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Developer Dai Zhi Kang, chairman and CEO of the Shanghai Zendai Group is a small, gentle man with a super-sized vision—to create a world-class multi-cultural center for art and commerce in his hometown’s Pudong district. Image courtesy Shanghai Zendai Group Click on the slide show icon to see additional photos. “In China, art is mixed with daily life,” explains Zhi Kang. “I want to interpret this tradition into a new aesthetic for Chinese architecture.” So rather than erect a stand-alone museum, a concept he deems foreign in China (therefore not likely to be embraced by locals or investors), he worked

Photo © Juergen Nogai/courtesy Fort Worth Museum of Science and History Click on the slide show icon to see additional photos. Related Links: Dallas Arts District: Bold New Acts A New Vision for Dallas Although Dallas has nabbed the spotlight in recent months with high-profile additions to its arts district, the city’s close neighbor, Fort Worth, also is adding some architectural pizzazz to its urban core.  On November 20, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History opened a new $80 million, 166,000-square-foot facility designed by Mexico City’s Legorreta + Legorreta with local firm Gideon Toal. The museum is located

Last fall Russia's fourth annual Building Award was given at the conclusion of that country's annual Building Festival. According to the Peter Kudryavtsev, the CEO of Building, and the editor-in-chief of the magazine Building ARX, “The purpose of the award is not just to find architectural beauty. It is also to to encourage buildings that work for customers, property owners, make residents and tenants happy, and that function well in the context of the city.” Photo © Forum Properties Click on the slide show icon to see photos of the winner and runners-up. The award goes to the best Russian

Photo © Yael Pincus/courtesy Design Museum Holon Design Museum Holon opens on February 2. Five undulating horizontal ribbons of weathered steel—in bright orange, deep red, and rust brown—wrap the Design Museum Holon, Israel’s first museum of design. London-based Ron Arad Architects chose Cor-Ten steel for its integrity, as a material that is “not coated or masked,” explains Asa Bruno, the firm’s co-director. The $17 million, 38,000-square-foot building is set on a gentle slope and is part of a large cultural complex in Holon, 4 miles south of Tel Aviv. After nearly four years of construction, the two-story building opens February

The legacy firm of famed Midcentury Modernist Minoru Yamasaki has closed its doors amid a sea of recriminations and debts.

Walking past New York City construction sites may soon be a much more pleasant visual experience.

The January 12 earthquake that struck Haiti has galvanized the architecture community to lend its support, but the disaster has particularly resonated among African-American practitioners, some of whom are of Haitian descent.

Like many architects, George Gekas saw the destruction caused by a massive earthquake in Haiti and wondered how he could tap his talents to help. But, as the resident of Mt. Desert Island, Maine, placed phone calls and clicked around the Internet, he realized options for immediate, hands-on action were limited. “It was very frustrating,” he said. “I thought, ‘There’s no time to waste.’” Photo courtesy International Federation of Red Cross "It's just going to take a really long time before people start focusing on construction," says Cameron Sinclair of AFH. Related Links: Structural Engineers Survey Devastation Who Will Lead

Graph courtesy AIA Despite noting that “the long-awaited recovery seems to be under way,” the AIA's newly released Consensus Construction Forecast offers little reason for optimism in 2010. It does, however, provide hope for 2011. The semi-annual report—compiled from data provided by McGraw-Hill Construction, Global Insight, Portland Cement Association, MoodysEconomy.com, and other sources—predicts that nonresidential construction activity will fall another 13.4 percent in inflation-adjusted dollars this year, which is notably better than the 20 percent drop-off in 2009. In the report, nonresidential construction refers to the commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors. Commercial and industrial are projected to be weaker this