Designed by ADOC [Arquitectura Design Ordenamento Consultores], what we’ve got here today is a proposal for university housing in Zaragoza, Spain. Say it with me now: my ninjas, please… Now, I warned readers in my post on KKA’s fishmarket project that I had a collection of projects that utilize the iconic gable-roofed home shape – and this university housing project is definitely the most extreme / strangest use of the form I’ve come across so far.
The project starts out with a simplistic, minimalist take on the gabled roof house form, creating a single volume to house the university students in an individual module. This module is then multiplied, stacked and arrayed – creating 5 storey housing blocks, seemingly connected by the long central hallways familiar to a typical apartment building.
ADOC likens each floor to a street – individual homes, connected by a shared pathway. We can see this idea in the section best – where the drawing shows not just a narrow hallway, but what looks like a small, two-storey, space that connects the individual volumes to the shared path. Now, I have no idea how big this space is – but it looks to be at least the width of the hallway itself.
That said, if the ‘outdoor’ space is also as long as the individual volume itself and double-height – does this create a useable, individual, ‘outdoor’ emulating space within the structure created by the amalgamation of these individual ‘houses’? It’s definitely a fascinating idea – combining forms we associated with the things we like about single-family homes to create structures that use the land more efficiently, and achieve a higher density without depriving residents of a sense of individual, private space.
Assuming any of this is the case, I think we need to imagine this type of project post-occupancy -where I would expect to find that residents had really taken ownership of their personal volume. Painting, personalizing, decorating, planting – I wonder if you could really achieve the diversity found on an actual street in a project such as this one. I would argue that it may even have to capacity to exceed the individuality found on many streets – as so much single-family residential construction looks so so similar, and the simple fact that single-family homes having clear owners/residents and addresses/land seems to reduce the occupants’ desire to personalize the exterior of the building in additional ways.
Thanks to our ninja Manuel for the link – don’t hesitate to hit me up if you come across something that you think ninjas should know about. Email me at architecture@myninjaplease.com – or drop me a DM on Twitter @ArchitectureMNP.
This project was also covered a while back by our ninjas over at plusmood, which you can read here.
This weekend I made it out to NYC for the Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward exhibit at the Guggenheim. I had hoped to get there sooner, as the exhibit closed on Sunday [making a Saturday visit, the second-to-last day, quite crowded] – but I couldn’t, and so I’m sorry for talking about it here on AMNP now that the exhibit has ended. Those of you who were in or around the NYC area and slept: sorry, but you missed out, my ninjas. You’ve got to be on top of this kind of thing.
While any student of architecture – and many casual observers of the profession, especially here in the US – are pretty well acquainted with the work of FLW, I think that even Wright enthusiasts would have been impressed by the collection on display. For starters – it’s Wright’s work, exhibited in one of his most famous buildings. I think that’s pretty dope. Aside from the collection, though, the collection of work was really quite impressive to see. Unlike seeing his work in a book, a lecture hall, or on a computer screen, his actual sketches + drawings – when seen in person – demand a whole new level of attention. Now, I’m no huge fan or Wright necessarily, nor do I think that I learned a great deal of new information about his work and concepts from the exhibit – but being able to examine so much of his work, close up and in detail, was a fantastic experience. And in addition to his own drawings, sketches, and models, the Guggenheim commissioned a number of new models built by Situ Studio – which were fantastic, especially those of his un-built projects. From a sectional model of the Pittsburgh Point Park Civic Center to an exploded, large scale model of the Herbert Jacobs House, they were stunning and really added an extra level of intricacy to the entire exhibit. I hope many of you were able to get there before it closed.
One thing that jumped out at me, which I had never spent much time considering before, is how unsuccessful Wright actually was with dealing with the automobile in many of his more grandiose projects. He talked of terracing, of long beautiful horizontals meant to reflect the midwestern plains, and of adding nature to buildings by integrating landscaping everywhere in many of his large scale proposals. But, looking at his designs for projects like the Living City and the Pittsburgh Point Park Civic Center, it struck me that Wright’s parking proposals weren’t particularly revolutionary. Yes, he spiraled the ramps around the entire proposed project, or added some other bit of visual interest – but at the end of the day, this sequestered the project from its surroundings in way that we now know to be undesirable [the suburban mall, etc].
