Month: June 2008

Event: Herzog & de Meuron
Location: Columbia University, 05.13.08
Speaker: Jacques Herzog, Hon. FAIA — Principal, Herzog & de Meuron (Basel)
Organizer: Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation

Hamburg’s density The Elbe Philharmonic Hall in Hamburg.

Courtesy elbphilharmonie.de

Whether grand urban visions, additions to historic structures, glass towers, museums, or sculpture pavilions, Herzog & de Meuron Architekten (HdeM) claim they never repeat themselves. “We don’t have a style… we always try to escape labels,” explains firm principal, Jacques Herzog, Hon. FAIA. As an architect, Herzog sees his role as an author who can make a difference; he “uses the discipline as a tool to understand the world.”

The recent conversation drifted among 10 projects at different phases of development, including some new projects, but the most socially aware is the Elbe Philharmonic Hall in Hamburg. With no budget, no client, and no fundamental program, city administrators asked HdeM to “initiate the project” and “do something totally crazy.” Hamburg, a dense city, is difficult to expand. HdeM’s solution is to build on top of an existing industrial building located on the waterfront, allowing for a larger scale intervention. When authorities and citizens liked HdeM’s presentation, Herzog’s belief in work that is “not obvious” was refueled.

HdeM’s current work is about circulation and motion of the human body — beyond the vertical elevator, scissor stair, and straight corridor. A spiral public stair wraps along the interior perimeter of the curtain wall defining the building’s shape for the Roche Research and Development Center in Basel. In the Hong Kong Jockey Club, a vertical garden is integrated into a grid structure, and public programs in the shape of bubbles are suspended throughout. For the “Birds Nest” National Stadium for the 2008 Beijing Summer Games, the initial impetus of the design was a study of ancient Chinese pottery patterns. His work with artistic consultant Ai Weiwei on this project has led to other collaborative projects including a small concrete pavilion created from folding geometric patterns.

Herzog believes that the firm’s success is not due to so-called “signature” designs, but rather in how the buildings ultimately relate to the communities for which they are designed after their involvement is complete.

Harry Gaveras, AIA, is principal of Propylaea and co-chair of the AIANY Emerging NY Architects committee.

Event: 11th International Architecture Exhibition, Venice Biennale preview
Location: Whitney Museum of American Art, 05.13.08
Speakers: Paolo Baratta — President, Fondazione La Biennale di Venezia; Aaron Betsky — Director, 11th International Architecture Exhibition
Organizer: Fondazione La Biennale di Venezia

Courtesy labiennale.org

“Factors” rather than “resulting architectural formalism” are the fodder for this year’s upcoming International Architecture Exhibition at the Venice Biennale, according to the event’s director Aaron Betsky. Betsky’s curatorial wit was honed over his six-year stint as director of the Netherlands Architecture Institute (NAI) in Rotterdam followed by his current job as director of the Cincinnati Art Museum.

Titled Out There: Architecture Beyond Building, “the challenge is to collect and encourage experimentation in architecture. Such experimentation can take the form of momentary constructions, visions of other worlds, or the building blocks of a better world. This Biennale… wants to see if architecture… can offer concrete forms or seductive images.” With this as Betsky’s goal, visitors will encounter around 24 site-specific installations. Padiglione Italia will feature a survey of experimental work by mainly young designers and five “Masters of the Experiment.” The Hall of Fragments by Jones | Kroloff with The Rockwell Group will ask the question: How we can be at home in the modern world? Communities beyond Place, Civic consciousness beyond Architecture, will exhibit “Everyville,” an international online competition open to students of all disciplines.

William Menking, editor-in-chief of The Architect’s Newspaper, is the commissioner in charge of the U.S. Exhibition. Called Into The Open: Positioning Practice, he is collaborating with Teddy Cruz and Deborah Gans, AIA, with support from Aaron Levy and Andrew Sturm, to explore recent explosive migration and its impact on society and geo-political boundaries, as well as the repercussions on architecture, according to the press release. “The idea of the exhibition is to talk about practice in a new way where design evolves out of conflicts and relationships,” Menking said.

