Karissa Rosenfield

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Tour a Building a Day Throughout Archtober

If you live in or plan to visit New York City during the month of October, we suggest you set aside some time to participate in one of Archtober’s many events. What is Archtober? Archtober is New York’s official Architecture and Design Month. Hosted by the Center for Architecture and the AIA New York Chapter, the annual festival organizes a plethora of architecture activities, programs and exhibitions to take place throughout city during the month of October. The goal is to raise awareness of the important role design plays in the city, celebrate the richness of New York’s built environment, and simply enjoy some great architecture.

Archtober highlights include the Architecture & Design Film Festival at Tribeca Cinemas; the Municipal Art Society Summit for New York City, featuring over 100 speakers gathered “to debate the future of our city and spark conversations about planning, design, infrastructure, preservation, culture, and development;” the Pratt Institute’s "City by Numbers: Big Data and the Urban Future” symposium; and 31 architect-led “Building of the Day” tours.

Preview a selection of building’s on tour after the break and find out how to reserve tickets.

d3 Housing Tomorrow 2015

Exploration of contextual, cultural, and life cycle flows offers a critical lens for visualizing new housing strategies for living in the future. The d3 Housing Tomorrow competition invites architects, designers, engineers, and students to collectively explore, document, analyze, transform, and deploy innovative approaches to residential urbanism, architecture, interiors, and designed objects.

David Adjaye to Receive Du Bois Medal at Harvard

On September 30, Mohsen Mostafavi will present David Adjaye with the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal, Harvard University’s highest honor in the field of African and African American studies, at the Hutchins Center Honors. Since 2000, the Du Bois Medal has been awarded to individuals from across the globe in recognition of their contributions to African and African-American history and culture. Adjaye is one of nine luminaries receiving this year’s award, including Oprah Winfrey and the late Maya Angelou. More information about the ceremony can be found here.

2014 Restaurant & Bar Design Award Winners

The 2014 Restaurant & Bar Design Award winners have been announced! The award, now in its sixth cycle, is one of the most prestigious in hospitality. Projects from the UK to China and Australia have all been recognized as being some of the world's best designed restaurant and bars. See who was selected from 3000 international submissions, after the break.

RISE Competition Seeks Ideas to Combat Sea Level Rise in Vancouver

How will sea level rise affect Metro Vancouver and what can we do about it? Take a look at the #RISEIDEAS competition from SFU Public Square – an open ideas competition with a Grand Prize of $35,000 to find innovative ways to address sea level rise. Form a team of one to four people, submit your idea online, and you could take home the cash, rub shoulders with experts at the October 19 public exhibition day, and win free event tickets. The deadline for competition submissions is October 6, 2014. Check out the website for all the details.

Mecanoo Chosen to Redevelop Dutch Train Station

Mecanoo, in collaboration with engineering consultancy Movares, has been chose to redevelop the Ede train station in the Netherlands. An important entry for the city and Veluwe National Park, the design hopes to transform the station into a “showpiece” and vibrant center for the Veluwse Poort.

“The vision of the design is defined by an unobtrusive appearance; the natural environment serves as a starting point for the characteristic materialization that connects the buildings and the station square, emphasizing the area’s built identity,” described Mecanoo. 

90 of Mankind’s Greatest Architectural Achievements

Hagia Sophia, Guggenheim Bilbao, and Burj Khalifa are amongst 90 structural feats in which Pop Chart Lab has deemed to be “mankind’s greatest architectural achievements since prehistory.” Each are hand-drafted and presented on this blueprint-style infographic to commemorate great architecture.

August ABI Remains Strong

Demand for design services in the US continue to increase, as momentum from July’s highest recorded strength since 2007 continues. The American Institute of Architects reported the August Architecture Billings Index (ABI) at 53.0, down from July’s mark of 55.8, and the new projects inquiry at 62.6.

“One of the key triggers for accelerating growth at architecture firms is that long-stalled construction projects are starting to come back to life in many areas across the country,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “Long awaited access to credit from lending institutions and an increasing comfort level in the overall economy has helped revitalize the commercial real estate sector in recent months. Additionally, though, a crucial component to a broader industry-wide recovery is the emerging demand for new projects such as education facilities, government buildings and, in some cases, hospitals.”

A breakdown of regional highlights, after the break…

Álvaro Siza Wins Fritz Höger's Top Honors for Innovative Use of Brick

Álvaro Siza has won top honors in the “2014 Fritz Höger Awards for Excellence in Brick Architecture.” The awards, now in their third edition, highlight projects that harness the creative potential of brick. Projects from New Delhi, Barcelona and Frankfurt have all been awarded gold and silver prizes.

