Articles

Nike's New York flagship store, primely located on Fifth Avenue, is perhaps the closest thing to a temple in the digital age. At a massive 68,000 square feet, it commands attention and symbolically dwarfs even its skyscraper surroundings. The exterior facade features a grid of undulating glass that casts glimmering shadows both inside and out. Inside, a tractor-beam type installation hangs from the ceiling, giving the space-age flavor. There's no set ritual or tradition like in the temples of old, but sneakerheads might certainly feel they've found their heaven on earth.

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The history of architectural drawings is as old as architecture itself and has been developed through the architectural timeline. Once diagrams, they were as big as Ziggurats and Pyramids and drawn at the scale of one to one on site. Now in contrast, drawings are practically nonexistent as tangible objects. They only exist as digital data saved in virtual space. Regardless of their old history and drastic evolution, one single fact about them has never changed; they were and still are a medium: an intermediate device that visualizes an idea and goes through a journey of adventures before being realized. And yet, there is always a risk that the same set of drawings by an architect may be translated into different architectural interpretations.

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In any successful architectural project, it is essential to provide users with a comfortable outdoor space. At any time of the year, modular shade structures can create spaces that protect from wind, dust, sun, rain, snow, and noise in a light, flexible and aesthetically pleasing way.

With this in mind, what should we look for when choosing shade structures for outdoor spaces? Below, we've provided you with Superior Recreational Products's top recommendations.

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The latest Global Status Report on Road Safety from the World Health Organization (WHO) showed that over the last 15 years, the traffic mortality rate has remained stable relative to the world's population. While the fact that these numbers have not increased might sound positive, it is important to remember that this still represents the death of 1.35 million people annually, alongside 50 million injuries.

More than 100 American architects and nine international practitioners have been elevated to the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows. Fellowship in the AIA is a prestigious honor conferred upon those who have lasting contributions to the profession. While primarily a national award, the AIA also awards fellowship to a number of international designers each year.

Rodrigo Schiavoni and Adán Yenerich, founding partners of SY arquitectos, have won the open competition organized as part of the eighth International Congress of the Spanish Language, held in the city of Córdoba from March 27 to 30, 2019. This competition called for the design of an urban-scale commemorative landmark to serve as a civic symbol.

Organized by the Córdoba Province Chamber of Tourism and open to artists, designers, and architects, this interdisciplinary competition called for the creation of urban-scale pieces to intervene in the public space of a prominent sector of the city: a portion of the historic founding district located just steps from the Jesuit Block, a site designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

This article was originally published on CommonEdge as "The 'B' Word: How a More Universal Concept of Beauty Can Reshape Architecture."

Videos

If you are creating architectural visualizations through Lumion, the following tutorial can be of great use to you. These tutorials will maximize your output and teach you easy-to-master practical and technical tips.

Learn how to add objects, use lights, modify materials, and also create panoramic and 360° images, movies, and more.

We hope you enjoy the following videos.

"You're boosted. Your energy levels are higher, your oxygen is flowing, your mind is clear." Michel Rojkind has, by any standard lived a life of passion - first as a bonafide rockstar and now as an award-winning architect (not least among them an ArchDaily Building of the Year 2017 for his Foro Boca.) But those following Michel Rojkind's social media know what his true daily passion is.

Since the mid-twentieth century, Latin American cities have undergone metropolization processes in which transportation has been heavily impacted by the exponential growth of private vehicle use. This is driven by rapid, unregulated urban sprawl that causes cities to spread extensively across the territory. This physical expansion is compounded by deficient public transit management and weak domestic socioeconomic conditions, both of which severely constrain the development of transportation systems.

Córdoba, Argentina's most populous city after Buenos Aires, is a prime example of this paradigm, featuring one of the largest urban footprints in the world at 576 square kilometers (excluding its metropolitan area). Its physical structure is radiocentric, with transport corridors converging in the city center, creating a dense core where services are concentrated and an ever-expanding periphery.

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If walls could speak, they would have the most stories to tell - stories of antiquity, war, scandal, and reconciliation. Approaches to preservation are as varied as the architects behind them, but many take on the challenge with flair and restraint in equal measure. It is common to see preservation that combines ancient structure with contemporary features, creating beautiful combinations of old and new.

Take a look at some architectures from our projects database that highlight the beauty in the imperfections of ruins and great combinations of used and new materials.

This collection is one of many interesting content groupings made by our registered users. Remember you can save and manage what inspires you on My ArchDaily. Create your account here.

Videos

The LAGI 2019 competition offers designers and creatives the opportunity to re-imagine energy infrastructure and demonstrate the beauty of a 100% renewable world.

Raise your hand if you’ve ever wanted to go swimming inside a water tower. In reality, it would probably be dark and creepy and not as cool as it sounds, but that’s not the case with Danish firm SquareOne’s design, where the top of an abandoned water tower becomes a public swimming pool and spa. Utilizing the existing structural system of the tower, SquareOne is also proposing adding 40+ student housing units suspended around the tower. This dual-purpose scheme addresses Copenhagen’s desperate housing shortage while also giving new life to an old building.

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Text by Henry Heng Lu

By Henry Heng Lu

I think that the conversation with Junya Ishigami at his experimental (and very international) studio in Tokyo was one of the most memorable experiences of my recent trip to Japan. Junya's visions for not just of his own architecture but for the profession were wholeheartedly inspiring. He thinks that architecture today is “not free enough.” He wants to diversify it, liberate it from so many architects’ insistence on following particular building types and, in general, our narrow expectations. He wants his architecture to be soft and loose and finds inspiration in such improbable metaphors as clouds or the surface of water. “We need to introduce more varieties of architecture to better address peoples’ dreams…I want to expand architecture into the future by creating new comfortabilities,” says Ishigami, whose two recent manifesto-like exhibitions in Paris questioned the very nature and purpose of architecture. He is a visionary and essential voice in what is perhaps the most unsettled of all professions.

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Most architects who are parents have thought, at some point, about designing and building toys for their children. Paula Zasnicoff, a partner at Arquitetos Associados, along with designer Andrea Gomes, decided to go for it and created the Bubud brand.

When the work finally comes to an end, the cleaning is done and preparations for the opening are underway, everything looks perfect. Coatings are all in their proper place, shining and with the intended color; wood surfaces are as yet unmarked and there is even a feeling of freshness and new life. Photographs mean that, for many, this vision of perfection is all that will ever be seen. 

But this perfection can be superficial. Failing to consider the damaging power of time during design and specification stages means can hasten the appearance of inevitable imperfections. Small fissures, stains, and scuffs among many other problems (that we have all dealt with at some point) begin to appear. The beautiful wood frame, so lovingly chosen, starts to look greyish. The paint fades where the sun hits the strongest. Boards begin to warp and fall  from the facade.