Photo by Eurokinissi - https://picasaweb.google.com/cpg.kke

Any trip to Athens, Greece would not be complete without a visit to the Acropolis, the purest remaining form of what the Greeks thought architecture should be. And yet, if you stopped by a few weeks ago, you might have been surprised to find large banners proclaiming support for a communist trade union adorning the Acropolis hill. These banners are the most visible and literal signs of the Greek debt crisis affecting the historic landmarks in the country, but they are not the ones doing the most damage. That honor goes to the drop in tourism that Greece has experienced since the beginning of the global recession and runs through the country’s fiscal problems to the present. More on how the debt crisis is affecting historical landmarks after the break.

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© Nicor / Wikimedia Commons

When one mentions the architecture of Germany during World War Two, the first ideas that come to mind are not the possibilities for new growth in the 21st century. But that is exactly what the Nazi bunkers that were built provide for us today. In Berlin, these bunkers are a monolithic and often oppressive reminder of the past, but are also ripe for intelligent thought about what they can be used for in the future. More information and images after the break. read more »

© David Tribby Photography

David Tribby, of David Tribby Photography has spent the past few years documenting the abandoned and decaying architecture of Gary, Indiana and has shared his collection of work with us. Considering his work, Gary’s past and Gary’s present allows us to discuss a broader topic, the possible outcomes for abandoned architecture and their role in today’s urban centers. More of David Tribby’s photographs and a brief narrative after the break.
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Courtesy DATA Architectes

Data Architectes has submitted their project, a proposal for the Cultural and Spiritual Russian Orthodox Center in Paris. Additional images and a short description from the architect after the break.
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© Jesús Martín Ruiz

Architects: isuuru arquitectos – Aitzpea Lazkano Orbegozo y Carlos Abadías Banzo
Location: San Sebastian, Spain
Project area: 1,990 sqm
Project year: 2010
Photographs:  Jesús Martín Ruiz

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Courtesy of Moriyama & Teshima Planners Limited & Buro Happold

Of a total of 410 projects, five have been selected for the 2010 Aga Khan Award for Architecture at the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha.  The five projects, selected by a Master Jury are:

• Wadi Hanifa Wetlands, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
• Revitalisation of the Hypercentre of Tunis, Tunisia
• Madinat Al-Zahra Museum, Cordoba, Spain
• Ipekyol Textile Factory, Edirne, Turkey
• Bridge School, Xiashi, Fujian, China

For more information on the winners and images read on after the break.

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FG+SG – Fernando Guerra, Sergio Guerra

Architect: João Luís Carrilho da Graça
Location: Lisbon, Portugal
Landscape Architect: João Gomes da Silva
Project Team: Francisco Freire, Vasco Melo, Pedro Abreu, Monica Ravazzolo, architects; Paulo Barreto and Vanda Neto, models
Foundations and Structures: Estudos Betar / José Pedro Venâncio and Paulo Mendonça
Water Installations: Estudos Betar / Marta Azevedo and Jorge Pinheiro
Electrical Installations: Ruben Sobral
Security Installations: GIPIC – Alexandre Martins
Graphic Design: Henrique Cayatte, Mónica Lameiro and Pedro Gonçalves
Project Area: 3,500 sqm
Budget: 1,000,000 €
Project Year: 2008-2010
Photographs: FG+SG – Fernando Guerra, Sergio Guerra

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Courtesy of Raphael França and Adrien Mondine

Raphael França and Adrien Mondine have submitted their competition entry for a multicultural cemetery in Järva, Stockholm, Sweden.  The challenge and aim of the competition was to develop a place for remembrance and reflection for all on a site already embedded with societal values.  The chosen site has an interesting past: an artificial hill was created as a result of the dumping of construction debris from neighboring housing projects in the 70s and 80s, it was then dominated by frisbee players as the one of the most frequented sites in Sweden.

More information on the project and images after the break.

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© Boris Cvjetanovic

Architects: Radionica Arhitekture / Goran Rako
Location: Vid, Metković, Croatia
Project Team: Mario Beusan, Blanka Gutschy, Goran Rako, Nenad Ravnic
Structural Engineering: Branko Galic
Project Area: 1,200 sqm
Project Year: 2001-2004
Construction Year: 2007-2008
Photographs: Boris Cvjetanovic

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© Javier Callejas

Architect: Alberto Campo Baeza
Location: Cádiz, Spain
Project Year: 2000-2009
Photographs: Javier Callejas

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As an architect, I have been involved/consulted on historic preservation proyects. Most of them never materialized, even after spending a lot of time/money between interested parties (government, institutions, communities). It´s Not that it was a waste of time, but after seeing what some communities are doing with almost no official support/money and just driven by their passion, it´s pretty much clear that it can be done in another way.

Let me show you an example: a group of architecture students from Universidad de Talca, in the south of Chile, decided to spend their summer working with a community in Lebu, an old city that was very active at the beginning of the last century thanks to coal mines nearby. Beautiful wooden buildings were erected during the bonanza, but once the coal mines started to shut down, the city lost its economic base and entered into recession until today. All of this beautiful buildings were endangered because of lack of maintenance, and as of today some of them have even been demolished.

So, these students decided to teach the community how to use Google SketchUp as a way to help them preserve their historic buildings. Being a free tool, all they had to go was to get a space and some computers. The local authorities helped them by providing a space for the workshops, and lots of people got interested on this program. They gathered old plans from the city hall and some historic archives, and each one of the 24 assistants to the workshop started to learn how to model in 3D using one of these historic buildings as a case study.

