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ME House / Otta Albernaz Arquitetura

Architects: Otta Albernaz Arquitetura
Location: Jambeiro, São Paulo, Brasil
Architects in Charge: Tatiana Macedo Otta, Eduardo Simabuguro Albernaz
Project Area: 360 sqm
Project Year: 2014
Photographs: Eduardo Simabuguro Albernaz

Inside “Re-Creation” – Finland’s Pavilion at Venice Biennale 2014

Re-Creation. The Finnish Pavilion at the 2014 Venice Biennale.. Image © Nico Saieh

Re-Creation is a two-part installation based on a concept by Anssi Lassila. One part of the installation was constructed by a Finnish master carpenter and his team, and the other by a Chinese team. Together the two parts of the installation strike up a subtle and complex dialogue between the architects and local builders.
Presented by the pavilion designed by Alvar Aalto in 1956, the installation “takes a stand on our relationship with the modern legacy and its tradition of international dialogue, and represents a quintessential product of topical international dialogue while at the same time offering its own unique interpretation of the dynamic between tradition and modernity.” See images of the pavilion and enjoy a statement from the curators after the break.

Sufficiency – Inside the Malaysia Pavilion at the 2014 Venice Biennale

Sufficiency. The Malaysia Pavilion at the 2014 Venice Biennale. Image © Nico Saieh

The Malaysia Pavilion at the 2014 Venice Biennale focuses on the idea of sufficiency, and its role in creating sustainable and modest architecture.
In a statement, one of the Pavilion curators, Lim Teng Ngiom, writes that “while sufficiency suggests a modest but adequate scale of living, it can be reduced to only the necessity required for survival extended on a personal or collective autonomy. On the precept of sustainability it can be measured by one’s carbon footprint, or in construction it can suggest minimum building footprint or optimum structure.”
To represent the idea of sufficiency, the curators chose to display works on collapsible pet cages, which have “just enough space for existence.” Several of the pet cages are clamped together to form a suspended beam, creating a “fundamental component of architecture.” Additional works are displayed on pet cages that are sitting on the floor.
Enjoy photos from the Pavilion and a statement from the curators after the break…

The Tent/ a21studio. Image Courtesy of a21 studio

WAF Reveals Shortlist for Wood Excellence Award

The World Architecture Festival (WAF) has announced the shortlist for its first Wood Excellence award, which will honor a project where wood is an integral part of the design. Out of over 40 projects considered, WAF has selected eight for the shortlist, including a21studio’s “The Tent” and “Salvaged Ring,” as well as DSDHA’s “Alex Monroe Studio” and the University of Hong Kong’s “The Pinch.”
See the full list of shortlisted projects after the break.

Sorocaba House / Estudio BRA arquitetura

Architects: Estudio BRA arquitetura
Location: Sorocaba, São Paulo, Brasil
Authors: André Di Gregorio, Rodrigo Maçonilio
Collaborators: Henrique Menezes (architect), Beatriz Rocha (student)
Project Area: 127 sqm
Project Year: 2014
Photographs: Pedro Kok

Unified Architectural Theory: Chapter 6

Bagsværd Church, by Jørn Utzon, is commonly cited as an example of “Critical Regionalism.” However, according to Salilngaros’ Unified Architectural Theory, “Critical Regionalism” does not go far enough in removing architecture from the influence of Modernist principles. Image © Flickr User seier + seier – http://www.flickr.com/photos/seier/

We will be publishing Nikos Salingaros’ book, Unified Architectural Theory, in a series of installments, making it digitally, freely available for students and architects around the world. The following chapter discusses the extent to which architecture can be considered successful, i.e. adaptive to its specific locality. Although recognizing the merits of “Critical Regionalism,” Salingaros here explains why that framework is not enough to analyze architecture in terms of its environmental, cultural and emotional impact. If you missed them, make sure to read the previous installments here.

Suppose that we have successfully documented and catalogued all form languages, including those from vernacular traditions, past times, and contemporary practice. A scientific approach requires the next step, which comprises both analysis and classification. A catalogue is a useful store of information, but it is only the beginning of a systematic study.

What do some form languages have in common, and on what qualities do some of them differ? One measure is their degree of complexity, as documented by the length of description of the form language. Another is adaptation to locality. How far does a form language justify itself as being regional? Here, regional is the opposite of universal.

It is therefore useful to classify form languages by how much they adapt to a certain locality. If it does adapt, each language will, of course, adapt to its own specific locality: what we measure is how good that adaptation is. Success of adaptation is measured if buildings are energy efficient in the low-tech sense, so that the majority population can profit from them. By contrast, high-tech energy efficiency may be very useful, but it usually relies upon imported technology and materials, and is thus global, not regional.

