Exploring Progressive Design, 3rd Annual Design and Development Conference
Posted 2006/10/31 01:09:12 GMT-7 by

Exploring Progressive Design, part of the Foundation's continuing and popular conference series, will examine quality design ? in both product development and architecture as well as communities ? and how the principles of Wright can be interpreted in a new century.

David Hovey, founder of Chicago-based Optima and recently named as the "Best of the Best" architects in the June 2005 Robb Report, will be the keynote speaker. Join us and participate in engaging debates and discussions, as well as explore Taliesin West, and the Valley of the Sun through a series of exclusive tours and lectures.

Registration is $250.00 and includes lectures, teas, lunches and cocktail receptions on Thursday and Friday. A discounted $75 daily rate is available. Space is limited. Deadline to register is November 1.

For conference information or registration please call 480-627-5372.

"228 National Memorial Park" Competition Exhibition & Awards
Posted 2006/03/09 01:09:12 GMT-7 by

Among the results of the selection, first place goes to the team composed of Judith Stilgenbauer, assistant professor of the Department of Landscape Architecture, and Environmental Planning of U.C. Berkley, Tachi Union Design Consultant Company and Lin Yen-Ying Architectural Agency with their work "Conceal/Surface". The second place belongs to Liao Wei-Li Architectural Agency with the work "Vacant Memorial"; and the third place goes to Huang Hsu-Hua and Juli Design Company with their work "A Connection Unbreakable by All Forces".
6 other outstanding selected works are "Scared Hill" from Yi-ta Landscape Technology Company, "Flower of Democracy, a Sublimation of Love and Peace" from Sen-Hai International Engineering Consultant Company, "Blooming" from the team of Ignasi Peree Arnal from Spain, "Citizen Garden" from the team of Marco Casagrande from Finland, "EQUALOGY PARK" (Equal + Ecology) from Tokyo Agency of Japan Landscape Design Institute, and "Ecological Amazon with 99% Earth Surface Green Coverage" from the team of Weng Shih.
The selection committee indicated that the work in first place has a metaphor of the pain of the 228 incident; it displays the historical meanings of the 228 incident. The idea of the design is simple and tranquil, the mechanics is plain yet creates an abundant spatial meaning, and represents a memorial space with "lightness" and "poetry". The work is truly precious. Through the semi-transparent wall along the slope of the visiting route, visitors can look far forward, learn from the history of the 228 incident, and feel that they are marching to a future fulfilled with the power of life.

Exhibition of Selective Works

March 8-10, 2006 - Taipei 228 Museum.
March 15-17, 2006 - Chiayi City Government Courtyard
March 22-24, 2006 - Kaohsiung City Government Courtyard

"Synthetic Landscapes", the ACADIA 2006 International Conference
Posted 2006/03/07 01:09:12 GMT-7 by Wassim Jabi

The nature of practice and design pedagogy continues to oscillate between developing beautiful forms and the methods of discovering the intent of the designer. The software used today is as pluralistic as the profession itself. Often, architects need to utilize several platforms to generate, export, and assemble meaningful design relations. Further to this end, manufacturers add an additional layer of technology to manifest this designed vision. It is within this context, real and the imagined and between the real and the believable that practice and pedagogy exist. The critical shift from a hyper-realized landscape to topological variation has allowed the architects, to form a synthetic environment between the natural and artificial through this adaptable and plastic practice art. The inter-operability of software platforms, collaborative partnerships, and place making has hastened discovery and production. In the process, the need for place-making has moved beyond compositional strategies to include meaningful collaborations with a wide-range of disciplines that typically would not intersect with the architectural discipline.

The conference call for the 2006 ACADIA Conference in Kentucky will focus on the convergence of design and production as it moves through this synthetic formulation to embrace the Synthetic Landscape of Architectural Design, Practice, and Pedagogy. The Subheading entitled Digital Exchange will accept research papers and works-in-progress under the headings of Digital Design Research, Pedagogy, Making, and Dissemination. Topics under these categories include a range of opportunities that extend from the methods of discovery to emerging changes in design interface to material explorations to scaled construction to the tolerances often associated with the precision of our design process, theory, and making.