The 11th International Architecture Exhibition will also present 65 national participants with exhibitions inside the Pavilions at Giardini and the historic center in Venice. This year’s Biennale will open to the public September 14-23. Tickets are €15, €8 for students. For more details, visit the website.

Johannes M. P. Knoops, FAAR, Assoc. AIA, is an educator and practitioner who straddles both the innovative and romantic aspirations of our profession. This summer, he looks forward to exploring and re-mapping Venice though the conflicting cartography of Venetian business cards.

After Alain Robert scaled the New York Times Building to protest global warming (followed by Renaldo Clarke’s climb to raise awareness about malaria) on June 6, I read all of the reports about how management was beefing up security to prevent future incidents. While I believe precautions are needed to prevent anyone off the street from climbing, I think there is an opportunity for designers to consider how building façades might take on new life — to support the climbing community.

“Buildering” is not new. Documentation exists as early as the 1890s, according to Wikipedia. Other forms of structure scaling include a martial arts-inspired Parkour, BASE jumping, and even Craning. Robert is a celebrity in this world (his website claims he has climbed more than 70 buildings worldwide), and even though he is frequently arrested for his feats, he is sometimes paid to climb for celebratory events. Professional rock climbers ascend mountains much higher than most buildings, so why has buildering never been accepted as a professional practice?

In 2007, Dan Goodwin (a.k.a. Spider Dan), who climbed the Sears Tower in 1981, proposed the Skyscraper Defense Act calling for a new department within Homeland Security called the Skyscraper Defense Department. Goodwin intends to modify high-rise rescue procedures, appealing to cities to create a master plan for every skyscraper outlining roof rescue protocols, and to assemble a team of professionals who can rescue occupants trapped inside a building from the exterior. Exterior egress stations should be provided on each floor; refuge areas should be strategically placed throughout the skyscraper; and green, non-toxic materials should be used in construction to pose no short- or long-term ill effects to climbers.

If passed, Goodwin’s proposal would change skyscraper construction significantly.In addition to rescue procedures, the changes could also encourage a new, legal profession of “urban climbing,” establishing a more modern definition of building inhabitation.

To see up-close photographs of Alain Robert on the New York Times Building, check out The Center, AIANY blog.

In this issue:
· Downtown: Gehry Makes a New Impression
· Foundation Grants $25 Million to Improve 2 NYC Parks
· Upper East Side Patterns New Condo Design
· Action at Pier 94: NYC Expands Trade Show Capacity
· Melrose Commons Builds First Sustainable Building
· Crafting a Center for Kids
· Calais Border Station is Flexible, Secure, Pollution-Free
· 1815 WV Mansion Gets New Lease on Life

Downtown: Gehry Makes a New Impression

Beekman Tower looking up from Park Row.

Artefactory

The 76-story Beekman Tower will be Gehry Partners’ first residential high-rise/mixed-use commission in NYC, and at 867 feet tall it will be the tallest residential building in Manhattan. The Forest City Ratner Companies’ development will feature a 1.1-million-square-foot structure sheathed in glass and stainless steel cladding atop a six-story masonry podium. In addition to 903 market-rate rental apartments, the development will include a four-story, 100,000-square-foot pre-K through eighth-grade public school in the podium — the first public school built in NYC on private land — with a 5,000-square-foot rooftop play area. A 21,000-square-foot ambulatory care center for New York Downtown Hospital will be used as doctors’ offices, 1,300 square feet will be dedicated to neighborhood-oriented ground-floor retail space, and there will be 26,000 square feet of below-grade parking.

Due to the design of the curtain wall, each floor will have a different configuration. The folds of the façade create bay windows inside. The complex surface geometry of the curtain wall will be mapped by computer software developed by Gehry Technologies called Digital Project. There will also be a wide range of amenities including a gym, spa with swimming pool and sundeck, business conference-center, residents’ recreational lounge with golf-simulator, demonstration kitchen, and children’s playroom and television lounge. The site will feature two 15,000-square-foot landscaped public plazas designed by Field Operations.

Foundation Grants $25 Million to Improve 2 NYC Parks

Rendering of Prospect Park’s future Concert Grove.

