Apple has released updated plans revealing an ambitions solar installation for their proposed campus in Cupertino. Announced back in June, the campus will include an office, research and development building, research facilities, corporate auditorium, fitness center, a central plant and associated parking. Foster + Partners will collaborate with ARUP North America and local civil engineering firm Kier & Wright for the completion of the project.
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The AIA Chicago chapter has awarded the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) the 2011 Firm of the Year Award for 75 years of global design excellence. The chapter recognized the outstanding achievements and excellence in the firm’s body of work and their contribution to the advancement of the architectural profession in areas of design, research, planning, technology and architectural practice. This is the highest AIA award a firm can receive.
On the first of December, President Obama announced his appointment of Philip G. Freelon, FAIA to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts. The Commission is composed of seven fine art experts and is obligated to give “expert advice to the President, Congress and the heads of departments and agencies of the Federal and District of Columbia governments on matters of design and aesthetics, as they affect the Federal interest and preserve the dignity of the nation’s capital.” The Commission is also responsible to advise the U.S. Mint on the design of coins and medals, and approves the location and design of national memorials, both within the U.S. and around the World.
London-based architect David Adjaye was selected for the 2011 Designer of the Year Award by Design Miami – a global forum for design that highlights influential collectors, gallerists, designers, curators and critics from around the world, presenting annual fairs in Miami, USA and Basel, Switzerland. Design Miami praised Adjaye for his “ingenious use of materials and unique ability to showcase light coupled with his democratized approach to the architectural process.”
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The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded $97 million dollars to 27 regions and 29 communities across 32 states with the 2011 Sustainable Communities Grants. HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan stated, “These grants will be leveraged with local funds more than doubling the investment and, helping to create new visions for how communities and regions plan for housing, transportation, workforce development and the quality of life of their residents for generations to come. When more than half of the average working family’s income is devoted to housing and transportation costs alone, we know that we have a responsibility to fix that and to provide housing and transportation options that can improve their quality of life and economic stability.”
Thames Hub continues to make progress since Foster + Partners revealed the proposal in early November. The £50bn project includes a £20bn high-speed Orbital Rail line around London; a new £6bn Thames Barrier and crossing; and a £20bn international Estuary Airport, with annual capacity for 150 million passengers. Comprehensive environmental management strategies have been made in order to minimize the impact of development and create significant opportunities for new wildlife habitats.
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The final entries are in for the international redesign competition of the St. Petersburg Pier in Florida. The competition seeks to generate a new identity and iconic landmark that will honor the history and relevance of the Pier for the next generation. Michael Maltzan Architecture, BIG and West 8 Urbaban Design and Landscape Architecture are the three architectural firms selected from the list of nine semi finalists. Continue reading after the break to view the radically different design proposals.
Construction of Richard Meier’s Shenzhen Clubhouse is nearing completion. Unique geometry fully clad in white metal panels play with overlays of solid and void, unmistakably consistent with the Richard Meier signature style. Being located on an island in the center of OCT Bay, the facility is surrounded by large bodies of water and lush gardens. The Shenzhen Clubhouse is scheduled to be completed early next year.
Continue reading for the architects project description, photographs, renderings and drawings.
Architects: Richard Meier & Partners Architects LLP Location: Shenzhen, China Project Area: 11,000 sqm Completion: 2012 Photographs: Richard Meier & Partners Architects LLP
This month, UNStudio’s Ponte Parodi, a waterfront design for Genoa, Italy, will be presented at the MAPIC in Cannes as one of the most iconic waterfront developments currently being realized. The harbor project is part of a larger vision to revitalize the entire waterfront area, and merge the local urban and economic fabric to create a point of interest for Genoa’s varied waterfront users. The juxtaposition of varied circulation typologies creates an innovative extension for the city center which not only organizes the position of the program, but also optimizes pedestrian flows within and atop the building.
More about the waterfront after the break.
