Thursday, May 31, 2001

Christophe Cornubert's PUSH LA is featured in the new issue of Architectural Record.

The above image from Push LA's "Gucci Urbanism" project.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/31/2001 04:46:58 PM

Poaching from archinect.com again, here's a web site that purports to be a documentary tribute to the first built works of the so-called "blobmeisters": digital | real What we are left wondering is... just because you can design a blob, why would you want to? More importantly, just why would you want to build one? The answer escapes us. The fact that it's 2001, not 1996 makes everything even more confusing. Oh well, to each his own.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/31/2001 04:41:18 PM

Wednesday, May 30, 2001

It's still a big secret but Form Zero Architectural Books is open again, next door to SCI_Arc.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/30/2001 09:19:24 PM

A New York Times article reports that it's no longer just the major nodes of the global city that actively recruit transnational migrants. Left behind second-tier cities such as Pittsburgh are trying to deal with declining populations by encouraging immigrants to settle there. See To Fill in Gaps, Shrinking Cities Seek a New Wave of Foreigners
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/30/2001 08:38:19 PM

SCI_Arc undergraduate director Gary Paige led a tour of the school's future home today. He explained that work is going well and we are still on target for an August 6 completion.

Workmen pouring one of five sheer walls that will support the building in case of earthquake.

A view of the other side of the wall.The left side is open, ensuring that it will be possible to see quite a distance within the building. Relentlessness is preserved, as much as possible. Note the deep excavations for the sheer wall.

Finally, this is the future library space on the second floor. Fittingly, it'll be the nicest space in the building. The library will end roughly where the stairs (intrusion on the left) are and administrative offices will occupy the rest of the floor. Maybe students will finally begin to get just why I am still interested in Rossi? For more on the tour and on the construction process, visit John Southern's website.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/30/2001 05:28:29 PM

Tuesday, May 29, 2001

The SCI_Arc tent is finally gone, leaving only a white stain on the ground as evidence of its presence.
The trailers remain but define the absence rather than resist it.The scene was eerie, as if a UFO had landed and abducted the school. A few students milled around. Then the ice cream man came.

posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/29/2001 06:20:56 PM

Sunday, May 27, 2001

During boom periods, architects and urbanists inevitably focus on the city. During the inevitable lulls and recessions, attention again shifts to the countryside. If the early 90's were marked by the architecture community's utter ignorance of the vast changes in the contemporary city, the early 00's are marked by ignorance of the changes in the hinterlands. To get you started on what's out there, check out this Sunday's New York Times article
As Others Abandon Plains, Indians and Bison Come Back
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/27/2001 12:04:11 AM

Wednesday, May 23, 2001

Will the Diller + Scofidio Blur project work? See what the New York Times has to say in Diller +Scofidio: Architects Building Castles in the Clouds
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/23/2001 10:09:34 AM

Friday, May 18, 2001

The Concord, a Morris Lapidus hotel in the Catskills faces the wrecker's ball. See the New York Times article Resort Is to Rise on Concord Site but Without the Concord Name.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/18/2001 08:14:36 AM

Wednesday, May 16, 2001

Greg Ercolano's cryptically titled Friends Of Vast Industrial Concrete Kafkaesque Structures (FOVICKS) page is actually a closely detailed photo essay on the so-called L.A. River. In a refreshing change, Ercolano likes it the way it is. The photo essay should explain why.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/16/2001 10:12:28 PM

Monday, May 14, 2001

Leave Los Angeles for a week and the world falls apart. Or so it might seem. Archlog notes an LA Times article with the following news:

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art has selected five architects who will compete for the commission to design an extensive $200-million renovation and expansion that will include a new contemporary art structure and possibly the razing of the Ahmanson Building. The five finalists include Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas, Berlin-based Daniel Libeskind, Jean Nouvel of Paris, New York's Steven Holl and Thom Mayne of Los Angeles.

Naturally, we're strongly in favor of Koolhaas or Nouvel. Note to the architects: please don't tear down the Ahmanson - it's the best building there. And please don't ruin Miracle Mile. Remember what your mother told you: if you can't say anything, it's best to keep quiet.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/14/2001 07:52:44 AM

Saturday, May 12, 2001

A New York Times article describes the Peculiar Ruins of the New Economy.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/12/2001 03:13:18 PM

Kazys.net hasn't been updated much lately because I've been in Florida. If you're interested in where Kazys is having dinner tonight, check out the Mai-Kai Restaurant in Fort Lauderdale.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/12/2001 02:49:53 PM

Thursday, May 03, 2001

Steven Holl's victory in the Cornell Architecture building competition is official. I'm still looking for images of the entries themselves.
Oh, Form Zero should be re-opening in a matter of days.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/3/2001 08:55:27 AM

The New York Times has an article entitled Outlaw Tourists in the Urban Underbelly on the growing interest in exploring the ruins of the global city.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/3/2001 12:50:28 AM

Wednesday, May 02, 2001

Finger Lakes Formalism, indeed. archlog: the weblog of architecture reports that Steven Holl has won the competition to design the new Cornell University School of Architecture, beating out Tod Williams/Billie Tsien and Peter Zumthor. Although we haven't seen the competition entries, having seen Holl's rather meagre Science Center at Cranbrook, which stands in contrast to the far superior Williams/Tsien poolhouse there and firmly believing that Zumthor's Swiss neo-Brutalism would have been perfect for the gorge-side site, well, we can only hope for the best.
posted by Kazys Varnelis 5/2/2001 08:16:26 PM