Rendering by Peter DePasquale, courtesy NYC Department of Parks and Recreation

The Leon Levy Foundation is awarding $15 million to The New York Botanical Garden for the creation of a new Native Plant Garden on 3.5 acres adjacent to the Native Forest and Rock Garden. It will serve as a center for the study and display of plants native to northeastern United States. The garden will be one of the first projects in the Botanical Garden’s Master Plan, being developed by the Philadelphia-based landscape architecture firm Olin Partnership.

The foundation has also awarded $10 million to Prospect Park to fund renovation of the park’s 26-acre Lakeside Center, and help to restore the park to its original design as envisioned by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux. The grant will fund the demolition of Wollman Rink, the first step toward bringing back the area’s native trees, shrubs, and aquatics; new rinks will be built nearby. In addition, Music Island will be rebuilt as a natural habitat sanctuary where pedestrian viewing paths will be restored along the lake edge, and invasive aquatic reeds will be removed. Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects will design the new building and ice rinks, with Christian Zimmerman of the Prospect Park Alliance as landscape architect.

Upper East Side Patterns New Condo Design

Isis Condominium.

Courtesy Alchemy Properties

FXFOWLE Architects has designed an 18-story luxury residential condo on Manhattan’s Upper East Side for Alchemy Properties. Billed as a “family-friendly” building, Isis Condominium will contain 31 two-, two-plus den, and three-bedroom residences — two units per floor and four penthouses. Resting on a six-story base, the façade features a greenish-gray mosaic made by Trespa. The project is currently under construction with an expected completion date in July 2009.

Action at Pier 94: NYC Expands Trade Show

Piers 92 and 94 — future home of a new trade show facility.

Courtesy Dattner Architects

New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) has designated the team of Vornado Realty Trust and its subsidiary Merchandise Mart Properties Inc. to redevelop and expand the trade show facility on Manhattan’s far west side. The design team includes Dattner Architects and SMWM, with Philip Habib and Associates acting as traffic consultants. The project will expand the trade show facility on Pier 94 to include Pier 92 and will contain approximately 355,000 square feet of trade show and conference space. The project will also feature a 9,300-square-foot winter garden and accessible open space around the perimeter. A 60,000-square-foot logistics center will accommodate loading/unloading, storage, and other back-of-the-house functions to relieve traffic congestion. Developers hope the $100 million renovation will help NYC capture a larger share of the tradeshow market.

Melrose Commons Builds First Sustainable Building

El Jardin de Seline.

Magnusson Architecture and Planning

Construction is underway on El Jardin de Seline, a new, sustainable affordable housing project in the Melrose Commons section of the Bronx. The mixed-use, mixed-income rental building was designed by Magnusson Architecture and Planning (MAP) and developed by a joint venture of Nos Quedamos, MJM Construction Services, and Melrose Associates. At 12 stories, the project will be the tallest building in the neighborhood and will reference “old Bronx style” with its use of art deco motifs and materials consistent with local buildings. Funded by the NYC Housing Development Corporation, the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development, Richman Housing Resources, and NYSERDA, El Jardin will contain 84 units from studio to 2-bedroom apartments and will be available to residents making up to 60% and 80% of AMI. The project will contain over 2,000 square feet of community space including a laundry room and outdoor courtyard, as well as 6,000 square feet of retail space and 12,000 square feet of parking. It is expected to receive a LEED Silver rating upon completion.

Crafting a Center for Kids

The Queens Child Guidance Center.

CetraRuddy

CetraRuddy has redesigned the Queens Child Guidance Center in Woodside. The organization is a family-focused non-profit that annually serves more than 12,000 children, ranging from newborns to 20-year-olds. Programming and design combined four separate facilities into one central location. The space includes two large conference rooms for group sessions — one specifically for young children with play spaces, and another for older children and adults adjacent to a two-way observation room for staff — and 40 brightly-colored soundproof counseling rooms. The Child Center is now moving into a second design phase and is adding 5,000 square feet to the existing space.

Calais Border Station is Flexible, Secure, Pollution-Free

U.S. Land Port of Entry.

