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ACCESSIBLE GARDEN DESIGN/BUILD
A special collaboration has resulted in a new garden at the Fircrest Residential Habilitation Center, a facility for the severely disabled near Seattle. To describe the garden simply as "wheelchair-accessible" is to overlook its artistry and the diverse sensory experiences it provides to residents. Creative elements of art and landscape design integrate with functional elements to produce a place for environmental interaction. — Published 2004.0609
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STREETS FOR PEOPLE TOO
One of the most intriguing design innovations of the last 20 years has been the "shared street" or integration concept for residential streets. The core idea is that the street is properly a physical and social part of the living environment, to be used simultaneously for vehicular movement, social contacts, and civic activities. — Published 2004.0505
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D.C. CHINATOWN RESTORATION
Every neighborhood undergoes transformations throughout its history. The use of an area and its population may change rapidly, while its buildings and structures remain relatively constant. A growing disparity between old buildings and new presents architectural challenges in preserving the buildings and revitalizing historic districts.
In addition to providing modern amenities, architects must meet current building and life-safety codes. This can be difficult if one goal is to preserve the neighborhood's unique historic character. — Published 2004.0414
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UNDERSTANDING FIGURE IN WOOD
The term grain is often used erroneously to refer to the distinctive surface appearance of wood, especially that resulting from growth-ring structure. To avoid continued confusion with that already overworked word, we prefer the term figure to refer to distinctive or characteristic markings on longitudinal or side-grain surfaces of wood. — Published 2004.0331
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SKYLIGHTING SCULPTURE
When Texas entrepreneur Raymond Nasher asked for a "roofless museum" for his extensive sculpture collection, his architects and their consultants delivered a unique interpretation. The Nasher Sculpture Center, which opened in downtown Dallas in 2003, is a synthesis of nature and building: a sculpture garden and a building with a roof that's "open" to the light of the sky. — Published 2004.0310
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SPECIFYING WINDOWS AND GLAZING
— Published 2004.0211
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TREE PLAY
The tree house is classically conceived as a clever exploitation of the tree as a structural element in the provision of human shelter. But a recent exhibit at the Atlanta Botanical Garden turned that perception around, exploring ideas for building in trees while protecting them and learning lessons from nature. — Published 2004.0114
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BUILDING COMMUNITY WITH STRAW BALES
Tons of straw are produced each year as a by-product of grain production. Modern wheat farmers burn straw, but for thousands of years straw and other grasses have been valued as a building material around the world, whether thatched into roofs, woven into walls, or mixed with mud to strengthen bricks and stucco. — Published 2003.1217
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SYSTEMATIC CENTRE POMPIDOU
The "high tech" style in architecture is easily identified by its imagery — revealed structure, exposed ducts, and machine-precision aesthetics. These modes of exposing hardware and refining the details of connections have made other new exploration necessary. As long as ducts and diagonal bracing were covered over by smooth finish materials or buried in basements and floor-ceiling layers, architects were primarily concerned with their physical requirements for space. — Published 2003.1203
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YALE'S SOUND RENOVATION
In renovating a historic concert hall, it can be a tricky balancing act to improve both thermal comfort and hall acoustics while respecting the traditional character of the original building. At Yale University's School of Music, Canadian architects Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg, teaming with acoustical consultants Kirkegaard Associates, have succeeded in achieving this balance. — Published 2003.1029
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