Tri-Colonnade / SO-IL / Shenzhen & Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale
Check out this great video by SO-IL about their spatial facade for the Shenzhen & Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale. Referencing the 1980 Venice Bienale where 20 architects collaboratively designed a “facade” that challenged the notions of an individual and collective expression, SO-IL has taken a similar approach for their 2011 work. The firm, no doubt, is used to challenging the accepted norms of architects and architecture – case in point, their Pole Dance for MoMA PS1 - and this Biennale proposal marks a distinction between the facade as a flat symbolic representation, and the use of the facade to actually become a spatial and experiential element. “It is high time to revisit this canonical exhibition of post-modernism. 40 years after our predecessors expanded the territory of the architectural discipline into the experience of time, we continue to believe that growth and innovation are limitless if a new territory of spatiality can be defined,” says Jing Liu of SO-IL when reflecting on the intention this installation. With SO-IL’s prismatic paneled “colonnade” of marble tiles backed with mirrors, visitors can experience a changing depth of the installation and discover new spaces while wandering through it.
Video: Gimme Shelter! at the Shenzhen & Hong Kong Biennale, by Cristobal Palma
Architectural photographer Cristobal Palma has shared with us this video of the Chilean Pavilion at the 2011 Shenzhen & Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture.
“Gimme Shelter!”, designed and curated by Sebastián Irarrázaval and Hugo Mondragón, features projects and architectural innovations developed by local architects during emergencies and natural catastrophes in the last years.
The poetic expression of these emergency landscapes has also oriented the construction of the Chilean pavilion. To achieve this, we chose to overturn the conventional relationships of the elements that comprise it: mattresses positioned vertically become screens for projecting images; security cones and water bottles, cut up and then reassembled, become lamps; emergency tape and water bottles become tensors and counterweights. Once this mechanism was set in motion, we provocatively introduced certain conventionally used forms: a massive bed with mattresses placed in the center of the pavilion, and a window display with large water drums and dispensers at the far end of the pavilion, promising visitors a bit of rest and relief.
For the exhibition, we selected architectural works, visual pieces and technological innovations that experimented with the concept of the essential and the ingenious in precarious contexts. On the other hand, and in keeping with the project mechanism put into action through the formalization of the pavilion, we also decided to select projects that exhibited a certain degree of disruption to some element of the cultural or material patrimony of Chile.
More videos by Cristobal Palma at ArchDaily:
Digitally Connected Smart House
Openarch recently unleashed their prototype of a completely digitized smart house to the public. Designed to adapt to its inhabitants, all components of the house are connected to the internet creating a parallel home on the web. Real time data feeds continuously to provide information and the ability to control any aspect of the digital house through a gestural interface – parting from the traditional mouse and keyboard.
One of the most interesting aspects of the smart house is the integrated video mapping system that incorporates sensors and cameras to display information ranging from exterior weather conditions to Twitter followers onto any surface in the home. They have even invented their own operating system called D. OS (domestic operating system) which facilitates the exchange of the tremendous amount of information flowing through the various spaces. The smart house is conceived as the catalyst for a much larger vision of a smart city, where the exchange and interaction of information flow seamlessly.
Video: Alvaro Siza sings The Beatles
Architecture photographer Fernando Guerra (FG+SG) posted this short video of the renowned Portguese architect and Pritzker laureate (1992) Alvaro Siza, while working and singing to The Beatles. He looks quite inspired!
Fernando and Sergio Guerra (FG+SG) have the largest photo archive of Alvaro Siza’s work. Prints can be obtained at their online store.
Video: A Procura De Pancho
Dedicated to the life and work of Amancio d’Alpoim Guedes (Pancho Guedes), A Porcura De Pancho illustrates the journey of a solitary student exploring the city of Maputo in search of Pancho. The architect, sculptor and painter spent most of his life in Mozambique, where he designed more than 500 buildings.
Director & Editor: Christopher Bisset
Cinematographer: Ross Hillier
Starring: Stephen Hitchcock
Music: Bateleur
‘And then it became a city…’ Film Series at the 2011 Shenzhen & Hong Kong Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture
‘And then it became a city…’ is a film series featured at the 2011 Shenzhen & Hong Kong Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture. The Biennale is curated by Terence Riley and just opened last week – on view in Shenzhen through February 18, 2012. And then it became a city… shows the everyday life and activity of six planned cities under sixty years old. The cities featured include Gabarone, Chandigarh, Shenzhen, Almere, Las Vegas, and Brasilia. More trailers on the films about their corresponding cities can be viewed after the break. (more…)
Video: Mies van der Rohe’s Czech Masterpiece: Tugendhat House
Built in Czechoslovakia in 1930 by German architect here.
