The Austin judiciary set the criteria for the defining feature of the courthouse: the introduction of natural light into and views out of the courtrooms, jury deliberation rooms, attorney/ witness conference rooms and all other public spaces. The site, a square 276 feet x 276 feet, sponsored a highly compact, cubic building form, the stability of which exemplifies th...
The Governmental Quarter City Plan challenged seven teams to create proposals for the master plan development of the area, with the aim of creating an idea phase foundation for a future regulation phase. Snøhetta’s proposal, made in collaboration with SINTEF Byggforsk, ARUP and independent cultural heritage experts, presents the concept “FOLK” (meaning “people”). The ...
Following two demolition campaigns for a world exhibition in 1913 and an administrative centre never built in the 60s, Ghent’s historic heart degenerated for decades into a desolate parking lot in between a suite of three adjoining Gothic towers. In two consecutive competitions between 1996 and 2005, Robbrecht en Daem architecten and MJosé Van Hee architects proposed th...
The agency’s work concentrated on IGN’s B building, opening it out through the creation of a garden shared with building A. The program called for the conservation of the volumes though the creation of central patios. The agency went even further, freeing the space between the buildings and creating a single entity for the newly rehabilitated building. Initially c...
named after one of the streets it links to, ‘arkitektbron’ (the architect bridge) would connect the streets haga kyrkogata and arkitektgatan, and stand between the existing rosenlund and viktoria bridges. owing to its to its carbon fiber construction, the lightweight structure seemingly floats above the water’s surface. the quay cuts the bridge with the inner circle as ...
the design groups, which include snøhetta, MVRDV and BIG, were selected from 24 original entries and will determine potential solutions regarding urban policies and public engagement. the project will be developed alongside organizers statsbygg, the norwegian government’s key adviser in construction and property affairs. read more on each of the six potential schemes bel...
a popular destination for walks and relaxation, the tower is situated in a scenic nature reserve next to a lake– distinctive of its sand dunes and pine trees. the triangular frame is structurally efficient, composed mainly of steel, the inner staircase, platform and roof is cladded with timber and elegantly finished off with rope which drapes around the entire tower. wit...
This transformation of the island’s industrial waterfront and its many piers into recreational parkland features a number of new structures, including these four structures west of Tribeca. WXY Architecture + Urban Design answered some questions about the latest additions to the linear park. Can you describe your design process for the building? Each of the four st...
They also include street furniture and other elements of urban design, especially in cities where design is valued for making contributions to a sense of place. Robert Maschke Architects’ designs of two bus shelters are a striking addition to the Detroit Avenue Streetscape in Cleveland, Ohio. The architect answered some questions about this urban design project. What ...
This bold design by John Friedman Alice Kimm Architects contributes to the area’s growing architectural quality, at the same time making something utilitarian welcoming and beautiful. The architects answered some questions about the project. What were the circumstances of receiving the commission for this project? We were part of a team that was awarded this proje...
” This century’s post-September 11th climate means more and more border stations are being built along the Canada and Mexico borders. This crossing in Minnesota designed by local Julie Snow Architects is a great example of the design excellence found in this specific building type. The architects answered some questions about their first border station. What were the ...
The park coincides with the Neck to the Shawmut Peninsula, a historic location without a trace of its watery past. Local residents formed the Neck Art Project to create an artwork to mark the site, commissioning Ground to design and build LandWave. They answered some questions about the installation. What were the circumstances of receiving the commission for this pro...
On top of a 15-story building overlooking Madison Square Park and the Flatiron Building – the same building as the hip Eataly and its soon-to-be rooftop beer garden – sits a roof deck for Grey Group, the advertising giant headquartered in the building. SOM’s design atop the stately old building gives employees a shaded spot to take advantage of good weather and great vie...
Today his family’s ancestral home is open to the public and Bruce Lee Paradise, a martial arts theme park, is nearby.Huge kitschy statues and commercial platitude form one side of the commemorative culture. On the other side is a cultural interest in the history of this artist and his art. A collector of Bruce Lee memorabilia approached Anderson Lee from Index Archite...
The first component in the park's master plan is a building that houses restrooms and drinking fountains behind walls alternately rusty and translucent. The building makes a statement in the landscape and is a sign of things to come. The architects answered some questions about the project. What were the circumstances of receiving the commission for this project? D&...
But cultural icons alone, like Farshid Moussavi's MOCA Cleveland, do not a city make. Neighborhoods are built on housing, retail, and public space, and MRN's Uptown development next to MOCA is an excellent example of how these core pieces can work alongside cultural anchors. Architect Stanley Saitowitz answered some questions about Uptown, which recently saw the complet...
David Yocum and Brian Bell of BLDGS answered a few questions about their design for the synagogue. What were the circumstances of receiving the commission for this project? The commission was initially a long-list RFP (Request for Proposals), from which a short list was selected. Final selection was made following an interview with the board of directors. Please p...
What were the circumstances of receiving the commission for this project? The Dirt Works Studio – a materials and tectonics studio for third year students in the Department of Architecture – was inaugurated during the summer of 2011. The Kansas Biological Survey, our first client, had worked with the Department on two previous projects at their Field Station. The i...
