A team comprised of Chinese architects Hang Guo and Shanshan Li have used the history of theatre and circus to drive their proposal for a new Moscow Circus School. The design, dubbed Dome and Circus, was developed for the recent Architectural Competition Concours d'Architecture (AC-CA) competition, which encouraged participants to consider the ways in which their design could generate discussion about the relationship between architecture and culture.
Just as the competition to design the official Obama Presidential Library in Chicago was heating up, Arcbazar orchestrated a simultaneous, open-call for ideas competition asking “What sort of Presidential Library would the people design?." Raynaldo Theodore Design Studio (RTDS) led by Raynaldo Theodore, Ryan Ridge, and Kalvin Widjaja responded with a proposal that focuses on Obama's peaceful and inclusive spirit to create a place of welcome and community. Dubbed The V-House, their design is comprised of a series of indoor/outdoor sequences which reference Obama's life and significant points in its Chicago context.
The Skellefteå Kulturhus competition provided a critical opportunity to shape the cultural landscape of Skellefteå in northern Sweden, and the brief elicited a range of exciting responses. Stockholm-based architecture studio Norell/Rodhe have now unveiled their entry, titled "Supergroup."
You can now easily build integrated seating into your landscape project, thanks to a prefabricated grass armchair system called TERRA! The laser cut framework elements are quickly assembled, and all that's left to do is cover the mound with soil and wait for the grass to envelope it. First released over 15 years ago and taken off the market shortly after, TERRA! is now back with a revitalized and simplified design.
The success of a temporary pavilion has seen Danish architects Schmidt Hammer Lassen (SHL) commissioned to realise a more permanent version of their original design. Situated on the HuangPu riverside in the West Bund district of Shanghai, the new arts and events space - dubbed the "Cloud Pavilion" - has been designed to appear as if it is floating along the waterfront. Comprised of two white surfaces and 20, 000 pieces of white rope, the pavilion has a sense of weightlessness and ephemerality which contrasts to the heavy industrial machinery nearby.
The prolific Bee Breeder competitions encourage innovative and conceptual responses to charged architectural situations. The latest competition asked participants to consider the expansive material applications (and implications) of one of the world's most prominent building materials; concrete. Described by Bee Breeders as a "poetic manifestation" of its constituent parts, concrete was then to form the basis for the Rome Concrete Poetry Hall.
The presence of the new, multi-purpose building in Rome required an awareness of the historic influences bordering the site. A further requirement was the excavation of the ground, a reference to Rome's archeological past. According to Bee Breeders, the judges favored those projects which thoroughly addressed the "spatial, material, structural, conceptual, and cultural agency of this ever expanding building science."
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The relationship that humans have with death is complex and ever-changing, this is inevitably reflected in the architecture of spaces related to death. To interrogate the contemporary role of these spaces, architect Sanchit Arora of Indian firm Renesa Architecture Design Interiors used his thesis work, "The Shadow Spaces; Invisible Sacred Landscapes of Indian Cities" to analyze the place of crematoriums within Indian society.
After a qualitative analysis, Arora has proposed an extension to the Green Park Crematorium in South Delhi. With this project, he aims to provide an example of an architecture which marries poetry and functionality to create spaces which are respectful, experiential, and user-friendly.
Dutch firm de Architekten Cie. have revealed their design for the Galileo Reference Centre, a new data collection center for the Galileo satellite system in Noordwijk, The Netherlands. Primarily housing office space and computer rooms, the center has been designed as a highly efficient and resilient building which can be adapted into the future.
The appointment of Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena as the curator of the 2016 Venice Biennale (La Biennale di Venezia) has seen the exhibition take a more vested interest in social responsibility. In harmony with this theme, German architect Werner Sobek has presented a large cube with a sobering social and environmental message. Entitled "Beyond Form," Sobek's intention mirrors Aravena's; it forces the viewer to look beyond the formal elements of architecture to the unavoidable issues facing it in the near future.
A combination of geographical features has seen the city of Sivas remain one of the greatest focal points of settlement and transit in the Greater Anatolia Region of Turkey. The region is divided in two by the Kızılırmak River, the longest river entirely within Turkey, and it has long been regarded as a barrier to unification. Due to access and safety concerns, Kızılırmak River has been separated from Sivas, perceived as something outside of the city perimeter. Now, advancements in flood mitigation have opened up the possibilities for the river to be re-integrated into the city fabric.
To investigate the possible role of the river in holistically reuniting the two halves of the area, the Sivas Municipality opened a competition to design a six million square meters of land adjacent to the waterfront. A scheme from a team comprised of ONZ Architects and Mdesign took an approach which equally considered the site in terms of its biological and cultural possibilities. Their design establishes the Kızılırmak River Corridor as an "ecological and recreational spine," managing the floodplain and integrating vital public program throughout.
Within the sprawling metropolis of Seoul lies an island "forgotten by time." Sitting beneath the Hangang Bridge on the River Han, the floating lot is now nothing but a relic of a bygone era. Formerly a popular man-made beach and recreational area, the past forty years have seen the site erased from the collective consciousness of the city. To breathe new life into the island, the Nodeul Island Dream competition was opened, and Seoul-based MMK+ and Taehyung Park's proposal 'Reconfigured Ground' took first prize.