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Architects: Hotson Bakker Boniface Haden architects + urbanistes
Location: Osoyoos, British Columbia, Canada
Principal in charge: Bruce Haden
Project Architect: Brady Dunlop
Project Team: Norm Hotson, Stephanie Forsythe, Tina Hubert, Julie Bogdanowicza
Project year: 2006
Site Area: 1,600 acre
Constructed Area: 1,115 sqm
Materials: Rammed Earth, Concrete, Bluestain Pine Cladding
Structural Engineering: Equilibrium Consulting Inc.
Contractor: Greyback Construction
Lanscape Architecture: Phillips Farevaag Smallenberg
Client: Osoyoos Indian Band
Rammed Earth Wall Sub Contractor: Terra Firma Builders Ltd.
Photographs: Nic Lehoux Photography

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Architect: OFIS arhitekti
Location: Ljubljana, Slovenia
Project Year: 2006-2008
Project leaders: Rok Oman & Špela Videčnik
Design Team: Rok Oman, Spela Videcnik, Andrej Gregoric, Javier Carrera, Anna Breda, Luis Ferreira, Ana Kosi, Katja Aljaz
Client: Mercator d.d.
Interior Design: Mercator Optima
Structural Engineering: Projecta d.o.o.
Contractor: Gradis Skupina G d.d.
Constructed Area: 2,000 sqm
Photographs: Tomaz Gregoric

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Architect: Dorte Mandrup Arkitekter Aps
Location: Gentofte, Copenhagen, Denmark
Project Year: 2006
Landscape Architect: Marianne Levinsen Landscape architects
Client: Gentofte Municipality and Domea
Engineer: Hansen, Carlsen & Frølund A/S
Site Area: 5,370 sqm
Constructed Area: 2,880 sqm
Photographs: Jens Markus Lindhe, Torben Eskerod & DMA

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Architects: Jose María Sáez
Collaborator: David Barragan
Client: Andrés Bueno and Ana María Armijos
Location: Quito Historic Downtown, Ecuador
Contractor: Jaime Quinga, Luis Pillajo
Engineering: Ing Herberto Novillo
Material Aspect: adobe, oxidized steel, brick, concrete, wood, glass
Project year: 2005-2007
Photographers: Raed Gindeya, Jose María Sáez

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Architect: OFIS arhitekti
Location: Ljubljana, Slovenia
Design Year: 1998-2000
Construction Year: 2000-2004
Project leaders: Rok Oman & Špela Videčnik
Design Team: Rok Oman, Špela Videčnik, Rok Gerbec, Josip Konstantinovič, Karla Murovec, Damjan Bradač
Competition Design Team: Rok Oman, Špela Videčnik, Lidija Dragišič, Marko Coloni
Client: Mestni muzej Ljubljana
Constructed Area: 2,650 sqm (existing building) / 790 sqm (extension)
Structural Engineering: ELEA IC d. o. o
Budget: 6,71M Euro (US $10,6M)
Photographs: Tomaz Gregoric

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Guillermo Hevia Garcia took this nice pictures of the Neue National Gallery in Berlin, by Mies van der Rohe. This building is from 1968, and it´s a jump from the traditional museum idea of a closed building with exhibition rooms, into an open-plan flexible space.

The building is 64.8m long, with only 2 steel columns on each side, which free the corners giving the building a lightweight look. A very “Mies” building, with a clear and radical idea put on a very minimal, yet detailed structure.

This is the first non-contemporary building we have published so far on ArchDaily. Would you like to see more articles like this?

More pictures below.

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“Because of the old I will defend the new until
I die and the old I will defend throughout my life
because of the new. The old
that was new and is as new as the
newest.”
Augusto de Campos
(in: Verso, reverso, contraverso)

Architect: Brasil Arquitetura – Francisco Fanucci and Marcelo Ferraz
Location: Ilopolis, RS, Brasil
Design Year: 2005
Construction Year: 2007
Co-Author: Anselmo Turazzi
Project Team: Anne Dieterich, Cícero Ferraz Cruz and Luciana Dornellas; Carol Silva Moreira, Fabiana Fernandes Paiva, Gabriel Rodrigues Grinspum, Ismael Rossett, João Grinspum Ferraz, Pedro Del Guerra, Victor Gurgel, Vinícius Spira and Keli Lobo read more »

Architects: Jarmund/Vigsnæs AS Architects MNAL
Location: Akershus fortress, Oslo, Norway
Client: Norwegian Ministry of Defence
Year of Design: 2002-2006
Year of Construction: 2004-2006
Primary Architects: Einar Jarmund, Håkon Vigsnæs, Alessandra Kosberg
Collaborators: Økaw AS Arkitekter MNAL / Atle Røvig, Benedicte Bjercke, Siv Hofsøy, Petter Løken, Halina Noach, Hanne Sørbø.
Interiors: Jarmund Vigsnæs AS / ØKAW AS in collaboration with Birgitte Appelong AS
Landscape: Grindaker AS
Preservation Consultants: Vel Bevart AS / Kristin Jahnsen, Grete Jarmundn
Consultants: Rambøll Norge AS (Mechanical, structural)
Contractor: Veidekke AS
Constructed Area: 19,300 sqm
Budget: 560 M KON (US $112,7 M)
Photographs: Nils Petter Dale, Ivan Brodey

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The Jewish Contemporary Museum by Daniel Libeskind we published some weeks ago opened this Sunday, and Fernando Herrera sent us a complete set of photos of the opening.

Now we can take a deeper look at the interiors and details of this remodelation of an old power plant adjacent to the Yerba Buena park in San Francisco, an area with great public spaces.

Photos and plans after the break.

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