In the heart of America's Midwest they have extended their belief in "designing places that are healthy, economically responsible and are regenerative stewards of all natural systems" with the Iowa Utilities Board - Office of Consumer Advocate. The architects answered some questions about the crisply detailed, light-filled building. Can you describe your design proces...
The architects at GP answered a few questions about the large project. What were the circumstances of receiving the commission for this project? This was a design competition. Five international architectural design firms were approached for this competition. Mubadala Real Estate and Infrastructure was the master developer. Goettsch Partners provided an iconic symbol f...
Precisely at this point in time when the design of “Grand Paris” is assuming concrete form with the Grand Paris Express train station projects for the entire greater metropolitan area, the work of Dietmar Feichtinger at the Porte de Pantin acquires particular importance. It is a symbol of the new urban continuum that is gradually being established between Paris and its b...
Rather than banishing smokers outside the building, the Grand Tree Musashikosugi shopping centre asked Hiroyuki Ogawa's firm to design a dedicated room where shoppers can stop off for a cigarette. A curved wooden screen was added to help channel smoke up to an extractor overhead, with fans positioned behind this screen to help draw the smoke upwards. Smokers are en...
Dürig was commissioned to develop the underground Löwenstrasse Transit Station, which aims to improve the experience for passengers using the cross-city rail link at Zurich's Hauptbahnhof. The station comprises two 420-metre-long platforms that will be able to accommodate longer intercity services arriving into the four adjacent tracks when all the building work is co...
Borden Park Pavilion was designed by Toronto studio GH3 to accommodate public toilets and vending machines within its cylindrical core, while the gap between this core and the facade accommodates a small seating area. A truss framework made from laminated Douglas fir zigzags around the edge of the circular building, giving it the appearance of a drum.The architects sa...
The station by Kengo Kuma & Associates will be located in Saint-Denis, a suburb to the north of Paris, and is one of the main interchanges for an extension to the metro that will create a circuit around the capital. Kuma's 45,000-square-metre station will be nine stories tall – with five levels above ground and four below – and will also house shops, a multimedia librar...
The playground was developed by BASE as part of a project to improve living conditions for the residents of a 1960s housing estate called Génicart, which is situated in the Lormont district in the east of the city. The regeneration project involves a collaboration between several architectural practices to renovate the estate's housing, as well as creating new green are...
The project by Vincent Callebaut Architecture is part of a plan to regenerate the urban area in the north of Rome by focusing on visual appeal in addition to sustainable, natural design. The design consists of green public spaces, and a mix of residential and business spaces spread throughout several new buildings. The project will regenerate the urban area along via G...
The architects designed the project as an attempt to combine history, nature and accessibility and create diverse spaces within the complex. While there is a high degree of independence between different facilities, the large podium unifies the complex and provides a space above which can be used as a venue for events and gatherings. The service center and the auditorium...
The city swimming baths at Nauen, a town just west of Berlin, will be transformed by a new green-roofed entrance building and recreation park designed by nps tchoban voss in collaboration with Landscape Architects Hager Partner. The prize-winning design comprised of two flowing structures joined by an insulated living roof will update the old baths and allow year-round u...
This end-of-world scenario was the basic premise for Qidan Chen from China, in designing his proposal for the eVolo Skyscraper Competition 2015. We are witnessing a dramatic increase in global deforestation, extinction of species and global sea level rise. In order to slow this trend down, Chen proposes to build structures which would serve as facilities for the artif...
Egypt is getting a new and improved capital city designed by architecture firm SOM. The privately-funded project consists of a 700-square meter development with an urban park, residential neighborhoods, and a business and government district. The project will be known as the Capital Cairo Project and focuses on building a sustainable city inspired by nature that will sup...
Gothenburg's city council commissioned Erik Andersson's Stockholm firm to create a new pedestrian crossing over Vallgraven – the 17th-century moat that surrounds the city's old centre – as part of a wider regeneration of the nearby neighbourhoods. Andersson plans to build the structure using carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP), which has become increasingly popular...
When ENOTA was tasked with re-imagining a car park in front of the community health center, they decided to create a space that added parking availability without imposing on the landscape any further. The Velenje Car Park is now an unobtrusive space that blends in with the local surroundings. The structure was nominated as a finalist for the Architizer A+ Awards. Inste...
Environmental Design student Shoko Konishi was inspired by the sky to create her paper structure “Transition”. At first it appears to be just a humble sculpture, with little clue to it’s intended use. Once inside the small entrance, however, a blossoming domed ceiling creates a captivating sky gazing experience, as these images show. Light glances off each of the pape...
Artist and designer Daan Roosegaarde and producer Heijmans Infrastructure have debuted their test drive of Smart Highways, a sustainable road system for safer driving, on a highway in Oss in the Netherlands. Roosegaarde’s design put solar-powered Glowing Lines along the edge of highway N329, providing drivers with three edge strips of green light along their drive. Durin...
So Vittori Lab and a handful of other designers got together and designed the AirTrain, which uses NASA-patented technology to improve air quality using certain plants that absorb carbon dioxide emissions and release oxygen. Check out a video of the green train after the jump. Plants are natural carbon sponges, but the AirTrain’s greenery works more efficiently than or...
