In the summer of 2011, Joakim Kaminsky and Maria Poll, of Kjellgren Kaminsky Architecture, went into the deep forests of Medelpad in northern Sweden. With them they brought 15 meters of mirror coated fabric aiming to create an installation that would interpret the life cycle of this pine forest. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Based on the integration of light and illumination effects, the Guzhen Center, designed by Volkan Alkanoglu, will be an outstanding exhibition space that functions for its occupants, inspires its visitors, and resonates with a global audience. With a commitment to innovation and technology, the project will feature an unparalleled design vision and become a significant addition to the city of Guzhen. More images and architects’ description after the break.
A joint venture between the Australian Institute of Architects (NSW Chapter) and the NSW Architects Registration Board, Sydney is now gearing up for the 2011 Sydney Architecture Festival, the 10 day celebration of architecture that commences with an opening party at Customs House Sydney on October 20th and will end on October 30th.
Australia’s only Architecture Festival stimulates debate and offers fresh perspectives about what constitutes good architecture and design and how to create a sustainable, healthy and culturally rich built environment. The 5th annual event offers the chance to engage with ideas and architectural inspirations from around the world, and this year promises several new and exciting ways to engage in conversations about our city with events in venues across Sydney – tours, talks, workshops, exhibitions, lectures, films and children’s activities. More event description after the break.
André Chénier, the most famous work by the Italian composer Umberto Giordano, is brought to life for the ‘Opera on the Lake’ floating stage of the 2011 Bregenz Opera Festival in Bregenz, Austria by stage designer David Fielding under the artistic direction of David Pountney. The brilliantly vivid historical drama and human tragedy of shattering intensity is presented on the waterproofed set built directly into lake constance. It is then mounted upon a concrete core anchored into the base of the lake, while wooden poles support accessory structures of the stage. More images and project description after the break.
The aim of ARHIS for the kindergarten competition proposal in Riga, Latvia is to create a new type of kindergarten, where children can easily learn to incorporate with each other, the urban environment, and with society. The project solution is a public building with a three-dimensional park integrated in the urban structure and to become a part of the city public space and greenery system, which is a part of the Riga development plan. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Each year the Kultur Gut Poggenhagen Foundation opens up a competition for young architects to design temporary low-cost dwellings for artists. The aim of Studio Bang’s design is an optimal cost-benefit ratio reached by well selected, qualified materials and a simple multifunctional form. More images and brief description after the break.
Calling for a 3.500 sqm combined community center and sports facility with an emphasis on sustainability, both in construction and use, PARK decided to go with a bold strategy they titled ‘Pulsen’. Rather than applying the traditional repertoire of green technologies to the building, after initial concept design was developed, the client called for an architecture that embodied the idea of the sustainable approach. More images and project description after the break.
The ARTCUBE exhibition contains a novel interactive sculpture comprising photographs of the artistic processes and techniques captured by Brandon Shigeta. Stacked into random arrays forming a single cubic massing, the sculpture includes hidden signed cards and custom artwork on the surface of the postcards by artists. Perhaps qualifying the exhibit as the heaviest photographic exhibit ever, the sculpture consists of approximately 65,000 postcards of approximately 80 various images to be removed by visitors as souvenirs. More images and description of the exhibition after the break.
INDEX dreams of a world that is designed to suit the needs and aspirations of mankind. Their ten years of experience have shown, through thousands of conversations and thousands of life-improving designs, that design is a decisive factor towards creating a better world.
The 60 finalists for INDEX: Award 2011 have been carefully selected by the international INDEX: Jury as the best of the best Design to Improve Life. As a whole, the finalist group offers unique proof of the wide reach and huge potential of Design to Improve Life in terms of challenges addressed, solutions created and people affected. More images and description after the break.
OPEN Architecture was invited to participate in a competition to design a zeppelin hangar situated in the serene landscape of Maan Mountain of Auhui Province, China. The challenge is to design a single structure with a clearance of 100 meters wide by 300 meters long and 100 meters in height to house the production and storage of the zeppelin. The structure also demands a single door with a clear opening of 100 meter by 100 meter to let the zeppelin go in and out. Heavy duty cranes are to be hung off the ceiling of the structure, adding substantial loads to this super structure. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Designing a gathering point for the city of Timisoara, Prechteck’s main focus for the pavilion was to stand out as an attractor and fit in the context at the same time. Located within the green lung of the city with direct connection to its surrounding districts and due to its vertical orientation, the highseat has a great potential to serve as a cultural, social and urban focal point to attract people back to the park. More images and brief project description after the break.
In an open competition, Alireza Mahdizadeh Hakak, Ali Aleali, & Fatemeh Farmanfarmayee were challenged to design a 10,000m2 commercial center for building industry in the Gilan Province, which is located in the northern part of Iran within a moderate climate and surrounded with forests. Enough precipitation and unique landscape scenes are the main characteristics of the site. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Gustafson Guthrie Nichol (GGN) shared with us their role as landscape architects for the third phase of the University of Washington Medicine’s research hub, designed by Perkins+Will, in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood, which broke ground earlier this month and is scheduled to be completed in the spring of 2013. More images and project description after the break.
The San Diego Architectural Foundation (SDAF) wants to know what you think makes San Diego’s architecture and design blossom – or stink, and is again soliciting public nominations through August 31 for projects to be considered for this year’s Orchids & Onions Awards. All San Diegans are encouraged to take a few moments to have their say about what they view as the good, the bad and the ugly in categories including Architecture, Historic Preservation, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture, Sustainable Design, and Miscellaneous; which covers just about everything in-between. By uploading a few photos on the SDAF’s Orchids and Onions website, along with your rationalization, you can be part of cultivating a more thoughtfully designed San Diego. More competition description after the break.
FILTER Architecture’s design for the Historical Park of Medieval Bosnia was prompted by the idea of an exhibition space forming an integral point of the large Kamberović Park alongside the River Bosna, in the center of the town of Zenica. The concept was based on a deterministic approach to history – as a series of causes and consequences, while avoiding falling into a trap of a pathos-ridden and artificial representation of a part of our national history. More images and a brief description after the break.
Yan ZhenQing Museum, designed by Serie Architects, displays works from the important calligrapher of the same name who lived in Shandong Province in China during the 8th century. His work introduced an element of vertical rhythm into the calligraphic script, and set up a style that was simpler and bolder. Situated in the beautiful landscape near the city of Linyi, the museum also strikes a bold stance in relation to its landscape. Rather than merge into the landscape the museum is placed on a series of three terraces that rise slightly above the topography. On these plateaus the museum takes on the qualities of a type of traditional Chinese garden known as the scholars’ garden. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Supported by Architects Southwest, the 2011 Zombie Safe House Competition is an annual design competition focused on creating the best safe house for a zombie apocalypse.
Architect Piero Ceratti shared with us his concept design, titled ‘Eagle Nest Hut’, for a mountain hut/shelter powered by wind turbines. This alpine hut can be installed in very extreme sites while minimizing the point of contact with the rocky ground. More images and architects’ description after the break.