ESD Roundup 29th October 2009

‘Design and Government’ Calls for German Architects to Submit their Projects

from Bustler.net News by Vanilla Hustler

[edit]

EXPO pavilion, 2000, Location: Hannover, Germany, Client: Foundation Holland World Fairs, Design: MVRDV

Salad Origin Now Traceable With New Kroger Greens

from Slashfood by Sarah LeTrent
traceable salad greens at kroger

The Kroger Co.

Ever wondered where that lettuce leaf you’re eating was grown?

Kroger says it’s become the first grocery chain to employ traceability technology on its salads, so consumers can see exactly where its packaged Fresh Selections salad greens come from.

For its pre-washed, ready-to-serve salads, Kroger is using HarvestMark technology — a 16-digit tracking code on packaging that consumers can plug into HarvestMark’s Web site to trace the greens back to the source, including the region where the produce was grown and the date it was packed. It’s part of the grocer’s new “Quality You Can Trace” program.

Continue reading Salad Origin Now Traceable With New Kroger Greens

BIG Wins Competition for the World Village of Women Sports in Malmø

from Bustler.net News by Vanilla Hustler

Danish architects BIG, in collaboration with British structural and civil engineering firm AKT, Swedish consultantTyréns and German climate engineers Transsolar have just been awarded first place in a design competition in Malmø, Sweden for a 100,000 m2 first of its kind sports facility.

Click above image to enlarge
Competition-winning design for the World Village of Women Sports in Malmø, Sweden by BIG, in collaboration with AKT, Tyréns and Transsolar

The World Village of Women Sports seeks to create a natural gathering place for the research, education and training in all areas connected to the development of women’s sports. Located in the center of Malmø, the 100,000 m2 facility will create a regional landmark and new attraction for the area. The winning design was chosen among five submissions by a jury, comprised of the founder and main financier of the World Village of Women Sports, Kent Widding Persson, the co-founder and entrepreneur Mårten Hedlund, City of Malmø Architect,Ingemar Gråhamn and Architects Mats Jacobson and Cecilia Hansson together with representatives from the City of Malmø.

Click above image to enlarge
Rendering Close-up

Obama $US8b Plan To Modernise The US Power Grid

from Gizmodo Australia by Jesus Diaz

Oh, Sr. Presidente, you look so goooood in the middle of the largest photovoltaic farm in the country — the 180-acre DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy centre in Tampa, Florida. Maybe that’s why you want to put solar panels everywhere. (more…)

Tarzan’s Making His Reservations At This Frame Hotel

from Gizmodo Australia by Rosa Golijan

Finding a room service guy who doesn’t even blink if you’re running around in a loin cloth (or less) shouldn’t be tough in this Dubai hotel. The place already almost looks like a jungle on the inside. (more…)

Lila-Lou’s Ankida Yacht Will Make You Long For A Journey

from Gizmodo Australia

I don’t even want to imagine what the price tag for Lila-Lou’s finely-tuned Ankida yacht will be. I just want to lay on the deck and watch the wind hit those optimally positioned sails as I drift around the world. (more…)

peddle thorp architects: fluid – amphibian pavilion

from Designboom – Weblog

‘fluid’ – the amphibian pavilion

peddle thorpe architects‘(PTA) submission for the thematic pavilion of the world expo 2012
in yeosu, korea is resolved as a vessel – a floating exhibition space that can be sailed to other cities.
it represents an evolution of architecture – a futuristic adaptable living building that can adjust to
the unknowable future, encouraging multidisciplinary problem solving through sustainable solutions.

the overall concept presents a schematic design which is alive, adaptive and reactive
to its oceanic environments. anchored to the coastline as if a living organism, rising and falling
with the tides, the pavilion illustrates the bond and interdependence of the ocean with its
coastal eco system. the architectural form draws on the contours and fluidity of oceanic organisms,
presenting a new paradigm of living architecture.

yeosu is an emerging city, and this piece of architecture can be seen as the vessel to carry
the metaphor of change like an ark to the new world, sending a positive message to future generations,
and offering a platform for people to collaborate and create. the idea is that sustainability
and conservation would run through the design approach. with its open interior,
the pavilion could continued use of the pavilion with the ability to host a range of events even
after the world expo has finished. the design which was developed by antoine damery for PTA,
will promote dialogue and encourage collaboration between asia pacific countries about the
importance of the preservation of oceans and ecosystems.

