Sverre Fehn’s Nordic Pavilion in Venice is a masterpiece of postwar architecture. The young Norwegian architect won the competition for its design in 1958 and the building was inaugurated in 1962. Through six decades, the beloved structure has been mired in phenomenology, poetry, and the personal memory of the select. Looking at the archives, a very different story emerges.

This stunning two-volume publication introduces readers to one of the largest private collections of architectural drawings in the world. Showcasing drawings and related models and artefacts dating from 1691 to the mid 20th century, this lavish tome includes both a catalogue and innovative texts by leading authorities and provides a fascinating look at these striking by-products of architectural training and practice.
Living with Architecture as Art introduces amateurs and specialists alike to the Peter May Collection, one of the largest private collections of architectural drawings in the world. Assembled over 30 years by investor and philanthropist Peter May, the collection is comprised of more than 700 sheets that have all been carefully preserved.
Principally consisting of 19th- or early 20th-century competition or certification drawings by design students, the collection also includes presentation drawings for public commissions, reconstruction studies or interior designs. The catalogue, arranged by category, demonstrates May’s inclination towards specific building types such as commercial or cultural institutions, train stations and spas, landmarks and monuments, private and royal residences, and cast-iron architecture. Also included is a category for landscape designs and garden architecture.
The extensive catalogue and texts by leading authorities present the raison-d’être for
the production and preservation of these sometimes neglected artworks. Maureen Cassidy- Geiger discusses the formation of the collection and with Basile Baudez introduces the French system of architectural education, from which some of the finest drawings come. Charles Hind offers a history of design training in Britain and writes about patterns of collecting and the market for architectural drawings and Matthew Wells discusses the history of architectural models. In his introduction May informs the reader about his history as a collector and builder.
Maureen Cassidy-Geiger is a curator and scholar with special expertise in European decorative arts, patterns of collecting and display and the history of architecture, court culture, gardening and travel. Her most recent book on architecture was The Philip Johnson Glass House: An architect in the Garden (Rizzoli, 2016). Charles Hind, FSA, is Chief Curator of Drawings at RIBA in London. A Palladio specialist, he was with Sotheby’s, 1986–93, as their expert in architectural drawings and British watercolors. Basile Baudez
is Assistant Professor in the Department of Art & Archaeology, Princeton University, previously at Paris- Sorbonne University, University of Pennsylvania and at the Pratt Institute. Matthew Wells is Lecturer in the Department of Architecture at the ETH (Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule) in Zurich. His dissertation ‘Architectural models and the professional practice of the architect, 1834-1916’ was awarded the Theodor- Fischer Prize from the Zentralinstituts für Kunstgeschichte in Munich.

AIA LA COTE is providing a conference that reflects the most relevant dialogues in society and has incorporated this thinking into a two-day split virtual symposium around Climate Action and Climate Justice. A diverse set of presenters will focus on a wide range of topics, inclusive of Carbon Neutrality, Healthy Building Environments, Resiliency, and Equity. Notable speakers include Farhana Yamin, an international environmental lawyer and activist, who has co-authored a number of international treaties on climate change, including the Paris Climate Agreement, will lead the days’ sessions. Also speaking is Ed Mazria the 2021 AIA Gold Medal recipient, and founder and CEO of Architecture 2030. This year he delivered the Roadmap to Zero Emissions to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Many others inspirational speakers will be featured throughout the course of the two-day event, as well as the opportunity to participate in Lunch Think Break Out Sessions, and a virtual exhibitor hall (hosted via Zoom and Whova Apps).

Applications are now open for the summer course Architectural Association Visiting School (AAVS) Rio de Janeiro, taught online during 1-5 July, 2021!

DEEP CITY Latsis symposium is gathering people from around the world to discuss and present written, built, coded, drawn, filmed, or modelled work around the topics of data, democracy and sovereignty. From digital tools for urban governance to AI and new forms of design and spatial agency, we will explore emerging negotiations between the technological, the ecological and the social.