The 2006 ACADIA Conference will be held in Kentucky on 12-15 October 2006.

"228 National Memorial Park" International Design Competition
Posted 2006/01/06 01:09:12 GMT-7 by Anonymous

The Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior and Chiayi City Government would like to invite all creative and talented architects around the world to join in a design competition for 228 National Memorial Park in Chiayi City, Taiwan, R.O.C. The objective of this major international design competition is not only hope to recover the memories of 228 Incident in 1946 that we are gradually forgotten but also expect we could consider the history meaning of the incident, coming out of pursuing justice, respecting life, and truth of social harmony. We hope to gather the strong living force of Taiwanese and take peace, democracy and freedom as a new vision and walk from the sadness of the history. We welcome your participation with warmth and great expectation.

ELSEWHERE, a solo show by Javier Marchan at the Wall House
Posted 2006/01/06 01:09:12 GMT-7 by Javier Marchan

January 22nd, 2006 marks the opening of Elsewhere, a solo show by Spanish visual artist Javier Marchán in the Wall House, John Hejduk?s masterpiece in Groningen, the Netherlands. Marchán lived in the house for a period of three months, October till January 2005 and was the first visual artist to stay in the house as part of the artist in residency programme of the Wall House foundation. The installations can be visited until March 12, 2006.

During his stay in the Wall House, Marchán became fascinated with the tension Hejduk summons up between the two and three dimensionality, a tension referred to by Marchán as the fourth dimension. Fascinating though the spatiality in the Wall House is, Marchán maintains that the building in essence is a two dimensional image, a still life. This tension, the fourth dimension, is what Marchán regards as the principal concept for his work in Elsewhere, together with the strong sense of symbolism Hejduk invokes in his work. Marchán has produced a set of twelve silk screens and spatial installations throughout the Wall House#2.

Javier Marchán (Barcelona, 1967) studied fine art and contemporary critical theory at Goldsmiths College, University of London. His career as a visual artist was launched in 1996 with the New Contemporaries, Tate Liverpool. His artworks are fictional and elusive, asking the viewer to look further than their own materiality for their meaning. Sometimes a product of solitude, sometimes a product of multiple collaborations; his contemporary art practice masters a visual language at the crossroads of other disciplines such design, architecture, film, natural sciences or theory. Marchán?s works build on a dialogue between the objective world of surfaces and the inner workings of one?s always drifting consciousness. He favors a visual practice where the representative nature of meaning gets emptied out momentarily. This methodology is done in order to get a more profound relation to art and to the perception of reality.

Our Intelligent Designs
Posted 2006/01/06 01:09:12 GMT-7 by Christopher Hume

From the Toronto Star: Christopher Hume cites the buildings that are remaking the face of Toronto. Among the top structures are the University of Toronto's Terrence Donnelly Centre of Cellular and Biomolecular Research (designed by Behnisch, Behnisch and Partner and architectsAlliance), the Sharp Design Centre at the Ontario College of Art and Design (by Will Alsop), the National Ballet School (designed by Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg and Goldsmith Borgal and Co), the Royal Ontario Museum (by Daniel Libeskind), and the Art Gallery of Ontario (designed by Frank Gehry).

Canadian Business Leaders Call for Urgent Action on Climate Change
Posted 2005/11/09 15:13:12 GMT-7 by Alan Hess

From CBC News:"The leaders of a group of major Canadian corporations have called for urgent action on climate change, a major reversal of the business community's position on the Kyoto protocol. In a letter to the Prime Minister, the heads of Alcan, Bombardier, Shell Canada, Falconbridge, Home Depot Canada and Desjardins Group, among others, said Canada needs a 50-year strategy to deal with the fallout from climate change."

