Spread the Wealth

Here are a couple announcements for fundraisers, one for a non-profit organization in New York and the other an art installation in Detroit.

Our good friends at the Design Trust for Public Space will be holding their Annual Benefit on Thursday, November 5th at Ogilvy & Mather's offices in The Chocolate Factory, 636 11th Avenue in Manhattan. The benefit will feature "one-of-a-kind shelters created exclusively for the Design Trust by prominent architects, designers and artists on the theme of 'Nest: Creative Construction for any Living Creature.'" The impressive list of names creating shelters includes Christo & Jeanne-Claude, Hariri & Hariri Architecture, Lewis.Tsurumaki.Lewis Architects, Slade Architecture, Snohetta,Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects and WXY architecture.



Ice House Detroit is an installation developed by photographer Gregory Holm and architect Matthew Radune. It "involves the acquisition and recontextualization of one of the 80,000 abandoned houses in the city. The house will be sprayed with water in subzero temperatures, gradually building up layers of ice over the course of several days or weeks." Photographs, a book, and a film will document the house, available to those who pledge, depending on the amount given. Holm and Radune are aiming to raise $11,000 by December 16 to make the project happen.

Architects Hawking Cars

Flipping through October's Architectural Digest, "The Architecture Issue," a couple advertisements stood out, each using architecture and architects to sell cars.

The first is a two-page spread for Lexus, its HS Hybrid sitting in front of a Richard Meier sketch of his "much-anticipated Italcementi Innovation and Technology Central Laboratory" in northern Italy. The fairly ho-hum sketch is accompanied by text that boasts the lab "will be built of TX Active concrete that will 'eat' smog and significantly reduce pollution caused by car emissions and industrial activities." Not surprisingly the pollution-mitigating cement was developed by Italcementi and tried out on Meier's Jubilee Church in Rome. The ad's text further states that the other features of Meier's building (insulated low-e glass, geothermal, solar energy systems) will supposedly "provide close to total energy self-sufficiency."



The second ad is one of those "special advertising sections" laid out like a magazine feature, fooling us into reading the content as if it didn't exist solely to sell a product. Across four pages the reader is shown the winners of Maserati's 2009 "nationwide call for entries of garages in which a Maserati might feel at home." Most of the photos are of the existing garage winner, Holger Schubert of Archisis (the other winner, in the conceptual category is shown in the gray box at bottom right). The 1,200sf (111sm) garage is the first of five for the L.A. architect's canyonside residence; it literally looks like a home for the car. A bridge gives access to the glass-walled garage. Features inside include radiant concrete floors, mechanically operated window screens, a library with homasote walls, some designer furniture and a ramp that raises six inches to allow Schubert to pull out of the garage without starting the engine. The top-right image shows that not only does the architect give the car a view he also gives onlookers a view of his car.



That architecture and architects are being used to sell cars does not surprise me; it is something I documented in 2005. Nor am I taken aback that it is done in these manners. Design and its relationships to the environment, in the first case, and luxury, in the second, are shared by both the building and car industries. And, while further differences between the two ads include the celebrity stature of one architect and the relative lack of name recognition of the other, they share a certain optimism about the future of architecture and cars. Sustainability, creativity and a drive (pardon the pun) to improve our situation links these two realms. Now if only architects could be paired up in advertising with bicycles or public transportation.

Monday, Monday

My weekly page update:

Three Educational Buildings in New York, Texas and Louisiana.

This week's book review is On Architecture by Fred Rush.

Some unrelated links for your enjoyment:

polis
An offshoot of the dearly departed Where. (added to sidebar under blogs::urban)

Reimagining Boston's stalled projects
"The Globe's Casey Ross asked some local artists and architects to reimagine [some] stalled projects and come up with ideas to make them part of the city's culture again."

MAP
"MAP (Manual of Architectural Possibilities) is a publication of research and visions; research into territories, which can be concrete or abstract, but always put into question."

Swiss by Design
A podcast interview with Peter Zumthor, from World Radio Switzerland.

