In response to MoMA PS1's call for new ideas for rebuilding in the Rockaways after Hurricane Sandy, the 71% proposal by Reddymade Design + Horns and Tails Productions was one of the selected entries which suggests ways in which uncontrollable natural phenomena might be absorbed by the environment to create a balanced system of landscape, infrastructure, and architecture. A multi-layered proposal, it suggests several lines of defense and integration. More images and architects' description after the break.
In response to the MOMA PS1 Rockaway Call for Ideas, ‘The Water Dyke’ proposal, which was one of the selected entries, focused not only on rebuilding the boardwalk, but on creating the boardwalk as a community gathering place and a functional infrastructure to protect the shoreline. Designed by Sorg Architects, their concept of the Water Dyke is to harness water itself to retain a storm surge and thereby the shoreline from damaging floods. More images and architects’ description after the break.
Taking place at the Center for Architecture July 11-October 26, the 'Colombia: Transformed/Architecture=Politics' exhibition traces significant new projects that exemplify innovative architectural forms and spaces while serving as conduits for social inclusion. With measurable results, Colombia's largest cities—most visibly Medellin—have demonstrated how visionary approaches to urban planning and architecture can improve circumstances for the lower classes, enhance the quality of life for all, and attract business and tourism. A brief review of significant recent projects reveals an overarching commitment to design as well as a sensitivity to the role of context and the immediate needs of a population. More information on the exhibition after the break.
One of the selected entries in the MOMA PS1 Rockaway Call for Ideas, the 'Occupy Infrastructure' proposal by Barkow Leibinger Architects is three-fold. The main idea is to construct a network of retaining berms based on priority and need with local materials and by the communities that they protect. These berms are not continuous (like a wall) but overlap to allow beach access, gateways, and to maintain visual and spatial openness and continuity between beaches and neighborhoods. More images and architects' description after the break.
Taking its name from the elevation above which the city is safe from floods, The '28+' proposal by Michael Sorkin Studio for the MOMA PS1 Rockaway Call for Ideas is a habitable levee. Not simply does it allow the protection – and selective replacement – of buildings otherwise at risk, it actually increases the stock of waterfront residences and commercial spaces and improves public transit connections to the rest of the city. More images and architects' description after the break.
Brigham and Women’s Hospital just broke ground last week on the Brigham Building for the Future, a 620,000 square-foot translational research and clinical facility designed by NBBJ. Located on the hospital’s Longwood campus, the 11-story project will house eight floors of research laboratories, three floors of clinics, a state-of-the-art imaging facility, social spaces, and a 400-car garage, along with associated site improvements. More images and architects' description after the break.
Designed by PINKCLOUD, their 'Pop-Up Hotel' proposal was recently selected as the winning entry in the 2013 Radical Innovation in Hospitality competition. Their concept focuses on the transformation of empty Class A office spaces into hospitality spaces through a simple setup. They intend to partner with various owner/leasing agencies around Midtown in Manhattan to identify buildings in need of revitalization. A uniquely urban experience, the Pop-Up hotel will feature a variety of amenities and rooms catering to a wide diversity of clientele. More images and architects' description after the break.
Inspired by Chris Marker's 'photo-roman' La Jetée, this selected entry for the MOMA PS1 Rockaway Call for Ideas by Matter Architecture Practice is is a fictional story of a real place. The Narrator speaks a remembrance presented as being that of her daughter (now growing up in New York) in the year 2096, when she will be 90 years old. The image of this daughter as an old woman is one taken by the Narrator of her grandmother - or the daughter's great-grandmother -on a boat, in New York, when she was 90 years old. More architects' description after the break.
Curated by Charles Waldheim, Ruettgers Consulting Curator of Landscape, the 'Composite Landscapes: Photomontage and Landscape Architecture' exhibition opens this Thursday, June 27th, at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. Examining the montage view, one of landscape architecture's most recognizable representational forms, the exhibit gathers work from a select group of influential contemporary artists and a dozen of the world's leading landscape architects. These composite views reveal practices of photomontage depicting the conceptual, experiential, and temporal dimensions of landscape. The exhibit runs until September 2nd. For more information, please visit here.
Videos
sand map detail / Courtesy of Gena Wirth + Alex Chohlas-Wood and Ben Mendelsohn
Designed by Gena Wirth, with Alex Chohlas-Wood and Ben Mendelsohn, their 'Protective Ecologies: Building Resilience in Jamaica Bay' proposal for the MOMA PS1 Rockaway Call for Ideas was recently announced as one of the selected entries. Their concept explores how constructed ecosystems could function as coastal infrastructure in the severely damaged neighborhoods of Jamaica Bay and the Rockaways. More images and architects' description after the break.
Opening tomorrow, June 25th through September 29th at BSA Space, the 'Reprogramming the City: Opportunities for Urban Infrastructure' exhibition celebrates more than 40 examples of imaginative reuse, repurposing and reimagining of urban infrastructure, from physical objects to the city’s most functional systems and surfaces. Curated by Scott Burnham, the new exhibition presents a global overview to serve alternate and expanded functions for urban dwellers and visitors. Featured exhibits will include numerous videos, photos, media stations, renderings, and models. For more information, please visit here. More images after the break.
