On View> Moveable Feast at MCNY
photo: Will Steacy (all images courtesy MCNY)
Ready access to fresh fruits and vegetables is seen as a key factor in improving public health. In many low income communities grocery stores are scarce. The Bloomberg administration is addressing these “food deserts” with an innovative, small scale program called NYC Green Carts, issuing extra permits to fruit and vegetable vendors in targeted neighborhoods throughout the city. The program is the subject of a photography exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York, organized with the Aperture Foundation.
Unveiled> OMA’s Parc des Expositions in Toulouse
View of the exterior of PEX (all images courtesy OMA)
OMA has won a competition to design the new Parc des Expositions (PEX) convention center in Toulouse, France. Designed to hold conferences, exhibitions, and concerts, the new hall will function as an opening to the city and a hub in the countryside. OMA has configured a plan for that preserves much of the surrounding area while organizing future development along to a 2.8 kilometer centralized stripe, with PEX filling 660 meters of that length. The project is divided into three programmatic bars: the multipurpose event hall for performances and concerts, which opens up to the exterior, a vast column-free exhibition hall, and a large parking silo with ramps that are visible to halls through glass walls. Led by French projects director, Clement Blanchet, the project is expected to be complete in 2016. Read More
On View> It’s Different at the Architecture League
Aurora by Future Cities Lab
The Architectural League’s current exhibition offers a glimpse of where architecture is headed. It’s Different shows the work of the six winners of the Architectural League Prize for Young Architects + Designers (formerly known as the Young Architect’s Forum). It’s a geographically diverse group working in a variety of formal veins. The six winners (with images!) are:
Will Kimmelman Replace Ouroussoff at the Times?
Michael Kimmelman (courtesy Wikipedia)
iPad 2 Giveaway: And The Winner Is….
Drawing the winning name (photo: Tom Stoelker/AN)
We’re back from NeoCon in Chicago, where we had a fantastic showroom crawl with designers passing through Hafele, The Fine Line, and Toto. People had drinks, took in the fantastic products, and stretched their legs after a long day at the Merchandise Mart. Now that we’re back at the office, we drew a card for the winner of an iPad 2.
National Trust Turns Its Eyes on Prentice
(photo: courtesy National Trust)
Yesterday that National Trust for Historic Preservation announced Bertrand Goldberg’s Prentice Women’s Hospital had made its annual 11 Most Endangered List, bringing national attention to the fight to save the quatrefoil-plan, concrete building. Also yesterday, the local group Save Prentice staged a rally outside the building featuring speakers including Zurich Esposito of the Chicago AIA and Jim Peters from Landmarks Illinois.
New Chicago DOT Commissioner Could Rival Sadik-Khan
Chicago's new DOT Commissioner, Gabe Klein (courtesy D.C. Streetsblog)
Progressive transportation commissioners have become heroes in planning circles. There’s a lot of excitement surrounding Chicago Mayor Emanuel’s appointment of Gabe Klein as DOT commissioner. Poached from Washington D.C., where Emanuel saw his work first-hand, Klein has extensive experience instituting new transportation ideas, including the nation’s largest bike sharing program and a new streetcar system. Read More
Architect Falls to His Death
Architect Danny Colvin
Since reports surfaced this morning that an architect died on West 13th Street in Manhattan, architects and the media have been wondering who the had suffered this unfortunate fate. Multiple outlets are now reporting that architect Danny Colvin, principal of ColvinDESIGN, an architecture and interior design firm specializing in residential projects, fell from a building in the Meatpacking District. We at The Architect’s Newspaper are saddened by the news and send his friends, family, and colleagues our sincerest condolences.
A New Cultural Light in Detroit
Tim White-Sobieski's Deconstructed Reality (2007) at the new Kunsthalle Detroit.
Among the triumvirate of Save Detroit schemes (urban farming, attracting artists, and right-sizing the city), cultural projects in some ways seem most challenging given the city’s dire circumstances. Located in a formerly abandoned bank building, the new Kunsthalle Detroit will showcase multimedia and light-based artworks, a smart strategy given the comparatively low cost and ease of presenting such work. The museum opens tomorrow with an exhibition titled, “Time and Place,” featuring works by Bill Viola, Tim White-Sobieski and ten other artists. “This museum brings the best in contemporary multimedia art as catered to the local population,” said founder Tate Osten, in a statement. “It is ultimately a revolutionary action, bringing international art forces to Detroit. In the near future we envision multimedia and light projects splashing from within the museum onto the streets of Detroit, making life and art inseparable.” Kunsthalle Detroit is located at 5001 Grand River Avenue, and will be open Tuesday through Saturday, 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Obama on Souto de Moura
Last night President Obama spoke at the ceremony for this year’s Pritzker Prize winner, Eduardo Souto de Moura. He invoked Thomas Jefferson, the architectural glories of Chicago, and praised Souto de Moura’s work for balancing “form and function with artistry and accessibility.” Obama is close to the Pritzker family, and Penny Pritzker was one of the most significant fundraisers for his campaign. Still it is nice to see the White House bringing some attention to the “Nobel Prize of architecture.” Check out our recent interview and comment on Souto de Moura.
Video>Scaling A Smoke Stack
Two dirty coal powered electric plants in central Chicago are coming under increasing scrutiny from neighbors, environmental activists, and architects and designers. Earlier this week Greenpeace activists scaled the stacks of the Pilsen plant operated by Midwest Generation, and painted a large sign calling for their closure. The plants were also the subject of a recent design competition, the results of which will be on display on June 10 at the Pilsen/Chicago Arts District and on June 13-15 at the Merchandise Mart during NeoCon.
ICFF Studio: Bernhardt Mentors The Design Stars of Tomorrow
Clamp Chairs by Andreas Kowalewski (all images courtesy ICFF Studio)
ICFF wraps up today and, as usual, reviews of the fair seem mixed. Professional but boring! Too safe! Appropriately sober! Practical and market-friendly! Reheated Eames! Now in its sixth year, the ICFF Studio, sponsored by Bernhardt, offers a snap shot of where young designers are looking. Most skewed toward the market-ready, while one designer went in a conceptual direction. The young Dutch designer Andreas Kowalewski’s Clamp Chairs certainly look showroom bound (above).
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