Robert Siegel Architects

Ground was recently broken on the U.S. Land Port of Entry in Calais, ME. The 100,000-square-foot building, designed by NY-based Robert Siegel Architects for the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection, is part of the General Services Administration’s Design Excellence Program. The design is intended to create a welcoming yet secure, flexible yet permanent gateway between the U.S. and Canada. The facility will be wrapped with a textured aluminum façade that acts as a protective barrier for surveillance and reflects sun and shadows. A concealed courtyard protects staff from pollution and vehicle traffic but manages to offer unobstructed views of the rugged landscape. The station, which has an overall budget of $48 million, is slated for completion in November 2009. The firm garnered a Merit Award in the Projects category of the 2007 AIANY Design Awards.

1815 WV Mansion Gets New Lease on Life

Holly Grove Mansion.

Swanke Hayden Connell Architects

Swanke Hayden Connell Architects (SHCA) has been selected by the state of West Virginia to design a comprehensive rehabilitation plan for Holly Grove Mansion, a 5,300-square-foot mansion listed on the National Historic Register of Historic Places. The circa 1815 Classic Revival mansion is on the State Capitol grounds in Charleston, next to the Governor’s Mansion. SHCA performed a due diligence evaluation and researched adaptive new uses, such as offices, event space, guesthouse, and museum. The scope of services entailed a full building assessment, including code-compliant analysis for stabilization and repair of deteriorated structural components. In addition to restoration and replication of period elements, new mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire suppression systems will be concealed, and period appropriate architectural finishes and features will be selected to support the building’s historic character.

Now that summer has hit the city, you can take advantage of the NYC Streets Renaissance (NYCSR) Block Party NYC. Mini-grants were awarded to fund 30 block parties intended to bring together neighbors, local businesses, and community groups by flooding streets with people, music, and art. The goal is to help re-imagine local streets through a community-led design process. As the website states, “Block Party NYC is a good, old-fashioned block party and a chance to redesign your street — all in one day.” Check out the online calendar to see where the next party will happen.

The 141st AIANY Annual Meeting on June 3 presented the following honors and awards: Founders Award — Margaret Helfand, FAIA (posthumously), Rolf H. Ohlhausen, FAIA; Medal of Honor — Max Bond, FAIA; Award of Merit — Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan; Honorary Member: Commissioner Shaun Donovan; Andrew J. Thomas Award — Carlton Brown; Harry B. Rutkins Award: Kristen Richards; Public Architect Award — Joyce S. Lee, AIA; George S. Lewis Award — Richard Fitzgerald; Oculus Award — Fred Bernstein; Special Citations — Queens Botanical Garden; NYC Audubon Birdsafe Guidelines; Public Art Fund; Vice Presidential Citations — Public Outreach: AIANY Planning and Urban Design Committee, AIANY Transportation and Infrastructure Committee; Design Excellence: AIANY Cultural Facilities Committee… A special proclamation was awarded to Patricia Lancaster, FAIA, as the Commissioner of the NYC Department of Buildings for her six years of service to the architectural community and NYC citizens…

Five short-listed teams to create the Hudson Park and Boulevard and a streetscape plan for the Hudson Yards area on Manhattan’s West Side have been selected by the Hudson Yards Development Corporation, NYC Department of Parks and Recreation, NYC Department of Design and Construction, NYC Department of Transportation, and NYC Department of City Planning: Gustafson Guthrie Nichol Ltd. and Allied Works Architecture; Hargreaves Associates and TEN Arquitectos; Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates and Toshiko Mori Architect; West 8 and Mathews Nielsen; and Work architecture company and Balmori Associates. The park and boulevard will be part of an approximately 20-acre open space system in the Hudson Yards district, including 12 acres to be created by the Related Companies on the MTA Rail Yards to the south of Hudson Park.

