Willard Homewood is one of the most storied neighborhoods in North Minneapolis. Known for its grand early 20th century homes, the area was the setting for violent race riots in 1967. More recently, it has become a haven for artists and their families, with one 16-square block now called the Artists’ Core. Photo courtesy City of Minneapolis Architects are invited to submit residential designs for a vacant lot in North Minneapolis. Despite the renewal, Willard Homewood has been hit hard by widespread foreclosures over the years. Some houses have been torn down; others are boarded up. “You have these terrific
An exhibition that presents “soft” infrastructure solutions to rising sea levels around New York opens today at the Museum of Modern Art. Image courtesy Architecture Research Office and dlandstudio Click on the slide show icon to see additional photos. Related Links: Design Teams Propose Solutions for 'Rising Currents' AIA Awards Latrobe Prize to Flood Research Rising Currents: Projects for New York’s Waterfront features drawings and models conceived by five multidisciplinary teams, led by designers from Architecture Research Office (ARO), LTL Architects, Matthew Baird Architect, nARCHITECTS, and SCAPE Studio. The teams produced their schemes from November to January, during an 8-week
Photo courtesy SOM Bruce Graham, FAIA The most visible legacies of Bruce Graham, FAIA, are the Sears (now Willis) Tower and the John Hancock Center, the iconic skyscrapers that bracket Chicago’s skyline like enormous parentheses. But evidence of Graham’s influence can be found in smaller, much-admired Modernist landmarks, such as Chicago’s glistening Inland Steel Building; in the outcome of visionary urban plans, in the tradition of Daniel Burnham, that reshaped Chicago’s celebrated lakefront; and in the hard-driving character of the firm, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, on which he stamped on indelible imprint. Invariably described as tough and gruff, an architect
Photo ' John Vincenti Click on the slide show icon to see additional photos. Related Links: Ennis House for Sale Rare Louis Kahn House on the Market Ten months after it was listed for $15 million, the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Ennis House is still for sale. In February, the price was dropped to $10.5 million. Built in 1924 for Charles and Mabel Ennis on a hilltop in Los Angeles, the 6,000-square-foot Ennis House is the largest of Wright’s four textile-block-style dwellings. The house, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, has been a popular location for movies,
The International Code Council and the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers Inc. have merged their efforts, rather than compete, to develop the nation’s first “green” model code for commercial buildings. The model code, released on March 15, is open for public comment through May 14 but now is available to jurisdictions. Version 2.0, based on public input, will be released by Nov. 3. The goal is to develop an adoptable and enforceable model code. “Bringing together the code expertise of ICC with the technical expertise of ASHRAE to create a comprehensive green building code will accelerate our
A film legend who’s taken on D-Day, slave revolts, and the Holocaust is aiming his cameras at the site of a solemn modern-day event. Steven Spielberg is serving as executive producer of Rebuilding Ground Zero, a six-part television documentary about the construction efforts at the former World Trade Center. The show, which began shooting in mid-February in Lower Manhattan, is set to air on the Science Channel in fall 2011, in time for the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Photo ' Joe Woolhead Related Links: A Tale of Two Building Efforts at Ground Zero Little Progress After Seven
Frank Williams, FAIA TOP: Trump Palace (1992); ABOVE: 515 Park Avenue (2000) Usually “famous” accompanies “successful” when we talk about architects with a substantial body of work in their portfolios. Frank Williams, FAIA, who died from esophageal cancer February 25, in New York City, was definitely successful. At 73, he could claim credit as the lead architect or the collaborating one for at least 20 high-rises in New York City. In Moscow, his 70-story Mercury City tower is nearing completion, while towers in Dubai, Seoul, are in the works. Yet Williams was hardly a household name. Fame—even notoriety—eluded the architect
Security Issues Central to Design Scheme As part of its ongoing effort to fortify and modernize embassies worldwide, the U.S. State Department unveiled plans for its highest-profile project yet, awarding the New London Embassy to KieranTimberlake on February 23. With a concept that seeks to blend iconic design with the State Department’s demand for a highly secure and sustainable facility, the firm has earned equal parts praise from its client and derision from some critics. At a cost of $1 billion, according to The Times of London, the 500,000-square-foot facility would be the most expensive embassy ever built. Ground breaking
The designer, thinker, and IDEO founder takes on an entirely new role as director of the Cooper-Hewitt. Photo Courtesy of IDEO / Nicolas Zurcher Bill Moggridge If you’re reading this on a laptop, take a second to admire Bill Moggridge’s work. His design for the GRiD Compass—a 1979 personal computer that enclosed a keyboard and screen in a clamshell-like, fold-open case for the first time—set the mold for the contemporary machine in front of you. U.K.-born Moggridge, 66, founded his first design firm in 1969, and over the next two decades the practice created innovative forms for many high-tech products.
While some areas of the economy are experiencing an upswing, architects likely won’t see a boost until next year. For architects standing vigil for a sign that the Great Recession might be easing in 2010, macroeconomic conditions indicate it may be so, but that they must be patient. U.S. real GDP rose 5.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009, and the unemployment rate declined to 9.7 percent in January. But despite such positive signs, economists who follow patterns in construction predict that the architecture industry might not see a boost until 2011. Why? Tight credit, high unemployment, drastic decreases
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