Alison Furuto
Culture Island: Public Library Proposal / UGO Architecture
Designed by UGO Architecture, their ‘Culture Island’ project is a model of a public library meant for small towns up to 15,000 inhabitants. The starting point for creating their concept was the research carried out in 2010 by the Office for Readership Research of the National Library and the Public Opinion Research Centre TNS OBOP. The research shows that 56% of Poles did not read a single book during the year. Thus, they started to think about how to make the citizens and the authorities of the municipality (the latter will finance the project) interested in the idea of model public libraries in spite of the poor readership. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Passive House “Bruck” / Peter Ruge Architekten
Setting new standards of sustainability through the design of the Passive House “Bruck”, Peter Ruge Architekten’s project is a model apartment complex, consisting of 36 one room staff flats, 6 two room executive suites and 4 three-bedroom model apartments currently being built in southern China. With a 95% energy savings over that of a conventional Chinese residential building, the project is the first housing of its kind to be realized in the countries damp, warm, southern climate. Construction just began last month and is expected to be completed within the upcoming months. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Request for Proposals: QueensWay Project
The New York office of The Trust for Public Land recently issued an RFP for a feasibility study, framework plan, and conceptual design for the QueensWay–a potentially transformative 3.5-mile project which will enhance quality of life in central and southern Queens, New York by reclaiming the abandoned Rockaway Rail Line, a largely elevated rail corridor. The project, which includes a pedestrian and bicycle pathway connecting the communities of Rego Park, Forest Hills, Richmond Hill, and Ozone Park, will provide a new public green space, celebrating the cultural diversity of Queens with art, sculpture, and food from around the world.
There is a mandatory Pre-Submittal Meeting March 28, and the proposal submittal deadline is April 23. For more information, please visit here.
The Butler-VanderLinden Lecture on Architecture
The Architecture & Design Society at the Art Institute of Chicago is presenting the Butler-VanderLinden Lecture on Architecture featuring Wang Shu: 2012 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate and co-founder of Amateur Architecture Studio, founded by him and his wife, Lu Wenyu, in 1997 in Hangzhou, China. They are known for a keen dedication to handicraft, a penchant for sustainable building methods, and thoughtful projects that are contextualized within Chinese culture and history. The firm’s work has been described by the Pritzker Prize jury as “timeless, deeply rooted in its context, and yet universal. The event will be held in the Rubloff Auditorium on March 28th from 6:30pm-7:30pm. For more information, please visit here.
National Convention and Exhibition Center Winning Proposal / gmp Architekten
gmp Architekten just won the first prize in the competition to design the 1.2 million square-meter Tianjin Exhibition Center. Now the third city where an exhibition center of international importance will be built after Shanghai and Guangzhou, their design concept proposes two almost identical construction phases. They both consist of a central entrance hall roofed over by filigree canopies, 8 exhibition halls on both sides and a main central thoroughfare that connects the entrance halls with the exhibition halls. More images and architects’ description after the break.
The ‘Power of Architecture’: Louis Kahn Exhibition
Celebrating one of the great master builders of the twentieth century, the Louis Kahn exhibition is taking place now until August 11, 2013. The ‘Power of Architecture’, presented by the Vitra Design Museum is the first major retrospective of Kahn’s work in two decades. The exhibition encompasses an unprecedented and diverse range of architectural models, original drawings, photographs and films. All of Kahn’s important projects are extensively documented — from his early urban planning concepts and single-family houses to monumental late works. More information after the break.
Green Schools Exhibition
Striving to provide the nation’s children with a healthy place to learn is not a new concept. As long as there have been school buildings, there have been advocates for architectural improvements to ensure that students had proper lighting, heating, and fresh air. But with the real problems of overcrowding, age, and budget crises, many green visions have fallen short. With that being said, the Green Schools exhibition at the National Building Museum, which began this month and will run until January 5, 2014, will look at several examples of what is possible—at the future that, in some places, is already here—and provide resources for all of us to consider as we look toward constructing the next generation of school buildings. For more information, please visit here.
