In cooperation with engineers LB Consult, CEBRA recently won the competition for 48 new student housing units in Esbjerg, Denmark’s 5th largest city. The eye-catching proposal consists of 26,910 sq. ft. apartments spread across ten floors and outdoor areas with terraces and activity zones such as a street basket field. The project is commissioned by the housing association Ungdomsbo and they expect that the first students can move in in January 2014. More images and architects’ description after the break.

As part of the cycle of competitions, Think Space is calling for entries in its Blur Building themed competition. “It is too soon to know whether Blur was a barometer of early 21st Century sentiment or a neutral response to the conditions of the site. The lack of program allowed us to make our own which had nothing to do with a World’s Fair and everything to do with our own practice. It allowed Diller and Scofidio to bridge the worlds of high art, installation art, and architecture, continue to research threads significant to the practice at the same time it presaged the change of the firm name from D+S to DS+R.” – Charles Renfro. More on the juror’s description of the project for the competition after the break.

The new Yongsan International Business District (YIBD), which will be the new heart of Seoul, will be comparable only to a few other city centers on the global stage. As part of the district, the Block C1-20 building, designed by Tange Associates, is a metaphorical expression of the dynamic energy created by the Retail Valley and the building’s own diverse program. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Taking place June 8-28 at the Korean Cultural Center in Los Angeles, the ‘Inside Out: 7 Architectural Thoughts’ exhibition features seven progressive Korean architectural designers bringing up a challenging topic about ‘Koreaness’ to the Korean American community. With their cultural usages incongruent at times in multi-cultural communities of the United Sates, they are trying to make the cultural usages more suitable for current circumstances and create an indigenous cultural entity that is in harmony with diverse ethnic and cultural circumstances. Personally or communally driven, this effort has been performed not only by the Korean American community but also other ethnic groups. More information on the exhibition after the break.

The proposal for the Yashiki Mori competition by HOLDUP elaborates on the Yashiki-rin housing typologies as a protection from environmental aggressions: windbreak forest (hot summer wind, cold winter wind, sandblast), barrier against fire, sunshade, air-purifier (carbon dioxide absorber and oxygen provider), sound-proof shield, etc. This natural eco-system composed of hedges and high trees circling the house could preserve wildlife, supply bamboo or lumber as construction material, fuel or fertilizer. It perfectly fits today’s concerns, i.e. keeping some distance with the surroundings but preserving openness at the same time. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Chosen for its outstanding construction management techniques and environmental sensitivity, the North Las Vegas City Hall and Civic Plaza was recently named 2012 Project of the Year by the American Public Works Association (APWA). Designed by Fentress Architects, the project was completed $17 million under budget in 2011 and as a result of a downtown revitalization effort, North Las Vegas’ new City Hall successfully consolidates the city’s departments into a one-stop-shop offering convenience, efficiency and ease of navigation for both city staff and residents. More architects’ description after the break.

Powerhouse Company, an office that focuses on the fields of architecture, urban design and research, was recently awarded the Nykredit Motivation Prize 2012. The prize of over 13.000 euros was handed out by the Danish Minister for Culture, Uffe Elbæk, at a ceremony held at Nykredit’s headquarters in Copenhagen. A practice established by architects Nanne de Ru and Charles Bessard with offices in respectively Rotterdam and Copenhagen, they are an example of one of the new global-Danish architectural practices starting to mark its presence on the Danish architectural scene. More information after the break.

Hosted by the New York Chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects, and sponsored by Urban Office and GGI, this summer event involves a fun evening of networking, cocktails, and hors d’oeuvres. You will have the opportunity to follow design, architecture, development, real estate, and construction professionals at the beautiful midtown offices of Urban Office. The event will be held at the Urban Office Showroom in New York on June 28 from 6:30pm-9:00pm. For more information, please visit here.

Open to students and professionals worldwide in architecture, planning and urban design studios, the Architecture at Zero 2012 challenges participants to design a zero net energy (ZNE) student housing or administrative office building design for the University of California Merced in Merced, California. As part of the challenge, entrants will also be asked to create a diagrammatic district energy plan for the Bellevue Gateway development. Organized by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) San Francisco chapter and the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) Zero Net Energy (ZNE) Pilot Program, in partnership with the University of California, Merced, this unique event explores the cutting edge of energy efficient design. The deadline for submissions is October 1. For more information, please visit here.

