McMansion Hell
bonus mcmansion hell: terrible things are happening in McLean, VA
Read the bonus post on Patreon!
over a year ago
Read the bonus post on Patreon!
A Weekly Dose of...
Favorite Books of 2022
For this last post of 2022 I looked back at the dozens of books I reviewed or featured as "Book...
over a year ago
For this last post of 2022 I looked back at the dozens of books I reviewed or featured as "Book Briefs" on this blog, and the ones I reviewed on World-Architects. From those books I gathered just over a dozen favorites, grouping them into some common themes that happened to come...
A Weekly Dose of...
Olmsted Trees
Olmsted Trees
Photographs by Stanley Greenberg, with contributions by Tom Avermaete, Kevin Baker,...
over a year ago
Olmsted Trees
Photographs by Stanley Greenberg, with contributions by Tom Avermaete, Kevin Baker, Mindy Thompson Fullilove
Hirmer Publishers, August 2022
Hardcover | 9 x 11 inches | 160 pages | 100 illustrations | German/English | ISBN: | $X.00
PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION:
Central...
Contemporist...
A Re-Imagined Side Extension With A Slatted Wood Design
YARD Architects has shared photos of a side extension they re-imagined for a home in Greater London,...
a year ago
YARD Architects has shared photos of a side extension they re-imagined for a home in Greater London, England, that creates an open and bright dining area and kitchen.
Old Structures...
Bragging Combined With Public Service
I highly recommend the soon-to-be-released book The Elements of Construction: N. Clifford Ricker,...
4 weeks ago
I highly recommend the soon-to-be-released book The Elements of Construction: N. Clifford Ricker, Architecture, and the University of Illinois and not just because I wrote on chapter of it. Marci Uihlein, the editor, an architect and engineer, and a professor of architecture at...
Old Structures...
New Year’s 1909
According to Puck, a trip to New York is the safety valve that keeps Brother Straightlace, leading...
11 months ago
According to Puck, a trip to New York is the safety valve that keeps Brother Straightlace, leading the simple life, from blowing up. Opinions vary.
99% Invisible
Model Village [EPISODE]
For decades, society has dealt with people with dementia and other forms of cognitive decline by...
a year ago
For decades, society has dealt with people with dementia and other forms of cognitive decline by storing them away in unstimulating, medicalized environments. But around the world, a new architectural movement is starting to challenge that old paradigm. Designing environments...
The Modern House
MRTN Architects’ garden studios in Melbourne are a place to work – or not to work
8 months ago
CONTEMPORIST
The Design Of This Modern White Patisserie Stands Out From Its Neighbors
LUKSTUDIO has shared photos of Aimé Pâtisserie, which is located in Shanghai, China, and is flanked...
9 months ago
LUKSTUDIO has shared photos of Aimé Pâtisserie, which is located in Shanghai, China, and is flanked by familiar coffee and donut franchises. The designers explained, ‘that the challenge of the store is to stand out from its immediate chaos and appeal to the clientele from the...
The Modern House
Mark Lebon, the man inside the house that makes people smile
8 months ago
Old Structures...
Notre Dame, Again
In April 2019, it was not clear what would happen. Given the importance of the cathedral to the city...
a week ago
In April 2019, it was not clear what would happen. Given the importance of the cathedral to the city of Paris, the nation of France, and the cultural heritage of Europe, it was clear that it would be rebuilt after the fire, but in what form and on what schedule were open...
The Modern House
Our guide to retrofitting: how to future-proof your older home
a year ago
Common Edge
Great American Cities That Teach Architecture
Learning about urban planning and design outside the studio.
10 months ago
Learning about urban planning and design outside the studio.
Archinect - Features
NYIT School of Architecture & Design's M.Arch Graduate Studio Explores 'Designing...
Continuing with our Archinect Studio Pin-Ups series, we connect with Archinect Partner School New...
a year ago
Continuing with our Archinect Studio Pin-Ups series, we connect with Archinect Partner School New York Institute of Technology to learn more about its Fall/Spring semester M.Arch studio led by Marcella Del Signore, the school's Associate Professor and Director of the Master of...
Old Structures...
It Looked Familiar: Bonus Geekiness
For the end-of-summer holiday weekend, an extra. Daredevil makes a new friend: That’s one of the...