Book Review: Pendulum Plane

Pendulum Plane: Oyler Wu Collaborative by Oyler Wu Collaborative, edited by Todd Gannon
L. A. Forum for Architecture and Urban Design, 2009
Paperback, 96 pages



At a 2008 panel discussion on The Future of Architectural Publishing, one response to a question from an audience member, "What do you know doesn't work?," was "books on individual buildings." Luckily another one of the panelists countered this position, pointing out the past successes of some book-length case studies on single buildings. I say luckily because I'm a big fan of books that document, present, analyze and critique one building; I agree that they can work well. A magazine article, a portion of a monograph, or a blog post are comparatively lacking in respect when compared to the huge effort of designing and constructing a building. In that sense, this pamphlet-size case study for Oyler Wu Collaborative's small-scale storefront intervention for the LA Forum's new headquarters on Hollywood Boulevard is just the right size: small like the project itself, but big enough to convey the multitude of ideas present in the project.

Architects Dwayne Oyler and Jenny Wu won a 2008 two-stage competition with a proposal that falls somewhere between the spatial fullness and serene bouyancy of the other two finalists, F-lab and Kuth/Ranieri, according to Mohamed Sharif's introduction. The winning design proposes an intervention that inhabits the ceiling and acts as an armature for exhibition displays, important given that the Hollywood Boulevard space is shared with the Woodbury School of Architecture. This occurs via a hinging of the aluminum pipe structure, one of the many aspects of the design and construction documented here with sketches, models, renderings, architectural drawings, and photographs. A conversation between Wes Jones and Oyler and Wu, and an essay by Todd Gannon round out the information packed into the book's 96 pages. Gannon's essay is particularly insightful, situating the design within the historical de-emphasis of the ceiling in favor of vertical surfaces, walls of glass and other materials.

The complex, alien-like intervention appears to be generated within a computer environment, especially given the renderings that accompanied the drawings in the competition boards. But the models and sketches complicate this assumption, one that is deflated in the conversation with Wes Jones, where Oyler and Wu situate the physical models above the virtual ones in terms of importance in shaping the design. Here the computer's presence is in realizing the armature's complex but repeating forms, whose bent corners simplify construction (fewer complicated and time-consuming aluminum welds) but also give the piece its particular presence: a dense overlay of lines and curves, ever-changing and challenging our preconceptions about what an architectural intervention should be.

The intervention fits into Oyler Wu's portfolio alongside two other aluminum installations (one at SCI-Arc, where they both teach, and one at Materials & Applications) that predate Pendulum Plane. These investigations activate their respective environments in similar yet unique ways, using structure to create a canopy, stairs and a ceiling, architectural elements typically constructed of planar materials. The most recent design throws the kinetic into the mix, extending the effects of the previous projects but making one hope this isn't the last we've seen of Oyler Wu's aluminum experiments.

Today's archidose #356

Cascais, Casa das Histórias e Desenhos Paula Rego. Eduardo Souto de Moura, originally uploaded by z.z.

Casa das Histórias e Desenhos Paula Rego in Cascais, Portugal by Eduardo Souto de Moura, 2008.

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Art Books NYC

Here's a couple of art book happenings in NYC.



The NY Art Book Fair takes place next weekend, October 2-4 at PS1. The free event is organized by Printer Matter, "the world's greatest source for artists' publications." The Fair hosts over 200 international presses, booksellers, antiquarian dealers, and independent artist/publishers, including architecturally minded publishers D.A.P., PIN-UP, and Princeton Architectural Press.


[Gagosian Shop | image source]

Last week saw the opening of the Gagosian Shop at 988 Madison Avenue on Manhattan's Upper East Side. The ground floor space designed by Daniel Rowen Architects with MN Design displays the numerous art books, posters, prints and other wares in a sparse environment resembling the Gagosian galleries elsewhere in town.

Literary Dose #40

"'[Ric Scofidio] and I typically argue a lot,' [Liz Diller] says.
'Yes,' he says.
'We kind of beat each other up. He has his ideas, I have my ideas, and I think my ideas are better than his.'
[...]
'Early in our relationship, we really pushed it many times to be on [sic] the breaking point,' he remembers. 'I mean really be on [sic] the breaking point, and then 20 minutes later we're back together and everything was fine. And I think that that has enabled us to be totally brutal and honest with each other.'"