Video: Ultra Light Village / Clavel Arquitectos, by Cristobal Palma
Architectural photographer Cristobal Palma shared with us this short clip of the Ultra Light Village installation by Clavel Arquitectos, on view at the Shenzhen Civic Square. This is part of a series of installations for the 2011 Shenzhen & Hong Kong Bi-City Urbanism / Architecture Biennale, open until February 18th, 2012.
More videos by Cristobal Palma at ArchDaily:
Video: A Conversation with Charlie Rose about the NYC High Line
Charlie Rose discusses the story of the New York City High Line with Amanda Burden, director of the New York City Department of City Planning, Diane von Furstenberg, High Line contributor, Robert Hammond, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Friends of the High Line and Joshua David, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Friends of the High Line.
Click here to watch the video on the Charlie Rose website.
Learning from Coral to make Cement
Biomineralization expert and Stanford scientist Brent Constantz has found a way to mimic the way coral builds reefs, by creating cement from carbon dioxide and water. Constantz was inspired to pursue this idea when he learned that for every ton of Portland cement produced a ton of carbon dioxide is emitted. The process in which Constantz is proposing actually removes carbon dioxide from the air. Constantz’s company, Calera, has a demonstration plant on California’s Monterrey Bay that uses waste CO2 gas from a local power plant and dissolves it into seawater to form carbonate, which mixes with calcium in the seawater and creates a solid.
Reference: fastcompany.com
Video: Norman Foster’s Humanitas – Oxford University Lecture
Our friends from architectural videos told us about this video of Norman Foster‘s Humanitas, Oxford University Lecture which took place on November 28th. The lecture considers ‘Heritage and Lessons’ where Foster encourages us to imagine how differently we might understand the modern world if we could travel back in time. We would discover that the cathedrals, the castles and the viaducts that form our ‘heritage’ were once new themselves and were seen as quite alien at the time; and that many of the landscapes we revere as ‘natural’ were in fact shaped subtly by man — some the outcome of the Industrial Revolution itself. We would also find that many of the challenges we face now have been met before.
Video: Rivers & Roads
Ryan&Heidi captures the flow of New York City life in one day, from one location and with one camera. The video was filmed from the 51st floor of The Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park, currently New York City’s second highest location.
Music by: The Head and the Heart – “Rivers and Roads”
Video: Ice Cube Celebrates The Eames
We ran into this video this morning and just had to share it with you. Before launching his rap career, Ice Cube actually studied architectural drafting. In the video, he describes the Los Angeles he knows. Watch it and leave your comments!
Video: Culture of Craft / AIA Committee On Design
The experts at studio/216 have shared with us the Culture of Craft – a pilot for an AIA Committee On Design (COD) series about The Value of Design. The non-profit AIA committee spent this past year discussing this topic, hosting two conferences in Seattle and Japan. In this film, architects Tom Kundig FAIA, Bob Hull FAIA, Annie Han, Prentis Hale and Roy McMakin discuss the value of craft and design in theory and in practice.
This film was created by studio/216.
Video: Rothschild Bank headquarters / OMA
Rem Koolhaas and Ellen van Loon discuss their design of the Rothschild Bank headquarters in London. Viewing the bank as a “dynamic system”, the main task was to create an “always efficient and always pleasant” machine that will accommodate all of the Bank’s London staff and reunite its connections with the city, including the St. Stephen’s Walbrook. OMA’s design for the New Court is the fourth iteration of NM Rothschild & Sons’ headquarters, all of which have been built on the dense and narrow medieval alley of St. Swithin’s Lane.
The film was created by Miguel Santa Clara.
Watch Urbanized Online, Now!
Starting today, you can now watch Urbanized online while it’s still in theaters! If you’ve got iTunes and you’re in the US or Canada, you can watch it via iTunes as a premium rental. If you’re not in those countries, you can rent it directly from Urbanized website via Distrify. You can also embed the film in your website or blog and share it with folks you know.
