Archinnovations feeds

C.F. Møller Infuses New life in One of Denmark’s oldest school

A.I. — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 11:02:00 +0000

The listed Sølvgade School built in 1847, close to King Christian IV's famous historic naval barracks, Nyboder, in Copenhagen, has for many years been lacking space and modern facilities. C. F. Moller has carefully renovated the school and done an extension which in its form and colors is true to the surroundings, but also adds a modernistic twist to the school.
"The idea has been to create a building that speaks the language of the children - colorful and musical. At the same time the building should correspond to and integrate with the historic surroundings," says architect and partner Lone Wiggers.

Sølvgade School is surrounded by historic buildings and parks like Nyboder, the Castle of Rosenborg and its surrounding gardens, called Kongens Have. Nearby is the significant, modernistic residential complex, Dronningegården (1943-58) by architects C. F. Møller and Kay Fisker.

Bates Masi + Architects - House in Montauk, New York

Camille Chami — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 11:30:00 +0000

The house occupies a hill in Montauk with a distant view of ocean. A site that the owners, a couple with two young boys, spent years to find. It is the couple’s reprieve from their home in the city, to share the outdoor lifestyle with their family and to remember their teenage years together in Montauk. The house design prompts the owners to interact with the surrounding environment, evoking experiences of camping.

Denton Corker Marshall - Melbourne Museum

A.I. — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 12:23:00 +0000

The building is one of Melbourne’s recent landmarks, completed over a decade ago. Back in 1994, Australian Architecture firm Denton Corker Marshall won an international competition to design a new campus for the Museum of Victoria. Now known as ‘Melbourne Museum’, it is the primary and largest site for Victoria’s most important cultural institution.
The museum comprises exhibition clusters, an Imax theatre, a touring exhibition hall, a separate Children’s Museum and an Aboriginal Cultural Centre, as well as research and administration facilities in a 70,000m2 campus of building forms.

3XN’s Museum of Liverpool

A.I. — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 09:58:00 +0000

The new Museum of Liverpool that has just opened on July 19th tells Liverpool’s story, its importance as one of the World’s great ports, and its cultural influence such as with the Beatles phenomenon. It is conceived as a meeting point for History, the People of Liverpool and visitors from around the globe. According to the Architect, Kim Herforth Nielsen, the project functions as much more than just a Building or a Museum.

In construction: Zaha Hadid-designed Broad Art Museum

A.I. — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 12:22:00 +0000

Museum to open at Michigan State University in spring 2012
Photo: Derrick L. Turner, Michigan State University
The Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, a new Zaha Hadid-designed contemporary art museum at Michigan State University, is on schedule to open to the public in late spring 2012. Dedicated to exploring global contemporary culture and ideas through art, MSU’s Broad Art Museum will serve as both an educational resource for the campus community and a cultural hub for the central Michigan region. The museum is named in honor of Eli and Edythe Broad, longtime supporters of the university who contributed $28 million for the museum.

Pegan Petkovšek - National Gymnastics Centre in Ljubljana, Slovenia

A.I. — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 10:13:00 +0000

The National Gymnastics Centre Pegan Petkovšek is part of the comprehensive renovation of Svoboda Sports Park in Ljubljana. It is the first of the three sports halls that are to be built on the western edge of a belt between an access street on one side and a large greened park layout with sports grounds on the other. The building of the gymnastics centre is placed on the northernmost part of this belt.

The northern and western edge of the building reference the building line regulated by the spatial acts, which also stipulate the greatest built ratio and the height of the building. The strict urbanistic regulations necessitate a very compact design that allows for little deviation.

The downward spiral continues for the Architecture Billings Index

A.I. — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 16:27:00 +0000

Institutional sector struggling most because of government budget shortfalls

According the AIA, June marked the third consecutive decline in revenue at U.S. architecture firms as measured by the Architecture Billings Index (ABI). As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the June ABI score was 46.3, almost a full point from a reading of 47.2 the previous month. This score reflects a continued decrease in demand for design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). However, the new projects inquiry index was 58.1, up sharply from a mark of 52.6 in May.

“This seems to be a case of not thinking it can get any worse – and then it does,” said AIA Chief Economist, Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA. “While a modest turn around appeared to be on the way earlier in the year, the overall concern about both domestic and global economies is seeping into design and construction industry and adding yet another element that is preventing recovery. Furthermore, the threat of the federal government failing to resolve the debt ceiling issue is leading to higher borrowing rates for real estate projects and should there actually be a default, we are likely looking at a catastrophic situation for a sector that accounts for more than ten percent of overall GDP.”