- "Portrait of a Working Marriage" in FLYP Issue 35, which features a couple videos with DS+R and an audio interview with FHL co-founder Robert Hammond.

Walls for Learning

Digging around the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs website a few days ago, I came across a "Percent for Art" project from 1994 by Allan and Ellen Wexler for Public School 340 in the Bronx. The simply titled Drawing P.S. 340 is a "112 foot (34 m) wall mural [that] presents various floor plans and detailed construction drawings based on the actual architectural plans for the school, ... elevation drawings of the hallway and variously scaled maps that situate the school in the community, city, and country. "


[Drawing P.S. 340 by Allan and Ellen Wexler | image source]

Further explanation indicates: "The artwork is intended to provide students with a schematic overview of the new school and an opportunity for architectural study. "


[Drawing P.S. 340 by Allan and Ellen Wexler | image source]

A few things come to mind seeing this mural. First, the hallway would be quite unremarkable without it. The design is otherwise a tile base, painted doors and frames, and a drop ceiling. Second, even though the mural is only 15 years old, it seems even more anachronistic, given that blueprints are no longer used by architects. Even when I worked in an architectural office in high school, making prints in the ammonia-filled backroom, the prints were bluelines (blue on white) not blueprints (white on blue).

Third and lastly, this makes me wonder how effective architectural drawings are in helping people -- children or adults -- understand space and construction. Does the drawing teach as much as, say, an actual cut-away or mock-up of a wall, something made from the actual materials of the school? Probably not, but a drawing is also a lot cheaper (the percent for art is only 1% of the construction budget after all) and easier to modify over time (I wonder if this installation is still in place). As much as I'm for educating people about architecture, space, wayfinding, construction, etc., questions of how that happens should always be at the fore.

Today's archidose #355

Abbey Mills Pumping Station F, originally uploaded by suburbanslice.

Abbey Mills Pumping Station in Stratford, East London by Allies and Morrison, 1997.

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Monday, Monday

My weekly page update:

Lake Travis Retreat near Austin, Texas by Dick Clark Architecture.

This week's book review is Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion, Architecture with essays by Jill Gasparina, Taro Igarashi, and Olivier Saillard.

Some unrelated links for your enjoyment:

Arch Tracker
" Tracking architecture around the globe." (added to sidebar under blogs::architecture)

Cultural Conversations
"New York architect Victoria Meyers presents discussions about culture and life as experienced in the American landscape." (added to sidebar under blogs::culture)

New Urbanism Blog
The blog of 180° Urban Design. (added to sidebar under blogs::urban)

Public Information Exchange
"An initiative of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects ... designed to create an archive of NYC projects, proposals, programs and exhibitions presented or discussed at the Center for Architecture." (added to sidebar under architectural links::new york city)

3SIXØ Architecture BLOG
"A Public Sketchbook." (added to sidebar under blogs::offices)

Today's archidose #354

fisheye-01, originally uploaded by ZapGun on Flickr.

The Dune House in Torrão do Lameiro, Portugal by ZapGun, 2008. Many more pics are available in ZapGun's flickr set on the house.

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AE17: Rampscape

In honor of today's start of the 2009 ASLA Annual Meeting & Expo in Chicago, here's a discovered "architectural element" that skillfully combines an access ramp and landscape elements, what I'm calling a rampscape.



The rampscape is located at the Tenth Avenue entrance to the Desmond Tutu Center at The General Theological Seminary in Chelsea, which I noticed on the same excursion as when I saw the Sales Tin. The landscape architect is Quennell Rothschild & Partners. The rampscape is perpendicular to the path of travel to the entrance via stairs. A slope of less than or equal to 1:20 means the ramp does not require handrails. A bench and plantings are located on the equivalent of the landing, corten steel defines the outer edges, and plantings and a stone wall sit between the two runs of ramp.



