I thought these birdhouses were simply part of an art installation, being that they are on the High Line in New York City. Then I heard a "chirp." One google search later, I learned that the birdhouses are the work of Sarah Sze, who wanted to create an artwork that is "simultaneously an observatory, an experiment, and a metropolis, evoking urban construction, scientific models, and attempts to capture nature in situ." Translation: lucky birds.
The Glass House is the 14-structure, 49-acre, private residence that Philip Johnson designed for himself in New Canaan, Connecticut. The site is now managed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and tours for the 2012 season begin May 2. Tickets are also available for the Conversations in Context program, which includes the following lineup of guest speakers:
Continue reading "Glass House speakers announced for 2012." »
Photo by Judith Ramquist, courtesy of AIGA.
“A chair is the first thing you need when you don’t really need anything,” wrote Ralph Caplan. “And is therefore a peculiarly compelling symbol of civilization. For it is civilization, not survival, that requires design.” One of the best design critics of our time, a fantastic writer and an inspiring teacher, Ralph Caplan can now add AIGA Medalist to his list of titles.
The students at Singapore Polytechnic’s Design School are literally climbing the walls with ideas. As participants in the Design Facility – an extension of the Experience and Product Design Diploma – they asked themselves: “Can wall painting depart from mere cosmetic and surface protection?” Confident that the answer is “yes,” they designed Moldable Paint. A 3D material, this paint allows the user to mold shelves and hooks right onto the surface of their walls. What do you think about their idea? How would you use this material?
Continue reading "Milan: Day Four – look beyond the paint." »
Photo courtesy of the Chicago History Museum (www.chicagohs.org)
On this day 126 years ago, the modern master Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was born. "An interesting plainness is the most difficult and precious thing to achieve," said the architect and Bauhaus director who designed the Farnsworth House in Illinois and the Seagram Building in New York, to name just two of his architectural triumphs. Equally significant is his furniture – minimalist forms that exhibit an unerring sense of proportion. Mies van der Rohe may have designed the Barcelona® Chair for the king and queen of Spain, but in our book, he was the one who was truly royalty. A salute to Mies on this day.
Update: Today's Google Doodle (shown above) is the Crown Hall at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago that houses its College of Architecture. The glass-and-steel structure was designed by Mies, who also served as the director of architecture at the school.
Color us happy, this rainbow hotel is just the thing to brighten a gray day in Connecticut. Thanks to our friend Tina who writes the Swissmiss blog, we stumbled upon these fabulous images of the Saguaro Hotel in Palm Springs. Which color room would you choose?
At the age of 12, Jim Berger wrote the famous architect requesting a house for his black lab, Eddie. Expenses would be covered by the wages earned from his paper route, and the boy’s only requests were that it “would be easy to build and would go with our house.” Located in San Anselmo, California, “the house” was the Robert Berger House, built by the boy’s father and the plans for which Wright had designed in 1951. At first, Wright declined the boy’s request, but Berger kept writing him, and in 1956 he received a set of plans for Eddie’s “canis domus.” Read the whole story and see the plans at Architizer.com.
Santiago Calatrava has designed more than 40 bridges around the world, and his latest was completed just days ago in Dallas. The cable-stayed bridge features a 400-foot-high arch of steel wrapped in a concrete skin, and a web of steel diagonal stays that give the bridge its unmistakable Calatrava look.
In what looks like the demise of the bridge, check out the fireworks show (above) that Dallas put on for the Bridge’s opening celebration (the drama begins after the first 45 seconds).
Cindy Sherman Untitled Film Still #22, 1978
MoMA
Cindy Sherman
Ends June 11
Cranbrook Art Musuem
No Object is an Island
Material Workshop: Cranbrook for Alessi
Both end March 25
Continue reading "Craving culture? Exhibitions to see now. " »
Not an Eichler #1: The Jobs family's ranch-style house in Los Altos, CA.
The architecture world was abuzz last October when Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs revealed that the Apple CEO grew up in a house designed by Joe Eichler. Unfortunately, most bloggers shared the news with a photo of Jobs’ Los Altos house (site of the famous garage, shown above), which is not an Eichler. The house Isaacson was referring to is in Mountain View, California, where the family lived until Steve was 14. However, that isn’t an Eichler either. Rather, it is the work of Eichler’s original architectural team, Anshen and Allen, for Mackay Homes. Eichlers and Mackays are similar, but there are major differences in the foundation, heating, materials and style.
Not an Eichler #2: the Jobs family's home in Mountain View, CA. Photo: David Toerge
Image courtesy of Manifesto Architecture.
With growing concern over environmental pollution and energy consumption more and more people are trading in four wheels for two. As a result, New York-based architecture firm Manifesto is already working on a solution to an anticipatory problem: overcrowding at the bike rack. The firm looked at existing bicycle storage systems and found that many of them rely on space or the use of electricity. They then examined urban landscapes and discovered that narrow pockets of urban space were underutilized, which led to the development of the Bike Hanger, a vertically oriented bicycle storage system that has the capacity to store up to 15 bicycles and operates without electricity. By pedaling a stationary bicycle at the bottom of the hanger, a central wheel rotates and cyclists can retrieve their bike. Manifesto Architecture has completed the prototype.Its BH6 model recently made its debut at the Gwangju Design Biennale in Korea and is nominated for London Design Museum's Designs of the Year Transport Award 2012. Winners will be announced in April.