Building With Good Genes
Posted 2005/11/16 09:53:12 GMT-7 by Christopher Hume

From the Toronto Star: "The University of Toronto's Terrence Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, designed by Behnisch, Behnisch & Partner and architectsAlliance, "stands out on the urban landscape as an exemplar of architectural intelligence, sophistication and aesthetics."

Upcoming AEC World Expo
Posted 2005/11/10 16:38:12 GMT-7 by Sarah Lorenzen

"Organised by Indian Architect & Builder magazine and Jasubhai Media and supported by the Chemtech Foundation, the AEC World Expo is the largest and most unique platform for the Indian Architecture, Engineering and Construction industry. Spread over 15,000 square metres, it will be held from the 14th December-18th December 2005 at the MMRDA Grounds, Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai. As a special attraction, the expo will also host a 4-day Conference Series with Keynote lectures and workshops and exhibit the works of internationally renowned architects like Zaha Hadid, Mario Botta, Bernard Tschumi, Stefan Behnisch, Kengo Kuma and Ben van Berkel amongst others along with Indian luminaries like V. Suresh and Dr. R. Gopalan."

Hodgetts and Fung design new Performing Arts Center at Menlo-Atherton High School
Posted 2005/11/09 15:13:12 GMT-7 by Alan Hess

From The Mercury News: "The new Performing Arts Center at Menlo-Atherton High School, designed by Southern California-based Hodgetts and Fung, positions the school 'as a leading arts program' and provides the community with a 'venue that will attract a wider range of touring shows and performances to enrich the region's arts environment.'"

"British to Help China Build Eco-Cities"
Posted 2005/11/02 23:05:15 GMT-7 by Nikki

On the Guardian: "British engineers will this week sign a multi-billion contract with the Chinese authorities to design and build a string of 'eco-cities' - self-sustaining urban centres the size of a large western capital - in the booming country. Arup, the London-based consulting firm that has already signed up for one such project near Shanghai, will announce it has clinched a deal to extend the concept into a string of cities around China. The eco-cities are regarded both as a prototype for urban living in over-populated and polluted environments and as a magnet for investment funds into the rapidly growing Chinese economy."

High Tech High Los Angeles
Posted 2005/11/02 23:05:15 GMT-7 by Nikki

On ArchNewsNow: "Bright colors, open spaces, and glass partitions are some of the physically defining characteristics of High Tech High Los Angeles--not the typical high school campus or classrooms. Richard Berliner of Berliner and Associates, Architecture, designed the innovative charter school in Van Nuys, CA, closely collaborating with High Tech High's adminstrative staff to express the school's project-based curriculum and emphasis on exploration."

Energy for the Coming Decades: Trends and Technologies
Posted 2005/11/02 23:05:15 GMT-7 by Nikki

From MIT World, Steven E. Koonin, BP Chief Scientist, presents a quantitative and descriptive understanding of the energy technology through four main drivers or factors: Growth in demand, meeting the demand through supply, security of supply and environmental impact.

Green Buildings Boost Worker Productivity
Posted 2005/10/28 22:19:15 GMT-7 by Davis

From CNET News: "The choice of building design can lead to boosted worker productivity and even higher test scores in children, according to building technology experts.

In studies, so-called green or high-performance buildings have shown to have positive effects on people, compared to traditional buildings, all while saving money on energy, according to experts who spoke on a panel at the Clean Tech Venture Forum conference on Wednesday."

Ten megapolitans are poised for a boom that, by 2030, will dwarf America's post WWII buildout.
Posted 2005/10/28 18:19:25 GMT-7 by Davis

On CNN Money: "NEW YORK (Business 2.0) - There has been an impressive amount of construction in the United States over the last three centuries: All told, we've built more than 300 billion square feet of homes, offices, factories and other structures.