The proposal looks at the evolution of the island from constructed paradise to overgrown void. Throughout this evolution, an ecosystem has developed and gradual formal changes have taken place. The remote character of the island - currently accentuated by its abandonment - is to be transformed into a positive condition, as it becomes a cultural haven within the bustling city. The architects' design aims to "restore the wild nature of the island while re-programming its natural features as a cultural venue," once again making it a destination point for inhabitants of the city.
The largest football club in New Zealand, the Three Kings United Football Club, is set to receive a new headquarter and community center at Keith Hay Park in Auckland. Designed by Copeland Associates Architects (CAA), the single storey pavilion sits on a raised plinth to elevate it from the flood plain and gives spectators a greater vantage point over the surrounding sports fields. Comprised of predominantly lightweight, prefabricated elements, the building has a sense of lightness which increases in accordance with its greater transparency at the northern end.
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Highways have been operating in largely the same way since the early twentieth century. In the Bao'an District in Shenzhen, China, rapid urbanization and industrialization within the built environment is not mirrored in its infrastructural spine, the G107 highway. In order to investigate the possibilities for this strip and its adjacent areas, a visionary open competition was organized earlier this year. A team lead by Avoid Obvious Architects (AOA) and TETRA Architects and Planners presented a redefinition of the highway typology, with a system complex enough to properly service the rich productivity it is connecting.
AOA and TETRA's new G107 is a multi-modal transport system, focused on allowing futuristic modes of transport as it is on implementing cutting edge levels of sustainability. Also referred to by the consortium as an "organic highway," the proposition aims to foster and connect a network of "green manufacturing," with the strategic vision of making Bao'an a carbon neutral city by 2045.
Overpopulation, pollution, congestion and inflated land prices are putting an increasing amount of pressure on the urban functionality of Bangkok, Thailand. Renowned for its cultural vibrancy and constant activity, the city is struggling to keep up with the rapid pace of its sprawl. In order to ease the pressure and reinsert the public realm back into the metropolis, a new proposal transforms the spaces below major highways in the city into a public network dubbed "The Thailine."
Jon Sealy, the Global Design Director of London's Marques and Jordy (M&J) spent three years interrogating the ways in which existing space in the metropolis could be repurposed to provide inhabitants with vital public space and amenity. Initially appearing as a playful intervention, the colorful project addresses a myriad of social, economic and ecological concerns. Envisioned as a pedestrian and cycle path which interlaces ecologically sustainable initiatives with lively public space, the project would see green areas within Bangkok increased by over 200%.
A soaring new skyscraper dubbed the "Brickell Flatiron" is set to rise 213 meters above the skyline in Brickell, Miami. Designed by Luis Revuelta, the tower features an organic floorplate profile with wide elliptical terraces, maximizing sweeping views of Biscayne Bay and downtown Miami.
These curvilinear, flowing lines are complemented by the interiors, designed by acclaimed Italian architect and designer Massimo Iosa Ghini of Iosa Ghini Associati. The Italian craftsmanship and renaissance-revival air of Iosa Ghini's design together with the clean functionality of Revuelta's architecture, presenting two harmonious elements of design in Miami; old school glamor, and contemporary luxury.
All architects desire recognition of their built work; for their signature design style to be identified, or for the quality of materials and details to outshine those around it. Unfortunately, if every new architectural structure was to insert itself into its context looking to be the star, soon it would become impossible to gauge the civic relevance of the area. Some buildings, such as Daniel Libeskind's Jewish Museum, appear dislocated with due cause, but others stand out for the sake of standing out, turning their back on their rich historical setting.
While there can be no singular strategy for contextual integration, Kurt Kohlstedt argues that a consideration of historical context, whether eventually chosen to acquiesce with or deny, will result in richer and more engaging built environment. In his latest essay for 99% Invisible, Kohlstedt unpacks the myriad ways in which a new building can engage with what was there before, highlighting examples which successfully and unsuccessfully take up the challenge. He acknowledges the difficulty of finding the sweet spot, as many designs are unable to navigate the "fine line between contextual and contemporary."
An unconventional hybrid comprised of an art center, retail outlets, restaurants and private residences forms a new "Arts Oasis" in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Designed by Nabil Gholam Architects, the project was shortlisted as a finalist in Commercial Mixed-Use - Future Projects category at the World Building of the Year Awards.
Steven Holl Architects have received the go-ahead for a new pedestrian bridge linking their own Kennedy Center Expansion to the Potomac riverfront. Originally proposed by Kennedy Center architect Edward Durell Stone in 1959, the idea to extend the lively arts program from the center along the waterfront is set to increase the vitality of both existing programs. The bridge approval was one of the last remaining piece of the project, with the majority of the Kennedy Center Expansion already under construction.
.jpg?1471951511 "Courtesy of Raynaldo Theodore Design Studio")
.jpg?1471571666 "Photography by Peter Dixie. Image Courtesy of Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects")
.jpg?1471571446 "Photo of the completed Cloud Pavilion by Peter Dixie. Image Courtesy of Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects")
.jpg?1471571693 "Photography by Peter Dixie. Image Courtesy of Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects")
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.jpg?1471493321 "The Electric Crematorium. Image Courtesy of Sanchit Arora of RENESA ARCHITECTURE DESIGN INTERIORS STUDIO")
.jpg?1471493334 "The Funeral Space. Image Courtesy of Sanchit Arora of RENESA ARCHITECTURE DESIGN INTERIORS STUDIO")
.jpg?1471493273 "Gathering Space. Image Courtesy of Sanchit Arora of RENESA ARCHITECTURE DESIGN INTERIORS STUDIO")
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