The ten finalists competing in the final phase of the National Mall Design Competition are dreaming big. Proposals to restore the National Mall include flourishing lakeside gardens, contemporary cafés hovering over water, grassy new amphitheaters and underground pavilions exposed at the foot of the Washington Monument. Since the announcement of the finalists, the teams have been refining there proposals behind closed doors.
Now, the Trust for the National Mall has released the highly anticipated proposals to the public. From now until Sunday, at the Smithsonian Castle and the National Museum of American History, you can view each proposal in its entirety. If you don’t live in the D.C. area, no need to worry. Continue after the break to catch a glimpse of each submission and learn how you can help the jury decided who will revamp America’s “front yard”.
Trust for the National Mall has announced the Stage II results, naming the ten design teams selected to continue in the third and final stage of the National Mall Design Competition. The National Mall will undergo an approximate $700 million restoration in three selected areas – Union Square including the Reflecting Pool and the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial, Sylvan Theater on the Washington Monument Grounds, and the Constitution Gardens between the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial.
“We are excited about the teams selected to advance to Stage III and have no doubt each of them will create beautiful, useful and sustainable designs for the National Mall,” said Caroline Cunningham, President of the Trust for the National Mall. “We are eager to share their final designs with the public in April.”
Continue reading for more information and the complete list of finalists.
Sitting near the southern boundary of Foresterhill at the edge of the Westburn field, Snohetta’s plans for Maggie’s Cancer Care Center at the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary is envisioned as a pavilion within the parkland. The facilities will be mainly on the ground floor with a mezzanine area for office functions.
The Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation (EMF) and Maggie’s are raising £3m in an attempt to bring a Maggie’s Center to Foresterhill Hospital in Aberdeen to provide for the families of Grampian. Aberdeen is Scotland’s third largest caner treatment center but is the only clinical center in Scotland not supported by Maggie’s.
The building of the new metro in San Sebastian Donastia will connect the people and the different areas of the city in a new way. It will set a new standard for the future of the town and its way forward. It will offer donastiarras and visitors a new means of public transpiration, and be a part of the future pulse of San Sebastian Donastia. The entrance design by Snøhetta is based on a continuous movement from underground level to over ground, and vice versa. The design element goes from being a ceiling structure underground to create a roof structure over the stairs and up over ground. The structure describes the transition between the two states and connects the city life with the metro world. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Over 1,200 entires from 30 states and 10 countries submitted applications for the National Mall competition. Late last month fifteen design teams were chosen as finalists to advance to the second stage of this prestigious contest.
Hosting 25 million visitors annually, the National Mall will undergo an estimated $700 million restoration beginning in 2012. The competition has been broken down into three areas of restoration: Union Square including the Reflecting Pool and the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial, Sylvan Theater on the Washington Monument Grounds, and the Constitution Gardens between the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial.
Among the finalists to move on to stage two of the competition, Diller Scofidio Renfro, Weiss/Manfredi, and Rogers Marvel Architects who are shortlisted for two out of the three areas of restoration, as well as Snohetta, Michael Maltzan Architecture, Ten Arquitectos, and Bohlin Cywinski Jackson who are finalists for one area of restoration.
“Entrants were evaluated on past design performance, philosophy, design intent, thoughtfulness, creativity and overall resume,” according to a release from the Trust of the National Mall. The jury, compiled of architects, professors and other members of the architecture community, included Michael Gericke of Pentagram NYC and Pritzker Prize Laureate Thom Mayne founder of Morphosis.
The second stage of the competition includes interviews of the teams conducted by the Trust for the National Mall and the National Park Service, and the last stage will include proposed plans for the restoration. The competition will culminate in May 2012 and the proposed designs from stage three of the competition will be available to the public prior to the winning design being selected.
Follow the break for a complete list of design finalists for the National Mall Competition.
Ten years since the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, the National September 11 Memorial was dedicated in a private ceremony with the victims’ families. It was officially opened to the public as of today, September 12th. The opening of the 9/11 Memorial is a first step towards the closing of a long chapter of construction at the World Trade Center site.
Today Ryerson University announced the design of a new Student Learning Centre for their Toronto campus. Designed by Snøhetta in collaboration with Zeidler Partnership Architects of Toronto, the 155,463sqf Student Learning Centre will feature a transparent glass skin that will provide varying light qualities within the interior spaces. Sustainable practices have also been incorporated into the design with 50% of the roof intended to act as a green roof and plans for the building to be LEED Silver compliant. Construction on the building is expected to begin late this year, with a targeted completion date of Winter 2014. More about the new Student Learning Centre including renderings following the break.
The European Commission and the Mies van der Rohe Foundation has just announced the final five projects that will compete for the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture, the Mies van der Rohe Award 2009. The winning building will be announced in May.
