Like last semester, here’s a description of the four classes I have this Spring in the Urban Design Program (PDF link) at City College (part of CUNY). The department is headed by Michael Sorkin and is two semesters in length. Urban Design Studio This semester’s studio is a continuation of the Fall studio, with the exception that […]

(Roma, Via Portuense, Corviale, image by Google Earth) The Corviale building is another member of the “longest buildings” family: A linear city (built between 1972 and 1982) - containing about 1200 flats on 10 floors, with 21 entrances and 74 lifts – designed by Mario Fiorentino. Organized as two linear buildings placed back-to-back along a series […]

The longest building in Europe, the in 1936 erected “KdF seaside resort” in Prora, by Clemens Klotz, constructed by the Nazi regime. Length: 4,5 km. Size and the abuse of Architecture. See the website of the documentation centre. Image from: STIFTUNG NEUE KULTUR Projektgruppe Prora. Published by ChristophContinue reading: Longest Building.

Images by Autodesk. Autodesk makes CAD workers beleive they’ve again aged: releases always appear a year in the future - 2007 in 2006, and 2008 in 2007! Anyway - do you really use AutoCAD 2006’s new features like “Dynamic Blocks”? Or maybe the “Tool Palettes” of version 2004? At least the user interfaces is getting more […]

When the Iron Curtain parted in 1989 all the colossal Soviet-era statues have been disposed. All? Well, not really – some have survived in a kind of reserve: the Statue Park on the outskirts of Budapest, Hungary (Szoborpark). Lenin, Marx and Engels, Dimitrov, Ostapenko and many more have found their last home in a strange, stage-like […]

The IQ light is a self assembly light system made of interlocking quadrilaterals: It’s a design by Holger Storm from Denmark (winning the Danish Design Award 2001). I have seen it in several shops at a price of about 60-70 Euros. You can save money and make it yourself with this instruction by dan - […]

Published by ChristophContinue reading: Off to Hungary.

Sheik Saud and Rakeen of Ras Al-Khaimah has appointed Snøhetta the prestigious task of creating an iconic gateway building for the new capital city of Ras Al-Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates. The approx. 300,000 m2 complex will contain a Congress Center, Exhibition Halls, Shopping Center, 5+ Star Hotel, 5 Star Hotel, and a 4 Star […]

Photos by Adam Mørk The Muziekgebouw, by 3XN, has won the Dutch Building Award 2006. It was one of 3XN’s first international projects. The Music Building was opened summer 2005. Published by ChristophContinue reading: Nederlandse Bouwprijs 2006 - Dutch Building Award 2006.

NL architects win the referendum of the Groninger Forum. One quarter of the votes went to NL’s design (from 21.565 total votes). The Peoples and the ‘professionals’ choice was the same (as Judith van Praag wrotes in her comment). What a great design! Congratulations. Published by ChristophContinue reading: And the Winner is: NL Architects.

Zaha Hadid is designing the new cablecar stations of the Hungerburg- and Nordketten cablecar lines, in Innsbruck, Autria. It’s the second commission after the bergisel ski jump built in 2002. Published by ChristophContinue reading: Zaha Hadid in the Alps.

I’ve added a new blog to the sidebar: inhabitat Inhabitat.com is a weblog devoted to the future of design, tracking the innovations in technology, practices and materials that are pushing architecture and home design towards a smarter and more sustainable future. go to: http://inhabitat.com Published by ChristophContinue reading: Green Design is Good Design - Good Design is Green […]

Studying at the University of Applied Arts Vienna (Universität für Angewandte Kunst Wien) is quite low priced compared to the fees of the AA School in London: about 363 Euro for half a year (double prize if you aren’t an EU citizens). At the “Angewandte” students can choose between Studio Zaha Hadid, Studio Greg […]

Karlsplatz, Vienna, installation by Ken Lum 14 mirrored panels are fixed to the walls of the passageway, each with a piece of writing. LED displays are mounted under these headlines showing statistical data - numbers that are constantly changing. Passing people see themselves mirrored in the panels. The work - titled Pi, by Ken Lum - is […]

Three projects in different regions, climates and cultural backgrounds show surprisingly strong similarities: High density housing projects which provide private outdoor space for each flat. At least in Europe it’s a response to the growing problem of urban sprawls. How attract people going back to the city centres if the demands of ground ownership […]

The Berlin office Heinle, Wischer und Partner wins the competition for the documentation and visitors’ center. Between 1933 and 1945, the central institutions responsible for the repressive and criminal policies of National Socialism were located on the terrain of the Topography of Terror, situated between Prinz-Albrecht-Strasse (today Niederkirchnerstrasse), Wilhelmstrasse and Anhalter Published by ChristophContinue reading: Topography of […]

