Architects: Altamirano Armanet Arquitectos Location: Laguna Verde, V Region, Chile Project Year: 2009 Photographs: Courtesy of Altamirano Armanet Arquitectos

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HOK was recently selected as lead architect for the Ri.MED Biomedical Research and Biotechnology Center (BRBC) near Palermo, Sicily in Southern Italy. The $269 million world-class research facility at 334,000-square-feet will be a global hub for biomedical research and development. The ultimate goal is to prevent or cure diseases while improving the quality of life and life expectancy of patients. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Located at a strategic point within the city of Helsinki, the ‘Shared Dreams’ proposal for the Helsinki Central Library conforms to the proposed massing and urban regulations, while endeavoring to give a coherent response to the program and the environment. Designed by Kubota & Bachmann Architects, the variety of the urban conditions will be, from the very beginning, reflected in the concept of the building and the organization of spaces. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Forest City Ratner Companies (FCRC) just announced that they will be partnering with Skanska, one of the world’s largest construction and development groups, for the B2 project. This project is making headlines because it will be the first residential tower that is part of the Atlantic Yards Development in Brooklyn using modular construction. FCRC plans to break ground on the 32-story building on December 18th and anticipates that the building will open in 2014. While high-rise modular technology has been initially developed for use at Atlantic Yards, this new industry has the potential to create modular components for construction projects across New York City and worldwide, becoming the first major manufacturing expansion in New York City since manufacturing began its decline over a generation ago. More information after the break.

AllesWirdGut, together with the German climate engineering experts Transsolar and the Dutch-born urban planning avant-gardist Ton Matton, recently developed their concept for the BIO Campus. The project consists of a huge site just outside Istanbul that is becoming one of the world’s leading scientific research centers which has had a holistic approach from the very start. The main idea behind the architectural and environmental project is to create a self-sufficient and self-supporting accumulation of living spaces for work, scientific research, everyday life and recreational activities. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Designed for the 8th China Flower expo, which will be held in 2014, the design for the information center by Lab Architecture Studio aims to create a very subtle expression. By blending it into nature, the project is able to unite itself with the land and environment. Both the lively architectural form and the flexible spatial structures activate the whole expo park. More images and architects’ description after the break.

OFIS Arhitekti shared with us a video they put together for their project, Alpine Hut. Situated in a small Alpine village, part of Triglav national park with very strict rules of construction and architectural design, the client bought the site together with existing construction permit for the generic project. Basically, the main task was to give the hut a new look, create a new veranda around the house and position the openings towards the views and increasing its sustainability.

Situated in the new green heart of Helsinki, the ‘Light Forest’ proposal for the Helsinki Central Library intends to replace the existing green that the architects will subtract to the park in a perfectly controlled indoor environment. Occupying 4500m² of the site, MenoMenoPiu Architects decided to conceive the building as a tree forest enclosed in a climatic box, in which the structure represents the causality of the wood. More images and architects’ description after the break.

As a follow up to a previous post we recently published regarding the positive look on the Architecture Billings Index (ABI), forward-looking indicators for building and construction activity have been turning increasingly positive over recent months, which is the good news. Current market conditions for architecture and the near-term outlook for the construction industry in the US is a two-sided story, with forward-looking indicators showing steady improvement but serious concerns arising out of an impending ‘fiscal cliff’. To be sure, the good news is not evenly spread across sectors and regions. Buoyed by lower interest rates, growing demand for rental accommodation and the progressive subsiding of the mortgage crisis, the residential building sector (57.3) is improving quickly whereas activity in commercial and industrial building remains flat. More information after the break.

It’s time for another Flickr Round Up! Remember you can submit your own photo here, and don’t forget to follow us through Twitter and our Facebook Fan Page to find many more features.

The photo above was taken by asli aydin in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Check the other four after the break.

High profile architects BIG (Bjarke Ingels) and OMA (Rem Koolhaas) are in a close battle to win the redevelopment competition for the design of the Miami Beach Convention Center. Recently put on hold by a corruption probe and procedural concerns, Miami Beach’s ambitious plans to create a 52-acre convention center district are again progressing toward a crucial vote by elected officials. The committee’s recommendations will be reviewed by interim City Manager Kathie Brooks, who will issue her own recommendation to city commissioners. Commissioners could vote on the project and development teams Dec. 12. More information after the break.

Previously limited to particular locations, Naver App was delivered all around the nation using a ‘kit-box’ concept. With the addition of a ‘kinetic’ element to the existing over-sized delivery box concept, the new Naver App Square, designed and constructed by URBANTAINER has evolved into a giant moving gift box. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Architects: 3.14 GA Location: Rueda, Valladolid, Spain Project Year: 2012 Photographs: Jara Varela

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Building on a previous piece entitled “Suspension Bridge, the passage”, Olivier Grossetête’s ‘Pont de Singe’ in the UK is a model of floating bridge attached to helium balloons, thus taking literally the term “suspension bridge “. The object aims to connect two mobile spaces, questioning its usefulness. This bridge becomes a floating symbol of all relationships, and embodies the space surrounding its slight movements caused by our air movement. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Proposed by Talmon Biran Architecture Studio, the Yad Le’Banim building is located within an existing grove at the local council of Ramat Yishay, Israel, which provides a unique opportunity to integrate landscape with the architectural design. This setting doesn’t only add a visual values for the building, but also adds and symbolic aspect – the trees which are seen from all the building’s façades create an image that expresses the relation between life and death, between growth and loss. This relation is inherent in the definition of the Yad Le’Banim buildings as cultural and educational centers on the one hand, and as a memorials on the other hand. More images and architects’ description after the break.

With locally grown and organic food becoming more popular in the Czech Republic, EDIT! was asked to design a market stall for a new concept of Green Markets. Through a reconfiguration of the typical retailing method, the architects create a unique response to the importance of enabling a personal interaction between the farmers and market visitors. From this, the farmer can relate to the visitors through their produce, and the relationships formed may contribute to the character of the market as a whole. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates were recently selected to design a giant office building the landlord hopes to build next to Grand Central Terminal. Selected by SL Green Realty Corp., the architects’ design would be one of the largest Midtown towers on the East Side in a generation. While building in New York is a challenge, SL Green is moving ahead full steam with planning. The company is in discussions with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to obtain additional development rights by building pedestrian improvements including underground connectors to Grand Central, according to executives informed of the planning. More information after the break.