3 months ago
For the end-of-summer holiday weekend, an extra. Daredevil makes a new friend: That’s one of the eagle hood-ornament sculptures at the 61st floor of the Chrysler Building. They’ve been fascinating people since Chrysler was first built. There’s a very big but not famous building...
The Modern House
How an untouched site in the New Forest beckoned a sustainable new-build adventure
6 months ago
Common Edge
Jay-Z’s Unseemly Takeover of Brooklyn’s Central Library
Crowds love “The Book of HOV,” but the library has ceded public space for a self-produced tribute...
a year ago
Crowds love “The Book of HOV,” but the library has ceded public space for a self-produced tribute from his company, Roc Nation.
devonzuegel.com
The road to hell is paved with asphalt
Most roads are paved with asphalt. Unfortunately, there are a lot of problems with asphalt. Bricks,...
11 months ago
Most roads are paved with asphalt. Unfortunately, there are a lot of problems with asphalt. Bricks, cobblestones, and pavers are often much better options, because:
1. Asphalt degrades fast, so once you account for maintenance, it's more expensive it first appears
Asphalt...
Contemporist...
The Large Arch Window In Front Of This Cafe Offers A Glimpse Of The Creative Interior
Anatomy Architecture + Atelier has shared photos of a cafe they designed in Ayutthaya, Thailand,...
a year ago
Anatomy Architecture + Atelier has shared photos of a cafe they designed in Ayutthaya, Thailand, that incorporates a collection of windows to create a welcoming arch shape on its facade.
CONTEMPORIST
Before & After – A Mid-Century Modern Renovation In Oregon
Originally designed by prominent Pacific Northwest architect Saul Zaik, this 1963 mid-century modern...
a week ago
Originally designed by prominent Pacific Northwest architect Saul Zaik, this 1963 mid-century modern house has been remodeled by SHED Architecture & Design for a young, minimalist family. The Mori House sits on a gently sloped, forested site off a quiet road in the west end of...
Old Structures...
Originality Is Not Easy, Part 3
The first two parts of this series looked at patents that involved odd details that were not really...
3 months ago
The first two parts of this series looked at patents that involved odd details that were not really part of the metal-frame revolution that was taking place in the 1890s but rather adjacent to it. Neither of those patents reflected actual structure that I’ve ever seen in an old...
CONTEMPORIST
The Post And Beam Structure Is On Display Inside This New Home
Studio VARA has shared photos of a new home they’ve completed for a couple and their three children,...
7 months ago
Studio VARA has shared photos of a new home they’ve completed for a couple and their three children, who wanted a highly energy-efficient house that is also fire-resistant. Tucked away, down a windy road outside of Healdsburg, California, the home is positioned to take advantage...
99% Invisible
Maximum Temperature [EPISODE]
The impacts of climate disasters are often measured in terms of property damage. But in places like...
3 months ago
The impacts of climate disasters are often measured in terms of property damage. But in places like Phoenix, Arizona, and in hot places all over the world, climate change is wreaking a very different kind of havoc – on living things. In the final episode of Not Built for This, we...
CONTEMPORIST
A Home In The Trees With A Living Room Suspended Over The Forest Floor
DeForest Architects has sent us images of a home they completed in Burien, Washington, that has a...
a year ago
DeForest Architects has sent us images of a home they completed in Burien, Washington, that has a living room suspended above the forest floor. The home sits on a one-acre wooded parcel at the top of a bluff overlooking Puget Sound, with the clients wanting a tranquil and...
99% Invisible
The 15 Minute City
In February 2023, over two thousand people took to the streets in Oxford, England to protest their...
2 weeks ago
In February 2023, over two thousand people took to the streets in Oxford, England to protest their local government. They were wearing yellow vests and chanting slogans about the municipality’s new traffic policies. But most notably, many of them were vocally angry about a new...
Archinect - Features
Organizing and Reforming Architectural Education: A Conversation With Tessa Forde
In recent years, the word 'organizing' has taken on a heightened power in architectural discourse,...
a month ago
In recent years, the word 'organizing' has taken on a heightened power in architectural discourse, most notably through grassroots efforts by architectural workers across the United States to organize for better workplace conditions.
For Tessa Forde, organizing centers on a vast...
Old Structures...
Before and After Electricity
A while back, I put up a photo of the Bowery as seen in 1894, with the Third Avenue elevated tracks...
