March 14, 2010 | Broadcast | Competitions | News
eVolo Announces Winners of 2010 Skyscraper Competition
Ken Yeang, eat your heart out.
the eVolo award was established to examine the relationship between the skyscraper and the natural world, the skyscraper and the community, and the skyscraper and urban living. The competition asked to redefine the term skyscraper through the use of new materials, technology, aesthetics, programs, and spatial organizations. the 2010 competition saw globalization, environmental warming, flexibility, adaptability, and the digital revolution as just some of the multi-layered elements that were called into focus by entrants; and this year’s winners, with highly imaginative solutions like the Water Purification Skyscraper above, came from Indonesia, Malaysia and the United States.
via Bustler.net
March 13, 2010 | Broadcast | News
waterfront strategies
With sea level rise and glacial melting breathing down the necks of island states and cities like our own, it only makes sense to have contingencies in place for when the storm finally hits the shore, so to speak. New York Magazine recently presented five of the city’s architects’ plans for managing a “Globally Warmed Future”.
view slideshow here
[Rendering courtesy of ARO and dlandstudio/MoMA]
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | Events
Call for Papers: Global Crossroads – The Port Clusters of Southeast Asia and the Middle East
Dates: 27-29 July 2010
Venue: Nalanda-Sriwijaya Centre, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore
This 3-day conference will examine these two Indian Ocean port zones in various respects – the specific natures and the roles of these zones as well as comparisons between these; mutual perceptions between the peoples of the two zones; the links between these regions in terms of commercial interactions over time and the effects of such commerce; cultural and
religious interflows between these two ends of the Indian Ocean; transmission of the ideas of modernity, urbanism, and cosmopolitanism between these two areas; the effects of European imperialism and commerce; the commercial and religious networks connecting the two places; migration between the two places; pilgrims and tourists; as well as the role of India and Indians in these interactions. There is no restriction on the periods to be examined.
Paper proposals are invited from scholars engaged in any aspect of related studies. Proposals should be received by 20 March 2010 and successful applicants will be informed of their acceptance by 1 April 2010. Paper proposals should include a title and a 400-word abstract, together with a short biography of the applicant.
All participants will be provided with four nights accommodation in Singapore. Requests for assistance with airfares, especially from participants based in Asian countries, will be sympathetically considered.
The keynote lecture for this conference will be given by Professor Ho Engseng, Professor of Cultural Anthropology and History, Duke Islamic Studies Center, Duke University, and will be entitled Pirate or Prince? Rival Port-making Strategies at the Antipodes of the Indian Ocean.
via SEAArch
- Details
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Singapore Looks for a Softer Side of Growth
SONIA KOLESNIKOV-JESSOP, NYT - Singapore may be best known as a hub of electronics manufacturing and transportation, but as it plans for its next stage of economic growth, its leaders are looking toward a radically different sector: the arts.
Support for theater, museums and other cultural activities has been quietly moving up the official agenda of the city-state in recent years. But this month, an economic panel appointed by the government recommended that establishing Singapore as a “leading cultural capital” and a “distinctive global city” should be among officials’ top three priorities in the next decade.The Singapore authorities have already achieved a minor coup by persuading Lorenzo Rudolf to create Art Stage Singapore, an international contemporary art fair scheduled to take place in January 2011 at the soon-to-open Marina Bay Sands resort. Mr. Rudolf is best known for having transformed what was once a sleepy Swiss art fair, Art Basel, into the focus of the international contemporary art world in the 1990s.
With more collectors now interested in Asian contemporary art and a fresh push to enhance Singapore’s position in the art world, Mr. Rudolf said, the time was right.
[Image of Lorenzo Rudolf / Courtesy ArtIntern.net]
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Riding the Electromagnetic Wave of the Future
[Image Courtesy JDSA]
Sheridan Expressway, lookout: Jon D. Solomon’s work in Pamphlet Architecture #26 might finally be getting somewhere. In what was a proposal that banked heavily on automated highways, the current head of the architecture department at the University of Hong Kong put forth a post-Fordist infrastructure that would exhibit the desirables of flexibility and efficiency. (cue cut scenes from Minority Report)
Speedway is simple. In city and local traffic, his cars will move under their own power, propelled by electric motors built for lower speeds. On one charge these vehicles could travel 200 kilometers — more than enough for a short trip. For longer trips Förg envisions a system of highways outfitted with so-called linear induction motors, where his electric cars can link up quietly with an electromagnetic field, cruise for long distances, then exit again under their own power.
read more at Spiegel Online
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
ArtInfo interviews Ma Yansong
Interview via ArtInfo
Being ethnically Chinese totally allows me to see how the architectural metaphor, or just the plain-dumb overly-literal metaphor totally works in China. Its the reason why the number 8 is so popular, why Chinese superstition is the way it is - its all classic symbolism. So this leads one to wonder how far one can take the brand of architectural hyper-metaphorism, (let’s call it AHM for now) if there ever was such a term, in light of China’s recent interest in architectural projects that, not surprisingly, take the shape of a river….a lake…a mountain…a swan… you name it, they’ve got it in building form.
