Simple in form but complex in substance, “What is Architecture?” remains an existential question for a lot of architecture students and young professionals. In an attempt to define this ever-changing interrogation and expose the different visions out there, the interview series: WIA – What is architecture? asks four, straightforward, questions to world-leading architectural designers and thinkers. Seeking to uncover their opinion on what architecture is and what it can do, these short videos reveal responses to “What is architecture? What can architecture do? What is your architectural position? and What is your design method?”.
The Second Studio (formerly The Midnight Charette) is an explicit podcast about design, architecture, and the everyday. Hosted by Architects David Lee and Marina Bourderonnet, it features different creative professionals in unscripted conversations that allow for thoughtful takes and personal discussions.
A variety of subjects are covered with honesty and humor: some episodes are interviews, while others are tips for fellow designers, reviews of buildings and other projects, or casual explorations of everyday life and design. The Second Studio is also available on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube.
This week David and Marina give an introduction to what architecture is, covering how architecture is different from 'buildings'; the key aspects of a work of architecture (and what makes for good architecture); why architecture is necessary, but also unnecessary; the common belief that architecture only pertains to the exterior of buildings, the common focus on styles; whether or not architecture is subjective; and more.
https://www.archdaily.com/959496/the-second-studio-podcast-on-why-architecture-is-necessary-but-also-unnecessaryThe Second Studio Podcast
Talking to the Louisiana Channel, German architect Anna Heringer outlines the way she works and her multi-disciplinary approach to architectural practice. Growing up in a small town at the Austrian-Bavarian border close to Salzburg - Heringer spent a year living and working in Bangladesh at the age of 19, a place that is now home to a majority of her office's projects. Heringer describes herself as a mix of things in addition to being an architect, describing herself as an activist and a development worker - using her creativity to explore ideas in a variety of forms and media.
If someone tried to sell you a virtual building, would you buy it? That’s right- a virtual building. Not something that will ever be built in the physical world, or something you can occupy, but an image you can look at, or a video you could watch. This is exactly what’s being proposed as architecture enters the realm of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) that have taken the world by storm. And in the design profession, which continuously seeks to redefine what it means to be an architect, NFTs have big implications for the future of digitization and commoditization of the unbuilt environment.
Inspired by the colors and textures of the surrounding environment, Pritzker Prize winners RCR Architectes have translated the Algarve's landscape into new residences and facilities at the Palmares Ocean Living & Golf Resort. A total of 37 new signature apartments and luxury villas are currently under construction, with completion due dates expected between summer 2021 and 2022.
Dominique Perrault Architecture, together with Chinese studio Zhubo Design Co, has won the international competition for the new campus of Shenzen's Institute of Design and Innovation. Stretching along a mountain range, the large-scale horizontal structure preserves the views towards the landscape, while creating a strong relationship between the learning spaces and the environment.
Globalization and its pension for both virtual and physical connectivity has led to the linking of the world's economies, territories, and cultures and nowhere is this more evident than in the field of architecture.
The American architect, designer, and futurist Buckminster Fuller once defined the Dymaxion principle as “constructing ever more with ever less weight, time, and ergs per each given level of functional performance.”
Few businesses in the United States are regarded with more fondness than mom-and-pop retailers. There’s an “all’s right with the world” quality about owner-run shops that meet a neighborhood’s everyday needs and, through repeated face-to-face exchanges, help people feel they’re members of a mutually supportive community. And yet for a long time, mom-and-pop stores have been under stress. In the half-century after 1950, cars shifted much of United States’s retailing to unwalkable roadside strips and winnowed the ranks of neighborhood-scale mom-and-pops. In the past two decades, the burgeoning of the internet has intensified the pressure on brick-and-mortar retail, a situation worsened by the pandemic.
Perhaps no modern character from TV or film is more enthralled with architects than George Costanza from Seinfeld. And, let’s be honest here, how many architects chose the profession in order to say those words, “I am an Architect?” Well, what if George was an architect? What kind of architect would he be? In this episode, Stewart breaks down scenes from Seinfeld in order to piece together the kind of architect he really wants to be. Using seven exhibits and a lawyerly argument, he builds his case around this most pressing 'what if' scenario. Exhibits range from George’s overt references, like his claim to have designed the addition to the Guggenheim, to a more psychological assessment of his proclivities for cozy, velvet-lined spaces and concluding with his fascination for pretending in the first place.
Benin's National Assembly in Porto-Novo Proposal. Image Courtesy of Kéré Architecture
Founder of the Berlin-based firm Kéré Architecture, Francis Kéré, has won the 2021 Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture. Presented by the University of Virginia and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello, the award is one of four honors recognizing achievements in architecture, citizen leaderships, global innovation, and law. The Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medals recognize the exemplary contributions of recipients to the endeavors in which Jefferson excelled and held in high regard.
For the 17th international architecture exhibition – la biennale di Venezia 2021, Austria is creating a platform of debate around how we envision the architecture of the future. In fact, the Austrian contribution, entitled “Platform Austria”, curated by Peter Mörtenböck and Helge Mooshammer, seeks to articulate the profound changes established by the development of digital platforms in our built environment.
Le Corbusier's fascination with the automobile is evident in the architect's various photographic records of him posing proudly next to a car in front of his architectural work. According to the Franco-Swiss architect, in addition to enabling more efficient and economical construction, the industrialization of architecture could form the basis of improved aesthetic results in the same way the modern car chassis supports the creative and modern design of the automobile body. Yet, while vehicles have experienced impressive changes since the 1930s, it can be said that architecture has been slower to adopt the advances of other industries.