9 months ago
A while back, I put up a photo of the Bowery as seen in 1894, with the Third Avenue elevated tracks above. Here’s the picture: Here’s a 1909 postcard of a similar view: The third, express track wasn’t added to the el until 1917 and the Bowery is a wide street, so the tracks have...
CONTEMPORIST
This Kitchen Island Was Designed With Built-In Seating
C. Kairouz Architects has shared photos of a renovation and extension project they designed for a...
a year ago
C. Kairouz Architects has shared photos of a renovation and extension project they designed for a home in Melbourne, Australia. One of the design details in the new extension is the kitchen island that doubles as seating for the dining area. The design of the kitchen island has a...
Old Structures...
A Metaphor
When I was maybe ten years old, visiting the observation deck of the Empire State Building, I heard...
7 months ago
When I was maybe ten years old, visiting the observation deck of the Empire State Building, I heard someone describe the view as being like the buildings were a beard and Central Park a shaved strip. In 1952, there were far fewer high-rises on the Upper East and Upper West Sides,...
Old Structures...
A Thomas Nast Holiday – 3 of 3
In my opinion, this is genius.
12 months ago
In my opinion, this is genius.
CONTEMPORIST
This Small Home Has Glass Walls And A Glass Ceiling
Arno Schuurs and Paulien van Noort of design-build firm GetAway Projects BV, have shared photos of a...
a year ago
Arno Schuurs and Paulien van Noort of design-build firm GetAway Projects BV, have shared photos of a tiny house in The Netherlands that they completed that’s almost entirely made out of glass to fully enjoy the surrounding forest. The allowed footprint of the new build was 21...
Contemporist...
A Round Design And Open Arches Give This Concrete Home A Unique Look
Architecture firm Estudio Carroll has shared photos of a new concrete home they completed in Puerto...
5 months ago
Architecture firm Estudio Carroll has shared photos of a new concrete home they completed in Puerto Escondido, Mexico, that has a unique shape.
99% Invisible
The Power Broker #12: Robert Caro
This is the twelfth official episode of our ongoing series breaking down the 1974 Pulitzer Prize...
2 days ago
This is the twelfth official episode of our ongoing series breaking down the 1974 Pulitzer Prize winning book, The Power Broker by our hero Robert Caro. We’ve waited until the evening to see how splendid the day has been, and for this final installment, there was only one guest...
Common Edge
Jane Jacobs, Cyclist
We should have known the famed urbanist loved the bike.
7 months ago
We should have known the famed urbanist loved the bike.
Contemporist...
A' Design Awards & Competition - Early Call for Entries
A’ Design Award & Competition is the world’s leading design accolade reaching design enthusiasts...
a year ago
A’ Design Award & Competition is the world’s leading design accolade reaching design enthusiasts around the world, and showcasing 1844 winners in 139 different design disciplines.
Construction Physics
What Progress Has There Been In Industrial Robots?
Long-term, I’m optimistic about robots and automation solving construction’s stagnant cost and...
11 months ago
Long-term, I’m optimistic about robots and automation solving construction’s stagnant cost and productivity problem. Even if nothing else works, if you can build a cheap machine capable of doing everything a human can do, that would greatly reduce labor costs, which are a large...
Old Structures...
Double
Part of the Construction History Congress last week was a day of tours, and I went on the iron- and...
5 months ago
Part of the Construction History Congress last week was a day of tours, and I went on the iron- and steel-truss bridge tour. I’m going to show my pictures every two or three days, spread over the next couple of weeks. First up: the rail bridge at Eglisau: Built 1895-1897 by the...
Archinect - Features
Five Big Factors Behind the Architecture Industry’s Economic Slowdown
Earlier this week, we released Part One of our findings from the Archinect Business Survey, which...
5 months ago
Earlier this week, we released Part One of our findings from the Archinect Business Survey, which invited you to share how you were feeling about the economic outlook of your firm and sector. Our analysis found that across the United States, architects have seen business...
SOCKS
This Is A Record Cover: Text-based & conceptual album covers. A project by Socks Studio
The second album by British new wave band XTC did not feature any images. Instead, a written essay...
over a year ago
The second album by British new wave band XTC did not feature any images. Instead, a written essay about how buyers are attracted by album covers to buy records was used. The paragraph, which begins with: “This is a record cover.” occupies the whole 12″x12″ of Go2 (1978) in a way...