Beijing Expansion Looks Like High Tech Eden

from Gizmodo Australia by Jesus Diaz

They may have some of the dirtiest city skies in the planet, but at least the Chinese authorities are doing some nice and beautiful urban planning for the future of Beijing. (more…)

nabito architects: taipei pop music center proposal

from Designboom – Weblog

taipei pop music center proposal by taipei pop music center
image courtesy nabito architects

international firm nabito architects have sent in images of their proposal for
the taipei pop music center proposal.

‘by consuming pop music, people want to express who they are, to which group they
belong and what their identity is.’

their design is based on a horizontal slab that consists of a node at the center.

the middle of the taipei pop music center
image courtesy nabito architects

taipei pop music center at night
image courtesy nabito architects

taipei pop music center interior
image courtesy nabito architects

image courtesy nabito architects

the facade is divided into sections of approximately 1m wide by means of vertical steel
pillars. within these areas LED panels are managed by a central PC that can change
the building aspect according to needs (entertainment, advertising, culture, news and events).

image courtesy nabito architects

photovoltaic system integrated into a glass curtain wall. the building performs as
a self sufficient organic system, harvesting solar energy by day and using it to illuminate
the screen on northern facade after drak, mirroring a day’s climate cycle.

a famous example of this technology is the media wall (beijing) with its first venue
dedicated to digital media art.

it offers the most radical example of sustainable technology applied to an entire building’s
envelope to date.

the facade is constituted by glass panels that integrate photovoltaic cells.
each panel has a specific density.

longitudinal section
image courtesy nabito architects

longitudinal section
image courtesy nabito architects

cross sectional view
image courtesy nabito architects

floor plan
image courtesy nabito architects

Winners Announced for the Lavender Lake Art Factory Competition

from Bustler.net News by Vanilla Hustler

The winning designs of the suckerPUNCH-curated Lavender Lake Art Factory competition have recently been announced. The international competition asked architects to submit concepts for an ‘art factory’ at the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, New York that will contain private/shared art studios, a storefront gallery/bar, analog/digital shops, and live/work spaces for rotating artists in residence. Both the interior and exterior realizations of the project should rethink the white boxes of modern art work and display spaces and conceive a sequence of spaces that address the diversity of contemporary art and design at multiple scales.

The jury comprised Abigail Coover (Hume Coover Studio, suckerPUNCH), Nathan Hume (Hume Coover Studio, suckerPUNCH), Mike Szivos (SOFTlab), Jose Gonzalez (SOFTlab), Armand Graham (Asymptote), Serra Kiziltan (Gage Clemenceau Architects), and Philip Mana (Studio Daniel Libeskind).

And these are the winning designs:

1st Place: “Water Fields”
Pablo Esteban Zamorano & Marcos Cardenas (Santiago de Chile, Chile)

Click above image to enlarge
Pablo Esteban Zamorano & Marcos Cardenas

An art factory, an open public space, a beach, a picnic field, a crop garden, a space for the community and for culture, a land open to the water, the city and the arts. The border condition (water-land) of this site made us think about how these limits could react with each other to create something new. An hybrid space product of a simple movement: the inundation of the site, the analysis of a close up view of the canal and the projection of that into the site as a geometry, to translate what used to be water into land but now as a construction of the memory of the canal. The Gowanus Canal is now a new public space for the city that brings the canal back to the people.

