As an architect, critic and winner of the 2002 Pritzker Prize, Glenn Murcutt, (born 25 July 1936) has designed some of Australia's most innovative and environmentally sensitive buildings over a long career—and yet he still remains a one man office. Despite working on his own, primarily on private residences and exclusively in Australia, his buildings have had a huge influence across the world and his motto of "touch the earth lightly" is internationally recognized as a way to foster harmonious, adaptable structures that work with the surrounding landscape instead of competing with it.
Architecture News
Andrés Jaque / Office for Political Innovation Unveil Experimental Madrid School
Andres Jacque / Office for Political Innovation has released their design for the Reggio School in Encinar de los Reyes, Madrid. Promoted by the Reggio Center for Pedagogical Research and Innovation, the project is based on the idea that architectural environments can evoke in children the desire for exploration and inquiry.
The Temperature Rise of 520 Cities by 2050 (is Grim)
The climate in Madrid in 2050 will look more like the climate in Marrakesh, Morocco today. Stockholm will feel more like Budapest, London like Barcelona, Moscow like Sofia, Seattle like San Francisco, and Tokyo like Changsa in China.
The research "Understanding Climate Change Starting with an Analysis of Similar Cities" published in the scientific magazine PLOS ONE by The Crowther Lab of ETH Zurich, paints a grim picture of the future for the world's urban centers.
Spotlight: Eduardo Souto de Moura
Eduardo Souto de Moura (born 25 July 1952), the Portuguese architect that won the 2011 Pritzker Prize, is known for designs that are formally simple yet serious and at times, dramatic, created through his thoughtful use of colors and materials. His architecture is both versatile and consistent, contextual yet universal, and rarely affected by current trends or styles.
Bathroom Elements Designed by Architects: TONO by Foster+Partners
Funded by Norman Foster in 1967, Foster+Partners studio develops projects that integrate architecture and engineering with interior and object design. In a special collaboration with Porcelanosa – experts in the fabrication of furniture and accessories made out of stone, ceramic, brass, wood and KRION®–, they have designed a collection of bathrooms in simple and minimalistic ways, highlighting the essence of the materials and the trade of their fabrication.
The collection has been branded as TONO and its objects can be mixed and adapt to diverse typologies, from residential interiors to commercial spaces and offices.
Honglin Li Designs Waste-to-Energy Skyscraper in Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Designer Honglin Li has created a proposal for a waste-to-energy skyscraper in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Called FILTRATION, the project was awarded Honorable Mention in the 2019 eVolo Skyscraper Competition. The modular, prefabricated megastructure contains several Material Recovery Facilities and Water Treatment Plants to recycle the floating garbage and clean seawater while taking on the world energy crisis.
ArchDaily & Strelka Award: Vote Now to Decide the Winners
ArchDaily, Strelka Institute, and Strelka KB have selected a long list of 50 architectural projects nominated for the joint ArchDaily & Strelka Award, which celebrates emerging architects and new ideas that transform the contemporary city. Now the readers of ArchDaily and Strelka Mag can vote for their favorite project to decide the finalists.
Renzo Piano's Paris Courthouse Through the Lens of Marwan Harmouche
Architectural photographer Marwan Harmouche has published images of the new Paris Courthouse, designed by Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Situated on the northern edge of Paris, the Tribunal de Paris regroups various facilities previously dispersed around the capital, becoming the largest law courts complex in Europe.
The Great Umayyad Mosque of Aleppo: from Historic Islamic Monument to War Battlefield
Islam, other than describing a religious belief, is a word that identifies a unique type of architecture that dates back thousands of years. It has been formed by a civilization that transformed the qualities of this belief into visible and tangible material, building structures with a striking focus on details and experiences within enclosed spaces.
Islamic architecture is an architecture that does not change its form easily. In fact, its principles have been more or less the same since thousands of years ago, with minor changes based on functional adaptations. To this day, hundreds of buildings still stand as a representation of the history of Islamic architecture and are still used just as they have been in the past.
War, however, has no religion or cultural nostalgia, and even the holiest, most historically-significant sites are threatened with complete destruction. The Great Umayyad Mosque in Aleppo, originally built by the first imperial Islamic dynasty and currently situated within a UNESCO World Heritage Site, stood yet again as a battlefield during the recent Syrian War, but this time, lost its most significant and resilient element, an 11th-century Seljuk Minaret.
Cutaway America: Discover 8 United States Landmarks in Cross-Section
American home services website Angie's List has released a series of commissioned images showcasing eight United States landmarks in cross-section. Dubbed Cutaway America, the project takes a new perspective on projects that people are used to seeing from the outside. From idealistic designs that attempt to become one with nature to complex infrastructure, these cutaways hint at a longer story of America and its history.
Details about Lisbon Triennale 2019
Since 2007, Lisbon Architecture Triennale has been developing its mission as a non-profit organization fostering debate, thinking and practice in Architecture. The large number of activities initiated throughout its 10 years of existence is the best witness to this commitment.