A surprise element is the fountain running down the middle of the center planting bed. It reminds me of the garden at the Querini Stampalia Foundation in Venice designed by Carlo Scarpa, though Rothschild's design and detailing pales in comparison. Even something as small as matching the mortar to the stone would have helped a great deal here; the off-white color calls attention to the sloppy crafstmanship (I cropped the worst part, the drain and uplight in the fountain's basin). Nevertheless this makes me realize I'd love to see more treatments of ramps as more than ADA requirements and with landscaping integrated into them.

Book Review: Extreme Architecture

Extreme Architecture: Building in Challenging Environments by Ruth Slavid
Laurence King Publishers, 2009
Hardcover, 208 pages



The term "extreme architecture" immediately brings to mind architecture that is formally aggressive, such as Deconstructivist architecture by the likes of Coop Himmelb(l)au. But for author Ruth Slavid it equals "extreme environments" and the architecture that responds to them. Her survey of close to fifty projects is divided into five sections (Hot, Cold, High, Wet, Space) that delineate the extremes architects must respond to. The selection ranges from variations on the vernacular to far-fetched proposals that seem to exist only to push the envelope by pushing the limits of human existence. What is constant is Slavid's exemplary writing, descriptive and informative to be sure, but also able to hold the reader's interest project after project. Be it a school for a poor community, a ski jump, a floating house, or even a dirigible, Slavid's perspective on how the architecture responds to its conditions is consistent, not seduced by the fastastical nature of the most extreme of the extreme.

A few projects in the book that have been featured on my web pages include the Primary School in Burkina Faso by Diébédo Francis Kéré (Hot), the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway by Peter W. Søderman/Barlindhaug Consult (Cold), and the SkiBox Portillo in Chile by Del Río-Núñez Architects (High). At the beginning of these and the other entries, Slavid provides consistent data (height above sea level, average annual rainfall, average high and low temperatures) as a means of comparison. One can see, for example, that the SkiBox is about 8,500 feet higher than the school in Burkina Faso, with over 20 feet more precipitation annually. So even though the environments of these buildings are extreme relative to mid-range places like Western Europe or the American Midwest, they are even more extreme compared each other. It's certainly not surprising to see such different approaches to building for these two examples, and many others. Materials, openings, forms, functions and other defining factors vary dramatically from pole to pole, be it hot to cold or underwater to outer space.

or

Half Dose #67: HL23 OnSite Sales Tin

While walking around Chelsea the other day I came across the OnSite Sales Tin for Neil Denari's HL23 project now under construction on 23rd Street just west of The High Line. Even though the sales tin sitting under The High Line has been there over a year, this is my first time noticing it; I couldn't help take a closer look. I'm not certain who designed the tin, but Denari would surely be a safe guess.


[HL23 OnSite Sales Tin | photo by archidose]

One first notices that the black box adorned with super-graphics is angled relative to The High Line above. It actually points at the site of HL23 as it rises. This sort of "urban referencing," as I've called it before, helps link two objects across space. In this case the gesture is obvious, though unfortunately one cannot see the building rising from the sales tin; removing oneself from under the promenade above is necessary to see the undulating, 14-story cantilevering building.


[HL23 under construction | photo by archidose]

Walking on a gravel expanse between the tin and sidewalk one finds fluorescent tubing mounted on the wall across from the box that is punctured with a window opening and a door. The first gives a view of the tin's contents, mainly a model, drawings, and an area for selecting fixtures and finishes for the eleven rich and lucky buyers. Bamboo and other vegetation softens the edge at the neighboring building, creating an eco-mood of sorts for this otherwise gluttonous project.


[HL23 OnSite Sales Tin | photo by archidose]

At the far end of the tin is a large opening that would ideally give a view of the building rising beyond, but as I mentioned it is blocked by The High Line. Nevertheless it lets in a lot of daylight, reducing the need for artificial lighting inside.


[HL23 OnSite Sales Tin | photo by archidose]

Near the entrance to the tin is a photo of the model of HL23...


[HL23 OnSite Sales Tin | photo by archidose]

...with some hyperbole from Denari:


[HL23 OnSite Sales Tin | photo by archidose]

Sitting by itself, like a statue cradled by the bamboo shoots around it, is a mock-up of a structural steel connection, the bracing that will be exposed inside the units.