The Modern House
How boutique hotels and the Balearic Islands came to inspire this craft-led Hackney home
a year ago
Old Structures...
The Power of Drawing
Another Cass Gilbert sketch, “Looking west from corner 5th ave + 42nd St”, from June 1917. Based on...
9 months ago
Another Cass Gilbert sketch, “Looking west from corner 5th ave + 42nd St”, from June 1917. Based on the angle, he was standing on the northwestern corner of the intersection. The generally most interesting building nearby is the New York Public Library; the dark scribbles on the...
A Weekly Dose of...
42 Years of Critical Regionalism
(Covers of some of the books discussed in this post)
If your first reaction to the title of...
a year ago
(Covers of some of the books discussed in this post)
If your first reaction to the title of this post is something along the lines of, "Wait, isn't critical regionalism just 40 years old?," then everything you think know about critical regionalism is partial, in both senses...
Contemporist...
This Library Is Almost Entirely Built Into The Land Around It
Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP has recently completed a new library in Kisarazu, Japan, that has been built...
a year ago
Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP has recently completed a new library in Kisarazu, Japan, that has been built into the earth.
The Modern House
Our guide to North Norfolk: spectacular wildlife, unspoiled beaches and stargazing
a year ago
The Modern House
How David Roy and Angel Perez carve out space for playtime and parties in their flexible Hackney...
a year ago
devonzuegel.com
Greater Los Angeles
I got back from Los Angeles last night and my head is still spinning. I’d move there again in a...
over a year ago
I got back from Los Angeles last night and my head is still spinning. I’d move there again in a heartbeat.
There are three great cities in the United States: there’s Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York – in that order.
I love Boston; I even love Denver; I like Miami; I think...
Archinect - Features
Meet NYIT School of Architecture & Design's New Faculty Members
The School of Architecture and Design at New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), with campuses in...
a month ago
The School of Architecture and Design at New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), with campuses in New York City and Old Westbury, Long Island, delivers a technology-driven, design-focused education across its Architecture, Interior Design, and Digital Art & Design programs.
As...
Common Edge
‘Even If a Project Fails, the Ideas Behind It Don’t Disappear’
A talk with Sam Lubell and Greg Goldin, authors of Atlas of Never Built Architecture.
6 months ago
A talk with Sam Lubell and Greg Goldin, authors of Atlas of Never Built Architecture.
99% Invisible
Breaking Down The Power Broker [EPISODE]
In 1974, two very significant things happened, if you are a fan of 99% invisible. Number one is that...
a year ago
In 1974, two very significant things happened, if you are a fan of 99% invisible. Number one is that 99pi host Roman Mars was born. And number two, The Power Broker by Robert Caro was published. Roman learned about the power broker when he first started to cover cities and...
The Modern House
Modern Life: six remarkable modernist homes on the market
Those modernist architects were on to something. From the 1930s to the 1970s, these design pioneers...
a year ago
Those modernist architects were on to something. From the 1930s to the 1970s, these design pioneers showed us a brave new world where form followed function. Out went the fuss and flourishes of Victorian and Edwardian architecture, all ornate stucco and cornicing, and in came […]
The Modern House
A slender space-savvy home in Clerkenwell, inspired by the City’s skyscrapers
a year ago
99% Invisible
Devolutionary Design [EPISODE]
It’s hard to overstate just how important record album art was to music in the days before people...
a year ago
It’s hard to overstate just how important record album art was to music in the days before people downloaded everything. Visuals were a key part of one’s experience with a record or tape or CD. The design of the album cover created a first impression of what was to come. Album...
CONTEMPORIST
This Modern Home Was Designed Around A Split-Trunk Oak Tree
A Parallel Architecture has shared photos of a modern home they completed in Austin, Texas, that’s...
3 weeks ago
A Parallel Architecture has shared photos of a modern home they completed in Austin, Texas, that’s designed around a split-trunk live oak, which has stood guard over the center of the tight lot for decades. The home’s exterior features concrete, wood, and large windows, with some...
The Modern House
Mark Bonskek and Sabba Khan’s playful Maryland home is a masterclass in materiality
a year ago
Old Structures...
Waste Not, Something Something
I was passing through Tribeca last week and came across this little building. Very, very little....
9 months ago
I was passing through Tribeca last week and came across this little building. Very, very little. Three stories tall, maybe 40 feet wide, and about four feet deep on the left and maybe a luxurious ten or fifteen feet deep on the right. You know you’re in a city where real estate...