But according to new studies from the Brookings Institution and Virginia Tech urban planning professor Robert Lang, we're about to pick up the pace -- it will take just 25 years to erect the next 200 billion square feet, which we'll need to accommodate 70 million more people and to replace homes and offices erased by everything from disasters like Hurricane Katrina to plain old obsolescence. "

ECOnomics: The Environmental Business Plan Challenge
Posted 2005/10/25 15:23:04 GMT-7 by Davis

General Electric, in partnership with Dow Jones, have announced "ECOnomics", a $50,000 competition for green business plans.

"GE and Dow Jones are looking for great business ideas that combine environmental innovation and profitability, because we truly believe that "green" business represents good business. That's why we're offering some help to those who share in the belief that environmental consciousness and effective business practice don't have to diverge. In fact, we're so sure of it, we're going to put up some green to help it along - $50,000 of it.

So if you're a university student, an MBA candidate or a confident entrepreneur, submit your business idea and you could win $50,000. It's time to get your enterprise to help the earth, off the ground."

McGraw Hill Construction Innovation Conference
Posted 2005/10/20 15:38:14 GMT-7 by Davis

Shaping the Future of Design and Construction

"Join your colleagues at this exciting and inspiring event where material scientists will show where tomorrow?s innovative building materials are coming from. Learn how the digital fabrication and rapid prototyping are changing the way architects practice and the way contractors build."

Presented by Architectural Record in partnership with Engineering News-Record and New York Construction. The conference runs from November 15-16, 2005 and will be hosted at McGraw-Hill's Corporate Headquarters in New York City.

Haecceity Inc. - Critical Architecture Theory
Posted 2005/09/21 23:38:14 GMT-7 by Davis

Haecceity Inc. - Critical Architecture Theory A new platform in the dissemination and publishing of critical architecture theory is being launched in Fall 2005. Entitled Haecceity Inc. the project is founded on the intention to support, through varied means of dissemination, critical architecture theory that addresses the status of architecture vis-?-vis the status of being at the end of metaphysics. Its aim is to trace the lines that constitute radical architectural thought in our time, to disseminate new lineages of architectural thought and a new terrain for contemporary architectural research in such a way, as to reflect speculative thought on architecture and with it the world back to itself. The project is concerned specifically, but not limited to, propositions that pertain to and advance critical theory associated with an architectural avant-garde, and more importantly, define its future directions and permutations. Its aim is to provide an outlet to the speeds and slownesses, the latitudes and longitudes that constitute contemporary thought and research in critical architecture theory. Its activity is dedicated to uncovering, instigating and disseminating research in architectural theory that expands the conceptual limits of its field. The collective research of Haecceity Inc. aims to identify key themes of relevance to contemporary and future architectural discourse and architectural thinking, and support the dissemination of that thinking through means of publishing. The aim of the Haecceity project is to contribute pertinent themes in architectural theory to academic discourse, and by doing so vitalize the discipline of architectural theory, and indeed architectural practice, at the beginning of the twenty-first century. It is our belief that architecture as a discipline can, should and indeed must be experimental in nature - at least if nowhere else then in the vanguard. It is hand-in-hand with this experimentation that architecture theory has pertinence, and as such, the Haecceity project has relevance. The Haecceity project seeks to expand the knowledge and associated dissemination of critical architectural theory in our time in order to expand the horizons of how architecture is understood, practiced, and by way of that, what new terrains it may hope to traverse. The Haecceity project consists of: . an individually themed twice-yearly journal titled Haecceity Papers, with occasional additional themed special issues, all of which are published on our Online Publishing Portal with hard-copy orders also available, and indexed in the Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals. Haecceity Papers is a refereed publication; . Quarterly Architecture Essay (QAE), or rather dissertation, of approximately 12,000-20,000 words on a specific and topical theme on, or contributing to, architecture theory, published on our Online Publishing Portal four-times-a-year, in addition to a release in book form through our publishing partner Routledge of the thus published QAEs once-a-year. Quarterly Architecture Essay (QAE) is a refereed publication; . a regularly updated page of Public Lecture transcripts and other short essays of the moment in critical architecture theory, updated approximately once a month, many of which herald new or upcoming books or book chapters; . previews of print edition Haecceity titles published by our publishing partner Routledge and announced on our Online Publishing Portal; . selected book reviews of forthcoming or recently published books in architecture theory and urban studies. In addition to setting up and publishing content on our Online Publishing Portal, Haecceity Inc. has partnered with Routledge to produce approximately 2-3 titles of print publications per year in the form of academic monographs in critical architecture theory and urban studies. These monographs are published by Routledge acting as our publishing partner and carry a "This is a Haecceity Inc. title" logo on their back cover.

