James
SOM, James Turrell and Brown Sardina create a sustainable building of landscape and light
Roger Duffy of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill integrated landscape and architecture in a new building for a private high school in Greenwich, Connecticut, with light artist James Turrell and landscape architects Brown Sardina. The landscape weaves through the building in the form of courtyards, and the roof is literally an extension of the landscape as the sloping site allows the roof of the merge with the ground plane. Transparent glass facades and light cupolas on the rooftops of each structure flood the building with daylight.
In addition to the extensive use of daylight, other sustainable design initiatives include the use of recycled materials, a waste management plan, storm water and irrigation systems, and high quality air and energy systems.
Via: Architectural Record
Firm: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Firm: Brown Sardina
Link: Hydrotech Garden Roof system
Visit the Walter Gropius House built in 1938
"Walter Gropius, founder of the German design school known as the Bauhaus, was one of the most influential architects of the 20th century. He designed this house as his family home in 1937, when he came to teach at Harvard's Graduate School of Design."
Visit: Gropius House
Land/Earth artist
We came across this website about artist Andy Goldsworthy by a student in the Environmental Analysis program at Pomona College. We have always admired Mr. Goldsworthy's work, so this seemed to be the perfect follow up to our first art category post from yesterday.
Goldsworthy makes site-specific pieces of art using only the materials and tools found on the site where he is working. We were drawn to respect for nature and the sense of place inherent in Goldsworthy's art. Most of his work is created in isolated natural site, but he has also done works in urban environments as well as installation piece such as the current exhibit at the Met in New York. An important aspect of his work is the passage of time and the decay of his art by the forces of nature.
Link:
Andy Goldsworthy
Please note that the images across the top of the page are links - slow loading rollovers
Time: Amazon
Tote bags made from recycled plastic milk crates
Two size are available (basic and laptop) in a range of milk crate colors. We dig it.
Link: Thingsmatter
Via: Archinect
American Society of Landscape Archiects 2004 Medals and Firm Award Recipients Selected
The Board of Trustees of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) has selected the recipients of the 2004 Medals and Firm Award, to be presented on November 1, 2004, during the ASLA Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City.
Peter Walker will receive the ASLA Medal, the highest honor the ASLA may bestow upon a landscape architect and Wallace Roberts & Todd, LLC, will receive the Landscape Architecture Firm Award.
Link: ASLA 2004 Medals and Firm Award Recipients
Painting, sculpture and found-object mixed media
"Andrew Lindell is a carpenter and self-taught artist currently living in Toronto. He draws his inspiration from his extensive traveling in the Canadian arctic and his love and concern for the environment."
We haven't really featured any artists on L+L, but this one caught our attention. He's an environmentally aware carpenter turned artist, and that just seems interesting...... and maybe we're having a bit of snow withdrawls now that summer is here, and we saw the painting entitled "Powder" as well as the two pieces featuring skiers, so that tipped the scale in favor of featuring Mr. Lindell. At any rate, an interesting collection of work inspired by nature.
Link: Andrew Lindell
A different kind of convertible sofa
This sofa was designed by architect Massimo Morozzi, a member of the radical design group Archizoom who later went on to open his own studio designing household items and products for the likes of Cassina, Mazzei, Alessi, etc.
The backrest cushions have leather backs and can be laid in a horizontal position to form large support and work surfaces. The square silhouette with wide armrests offers comfort when sitting straight, suitable when reading. The seat structure is in solid wood and the backrests are in steel. Elastic, transpiring expanded polyurethane padding. The feet are in satin-finish, varnished aluminum. The removable cover comes in a range of catalogue fabrics and leathers.
Link: Edra
Designer: Massimo Morozzi
Eco glass cleans itself with Sun
"The Pilkington Activ glass has a special nano-scale - extremely thin - coating of microcrystalline titanium oxide which reacts to daylight.
"This reaction breaks down filth on the glass, with no need for detergent. When water hits it, a hydrophilic effect is created, so water and dirt slides off."
Link: BBC News
Plastic package inspired lamp
The Blisterlamp by Dutch designer Henk Stallinga is made from two identical halves of transparent PET G which simply snap together. PET G is the typical polyethylene blister packaging material that encases so many products we buy, from toys to toothbrushes. Blister lamp may be used individually or as a cluster, standing or hung.
Link: Stallinga
Buy: Generate
Landscapes in Wicklow County, Ireland, open May though July
It has been said... or at least the Wicklow visitors bureau has coined the phrase... that Ireland is the Garden of Europe, and Wicklow is the Garden of Ireland. And it is true that the natural beauty of this mountainous region south of Dublin is a sight to behold. The temperate climate provides the perfect environment for spectacular gardens as well. Each summer gardens of all sizes and types, from historic formal gardens to contemporary landscapes and from botanic gardens to small cottage yards, are open to the public as part of the Wicklow Gardens Festival. Perhaps just as appealing is the opportunity to explore the landscape of beer gardens and pubs after hours.
