Frac Center

Take a tour through the newly built Taltal Public Library, designed by Santiago based firm Murua-Valenzuela. The small town project is located opposite of the main square and close to the Alhambra Theater, which was also recently refurbished by the architects. Responding to a narrow site of 7 by 40 meters while being situated between mediators, the architects conducted a series of indoor spaces in order to “avoid the domestic condition.” The spaces of varying heights house the library activities and end with a reading room that is connected to an interior courtyard. Construction has been completed and the Taltal Public Library is already in use.

The final entries are in for the international redesign competition of the St. Petersburg Pier in Florida. The competition seeks to generate a new identity and iconic landmark that will honor the history and relevance of the Pier for the next generation. Michael Maltzan Architecture, BIG and West 8 Urbaban Design and Landscape Architecture are the three architectural firms selected from the list of nine semi finalists. Continue reading after the break to view the radically different design proposals.

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We share with you another stunning video by visual artist Luis Urculo. Since the opening of his studio in 2006, Urculo’s videos have become well known and highly respected throughout the architecture industry. His newest video, Covers, is an original piece that assembles a variety of objects to physically represent modern architectural icons.

Construction of Richard Meier’s Shenzhen Clubhouse is nearing completion. Unique geometry fully clad in white metal panels play with overlays of solid and void, unmistakably consistent with the Richard Meier signature style. Being located on an island in the center of OCT Bay, the facility is surrounded by large bodies of water and lush gardens. The Shenzhen Clubhouse is scheduled to be completed early next year.

Continue reading for the architects project description, photographs, renderings and drawings.

Architects: Richard Meier & Partners Architects LLP Location: Shenzhen, China Project Area: 11,000 sqm Completion: 2012 Photographs: Richard Meier & Partners Architects LLP

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SFMOMA reveals the design for the museums new expansion, designed by the Norway-based architecture firm Snøhetta. The expansion transforms the current Mario Botta-designed building into a scale that “meets the museum’s mission.” Increased public circulation, flexible gallery space and intuitive navigation are a few of the projects main goals.

Continue after the break for more information, images and video.

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Help choose which architectural masterpiece will become the next LEGO® Architecture model. The top nominees include Moshe Safdie’s prefabricated Montreal residential complex Habitat 67, London’s second tallest building known as ‘The Gherkin‘ by Foster & Partners and the famous Taiwanese high-rise Taipei 101. Cast your votes HERE and tell us which building is your favorite!

As the Highline has everyone looking up, James Ramsey and Dan Barasch are asking people to start looking down. James Ramsey’s vision to transform the abandoned Williamsburg Bridge Trolley Terminal into a subterranean park filled with sunlight and lush vegetation is gaining international attention and support. The satellite engineer turned architect has developed a skylight using fiber-optic technology that will naturally light and bring life to this forgotten, graffiti-covered cavity below the streets of New York City.

Continue reading for more information, video and exclusive statements from Ramsey and Barasch.

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Navy Pier officials listed the five design teams selected to compete in the final phase of the Navy Pier competition. Each international design team, consisting of architects, urban designers, landscape architects and many other design professionals, is required to submit design proposals for the Chicago Pierscape and undergo an oral interview with officials. The schematic designs will be exhibited to the public in early February and the winning proposal will be announced later that month.

The five teams selected are lead by AECOM, Aedas Architects, James Corner Field Operations, !melk and the Xavier Vendrell Studio – the only team lead by a Chicagoan. Continue reading after the break for the complete list of the teams.

As the SCI-Arc students finalize their thesis projects each September, they join the faculty in an annual ritual of constructing a temporary pavilion that will host that year’s graduation ceremony. Produced by Them Too Productions, this video documents the development and fabrication of Netscape, the 2011 SCI-Arc Graduation Pavilion by Oyler Wu Collaborative and the students of SCI-Arc. View ArchDaily’s detailed coverage of the 2011 pavilion HERE.

We are sharing with you an interview of architect Tony Fretton of Tony Fretton Architects conducted by Hugo Oliveira, as seen in Jornal Arquitectos. Prior to founding his firm in 1982, Fretton was Principal Designer at Arup Associates. He is deeply committed to architectural education and has experience teaching worldwide, from the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London to Harvard University in Cambridge. He currently serves as a Professor of Architectural Design and Interiors at TU Delft in the Netherlands.

The complete interview following the break.

Together with the local Natal organization Centro Sócio Pastoral Nossa Senhora da Conceiçao (Centro Sócio), Herzog & de Meuron released the design for a new gymnasium at the School of Dinarte Martiz. The gymnasium is the “pioneering architectural project” of a larger urban plan for the neighborhood of Mãe Luiza in Natal, Brazil.

Architects: Herzog & de Meuron Partner: Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron, Ascan Mergenthaler, Markus Widmer Project Architects: Tomislav Dushanov (Associate), Mariana Vilela Client: Centro Sócio Pastoral Nossa Senhora de Conceição Location: Natal, Brazil Construction: 2012 - 2013

Continue reading for more information.

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Hilary Sample and Michael Meredith present the proposal by MOS. The project questions the idea of homeownership and re-imagines public housing in The Oranges, New Jersey. MOS is one of five interdisciplinary teams participating in “MoMA’s Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream.” Each team is challenged to re-imagine struggling American cities and suburbs, seeing the current economic crisis as an opportunity to evolve.

Unbuilt Washington

Zaha Hadid discusses the challenges she has faced throughout her life and career. She talks about the criticism that comes along with being an Arabic woman architect with “unconventional” designs and the unconditional support from her family. Hadid describes architecture as an exciting but painfully demanding field, stating, “All the arts are not respected enough.”

The modernization of the Messe Basel is making progress. Developed by Basel architects Herzog & de Meuron on behalf of the MCH Group, the project aims renew the existing exhibition space and become a popular destination for pedestrians and foreign visitors. The new multifunctional exhibition building is scheduled for completion in 2013.

Architects: Herzog & de Meuron Basel Ltd., Basel Location: Basel, Switzerland Client: MCH Messe Switzerland AG, Basel, Switzerland Project Area: 141,000 m2 Construction Period: 2010 – 2013 Photographs: Courtesy of MCH Swiss Exhibition (Basel) Ltd.

Continue reading for more images, renderings and information.

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The Bispevika mixed-use development proposal by PUSHAK maximizes the views of the harbor and integrates passive design methods to minimize energy use. The proposal is part of an invited competition that will conclude in January 2012.

Architects: PUSHAK Client: HAV Eiendom Location: Bispevika, Oslo, Norway Project Size: 35000 sqm Project Status: Invited Competition Entry

Continue reading for more project details.

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Architectural designer and historian, Rachel Preston Prinz, discusses ancient building methods and how they may be integrated into modern design in order to create sustainable architecture. Rachel Preston Prinz has studied cathedrals and villas in Europe, as well as alongside Americans specializing in religious architecture, historic preservation and ultra-high-end custom residential design.