soul with a window

"I have a theory that if shoes are the windows to the soul of a person, then toilets are the windows to the soul of an architect...

--helen norrie, speaking about lahz nimmo's new public toilets for sydney centennial park. [article 1, article 2]

in the architects' own words:

Centennial Park Amenities

Lahz Nimmo Architects were awarded this commission through a short listed paid competition process. The brief for the project was to create a generic amenities building, which could be built throughout the Park with minimal adaptation. The first stage of the project involved the design of the generic facility and the construction of two buildings with a further three being completed in a second stage.

The design strategy involved creating a linear landscape driven building which could adhere to existing pathway systems or act as a backdrop to the landscape beyond. The male and female program was divided into two pavilions linked by a roof. The space created between the pavilions acts as a central entry point to the Toilets.

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pint day guide to the economy

this flow chart could be applied to architecture as well:

courtesy of pint day.org

be sure to stop by pint day guide to architecture as well...

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fantastic blog: the belly of an architect

the belly of an architect

now added to the sidebar -->

two particular good posts on the blog include links to an extensive photo-documentation of a recent Peter Zumthor exhibition in Lisbon, Portugal located on sushilover*'s flickr page.  see also the blog {moshimoshiii}

absolutely astounding images!  if you are in lisbon, this appears to be a highly recommended activity.

also featured on belly is a post titled: Plano B: House in Arruda dos Vinhos

a house built literally inside ancient ruins, and constructed in methods inherent to the existing site.

By assuming the use of industrial materials - asphalt, concrete, polycarbonate - in combination with natural materials - wood, earth and stone – this house is an interesting example of sustainable practice, maintaining a critical approach towards the project as an area for reflection on the expressive qualities of architecture.

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architecture by team

"the prima donna is dead...

we need a new definition of GREAT ARCHITECTURE. no longer can examples be limited to monuments and personal expressions of the prima donnas.  more fitting to this day of social change, GREAT buildings must do GREAT things for a GREAT number of people...."

-william wayne caudill, from the book architecture by team [1971]

walking on glass clouds

looking up at the museum of contemporary art denver [david adjaye]

allied works lecture + clyfford still museum

a friendly reminder for those interested in the developments of the new clyfford still museum design...

"Occupation": Brad Cloepfil

Monday, October 13th, 2008

Sharp Auditorium, Denver Art Museum

5.30pm

Brad Cloepfil, principal of Allied Works Architecture, discusses recent museum projects including the Clyfford Still Museum.

for more info see previous posts from taow on the new museum here, and here.

we are particularly interested in how brad intends to brings this idea of clyfford's to life through architectural interpretation:

see you there...

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what is and what never will be...

after the considerable amount of bad press this week targeting allied works' museum of arts and design in nyc, i wonder if the clyfford still foundation is having second thoughts...but we'll get to that in a moment...

back in may, dr. no took us on a detailed journey of the turbulent history [and fateful future] of 2 columbus circle with this audio slideshow.  and he gave us his verdict on the new museum yesterday in this article:

"...this is not the bold architectural statement that might have justified the destruction of an important piece of New York history. Poorly detailed and lacking in confidence, the project is a victory only for people who favor the safe and inoffensive...we’re left with an image of a New York that has been scrubbed of any real meaning..."

to add groin injury to intellectual insult, the fully realized scheme was altered in the final design phases to include a horizontal band of glass connecting the two wider vertical swaths at the top.  when looked at from a certain perspective, the window pattern spells out [very clearly] the word "HI".  

"HI" - the completed building

the intended design [not really supposed to be legos]

ahem--sorry for the introductory tangent... 

now onto the REAL topic of this post [it's  all related i promise].

DS + R have a snazzy new website with lots more projects to show since the last time we visited.  and lo and behold, they included their competition scheme for denver's clyfford still museum.  wait a minute...there never really ware any drawings required for the interview process as far as we know.  hmm...this means they either already had a scheme ready because they work so blasted quick...

...or they decided to say: "FUCK IT! who cares that we didn't get the job.  let's do a scheme anyway as if we had won."  

now that is the romantic architectural fantasy had by all designers right?  to be able to continue a project for your own amusement even if you didn't win the job.

here is the scheme they produced for clyfford and all his paintings:

we'll let that marinate for a while...