Check out the Manifesto Architecture website for more information the project.
Museum Exhibitions
Milwaukee Art Museum (shown above)
Building a Masterpiece: Santiago Calatrava and the Milwaukee Art Museum
Ends Feb. 12
SFMoMA
Less and More: The design ethos of Dieter Rams
Ends Feb. 20
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Zaha Hadid: Form in Motion
Ends March 25
Continue reading "Craving culture? Exhibitions to see now." »
Last evening, DWR Soho Studio hosted more than 200 guests for the 2012 Metropolis Game Changers awards reception. The Awards, now in their second year, celebrate individuals who are breaking conventions across various disciplines such as architecture, business, education, graphic design, healthcare, technology and typography.
Continue reading "A fete for the 2012 Metropolis Game Changers." »
How important is longevity? That was the unofficial theme at the opening of this year’s Interior Design Show (IDS), Jan. 26–29. As if to echo that idea, four giant chairs made of ice stood guard at the entrance to the convention center, their biomorphic forms eroding under hot spotlights. I didn’t see anyone try to sit in one of these icy thrones, but given that vodka shots (in glasses also made of ice) were being served next to the ice chairs, I’m guessing there are photos of such activity on memory cards all over the city (in cameras owned by folks with no memory of such things).
Inside, there are displays from more than 300 exhibitors, ranging from furniture by Piero Lissoni (above) – this year’s “International Guest of Honour” – to floor tiles, gas fireplaces and students’ prototype chairs. The day began with “Conversations in Design: Trailblazing and Trendspotting,” moderated by Chee Pearlman.
Continue reading "The Buzz in Toronto: The Interior Design Show." »
Note: This article was originally titled "Leben Auf Kleinem Raum" and ran in the German magazine Couch. It has been translated into English (and slightly edited) by Iris in 't Hout.
33 sq meters
From a family home to a doll size apartment. How do designer Michael Sainato (V.P. Marketing + Creative at Design Within Reach) and stylist Iris in 't Hout solve this? With lots of style - and storage room.
The table barely measures 70 cm x 80 cm, so the built-in seat benches can have storage drawers underneath. Dog Miles always finds a spot by Iris and Michael.
Recently named to the 2012 World Monuments Watch, Manitoga is the name Russel Wright gave to his home, studio and 75-acre sculpted landscape in Garrison, New York. "This is a monumental achievement," said Massimo Vignelli upon hearing that Manitoga received this designation, joining former Watch sites like Peru's Machu Picchu, the Cultural Landscape of the Great Wall of China, and Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesen in Wisconsin. Monumental, indeed. I had the pleasure of visiting Manitoga two years ago and wrote about my experience in All a twitter about Russel Wright. Tours of the Wright home and studio are available May-October. Four miles of hiking trails through the landscape can be explored year-round. To help support Manitoga, go to russelwrightcenter.org.
It was with great sadness that we learned of the loss of Andrew Geller, who died on December 25. An American architect, Geller is perhaps best known for the beach houses he designed in the 1950s and 60s, many of which were in the Hamptons. On May 5, 1957, the New York Times featured a story about the A-frame house he designed for Elizabeth Reese in Sagaponack, New York, and Geller’s fresh approach to this style of architecture was met with international acclaim. For 35 years, Geller worked at the international design firm Raymond Loewy & Associates, where he designed the “Typical American House” shown at the American Exhibition in Moscow. The house was the cause of the famous Kitchen Debate between Vice President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev on July 24, 1959. A year later, the model home led to the creation of Leisurama Homes, a line of summer houses that could be purchased at Macy’s. Geller’s work can be seen in many books, including Weekend Utopia: Modern Living in the Hamptons by Alastair Gordon.
Our thoughts are with his family. This modernist architect will be missed.
Photo used with permission, courtesy of Richard Schulman photography. schulmanphotography.com
Join Paul Goldberger, the architecture critic for The New Yorker, as he tours the Philip Johnson Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut. Goldberger is the author of several books, including Why Architecture Matters (Yale University Press, 2009).
Conversations in Context: Paul Goldberger from The Philip Johnson Glass House on Vimeo.
Join professor Greg Lynn and his 14 graduate students as they look into the future in collaboration with the leaders of Walt Disney Imagineering. The UCLA Architecture and Urban Design Master of Architecture II program, also known as Suprastudio, is a yearlong studio course designed to promote critical practice by emphasizing applied research.
Suprastudio Greg Lynn from UCLA Architecture & Urban De on Vimeo.
Did you know that in the early days of DWR, our office was based in West Oakland? This is a place that is near and dear to our heart, and we're excited to report that the city has just implemented an interesting new way to revitalize it's beautiful downtown historic district. "Popuphood" is a new urban initiative that placed six new locally-owned retail shops in previously vacant store fronts with six months free rent. Watch the video to get the full scoop on this cool community-based initiative.
