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I believe that architecture today needs to reflect on the tasks and possibilities which are inherently its own.  Architecture is not a vehicle or a symbol for things that do not belong to its essence. In a society that celebrates the inessential, architecture can put up a resistance, counteract the waste of forms and meanings, and speak its own language.  I believe that the language of architecture is not a question of a specific style. Every building is built for a specific use in a specific place and for a specific society. My buildings try to answer the questions that emerge from these simple facts as precisely and critically as they can.

~ Peter Zumthor in Thinking Architecture

Posted: April 13th, 2009
at 2:56pm by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,quote of the day

Comments: No comments


Slums are…Trendy?

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It seems to be increasingly popular to discuss ‘slums’ as urban conditions that merit fetishistic interest. For instance – Koolhaas is now enamored with Lagos, Nigeria, and the idea of the ‘informality’ of the city’s growth. Specifically, real quick, I wanted to point everyone to this post from the GSD:ecologicalurbanism blog that ran parallel to the GSD’s Ecological Urbanism conference last week.

Orhan Ayyuce:
What do you think of the current interest in slum communities. It is almost unfortunately ‘interesting’ to talk about slums and their informality. May I say that the trend started around the time you published Planet of Slums?”

Mike Davis:
You know, in architecture school most people talk about icons and counter icons, rather than try to understand the larger social networks, hierarchies, and conditions that produce particular types of urbanisms. That is taken to its highest level of trendiness by Rem Koolhaas. His stuff on Lagos is crazy… In my mind it is a sleazy apology for social evil.

If you want to see human self organization at work, go to Lagos, but face the poverty and oppression by the military regime … Maybe he should talk to my friend *Chris Abani about that stuff… Chris would laugh at his hyperbolic exercise…

*http://www.chrisabani.com/Abani_Fiction/Graceland.htm

It’s interesting that this urban condition has received so much attention recently – as the interest in these sprawling ‘slums’ is coming from Western / developed nations, and I’m unsure of how you can take aspects from these environments and translate / integrate them into existing cities. The infatuation seems to stem from 2 elements – ‘informality’ and scale – both of which are based in necessity, not necessarily desirability. And while yes, millions and millions of people live in these slum communities, I feel as if suggesting that they’re  cultural element to be learned-from is some bougie European BS.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m not surprised that people formed these communities independent of planners and architects and Rem Koolhaas. People are smart – they tend to figure shit out, it seems, when they need to. That, and mostly that if these ninjas could be out the slums, they’d be ghosts. So if the communities design themselves, and [assuming] inhabitants who can leave don’t want to re-create these conditions someplace else, what’s with all the commentary? People are really just pointing out that Lagos is fascinating and quaint or something That doesnt seem ignorant to anyone else? A Dutch guy being condescending about some Africans? What?

.:Mike Davis on Koolhaas’ Lagos – By Guest Blogger Orhan Ayyuce -> via GSD:ecologicalurbanism

Posted: April 9th, 2009
at 1:50am by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,my ninja, please,urban/master planning,starchitects

Comments: 1 comment


New Beantown Museum

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AMNP is obviously going to support anything that stands as a tribute to the greatness of The Bean – so I’m glad to see things moving along with the Boston Museum. Designed by Cambridge Seven Associates, the museum would double as a food market, and also include a number of other amenities – if the Turnpike Authority, which owns the property and is supposedly reviewing proposals by developers. It’d also be great to get an multi-purpose anchor on the Rose Kennedy Greenway, drawing more people to the space. While this end of the Greenway seems to be used regularly [workers at lunch, people moving in + out of Boston’s ‘North End’, etc], a large attraction can only help the public space. Now we just need something on the South Station end…

A $120 million museum and food market would be built along the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway under a plan to transform streets near Faneuil Hall Marketplace and the MBTA’s Haymarket Station into an arts and culture district.