Le Meridien Zhengzhou / Neri&Hu Design and Research Office

Architects: Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
Location: Zhengzhou, Henan, China
Interiors: Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
Area: 43,000 sqm
Year: 2013
Photographs: Pedro Pegenaute

House Kamperland / Bedaux de Brouwer Architecten

Architects: Bedaux de Brouwer Architecten
Location: Veere, The Netherlands
Architect In Charge: Jacq. de Brouwer
Design Team: Cees de Rooij, Kees Paulussen
Area: 360 sqm
Year: 2009
Photographs: Luuk Kramer

Competition Entry Proposes Colorful Duo of Museums for Budapest

Exterior of the Architecture Museum. Image © IaN+

Italian design firm IaN+ has put forth their vision for a pair of museums along the Dòzsa Gyorgy Boulevard in Budapest, Hungary for the Liget Budapest International Competition. Connected by a central foyer, the two exhibition spaces will be based on a common grid of structural concrete walls whose cells will form galleries. One of these museums will be devoted to photography, the other to architecture, and each building, while similar in appearance, is designed to best accommodate the work they will display.

Super Alloys / WAM Arquitectos

Architects: WAM Arquitectos
Location: Santa Catarina, Nuevo Leon, Mexico
Project Architects: Roberto Romero, Tania Coronado, Rocío González
Project Year: 2012
Photographs: Adrián Llaguno

Wuxi Sales Center / UDG China

Architects: UDG China
Location: Yangshan Avenue, Wuxi, Jiangsu, China
Architect In Charge: Qian Qiang
Design Team: Simone De Gradi, Zhang Dan, Li Chencheng, Wang Shuliang, Gu Kewei
Area: 1,337 sqm
Year: 2014
Photographs: Yao Li

Faculty of Engineering + Information Technology / Denton Corker Marshall

Architects: Denton Corker Marshall
Location: Jones Street, Ultimo, NSW, Australia
Area: 22,050 sqm
Year: 2014
Photographs: Richard Glover

House in Tatuí / Felipe Hsu & Lucas Bittar

Architects: Felipe Hsu & Lucas Bittar
Location: Tatuí, São Paulo, Brasil
Collaborator: Pedro Fernandes de Bona
Project Area: 287 sqm
Project Year: 2012
Photographs: Pedro Kok

“Bungalow Germania” – Germany’s Pavilion at the Venice Biennale 2014

Bungalow Germania. The German Pavilion at the 2014 Venice Biennale.. Image © Nico Saieh

Germany’s contribution to the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennale scrutinizes the architecture of representation, its crisis, and potential cessation. Aside from the universal ambition of modernism to break with the past, Germany has undergone a number of decisive political and societal breaks during the last hundred years. Through the question of how the nation “(re)builds and represents itself through architecture, we are able to discuss the friction between national identity and architecture expression—however, architecture is not only a mirror to ideology, but a constituting reality and societal context.”

Rocas House / Studio MK27 + Renata Furlanetto

Architects: Studio MK27 + Renata Furlanetto
Location: El Pangue, Zapallar, Valparaíso Region, Chile
Author: Marcio Kogan
Co Author: Renata Furlanetto
Project Team: Carlos Costa, Diana Radomysler, Laura Guedes, Maria Cristina Motta, Mariana Simas
Project Area: 460 sqm
Project Year: 2013
Photographs: Fernando Guerra | FG+SG

2013 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion / Sou Fujimoto. Image © Danica O. Kus

Melbourne to Launch Its Own Serpentine Pavilion

Mirroring the Serpentine Galleries of London, the Naomi Milgrom Foundation has announced its own yearly pavilion commission for the city of Melbourne. Sited in the Queen Victoria Memorial Gardens, the premier “MPavilion” will be designed by Sean Godsell, opening October 6th of this year. The pavilion will host a variety of community events, including art installations and performances, over a four month period. It remains to be seen whether the MPavilion will have a lasting impact on the architectural culture of the city, as some critics have pointed out. To learn more about this now annual commission, visit this article from infolink.

Extension of the Helicopter Group of Civil Security / NBJ architectes

© Paul Kozlowski - photoarchitecture — © Paul Kozlowski – photoarchitecture

Architects: NBJ architectes
Location: Saint-Gilles, France
Architects In Charge: Elodie Nourrigat, Jacques Brion, Romain Jamot
Area: 5,700 sqm
Year: 2013
Photographs: Paul Kozlowski – photoarchitecture

Video: Los Angeles from Above

<a href="http://www.vimeo.com/97726387">http://www.vimeo.com/97726387</a> This time-lapse video, entitled “Above LA,” is Chris Pritchard’s love letter to Los Angeles. Filmed over the course of two years, Pritchard sought out locations to showcase the city in a way people rarely get to see – from above. Some of the views were easy to seek out, while others involved some exploratory hiking and trespassing. He encourages “everyone – lifelong Angelenos, transplants, visitors – to hit the trails, drive the mountain roads, find a reason to get on top of a high-rise. From the basin to the valley, this city offers so many opportunities to rise above and look down. Never stop exploring.”

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Saturday, July 26, 2014

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