MAD Studio, founded by Ma and Yosuke Hayano, isn’t the only practitioner of AHM, another Ma, by the name of Qingyun, has also been known to produce variations of it, and recently Steven Holl won a competition in Shan-shui, Hangzhou which included interventions that were duly named Water Tower, Canal Spreaders, Lantern Towers and Mountain Tower, to name a few. It’s a compelling project, notwithstanding Holl’s obvious ability to graft and reinterpret his Iowa University Art building in contemporary Chinese terms.
Anyway, we digress. Enjoy the Interview.
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Would you live in an abandoned Mental Hospital?
Courtesy PSFK
Okay, so Singapore has its fair share of new residential developments, award-winning nonetheless, mostly put up by the Housing Development Board (HDB). But has anyone thought about redevelopment of existing complexes into something completely new? I suppose no one in South East Asia would ever thing of re-colonizing the old Changi Hospital after its frequent association with ghosts and demon-worshiping activity; but a look at Sweden’s new love affair with its ugly old mental hospitals might change some minds… Here’s a new look at the term adaptive reuse
Would You Live in an Abandoned Mental Hospital? via FastCompany
Link to Slideshow via FastCompany
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Indonesia mulls new capital as Jakarta sinks
Glenda Kwek, AFP, JAKARTA — It has been the economic heartbeat of the world’s fourth most populous country for almost 500 years, but Jakarta’s days as Indonesia’s capital could be numbered.
Choked with traffic and garbage, the city on the northwest Java coast has been pushed to breaking point as its population surges above 12 million and its foundations sink under the weight of rampant development. Floods displace thousands of people and cause millions of dollars of damage every year, and are predicted to get worse with rising sea levels, unchecked logging in catchment areas and the blocking of canals with rubbish.
A World Bank study has found that by 2025 the sea could be lapping at the gates of the presidential palace in the centre of the the former spice capital, known until 1942 as Batavia. This could explain why President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono recently revived a radical plan to shift the capital to a new location.
“Going forward, the idea of moving the centre of the administration must again be considered and developed, considering Jakarta has become exceedingly crowded,” Yudhoyono told reporters in December. Similar proposals go back to previous presidents Sukarno and Suharto, who decades ago foresaw the eventual breakdown of Jakarta.
Full Article via AFP
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Penang: Renovations may affect World Heritage status
GEORGE TOWN - George Town’s World Heritage status will be endangered in two years’ time if heritage building owners continue to renovate their buildings without adhering to restoration guidelines set by the World Heritage Office (WHO) and Penang Island Municipal Council.
State executive councillor Chow Kon Yeow said the whole facade of George Town and its unique heritage values will be altered in two years if the renovation activities by building owners are not checked.
In view of this, the council and WHO have set up a heritage taskforce consisting of officers from various council departments such as the enforcement, licensing, planning and engineering units to monitor renovation work on heritage buildings in the World Heritage zone.
Chow said WHO and the council have called for roundtable meetings to curb this worrying trend and also to create outreach programmes to educate heritage building owners, architects and contractors.
“We need these building owners to know that they must protect the outstanding universal values (OUV) of their buildings in order to preserve the value of their buildings,” he said.
Full article available via> The Sun Daily
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Urban redevelopment for Metro Manila
If Felino Palafox Jr. has his way, Metro Manila and outlying provinces should be “redesigned” immediately to lessen the impact of a future disaster whether it be a flood, storm, fire or earthquake. The country’s leading urban planner and architect has made this proposal after the country experienced devastating flood last year while huge earthquake caused devastation across Haiti.
Palafox says that as early as 1977, there was already a warning when he submitted a report to then Ministry of Public Works and Highways that the prevailing relaxed control of urban development in Metro Manila would have adverse consequences.
He particularly warns that residential development should be restricted in the three major areas of Metro Manila—the Marikina Valley, the western shores of Laguna de Bay, and the Manila Bay coastal areas to the north of Manila.
Palafox says his report must be heeded to avert what could be another huge and costly disaster should another natural calamity strikes Metro Manila.
via The Inquirer.net
March 11, 2010 | Articles | Magazine
who to work for?
While we’re on the subject of start-ups; there’s also that other option: getting employed.
The whole question of which practice to join, and how much you’re getting paid for your work is a growing concern among many fresh architecture grads out there today; this came up as a topic of conversation among a few friends recently… continue >>>
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
As traditional jobs vanish, startups bloom
Amanda Kolson Hurley - Now is a time when a lot of young architects are striking out on their own. Generation X and Y architects may be more willing—and better equipped—to start their own practices than their predecessors were.
