woods of net

this project is like lincoln logs meets art meets awesome.



the japanese tezuka architects teamed up with tis & partners to create a unique space for net artist toshiko horiuchi macadam. it sits in the hakone open-air museum. no metal was used in the construction of the pavillion. the joinery is derived from thousands years old japanese wooden temples in nara and kyoto.



"this is a permanent pavilion for a net artist, toshiko horiuchi macadam. the artist knitted the net entirely by hands, which is designed for children to crow in, roll around, and jump on the net. it was easy for us to see the artwork being outside even when it cannot be exposed to rain or ultraviolet light. we wanted to design a space as soft as the forest where the boundary between outside and inside disappears. the space attracts people like campfire. the children play inside of the net just as fire and parents sit around and lay on the woods."

living building challenge

i cruise archdaily as i sit in my living room enjoying the festive atmosphere. the smells and sounds of family gathered for the holidays.

completely unrelated, i've been participating in a project through our university [uwm] and the urban ecology center - a local organization that seeks to instill the values of respecting mother earth to urban communities in milwaukee. they're experimenting with a the idea of a satellite branch and i've been heading up a design team - partnered with the other design school [miad] in milwaukee.

the goal was to collaborate and synthesize a new design for our client on the edge of the glacial valley. we aimed to meet the "living building" challenge. this desire pushes pragmatic and fiduciary design into realms not yet achieved. we are operating in a dense urban environment. our design was to be three stories. more later....



this project caught my eye. it's a new facility for manitoba hydro by kpmb architects. below is a quote explaining the project. i couldn't help but marvel at the diagrams and the similarities in design intent [though with a much larger budget]



"manitoba hydro is the major energy utility in the province of manitoba, the fourth largest energy utility in canada and offers some of the lowest electricity rates in the world. owned by the provincial government, nearly all of its electricity comes from self-renewing water power. Its new headquarters tower, manitoba hydro place, is the first of the next generation of sustainable buildings integrating time-tested environmental concepts in conjunction with advanced technologies to achieve a “living building” that dynamically responds to the local climate... manitoba hydro place sets a precedent for the seamless integration of architectural excellence and climate responsive, energy efficient and sustainable design while enhancing and improving the quality and comfort of the human experience and the civility of urban life."



check the link for more info...

design genius

here is a great TED talk about the design genius of Charles and Ray Eames presented by their grandson Eames Demetrios.

cop15

been trying to follow the cop15 conference
the optimism...
the compromise....
the frustration....
the hope...
the disappointment....

i was intrigued by this first hand account by thom yorke. acquiring a press pass he has logged thoughts at deadairspace

here are a few of his thoughts;

"and as i wrote the previous entry my battery goes dead and obama walks past with a very grim expression, everyone thought he was stroming out but no he'd just been in talks with the chinese. just now a french delegate tells me that brazil has stormed out of the talks. this is all so sad. still peace and goodwill to all men. love and understanding.

just no more business as usual ok?? this is all starting to really feel like some enormous vaguely pointless corporate expo."

"well ... i am truly disgusted about the way things have ended here. if you read in tommorrows headlines that a deal was reached?? remember it was nothing like what was needed and was filed by a bored complicit press who needed to show something for two weeks of crap.. and that it reflected the wests inability to lead decisively.
that it will make alarm bells ring throughout the world.
we have no international agreement. this is all too too late.
i feel deeply traumatized by the whole experience. if you'd been there you would also have been."

i also stumbled upon an interview via pitchfork brought to you by the age of stupid


please leave your thoughts if you're at all concerned, outraged, inspired, hopeful....

2aem

thank you,

Why we might need to pay for our name. The fight begins.

2AEM is a 1 chain structure of sequence from Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus. Full crystallographic information is available from OCA.

wpa 2.0 [working public architecture]

"Federal attention to America’s infrastructure is a critical part of our nation’s economic recovery plan, but we must also consider how that investment in the next generation of bridges, roads, and waterways will create more sustainable, more engaging, more livable cities. This symposium gathers some of the country’s most talented young designers –finalists in the WPA 2.0 competition, together with design talent recognized internationally, to address a new future with policy makers. Innovative ideas drive the work that will be presented; technical and practical sensibilities demonstrate that those ideas could be the basis for a Working Public Architecture."

check these great works of digital animation and film from the finalists at the wpa 2.0 finalists.

carbon tap:



hyper local networks:

WPA2 : Local Code / Real Estates from Nicholas de Monchaux on Vimeo.

vals [redux]

here's a clever little project that has found a place at the feet peter zumthor's thermal baths....



the dutch architect's[SeARCH] ask;
"shouldn’t it be possible to conceal a house in an alpine slope while still exploiting the wonderful views and allowing light to enter?"



the steep topography of the site provided opportunities for expansive views across the valley while views from the bath house remained unspoiled.


true to form [as we all learned in architectural history] the swiss required a timber frame model of the residence to be constructed at the site for neighbors and authorities to critique. the residence is a great example of pragmatic, unobtrusive development; neighbors were delighted.




photos © iwan baan

camel medical clinics

of all the mobile medical clinics that have been thought up by sympathetic designers, i think this is one of the most ingenious. it's practical, cost-effective, creative, and uses existing infrastructure, namely camels...



these animals have been used forever to transport things and people across the hot, dry deserts. now, with the help of a simple photovoltaic panel a refrigerator can keep critical medicine and vaccines at the right conditions to deliver to remote villages in africa - for now, kenya and ethiopia.

these mobile health units will allow medical supplies to keep up with nomadic communities as well as remote villages.



headed by the nomadic communities trust, partnered with California’s Art Center College of Design’s Designmatters and Princeton’s Institute for the Science and Technology of Materials [PRISM].

check the link for more specifics....

work + process

i've been back in school working towards completing a sculpture minor as a supplement to the architectural design degree we three have [or are working towards]. i'd like to share some photos of the work in progress.













'tiles' made from a plaster cast
[clay tile + two part rubber + plaster]













modification for connection













structure + surface













variation_complexity through repetition


the work complete and illuminated to follow shortly.

2A_eM; marcus prize participant

as this semester winds down, and anticipation of upcoming events begin to take hold of my mind, i'd like to give a short update [more to follow] regarding upcoming endeavors.



next semester i will be participating in the marcus prize studio, with distinguished architect alejandro aravena. this prestigious studio will begin an exciting experiment in collaboration. not only will we be learning from an internationally acclaimed architect, but will be collaborating across campus and disciplines. this studio, though small, will incorporate students from the arts, as well as city planning in addition to traditional architecture students.

never before have i had this experience during my architectural education, and now that i'm on the arts side [more on that later], it should make for some great, innovative, provocative works.