Key June ABI highlights:

•    Regional averages: West (51.7), Northeast (47.5), South (47.3), Midwest (44.6)
•    Sector index breakdown: mixed practice (51.5), commercial / industrial (50.0), multi-family residential (49.6), institutional (45.9)
•    Project inquiries index: 58.1

About the AIA Architecture Billings Index
The Architecture Billings Index (ABI), produced by the AIA Economics & Market Research Group, is a leading economic indicator that provides an approximately nine to twelve month glimpse into the future of nonresidential construction spending activity. The diffusion indexes contained in the full report are derived from a monthly “Work-on-the-Boards” survey that is sent to a panel of AIA member-owned firms. Participants are asked whether their billings increased, decreased, or stayed the same in the month that just ended as compared to the prior month, and the results are then compiled into the ABI. These monthly results are also seasonally adjusted to allow for comparison to prior months. The monthly ABI index scores are centered around 50, with scores above 50 indicating an aggregate increase in billings, and scores below 50 indicating a decline. The regional and sector data are formulated using a three-month moving average. More information on the ABI and the analysis of its relationship to construction activity can be found in the White Paper Architecture Billings as a Leading Indicator of Construction: Analysis of the Relationship Between a Billings Index and Construction Spending on the AIA web site.

Felderman Keatinge + Associates - iCrete Headquartes in Los Angeles

A.I. — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 12:04:00 +0000

The new corporate headquarters of a young L.A. based company iCrete, recently designed by Felderman Keatinge + Associates. The client desired an open and minimalist space; an environment that would foster innovative thinking and encourage interaction among employees. To this purpose, the designers created a non-traditional space that expresses the nature of iCrete’s concrete product.

Hawkins\Brown - Corby Cube in Northants, UK

A.I. — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 09:14:00 +0000

Hawkins\Brown’s striking glazed Corby Cube, the focal point of a major regeneration program to revitalize the former steel making town in Northants, UK has completed and is now open to the public.

Won in international competition in 2004, the Corby Cube combines a diverse program of civic and arts uses into a new model for civic architecture.

Maximizing its central location at the heart of a new town square, the building’s array of uses are arranged around an internal ‘promenade architecturale’ composed into a coherent glazed cube form with four ‘live’ elevations, each articulating the uses contained within.

Enlarging a Classic Fifties Modern House

A.I. — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 10:43:00 +0000

Kenneth E. Hobgood Architects in Raleigh recently completed the renovation phase of a mid-century modern house in Durham and is about to begin construction on phase two: a 1200-square-foot addition that will honor, without imitating, the original house.

When new owners hired the firm to renovate and enlarge the 2337-square-foot house that architect Kenneth Scott, AIA, designed in 1958, the design team immediately recognized the challenges they faced.

“We knew it was going to be difficult because of our respect for the original house,” said project architect Bob Thomas, AIA, a principal in the firm. “This was a renovation, not a restoration, so it needed to accommodate a family of five, including three young children, and lifestyle changes from the Fifties to today. So we had to strike a balance between opening up the space yet transforming the interior respectfully.”

Fun Competition: AIA Barbie® Dream House™ Design Competition

AIA Press Release — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 12:25:00 +0000

Architect doll at the American Institute of Architects (AIA) national convention where she was well received by fellow female architects. With 125 careers and counting, Barbie® encourages girls to be anything they want to be - Barbie® I Can Be™… Architect doll introduces girls to this rewarding career in a way only Barbie® can.

As a way to further engage the design community in I Can Be™ Architect, the AIA launched a competition for architects to design their own interpretation of a Barbie® DreamHouse™. A jury was selected and five finalists have been chosen for the public to vote on and determine the overall winner. While the architects submissions will not be produced by Mattel, it’s still fun to play with Barbie® regardless of your age.

Click here to view the submissions and vote for your favorite. The competition is open until August 1st, with the winner announced on August 2nd in conjunction with the retail launch of Barbie® I Can Be™... Architect doll.

This is a great opportunity for the public, and children in particular, to read about and see the approach an architect takes to a design project.

Call-for-Entries: 2012 AIA Honor Awards

AIA PR — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 21:25:00 +0000

Celebrating the Best in Contemporary American Architecture

What:
Each year since 1949, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) has celebrated outstanding architecture through the Honor Awards program. The AIA continues that tradition by inviting architecture firms to submit their best recent work for the 2012 program. The Institute Honor Awards program recognizes three Divisions: Architecture, Interior Architecture, and Regional and Urban Design.

You can see the full version of the 2012 AIA Honor Awards Call for Entries here

When:
The deadline for all submissions is August 26, 2011, 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

How:
You can visit the AIA’s Awards program webpage for details on submitting projects, eligibility criteria, juror information and previous recipients: www.aia.org/awards

Contact:
For questions please email: honorsawards@aia.org

You can also check the 2011 Honor Awards here