Neil Barrett ‘Shop in Shop’ / Zaha Hadid Architects
Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the ‘Shop in Shop’ concept for Neil Barrett is based on a singular, cohesive project that is divided into sixteen separate pieces. Specific pieces have then been selected and installed into each of the four Neil Barrett Shop in Shop’s in Seoul, and also into the Hong Kong shop; creating a unique display landscape within each store. The pieces have been carved and molded from the original solid as pairs that define each other to create an artificial landscape that unfolds multiple layers for display. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Aires Mateus Architectes Lecture
Aires Mateus Architectes will be delivering a lecture on March 28th at 7:00pm at the Pavillon de l’Arsenal. Manuel Aires Mateus will be presenting one of their well-known projects, the Alcacer do Sal Residence, located in Alcacer do Sal, Portugal. Based on an attentive reading of the life of a very specific kind of community, this beautiful project is a sort of micro-society designed with its own rules. The reduct mobility of those who will live in the building suggests that any displacement should be an emotive and variable experience. For more information, please visit here.
Request for Proposals: Downtown Master Plan Update
Adopted by the City of Green Bay in 2003, the Smart Growth Plan 2022 relied heavily on the participation of the citizens of Green Bay and provides city leaders with a guide to use while assessing policy and development proposals. The city of Green Bay Planning Commission is now accepting proposals for the Downtown Green Bay Master Plan Update. The selected firm must have a deep portfolio in results-proven city planning and design projects with an understanding of the urban redevelopment process. In demonstrating competence in developing and translating context-minded plans into actionable implementation strategies, the firm must be capable of creating an exciting and supportable vision for downtown that is grounded in local opportunities and realities.The deadline for submissions is March 25. To download the full RFP and for more information, please visit here.
A Conversation on Firm Culture with Carole Wedge and Jessica Lane
As part of AIA San Francisco‘s continuous effort to highlight women in architecture and better understand the imbalance of gender in the profession, they are hosting two great women for a conversation on firm culture, leadership and mentorship which will take place March 19th from 6:00pm-8:00pm PST. Carole Wedge, FAIA - Shepley Bulfinch‘s first female President in its 130 year history- will talk with emerging designer Jessica Lane of EHDD to discuss Carole’s start at Shepley Bulfinch, in 1986, working in the mailroom as a co-op architecture student at the Boston Architectural Center, as well as her appointment, in 2004, as president. For more information, please visit here.
Two Films at the National Building Museum During the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital
The National Building Museum, in partnership with the Environmental Film Festival will be showing two films related to both the natural and built environment. Taking place Sunday, March 17 from 11:30am to 12:45pm, ‘Mother Nature’s Child’ focuses on nature’s powerful role in children’s health and development is explored through the experience of toddlers, children in middle childhood and adolescents, from Vermont to Washington, D.C. Then, on Thursday, March 21 from 6:30pm-7:30pm, ‘Diller Scofidio + Renfro: Reimagining Lincoln Center and the High Line’ film includes a discussion of their projects and interviews with New York City planning commissioner Amanda Burden and other civic figures. For more information on the events, please visit here.
Design Days Dubai
The only design fair in the Middle East and South Asia, Design Days Dubai is the most diverse design fair globally presenting galleries from six continents. On view March 18-21, R 20th Century will be presenting iconic works by Wendell Castle, Oscar Niemeyer and Joaquim Tenreiro, and new pieces by The Haas Brothers, kelly behun | STUDIO, David Wiseman, Thaddeus Wolfe, and Jeff Zimmerman. More information on the event after the break.
Applied: Research Through Fabrication Competition Results and Exhibition
The Applied: Research Through Fabrication exhibition which took place the first weekend in March highlighted the winning proposal of their competition, titled ‘Cast Thicket’, designed b yo_cy’s Ken Tracy and Christine Yogiaman. The project was exhibited at the two-day event led by internationally recognized instructors within the field of parametric modeling provided a robust opportunity for participants to be exposed to the highest level of concentrated learning possible. More images and information on the event after the break.