Podcasting at SFMOMA
Posted 2005/09/02 18:59:36 GMT-7 by Nikki Chen

Katrina
Posted 2005/09/02 18:36:57 GMT-7 by Nikki Chen

Solar Power plan in California
Posted 2005/09/01 00:12:21 GMT-7 by Nikki Chen

Rooftop Plan for solar power production
Posted 2005/09/01 00:06:07 GMT-7 by Nikki Chen

The future of the human race depends on public spaces. They are the starting point for all community, commerce and democracy.
Posted 2005/08/27 20:39:40 GMT-7 by Davis

"Die Monster Home, Die!"
Posted 2005/08/18 12:32:24 GMT-7 by Davis

Design for Learning
Posted 2005/08/12 12:05:34 GMT-7 by Davis

Publish your work as Pamphlet Architecture 28!
Posted 2005/07/26 17:20:34 GMT-7 by Davis

Founded in 1977 as an alternative to mainstream architectural publishing, Pamphlet Architecture encourages architects and writers to put forth their ideas, theories, and designs in modest, affordable booklets. Its success is legendary: Pamphlet Architecture has helped launch the careers of architects from Steven Holl and Lebbeus Woods to Zaha Hadid, and has had influence far exceeding the ad-hoc nature of these humble books. Could your work spark the next generation of architectural discourse? We are seeking practicing or aspiring architects, urbanists, and landscape architects with visually provocative and intellectually compelling ideas for the future of the designed and built world. Be a part of it!

Calatrava's Chicago Tower
Posted 2005/07/26 15:56:23 GMT-7 by Victor

The project itself is still in the works and construction would not begin until at least 40% of the sales have been agreed upon but the proposed tower would eclipse both the 1,670 Taipei 101 and the 1,776 Freedom Tower of NY at 2,000 feet. The Department of Planning and Development of Chicago were hesistant to confirm any plans regarding the tower but said "We saw the plan and we'll consider it".

New "Freedom Tower"
Posted 2005/06/29 07:51:54 GMT-7 by Victor Tzen

CNN today reported that the revised design for the Freedom Tower has been unveiled today by Gov. George Pataki, Major Mike Blooomberg, developer Larry Silverstein, and architect David Childs. The new design moves the tower a further 65 feet from West Street (total of 90 feet). In addition, the bottom 200 feet of the tower has been reinforced with steel and titanium intended to make it blast proof. The new design retains the same amount of commercial space as the previous design and many of the same key features. This new design was a result of concerns raised by the New York Police Department earlier this year. The concerns focus upon the vulnerability of the tower to bomb trucks and its proximity to West Street. The project is projected to be completed by 2010. Once finished, the Freedom Tower will be approximately 100 feet taller than Taipei 101, currently the tallest building in the world.

Chinese government to spend 40 billion on infrastructure improvements for 2008 Olympics
Posted 2005/06/28 03:54:27 GMT-7 by Davis

Free MoMA Audio guides
Posted 2005/06/12 11:32:57 GMT-7 by Nikki

Art Mobs is also looking for your help to continue to grow the list of audio guides.

