Squandered Land: An Update From Architects & Urbanists Biking Across the Country
(Courtesy Peter Murray)
[ Editor's Note: Peter Murray, of the New London Architecture center, together with a dozen architects and planners, is biking from Portland, Oregon to Portland Place in London, studying how cities are responding to the demand for better cycling infrastructure. He reports from the start of his ride. The Architect’s Newspaper is USA media sponsor of the trip and will post periodic updates of these architects on bicycles. ]
When the author Bill Bryson moved back to the US from England he wrote a goodbye book entitled Notes from a Small Island. I was frequently reminded of Bryson’s analysis as I rode through Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. By comparison to these great open spaces England is neat and manicured, with everything in its place.
New Plaza Brings Needed Public Space to Holland Tunnel Entrance
Freeman Plaza West (Courtesy of Ryan Muir/Hudson Square Connection)
The entrance to the Holland Tunnel, a maze of traffic and complicated pedestrian crossings, finally has some much-needed open space. Thursday, the Hudson Square Connection, the Business Improvement District (BID) for the area, along with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, announced the opening of Freeman Plaza West, a new public space outfitted with bistro-style tables and chairs, umbrellas, and greenery, including four trees planted in honor of four members of Port Authority Police Department’s Holland Tunnel Command who lost their lives in the line of duty on September 11th 2001.
Anheuser-Busch Taps Plans For St. Louis Biergarten
A new outdoor “biergarten” at the Anheuser-Busch brewery in St. Louis will be a first for any of the beer conglomerate’s 12 U.S. breweries. (Courtesy Anheuser-Busch)
An 18-foot, bright red “B” plucked from St. Louis’ Anheuser-Busch brewery will find a permanent home in the beer conglomerate’s first U.S. “biergarten.” The “B” is a relic of the neon Budweiser sign replaced by LEDs in February.
Located adjacent to the brewery’s tour center at 12th and Lynch streets, the beer garden joins what is already one of the region’s largest tourist attractions, drawing 350,000 visitors annually. Five of the dozen U.S. breweries are owned by A-B, which itself is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Belgium-based A-B InBev, but the St. Louis location is so far the only one with a beer garden on tap.
Controversial Malibu Lagoon Restoration Opens
The “Bird Blind” at the revamped Malibu Lagoon. This will be thick with reeds in a year or two. (Guy Horton)
On May 2, the ever-controversial Malibu Lagoon Restoration Project—designed to restore the lagoon to its natural shape after years of disruptions and enhance the visitor experience—had its official ribbon cutting ceremony. Or, in this case, kelp cutting ceremony. The newly revamped lagoon glinted in the sun as egrets skittered along the water’s surface. Inappropriately-dressed (dark suits and ties) state officials and project leaders posed for photographs, congratulated team members, and handed out certificates while protesters (some shirtless and in shorts), brandishing hand-made signs saying “Paradise Lost” and “Lagoonicide,” booed and shouted at every opportunity. It was another beautiful day at the beach.
Orly Genger’s “Red, Yellow and Blue” Adds Bands of Color to Madison Square Park
Installation view of Orly Genger’s Red, Yellow and Blue in Madison Square Park. (The Architect’s Newspaper)
Yesterday, brilliant sunshine, a gentle spring breeze, and 65 degree weather set the scene for the inauguration ceremony of Orly Genger’s remarkable new art installation, titled Red, Yellow and Blue, in Madison Square Park. As you navigate your way through the park you will find yourself surrounded by a fanciful scene, as vibrant undulating walls arch into blossoming trees, spill onto lush lawns, and unfurl all around you.
“Orly Genger has woven her magic throughout the park,” said Mayor Bloomberg, who spoke at the inauguration ceremony. The large-scale project was installed as the latest chapter of Mad. Sq. Art, a public contemporary arts program presented by Madison Square Park Conservancy that aims to revitalize the park as well as the surrounding community. “[Red Yellow and Blue] is both innovative and environmentally sustainable. It is projects like this that are a big part of what gives New York City our identity and attracts visitors to our city,” said Bloomberg.
Landscape Architect Proposes a Cycling Superhighway Over a London Canal
(Courtesy Design International)
500-cyclists and pedestrians an hour simultaneously traveling along the same route bordering the Regent’s Canal in north London certainly makes for one congested—and with cyclists and pedestrians jockeying for limited space, a treacherous—commute. According to BD Online, landscape architect Anthony Nelson, director at Design International, has proposed a dramatic solution that could resolve the long-standing battle between fast-moving cyclists and slower pedestrians.
“Minimal Relaxation” Has Maximum Impact at MoCA Shanghai
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“Minimal Relaxation” at MoCA Shanghai.
Reimagining traditional Chinese gardens with parametric geometry
For MoCA Shanghai’s exhibition MoCA Mock-ups: The Architecture of Spatial Art, USC American Academy of China (AAC) Summer Studio 2012 spent six weeks designing, fabricating and constructing “Minimal Relaxation,” a parametric canopy and undulating, LED-lit landscape that creates prime skyline viewing locations on the museum’s rooftop terrace. Inspired by Frei Otto, an architect and structural engineer famous for his complex canopy structures, “Minimal Relaxation” extends his body of design research into physical and digital form-finding processes for minimal surface structure through “dynamic relaxation techniques.”
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