Monthly Archives: May 2009
China Razes Ancient City to Save it
Preservationists say the demolition of the Old City section of Kashgar, top, is a blow to China’s Islamic and Uighur culture. But work has already begun, center, to raze about 85 percent of the area. Saying it fears earthquake damage, … Continue reading
Building Re-Skinning Competition
Addressing an Urgent Global Need We know how to build new buildings with a low carbon footprint, but little attention has been paid to the thousands of existing structures worldwide that are extremely inefficient and have a massive carbon impact. … Continue reading
Sleepovers open architects’ eyes on Nursing Home Design
And why shouldn’t architects start sleeping over before beginning any design project? The 58-year-old Dallas architect David Dillard of senior living communities lived the life of a nursing home resident for 24 hours. “It gives you a new respect for … Continue reading
“People say it’s the end of the icon project,” she says. “Psssht.”
In a sobering interview with the only female architect to have won the Pritzker Prize, Tom Dyckhoff reveals what seems to be the personality and history of the architectural iconoclast whose name precedes even herself: Nothing withers like a withering … Continue reading
Yas Hotel Abu Dhabi by Asymptote Architecture Nears Completion
Hani Rashid describes the building’s design and its architecture as: “a perfect union and harmonious interplay between elegance and spectacle. The search here was inspired by what one could call the ‘art’ and poetics of motor racing, specifically Formula 1, … Continue reading
CUBE 2009 with URA
This is a report cross posted from the Design My Place blog by Re:Act. CUBE or Challenge for the Urban and Built Environment was a competition that re:ACT organised for the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) under its Architecture and Urban … Continue reading
The Nano Home: Tata looking to sell $7,800 apartments
Tata, the Indian company that made worldwide headlines with its $2,000 Nano car, now plans to build 1,000 tiny apartments outside Mumbai that will sell for $7,800 to $13,400 each. The company plans to roll out low-cost projects outside other … Continue reading
Self Healing Concrete
While traditional concrete is brittle and is easily fractured during an earthquake or by overuse, a new concrete composite can bend into a U-shape without breaking. When strained, the material forms hairline cracks, which auto-seal after a few days of … Continue reading
Corner, Hargreaves, and Van Valkenburgh at the Forum for Urban Design in New York
James Corner, ASLA, George Hargreaves, FASLA, and Michael Van Valkenburgh, FASLA, all leading landscape architects, spoke at a panel organized by the Forum for Urban Design. Held at the Museum of Modern Art’s education center in New York City, the session focused … Continue reading
Emergency architecture designs on display at China’s National Art Museum
An exhibition marking the May 12th Wenchuan earthquake has opened at the National Art Museum of China. Entitled “Crossing: Dialogues for Emergency Architecture” the exhibition showcases 16 ingenuous designs, aimed at raising awareness over the prevention and relief of natural … Continue reading
Seoul to get Libeskind master plan
SEOUL — American architect Daniel Libeskind, the master planner for the World Trade Center site, won a design competition to turn the center of the South Korean capital into an international business district. Mr. Libeskind’s firm announced Tuesday in New … Continue reading
WorldArchitectureNews Awards 09: Civic Sector Buildings
REGISTER BY: 30 JUNE 2009 CELEBRATING ARCHITECTURE SUSTAINABLY Competitions and awards have always been an intrinsic element of winning new work for architects, but now, under the present economic cloud, it has become ever more important. The value of an … Continue reading
Hadid Opera House Burns: internationally flammable architecture
The project, designed by Zaha Hadid with a web-like exoskeleton, includes an 1,800-seat theater as well as a multipurpose hall and support facilities. The building was set to open this fall. via The Architect’s Newspaper
Op-Ed: Disciplinary Transgressions: looking beyond architecture
“The field of architecture is poised to undergo dramatic changes…changes need to begin “at home” with our own cultural institutions—namely architecture schools…The value of design has increased in all aspects of society, at the same time that the pertinence of … Continue reading
1 Day WORKSHOP: 3D MODELLING
This workshop is specially for architecture and interior design students to produce professional design presentation. Master the fundamentals of 3D modelling using Google SketchUp and other applications in just 4 hours including: -Components and other techniques to greatly reduce file … Continue reading
More of Tyersall House / Istana Woodneuk
Images contributed by Mohd Khalid Aijaz Khan. More of his works at http://www.flickr.com/photos/khalidonmove/2080474448/in/set-72157603356027439/
Urban Playground
For about 4 weeks at Sculpture Square, the Artists Caravan group had the opportunity to observe, interact and engage with the environment and public in Bugis. Uraban Playground forms a culmination of these exploratory activities, and through their diverse work … Continue reading




