David Adjaye has been selected as the winner of MIT's 2016 Eugene McDermott Award in the Arts, which honors “individuals whose artistic trajectory reveals that they will achieve the highest distinction in their fields and continue to produce inspiring work for many years to come.” The award consists of $100,000 prize in addition to an artist residency at MIT in the spring of 2016. During the residency, Adjaye will participate in four different public events, including panels and symposia.
Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R) has shared initial photos by Iwan Baan of their new McMurty Building for Art & Art History at Stanford University, which will be officially unveiled to the public on October 6. The 100,000 square foot building will open for the 2015 fall semester, and allow students studying art history and students practicing fine arts to work together under the same roof for the first time at Stanford. See and read more about the soon-to-be opened project after the break.
Denmark-based architects CEBRA have won a competition to design a Smart School educational complex in Irkutsk, Russia. Their winning design, dubbed Smart School Meadow, fulfills the competition’s call for a new typology of school that combines architecture and landscaping into a learning environment and local community center.
The design integrates buildings and landscape together through a ring of individual structures connected by a large, ridged rooftop. With this roof, spaces between the buildings can be used as multifunctional, semi-covered learning spaces, activity zones, and flow areas, all of which diffuse into the central and outer landscaped areas.
Marcin Chmura, a recent graduate from London's Bartlett School of Architecture, has developed a project which attempts to imagine a new future for the 'American Dream'. The United Suburbs of AmeriKa, named after Franz Kafka’s novel in which—despite never having visited America—he depicts the United States as a utopia offering eternal wealth and happiness for his foreign protagonist.
Architect Magazine has unveiled its list of the 50 best architecture firms in the US, with Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and Gensler taking the top three slots in the overall ranking, respectively. The rankings are based on scores from three categories: business, sustainability and design. This year the methodology was updated to include three new factors: percentage of women and minority designers; range and value of employee benefits and the rate of employee turnover. Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture also ranked first in the business category, followed by Kirksey Architecture and EYP Architecture & Engineering. EYP also headed the sustainability rankings, followed by Gensler and ZeroEnergy Design, while the design rankings were led by NADAAA, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and Studio Gang Architects. Learn more about the methodology and view the full rankings here.
FC Barcelona has announced 14 teams in the running for two planned overhauls of their facilities at the Camp Nou in Barcelona, including alterations to their main stadium and the rebuilding of the Palau Blaugrana, the nearby arena owned by the club and used primarily for basketball and handball. The alterations to the two buildings are part of a larger €600 million project, known officially as "Nou Espai Barça," which seeks to improve the club's entire campus, also adding an ice skating rink, new offices, 5,000 parking spaces and improving the outdoor space surrounding the facilities. The Nou Espai Barça project was approved by the club's fanbase last April after a 72% vote in favor of the proposal.
The list names eight teams - including BIG, Populous, HKS and Arup Sport - in the running for the overhaul of the stadium itself, which will involve the addition of almost 6,000 seats to bring the stadium's total capacity to 105,000, increasing the stadium's lead as the largest football stadium in Europe. It will also include a complete redesign of the lowest seating tier to offer improved views, and the addition of a roof over the terraces. Also named are the six teams in the running to rebuild the Palau Blaugrana.
_Keith_Collie_05.jpg?1441656171&format=webp&width=640&height=580)
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced the shortlist for the 2015 Stephen Lawrence Prize, which awards the best projects with a construction budget of less than £1 million.
The 2015 Stephen Lawrence Prize shortlist features:
According to the Architects' Journal Jonathan Woolf, "the much-respected architect and academic" born and based in London, has died aged 54. His practice, Jonathan Woolf Architects, was established in 1990 and has completed more than thirty-five projects in Europe and Africa. Woolf was also a prolific educator, having taught at the British universities of Bath, Kingston (from which he received an honorary doctorate earlier this year), the Scott Sutherland School of Architecture, and the Architectural Association.
Nonprofit organization Architecture for Humanity has launched a rebranding campaign, calling for public input to help create its new name. After working to transition “from a group of chapters to a collectively mobilized and collaboratively led network,” the new version of the organization has a similar mission, but with a focus on “consensus building, professional development, and support for local groups to develop innovative business models while driving humanitarian design services.” Thus, the rebranded AFH will utilize its new image as a “banner to rally under,” putting an emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and incorporating anyone outside the architectural profession who can help with the mission.
Herzog & de Meuron has revealed their plans for a new £500 million stadium for Chelsea Football Club, intended to built in place of their existing stadium at Stamford Bridge. As reported by BD, the images and a model of the stadium were not officially released to the press but were presented in a public consultation meeting held by the club.
