showcase the built space in the most varied scales. Images selected by our Content Team will be featured in an upcoming article.
Snøhetta has revealed the latest version of its reconstruction plan for the traditional Knubben Harbour Bath in Arendal, Norway. Originally built in 1937, the structure was representative of both the period's functionalist architecture and the recreational facilities created in Norway at the time. Snøhetta's proposal reinterprets the original design, conserving its clean modernist lines and most distinctive features, while creating an artificial topography reminiscent of the islets along the Norwegian coast, thus creating a new leisure destination for the city of Arendal.
Have you ever wondered why chess sets can be found in parks and other public spaces and contemplated what their role is within these spaces? Studies have shown that sports and games work to reduce stress and improve the overall mental health of the public. Chess, one of world's most popular games, allows two people from anywhere on the globe to play regardless of language barriers, age, gender, physical ability, or social situation.
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Chile is a country used to natural disasters as much as to the reconstruction process. However, the frequency of these cycles has increased over the years. According to the Ministry of Interior (Homeland), 43% of all natural disasters recorded in Chile since 1960 happened between 2014 and 2017. In fact, the government is already involved in several reconstruction processes across the country.
The climate has changed, and we have been left grappling with the consequences: high temperatures, flooding, drought and much more. As the world shifts (or tries to shift) to ways to mitigate the crisis, the architecture and construction industry finds itself in a particularly important position whose choices can create real impact. Some of these choices can include innovative products that offer real solutions to complex problems, such as the cooling down of temperatures in highly dense cities.
In this week's reprint from Metropolis Magazine, authors Madeline Burke-Vigeland, FAIA, LEED AP, a principal at Gensler, and Benjamin A. Miko, MD, assistant professor of Medicine at Columbia University Medical Center explore how uniform standards applied across the built environment can protect our communities from COVID-19 and future pandemics.
Haiti is suffering the consequences of a magnitude-7.2 earthquake that worsen a national crisis. News agencies have published photographs of collapsed buildings in Port-au-Prince recalling the destruction due to the 2010 earthquake.
As humanitarian aid is been deployed around the world to collaborate in rescue, shelter, health care, and food, questions arise: how does architecture help?
In a Design and the City episode - a podcast by reSITE on how to make cities more livable – architect and founder of Doula x Design and co-founder of SHoP Architects Kim Holden discusses how rethinking and redesigning the ways birth is approached can change the outcomes of labor and birth experiences, and improve the qualities of life for both the babies and women giving birth to them. The interview explores how it is crucial to investigate the spaces where generations come into this world, just as we have been planning and building better cities for them to work and live in.
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and the Jencks Foundation announced renowned Indian architect Anupama Kundoo as the winner of this year's RIBA Charles Jencks Award. The accolade given in recognition of significant contributions to the theory and practice of architecture acknowledges Kundoo's holistic practice that marries theoretical investigations, material research and sustainable building methods.
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The automation of architectural design and rendering has been further accelerated by digital production tools. Tools such as 3D printers, assembly robots, and laser cutters, have all but perfected the design and construction process and have proven essential in optimizing resources, improving precision, and increasing control of the process.
In woodworking, the most frequently used digital production tools are milling machines or CNC (computer numerical control) routers. These tools facilitate the rendering of 2D vectoral drawings and 3D models, codifying them into instructions for the machine to follow and execute. Through this process, which starts with digital archives (typically created using design software widely known as AutoCad), milling machines and CNC routers can rapidly and precisely cut wood, producing ready to assemble pieces.
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The "Climate Emergency" continues to embody a renewed worldwide focus on tackling climate change. While there is no "one solution" to the multifaceted challenges brought about by this crisis, there is an onus on every citizen, in both a personal and professional capacity, to apply their skills and actions in addressing the profound pressures on the natural world.
For those involved in the design of buildings and cities, be they architects, urbanists, or citizens, there is a deep responsibility to be aware of, and design for, the impact of climate change. With 36% of global energy devoted to buildings and 8% of global emissions caused by cement alone, the architectural community is deeply entwined with the flows of materials, energy, and ideas that relate to climate change, both causes, and solutions.
Over the past couple of years, many designers have voiced their commitment to ethical and ecological sourcing, resorting to frugal designs through local materials, traditional techniques, and equitable architecture. Having this approach in mind, many found inspiration in their cultural heritage, reimagining ancient designs in contemporary contexts.
When thinking of recycled design trends, we can't overlook one of the most well-known and popular materials that was shared by nations all around the globe over the span of 100 years; on balconies, outdoor patios, gardens, and indoor living spaces: rattan. It is estimated that almost seven hundred million people worldwide use rattan, with many countries presenting it as an integral part of their cultures. In this article, we look at how architects and designers integrated rattan in their designs and found numerous ways to make the best out of Southeast Asia's popular local material.
A new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that global warming of 1.5°C (2.7 °F) is essentially inevitable in coming decades. The question now is whether the world can prevent further, more destructive warming of 2°C (3.6°F), or, even worse, 3°C (5.4°F), which is what current policies put us on a trajectory to experience. Our economies can only put another 420 gigatons of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere if we want a good chance of keeping a temperature increase to 1.5°C instead of 2°C. At our current pace, the world’s carbon budget will be used up before 2030. We need to phase out fossil-fuel use, build thousands of new clean power plants -- and swiftly move to power our homes, offices, schools, and transportation systems with clean energy.
