Tag: christopher-hawthorne | ArchDaily

Graham Foundation Announces 54 Grants for Individuals Exploring Architecture Through Research and Creative Practice

Reyyan Dogan — Tue, 23 Jun 2026 06:30:00 +0000

The Graham Foundation has announced the recipients of its 2026 Grants to Individuals program, awarding a total of $506,000 to 54 projects that investigate architecture through exhibitions, films, publications, and research initiatives. Selected from more than 600 submissions to the Foundation's September 2025 application cycle, the grants support work by 86 architects, artists, curators, designers, filmmakers, historians, scholars, and writers, reflecting a broad range of interdisciplinary approaches to the built environment and its cultural, social, and political dimensions.

Discover the Full List of Special Projects and Participants of the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale

Maria-Cristina Florian — Thu, 01 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

The 19th International Architecture Exhibition, organised by La Biennale di Venezia under Carlo Ratti's curatorship and the theme "Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective," is set to transform Venice into a "Living Laboratory" of experimentation and collaboration. This year's special projects extend beyond the exhibition grounds, integrating into various city locations and Forte Marghera in Mestre, providing an alternative perspective that expands the reach of architectural discourse.

Christopher Hawthorne on Low-Rise: Housing Ideas for Los Angeles

Martin Pedersen — Wed, 16 Dec 2020 03:30:00 +0000

This article was originally published on Common Edge.

City of Los Angeles Launches $100,000 Low-Rise Housing Competition

Eric Baldwin — Fri, 04 Dec 2020 05:30:00 +0000

The City of Los Angeles has launched a $100,000 housing design challenge for low-rise developments. The competition asks architects and landscape architects to imagine "appealing and sustainable" models of low-rise, multi-unit housing. Organized by the Mayor’s Office and Chief Design Officer Christopher Hawthorne, the initiative aims to create new paths to home-ownership and housing affordability in Los Angeles.

Christopher Hawthorne on the 2028 Olympics and LA Housing Shortage

The Second Studio Podcast — Thu, 17 Oct 2019 04:00:00 +0000

The Midnight Charette is an explicit podcast about design, architecture, and the everyday. Hosted by architectural designers David Lee and Marina Bourderonnet, it features a variety of creative professionals in unscripted conversations that allow for thoughtful takes and personal discussions. A wide array of subjects are covered with honesty and humor: some episodes provide useful tips for designers, while others are project reviews, interviews, or explorations of everyday life and design. The Midnight Charette is also available on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube.

City of Los Angeles Appoints Inaugural Chief Design Officer

Evan Pavka — Sat, 24 Mar 2018 16:00:00 +0000

Recently, long-standing architecture critic for the LA Times Christopher Hawthorne announced that he was stepping down to take up the position of chief design officer for the City of Los Angeles in Mayor Eric Garcetti’s administration. According to Hawthorne, the role will involve raising “the quality of public architecture and urban design across the city — and the level of civic conversation about those subjects.” This dramatic shift from the question: what is the role of the critic and architecture criticism in shaping civic architecture?

Critical Round-Up: Snøhetta's SFMOMA Extension

Patrick Lynch — Thu, 05 May 2016 09:30:00 +0000

Shoehorned into the narrow space behind Mario Botta’s 1995 building, the Snøhetta-designed new wing of the SFMOMA was forced to go where few museums have gone before: up. Rising 10 stories into the San Francisco skyline, the new building nearly triples the amount of existing gallery space and adds a new entrance into what is now one of the world’s largest buildings dedicated to modern art. As the museum is set to reopen to the public May 14th, the critics' takes are rolling in. Did the restrictive site inspire a unique design solution or limit the creative possibilities of the project? Read on to find out.

Critical Round-Up: The Most Important Buildings and Events of 2015

Patrick Lynch — Sun, 27 Dec 2015 09:30:00 +0000

The past 12 months have given us plenty to talk about: 2015 saw the opening of several marquee new museums, and the field took an introspective turn with the “State of the Art of Architecture” at the Chicago Biennial. Now it’s December, and that means it’s time for many critics to look back at the triumphs and failures of the year past and make predictions for the year to come.

Critical Round-Up: Diller Scofidio + Renfro's Broad Museum

Patrick Lynch — Thu, 24 Sep 2015 09:30:00 +0000

After teasing the general public by offering the press and 3,000 lucky local citizens with a preview day six months ago, the Broad Museum has finally opened its doors. Designed by Highline architects Diller, Scofidio + Renfro, the museum took four years and $140 million to build, adding its presence to LA’s architectural Broadway, Grand Avenue. With its visually striking facade given the tough task of responding to its enigmatic neighbor, Frank Gehry’s perennially polarizing Walt Disney Concert Hall, the building was sure to attract the attention of the critics, and they rose to the challenge in their droves. Read on to find out what five critics thought of the building dubbed “the veil over the vault.”

The Indicator: When Architects Attack

Sebastian Jordana — Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 +0000

When Christopher Hawthorne, architecture critic for the Los Angeles Times, gives a bad review there is the sense that he is essentially dismantling a building, chipping its façade apart, like breaking down some charade in defense of the public’s honor. Like a hired killer he disappears the architecture, but at the same time heightens its visibility in the culture.

Christopher Hawthorne takes on the Boulevards

Irina Vinnitskaya — Tue, 22 May 2012 15:00:27 +0000

Christopher Hawthorne’s article “Atlantic on the Move“, published in the Los Angeles Times, covers the transitions taking place along LA’s boulevards and one in particular: the 5600 block of Atlantic Avenue. Hawthorne reveals the changes taking place that are “reversing decades of neglect” among LA’s roadways. Among those that have promoted a cultural association with Los Angeles: traffic, congestion and miles of roadways. The article covers the small steps that take place over time via minor interventions that combine to change the face of the boulevards to more pedestrian and bike-friendly spaces for alternative modes of transportation.