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NORTHERN STAR
Creating dramatic architecture can be challenging in an icy climate where people prioritize function over flamboyance and where the natural environment can satisfy their desire for beauty. The state of Alaska has breathtaking vistas of mountains, snow flats, and the dancing aurora borealis, but its urban landscapes have tended to remain resilient and simple. — Published 2007.0502
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HOUSING TANGO
Eight vibrantly colored steel and glass towers dance around a landscaped courtyard, exposing most of the living rooms to the outdoors, with a wall of bedrooms wrapped around three sides of the block. Each of the 27 apartments has a unique character, the block is self-sufficient in energy, and many functions — from heating to door locks — can be individually controlled by personal computer. — Published 2007.0425
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HOUSE ON RED HILL
The abstract expressionist painter Robert Motherwell once said, "Art is much less important than life, but what a poor life without it." Those words convey the inspiration behind much of the work of Christopher Harty and Chris Botterill. — Published 2007.0411
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KUROKAWA ART CENTER
According to architect Kisho Kurokawa, the new National Art Center Tokyo is a perfect expression of his philosophy of symbiosis. Rather than trying to iron out irregularities and resolve contradictions into what he calls a "dull, flat harmony," his distinctly non-Western idea seeks to apply conflicts and tensions in positive ways to achieve interesting and energizing effects. — Published 2007.0404
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CASA MAULEEN
On a beach near an abandoned mine on Chile's former "coal coast," the Mauleen House merges historical industrial connections with the raw beauty and energy of the location. Concrete winch towers of the Schwager coal mine dominate the neighborhood's horizon and influence details of the house design. — Published 2007.0328
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ALASKAN ENGINEERING
The new building for the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP) at the University of Alaska in Anchorage is becoming a cultural icon. ANSEP serves many different indigenous cultures, each with different ideas about appropriate symbolism. The building's final form was based on a shared icon arrived at after an interesting, sometimes arduous, journey. — Published 2007.0307
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RED BULL HQ
Visitors ascend from street level by elevator and enter the new Red Bull headquarters via a rooftop reception lobby. This dramatic entry sequence, from a small ground-floor lobby to a grand, rooftop terrace overlooking London's West End, is heightened by views from the terrace down into and through the building. — Published 2007.0228
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ESSEX STREET HOUSE
Australian architect Andrew Maynard is bursting with theories. He develops concepts such as "malleable space" into architectural "products" such as a mobile bedroom unit, with the ultimate goal being to transform it into architecture. The process sounds simple enough, but Maynard is the first to acknowledge that such conversions are rarely smooth. "Reality is always getting our floaty idealized concepts dirty, and that is half of the fun." — Published 2007.0221
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BOTTANICAL SPA
The Tschuggen Bergoase spa, nestled in the mountains near St. Moritz, Switzerland, takes on a cathedral-like quality. It was designed by Swiss architect Mario Botta who is renowned for his museums and sacred spaces. In contrast to the neighboring Tschuggen Hotel, the spa wears a sleek, timeless design that signals a shift into an interior space of natural quiet. — Published 2007.0207
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CANADIAN CONTEMPORARY
Canadian architecture has always eschewed the dominance of formalism for more complex and integrated solutions reflecting its humanist concerns. The strong social-democratic trend of governmental supervision and community control in Canada influences architecture through a complex framework of programming, design guidelines, zoning by-laws, and building codes, within which designers must operate. Such a system is unlikely to allow stylistic concerns to override programmatic ones. — Published 2007.0131
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