CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM - SAFDIE IN ARKANSAS For those familiar with the remote and quiet beauty of the Ozarks of Northwest Arkansas, the sudden appearance of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville seems somewhat miraculous. — Published 2012.0201
	WYLY THEATRE BY REX AND OMA The first thing that strikes a visitor to the new Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre in Dallas, Texas, is that the building doesn't look like a theater at all. It's a basic box elongated upward. The typical theater configuration, with an auditorium surrounded by a public lobby and back-of-house support spaces, has been completely reshuffled by architects REX and OMA into a vertical stack. — Published 2010.0908
	FOSTER'S NEW OPERA The extroverted Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House by Norman Foster has sprung up in Dallas, Texas, across the street from the internally dynamic Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre by REX and OMA. — Published 2010.0526
	HEADING FOR NET-ZERO Some projects come along at pivotal moments. Such was the case for the Rose House in Portland, Oregon, a compact home that served as a laboratory for energy-efficient residential design in 2004, and ended up setting the bar as the first house in the state designed to achieve zero net energy use. — Published 2010.0421
	PELLI'S PLATINUM VISIONAIRE At first glance, the glossy new 35-story condominium tower slicing into the lower Manhattan skyline doesn't stand out as a beacon of sustainable design. Its sleek form — an extruded curving wedge accented with red terra cotta bands — looks more Ferrari than Prius. And the structure's granite base and travertine lobby walls are elements not usually associated with green building. — Published 2009.0610
	REBUILDING BEAUFORT Just north of London, off the M25 highway, a single large wind turbine reaches into the air and turns steadily above the bucolic English countryside. The turbine serves to generate power, and also as an emblem of the headquarters of the wind energy company Renewable Energy Systems (RES), set among the hedge rows and rolling hills of Hertfordshire. — Published 2008.0116
	THE SUSTAINABILITY OF NINA MARITZ Architects practicing in wealthy countries are becoming increasingly aware that our resources are finite and that if climate change goes unchecked, we could face a much warmer, harsher environment. Scientists present us with images of expanding deserts, sinking water tables, and material scarcity. For Namibian architect Nina Maritz, the challenges of working in a harsh environment with limited means are already an everyday reality. Her work presents a model for making compelling buildings despite "a poverty of resources." — Published 2007.0613
	BIG RIPPLES Magic in architecture often occurs when the client presents the architect with clear criteria and formidable challenges and when, rather than engineer around obstacles, the designer embraces the challenges as opportunities to enrich the project. Such was the case with the Heifer International Center, in Little Rock, Arkansas, designed by Polk Stanley Rowland Curzon Porter Architects. The result is a building that meets the client's needs with stellar design and an anticipated LEED-Gold rating. — Published 2007.0404
	TEACHING CLIMATE On February 20, 2007, architects and students worldwide demonstrated en masse that they are ready to go to work to stop global climate change. Their "gathering" was virtual, however, as schools, firms, and individuals from 47 countries tuned in to the 2010 Imperative Teach-In webcast. During several hours, a panel of three experts from different disciplines discussed the building sector's impact on global warming. Their presentations are available online. — Published 2007.0314
	BUILDING POTENTIAL In the rolling hills just east of Austin, Texas, a small compound of experimental buildings makes up the Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems (CMPBS). Here, Pliny Fisk III, his partner Gail Vittori, and a cadre of researchers and interns explore the depths of sustainable building. — Published 2007.0131

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