Former ArchDaily's Managing Editor. BA in Architecture from Newcastle University, and interested in how overlooked elements of architectural culture —from the media to competitions to procurement processes can alter the designs we end up with.
Update: The Japan Sport Council has now unveiled images of ZHA's redesigned Tokyo National Stadium, which Zaha Hadid Architects say will make "make the stadium even more efficient, user-focussed, adaptable and sustainable." The capacity of the stadium will remain at 80,000 seats.
Now, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has added fuel to the fire by saying that it would support a scaled-back plan for the entire event: "We want to see more existing venues, we want to see the use of more temporary grandstands," said Committee vice president John Coates.
More on Tokyo's plan to dial down its Olympics after the break
Foster + Partners has released new images of 425 Park Avenue in New York, the project which turned heads in 2012 when videos of the four competing architects presenting their proposals were released to Youtube. The new images show a slightly altered design for the glazed entrance, where a mezzanine on either side replaces what was originally a double height space in the entire lobby. The new images also give a glimpse into the building's interiors, where curtain glass walls make the most of spectacular views across Manhattan and Central Park. Read on after the break for all the images.
In his interesting profile of the young London-based practice Assemble, Rowan Moore of the Observer investigates the work of arguably the best collective of designers to emerge from 2010's "Autumn of Pop-Ups" - examining how they have stayed true to the more noble aspects of pop-up architecture despite the concept's increasing commercialization. From their first project, a temporary cinema in a petrol station, to their recent Yardhouse project in Stratford, Moore finds an architecture that values exuberance and fun, yet is mature and refined. You can read his article in full here.
Lightning doesn't strike twice in the same place - or so goes the saying. But if you've ever watched a skyscraper in a storm, you probably know that this saying isn't exactly true. What might be a little more rare is lightning striking three places at once, but thanks to this amazing timelapse video by Craig Shimala we now know that this too is possible, as the lightning rods on Chicago's Willis Tower, Trump Tower and John Hancock Center are all hit simultaneously (keep an eye out at the 36-second mark, and see the still image after the break). Perhaps the most amazing thing of all is that this is the second time Shimala has recorded this exact occurrence - you can also see his video from 2010 after the break.
The area of Nine Elms in London. Image Courtesy of Battersea Power Station Development Company
Wandsworth Council has announced that it plans to hold an international design competition for a new pedestrian and cylist bridge across the Thames, connecting Nine Elms on the South of the river to Pimlico on the North. The announcement comes in response to a feasibility study by Transport for London which concluded that a bridge at this location could handle around 9,000 walkers and 9,000 cyclists a day at a construction cost of £40 million.
Winner of the competition, Dacha in a Dvor by Megabudka. Image Courtesy of The Morton Group
Design studio Megabudka has won the Russian Character competition, an open contest to design a culture and education centre for the Moscow suburb of Butovo Park. Their concept, entitled "Dacha in a Dvor" plays on the typically Russian idea of the Dacha, a seasonal home located outside the city that has been a part of Russian culture since the reign of Peter the Great.
The design by Megabudka consists of a cluster of buildings arranged around a "Dvor", or central courtyard containing apple trees and recreational spaces. As a whole, the design aims to bring the joys of seasonal rural life to the outskirts of Moscow, with a single flexible space shared by the whole community.
Peter Zumthor and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) have revealed a revised design for the museum's $650 million new home on Museum Row in Los Angeles. The new design still features the sinuous glass and grey concrete slab raised a full story off the ground, but under the new proposal part of the museum would bridge Wilshire Boulevard to touch down on what is currently a car park opposite.
The change comes in response to criticisms that the previous design would put the neighboring La Brea Tar Pits at risk, threatening their status as an active paleontological research site and a popular tourist destination. The shape of the new design removes this risk by withdrawing from the boundary with the adjacent tar pits, without compromising on floor space in the museum.
The Gallipoli Peninsula, at the Western end of Turkey, holds a particular significance for the country as the site of a major World War One battle in which the declining Ottoman Empire repelled an attempted invasion by British forces. Today, it is seen as one of the defining moments that contributed to the formation of modern day Turkey, and the site of the battle is commemorated by a national park which includes a series of monuments and memorials at the southern tip of the peninsula.
What can you do with a business district that has an office vacancy rate of 40%, is completely separated from its surroundings and is facing increasing competition from business centers emerging throughout the city? These are questions that are increasingly being asked about Moscow's International Business District, the symbol of capitalism that was planned in 1992 after the fall of the Soviet Union, yet is still under construction today.
Eduardo Cassina and Liva Dudareva, founders of METASITU and researchers at the Strelka Institute, have proposed a provocative idea in response to this dilemma: envisaging the business district's future in 2041, they imagine a scenario where the district is linked by underground metro to Sheremetyevo And Domodedovo airports in the North and South - forming the world's first mega-airport, and the first one where it is possible to live in the terminal building without ever leaving.
Read on after the break for more explanation of idea
The Gallipoli Peninsula, at the Western end of Turkey, holds a particular significance for the country as the site of a major World War One battle in which the declining Ottoman Empire repelled an attempted invasion by British forces. Today, it is seen as one of the defining moments that contributed to the formation of modern day Turkey, and the site of the battle is commemorated by a national park which includes a series of monuments and memorials at the southern tip of the peninsula.