Image: Territory size shows the proportion of all cars in the world that are found there. [Das Bild der Erde hängt von der Perspektive des Betrachters ab. Karten und Statistiken zu Wirtschaft und Demographie offenbaren davon dagegen meist wenig.] The (cartographic) image of the world depends on people’s view and the location. Typical maps hardly […]

The Atlantic Wall - Linear Museum Between 1942 and 1944 the German military erected a gigantic defensive wall along the Atlantic coast, running from France to Norway: more than 12.000 concrete bunkers were built. Surprisingly the bunker architecture reveals an aesthetics hardly to deny. Bunker Archaeology, by Paul Virilio Paul Virilio examined already 1975 the German bunkers from […]

MVRDV does a lot and they show it - still fresh and self-confident. You will find no beauties in the book but great smart designs and experiments. Luckily they can do that! But how did anArchitecture came into the book? Shortly before MVRDV’s project for the Serpentine gallery ‘failed’ anArchitecture wrote that the hill has been […]

House attack, view from the court of the MuseumsQuarter, Vienna. House attack, installed on MUMOK’s external façade. For Wurm, [..], anything can become sculpture: actions, written or drawn instructions, or even a thought. His art often treats elementary as well as banal life needs and actions, as well as their perversion, as can be expressed in physical […]

Hans-Peter Feldmann: David, 2006. Copyright: VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2006 und Hans-Peter Feldmann A 6-metre-tall pink replication of Michelangelo’s David by Hans-Peter Feldmann acts as a “landmark” for the exhibition “The Eighth Square” in front of the Museum Ludwig, located in Cologne. With its exhibition “The Eighth Square”, Museum Ludwig will be the first major art institution in Germany […]

Since the 90s, Space Invaders mosaic images by a French anonymous artist have spread throughout more than 30 cities over 5 continents. The ceramic tiles images have now reached Vienna - on 52 spots! The artist’s philosophy is that he is “leaving a gift to the city” - accordingly, each of his mosaics is exactly […]

Engel House, architect: Rechter Zeev Tel Aviv has the largest concentration in the world of buildings built in the “Bauhaus-Style”. This style was brought to Tel Aviv in the 1930’s by European graduates, escaping from the Nazi-terror. Since 2003 the White City of Tel Aviv has the World Heritage status. There are over 1500 International Style buildings […]

Whether it’s Norman Foster, Zaha Hadid, SOM or OMA - successful architectural practices are building in Dubai: What kind of architect’s dream these projects fulfil? Certainly, they leave a mark on the planet, at least reminiscence to the global ¥E$. Download anarchitecture’s Google Earth link (if the link doesn’t work save the […]

In most architectural offices the bosses’ sketches are holy. The design process follows one simple rule: The brilliant sketch. Employees do the fine adjustments and the civil engineering. If everything works well, primary sketch and building fit together. Does this method lead to innovative design? Lately, I came across IDEO. The company has a simple […]

According to BD World architecture’s January issue Nikken Sekkei is the world largest architectural practice. Gensler comes in second, HOK third, Aedas fourth and SOM fifth. Honestly, these practices are largely unknown in continental Europe! Only a few offices make good money with architecture - big corporate architects hardly exist: in last years analysis of the […]

A couple weeks ago Gridskipper asked me to contribute on a post about the ugliest buildings in New York City. The first building that popped into my head was Norman Foster’s Hearst Tower, a building praised by many architects and critics. In the past I’ve liked Foster’s buildings a lot, though for me he really […]

Brise by digdoi. Detail of the Biennal Pavillion in São Paulo, Brazil by Oscar Niemeyer. To contribute your Flickr images for consideration, just: :: Join and add photos to the archidose pool, and/or :: Tag your photos archidose Published by JohnContinue reading: Today’s archidose #66

Dutch housing projects are eminently respectable - it’s easy to find good examples like the high density patio-housing built at Borneo and Sporenburg (Amsterdam) or the housing developments 1 and 2 in Groningen by S333 (actually an implementation of the Europan 3 completions). It’s a demonstration of contemporary architecture paying attention to the peoples’ needs. Gated […]

walking into SOMA by photograph er?. The San Francisco Federal Building by Morphosis. See more photos and a review by John King on the soon-to-open government high-rise. To contribute your Flickr images for consideration, just: :: Join and add photos to the archidose pool, and/or :: Tag your photos archidose Published by JohnContinue reading: Today’s archidose #67