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ART CENTER UPON TYNE
The abandoned Baltic Flour Mills in the northern England town of Gateshead has recently been transformed into the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art. It joins other illustrious works in the heart of the Gateshead Quays regeneration area. Published 2003.0402
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LIVABILITY PARIS STYLE
Breaking away from the modern mistakes of mass urbanization and heirs to a vast classical architectural tradition, the French are perhaps well placed to tackle the challenges facing the city and to invent a habitable, livable world, in short, a human one. — Frédéric Edelmann, Le Monde, 2001 Published 2003.0122
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AVAILING FASHION
Designed by architect Jun Aoki, the new flagship store of the French fashion house Louis Vuitton on Tokyo's Omotesando Boulevard resembles a pile of trunks of different sizes and patterns, honoring Vuitton's origin as a trunk manufacturer. Examine the facade more closely, though, and you'll see an industrial-looking system of wire mesh curtains that create the fashionable effect. Published 2002.1211
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ZESIGER SPORTS CENTER AT MIT
There is a frenzy of building activity on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus in Cambridge. This haven for "techies" on the Charles River is now undergoing an ambitious billion-dollar construction program, springing from seeds planted two years ago. Published 2002.1023
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APARTMENTS OUTSIDE THE BOX
There has been a recent growth spurt of highrise apartment development along Manhattan's avenues. Although these buildings strengthen street-level pedestrian activity, replacing congested parking lots with shops and restaurants, their predictable appearance means that the population of New York is being denied high-quality design. Published 2002.1016
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PIANO'S HERMÈS TOKYO
There is a new landmark in Ginza, one of the leading shopping and business districts of Tokyo. Designed by the Italian architecture firm, Renzo Piano Building Workshop, the building is the corporate headquarters and store of Hermès Japan, a company famous for its handmade leather bags and apparel. Published 2002.0911
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PENTAGON REBUILT!
One year after a highjacked airliner smashed through the limestone and concrete facade of the Pentagon, reconstruction of the damaged portions of the building will be complete. When the airliner exploded inside the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense, 189 people, both military and civilian, were killed. As a tribute to the victims, and in defiance of the terrorists, construction crews have been engaged in a nearly 24-hour-per-day effort to rebuild and repair the extensive damage. Published 2002.0904
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WINDOWS FOR LIGHT
No one can deny the historical importance of daylight in determining the form of buildings since, together with the effects of climate and location, daylight availability was fundamental to their design. However, with the introduction of modern sources of electric light, and particularly because of their increasing efficiency since the Second World War, by the 1960s the need to introduce daylight into buildings had appeared to diminish. Published 2002.0501
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FOLK ART MUSEUM
Good things, as the saying goes, come in small packages. In the case of the new American Folk Art Museum in midtown Manhattan, the small package casts a golden glow across West 53rd Street when the sun glances off its variegated whitish-bronze facade. Published 2002.0424
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OLD PRAGUE AND NEW
Built on seven hills and intersected by the meandering River Vltava (Moldau), Prague offers a stunning array of architecture. From Romanesque and Gothic to cubist and functionalist, the Czech Republic capital is one of the few cities where so many diverse forms of architectural expression coexist comfortably. Every era of the city's history is reflected in its buildings. Published 2002.0417
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