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2X4 SPACE SCULPTURE
In the summer of 2002, the Center on Contemporary Art in Seattle hosted an exhibit called "Blurred," featuring work that blurs the boundaries between art and architecture. As an experiment for the show, designer James Harrison built a room-size structure by stacking short lengths of wood. Every piece was a two-foot long 2x4 (3.8 by 8.9 by 61 centimeters). "The idea," says Harrison, who was trained in both architecture and sculpture, "was to see how much plasticity I could achieve out of a regularly repeated module." It took him two days to cut the blocks and five days to stack them. — Published 2002.1218
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STAINED GLASS RESTORED AT PRINCETON
Princeton University has long upheld the highest standards in scholarship. Now the university reflects similar standards in restoration. The historic Princeton University Chapel has recently undergone a comprehensive overhaul that included one of the largest stained-glass restorations ever attempted. — Published 2002.1204
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BUILDING WITH PAPERCRETE
There has been a explosion of interest recently in the development of sustainable building materials, from straw bale to cob. A relative newcomer to the green materials scene is papercrete. This unlikely marriage of repulped paper and portland cement has produced a material with some intriguing characteristics. — Published 2002.1113
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BASICS - CLAY TILE ROOFING
Tile roofing accommodates various building traditions and climatic conditions, and it now accounts for over eight percent of the residential steep-slope roofing market in the United States for new construction and about three percent for reroofing. And in much of the world, earthy, fire-safe, long-lasting tile is the dominant roofing material. — Published 2002.1030
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DEVELOPING A SPEC HOTEL
In a somewhat unusual approach, British developer Bondcare (Heathrow) Ltd. began designing a hotel "on spec" before finding an owner. The speculative approach, more often used in office or apartment buildings, could indicate a "change is in the air" for hotel developers, who normally team up with an operator before design begins. — Published 2002.1016
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ARCHITECTURAL STONEWORK
The application of stone can result in architecture unlike that created from any other material. And it can be of greater interest today than it has been in the recent past. If architects redirect their attention to this material, they may discover, as I have, that it is sensuous to the touch, striking to the eye, and pleasing to the soul. — Published 2002.1002
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REVOLUTIONARY DOMES
A dome-shaped house that can rotate 300 degrees? It may sound quirky, but this is the product of Canadian company Sunspace Rotating Homes. They design and build these structures, mainly on small hillside and infill sites, in Canada and the United States. — Published 2002.0918
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BOSTON AIR RIGHTS
Creating urban land where none existed before seems to be a Boston tradition. Dredging of the Charles River and leveling of hills in the 1800s transformed a shallow backwater into the stylish Back Bay neighborhood. Now developable "plots" are being created by leasing of "air rights" over the portion of the Massachusetts Turnpike that traverses downtown. — Published 2002.0904
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IMPROVING URBAN SHANTYTOWNS
Over one fourth of the urban population of India today lives in slums, under inhumane conditions. These shantytowns, common to many cities of the developing world, are characterized by low-quality housing and lack of physical infrastructure. With little access to clean drinking water and sanitation, the inhabitants face a constant threat of disease. — Published 2002.0821
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PLUMBING DETAILS
When it comes to plumbing, many architects would prefer to leave the details to the experts: the mechanical engineers and contractors. And yet there's a certain amount of engineering that even mathematically challenged architects can do themselves if given an understanding of general principles and rule-of-thumb formulas. Robert Brown Butler has bridged the architecture and engineering disciplines by devising rules that demystify mechanical design for architectural practitioners. — Editor — Published 2002.0807
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