2nd Place: “Lavender Lake Art Factory”
David Jaubert (Brooklyn, New York)

Click above image to enlarge
David Jaubert

Given the disparate relationship between the factory typology and public place exemplified by the surrounding context, the project seeks to explore the tension between the two as an impetus for a potential hybrid type. By shifting the ground plane on the site, the project’s parti allows for the multiplicity of the datum rather than it’s displacement, resulting in a site condition that aims to extend the synthesis between the public and private domain.

3rd Place: “Lavender Lake Art Factory”
Chiara Gambassi & Jan Kudlicka (Bucine, Italy)

Click above image to enlarge
Chiara Gambassi & Jan Kudlicka

What or who influenced this project: Typical rude ambience of Brooklyn, train bridge on one side and the river on the other side. The urbanistic juxtaposition of the industry in the east and the living area in the west. Missing of the green places. So we tried to make a project which has got some similar story with the surroundings but with using new materials. Create the place with the symbiosis between the park/building.

Honorable Mention: “HydroCarbon Architecture”
Cesare Griffa, Davide Guerra + Federico Rizzo/r&d Architecture (Turin, Italy)

Click above image to enlarge
Cesare Griffa, Davide Guerra + Federico Rizzo/r&d Architecture

The Gowanus site is A toxic body in which the degeneration of the space is a direct consequence of the industrial and criminal activities that took place here over time. The environmental clean up is a necessity. There is an hygienic problem that needs to be addressed, and social potential that need to be unveiled. A mere sterilization of the site is not enough, there is a need of oxygen to sustain life. The appearance of a Gowanus social movement can be the engine of renovation. Such a movement requires a specific space that embed also the dark and degenerated aspects of the area within an hygienic project.

Honorable Mention: “YMCArt Center on the Gowanus”
Vanessa Keith/Studioteka Design (Brooklyn, New York)

Click above image to enlarge
Vanessa Keith/Studioteka Design

Our project emphasizes public space for the community, a YMCA with a twist: art spaces + community spaces + research spaces. The main building, located to the north along fifth street, combines space for art with an environmental research and remediation program, including offices and research labs, which makes the project economically sustainable. We were intrigued by the concept of industrial symbiosis and the notion that the site’s industrial legacy could be transformed into an amenity for local residents. By incorporating site remediation within the program and structure, the project serves as a demonstration of a new locally focused strategy.

Images: suckerPUNCH

Super Colossal Wins Gold Coast Cultural and Civic Precinct Master Plan Competition

from Bustler.net News by Vanilla Hustler

Our friends at Australian architecture and design studio Super Colossal have just been named winners in the Gold Coast Cultural and Civic Precinct Master Plan Competition.

Further commendations have been awarded to the entries by Gall & Medek Architects with the Queensland College of Art, GU, Masters of Design Futures program; as well as DC8 studio; LVO’ Architecture Pty Ltd; and Matt Drysdale.

Click above image to enlarge
First Prize in the Gold Coast Cultural and Civic Precinct Master Plan Competition for Super Colossal

The Gold Coast is Australia’s sixth largest city and one of the fastest growing regions in our country. The city’s population is around 500,000 and, if as forecast, it continues to grow by 13,000 to 16,000 annually, it will be home to 900,000 residents by 2030. The 16.5 hectare site is located at 135 Bundall Road and is bordered on three sides by rivers and canals. Formerly a simple rural cane farm, the site is now at the heart of a growing city with views across the skyline of Surfers Paradise, Main Beach and Broadbeach.

The competition sought to generate creative new visions and ideas for the future of this key site and its facilities, stimulate community discussion about the future of the Gold Coast Cultural and Civic Precinct, as well as identify specific design features/strategies to be incorporated in the future development of the site.

Electric Ultracapacitor Buses Becoming More Feasible

from Green Options by Christopher DeMorro

One thing many Americans have been loathe to accept is public transportation. Perhaps it is a feeling embodied in the quote attributed to Homer Simpson that “public transportation is for jerks and lesbians.” Or maybe it’s the fact that America is huge and far too spread out to make public transportation viable for many commuters. Yet even so, public transportation remains one of the smartest choices for much of the US, and, with the green revolution must come greater acceptance of it.

