Whether it’s a guilt-driven effort to reduce one’s own carbon footprint, an economy-inspired reduction in energy bills or simply taking advantage of a government incentive scheme, sustainable construction, and design choices are not only being made by the most eco-aware amongst us, but now by anyone with an eye on both the current cost of energy and the future cost of its obsolescence.
Whatever the motivation, as we desperately attempt to reduce our self-destructive reliance on fossil fuels, our homes and buildings are gradually turning their backs on gas – one of the final hurdles standing between us and a carbon-neutral home. These alternative systems and appliances run on renewable electricity instead, breaking our reliance on emission-causing gas-dependant products and using innovative electrical technology to improve them too.
A quick glance today at the cities of the African continent reveals a rich diversity of urban settlements, ranging in type from rural enclaves to sprawling metropolises. That quick glance also reveals a larger picture of cities that are continuously adapting and evolving as we enter the decade of the 2020s – yet this evolution in many places is taking place at the expense of those who are less fortunate. This is not happening in a vacuum, as the reason why a lot of African cities look as they do today is a result of a segregated organization during colonial rule.
Courtesy of Raymond Neutra and the Neutra Institute, Photo by Julius Shulman | VDL Research House
It was, of course, Frank Lloyd Wright who set up the ground for modern architecture to happen in Los Angeles. Then came the Viennese, Rudolph Schindler in 1920 and Richard Neutra in 1925 at the invitation of Schindler. Both worked for Wright choosing to learn from him what they saw as essential—by focusing on spatial and formal clarity, transformability, restrained materiality, and the living environment to achieve a desirable quality of life within. Neutra and Schindler collaborated at first, and then each built a rich portfolio, mainly comprising houses and apartment blocks. Universal in principle, these abstract robust structures defined and led the development of a local building vernacular. These buildings, of which there are several hundred, are now strongly associated with the two architects’ adopted city.
Parametric Architectureintroduces a series of upcoming workshops in partnership with ArchDaily. This workshop aims to provide comprehensive knowledge and practical skills in designing efficient geometries while leveraging data and visualization techniques to gain insights into the structural performance of their designs. Students will learn the fundamentals of parametric design, structural analysis, and optimization techniques, enabling them to create structure-aware and visually appealing architectural and engineering designs.
https://www.archdaily.com/1006637/workshop-data-structure-d-designArchDaily Team
In this workshop we will explore together the urbanist concept of the ‘15-Minute City’ alongside London-based architectural group Archigram’s ‘Instant Cities’. You will be invited to explore the surrounding hidden gems of modernist architecture in Notting Hill. Participants will record, document, and represent their surroundings through a range of techniques and materials, such as: collage, photography, rubbings and drawing.
The Singapore Institute of Architects (SIA) presents the highly-anticipated annual Singapore Archifest for its 17th iteration starting late September this year. Directed by Calvin Chua, Archifest 2023 warmly welcomes you to “Interim: Acts of Adaptation”– an invitation to rethink our built environment as continually being in a state of transition. Presenting itself as a lab, this edition of Archifest investigates the potential of adaptive architecture as the mode of action in response to pressing environmental, cultural, and technological change.
One way to employ color is through monochrome, a design technique that involves using a single tone or color in a space. In architecture, monochrome is a powerful tool where different shades can be created through the play of lights and shadows, generating spaces that offer unique experiences to their inhabitants.