NYC Hall of Fame inducts Architecture category winner Frederic Schwartz, FAIA, for “changing the course of post-9/11 planning in NYC”…2007 AMD Open Architecture Challenge announced winners including New Yorkers Hee-Yun Kim, Mark Mangapora, and Jason Roberts, Honorable Mention… Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners’ Campus Plan at Princeton University won an Honor Award, SCUP/AIA-CAE Excellence in Planning for an Established Campus… Perkins Eastman was honored with an International Achievement Award at the fourth annual World Trade Week Awards Breakfast…

Van Alen Institute announced seven recipients of the 2008-2009 New York Prize including Maya Lin, New York Prize Senior Fellowship, and six New York Prize Resident Fellowships: Irene Cheng and Brett Snyder (NYC); Elisa Fuksas and Alexander Josephson; Nataly Gattegno and Jason K. Johnson; Denise Hoffman-Brandt (NYC); Alexander Levi and Amanda Schachter (NYC); Gabi Schillig; and honorable mentions: Annie Barrett; Eduardo Coutinho and Patricio da Silva; and Stephanie Davidson and Georg Rafailidis…

Society for Environmental Graphic Design (SEGD) 2008 Design Award winners include (Honor Award) The New York Times Building Façade by Pentagram Design; (Merit Awards) Chroma Streams: Tide and Traffic by Leni Schwendinger Light Projects Ltd.; Detroit Institute of Arts Interactive Exhibits and Glory Days: New York Baseball 1947-1957 by Pentagram Design; W.L. Gore Capabilities Center by Carbone Smolan Agency; Good Housekeeping Institute Exhibit by C&G Partners; InterActiveCorp Video Wall by Trollbäck + Company; Reinventing the Globe: A Shakespearean Theater for the 21st Century by The Rockwell Group; and Yale University Art Gallery Signage by Open; (Jury Award) 34th Street Parking Regulation Sign System by 34th Street Partnership…

Margaret Sullivan, AIA, of Holzman Moss Architecture has been appointed acting executive director of openhousenewyork as it gears up for the sixth annual weekend; OHNY is searching for a new Executive Director… Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer has appointed David Helpern, FAIA, to Community Board 8, which covers the Upper East Side…

Flack + Kurtz, Inc. has promoted Patricia Leyden and Cheryl Ann Massie as vice presidents… William Fellows, AIA, is joining PKSB Architects as principal… Lucy Carter, Assoc. AIA, joins Ted Moudis Associates as Director of Marketing and Business Development…

Oculus 2008 Editorial Calendar
If you are an architect by training or see yourself as an astute observer of New York’s architectural and planning scene, note that OCULUS editors are looking for writers for the Winter issue. The theme:

Winter OCULUS: Competing for Space. Explore the growing competition between expansionist institutions on limited sites and the interests of adjacent communities, many in residential areas with moderate-income families.

If you’re interested, please contact OCULUS editor-in-chief Kristen Richards. with a brief outline and full contact information.

08.01.08 Winter 2008-09: Competing for Space

Launching 06.10.08: Call for Identification: Doors of Downtown
The Alliance for Downtown New York has created a photo essay featuring 19 doorways located throughout Lower Manhattan. The first person to correctly identify all of the doors, either by address or building name, will receive a $100 gift certificate to Century 21 Department Store, a $100 gift certificate to J&R Music World, a $100 gift certificate to Delmonico’s Restaurant, and free admission to the Sports Museum of America. The contest is open to all and no registration is required.

08.15.08 Call for Entries: IDA 2008 Design Competition
Architects and designers of interiors, fashion, products, and graphics are invited to enter work. Winners of IDA08 will be celebrated at a cocktail party and week-long reception in LA and NYC in December 2008. In addition, each of the winners will receive publication of his/her work in the 2008 International Design Awards art book to be distributed to museum bookstores nationwide; promotion to 100,000 design professionals and potential clients worldwide; and year-long coverage on the International Design Awards website. The “early bird’ deadline is 06.16 for a 10% discount on the registration fee.

10.20.08 Call for Entries: 2008 International Architecture Award for Diploma
Architecture students are encouraged to explore current cultural contexts. Prizes come in several categories. Any final year/diploma project presented from October 2007 to October 2008 at an architecture school officially recognized in the country of origin is eligible for submission. The jury will grant three prizes of €5,000 euros each. Hosted by ACXT Architects and IDOM Engineering, winners will also be eligible for an internship at an ACXT-IDOM studio.