Designed by Olson Kundig Architects, the Foss Waterway Seaport, Puget Sounds premier maritime heritage, education and recreation center began undergoing historic rehabilitation and adaptive re-use. When building rehabilitation is completed, the new 45,000 square foot public facility will feature an expansive maritime heritage museum, compelling indoor program spaces (including a K-16 marine science and environmental education center), a heritage boat building shop and the “Discovery Wharf” childrens learning center. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Designed by LYCS Architecture, the Spruce Art Center recently commenced construction in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. Flush with mature spruce trees and a pre-existing one story abandoned structure, the design is a mixture of two fundamental challenges in architecture: to evoke new spatial meaning while reconciling an existing structure, and to produce a formal language that can be dynamic and strong, yet carefully caress spruce trees. More images and architects’ description after the break.

‘Water Memory’, a proposal by Ayrat Khusnutdinov, Zhang Liheng, and Alexey Bychkov for the Rethinking Shanghai competition, focused on a strategic vision to manifest the undeletable importance of Suzhou creek waterfront to Shanghai. Using existing bridges as the main axis of their development and arranging high-rise commercial areas along them, they created a cohesive system that would connect now fragmented past and recent developments where water wouldn’t divide to play a connective role. More images and architects’ description after the break.

The above video, filmed and edited by DUOSEGNO Visual Design, features a look into the new Careggi entrance in Florence, designed by Ipostudio which becomes the ‘gateway’ to the hospital campus as it acts as both an urban junction as well as an architectural presence. The new entrance does not just function as a door to get inside, but is an area for strolling, for spontaneous interaction, and a place which represents the intricacy of the largest hospital development in all of central Italy. Through a new ‘square’, a new archway for Florence, this covered plaza, which draws inspiration from the grand urban traditions of the Florentine porticos, allows for this to happen.

IAPA shared with us their proposal for the Guangzhou Daily Group of Culture Center, a large multi-purpose building complex, which recently won the excellence award in the International Architecture Design Competition. The center, which includes office, exhibition, commercial, hotel, culture, and service space, creates a building complex with a vivid image, unique content and regional cultural features. More images and architects’ description after the break.

In the proposal for the Re-qualification and Redevelopment of the Beach and Seafront of Figueira da Foz and Buarcos by Labor4plus, the large expanse of the beach offers the unique opportunity to redefine the esplanade and to make better use of the beach as a public space. Their design envisions a landscape park which represents a natural passage from the beach to the city with its dunes and pine groves, which invites users to stay and offers various spaces for recreational activities. These spaces are connected on the one hand to the city and also with each other by beach trails. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Designed by architect Nicolas Maugery, the Kobenhavn Student Center attempts to explore the impact of the development of a student housing project outside a campus. Located in a suburb of Kobenhavn, Denmark, doing so would allow a new daily life with the recreation of small shops and a new public building that creates a sense of cohesion between the generations. More images and architect’s description after the break.

SCI-Arc will be presenting two main exhibitions this upcoming month. The Ball-Nogues Studio: Vevrus 1, Negative Impression exhibition starting June 1 until July 8 that will host Benjamin Ball, Gaston Nogues and Hsinming Fung to discuss the installation on Monday, June 25 at 7pm. The site specific installation is a disposable architecture of literal references that calls into question the contemporary architectural vogue for digital complexity and abstraction. The cast impressions of 1973 Volkswagen Beetles and speedboats unite to form a strong structural whole that serves as a lookout tower. Then, two projects by SCI-Arc students will be featured this year at the AIA LA hosted 2×8 exhibition, opening June 5, 6-9pm at the A+D Museum in Los Angeles. Fore more information on the events, please visit here.

The ReSpace Design Competition: ‘You Design It! We Build It!’, which focuses on small space design, green building, and sustainability, is currently accepting entries. They are on the hunt for talented architects, artists, builders, and dreamers with a knack for innovation. The challenge: Design a small, unique, and transportable structure that can be built with reuse materials. The grand prize winner receives $1,000 and a chance to see their design come to life. The winning design will be constructed in a 48 hour build overseen by Habitat for Humanity Wake County using materials from their Raleigh, North Carolina ReStore. A total of $3,000 in awards will be presented to multiple winners. Registration ends June 15 with the deadline of submissions August 15. For more information, please visit here.