Month: February 2013

As architects confront the new economic, environmental, and political realities of the 21st century, the essential practice of building design is called into question. How can one justify a conventional structure, composed of orthodox materials, when problems of natural resource management, overpopulation, and climate change plague the globe? Perhaps, as proposed by David Benjamin, Assoc. AIA, one can use architecture to address a number of these concerns rather than exacerbate them. Continue reading “Designing at the Vanguard of Technological Innovation”

The contribution of school facilities to the quality of education is difficult to determine, not only because so many other variables affect a school’s performance (faculty and parental input, students’ varying backgrounds, general societal change), but because education itself resists easily communicable metrics. As the animated debate at this daylong symposium suggested, continual improvement in the design of buildings, classrooms, and equipment remains a high priority for architects, educators, and the officials of extracurricular institutions. Continue reading “Active Spaces for Digital Natives: Edgeless School Symposium”

Gisue and Mojgan Hariri have collaborated for nearly all of their lives. Born in Iran, the two sisters officially founded their architectural practice, Hariri & Hariri, in New York City in 1986. Their work, which often features faceted forms, ranges in scale from master plans to buildings and interiors, down to furniture and product design. Gisue Hariri recently presented a selection of her firm’s work at the Center for Architecture as part of the annual Oberfield Lecture series, named in honor of the late Gilbert R. Oberfield, AIA, a Gensler partner and founder of the AIANY Interiors Committee. Many of Gil’s family, friends and colleagues were in attendance. Continue reading “The Multi-Faceted Work of Hariri & Hariri”

David Baker enjoys rising to the challenge of revitalizing tough and gritty neighborhoods in decline. Many of his projects seize upon the potential in such situations, often serving as catalysts for further development and refurbishing of neighboring buildings. New York Times architecture critic Michael Kimmelman has characterized this as the multiplier effect of good design, which incidentally contributes to rising real estate prices in the area. Continue reading “The Multiplier Effect of Good Design”