In visiting the exhibit, and realizing this about his work, I was surprised that I hadn’t really considered this before – I suppose that when I was younger and my interest in Wright was greater / I was studying his work in school, I was much more focused on the architecture itself. Even when looking at his expansive planning proposals and the Living City, it was more about vision and concept [and aesthetic, I assume] to me than feasibility. Now, seeing the work again, I was struck by how many of these concepts he was working on seem to have been somewhat achieved – and how problematic [and terrible] many of them are. Sprawl. Car culture. Decentralization – with big centralized ‘public’ structures [the mega-mall, the mega-church]. That said, Wright also envisioned people living with the land, in a more agrarian and sustainable way – in addition to the invention of some kind of futuristic cars, and those helicopter-things he was always drawing.
Regardless of my opinion of his work, however, the exhibit was extraordinary.
“They were discriminating towards art. They were discriminating towards a community.”
I’ve always been a big fan of murals in the city, ever since I was a child. First and foremost, let’s be real – they’re pretty awesome looking. Aesthetics aside, tho, they serve a number of other important functions that can’t be overlooked. They’re a great way to get young people feeling involved in their community, and give them an artistic outlet. The murals can also serve a number of historical and cultural purposes – sometimes they depict important historical figures, sometimes they remember musicians we all loved an miss, some capture ethnic/cultural periods of an area, and others attempt to lay out the history of a neighborhood. All are important pieces of the ’story’ of a particular community – even the paintings of Marley and Big Pun.
Today’s Boston Globe features a story about a group of young artists working on such a mural in Boston’s Dudley Street neighborhood, a part of Roxbury. Now without getting too too deep into the history, [as I am not familiar, admittedly, with all the details], Dudley had a rough go of it in the 80s and 90s. Poverty, violence, depreciating property values – its a familiar, and sad, story of the city. The artists, working as part of Boston’s summer jobs program, planned to tell the history of the area in it’s mural – showing how the community has weathered these adversities, and how it has responded and grown. From Boston.com:
“It gives you like an important feeling,” said Randy Vicente, an 18-year-old from Hyde Park. “You don’t want to put just anything on the wall. It seemed like we had the perfect idea.”
Carlos Santiago, the 25-year-old lead artist, refers to his fellow painters as ‘my crew’, and relishes the speckles of paint on his plaid shorts, T-shirt, and white Nike high-tops. He conceived not only of the first frame, representing the neglect, but also the subsequent frames that showed members of the community picking up trash, turning vacant lots into community gardens, holding signs that say, “Don’t dump on us,” and admiring yellow and purple affordable houses “that are actually nice, that you can live in.”
…
“But the MBTA, which owns the East Cottage Street wall where the mural is located, told them their depiction of the neighborhood’s roughest days was too negative, that images of fires and words such as disinvestment and arson could not be used, according to the artists, members of Cape Verdean Community Unido. In essence, they said, they were asked to whitewash history.”
Now, I was simply going to link to this article in the sidebar, and say something about how the T should take it’s collective head out of its ass – but there’s more to this than all that. This area of Boston – along with many others – has gone through what can only be described, in my mind, as a fucked-up couple of decades. That’s just the way it is. One might argue the degree to which the area was having problems – and the causes – but we can’t ignore that these problems existed.
And that’s what a whitewashed mural – obviously – is doing.
Let’s not kid ourselves – nobody from the community needs to be reminded of the issues they faced in the past, and perhaps continue to face today. They know the deal, so to speak. But part of the importance of the mural is that it informs young people – and, more importantly in my mind, newcomers – of the area’s past. It’s a reminder of what was. Dudley is undergoing changes, and is one of the latest areas in Boston to see the signs of possible gentrification – it will almost certainly see a huge increase in its “yuppy” population in the future. As the social fabric of the area changes, it should not forget itself – nor should city agencies [like the MBTA] attempt to ‘clean-up’ the neighborhood’s story.
This isn’t an ‘anti-gentrification’ argument – as in, shove some murals in the face of the yuppies to remind them they’re not really from the neighborhood. To the contrary, the influx of some economic diversity into regions of the city can be a great thing – and I hope it works out for Dudley. The issue here, however, is that in ‘forgetting’ – or ‘whitewashing’ – the history of our urban neighborhoods, we leave ourselves open to repeating the past. And, worse than that, we run the risk of pointing ‘blame’ at the wrong people – or of assuming that gentrification itself is what ‘improved’ the area.