[HL23 mock-up | photo by archidose]

The OnSite Sales Tin is a clever means of doing something different than the usual prefab trailers. The construction looks inexpensive (hopefully the intention is to reuse and/or recycle the building materials), the furnishings are minimal, and wind power is purchases for energy usage. Except for the cheapness of the construction, the tin can be seen as HL23 in microcosm: different from the ordinary, stylish, and sustainable in a shallow way. (Denari even describes the project in terms of "cultural sustainability" rather than a deeper incorporation of environmental sustainability principles.) Nevertheless, it's certainly a better alternative than gratuitous sales offices that ended up being too big for their britches.

Today's archidose #353

International House, originally uploaded by wojtek gurak.

The International House on University of Nottingham's Jubilee Campus by Make Architects, 2008. For the first phase of the campus expansion project, Make realized two other buildings, the Amenities Building and the Sir Colin Campbell Building.

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Monday, Monday

My weekly page update:

Form & Forest Cabins by D'Arcy Jones Design Inc.

This week's book review is Think/Make: Della Valle Bernheimer by Andrew Bernheimer and Jared Della Valle, and Expanded Practice: Höweler + Yoon Architecture / MY Studio by J. Meejin Yoon and Eric Höweler.

Some unrelated links for your enjoyment:

Archimafia
"Architecture is about Man & Environment, and the challenge of ideas beyond rules and boundaries." (added to sidebar under blogs::architecture)

Intern 101
"Intern 101 is a source for new architectural professionals for job and career advice." (added to sidebar under blogs::architecture)

a+.29
Atelier.29's blog of "design + living." (added to sidebar under blogs::design+technology)

Strange Maps
A reminder that maps are far from objective documents. (added to sidebar under blogs::landscape+maps)

Architecture Magazine
Online architecture magazine - Arch 5. (added to sidebar under blogs::architecture)

A Handful of Competitions

Here are a handful of competitions, a mix of results and announcements.



The winner of the LIVE FOREVER The Michael Jackson Monument Design Competition was announced on Friday. "Baddest" is the MJ Public Domain Countdown by fi5e from Hong Kong. It is basically a billboard version of an online countdown that "counts down to the moment when all of Michael Jacksons’ creative content will enter the public domain. In 70 years when the clock reaches zero it will play Billy Jean on loud speakers, making it the first time the song is played free of copyright." The simple design dispenses with the imagery of the King of Pop and focuses on what is shared, his music and the time when it becomes truly part of the public realm. That it can be installed anywhere -- and in any form, that it is a billboard as well as a website means it can be ever more things -- makes sense with its conceptual basis of the universality of Jackson's songs.



The winner of 2009 Open Architecture Challenge: Classroom was announced on Tuesday. Teton Valley Community School in Victor, Idaho and architecture firm Section Eight [design] received the top award, beating out over 400 competitors. The competition is geared towards implementing "the best of these designs in classrooms across the globe," hence the pairing of designers with actual clients. In Section Eight [design]'s scheme for the rural school, each classroom is a stand-alone building connected to the others via a second-floor bridge connector. In a way the design is a contemporary, site-specific update of the influential Crow Island School by Eero Saarinen and Perkins + Will, where each classroom is afforded its own outdoor space. While the suburban Chicago context warranted a single building, in Idaho the school can be expanded as needed with modular components.



Six finalists have been selected in the WPA 2.0 Competition, announced last week. "The six finalist proposals will be further developed and refined for presentation and discussion at the November 16 symposium in Washington, D.C." One of the finalists is the above entry, Border Wall as Infrastructure by Rael San Fratello Architects, which "names 30 alternatives that might better combat the energy crisis, risk of death from dehydration, disruption of animal habitat, loss of vegetation, negative labor relations, missing creative vision and lack of cross-cultural appreciation likely in the government sponsored version." The various alternatives run counter to the seriousness of the wall as implemented, with climbing walls, teeter totters and other means of engagement. The white-out presentation looks really sharp.



Another shortlisted entry in the WPA 2.0 Competition is Coupling Infrastructures: Water Economies/Ecologies (above) by InfraNet Lab / Lateral Office, which is also the winner of Pamphlet Architecture 30, announced a couple weeks ago. They will receive a grant for their Coupling: Strategies for Infrastructural Opportunism proposal, to be published by Princeton Architectural Press in two years.



