blog wunderlust: 21 March 2009

Revisions of Paris | Prada Transformer | post-bombing | dirt and hay | Dubai is Nuts! | dwell for the James Bond villian | labyrinth gardens | unusual churches | narrow houses | igloo diy

Aalto....doorstop??

The use of concrete blocks are commonly used for doorstops, however at the entry of some mid century modern villa lies a $3500 chunk of cement holding a door open. This concrete doorstop is shaped like an Alvar Aalto Savoy vase - because one was used to cast the shape which was then shattered to let out the mould.

An intriguing albeit wasteful use of an iconic and expensive vase.

via

thanks Sacha

AnOther....

The next issue of AnOther Man magazine - a leading style and culture magazine for men extensively covers artists and architects and engages in collaborations from the world’s most innovative, inspiring and defining creatives. The feature on architecture includes a look at the archive work of Architecture’s 60s badboys Ant Farm, and Jurgen Mayer H, (J Mayer H Studio) is interviewed about the optimistic, playful spirit of his work.

View the latest issue of Another Man

Festival of Lively Architecture

Announcing the 4th staging of the Festival of Lively Architecture to be held in Montpellier, France on the 18th to 21st June 2009.

The festival offers a walking tour of the city, envisoned as an architecture discovery that opens, often closed to public, 17th century mansions and their intimate courtyards.

The city of Montpellier possesses more than seventy private mansions, providing the escucheon of Montpellier proper characteristics.

The aims of the Festival are two fold, firstly to open these otherwise private mansions to a public audience, and thanks to the interventions of young architects & designers, present a unique dialogue - between contemporary architecture and heritage, conceived specifically for the festival.

on the boards: Container Nation

Container Nation is a 200 unit multi-family development in Salt Lake City, Utah to be constructed out of nearly 1000 shipping containers and built on a concrete plinth containing shops and parking.

Presently in concept phase, the architects Group 41 have proposed schemes that take different approaches to the stacking and build-out of the containers.

House of the Week 014: house in Curitiba

This house is a 300 sq.m in Curitiba, Brazil by UNA Architects and features a central 2 story volume that can be completely open to the elements. The residence is raised off the ground creating a service layer with the main living spaces and the bedrooms on the ground and first floor respectively.

being...

Well it seems that this blog has been added to the lexicon of pop culture (or at least the architectural version)

Maybe I am turning into an architechnophilia.

via

happy St. Patricks Day

A truly green post for St Paddy's. Combining primitive building techniques with a deep respect for nature, artist Patrick Dougherty experiments with tree saplings as a construction material creating spatial environments that are part landscape - part structure. This Frankenstein approach towards green design has afforded him a growing body of work throughout the world.

via

Trailer for Rem Koolhaas - A Kind of Architect

Rarely has an architect caused as much sensation outside of the architecture community as Rem Koolhaas. [...]his work is as much about ideas as it is about constructing buildings [...] what is essential is [...] to provoke and excite through the wide range of his activities.

Studio Banana Tv ::: Andres Jaque

Studio Banana Tv interviews architect Andrés Jaque

the city is the star

In TOKYO!, three visionary directors come together for an omnibus triptych examining the nature of one unforgettable city as its shaped by the disparate people who live, work (and run amok) inside an enormous, constantly evolving, densely populated Japanese megalopolis.

blog wunderlust: 13 March 2009

uncivil engineers versus thirsty trees | models for metropolis | RIBA reconstructs Corb| Prefab gone mad | Gehry's UK project scrapped | Zaha interview | office envy | her greatest regret

on the boards: Pedregal Shopping Centre

The Pedregal Shopping Centre in Mexico City, by Pascal Architects is designed to be a beacon in an otherwise domestic area. The project consists of two commercial levels and a roof garden and two underground parking levels over 7,000 sqm. The façade is composed of large irregular perforations cut from zinc plate that is further pierced by boxes of yellow translucent laminated glass.

It seems that Architectural Record is following up on our efforts. Thank you for the mention.

redesign Detroit: an ideas competition

Every city has its history and Detroit is no different, but now it’s our turn to “bounce back” and maybe not in the traditional or conventional way, but in a new, unprecedented way that is specific to the one-of-a-kind condition Detroit presents to us. So the solution too, will be one-of-a-kind specific to our Detroit… let’s see what you’ve got…

via

House of the Week 013: Sculptor House

entry elevation

Alejandro Aravena designed this house & studio for a sculptor in Santiago, Chile. The structure is made primarily from brick echoing the work of the artist, and has expansive views towards the city towards the west.

the container post

the standard ISO container or ITU (Intermodal Transport Units) is designed to be loaded and sealed intact onto container ships, railroad cars, planes, or trucks. Although there is no standard dimensions for containers the 40 ft (12 m) container is the most popular container worldwide and is typically 8 ft wide by 8'6 high. There are 18 million containers worldwide (2005) and 26% of them originate from China.

now here's the architecture

as weekend retreat

as housing

as shop/ commercial

as temporary housing

as playground

as museum

as art piece

previously
push button house
Trinity Buoy Wharf
the All Terrain Cabin
Pop-ups
container village

and with companies like Global Peace Containers, we can begin to think of them as both man-made and sustainable

additional reference here, here, here

Florence is submerged!

The 7th edition of Rotte Metropolitane, a project promoted by the Cultural Department of the City of Florence. This year is marked by series of initiatives and events that will begin with a conference-debate starting on 12th March.

links require Italian translation

Interview with Chilean architect Mathias Klotz, whose early works in the 1990s - box-like, austere buildings - were critical of the mannerisms of Post-modern architecture.

via 0300TV

Spanish with English Subtitles

blog wunderlust: 6 March 2009

And the Oscar goes to | Nouvel colloboration| architects like LEGO | architects like cars | architects like music too | Travel & Leisure Design Awards | Wonky Math | Ecohouse Competition | Eco-sub-urban... unlikely combination |