I don’t really believe that any newcomer to Dudley, or any other part of the city, will be totally blind to the area’s past – but the mural is a way for the current residents to tell their own story, in their own way. And that story isn’t simply that things are all good and the future is bright – it’s deeply rooted in the area’s past, and how the community got itself to where it is today. To attempt to subdue or erase these memories is to deprive the people who have worked so hard to build and improve this community [and others] of proper credit – and robs the neighborhood of aspects of itself that make it what it is today, and what it will be in the future.
Designed for a product designer in East London, the Brick Studio – design by Cassion Castle Architects – looks to employ what Cassion Castle calls “stealth tactics” to create an anonymous exterior that blends with the brickwork of the street. To achieve this goal, the form of the building has been kept simple and matching brick will be used in the construction of the facades. This, however, is where the similarities with the surroundings end.
Rather than have the interior of the studio occupy the entire lot, Cassion Castle has created an entry courtyard behind the ‘front’ facade. This facade is then made porous by intentionally leaving gaps in the brickwork – which will create some interesting light/shadows in the courtyard by day, and will glow from the inside – out at night.
“We liked the idea of it being almost stealthy in its presence on the street. Its a strong structural form but also almost an extension of the surrounding fabric. Its something you’d only notice as you walked past.
You go through the front door and you’re not actually inside. On a very small site to do that seems a bit nuts but it helps you to ventilate the lower floors and it means that the rooms can operate independently.”
The studio space itself is then stack alongside the courtyard, allowing for natural ventilation and light penetration into the space – the floors of the studio are to be a steel grating to maximize natural lighting, and probably create some lighting/shadow effects similar to those of the brick facade. Lastly, the 3? floors are accessed via an external staircase, located in the courtyard space – allowing for additional interaction with the perforated brick wall while moving vertically.
I have to admit – recent and ongoing developments in ‘augmented reality’ user interfaces have me kind of geeked. Integrating technology into our lives in increasingly seamless ways is both exciting to me in a ‘the future is now’ kind of way – and for the possibility of un-tethering ourselves, while remaining somehow connected to the ‘net [or whatever] in a more ‘real’, integrated [and maybe less anti-social] way. Not that any of this has to do with this iPhone app giving you directions in the subway…
From the developers:
When you load the app, holding it flat, all lines of the New York subway are displayed in coloured arrows. By tilting the phone upwards, you will see the nearest stations: what direction they are in relation to your location, how many miles away they are and what lines they are on. If you continue to tilt the phone upwards, you will see stations further away, as stacked icons. Only available to Apple iPhone 3GS users.
But yeah – looks pretty dope. I’m really interested to see how architecture and design respond to these kind of developments – and what they will mean for public space, in particular.
[image: Boilerrhouse Extention - Victoria and Albert Museum, London-(P. 18) 1996, acrylic on black paper, 37 x 57 inches]
I came across this images over at the Max Protetch Gallery site – which was recently linked to by the ninjas over at Archinect. The gallery features the work of a number of artists and architects, with a great selection available for viewing online – should definitely be checked-out. Here I’ve selected a few images by Zaha Hadid featured by the gallery, which I thought were particularly dope.
[image: Tokyo Forum II (Perspective Rotation) 1989, acrylic on black paper, 23 x 33 inches]
[image: 42nd Street Hotel - New York - Perspective View Along 8th Avenue 1995, acrylic on black paper, 58 x 42 1/2 inches Framed]
Interesting entry by Kjellgren Kaminsky Architecture [KKA] to a competition held by the Bergen Municipality, Norway, for a market square and fish market building.
Based on the volumes and proportions of the ‘Bergen building tradition’, the proposed market building is a five storey structure sited at the end of a larger public square – inspired by historically used local materials and clad in wood, in an attempt to reinterpret the historical architecture of the area.
The traditional fish market of Bergen have over the years gradually changed its shape. Today fish sold here is no longer just fish and the clientele is no longer only local people but also a large amount of tourists. We believe that the traditional market would gain more visitors if it was combined with a modern marketplace fully equipped and under one roof. The interior market hall may be supplemented by a traditional temporary market square surface in front of the house.
Purposefully designed to have a small footprint, the fish market allows for the majority of the site to function as a flexible public space, as seen in the diagrams below. Public space is drawn up threw the building, as seen in the sections below, to allow varying views overlooking the market square – turning the building into a kind of backdrop for the public space. The combination of the fish market with a more contemporary marketplace – along with this relationship with the public square, and the use of part of the building as public space – are attempts to use the project as a way to reinvigorate the area, and bring more locals and tourists to the market.