Two factors seem to be propelling them into entrepreneurship: The first (no surprise) is the Great Recession, which has made architectural internships and associate positions at established firms extremely scarce. Back in the 1990s, laid-off architects could set off on an alternative career path—they might join a tech company, for example. “The problem is, this recession is deeper and broader than the last time, so those opportunities aren’t as prevalent,” Piven says. Unable to find employment even outside the profession, many of today’s young architects figure they might as well chase clients instead of job leads. The other factor is improved technology. With document sharing easier than ever, and Skype among other software providing the technology for face-to-face video-conferencing communication, high-speed wireless Internet at home can obviate the need for dedicated office space.
Start-up, anyone?
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
How Haiti Could Change Design
![Port-au-Prince, January 2010. Haitian national palace. [via U.N. Development Programme Flickr set. Photographer: Logan Abass/United Nations.]](http://places.designobserver.com/media/images/haiti3.jpg)
Port-au-Prince, January 2010. Haitian national palace. [via U.N. Development Programme Flickr set. Photographer: Logan Abass/United Nations.
And while Singapore has nothing to do with disasters thus far - thank heavens for its protected location shielded by neighbouring Indonesia and Malaysia among other countries - exporting design solutions in the name of relief and aid, as it has actively supported its neighbours in times past (think Sri Lanka, Aceh, Nias), could be a viable way of channeling its resources in capital as well as design expertise.
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Finnish architecture exports to China booming
“It is good to move forward in the wake of Nokia.”
Finnish architectural companies see the Chinese market as an increasingly lucrative export market.
The Finnish company PES Architects recently won a competition for the construction of a high-rise building in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province. The skyscraper, which is to be nearly 200 metres high, will contain offices, a shopping complex, a spa, a congress centre, and a residential hotel. The name of the building is to be “Yun Duan”, which means “above the clouds”. Also seeking a major foothold in China is Tommila Architects, which has developed its own DigiEcoCity concept, which is being exported to China with the help of a joint venture.
Though nothing new, China can expect the Finns to be taking new initiatives on its parcels in a big way, starting with the 2010 Shanghai Expo. If the world dominating force of Nokia is anything to go by, Finland is sure shoo-in.
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
SANAA’s Rolex Learning Center opens in Lausanne
SANAA won the competition to design the Rolex Learning Center in Lausanne in 2004, which acts as the main point of entry to the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne university campus. Named after the watch company (which provided a large portion of the funding for the project), the building is of a certain mat typology which uses subtle curves and undulations in section as a means for program separation and seamless circulation throughout the campus building to encourage more interaction and cooperative learning.
via BDOnline.co.uk
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
IFC: Seven great movies that star architecture
by Vadim Rizov - Alongside the almost-certainly-definitive restoration of “Metropolis,” this year’s Berlin International Film Festival saw the premiere of “How Much Does Your Building Weigh, Mr. Foster?,” a documentary celebrating British architect Norman Foster - who coincidentally is working on a development in Abu Dhabi “with driver-less trains and elevated walkways.”
“Films like ‘Metropolis’ are an architectural experience,” Foster says. “They truly are both inspirational and prophetic.” True enough. Here’s seven more movies that have productively grappled with architecture, both real and imaginary.
via IFC
[Image Courtesy "The International," Columbia Pictures, 2009]
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Dissecting Indian architecture
TALKING ARCHITECTURE
Raj Rewal in conversation with Ramin Jahanbegloo
Ramin Jahanbegloo
Oxford University Press
146 pages; Rs 995
A review of the newly published Talking Architecture: Raj Rewal in conversation with Ramin Jahanbegloo by Himanshu Berte for Business Standard.
March 11, 2010 | Broadcast | News
Contemplating the Void
One wonders how different things would be, had the Singaporean government decided not to put the fate of the country’s old Supreme Court and City Hall into the hands of an international competition. The objective was of course Singapore’s first National Art Gallery, to house pioneer and contemporary art. The competition was eventually won by France’s studioMilou which proposed an attenuated steel and glass roof structure that united both buildings into a cohesive complex for art.
In New York’s Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 50th anniversary birthday festivities include a monumental effort by artists and architects to envision how the central void of Frank Lloyd Wright’s museum atrium could be radically transformed. With imagination and sometimes with the help of reality-bending technology, they proposed more than 200 visions for the void, without ever having to set foot on the notoriously commitment-begging territory of competitions. Proposals for Contemplating the Void included one by Julian De Smedt Architects in particular, evoked a genuine desire for their realization, with an orange, curtainlike net that would spiral up through the space and that visitors could climb.
Urging people to see things in a different light, the show was a playful yet effective medium for exploration where competitions for the serious would rarely dare to boldly go. However disparate the circumstances of both museums - the Guggenheim’s 50th years signalling its old-dame status; Singapore’s National Art Gallery as a barely fetal set of plans - such artistic and maybe even quixotic activity might allow more minds to express what the new center for art in Singapore could become.