Spotlight: Geoffrey Bawa
Despite his late entry into architecture, Geoffrey Manning Bawa FRIBA, (July 23, 1919 – May 27, 2003), explored modernism and its cultural implications and created a unique, recognizable style of design which had a lasting impact on architects across the world. Well versed in Modernist theory, Bawa was one of the original proponents of Tropical Modernism, a design movement in which sensitivity for local context combines with the form-making principles of modernism. Bawa’s architecture led to the formation of a new architectural identity and aesthetic for many tropical environments, and won him recognition and awards, including the Chairman’s Award of the Aga Kahn Special Chairman’s Award for Architecture (2001) and the title Deshamanya, in recognition of his contributions to his country by the government of Sri Lanka.
OMA Wins Competition to Design New Shenzhen Financial Center
OMA has won the competition to design a new international financial center in Shenzhen, China. Called the IFEC, the project combines large scale conference facilities with a 400-room hotel and public programs. Located at the waterfront of Qianhai, the New District in the Pearl River Delta, the IFEC was designed to be a beacon for ships sailing along the 21st-century maritime silk road.
MAD's First Built Project in Europe Nears Completion
MAD Architects’ first built project in Europe is nearing completion in the French capital of Paris. Led by Ma Yansong, MAD was awarded the project in 2012 following an international design competition, working in collaboration with French firm Biecher Architectes. The building, named “UNIC,” emerges as part of a mixed-use masterplan envisioned adjacent to the Martin Luther King Park: a 10-hectare green space.
ETH Zurich Develops 3D-Printed Concrete Columns
ETH Zurich has unveiled details of “Concrete Choreography,” an installation recently inaugurated in Riom, Switzerland. The installation presents the first robotically 3D printed concrete stage, consisting of columns fabricated without formwork, and printed to their full height in 2.5 hours. The process is expected to greatly improve the efficiency of concrete construction while achieving the fabrication of complex components.
Morpholio Brings Iconic Furniture Designs to Life with Augmented Reality
Morpholio has unveiled a suite of new iconic furniture designs brought to life through augmented reality with Morpholio Board. Joining forces with manufacturer Knoll and one of the world’s top AR visualization companies, Theia Interactive, the team is showcasing a range of work from designers like Eero Saarinen and Marcel Breuer to Mies van der Rohe’s iconic Barcelona chair.
Spotlight: Arata Isozaki
Japanese architect, teacher, and theorist Arata Isozaki (born 23 July, 1931) helped bring Japanese influence to some of the most prestigious buildings of the 20th century, and continues to work at the highest level today. Initially working in a distinctive form of modernism, Isozaki developed his own thoughts and theories on architecture into a complex style that invokes pure shape and space as much as it evokes post-modern ideas. Highly adaptable and socially concerned, his work has been acclaimed for being sensitive to context while still making statements of its own.
Bee Breeders Announces Winners of the Gauja Footbridge Competition
Bee Breeders has revealed the winners of the Gauja National Park Footbridge competition. The Nature Conservation Agency of Latvia paired up with Bee Breeders to celebrate the 45th anniversary of Latvia's largest national park. Teams were asked to create a footbridge marking the park's entry to serve as an architectural landmark that adds to the park's existing collection of 500 cultural and historical monuments, including medieval castles and towns.
Winning Designs for Abu Dhabi Flamingo Observation Tower
Bee Breeders has announced the winners of the Abu Dhabi Flamingo Observation Tower competition. Situated in the Al Wathba Reserve, 40 kilometers southeast of Abu Dhabi, the competition site oversees five square kilometers of wetlands, salt flats, and fossilized sands and dunes.
Free Plugin Exports 360-Degree Images from SketchUp to be Seen in Virtual Reality
With the popularization of virtual reality and augmented reality, new ways of exploring architectural representations have become available to professionals and students. Immersion in three-dimensional digital models is increasingly common, whether through a computer screen, smartphone or VR headsets. In light of this reality, which seemed overly futuristic up until a few years ago, the online platform Tour Fácil has launched a free plugin that can view exported 360-degree images from SketchUp in virtual or augmented reality.
NextOffice's Artist Forum to be a Cultural Hub for Sadra, Iran
NextOffice’s Sadra Artists Forum is a public cultural center to be located in the arid suburban town of Sadra. Consisting entirely of low-lying or subterranean building levels, the project's unique structure contrasts the surrounding urban area and uniquely shapes the relationship between interior and exterior spaces.
Photographer Captures the Social and Physical Transformations of Shanghai
Shanghai is a city full of contradictions. Beneath the towering skyscrapers and contemporary complexes, old houses and shops are tucked away, gradually falling apart. The city's disappearing streets caught the attention of many international photographers. Some displayed the relationship between old vs new, while others focused on the historic districts and their cultural significance.
Canadian photographer Greg Girard, who spent most of his time in Asia, examined the social and physical transformations of the Chinese city and published a photo-book titled “Phantom Shanghai”.