Now, all this about this project in particular aside – what’s up with the increasing popularity of simplified gabled roof building? I have something like 3 or 4 more projects I want to post on that use the iconic gabled-roof home volume in a streamlined, contemporary way – and I know I’ve already posted on some projects doing similar things. How do ninjas feel about this? Overused trend? Cool reinterpretation of a longstanding typology? Refreshing move away from flat and butterfly roofs? [Also, it's worth noting that it seems as if the hip roof is being used in similar fashion]
The roof of the Vancouver BC Convention Centre is covered with over 2.5 hectares (6 acres) of native grassland. Usually closed to the public, we were able to get a tour and interview with the landscape architect of the project, Bruce Hemstock.
This is part 1 of the “Growing Cities” documentary series shot while traveling in the USA and Canada – June 2009. 2 person crew. Canon 5DmkII and Zoom H4n. Music is “Andvari” by Sigur Rs
My first thought upon seeing the ‘Knit Chair’, designed by Emiliano Godoy, was of cardboard – something about the color + texture, and the leg design. Closer inspection, however, reveals the true nature of the chair: high quality maple plywood panels stitched together with cotton rope [hence the name].
The construction of the Knit chair speaks about smaller pieces coming together to form a bigger structure. Held together by rope, the piece breaks apart in smaller elements when those fasteners wear out or become loose. The small, individual components can then be put outdoors or into a compost pile, allowing nature to finish the job. Flexibility is incorporated into the design, allowing the chair to dynamically respond to the user’s body, adapting lightly to the movements, size and posture of the user.
Looks pretty sick – I wonder how much flex/deflection there is when you sit down, and when you’re trying to get up out of it, tho. Interesting, too, is this idea that the chair has a limited life span. While yes, lots of furniture falls apart on you over time, here we have something that will loosen each time you sit down and get up. Even if the chair is biodegradable, doesn’t this built-in impermanence make the chair less ‘green’? But, maybe there’s something beautiful about knowing that the chair will only hold together for so long, and must be enjoyed/appreciated while it lasts.
Paul Goldberger, writer and architecture critic for the New Yorker, writes on Jeanne Gang's new Aqua tower in Chicago - explaining why it's an even more impressive project than understood at first glace. .:read the full article->
The Brookings Institute has graded President Obamas infrastructure spending / plan as an "A-" - but in reading the actual article, I'm not really sure why. Sure, it seems like a good idea - but the fact that it hasn't really been implemented properly / most effectively should be reflected in Obama's grade, shouldn't it?
Well, no Planning Department - thats the new direction some cities/towns are taking, opting to contract planning work out to private firms rather than staff a full-time planning department.
Or really, 'Not on my Planet'. The NIMBY movement is possibly being elevated to a global scale, with Pacific Islanders (Micronesia, in particular) taking legal steps to block the Czech Republic from building a coal plant due to the affects said plant would have on the island nation - some 6,000km or so away. Well played, Micronesia! I have no doubt that this won't work directly - but it keeps the effects global warming has on small island nations and their populations in the news, which is a big deal. Also, this shows (in case you weren't aware) that the people of Micronesia are ninjas - using the Czechs' own laws against them.
Paul Goldberger, architecture critic for the New Yorker, sits down to discuss his new books - and the current state of things in the world of architecture - with Charlie Rose.
Architecture students want more design/build projects in school - which will only make them more effective in the workplace, giving them valuable construction experience.
How good of a job are architecture schools doing at integrating sustainability into their curricula? Apparently, not so impressive. Check out "Ecological Literacy in Architectural Education".
Experts say that even though commercial real estate is tanking, that it both won't be as bad as the housing market's collapse and won't cause another recession. Ninjas will not be holding their breath (well not for this, anyways) - and architects will probably still be screwed.
For completely screwing-over the entire planet. Brilliant! A writer for the Guardian, who was in the room for a number of the Copenhagen talks, explains how China blocked all the major iniatives - and how Obama isn't [really] to blame. "I am certain that had the Chinese not been in the room, we would have left Copenhagen with a deal that had environmentalists popping champagne corks in every corner of the world."
Autodesk, makers of AutoCAD and Revit [among other software] have created an online videogame to build awareness about the importance of green building. My ninjas, PLEASE...
Are LED traffic signals too efficient for cold climates? Apparently they don't necessarily give off [read: waste] enough heat to melt snow - which can then pile up enough to block the signals from the view of drivers.