View all the winners, after the break.

Groundlab + WOWHAUS Chosen to Redesign Moscow’s Largest Park

Groundlab, WOWHAUS and Urbanica have been announced as winners of an international competition to redesign Sokolniki Park, Moscow’s largest park. Over the next 15 years, their 515 hectare masterplan, "Sokolniki. Nature's embassy in Moscow," will focus on preserving the 19th century park’s unique natural landscape as an extension of the Losiny Ostrov nature park by dividing it into three zones: Forest, Forest Park and Regular Park.

Images of the winning design, after the break.

Elemental, Arup, and Studio Tamassociati Win Zumtobel Awards for Innovation

Elemental, Arup, and Studio Tamassociati Win Zumtobel Awards for Innovation - Featured Image
Courtesy of Massimo Grimaldi and Emergency ngo

Jury chairman Winy Maas has announced three projects by Arup, Studio Tamassociati and Elemental as winners of the 2014 Zumtobel Group Awards. With a goal to promote innovations for sustainability and humanity in the built environment, the awards represent three categories: Applied Innovations, Buildings and Urban Developments & Initiatives. This year’s winners were selected from 15 nominees, shortlisted from a competitive pool of 356 submissions.

The winning projects are marked by their innovative and ground-breaking character: “The voting to find the number one project was very close in all three categories, because in each case we were able to choose from among a large number of heterogeneous projects of high quality," Described Maas. "One key criterion for the jury this year was the innovation factor, both in a technical sense and with a view to planning and participation processes as well as ecological and social challenges.”

See the winning projects, after the break.

Take a Walk on the High Line with Iwan Baan

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View looking west along one of the Rail Track Walks. Image © Iwan Baan, 2014 (Section 3)

Sunday marked the completion of the New York City High Line, a three-phased project that transformed the once disused elevated rail tracks on Manhattan’s West Side into one of the world’s most respected public parks. With the first section opening in 2009, architectural photographer Iwan Baan has been documenting the entire process. Now, for the first time we present to you a photographic journey through the completed High Line designed by James Corner Field Operations with Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Take a look, after the break.

In Residence: Ricardo Bofill

In Residence: Ricardo Bofill on Nowness.com

You’ve seen it before, Ricardo Bofill’s captivating transformation of Spain’s oldest cement factory into his own stunning, Brutalist residence. Now, tour through the home’s most unique spaces with the Spanish architect himself as he shares his story about The Factory in the latest of NOWNESSIn Residence series.

Paul Goldberger on the High Line

This past Sunday, New York celebrated the opening of the High Line’s final section. More playful and untamed than its counterparts, the elevated park’s northernmost segment seems to have pleased the critics. As Paul Goldberger explained, the High Line at the Rail Yards is “stunningly refreshing” and “gives you an altogether new, relaxed, low-key way of being on the High Line.” You can read Goldberger’s take on the new portion of the High Line here on Vanity Fair.

US Launches $1 Billion National Disaster Resilience Competition

Building on the model set forth by Rebuild by Design, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Rockefeller Foundation have announced a $1 billion National Disaster Resilience Competition. The two-phase competition invites communities affected by natural disasters to compete for funds that will help them recover from prior disasters and improve their ability to withstand future threats. See if your community complies with the competition rules here.

Olson Kundig's First Retrospective Opens in Nebraska

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Sol Duc Cabin, Olympic Peninsula, WA © Benjamin Benschneider

Today, Olson Kundig Architects’ first-ever retrospective Anthology opened its doors at Omaha’s KANEKO. Spanning five decades of Olson Kundig work, the site-specific exhibition will focus on the Seattle-based firm’s unique creative process, showcasing the many influences and design explorations that have shaped the practice over the years. Follow us after the break for more information and a sampling of the firms work.

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Deborah Berke Tapped to Design Cummins' Indianapolis Headquarters

New York-based Deborah Berke Partners has been selected to design a $30 million headquarters for Indiana-based diesel engine manufacture Cummins. Planned for downtown Indianapolis on the former four-acre site of Market Square Arena, the project will provide office space for up to 400 employees, as well as ground-floor retail, parking and public green space. Berke was chosen over SHoP Architects and Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects.

10 Modernist Buildings Receive Conservation Grants from Getty Foundation

The Getty Foundation has named the first 10 recipients of its philanthropic “Keeping It Modern” initiative, which aims to advance the understanding and preservation of 20th-century modern architecture. From Louis Kahn’s Salk Institute to Le Corbusier’s Parisian apartment, each recipient has been chosen for their architectural significance and potential to advance conservation practices related to modern architecture.

View all 10 projects, after the break...