As the Highline has everyone looking up, James Ramsey and Dan Barasch are asking people to start looking down. James Ramsey’s vision to transform the abandoned Williamsburg Bridge Trolley Terminal into a subterranean park filled with sunlight and lush vegetation is gaining international attention and support. The satellite engineer turned architect has developed a skylight using fiber-optic technology that will naturally light and bring life to this forgotten, graffiti-covered cavity below the streets of New York City.
Continue reading for more information, video and exclusive statements from Ramsey and Barasch.
In the latest bid to solidify territorial claims within the Arctic Circle, Russia has unveiled plans to build a city for 5,000 year round residents 1,000 miles from the North Pole on the remote island Kotelniy in the Novosibirsk archipelago. Part of a strategic plan to assert its claim over the vast reserves of natural resources underneath the polar ice cap, the planned development will cost several billion dollars.
Continue reading after the break.
Architecture firm Line and Space, has been selected as the 2011 Architectural Firm of the Year by the Arizona Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). The award recognizes a firm that has produced distinguished architecture for over ten years, has made significant contributions to the profession and the community, and has transcended local boundaries in making these contributions. Awarded by an out of state jury comprised of architects, the honor was given to Line and Space at the Institute’s Celebrate Architecture Awards Gala held in Phoenix on October 22.
The Museum of Modern Art and MoMA PS1 has announced the 2012 finalists competing in the 12th annual competition under the Young Architects Program. Each year a group of emerging architects compete for the opportunity to design and construct a summer installation within MoMA PS1’s courtyard.
When we spotted the news on ArchRecord of a major delay for the Elbe Philharmonic, our hearts sank a little. We’ve been covering the building extensively during its construction period and have anxiously been awaiting its completion (a date that was pushed from 2010 to 2012, and, now, is uncertain). Yet, technical difficulties pertaining to the saddle roof structure are creating a tangle between the German contractor Hochtief and the Elbe Philharmonic, leading Hochtief to stop work on the glass facade, the steel roof support structure, the 82m-long escalator and the building services.
More about the halted construction after the break.
UPDATE: The Niemeyer Center has been re-opened.
The Niemeyer Center in Aviles, Spain is soon to be shut down for several months due to disagreement over its finances and irregularities in its spending. The cultural center opened a mere 8-months ago, designed by Brazilian architect, Oscar Niemeyer and has been an admired and appreciated institution for the city. More after the break.
The annual AIAS FORUM meeting for 2011 will take a break from the snow of the past two years (2009 Minnesota, 2010 Toronto) and be held in sunny downtown Phoenix, Arizona. FORUM is the annual meeting of the AIAS and the premier global gathering of architecture and design students. The conference provides students with the opportunity to learn about important issues facing architectural education and the profession, to meet students, educators, and professionals with common interests, and to interact with some of today’s leading architects through keynote addresses, tours, workshops and seminars, last years FORUM was attended by over 1,000 young and ambitious architecture students and AIAS members. This years Keynote Speakers will be Jeffrey Inaba, founder of C-Lab and former project manager with Rem Koolhaas and OMA, Brad Lancaster, author of www.harvestingrainwater.com, and University of Californa, San Diego architect and professor Teddy Cruz.
British architect, David Chipperfield, will curate the 2012 Venice Architecture Biennale. Chipperfield will have only eight months to decide on a theme and prepare to curate the world’s largest architecture exhibition. He will become the first British architect to curate the event.
The computerization and urbanization of the 21st century is creating new lifestyles and forms of public space. Architectural Environments for Tomorrow presents the spatial experiments of 23 architects and artists from around the world responding to the transformation of their surroundings. “The metaphors of the world-views suggested by the artists resonate with the practical proposals of the architects, presenting images of future humanity from a variety of different angles.” Architects featured include Toyo Ito, Frank O. Gehry, Sou Fujimoto and many more.
Continue reading for a complete list of the participants and more information on the exhibit.