More information here.
Video: 100 Social Housing Units in Caen / OLGGA Architects
Along with ArtefactoryLab, OLGGA Architects put together this creative video presentation for a social housing competition in Caen, France. The mixed-use building includes 100 affordable housing units, ground floor retail units and community spaces. The residential units gradually stack up to six stories, maximizing the potential of the site while remaining sensitive to the surrounding context. Stepped terraces provide private outdoor spaces for each dwelling unit while simultaneously allowing for optimal daylighting and natural ventilation.
Continue reading for more information and images. (more…)
Video: Preserving World Heritage Sites through 3D Laser Scanning
Ben Kacyra, co-founder and CEO of Cyra Technologies and managing director of CyArk, discusses digital preservation of the World’s Heritage Sites through 3D laser scanning. The non-profit organization uses quick and precise 3D scanning systems to create high-resolution, digital models of historic sites through the creation of point clouds. These systems have the capability of gathering nearly 10,000 points per second, compared to a surveyor gathering only 500 points a day. With the constant threat of natural disasters and human destruction, the CyArk 500 Challenge aims to digitally preserve 500 World Heritage Sites within five years. Ben Kacyra states, “We are losing the sites and stories faster than we can physically preserve it.”
Could a digital archive of historical architecture offer some relief to the important buildings that are currently or may someday be at risk?
Video: Universidad Catolica School of Design / Sebastian Irarrazaval, by Cristobal Palma
Chilean architect Sebastian Irarrazaval recently completed the new building for the Universidad Catolica School of Design in Santiago, Chile.
The new 4-stories tall building is organized around two patios with different spatial qualities, that create new intimate spaces in the campus. The building is cladded in corten steel, a material chosen to age with the building, contrasting with the combination of concrete and light wood to give a more intimate character to the interior spaces, patios and circulations.
Thanks to this video by architectural photographer Cristobal Palma we are able to see dynamic aspects of the building in use, such as the the windows, which play a key role bringing indirect light to the classrooms and allowing for cross ventilation through the patios.
More videos by Cristobal Palma at ArchDaily:
AD Interview: Philip Freelon / The Freelon Group Architects
During the 2009 AIA Convention in San Francisco, I had the chance to see a very interesting group of architects, Emerging Voices. That group, in my opinion, represented the new generation of US architects who are advancing the profession with new ideas and innovative projects. Several of those architects have already been interviewed and featured on ArchDaily, but it took me a while to finally meet one of them: Philip G. Freelon. We met during the 2011 AIA Convention in New Orleans, where I had the opportunity to interview him. I really liked this interview, where Philip shares valuable insights on running a firm and his views on the role of the architect.
Update: President Obama announced his appointment of Philip G. Freelon, FAIA to the US Commission of Fine Arts.
Founded in 1990 by Philip G. Freelon, FAIA, The Freelon Group has established a strong reputation for the innovative integration of technology and design excellence. The firm’s diverse portfolio has received nearly forty AIA design awards at the national, regional, state and local levels. Freelon is comprised of a forty-five person professional staff in Durham, North Carolina.
Along with Vice President Timothy F. Winstead, Philip has become a nationally recognized expert in museum, higher education, and science/technology planning and design. Their work “focuses on research and education, health and well-being, the advancement of understanding between disparate cultures, and the creative expression of the arts.
Freelon has completed major intuitional projects all over the United States. They are currently designing three behavioral healthcare facilities for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and the Durham County Health and Human Services Complex.
The Freelon Group projects at ArchDaily:
- International Civil Rights Center and Museum Historic Preservation and Renovation
- Harvey B Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture
- Anacostia Library
- Biomanufacturing Research Institute and Technology Enterprise (BRITE) Facility
- North Carolina A&T State University Proctor School of Education
Video: Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye
Onnis Luque, an architectural photographer based in Mexico City, shared with us one of his productions on video, Le Corbusier’s classic Villa Savoye. Completed in 1929, Villa Savoye is a modern take on a French country house that celebrates and reacts to the new machine age. The house single handedly transformed Le Corbusier’s career as well as the principles of the International Style; becoming one of the most important architectural precedents in the history. Situated in Poissy, a small commune outside of Paris, this project marks one of the most significant contributions to modern architecture in the 20th century.
