Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo announces studio PCA-Stream’s accepted proposal for transforming this historic avenue. The PCA plan will split the avenue's 1.2 mile eight-lane highway into bike lanes/walk-ways, as well as, introduce pockets of greenery (over the next 10 years) - with a goal of improving air quality and making it a more sustainable and desirable public space. More here and worth watching the impressive animated fly-by at the bottom of this link on PCA’s site.
Proposed High Line Extension (NYC) - Diller Scofidio + Renfro
I’ve loved this project since first hearing about it in the early 2000s.
Completed in 2009, the 1.5 mile elevated park was created on a former railroad spur along the west side of Manhattan and designed as a "living system” - part landscape architecture, part urban design.
The newly announced proposed extension will connect the High Line to the new Penn Station expansion allowing pedestrians to walk from the parkway to the station concourse without crossing busy roads.
Girls’ Hostel - Zero Energy Design Lab (India)
Zero Energy Design Lab (ZED Lab) used parametrical design tools to create a facade (2 layers of hollow concrete blocks) to buffer the building from Gurugram’s hot climate and help maintain cooler building temperatures and achieve net zero goals.
More here.
Den Outdoors
Assorted plans and kits for small modern structures with basic materials and clean lines. More here.
Viikki Church / JKMM Architects (Finland)
This beautifully organized structure appears greatly influenced by Alvar Aalto (Master Finnish Architect). The way it ties to the landscape with the rusticated perimeter wall and birch forest interior to the subtle modern curves highlighted by the wood shingles. More here.
GjG House - Blaf Architects (Belgium)
Reclaimed brick and some curvy moves make this fortress-like home shine. More here.
Città della Scienza (Masterplan) - Studio d'Architettura Briguglio Morales
Here’s to a greener future. Check out more about this conceptual plan here.
Hindu Temple Complex (India) - Sameep Padora & Associates
The stepped temples are made from local black limestone slabs to create a modern take on the traditional forms. These slabs are planted with greenery on the lower levels to buffer the interiors from the heat. To create the water feature, the architectures diverted waste water from a nearby quarry to a low-lying retention basin that was planted with vegetation to naturally clean the water.
Inside Plantings
We started veg. and herb seedlings in our lg. south-facing window at the beginning of pandemic to get ready for summer plantings but have now decided to try it indoors for winter. I’ll update as the experiment continues.
Sneci, the teeny tiny Houseboat - Tamás Bene (architect)
This combines two of my favorite things. Check out more pictures and information here.
Lim'uhphile Co-op (South Africa) / Collectif Saga (architects)
The resourcefulness of this project is lovely to see. The architects at Collectif saga (France) teamed up with this existing Co-op to masterplan a site they had already been farming. The structures are mostly made of industrial bi-products or scraps and organized to create gathering spaces, training areas and greenhouses to start crops. See more here.
Lightness In Architecture - Masters in Advanced Studies/Digital Fabrication (ETH Zürich)
Twelve groups of students collaborated with researchers on robotic fabrication processes & 3D printing technologies. All topics show the ability to turn concepts into software and digital building processes with the power to transform the way we build. Check out projects here.
The Red Roof - TAA design (Vietnam)
Copenhagen Loop B.I.G. (Bjarke Ingles Group)
Charged with rethinking urban sprawl and an outdated infrastructure in/around the city of Copenhagen, B.I.G. proposes a 50yr plan (LOOP) that links energy exchange, waste/recycling, water treatment, EV charging, and most interestingly, a public transportation line that is also building, park, commerce hubs and health care campus.
Hanging House / Casa Container Marìlia (Brazil)
Fun way to think about materials, reuse and space. More here.
Micro-Library by SHAU Bandung (Indonesia)
Made with 2000+ ice cream buckets, seems like everyone wins on this one - considered UpCycled Architecture. More here.
Casa en el Bosque - Weyes Estudio (Mexico)
Love how these impressively small structures (all part of one residence) were carefully tucked into this densely vegetated, rather small lot. More here.
Barcelona - Green Shift
Barcelona’s city council announced plans to transform (over the next 10 yrs.) one in three streets in its central district into green, car-free public spaces to tackle air pollution and create safer outdoor spaces around the city - this will hopefully be a model many other cities will follow with success.
Santa Anita Cabin
Check out the lovely touches in this retrofit 100+ yr. old cabin (approx. 600sf) where all the materials and furnishings needed to be transported down a narrow canyon path by wheel barrel or pack mule.
Kelvin Doe - Engineer/Inventor/DJ (b. 1996)
Inspiring youth from Sierra Leone, who created among many other things, a windmill (made of scavenged parts) to provide electricity for his community. At 13 years old, he built his own radio equipment and station where he broadcasts news and plays music to his community under the name “DJ Focus”. By age 17, he signed a $100,000 solar project pact with Canadian High-Speed Service Provider Sierra WiFi. Read more here.
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