Many practitioners and theorists of modern architecture favored large open plans, looming glass windows, and through both of these means, an unencumbered connection to nature. To do so, many iconic modernist buildings would use cantilevered roofs extending over glass curtainwalls, including Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House and Pierre Koenig’s Case Study House #22. In the years since this trend was popularized, however, a seemingly niche yet cumbersome problem would present itself: the problem of continuous wood ceilings.
Construction is underway for Gehry Partners' Second Century Project, which will house the new headquarters of Warner Bros. After breaking ground in early 2020, the project now has its structural framework in place, and the façade is currently taking shape. Set for completion in 2023, in time for the production company's centennial, the design features a series of mid-rise, slanted office towers grouped within two distinct structures resembling "icebergs floating along the freeway".
The Chicago Architecture Biennial has revealed the calendar for this year’s program of events, lectures, workshops and performances exploring how architecture shapes communities and cities. Titled The Available City, this edition aims to highlight the potential of vacant urban areas as community spaces, with the event debuting on September 17 at 12 sites across Chicago featuring 16 interventions that activate unused plots. The projects are complemented by a series of outdoor programming, as well as digital events that kick off on August 17.
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, estimates that global forced displacement surpassed 80 million in 2020, which is more than one percent of humanity. Five countries account for 67 percent of people displaced across borders: Syria, Venezuela, Afghanistan, South Sudan, and Myanmar. Reasons can vary from war conflicts to economic, political, or environmental conflicts and crises.
Although it is a global phenomenon based on geopolitical, legal, and social dimensions, there is also a subjective dimension to this type of displacement, mainly because people use the symbolic systems surrounding them to build their identities. In other words, besides facing the hardships of leaving their homeland, refugees must also deal with the subjective effects aggravated by the condition of being a "foreigner," which means that they become marginalized by the established system of symbolic-cultural representations.
According to data from CRED (Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters) and UNISDR (UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction), in a report released in 2016, the number of disasters related to the climate change has duplicated in the last forty years. The need for temporary shelters for homeless people is, as well as an effect of the climate crisis, is also one of the consequences of the disorderly growth of cities, which leads to a significant part of the world population living in vulnerable conditions due to disasters.
Too often buildings end up as waste at the end of their lifecycle. How can the built environment move towards a circular economy, and in turn, reimagine how valuable materials are tracked and recycled? Looking to address this issue, material passports are one idea that involves rethinking how materials are recovered during renovation and demolition for reuse. The result is when a building is ready to be demolished, it becomes a storage bank for useful materials.
Examining the work of Tokyo architect Toyo Ito (b. 1941) – particularly his now seminal Sendai Mediatheque (1995-2001), Serpentine Gallery (London, 2002, with Cecil Balmond), TOD's Omotesando Building (Tokyo, 2004), Tama Art University Library (Tokyo, 2007), and National Taichung Theater (2009-16) – will immediately become apparent these buildings’ structural innovations and spatial, non-hierarchical organizations. Although these structures all seem to be quite diverse, there is one unifying theme – the architect’s consistent commitment to erasing fixed boundaries between inside and outside and relaxing spatial divisions between various programs within. There is continuity in how these buildings are explored. They are conceived as systems rather than objects and they never really end; one could imagine their formations and patterns to continue to evolve and expand pretty much endlessly.
The world's largest natural stone industry fair, Marble İzmir, seeks to transform the future of natural stone by combining sectoral changes and new business approaches. Join the Marble İzmir Fair, where thousands of varieties of Turkish natural stone are presented for investors, traders, and professional organizations to connect and appreciate their colors, textures, and patterns. The Fair will take place between August 25-28, 2021.
In order “to help architects and students to get to know the best International Master’s programs available”, the Best Architecture Masters (BAM) has established its annual list of top postgraduate architecture curriculums. Based on the QS Ranking by Subjects – Architecture / Built Environment, for the 2021 edition, 22 Universities were selected to be evaluated, by an Expert Committee, formed by 15 professors from all over the world.
In 2021, the Harvard Master in Architecture II continued to lead the ranking, and Colombia maintained second place with its Master of Science Degree in Advanced Architectural Design. TU Delft in the Netherlands took on the third position, becoming the best in Europe while Tsinghua University in China followed in the fourth position, becoming the best in Asia. The Master in Architecture of the Pontificia Universidad Católica in Chile occupied the 15th position and was named the best program in Latin America.
By now an architectural classic, Safdie’s Habitat ’67 represents a highly influential vision for a community-oriented, nature-infused urban housing model, and at the same time, a critical example of the possibilities of prefabrication. Fifty years after the design of Habitat ’67, Safdie is still exploring this vision of urban living, further developing the concept with projects such as Altair Residences, Qorner Tower and Habitat Qinhuangdao. Rooted in the architect’s motto - “for everyone a garden”, the new projects capitalise on outdoor terraces, natural light and ventilation, as well as communal spaces.
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.jpg?1626309236 "Abeer Seikaly’s Structural Fabric Shelters Weave Refugees’ Lives Back Together. Courtesy of Abeer Seikaly")
Nacasa___Partners.jpg?1629103408 "Tod's Omotesando Building_interior. Image © Nacasa & Partners")
Kai_Nakamura.jpg?1629103497 "'Minna no Mori' Gifu Media Cosmos. Image © Kai Nakamura")