Aiming to consolidate these sites in to a more coherent whole, the Çanakkale government launched a competition to redesign the area. Today we bring you the second place entry, by ONZ Architects + MDesign + Lola + 24H Architecture. Read on after the break for more on their design.
C.F. Møller Architects have won in an invited competition to design a new building for the Herningsholm Vocational School in Herning, Denmark. The new building consists of three angular building volumes, brought together under a single sloping roof, which responds to its context among other buildings on the school's campus by going from three stories on the Southern end to two in the North.
The architects describe the building as being "designed inside-out... as well as outside-in", with a dual focus on providing optimal learning spaces inside but also on providing learning spaces in the three outside areas defined by the building's volume.
The Australian Institute of Architects has announced the winners of its 2014 South Australia Awards. This year, the star of the show was the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) by Woods Bagot, which won a total of five awards: COLORBOND® Award for Steel Architecture, the Keith Neighbour Award for Commercial Architecture, the Robert Dickson Award for Interior Architecture, Jack McConnell Award for Public Architecture, and the Derrick Kendrick Award for Sustainable Architecture.
The jury commended Woods Bagot's project, saying that it "operates as a catalyst on multiple levels – a catalyst for the urban regeneration of the precinct; a catalyst and new exemplar for the city; and a catalyst for the state, evidencing step change in attitudes to both design and research."
The Gallipoli Peninsula, at the Western end of Turkey, holds a particular significance for the country as the site of a major World War One battle in which the declining Ottoman Empire repelled an attempted invasion by British forces. Today, it is seen as one of the defining moments that contributed to the formation of modern day Turkey, and the site of the battle is commemorated by a national park which includes a series of monuments and memorials at the southern tip of the peninsula.
Aiming to consolidate these sites in to a more coherent whole, the Çanakkale government launched a competition to redesign the area, in which the team led by Özer/Ürger Architects and ON Design came in third place. Read on after the break to find out about their design.
Competition organizers Archpolis have announced an international shortlist of ten practices that will go on to compete for the chance to redesign Moscow's Sokolniki Park. The park, which at 515 Hectares is the largest park in Moscow, is an important part of Moscow's Heritage, having first been used for recreation as a site for falcon hunting in the 15th century.
During the 19th century, the park was officially established, and bestowed with a distinctive radial design.The winner of the competition will be expected to work within this framework, as in 1979 the park became a protected monument of garden-park design from the 17th through 19th centuries.
Courtesy of Mirvish Enterprises, Gehry Partners, LLP and Projectcore Inc.
Frank Gehry and Developer David Mirvish have revealed the latest design iteration in their embattled plan to build a set of mixed-use skyscrapers in Toronto. The new design reduces the number of towers, from three to two, however the remaining towers are taller than before, with one at 82 stories and one at 92.
The buildings will house apartments, a new art gallery and space for OCAD University as previously planned, but the decision to use two towers instead of three means that three of the five existing buildings can be retained - including the Princess of Wales Theatre, and two designated heritage warehouses - sidestepping some of the criticisms of the previous scheme.
Read on after the break for Frank Gehry's take on the design
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has published a report which it hopes will influence government policy writers in time for the general election next year. The report outlines the RIBA's stance on a wide variety of architectural issues, from planning policy, to school building, to designing healthy cities.
The report hopes to build on the recommendations made by the Farrell Review, which among many other things recommended the appointment of a chief architect to advise the government, as well as an overhaul of the current planning system. However, in one sense the RIBA report goes further than the Farrell Report by saying that the government should implement a defined architecture policy, pointing to the success of such policies in countries such as Denmark.
Read on after the break for more on the report's recommendations
Last week, the 2014 Serpentine Pavilion opened in London's Hyde Park. The Serpentine Pavilion program invites architects who are yet to work in the UK to create a temporary installation at the gallery's grounds for one summer, and this year it was the turn of Chilean architect Smiljan Radic, who rarely builds outside his native country and is arguably the least well-known architect in the Pavilion's 14 year history.
Always a highlight in London's architectural calender, critics almost line up to write their reviews. This year, they are almost entirely unanimous: Radic's pavilion is, unquestionably, weird. But they're also unanimous on another judgement: it may be one of the best Serpentine Pavilions yet.
Read on after the break to find out what the critics said about this year's design
"Nearly half of London’s population lives east of Tower Bridge yet they are served by only two fixed road river crossings," says Colin Stanbridge, Chief Executive of London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI). This is the infrastructural predicament which has sparked the LCCI's "Bridge East London" campaign, a proposal for bridge linking Beckton and Thamesmead at Gallions Reach, which is aided by a design by HOK.
The proposal was unveiled on Monday, the 120th anniversary of the opening of Tower Bridge. Designed to allow clear passage for both ships underneath and aircraft taking off or landing at City Airport above, the bridge also features a segregated cycle path, adding a much needed - and entirely safe - river crossing for London's growing number of cyclists.
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.jpg?1404391241 "Courtesy of Mirvish Enterprises, Gehry Partners, LLP and Projectcore Inc.")
.jpg?1404391212 "Courtesy of Mirvish Enterprises, Gehry Partners, LLP and Projectcore Inc.")
.jpg?1404391209 "Courtesy of Mirvish Enterprises, Gehry Partners, LLP and Projectcore Inc.")
.jpg?1404391239 "Courtesy of Mirvish Enterprises, Gehry Partners, LLP and Projectcore Inc.")
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