Herzog & de Meuron were appointed to work alongside the site's masterplanners Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands in January, and the recent public consultation and was the first opportunity to see the design for the 60,000-seat stadium in its entirety - however, partial renders were released in an earlier consultation in July receiving 92% approval from 1,250 respondents.
Designed by Antonio Gaudí in Barcelona when he was 30, and designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2005, Casa Vicens will be converted into a museum and open its doors to the public during the second half of 2016.
Built between 1883 and 1889, Casa Vicens was the first house designed by Gaudí. The building’s current owner, a subsidiary of the financial group Mora Banc Grup, is currently working on its restoration and the museum planning. “The mission of Casa Vicens as a house museum is to present the first Gaudí house, presenting it as an essential work to understand his unique architectural language and the development of Art Nouveau in Barcelona,” explained the executive manager of the project, Mercedes Mora, in a recent interview with Iconic Houses.
Learn more after the break.
.jpg?1440551337&format=webp&width=640&height=580)
Update: On September 1st, the Japan Sport Council launched a new competition to find another design for Japan’s New National Stadium - this time for a design and build project with more stringent cost restrictions. Today, contractor Nikken Sekkei and Zaha Hadid Architects have confirmed that they will be re-entering the contest together, bringing forward work from their original design. “Our firm is certain that retaining the team of Design Supervisor and designers will deliver the best National Stadium, and we have invited Zaha Hadid Architects to join the design team” said Nikken Sekkei in a statement. “Applying this knowledge and experience of the project, this team can further develop the design to the new brief as a cost-effective proposal to realize the world’s best National Stadium.” The article below was originally published on August 26th.
In mid-July, Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe declared that ZHA's design for a New National stadium would not be completed and that plans for the Tokyo Olympics-Paralympics stadium would "start from zero." In response Zaha Hadid Architects has just issued a press release and a link to a 23-minute video presentation. The video, ZHA explains, "outline[s] in detail the unique design for the New National Stadium which has been developed over two years to be the most compact and efficient stadium for this very special location in Tokyo. Zaha Hadid Architects welcomes a new contractor bidding process for the New National Stadium to reduce costs and ensure value for money in terms of quality, durability and long-term sustainability."
Watch the video - or if you haven't got 23 minutes, read our synopsis - after the break.
For this edition of The Urbanist, Monocle 24's weekly "guide to making better cities," the team examine how fashion is weaved into the very fabric of our cities. They visit New Delhi to explore the role of ethics within the industry, head to Paris to see how the French capital is benefitting from its status as the 'Fashion Capital', and spend time at the only Eco Fashion Week in Vancouver. The episode also asks whether it's possible to identify a city by what people wear.
The international MOLEWA (Mount Lu Estate of World Architecture) competition, organized by the Chinese real estate group Huan Yan with the support of the UIA, sought proposals for urban development plans for small and medium cities in China and several of the winning projects will be carried out in the city of Ruichang next year.
Mexican office TEAM730 Taller de Estudios Y Análisis Metropolitanos, led by José Muñoz Villers and Carlos Marín, was awarded the silver medal in the competition’s Commercial/Cultural category, Plot 7: Shopping Street, for their design of a multi-functional pedestrian street along the entire complex.
More images and the project description after the break.
Across industrial North America, many small working class cities are faced with a plethora of abandoned property due to the downfall of the automotive industry. The prolific ruins of the largest abandoned factory in North America, Detroit's Packard Motor Plant, have served as an emblem for dozens of similar plants dotting the landscapes of cities across the continent. In 2010, shortly after the beginning of the global economic crisis, Chrysler closed a sprawling engine factory in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The factory has since been demolished and is now at the beginning of a five-year cleanup. Located adjacent to a densely populated suburban development, the 107-acre property begs the question: what can be done with such a massive piece of land?
In response to Kenosha's Chrysler problem, a team of urbanists, architects and researchers known as Urban Design for Everyone (UD4U) launched a global competition to reinvigorate the former industrial property. Proposals had to take the adjacent neighborhoods into consideration, with the ultimate goal of bridging gaps between disparate communities at opposite ends of the property. The winning proposals range widely from a stylized village of housing, to the creation of enormous urban farms, to the construction of an innovation park featuring a series of vast artificial lakes. After receiving 43 entries from 17 countries, a jury of local architects selected three exceptional proposals and five honorable mentions. Find out what the teams proposed after the break.
Atelier YokYok, in partnership with Sammode, created a temporary geometric forest called “TREEDOM” for the 2015 Sziget Festival in Budapest. Constructed in nine days before the festival, and then dismounted in two days afterwards, the installation was composed of 37 wood poles, and over 200 boards, with the highest point extending 10 meters.