Can abandoned 'big box' retail be converted to suburban farming? It would certainly put these spaces in the 'burbs to good use - and would [I imagine] be more cost efective than vertical farming in our cities. Something to think about...
Boston-based architecture firm Cubellis Associates, Inc. is closing shop. The 24 year old firm had recently opened a number of offices around the country, and employed roughly 400 people. Clients are being transitioned to start-ups created by employees Cubellis has recently let-go.
What is going on with Gwathmey Siegel & Associates' U.N. Mission project? If they were going for secure, why not put everyone in an actual bunker then?
"The concrete-paneled pillar opens grudgingly as it rises, transitioning from a blank wall to perforations just wide enough for an archer, to vast executive windows near the top. The structure embodies the latest in security doctrine and technology, but it has a stark, medieval look, as if it were meant to defend against catapults and trebuchets. Welcome to your friendly federal government's new diplomatic presence on the Manhattan skyline."
Minarets are now banned in Switzerland, in a move that is so absurdly ignorant that all I can do is laugh. Consider this: what is a minaret but a different word for something that is essentially the same as a common feature in Christian churches/cathedrals? Bell towers and tall steeples? My ninjas, please - same exact thing. Shit, bell towers even serve the same purpose as a minaret. Why not just build giant signs that read "hey, all you Muslims - we'd prefer it if you got the hell out of here". This is why in a true democracy [so nowhere] you don't have popular votes on these kinds of issues - because people in large groups are all too often biased, small minded, clique-orientated, bigots. Last time I checked popular demand wasn't a solid reason for the government allowing the many to mistreat the few...
This, I think, is a really cool / interesting story: "It all started when Google's Tom Wyman and Chris Cronin started getting enthusiastic calls and e-mails from architects who had children on the spectrum. Their kids, the parents reported, had discovered the software program and loved it. All they needed was their creativity and a computer mouse and they could design entire neighborhoods."
"The Long Island Chapter of the American Institute of Architects awarded Bates Masi + Architects the prestigious Archi Award for the Lakeside residence in Montauk, Long Island. The award was for the category Best Single and Multi-Family Residence."
"Paul Goldberger wants to remind us of why architecture matters, in shaping lives and cultures. From ancient Rome to the next wave of American - or Asian - building. This hour, On Point: Paul Goldberger, on the power of the built world around us."
Thanks mostly to pro-industry nuts, the climate change / global warming discussion has reached a strange level of apathy - mostly because - quite literally - people don't perceive their environment as 'warmer'. My ninjas, PLEASE. To suggest that climate change isn't happening - contrary to the opinion of the majority of scientists - because you still need to wear a coat in the winter is RETAHDED. Two new comments on the debate are from Amanda Baillieu [editor of bd] - claiming that "scientific evidence has now shifted enough" to suggest climate change isn't an issue to worry about [she doesn't source anyone, of course] - and a response by Hattie Hartman at the Architects' Journal, wondering mostly what the hell Amanda is talking about. An important point I'd like to make: saying that scientists think / support something isn't the same as showing they do. Many of these people claiming that science has debunked climate change are supposed to be journalists - even as a lowly blogger I know you need some sources to back something like that up. Sh!t.
"Just six weeks ago PLP Architecture was set up following a headline-grabbing fracture within Kohn Pedersen Fox Architects (KPF). Yet the new practice, led by the US giant's London founding member Lee Polisano and partners David Leventhal, Fred Pilbrow, Karen Cook and Ron Bakker, already boasts a 60-strong workforce and an enviable client list."
Zaha Hadid-designed Maxxi, the new museum of contemporary art in Rome, is opening soon - and Nicolai Ouroussoss gives us an overview of Hadid's latest work.
Thom Mayne spoke at Cornell recently, and dropped some gems: "His design philosophy opposes the "conservative" idea of "architecture as a contextual activity," wherein buildings are simply efficient containers for the prearranged activities that take place inside them. Mayne prefers constructing large-scale "environments" wherein the architecture provokes an active dialogue: the buildings and its surroundings mutually interpret each other. Innovation arises in a matrix of conflicts - rather than necessarily underwriting the given function of a space, Mayne's designs often challenge the idea of spatial coherence."
Check out SOM's vision for expanding Beijing's Central Business District - a project that could eventually displace up to 10,000 residents. Yay for progress! Wait, what...?