The Modern House
Mia Castenskjold and Stefan Zschernitz’s self-built sanctuary in Hackney
a year ago
devonzuegel.com
A libertarian just won Argentina's presidency... what's going on?
If you're wondering how the heck a hardline libertarian just won the Argentinian presidential...
a year ago
If you're wondering how the heck a hardline libertarian just won the Argentinian presidential election, here's some background.
First, a key fact is that the government is printing money at an accelerating rate, resulting in 143% annual inflation as of the most recent count. The...
Old Structures...
Advertising Art
From 1922, preserved in a scrapbook at the New York Public Library, a romantic view of the Bankers...
2 months ago
From 1922, preserved in a scrapbook at the New York Public Library, a romantic view of the Bankers Trust Building at Wall and Nassau Streets. (The angle is a little funny – see below.) I cropped the image – at the lower right there was a little extension: This could be a...
Old Structures...
Reuse, Not Really Adaptive
From an elevated subway station in Queens: two generations of roof. Or, if you prefer, a palimpsest...
4 months ago
From an elevated subway station in Queens: two generations of roof. Or, if you prefer, a palimpsest in steel. The roof over the rather wide platform is supported by two lines of columns. That’s a column in the lower left, with the curves of the lower flange of the built-up main...
Blog - Guerrilla...
Bangalore's Disappearing Lakes
In an area of pronounced water scarcity high on the Deccan plateau, at an altitude removed from...
over a year ago
In an area of pronounced water scarcity high on the Deccan plateau, at an altitude removed from river-water and of water extraction from the ground, despite being historically nourished by monsoons, Bangalore's current population faces deep inequities of access to water which are...
Common Edge
Worshiping the Old Isn’t Historic Preservation
To keep buildings alive and relevant, some flexibility is required.
a month ago
To keep buildings alive and relevant, some flexibility is required.
CONTEMPORIST
Handmade Elongated Bricks Cover The Exterior Of This Home
Photography ©Paolo Abate MoDusArchitects has sent us photos of a modern home they recently completed...
a year ago
Photography ©Paolo Abate MoDusArchitects has sent us photos of a modern home they recently completed in South Tyrol, Italy, that’s faced in handmade bricks. Photography ©Gustav Willeit The home, located in a small town and surrounded by vineyards, appears as a single-family...
CONTEMPORIST
Before & After – A Kitchen And Bathroom Remodel For This 1970s Home
SHED Architecture & Design has shared their latest project, the contemporary interior remodel of a...
a year ago
SHED Architecture & Design has shared their latest project, the contemporary interior remodel of a 1970s home on Seattle’s Mercer Island that was originally designed by William Rutledge. The house met the functional needs of its new owners but did not quite suit their...
CONTEMPORIST
Banquette Seating Separates The Kitchen From The Living Room Inside This Apartment
Interior design firm Melling Studio, has shared photos of a one-bedroom apartment they completed in...
4 months ago
Interior design firm Melling Studio, has shared photos of a one-bedroom apartment they completed in Vancouver, Canada. The apartment has been designed as a serene, open-plan environment with a crisp, minimal finish palette, locally sourced furniture, and elevated fixtures. One...
Old Structures...
In The Background
The photo from the Bain News Service is titled “Post Office, New York” and the Library of Congress...
8 months ago
The photo from the Bain News Service is titled “Post Office, New York” and the Library of Congress dates it as “between ca. 1910 and ca. 1915.” I think we can do better: that’s the Municpal Building in the background under construction. The building took longer than usual to...
CONTEMPORIST
A Contemporary Gable Roof Runs The Length Of This Home
Architecture firm JURY!, has shared photos of a renovation project they completed for a home in...
5 months ago
Architecture firm JURY!, has shared photos of a renovation project they completed for a home in Maasland, The Netherlands, that enhanced an existing dike house with a modern barn-inspired design. The original dike house includes a basement partially built into the dike, which is...
CONTEMPORIST
A Dramatic Upward-Sloping Roof Covers This Rural Home
Prentiss + Balance + Wickline Architects has shared photos of a contemporary home they have designed...
7 months ago
Prentiss + Balance + Wickline Architects has shared photos of a contemporary home they have designed in Winthrop, Washington, perched atop a steep river bank. The home’s design includes an upward-sloping roof form that motions toward the river and shelters an outdoor room....