Executives of Boston Museum, a nonprofit group, are bidding to build a five-story, 100,000-square-foot glass and terra cotta facility on a sliver of land at the corner of Blackstone and North streets. The ground floor would be reserved for a food market, while the top four floors would contain exhibits focused on Massachusetts history. There would also be a gift shop, cafe, theater, and classroom and community space. “It’s important for the city to evolve and give people reasons to come back,” said Frank Keefe, chief executive of Boston Museum. “This will be a great educational institution to expand tourism and help school kids become literate about local history.”

The museum would house five galleries with interactive exhibits focused on different themes throughout the state’s 400-year history: innovation, politics, sports, growth and development, and people and immigration.

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.:full article via -> Boston.com

::images via Cambridge Seven Associates::

Posted: April 8th, 2009
at 7:52pm by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,museum

Comments: No comments


Save Design, Save the World?

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I realize this has been all over the interwebs – but it’s feckin’ hilarious, so now it’s here too. Enjoy – and understand that we all take ourselves too seriously.

Posted: April 8th, 2009
at 2:36pm by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,my ninja, please,eye candy,illustration

Comments: 1 comment


Charlie Rose: Diller, Scofidio + Renfro

[googlevideo]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3215106065317905984&ei=cqvTSbiHNovcqAKT-cXZCQ&q=liz+Diller%2C+Ricardo+Scofidio%2C+and+Charles+Renfro+[/googlevideo]

::Video Sundays, or VS, is a weekly feature here on AMNP. For more architecture-related videos, click on any Sunday in the sidebar calendar – or on the ‘videos’ category in the ‘archjutsu’ section. And don’t hesitate to submit suggestions for video features to architecture[at]myninjaplease[dot]com::

Posted: April 5th, 2009
at 5:01am by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,featured ninjas,videos

Comments: No comments


Photo du Jour: The NIF

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Science really provides some incredible looking, completely function-driven, structures. I mean, I won’t be showing you the exterior of this building anytime soon – but the actual components of this project – the National Ignition Facility – are outstanding.

I’m not really going to pretend that I’m 100% clear on what this thing is – but it’s just too cool looking not to feature. Essentially, the National Ignition Facility [NIF] is a laser-based inertial confinement fusion [ICF] research device located in Cali [got that?]. Here’s a really brief run-down, from Wikipedia:

NIF uses powerful lasers to heat and compress a small amount of hydrogen fuel to the point where nuclear fusion reactions take place. NIF is the largest and most energetic ICF device built to date, and the first that is expected to reach the long-sought goal of “ignition”, in which the fusion reactions become self-sustaining. The construction of the National Ignition Facility was certified complete on March 31, 2009 by the U.S. Dept. of Energy [read on, here].

The photo above is of the ‘target chamber’. My overly simplistic description is that they shoot lasers at some hydrogen fuel in this chamber, cause a fusion reaction, press some buttons / pull some levers, and study what happens. In particular, the  facility will hopefully be able to recreate conditions at the core of a star, like the Sun. Nuclear fusion – pretty awesome.

And the photo looks cool, which is always a good thing.

Posted: April 3rd, 2009
at 12:35pm by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,my ninja, please,photographie

Comments: No comments


BuckyFuller Portrait

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Buckminster Fuller Portrait

A portrait of Bucky Fuller created for Mined Magazine, designed by HunterGatherer.

This right here is SICK. I’m lovin’ it.
About HunterGatherer:

HunterGatherer is a design, illustration, animation and production studio founded by Todd St. John. It has earned international recognition for its spare, but inventive projects; often combining experimental and hand-built techniques with more complex methods. Since 2000, HunterGatherer has stayed decidely small, focusing on a limited number of assignments across a wide range of mediums.

HunterGatherer’s work has been widely published and exhibited. The studio has won awards from almost every major design organization, and St. John was selected along with frequent collaborator Gary Benzel for the 2003 Cooper-Hewitt National Design Triennial. In 2008, HunterGatherer won a Webby and was nominated for an Emmy for the animated short “Circle Squared”. In addition to the studio, St. John teaches as a visiting critic at the Yale School of Art’s graduate program, and occasionally exhibits non-commercial work under his own name.