**update: architecture mnp has featured this post on the most recent entry for ninjas on the net

thanks for the shout!!

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Pecha Kucha Night Denver: Volume III

In my inbox today:

Pecha Kucha Night Denver Volume 3 is coming up on Monday, September 29th!

The Japanese presentation format returns to Denver with a group of eight creatives - Architects, Designers, and Artists - who will share their creative work in 20 images for 20 seconds each.

We have some great presenters for this next event including:

• Daniel Crosier, Artist
• Amanda Lueck Grell, Writer
  
• Rick Griffith, Graphic Designer
• Lenny Maiorani, Photographer
  
• Mike Moore, Architect
  
• Chris Weed, Sculptor
  
• Tran and Josh Wills, Fashion/Graphic designers and shop owners
• Monika Wittig, Architect

Doors open at 8 pm and the presentations will begin at 8:20 pm.  

Our hosts again are Buntport Theater, 717 Lipan St. and there is a $5 suggested donation.  

More information is on our website, www.pechakuchanightdenver.com.

cu denver lecture: bjarke ingels

just a friendly reminder of the upcoming cu lecture "big ideas" with former PLOT -er and now the head principal at ...BIG... bjarke ingels.  the title of the lecture is taken from a recent exhibition of the firm's work [sample images below].

"The traditional image of the radical architect is the angry young man rebelling against the establishment. The avant-garde is defined more by what it is against than what it is for. This leads to an oedipal succession of contradictions where each generation says the opposite of the previous. And if your agenda is dependant on being the opposite of someone else’s, you are simply a follower – in reverse.

Rather than being radical by saying fuck the establishment, fuck gravity, fuck the neighbours, fuck the budget, fuck the context – we want to try to turn pleasing into a radical agenda.

What if design could be the opposite of conflict? Not by ignoring it, but by feeding off it. A way to incorporate and integrate differences – not through compromise or by choosing sides, but by tying conflicting interests into a Gordian knot of new ideas.

We propose to let the forces of society decide which of our ideas can live, and which must die. Surviving ideas will evolve through mutation and crossbreeding into an entirely new species of architecture.

An inclusive rather than exclusive architecture. An architecture unburdened by conceptual monogamy. An architecture where you don’t have to choose between public or private, dense or open, angled or curved, blond or brunette etc. An architecture where you can have both."

the lecture will be held at the cu architecture building on 14th Street in lodo monday 2008.09.22, room 470 @ 5.30pm.

see you there.

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SugarCube complete

All Photos by Tom Arban [KPMB website]

From KPMB website:

The program is broken down into three distinct volumes and organizes retail space at street level, offices from the second to the fourth floor, and residential space from the fifth to the tenth floor. The design establishes relationships to the adjacent historic Sugar Building in the dimensions and proportions of the massing, masonry piers, and punched grid of windows. The glazing composition varies at different levels of the façade to create vertical emphasis, shadows and depth within the grid of the masonry.

The project is located on the 16th Street Mall, a major public pedestrian thoroughfare that runs through the city of Denver. The building features a central ten-storey volume in manganese-coloured brick, and two building volumes wrapping around it at its base, one rising 4 storeys and one six storeys, both in buff brick.

The SugarCube is located on the 16th Street mall in Denver at the intersection of Blake Street.

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pacific northwest photos

novelty-hill januik winery [mithun]

seals off the coast of tofino, b.c.

gleneagles community centre [patkau]

view of mount hood from hood river, or

grace vancouver church [unknown]

glass blower in vancouver, b.c.

seaplane in vancouver, b.c.

city of glass condos [vancouver, b.c.]

sea foam made by ferry from nanaimo

barclay house b & b

newton library in surrey, b.c. [patkau]

mount hood

one-eyed willie

space odyssey escalator seattle public library [oma]

douglas-truth branch seattle public library [schacht-aslani]

beach sunset in tofino, b.c.

island rainforest hike in clayaquot bay, b.c.

catch of the day in tofino, b.c.

to view the entire pacific northwest photoset on flickr, click here.

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