Videos

Florence, 13 January 2021 – Cinema Nervi is a videoart project which offers an enriching contemporary and experimental contribution to the exhibition Pier Luigi Nervi, Structure and Beauty*, dedicated to the work of the world-renowned Italian architectural engineer, on display in the temporary exhibition spaces at Manifattura Tabacchi.

Xu Tiantian is the founding principal of DnA _Design and Architecture. She has received numerous awards such as the WA China Architecture Award in 2006 and 2008, the Architectural League New York’s Young Architects Award in 2008, the Design Vanguard Award in 2009 by Architecture Record and the Moira Gemmill Prize for Emerging Architect in 2019. She has built a number of projects, such as Songzhuang Art Center and Ordos Art Museum. In the past years she has been engaged extensively in the rural revitalising process in Songyang County, China. Her groundbreaking “architectural acupuncture” is a holistic approach to the social and economic revitalization of rural China and has been selected by UN Habitat as the case study of Inspiring Practice on Urban-Rural Linkages. Xu Tiantian received her masters in architecture and urban design from Harvard Graduate School of Design, and her baccalaureate in architecture from Tsinghua University in Beijing.

In 1890, Tony Garnier started working on his revolutionary model for the “cité industrielle”. This ideal industrial city was conceived mainly from 4 separated programs: production, housing, health and leisure facilities in which the production program is the core concept of modern cities.

OVERVIEW
The AIAS is looking for members to share their designs and renderings on Instagram to showcase the work our members do and to provide inspiration for those looking to enhance their skill sets. This competition is open to all years and skillsets – show us what you’ve got! Share your sketches and renderings of a parklet starting January 7th, 2021 via Instagram.

The Henning Larsen Foundation is proud to announce the latest edition of its competition series this year an open international competition on the theme of Utopia in architecture. Previous competition editions have explored photography and architecture (2007), drawing and architecture (2008), writing and architecture (2012), architecture and film (2015), and architecture and music (2017.)

#n’ODS opens a category for students, whose proposals will become part of the #n’ODStudent contest.
Students may submit any urban or territorial proposal that demonstrates that it is possible to build a future for the natural and urban environment by achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, through the modes of action of n’UNDO: Not Do, Redo and Undo. These can be theoretical, reflections and/or projects.

UC BERKELEY'S SUMMER PROGRAMS REFRAME THE STUDIO FOR THE PANDEMIC AGE

THIS YEAR’S CHALLENGE
The Covid-19 pandemic is far from being over; nevertheless, architects and designers are already beginning to envision its effects on how buildings are designed and inhabited. The pandemic – particularly its lethal transmissibility that is exacerbated by human proximity – exposed the fragility of the spatial arrangements and technologies that organize our everyday life, be it in the home, the workplace, educational institutions, or shared cultural and civic activities. The accelerated integration of remote modes of communication due to social distancing challenges the very need for designating buildings to host productive and collective activities, and undermines the economy that relies on revenues generated from these activities. Moreover, the airborne transmission of the virus is compelling architecture to address issues, such as building environmental systems, that it has traditionally delegated to technical advisers and experts.

The Architecture Film Festival London returns for its third edition with a programme of virtual film screenings.

The National Gallery is seeking a multi-disciplinary design team to work with it on a suite of capital projects to mark its bicentenary, its 200th anniversary, with an initial phase to be opened in 2024.

The TERRAFIBRA Award is a global award in contemporary earthen and plant fibre-based architectures. Its objective is to promote the aesthetics, construction perks and environmental benefits of 40 sustainable buildings. For those outstanding buildings to be fully recognized by both professionals and the general public, every stakeholder involved in the process must be acknowledged as well. Indeed, the objective of the award is to shed some light on remarkable projects while praising the courage of clients who have chosen mineral and bio sourced materials, the creativity of designers and know-how of craftsmen and contractors.

A house isn’t always a home and a home isn’t always a house. The concept of a home is both universal and distinctly unique to each individual person and each culture from every part of the world. From big cities to small towns to tiny rural villages, each culture is influenced by its own history, politics, economy, and resources in how they define a home. That being said, there are a few common traits of an ideal home that we can all aspire to.