"Zero Gravity: The Art Institute, Renzo Piano, and Building for a New Century"
Posted 2005/06/11 14:13:38 GMT-7 by Davis

"Japan Squeezes to Get the Most of Costly Fuel"
Posted 2005/06/05 10:15:20 GMT-7 by Davis

From the New York Times: Surging oil prices and growing concerns about meeting targets to cut greenhouse gases produced by burning fossil fuels have revived efforts around the world to improve energy efficiency. But perhaps nowhere is the interest greater than here in Japan. Even though Japan is already among the most frugal countries in the world, the government recently introduced a national campaign, urging the Japanese to replace their older appliances and buy hybrid vehicles, all part of a patriotic effort to save energy and fight global warming. And big companies are jumping on the bandwagon, counting on the moves to increase sales of their latest models. On the Matsushita appliance showroom floor these days, the numbers scream not the low, low yen prices, but the low, low kilowatt-hours. A vacuum-insulated refrigerator, which comes with a buzzer if the door stays open more than 30 seconds, boasts that it will use 160 kilowatt-hours a year, one-eighth of that needed by standard models a decade ago. An air-conditioner with a robotic dust filter cleaner proclaims it uses 884 kilowatt-hours, less than half of what decade-old ones consumed. "It's like squeezing a dry towel" for the last few drips, said Katsumi Tomita, an environmental planner for the Matsushita Electric Industrial Company, maker of the Panasonic brand and known for its attention to energy efficiency.

LIVE Webcast Continuing Education seminars @ AIA Las Vegas Convention
Posted 2005/04/23 13:44:22 GMT-7 by Nikki Chen

Architecture Radi wins 2005 AIA San Francisco Special Achievement Award
Posted 2005/04/17 22:24:17 GMT-7 by Nikki

Just short of 2 days of Archeter (Architecture Radio) First Anniversary, we were honored by AIA San Francisco with 2005 Special Achievement Award - New Media. We thank everyone for their help and support, and for making this project possible!

Thom Mayne Wins Pritzker Prize
Posted 2005/03/22 19:55:53 US/Pacific by Davis Marques

From CBC Arts: "SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA - Thom Mayne, an architect known for his convention-bending designs, has won architecture's most prestigious prize. Mayne, 61, is the first American to win the Pritzker Prize in 14 years. The honour was announced on Sunday. The Pritzker, sponsored by the Hyatt Foundation and named for the family that founded the hotel chain, comes with a $100,000 grant and a bronze medallion. The jury cited Mayne for creating a bold architectural style that reflects the "unique, somewhat rootless, culture of Southern California through angular lines and an unfinished, open-ended feel," according to the Associated Press. Mayne did not win international acclaim until the 1990s, when his designs began to be embraced from New York to California and Taiwan to Spain. For two decades he worked on relatively small projects from his Santa Monica studio, Morphosis. Mayne's unorthodox approach to design was influenced by the rebelliousness of the 1960s. His refusal to compromise alienated clients and colleagues. Fired from a teaching job at California State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Mayne helped found an alternative architecture school called Southern California Institute of Architecture, SCI-Arc, in 1972. He has since won competitions and commissions for an array of major public projects, including the University of Toronto graduate residence in Toronto, which opened in 2000. He designed the new Alaska state capitol building, New York's 2012 Olympic Village, the Hypo Alpe-Adria Centre in Klagenfurt, Austria; the ASE Design Centre in Taipei and a social housing project slated for completion next year in Madrid. Mayne says his design attempts to resolve the tension of living in a diverse, migratory society. Wings protrude at odd angles, lines and forms collide and whole buildings are slanted to reflect the landscape, man-made or natural, around them. "If there's a singular broad topic to being a human being today, it's that you somehow have to manage these radical non-sequiters, these conflicting desires," Mayne said. Past winners of the Pritzker Prize include I.M. Pei, Frank Gehry, Renzo Piano and Rem Koolhaas. "