ANIMA Cultural Center Proposal / Bernard Tschumi Architects
ANIMA, the first work in Italy by Bernard Tschumi, is a cultural, social, and architectural generator of events. Situated in Grottammare, the project is intended to welcome and encourage a broader expression of creativity and culture. The schematic design highlights the remarkable quality of a building characterized by flexible space and the structure manifests itself to the visitor as both highly permeable and exceptionally receptive. Unveiled just last month, completion is scheduled for 2016, creating stronger ties between the people and the territory. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Toronto Union Station: Go Transit Roof Proposal / Zeidler Partnership Architects
As the ‘last piece of the puzzle’ at Toronto’s Union Station, the renovation of the train shed roof covering the passenger platforms and tracks which connects GO Transit’s Union Station Bus Terminal to the station building delivers part of the “The Big Move” promise, Metrolinx’s twenty-five year regional transportation plan for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA). Designed by Zeidler Partnership Architects, their train shed roof was recently awarded with a 2012 Canadian Architect Award. Most of the 8.6-acre train shed roof is being refurbished, and the central portion is being removed and replaced with a new glass atrium to celebrate the station. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Cinema Hall of Locarno Film Festival Proposal / Mauro Turin Architectes
The design of the future Cinema Hall of Locarno Film Festival by Mauro Turin Architectes was inspired by a strong urban vision. The main goal of the project therefore resulted in the will to create a building that is at the same time unique and harmonious, which refuses to be a stand-alone project by participating actively to the landscape of the city of Locarno. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Qingdao Harborfront Redevelopment Proposal / EE&K a Perkins Eastman Company
Designed by EE&K a Perkins Eastman Company, their proposal for the Qingdao Harborfront Redevelopment project was recently awarded a 2013 Urban Design Honor Award by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) New York Chapter. The Harborfront occupies 26 hectares of former maritime/industrial uses in Downtown Qingdao, facing Jiaozhou Bay, and represents the anchor redevelopment for the city’s waterfront revitalization initiative. With the relocation of commercial port activities across the bay, antiquated docklands and shipyards throughout Downtown are now poised to become new mixed-use communities that will re-unite residents with their waterfront. More images and architects’ description after the break.
‘Infrastructural Monument’ Conference
Taking place April 8-9 at MIT’s School of Architecture and Planning the ‘Infrastructural Monument’ Conference hosted by the Center for Advanced Urbanism (CAU), focuses on the development of infrastructural research agendas and projects which is a key mission for MIT’s CAU. This conference is the first in a series, devoted to a series of strategic design challenges facing cities worldwide. The conferences challenges you to answer the question, ‘Can a typical American city be transformed from a collection of fragments assembled regionally by interstate highways, to a more durable regional constitution, using targeted infrastructural investment projects?’ For more information, please visit here.
Re-Think Athens Competition Entry / Gianmaria Socci Architecture + Also Known As Architects + Alkistis Thomidou
A multidisciplinary, international team led by Alkistis Thomidou, Chryssa Komantou & George Anagnostakis of Also Known As Architects, and Gianmaria Socci won a special mention for the “Rethink Athens: towards a new city center” competition with a proposal based upon a new practice of citizenship, one that would physically reshape public space and let people regain control over their city. The proposal provides an intense linear space that will awaken hibernating potential for activities to shape the surrounding territory that will be unburdened of the existing restrictions to constitute a field enriched with traces of the city’s memories. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science / Grimshaw Architects
Slated to open in 2015, the Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science is on its way to become the world’s most innovative and sustainable science museum with the structural foundation now complete and the vertical construction currently in progress. Designed by Grimshaw Architects, the 250,000 square-foot complex will harness energy from water, sun, wind and even museum visitors to power exhibits and conserve resources. More images and architects’ description after the break.