Link: Wicklow Gardens Festival
Furniture by Marmol Radziner for use... well... indoors or outdoors
Good looking outdoor furniture that we would gladly invite inside. Designed by Los Angeles architects Marmol Radnizer.
Link: Indoor/Outdoor by Marmol Radziner Furniture
The work of legendary California Arts and Crafts architects Charles and Henry Greene
If you have a few hours to kill and an interest in Arts and Crafts architecture, here is something to keep you occupied. This online archive is an exhaustive collection of photographs, drawings, sketches, paintings, correspondence and documents related to the work of Greene & Greene. The website is quite advanced and is geared towards scholars... bit it isn't too hard core for someone with a passing interest. Isn't the internet cool?
Link: Greene & Greene Virtual Archives
Aerial photo of Fashion Island, Newport Beach, California
Source: Flickr
Location: Google Maps
Westonbirt Festival of the Garden
The Brits love their gardens, and the U.K. is awash with garden festivals each summer. There were some wonderful designs last year and this year's designs seem quite compelling as well.
Link: Westonbirt Festival of the Garden
Harvard Picks Frank Gehry's team to Plan New Campus new 200-acre campus in Allston
Gehry's team includes landscape architect Laurie Olin, and the New York urban design firm of Cooper, Robertson & Partners. The team will draw up broad guiding principles for developing the land over the next 50 years including issues such as traffic, land use, and the site's relationship to the Charles River.
And the quote of the article: "I always wanted to be an urban planner, not someone who designed iconic buildings for rich people."
Via: Boston Globe
Firm: Gehry Partners (they don't need a website)
Firm:Olin Partnership
Firm: Cooper, Robertson & Partners
Design and products for the home, living and working in the future
a-matter and Arcspace both have nice pieces about the "Living Tomorrow" pavilion in Amsterdam, designed by NL Studio. "Living Tomorrow" is an exhibition featuring a "House of the Future" and an "Office of the Future" with products and designs from 34 companies including: HP, Microsoft, Philips and Unilever. The exhibition web site is not yet available in English, but the a-matter and Arcspace features both provide some more information about the exhibit and (mainly) the architecture.
Link: a-matter
Link: Living Tomorrow Amsterdam (Dutch - English coming soon)
Firm: UN Studio
One man’s journey -- From greedy real estate developer to a founder of the green building movement.
A new book by David Gottfried, president of sustainable development consulting company WorldBuild Technologies.
Excerpt from the Foreword by Paul Hawken:
To say this book is about the power of one person to change the world, though true, would be a cliché. This book is not about David, sustainability, or even green buildings. It is about the mystery of change. Although it is axiomatic that everything changes, it is a mystery as to how things change. What we have here is a first-person and animated account of how things did change. When you read it, you will draw your own conclusions. Yes, his is a story of pluck and determination, to be sure. And it is one of timing, hard work, and manufactured luck. But above all, it is a story of conviction. Not the conviction that makes others wrong, but more an affirmation: of what is right and what is possible.
Green to Green
"FOLD was created with the modern bed in mind"
Really nice modern bedspreads, pillows and throw blankets by Bay Area designers Max and Linda Geiser. The line offers a wide variety of patterns, colors, materials and sizes.
Link: FOLD
A television show from the creators of Dwell Magazine
If you are like us, you are just dying for something to divert your attention from the train wreck parade of so-called design and make-over shows that currently abound... and we have to watch, don't we? Painful as it can be, we watch... like a junky who needs a fix. But save for the very rare morsel of inspiration, we are just not satisfied with what we see.
Well, there may be hope for the home design genre of television. A television program by the creators of Dwell Magazine is currently in production and will air on the cable television network Fine Living this fall. So hold your breath along with us, won't you?
Article: San Francisco Chronicle
Via: Dwell Forum
Photo documentation of the natural and built Japanese landscape
A photographic documentation of the travels in Japan of two scholarship winners; Roche Scholarship winner Colin Franzen and SOM Traveling Fellowship recipient Zane Karpova. Four "sections" cut across the island were chosen as paths of travel and documentation. The images are keyed to these lines of investigation revealing a wonderful array of landscape, architecture, culture and space.
Link: Franzen and Karpova Japan Sections
Via: A Daily Dose of Architecture
Molded recycled 100% wastepaper wall tiles
"Tangent tiles allow you to customize the acoustic and aesthetic properties of any environment. Three-dimensional and reconfigurable, they can be assembled in a variety of patterns. These tiles fit almost any wall or ceiling area and are made from 100% post and pre-consumer waste paper. Tangent tiles are easy to recycle when no longer needed. They are durable, can be painted with water-based paints and are easy to install."
Link: MioCultureLab
Designers: Jamie Salm, Esther Chung
Durfee Garden and Bartlett Court on the University of Massachusetts Amherst Campus, and the Plastic Garden
We were taken with these modern gardens by landscape architect Dean Cardasis, Associate Professor at University of Massachusetts, Amherst and the Director of the James Rose Center. The playful yet refined use of built elements of the Durfee Garden and the Plastic Garden create special outdoor spaces year-round. Bartlett Court is a contemplative garden that highlights the geology and traditions of New England with a serene style reminiscent of Japanese gravel gardens.