Building projects are inherently complex: as projects progress, architects are joined by contractors, engineers, and myriad consultants. Architects, according to a recent report by RIBA, are considered the "spiritual leaders" of a building project. Cemented in this perception by a monopoly on design, architects continue to sit precariously atop project hierarchies despite a shifting landscape in building production. This begs the question: how can architects leverage this spiritual responsibility to translate into the best results for clients?
In their latest report Client & Architect: Developing the Essential Relationship, RIBA delves into the nuanced problem of connecting architecture to its owners, emphasizing the importance of a strong, functional and mutually educational relationship. Currently, architects have a tremendous opportunity to learn, improve and capitalize on understanding of clients, regardless of firm size, portfolio and established skills.
Read on to discover RIBA's findings from two years of client analysis
The Finnish Association of Architects SAFA has announced the five projects shortlisted for the 2015 Finlandia Prize for Architecture. After hosting the competition successfully for the first time last year, the Association has returned to “increase public awareness of high quality Finnish architecture and [to highlight] its benefits for our well-being.”
Similarly to last year, while the five shortlisted projects were selected by a jury of architects, the final winning design will be chosen by a non-architect. This year Kaija Saariaho, an internationally renowned Finnish composer, will select the 2015 winner. “I’ve always taken a keen interest in architecture and of course concert halls," said Saariaho. "When visiting the buildings now proposed for the prize, I gave much thought to how deeply architecture affects our lives on a daily basis."
Learn more about the five shortlisted projects, after the break.
English Heritage has announced the six teams shortlisted in the two-stage competition to design a new bridge at Tintagel Castle. Situated on the Island of Tintagel on the Northern coast of Cornwall, the new bridge will strengthen the medieval castle's connection to the mainland, spanning 72 meters at a height 28 meters taller than the existing pedestrian footbridge.
When the competition was announced in June, the organizers Malcolm Reading explained that teams should "envisage an elegant, even structurally daring, concept which is beautiful in its own right and sensitively-balanced with the landscape and exceptional surroundings." The six winners were chosen unanimously from a list of 137 candidates which Chair of the Jury Graham Morrison said reflect "a mix of great talent and experience." Read on for the six teams to go through to the next stage of the contest.
Back in 2012, a dispute arose between the Renzo Piano-designed Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas and the adjacent Museum Tower, a 42-story residential building which was accused of reflecting so much glare through the museum's glass roof that it risked damaging the art inside, and made the museum's garden areas so warm they were unusable. Last week, that 3-year long dispute appears to have been brought to a close - with nothing happening, as the owners of the Museum Tower, the Dallas Police and Fire Pension System (DPFP), voted nearly unanimously that it is no longer their responsibility to find a solution.
Michael Maltzan Architecture has been selected to renovate the outdoor space at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Orange County, California to create the Julianne and George Argyros Plaza. In hopes of transforming the site into more of a “dynamic town square,” the new plaza design will be centered on a multipurpose outdoor stage, which will act as a “site for visitor engagement.”
Standing 3 meters (10 feet) tall, Benjamin Dillenburger and Michael Hansmeyer's Arabesque Wall is an object of intimidating intricacy. 3D printed over the course of four days from a 50 Gigabyte file, the piece is a demonstration of the incredible forms achievable with algorithmic design and 3D printing - however with its overwhelming complexity it is also a test of human perception.
"Architecture should surprise, excite, and irritate," explain Dillenburger and Hansmeyer. "As both an intellectual and a phenomenological endeavor, it should address not only the mind, but all the senses - viscerally. It must be judged by the experiences it generates."
The Royal Institute of British Architect (RIBA)'s Future Trends Survey results for July 2015 present a note of caution for architecture practices with a fall in both workload and staffing forecasts. However, optimism remains as staffing levels are higher than a year ago. Despite June’s record-high forecast, July 2015 saw a downturn in the RIBA Future Trends Workload Index from +44 to +22. Even so, practices reported an overall increase in workload at an annual rate of 8%, and staffing levels 6% higher than in 2014.
From the 2,000-year-old Temple of Baalshamin to the city of Nimrud, ISIS has destroyed countless monuments and relics. Now archaeologists from Harvard and Oxford have teamed up with UNESCO World Heritage and the epigraphical database project at New York University’s Institute for the Study of the Ancient World to launch the Million Image Database Project. Spearheaded by Oxford's Institute for Digital Archaeology (IDA), the campaign plans to "flood" war-torn regions with thousands of 3D cameras so people can scan and (digitally) preserve their region's historical architecture and artifacts.
.jpg?1440552361 "© Zaha Hadid Architects. Image by Methanoia")
.jpg?1440551737 "© Zaha Hadid Architects. Image by Methanoia")
.jpg?1440552179 "© Zaha Hadid Architects. Image by Methanoia")
.jpg?1440552139 "© Zaha Hadid Architects. Image by Methanoia")
.jpg?1440551337)
