Posts Tagged ‘Architecture’

Beams of Light

In artist Jun Ong’s luminous installations, rays of light pierce through concrete, stone, and steel. In his ongoing Stars series features LED strips that intersect with the human-built environment in monumental, illuminated geometries.

Important to note, the above piece is on a former Buddhist temple, hence the iconography.

Though aesthetically very different, I also see echoes in this work of Gordon Matta-Clark‘s geometric works like Conical Intersect, pictured below. Both combine existing architecture with larger geometric shapes.

Renovate Buildings, Don't Build From Scratch

Yesterday I attended a talk at The Canadian Centre for Architecture given by members of HouseEurope!, an organization of architects pushing for laws which will encourage the renovation/restoration/adaptation of buildings using pre-used materials where possible as opposed to demolition and rebuilding from scratch.

They make some bold claims about the benefits of renovation:

↗︎ Renovation saves homes by keeping prices stable.
↗︎ Renovation saves jobs by boosting local markets.
↗︎ Renovation saves energy by preserving what is there.
↗︎ Renovation saves history by valuing the existing.

The organization pushes for tax and zoning reform to encourage renovation over demolition. Something we could use over here as well.

Tactical Urbanism

The above is a photo I took of a formerly empty lot in Montréal, upon which has been built a thriving temporary space. It has the above gazebo, benches galore, picnic tables, and a free mini gold course. It isn’t built to last—instead it’s built to test out having a park in that spot. It’s taking unused space and giving it a use, commonly known as ‘tactical urbanism’.

Montréal, more than any other North American city I’ve seen, really uses its public space. Kids play. Old people walk and sit on the benches or play pétanque. Young people go at night to drink beer, hang out, and flirt. Our parks are full from morning to late at night. More and more streets are being closed temporarily to cars, and replaced with benches, terraces, games, and art installations. Lots or formerly empty spaces are being filled with spaces for all ages to gather. It’s a wonderful way to try things out, see what people use, and adapt for longer use later.

As this article in Arch Daily puts it:

The intent behind meanwhile spaces is to grow innovative ideas and empower the local community. Through interventions such as meeting areas, learning and training spaces, pop-up shops, eateries and exhibitions, urban areas and their communities witness positive transformation. The lease may last anywhere between a few days to a few years. The impact on localities may last up to a lifetime.

Open Sky House

I love this tiny house designed by Japanese artist Zajirogh and his wife. The house is centred around a courtyard which can open to the sky. Extra points for showing the house without being staged like in an architecture magazine.

Oil Tank Park

This is an old oil tank converted into a great looking public space.

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Jenny Holzer's Lightline

I make a point on this blog of never worrying about my posts being ‘timely’. I post whenever I find something, and don’t much care if something is 2 days or 2 decades old (I also don’t track visits or incoming links in any way, but that’s another story). Sometimes, though, I luck into something relatively current, like my visiting artist Jenny Holzer‘s Lightline show at the Guggenheim on its 4th day.

The main attraction was the immense video screen that sent scraps of words flowing up the helix of the Guggenheim’s inner hall, in a reworking of the artist’s own 1989 show in the same space.

Skywriting was done outside the show, though I don’t know if it was related to the words inside. The shape echoes the work, though I don’t know who Alejandro is, and couldn’t angle myself to read more than this small excerpt.

And lastly, a bit of a spoiler, the very final words at the top of the Guggenheim:

Isamu Noguchi's Expo '70 Fountain

I’m planning a solo trip to Nee York City this week, and on my list of activities is visiting the Brooklyn-based museum dedicated to Japanese-American artist Isamu Noguchi. As well as being an artist and designer (he designed this iconic coffee table) Noguchi was a frequent collaborator with Buckminster Fuller, who has appeared on this blog numerous times. Noguchi worked on the Dymaxion Car, which was Fuller’s somewhat ill-fated concept car which never saw wide production.

Pictured here is a fountain from Noguchi’s Expo 70′ installation. Photos via Noguchi’s archive.

The Suburbs are Subsidized

Parliament of Ghosts

From this New York Times profile of art in Ghana comes this photo of a beautiful space created by Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama, titled Parliament of Ghosts. What an incredible space.

The Whole Earth Catalog Goes Online

Stewart Brand’s classic Whole Earth Catalog, a sort of 70’s proto-blog in paper about building, the environment, crafts, and more, has made all their issues available online for free. This is something I’ve heard referenced in books and articles many, many times, but only now can I actually read them all.

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