Although 2008 brought a financial crisis that stretched unemployment rolls and slowed production lines across the globe, it was a superlative year for skyscrapers. According to a recent study by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), more tall buildings—and taller ones—were completed in 2008 than ever before. The council expects 2009 to be another record year. Photo courtesy Kohn Pedersen Fox The Shanghai World Financial Center, by KPF, was completed last year. Related Links: Shanghai Skyscraper Named Best Tall Building Chicago's 'Twizzler' Fizzles Lending Freeze Tests Skyscraper Optimism Dubai: Super-Tall Building Capital of the World Burj Dubai
Entries are now being accepted for the 12th annual BusinessWeek/Architectural Record “Good Design Is Good Business” Awards. The program honors projects that exemplify innovative design while helping clients achieve strategic business goals. The original deadline was April 15, 2009; however, due to a high volume of queries, the application deadline has been extended to May 15. Photo ' Benny Chan The headquarters for Edmunds.com, designed by STUDIOS architecture, was among the 2008 winners. The winners will be considered for publication in Architectural Record and BusinessWeek, along with McGraw-Hill’s new magazine, HQ: Good Design is Good Business. These titles are read
The economy hasn’t come to a complete halt. In late January Dolce & Gabbana introduced its first cosmetics collection, which namesake Stefano Gabbana calls “essential, yet an indulgence.” To celebrate the launch, the Italian fashion house asked Vogue to curate “Extreme Beauty in Vogue,” a photographic survey of beauty in that magazine, and asked French architect Jean Nouvel to design the exhibition.
Below is a roundup of the news stories either featured or mentioned in the April 2009 print edition of RECORD. The indicates that you can only read the full story online.
Shortly after becoming chancellor of Syracuse University in 2005, Nancy Cantor introduced her Scholarship in Action initiative, which aims to meld academic study with community redevelopment efforts. As part of that wide-ranging effort, the Syracuse University School of Architecture, led by dean Mark Robbins, spawned a local design-build workshop, as well as a Gluckman Mayner–designed renovation of an old furniture warehouse in downtown Syracuse that now contains classrooms, a cafe, and an art gallery. Images courtesy Syracuse University R-House (top); Live Work Home (middle); Ted (above) The most recent undertaking in this series of efforts is the competition "From the
The MacArthur Foundation recently announced it is injecting $32 million into the preservation and creation of affordable housing in the U.S. The organization is giving $9.5 million worth of grants, plus an additional $23 million in low-interest loans, to programs in 12 different states that approach the issue from various angles. MacArthur President Jonathan Fanton, during a February 26 press conference, cited a number of alarming statistics regarding affordable housing: a net loss of 1 million affordable homes over the last ten years, an 80 percent decline in government subsidies, and a standing deficit of 12 million units. “For many
The eight recipients of the 2009 AIA/ALA Library Building Awards were announced on March 5. The biennial awards, presented by the American Institute of Architects and the American Library Association, honor exemplary library projects by architects licensed in the U.S. Recipients will be recognized during the ALA annual conference in Chicago on July 13.
Correction appended March 31, 2009 Years ago, the Garrett-Dunn House, a 19th century Italianate structure in Philadelphia credited to the architect Thomas Ustick Walter, who also designed the dome on the U.S. Capitol, was slated for demolition. Despite its dilapidated condition, preservationists succeeded in getting the house listed on the city’s historic register and convinced a developer to incorporate the house into a luxury condominium project. While it wouldn’t be preserved in a technical sense, the landmark would live on. Photo courtesy National Trust for Historic Preservation (top). Image courtesy Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners (above). The fate of
For the reopening of the BMW Museum in Munich this past June, the upscale auto manufacturer’s designers dusted off GINA Light Visionary Model, a concept they had begun toying with in 1999. Although the last iteration of the idea was completed in 2001, the vision is no less futuristic today. GINA’s signature element is its namesake skin, a polyurethane-covered Lycra that replaces sheet metal by stretching over the aluminum frame. “The fascinating thing is that it produces a formal vocabulary of folding, which is something we don’t know in cars,” BMW’s director of group design Christopher Bangle says of the
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