And announcing the AIA NY Chapter Emerging New York Architects Committee's fourth biennal ideas competition, HB:BX Building Cultural Infrastructure. Incorporating the historic High Bridge in the Bronx, the competition "challenges entrants to create a public facility that fosters the development of experimental, innovative art forms." Registration is now open, with a deadline of November 20 for registration and January 15 for submission of entries. Prizes range from $1,000 to $5,000.

Today's archidose #352

Haus der Stille, originally uploaded by *Croz.

The House of Silence at Bergen-Belsen Memorial in Lohheide, Germany by Ingema Reuter and Gerd Winner, 2000.

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Progress 8 Years Later

Seeing Tribute in Light last night made me think not only of the events of September 11 eight years ago, but also what has transpired since then, how much progress in rebuilding has occurred.



Two good sources for construction progress are The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey's (PANYNJ) helpful site with progress updates on construction and an image gallery, and Lower Manhattan.info's construction project updates. The below information is culled from these two sites. The official reports documenting progress at the site can be found in PDF format on PANYNJ's site.


[Aerial view of WTC site from March 2009 | click image for expanded view with key notes]

One World Trade Center (Freedom Tower) by SOM
Start of construction: July 4, 2004
Target completion date: Mid 2013
Construction progress: Steel erection underway.

[Freedom Tower construction, August 2009 | image source]

Tower Two (200 Greenwich Street) by Foster + Partners
Start of construction: September 2008
Target completion date: 2012
Construction progress: Excavation work is underway.

Tower Three (175 Greenwich Street) by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners
Start of construction: February 2008
Target completion date: 2012
Construction progress: Excavation work is underway.

Tower Four (150 Greenwich Street) by Maki + Associates
Start of construction: February 2008
Target completion date: 2012
Construction progress: Tower crane installed in March 2009; foundation work including steel and concrete installation is underway.

National September 11 Memorial and Museum (Memorial) by Michael Arad and Peter Walker and Partners
Start of construction: March 2006
Target completion date: Mid 2011
Construction progress: Majority of steel structure complete; pouring concrete slabs is underway.

[Memorial construction, September 2009 | image source]

National September 11 Memorial and Museum (Museum) by Snøhetta and Davis Brody Bond Aedas
Start of construction: TBD
Target completion date: Early 2013
Construction progress: Construction is dependent upon erection of steel over PATH line, underway now and expected to be complete prior to the end of the year.

WTC Hub by Santiago Calatrava
Start of construction: September 2005
Target completion date: Late 2013
Construction progress: Steel arch structure for east-west connector (linking Hub to Fulton Street Transit Center by Grimshaw Architects) is complete; demolition of temporary PATH station is underway.

[WTC Hub construction, September 2009 | image source]

Parallel Lines for $2,500

Last week at a book launch for Norman McGrath's Architectural Photography: Professinal Techniques for Shooting Interior and Exterior Spaces, the author mentioned a new lens by Canon that he boasted would change digital architectural photography: the Canon TS-E 17mm Tilt-Shift Lens.


[Canon TS-E 17mm Tilt-Shift Lens | image source]

So what makes the lens so great? Why will it revolutionize architectural photography? Both questions can be addressed with one answer: the lens reduces the post-production (Photoshop) time that is the bulk of digital photography work these days. The combination of full-frame format wide angle (104 degrees) and free combination of tilting and shifting (4mb PDF) means that vertical lines do not converge towards the top of the photo and barrel distortion is eliminated, a la the photograph below. Take a look at just about any professional architectural photographer's portfolio, and, unless the shot is a craning view of a skyscraper, 9 times out of 10 the vertical lines are parallel. This is a lens that makes such results easier.


[Sample photo with Canon TS-E 17mm | image source]

And how much does the revolution cost? It retails for $2,499.

Today's archidose #351

Jacob+ MacFarlane, originally uploaded by kriss69.

Pavillons Quai Rambaud in Lyon, France by Jakob + MacFarlane.