CONTEMPORIST
Brass-Lined Arches Connect The Kitchen With The Dining Room Inside This Home
Architecture and art studio Svima has shared photos of a kitchen and living room they updated, with...
8 months ago
Architecture and art studio Svima has shared photos of a kitchen and living room they updated, with the kitchen featuring brass design accents. Their clients, a Toronto couple, has opposite tastes: he is an enthusiast of tenebrous minimalism, and she is a lover of bright French...
Contemporist...
A Warehouse-Inspired Home With A Spanish Twist
Multi-disciplinary design firm mcmahon and nerlich has shared photos of a warehouse-inspired...
a month ago
Multi-disciplinary design firm mcmahon and nerlich has shared photos of a warehouse-inspired townhouse with a Spanish twist inside.
Contemporist...
The Black Exterior Of This Home Leads To A Pink Kitchen Inside
Paul Archer Design has shared photos of a home they completed in Wivenhoe, England, for an artist...
6 months ago
Paul Archer Design has shared photos of a home they completed in Wivenhoe, England, for an artist who wanted a light-filled interior with room to work and to entertain.
Old Structures...
Adelaide House, Part 3 – Facades
Part 1, General: here. Part 2, Structure: here. So on Tuesday I effectively said that Adelaide House...
8 months ago
Part 1, General: here. Part 2, Structure: here. So on Tuesday I effectively said that Adelaide House was either small for a skyscraper or forty years behind the times, and yesterday I said that the steel was pretty familiar for an old skyscraper but maybe a little old-fashioned....
Old Structures...
He Is, After All, A Boy From Queens
2 months ago
McMansion Hell
2007-core nostalgia extravaganza
Quick PSA: someone on Facebook is apparently impersonating me using an account called “McMansion...
3 months ago
Quick PSA: someone on Facebook is apparently impersonating me using an account called “McMansion Hell 2.0” – If you see it, please report! Thanks!
Howdy folks! I hope if you were born between 1995 and 2001 you’re ready for some indelible pre-recession vibes because I think this...
CONTEMPORIST
This Barn-Inspired Home Hides A Playroom With Climbing Wall Under Its Gable Roof
Tomas Beranek and Arthur Nuss of Global Architects collaborated with client and builder Bram van de...
a year ago
Tomas Beranek and Arthur Nuss of Global Architects collaborated with client and builder Bram van de Wal to design and complete a barn-inspired modern home in The Netherlands. The barn house has a natural look and the modern simplicity of timber frame construction. The exterior...
devonzuegel.com
Field notes: Miami
Update 5-Dec-2021: Read the updated version of these notes here.
These field notes are a bit...
over a year ago
Update 5-Dec-2021: Read the updated version of these notes here.
These field notes are a bit different from previous cities I've explored, because unlike those, Miami is my home! So this post partially serves as a life update—I moved to Miami Beach from California a few months...
Common Edge
20 Life Lessons in Architecture (and Beyond)
Some suggestions on living a life in design with meaning and purpose.
3 months ago
Some suggestions on living a life in design with meaning and purpose.
The Modern House
Sumayya Vally: the South African architect on how growing up in a township defined her sense of...
Sumayya Vally is a South African architect whose star is in the ascendant. At the age of 30, she...
8 months ago
Sumayya Vally is a South African architect whose star is in the ascendant. At the age of 30, she became the youngest architect to receive the prestigious annual summer pavilion commission at the Serpentine Gallery in London. A slew of accolades and honoraries followed and […]
Common Edge
Why So Many Banal Boxes? Because Architecture Reflects the Ethos of Its Time
The 5-over-1 is a perfect embodiment of our increasingly selfish and self-isolated existence.
6 months ago
The 5-over-1 is a perfect embodiment of our increasingly selfish and self-isolated existence.
Old Structures...
Some Good News To Start The Year
From Ars Technica, “40% of US electricity is now emissions-free” by John Timmer has a pretty...
11 months ago
From Ars Technica, “40% of US electricity is now emissions-free” by John Timmer has a pretty self-explanatory headline. The short version: wind and solar have advanced quickly because of decreases in their cost, coal use has dropped, and there’s more storage coming on line to...
Old Structures...
Infrastructure
Not all infrastructure is hidden – some, like elevated railroads, is more visible and audible than...