.:image + info via -> HunterGatherer

Posted: April 2nd, 2009
at 9:52pm by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,my ninja, please,featured ninjas,eye candy,graphic design,illustration

Comments: No comments


Gehry to design Eisenhower Memorial

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Gehry Partners, LLP, has been selected by the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission and the General Services Administration to design the national memorial to President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The project will be within site of the Capitol, and a block over from the National Mall [reported by Bustler].

Allow me to say: What?!? A national memorial designed by Frankie G? For serious? Eisenhower Memorial Commission Chairman Siciliano released a statement saying “It’s appropriate to have one of today’s most outstanding architects design a memorial for one of our country’s greatest leaders”.

But is it really appropriate? Regardless of opinions of Gehry’s work from a design / construction / aesthetic standpoint, the fact remains that a large amount of his status stems from his being a ‘starchitect’ and an American pop-culture phenomenon. To me this seems to present an issue why he was chosen – was it for his body of work, or for Bilbao and Disney?

What I’m wondering here is: is Gehry truly one of today’s ‘most outstanding’ architects, or has pop-culture reduced him to the ‘most famous’? How often does someone find out your an architect and bring up Gehry’s name? It’s as if in the US architecture is reduced to the ‘two Franks’ – Wright and Gehry. And that’s fine – I’m glad people know the names of any architects at all. I just can’t help but think that the adoration he receives isn’t actually based on his work. His two most ‘famous’ [seemingly] projects have served to bolster his fame by making him into a name brand – but have also created expectations of what his work will ‘be like’.

Long story short: I’m slightly worried that this thing will turn into some kind of curvilinear, amorphous thing that will be sheathed in metal so shiny that it accidentally sets the Capitol ablaze. I guess I should just be happy they didn’t choose Stern…

.: news via -> Bustler

Posted: April 2nd, 2009
at 9:41pm by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,my ninja, please,news,starchitects,memorial

Comments: 2 comments


HOK Sport is… POPULOUS

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In architecture business news, HOK Sport has aparently bought itself out from HOK – and has rebranded as POPULOUS.

We celebrate a new beginning in 2009 as an independently-owned design practice. Our new name, Populous, reflects our recently completed buyout and separation from HOK Group of St. Louis, Missouri, which allows us to enthusiastically embrace the expertise we uniquely claim—drawing people together. With clarity of vision and purpose that only amplifies our expertise, all of the people, portfolio, capabilities and expertise formerly known as HOK Sport Venue Event continue as Populous.

As the world becomes more populous, our expertise becomes more relevant—whether it’s an event with more participants then you’ve ever dreamed of, a city looking to transform an area into a more economically and sustainable asset, or a rapidly growing urban center—our skills uniquely apply. Over the years, we’ve helped create some of the most recognizable gathering places on the planet, and some of the most storied, thanks to the passion of fans and the support of communities.

They seem to have really taken to ‘web 2.0’ and the ‘net [as any 21st century business should], and have a number of videos on their site worth checking out – including ‘What brings people together‘, where they’ve basically asked sports fans about the sense of community created by teams all over the world.

::thanks to AMNP reader jhawkred from the University of Kansas for the link::

Posted: April 1st, 2009
at 12:11pm by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,featured ninjas,news

Comments: No comments


Eye Candy: Nick Leavy

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[Untitled – Photoshop, March 2009]

Speed Paintover to create a sense of atmostphere, depth and feel to the standard environment render.

AMNP was recently contacted by Nick Leavy, a UK-based designer who’s work was featured here but had been inadvertently uncredited [I found the images on Archinect]. After checking out his work online, i saw these recent works, and couldn’t help toss them up here for ninjas to see. The images are pretty sick – like what if the urban fabric was based on a coral reef.

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[Monday morning, time for work – Lightwave 3D, July 2008]

A short project based on points and cloned positions of a single module to produce a built urban space. A generated scape based on a decision making process to inform a composition.

Click the images for larger views – and head over to Nick’s gallery for more of his work.

.: Nick Leavy -> via CGSociety

Posted: April 1st, 2009
at 11:51am by orangemenace


Categories: architecture,featured ninjas,eye candy,illustration

Comments: 1 comment