A NEW FERRY TERMINAL FOR YOKOHAMA

Well timed with the opening of the FIFA World Cup in South Korea and Japan, the new Osanbashi International Passenger Terminal of Yokohama opened in June 2002. With its landscape-like curved roof, the building by the London firm of Foreign Office Architects is intended as an extension of a nearby municipal park. The building crouches in Yokohama Bay surrounded by a skyline that speaks of entertainment and economic power. Next week Mahoko Hoffman will show how the terminal building joins other landmarks in welcoming travellers from around the world.

BUILDING FROM NATURE

Architecture students at the Universitat Internacional de Catalunya in Barcelona are learning to use digital visualization tools as an avenue for exploring forms and structures found in nature. They use these forms to develop spaces that can be directly subjected to architectural, technical, and environmental analysis. And they apply rapid-prototyping technologies to translate their digital files into physical models. The model pictured, for example, translates a tornado and a rippling water surface into architectural elements. Next week Professor Dennis Dollens will show some student work and explain the rationale behind these explorations.

MONTEZUMA CASTLE

The historic Montezuma Castle in New Mexico, originally designed as a hotel by Burnham & Root in 1885, was recently rescued from ruin and renovated by the architecture/ engineering firm Einhorn Yaffee Prescott. After several incarnations for different purposes, and several cycles of abandonment and adaptive reuse, the newly restored building now serves as a college facility. EYP had to weigh various factors when choosing between accuracy of historical reproduction and accommodation to modern functionality and universal accessibility. Next week, we'll take a look at how they made those decisions and how the completed project reflects their choices.