Link: Dean Cardasis
Visit: UMass Amherst
Long overdue and contentious memorial to those who served is dedicated
The design submitted by Friedrich St.Florian, an architect based in Providence, R.I., was selected from a group of six semi-finalists in an open, national competition.
Pictures: National WWII Memorial website
Link: New York Times article
Australia's first five-star-rated eco-sustainable office building
"Lend Lease's radical new building is cool, eco-friendly and there's not a hairshirt in sight, writes Elizabeth Farrelly." Unfortunately, we can not find pictures of this project, but this article in the Sydney Morning Herald is still worth a read. Designed in-house with Peddle Thorp collaborating
Link: Syndey Morning Herald
Morphosis wins 2012 NYC Olympic Village design competition
We have been looking at these images for some time, but it didn't click until yesterday when we came across a photo tour of Le Corbusier's Unité d'Habitation. The Morphosis design seems to us to take many cues from Corbu; the plan for Algiers also came to mind. Thus we decided to post an entry about Corbu's Marseille project, and to follow up today with a feature on the Morphosis Olympic Village.
Our design for the Village establishes an iconic landmark and proposes an innovative vision for a 21st century urban environment that will redefine contemporary urban living through its commitment to sustainability, connectivity and interdependence. It is our intent to transform Hunters Point into a revitalized “new territory” that will leave an important legacy, or gift, to the city, while also providing the new generative tissue, or architectural DNA, that will continue to stimulate and inspire the development of the Queens area.
With 43 acres of open space reserved for both urban and natural parkland, this development’s greens will create the largest urban waterfront park in New York City. By working carefully and deliberately to sculpt land and building forms into a coherent relationship with the existing urban fabric and naturally advantageous site conditions, we will create a vibrant new neighborhood that will become an important stimulus for creative and optimistic development of the adjacent urban areas for years to come.
Link: NYC 2012 press release (Morphosis announced competition winner)
Link: NYC 2012 (finalists)
Link: New Yorkled (images of Morphosis design)
Firm: Morphosis
Le Corbusier's vertical village in Marseille, France
Stumbling about again today, this time over at Hyperkit, we found this nice little feature. Hyperkit spent 3 days in Marseille at the Unité d’Habitation designed by Le Corbusier (1947-1952). The pictures show some wonderful views of the building including the sculptural rooftop "garden." The Unité was designed to be a self contained urban village, and is but a piece of Le Corbusier's idea for modern city living, the Cité Radieuse.
Link: Hyperkit visit Le Corbusier
More info about Le Corbusier's Unité d'Habitation:
Great Buildings Online
Galinsky (including info on how to visit)
Sculptural outdoor/indoor furniture by architect Jeanne Scandura
We like the fluid forms and tactile quality of this line of furnishings including some pieces suitable for outdoor use.
Float has been an effort to create objects with material integrity that improve over time, respond to the human form, and welcome a dialogue with architectural space. The furniture reflects a joy for experimentation, versitility, and cultural curiosity.
Link: Float
Landscape designers from around the world compete at the Chelsea Flower Show in London
The Chelsea Flower Show is the premier garden show in the United Kingdom and features talented landscape and garden designers from around the world. Designs are showcased in a series of garden categories, and landscapers take the opportunity to show off inventive ideas and to highlight everything from sustainability to low-allergy gardening.
Link: Chelsea Flower Show 2004
Link: BBC coverage of the Chelsea Flower Show
Marmol Radziner Furniture creates reproductions of Schindler's 1920's designs
The Kings Road Group offers faithful reproductions of California modernist architect R.M. Schindler's revolutionary redwood designs from the 1920's. These simple pieces were originally designed for Schindler's own residence on Kings Road in Los Angeles.
All designs are licensed to Marmol Radziner Furniture through Friends of the Schindler House/MAK Center for Art and Architecture. Significant proceeds from the sale of this furniture go directly towards the continued conservation of the Schindler House.
Marmol Radziner Furniture is an arm of Los Angeles based architecture and construction firm Marmol Radziner + Associates.
Link: Kings Road Group by Marmol Radziner Furniture
Between Architecture and Landscape
Inside/Outside (By Anita Berrizbeitia, Linda Pollak) constructs frameworks of interpretation for architecture and landscape architecture, and discloses relations between them which are normally overlooked.
Five intriguing "operations"-- reciprocity, materiality, threshold, insertion, and infrastructure-each initiate an alternative way of looking at the construction and representation of relationships between architecture, landscape, city, and individuals. Twenty-four projects each contribute in a unique way to the definition of an operation.
Included in this book are an exciting mix of well- and lesser-known late modern and contemporary projects from such noted talents as Frank O. Gehry, Rem Koolhaas, Carmen Pinos and Enric Miralles, Louis Kahn, Maarten Struijs and Joop Schilperoord, and more.
Link: Barnes and Noble
