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ROTTERDAM VERANDA
Can a parking garage be sexy? The new Veranda Parking Garage in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, with its soft curves and elegant detailing, seems about as sensuous and inviting as a garage can be. Designed by the firm of Architectenbureau Paul de Ruiter b.v., part of the Veranda's allure, like most things sexy, is in what you can't see. In this case, it's the extraordinary story of the building's construction. — Published 2005.1012
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SOUNDING CINEMATIC
"Silence is the element in which great things fashion themselves." Although the 19th-century Scottish philosopher Thomas Carlyle couldn't have predicted it, his wisdom applies to modern-day home theaters. Now that technology has made it possible for homeowners to enjoy a theater-class audio experience, it's become important for their home theaters to be designed for both silence and sound, so that music can be heard as it was meant to be. — Published 2005.0914
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REUSABILITY BY DESIGN
The U.S. waste stream from demolition and construction amounts to about 150 million tons (136 million metric tons) annually. About 92 percent of this waste goes into landfills. In other industrialized nations, architects, the building sector, and regulators are doing more than in the United States to create a culture of building construction that reduces the future waste stream. — Published 2005.0817
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NEW BACK ALLEYS
The urban alley was once a ubiquitous part of the American landscape. Now many of these alleyways have fallen into disrepair or — along with the milkmen who frequented them — disappeared altogether. Over the past few years, however, this unique streetscape has staged something of a comeback. — Published 2005.0720
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CAST GLASS CENTERPIECE
Take a spicy mixture of the visual and performing arts; add a wide range of support from university, government and civic sources; cover with an unusual application of glass and stir; serves 250,000. That's the "recipe" for the Shaw Center for the Arts, which Baton Rouge, Louisiana is counting on to lift its civic profile. — Published 2005.0615
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ETHICS OF ADAPTIVE REUSE
Today's renewed interest in "green" architecture should heighten attention to the ethic of preservation, as a cornerstone of sustainability. Now that the idea of recycling waste has permeated our culture, I believe we should adopt the slogan, "recycle wasted architecture." — Published 2005.0518
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AFFORDABLE ENVIRONMENTS
In 2003, the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art put out a challenge to architects and artists worldwide: Show by example how affordable housing can exhibit both outstanding design and environmental sensitivity. The many submissions they received showcase recent advances in sustainable design and have fostered new partnerships between professionals and communities in the creative approaches to housing. — Editor — Published 2005.0420
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DOUBLY TRANSPARENT
Growing concern for occupant comfort and lower energy costs has led to a recent revolution in curtain wall design, primarily in Europe. Dynamic, double-skin walls that induce air movement between the layers of glass are replacing the static, sealed envelopes that have until recently characterized modern curtain walls.
The new generation of glass wall is an active component of the heating, ventilation, and cooling (HVAC) system, bringing air tempering installations from the hidden central core to the building perimeter. — Published 2005.0316
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TAIWAN ON TOP
The official opening of the Taipei 101 Tower in December 2004, makes it — for now — the world's tallest building. In the 20th century, competition for this title was largely waged in Chicago and New York, but it has recently migrated to Asia. — Published 2005.0302
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ANTARCTIC ARCHITECTURE
"It was a scene, terrible in its austerity, that can only be witnessed at that extremity of the globe; truly, a land of unsurpassed desolation." — Physicist Louis Bernacchi, 1899, aboard the Southern Cross, near Cape Adare, Antarctica. — Published 2005.0216
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