But that has been changing little by little. Driven by concerns around sustainability, the use of non-renewable fossil resources, and efficiency, coupled with accelerating demand to build new buildings and more accessible infrastructure, the construction industry has been incorporating numerous new technologies, including those adopted from other industries. In addition, renewable materials such as wood have been identified as an ideal construction material—especially when incorporating innovative mass timber products such as CLT and glulam, design methods and processes like BIM and DfMA, tools for visualization such as VDC, and tools for manufacturing such as CNC. We know, these are a lot of acronyms, but we will try to clarify them throughout this article.
Tarot is often described as a mirror of the soul. Much like the spaces we inhabit, we can look at the symbols housed within the 72-card deck and see reflections of ourselves and our belief systems. The object and practice itself contain many architectural associations: It’s not uncommon for words like “structures,” “foundations,” and “home” to come up in a tarot reading. Traditional cards depict towers, castles, and churches. Sometimes the cards are described as keys, sometimes as gateways.
https://www.archdaily.com/959469/the-fantastic-architecture-of-niki-de-saint-phalleLeilah Stone
During this month we will discuss from a critical perspective the meaning of rendering for architecture. What are the models and what are the limits of rendering in the design process of a building?. And from this perspective ask ourselves what is a rendering? It is just an image to win competitions and prospects clients. Or is it an effective tool for the construction process?
A freestanding bathtub in an affordable price segment may not be usual, but, as Duravit impressively proves with the D-Neo line, it’s possible. Image Courtesy of Duravit
D-Neo, designer Bertrand Lejoly’s flexible new collection for Duravit, is evidence that premium design and affordability need not always be mutually exclusive.
The introduction of new techniques and materials, along with innovations in indoor plumbing systems, resulting from the industrial revolution, paved the way for vertical living. Investigating specifically a period of time where a flux of population was driven to cities, and social class divisions were being questioned, this article looks back at the evolution of the house plan in Europe between 1760 and 1939.
Tackling the transformation of the housing unit during the industrial revolution all the way to the interwar period, this feature highlights four prominent examples that rethought traditional layouts and responded to the challenges of their time. Still influential today, the mentioned models, restored for use, happen to be part of the 21st-century urban fabric. Located in London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Moscow, the plans showcase the ever-changing interior wellbeing standards, directly linked to a broader metamorphosis, equalizing and providing for growing urban populations. Discover the evolution of living units from the Back to Back Houses to the Garden Cities of England; the Haussmannien Block, a Vertical Living for a Modern Bourgeoisie; the Extension of Amsterdam, from Alcove Housing to Social Housing Blocks; and the Transition Type House in Russia.
The Estonian Centre for Architecture is presenting the exhibition “Square! Positively shrinking” curated by Jiří Tintěra, Garri Raagmaa, Kalle Vellevoog, Martin Pedanik, and Paulina Pähn, in the Pavilion of Estonia at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Hosted in the Arsenale complex, the project will “explore the role of high-quality urban space in enhancing the future development of small towns that are in jeopardy of depopulation, […] sparking a debate on the lesser-known facet of urbanization”.
Architecture and design practice Brooks + Scarpa have designed a new complex for the Ministry of Environment Water and Agriculture (MEWA) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The 1.2 million square foot complex includes seven buildings and a solar system that will generate 75% of the entire energy use of the complex of buildings. The team designed the project as a "tapestry of spaces and landscapes" offering connections through shaded outdoor rooms.
Italian architect Vittorio Gregotti, author of The Territory of Architecture (1966), believed that architecture had its origin when mankind placed the first stone on the ground. Recognizing a place is the first step towards an architectural project, whether intentionally or not. Understanding the project's location and its context is the basis for many design choices and is, therefore, a key aspect in the field of architecture.
More than a year into this worldwide experiment of working from home, we have not yet landed on the perfect formula for the workforce being once again in the workspace. Furthermore, not only has the Working From Home (WFH) situation lasted longer than anticipated, it has embedded itself into the way we will work forevermore. As vaccines are rolled out, leaders of all types of organizations must now seriously consider how to handle the return of their employees to the physical office space.
Mahalla: Urban Rural Living. Image Courtesy of Christ & Gantenbein
“Mahalla: Urban Rural Living” is the first participation of the Republic of Uzbekistan at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia. Open to the public from May 22 to November 21, 2021, at Quarta Tesa, Arsenale, the exhibition is curated by Emanuel Christ and Christoph Gantenbein, professors of architecture and design at ETH Zurich, and founding partners of Christ & Gantenbein.
Landscape and architecture studios Felixx and Orange Architects have designed a new housing development in the heart of IJburg, Amsterdam. Rising atop an artificial island, the project is organized around the surrounding marina to provide family housing. The new residential building will include commercial and social programming, as well as new areas for the public realm.
Solar radiation is one of the most important criteria in architectural projects, as it impacts several decisions ranging from the orientation of the building on the site to the choice of windows and doors. Therefore, to ensure the quality of lighting and visual comfort in building interiors, it is crucial to study the sun path and the quantity of sunlight in each given space.
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.jpg "Residential houses \"Eigen Haard\", Spaarndammerplantsoen, Amsterdam, Original state, 1915. Image Courtesy of Wikimedia")
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.jpg?1615834807 "Atlântica House / AR Arquitetos. Image: © Federico Cairoli")