And, when you’re talking public transit, buses make up one of the most important parts, but they are gas guzzlers. So naturally, weening these behemoths off of petrol is a high priority for many city governments. Towards this end, China and Sinautec have been testing a fleet of electric buses equipped with ultracapacitors for quick recharging and zero emissions… and so far it works.

Of course, there is a catch.

Solar Traffic Light offers promise of green energy cities

from DVICE by Adario Strange

By now we’ve all seen our fair share of green energy cars and devices, but there remains a dearth of public works-centric green tech innovations. Helping to fill the void of cool green-tech-meets-public-works design ideas, Taiwanese designers Cheng-Tsung Feng, Yao-Chieh Lin and Bo-Jin Wang created this solar-powered traffic light that easily could have emerged from the labs at Cupertino.

The traffic light uses a discolor LED that allows the red, yellow and green signals to all occupy one space rather than the traditional three-tiered design we have on today’s streets. The trio won this year’s international Lite-On Award (Silver Level) for their striking design which hopefully will inspire cities around the world to adopt this kind of green-centric infrastructure in the near future.

Via Yanko Design

mikou design studio: bobigny school complex, france

from Designboom – Weblog

the bobigny school complex, france by mikou studio
image courtesy mikou studio

french firm mikou design studio were awarded first prize for the design of
the bobigny school complex, france.

the overall project is based on a volumetric spiral consisting of 3 levels.
covered with a grassroof the building includes a preschool and primary school,
recreation centre, central kitchen, toy library, housing service and parking.

image courtesy mikou studio

architect: mikou design studio
client: city of bobigny
gross external area: 5300m2
budget: 9 million euro
programme: preschool and primary school, recreation centre,
central kitchen, toy library, housing services, parking
date: 2009 design competition entry winner

Underwater Kite Harnesses Ocean Energy

from Green Options by Susan Kraemer

A completely new concept of underwater wave energy using a simple 7 ton kite turbine design has been developed by Minesto; which is a spinoff from the Swedish military and aircraft design firm Saab. The Deep Green underwater turbine captures the power of the ocean just like a kite in wind.

The system could generate 18 terawatthours of energy annually, enough to provide nearly 4 million British households with reliably green electricity every year. UK households now use about a third of what average US households use in energy.

Australia Gets Wave Power Inspired by Oil Rig

from Green Options by Susan Kraemer

Oceanlinx; another Australian wave power company that uses the floating oil rig as the model for its wave power began installation this month of its last test before grid-connecting a 2.5 MW unit off the coast of Port Kembla, near Sydney.

It should be sending power to the Australian grid early next year. Unusually, for wave power concepts, this converts the energy of ocean swells under the platform into air pressure which turns a wind turbine. The company’s previous demo in 2007 proved it works.

UPI-2M: biooctanic

from Designboom – Weblog

‘biooctanic’ by UPI-2M
image courtesy UPI-2M

croatian architectural firm UPI-2M have designed ‘biooctanic’ a series of crop production
towers used for the production of bio fuel and city air recuperation.

the idea was to place the towers on positions of existing petrol stations in cities. their
research led them to the conclusion that algae and bamboo would give best production
results; max. amount of bio-fuels per unit of surface (or spatial unit), also considering
other factors, like cost of technologies required for cultivation and processing, growth rate,
annual input-to-yield ratio, etc.

they envisioned this system and applied it to their immediate environment, cities in croatia,
however it is applicable to any urban area in the world. by applying the bio towers we would
reduce the amount of valuable agricultural land used for production of bio-fuel plants, reduce transportation costs and related air pollution. this kind of crop production also has advantages
over farming in open spaces, because it’s not weather-dependant, and you can create artificial
conditions which enhance the plant growth (conditions that can’t be achieved in the natural
environment). the visual identity of the towers is a symbol and result of their function.
beside the benefits of bio-fuel and oxygen production, they consider the towers architectural
appearance as an added value primarily to the conscience of the city inhabitants.

image courtesy UPI-2M

The Augmented Environment