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Towards the Sentient City

Next Thursday is the opening of The Architectural League's two-month long Towards the Sentient City, an exhibition "critically exploring the evolving relationship between ubiquitous computing, architecture, and the city."



From the League's announcement:

As computing leaves the desktop and spills out onto the sidewalks, streets and public spaces of the city, we are increasingly finding information processing capacity embedded within and distributed throughout the material fabric of everyday urban space. Artifacts and systems we interact with daily collect, store and process information about us, or are activated by our movements and transactions. Pervasive/ubiquitous computing evangelists herald a coming age of urban infrastructure capable of sensing and responding to the events and activities transpiring around them. Imbued with the capacity to remember, correlate and anticipate, this near-future “sentient” city is envisioned as being capable of reflexively monitoring its environment and our behavior within it, becoming an active agent in the organization of everyday life in urban public space.

[...]

Despite the obvious implications for the built environment, architects have been largely absent from the discussions about how these technologies are conceptualized and deployed. To the extent that business interests and government agencies drive these technological developments, we can expect to see new forms of consumption, surveillance and control emerge. Within architecture, the recent fascination with building envelopes wrapped with large-scale programmable “urban screens” or corporate lobbies outfitted with so-called “interactive architecture” highlights the dilemma. In an age of urban computing and ambient informatics, what opportunities for the design of urban artifacts and spaces lie beyond the architectural surface as confectionary spectacle or the interior vestibule as glorified automatic door opener?

Toward the Sentient City will combine a survey of recent work that explores a wide range of context-aware, location-based and otherwise “situated” technologies with a series of commissioned projects by multi-disciplinary teams of architects and artists. The exhibition will examine the broader social, cultural, environmental and political issues within which the development of urban ubiquitous/pervasive computing is itself situated.

Sounds interesting to me. The exhibition features five commissioned projects (Too Smart City, Amphibious Architecture, Natural Fuse, Trash Track, and Breakout!), ten events, an Open Archive and the online platform that should expand as the exhibition unfolds. The exhibition will be located at The Urban Center, 457 Madison Avenue, NYC, though the locations of the events varies, so check the listings.

Dem Dirty Windows

Window cleaners work their way down one of the bays on the west side of The Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park, designed by Cook + Fox.



I'm taking Labor Day weekend off. Posts will resume on Tuesday.

Today's archidose #350

Bellahøj Swimming Pool Copenhagen, originally uploaded by [Zakkalicious / Mikael].

Bellahøj Swimming Pool in Copenhagen, Denmark by Arkitema, 2009.

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New Trends in Signage

A couple new higher-education projects in Manhattan exhibit shifts in the design of building entry signage away from traditional orientation and legibility. The trend seems to be towards creativity as an extension of the architecture the signage fronts.

The first is the New Academic Building at Cooper Union by Morphosis, with signage by Pentagram. They describe it as "optically extruded lettering that appears 'correct' when seen in strict elevation, but distorts as the profile of the letter is dragged backwards in space."



The above shows not only how the letters start to distort when seen only slightly off the "strict elevation," but also how this effect is created by composing the letters of solid and void, with the latter decreasing from left to right. It's as if "THE COOPER UNION" is horizontal and the canopy slopes, cutting through the characters.



The second project is the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center of Parsons The New School for Design by Lyn Rice Architects. Here the architecture is mostly interior, a renovation at the street level spaces of four buildings anchored at Fifth Avenue and 13th Street. On each frontage a sign doubling as canopy marks an entry to the Design Center.



What the canopy is actually "saying" isn't really clear until one looks at it from the right perspective, like The Cooper Union but achieved in a much different manner. At The New School the red banners on the side of the building effectively convey to passers-by what is inside the building, so the canopy becomes a design gesture; it lacks the functionality (shelter from the elements) from the gaps between the letters. The sign is just one element in the Design Center's embrace of typography as a design element at the scale of architecture. Inside, donor names are creatively set into wall surfaces and the school's name is spelled out in perforations as an auditorium backdrop.



These two projects of New York academia illustrate how architecture and graphic design can overlap, how letters and words convey semantic/syntactical meaning but also how they can be used simultaneously to express the institutions they front. After all these are both design schools.