7 months ago
Not all infrastructure is hidden – some, like elevated railroads, is more visible and audible than most people would prefer – but it often is and that can make it easy to forget. “The Cloud Under the Sea” by John Dzieza, with visuals by Kristen Radtke and Go Takayana, is an...
The Modern House
Jeremy Lee: the much-loved chef who grew up in a wedge of cheddar
If ever there was a corrective to the idea of the dour Scotsman, it could be found in Jeremy Lee....
9 months ago
If ever there was a corrective to the idea of the dour Scotsman, it could be found in Jeremy Lee. Glaswegian-born (and now London-based) Jeremy is chef proprietor of Quo Vadis, the historic Soho institution beloved of virtually everyone who’s ever had the privilege of […]
Common Edge
San Francisco’s Love Affair With the Ferry Building
John King, urban design critic of the San Francisco Chronicle, talks about his new book, Portal.
a year ago
John King, urban design critic of the San Francisco Chronicle, talks about his new book, Portal.
devonzuegel.com
OSS lazy-loads governance
A special characteristic of open source software (OSS) is that you don't need institutional support...
over a year ago
A special characteristic of open source software (OSS) is that you don't need institutional support to get started. It's interesting to compare this to physical infrastructure, like dams or railroads. Before you can begin those projects, you need upfront capital, permits,...
The Modern House
How this International Style-inspired house in Surrey makes a bigger splash
a year ago
The Modern House
Four at the Fore: London’s most innovative creatives on pushing things forward
a year ago
The Modern House
Contrast is king at this Camberwell townhouse
a year ago
Old Structures...
A Metaphor
Looking at the Brooklyn Bridge from the waterfront on the Brooklyn side: Each of the four main...
4 months ago
Looking at the Brooklyn Bridge from the waterfront on the Brooklyn side: Each of the four main cables is attached to one of the four deck-stiffening trusses below by the vertical suspender cables. The towers are separately attached to the trusses by the diagonal brace cables in...
CONTEMPORIST
An Observation Tower That Looks Like Twisted Wood Rises Above The Swedish Landscape
White Arkitekter has shared photos of Observation Tower Kärven on the Swedish west coast, which they...
3 months ago
White Arkitekter has shared photos of Observation Tower Kärven on the Swedish west coast, which they completed after winning Varberg Municipality’s architectural competition. Recently opened, the tower in Getterön nature reserve north of Varberg, measures 39 feet (12m) high and...
Common Edge
What Makes a City Resilient?
A talk with Sam Carter, a founding principal at the Resilient Cities Catalyst.
2 months ago
A talk with Sam Carter, a founding principal at the Resilient Cities Catalyst.
Archinect - Features
'You Need to Use AI Much More Than You Think to Get Unique Results From It'; A Conversation...
Studying Alexis Christodoulou’s work, including his highly popular Instagram portfolio, one would...
a year ago
Studying Alexis Christodoulou’s work, including his highly popular Instagram portfolio, one would expect his images to be the product of decades of education, training, and practice at the top of the field. The fact that Christodoulou is a self-taught artist of ten years,...
CONTEMPORIST
Wood Screens Wrap Around This Home To Create Shade And Privacy
Koichi Takada Architects has completed a new home in Sydney, Australia, whose design was inspired by...
a year ago
Koichi Takada Architects has completed a new home in Sydney, Australia, whose design was inspired by palm fronds, specifically the way the leaves provide dappled light and shelter to the fruit its tree bears. Applying the same principles, the home was cocooned with symmetrical...
Archinect - Features
Archinect's 2023 Mental Health Survey Results
To create a space that discusses and shares insights on mental health within the industry, Archinect...
a year ago
To create a space that discusses and shares insights on mental health within the industry, Archinect recently conducted our latest Mental Health survey to better understand how our community has navigated the stressors inherent to the architecture industry. On this October 10th,...
devonzuegel.com
Remote work will break the US monopoly on global talent
Remote work is creating a new economic niche, and countries that put in the work to fill it will...
over a year ago
Remote work is creating a new economic niche, and countries that put in the work to fill it will finally be able to compete with the US to attract talent. This is the once-in-a-generation opportunity for small, stable countries to grow, diversify, and up-skill their...
99% Invisible
The Power Broker #10: Clara Jeffery [EPISODE]
This is the tenth official episode of our ongoing series breaking down the 1974 Pulitzer Prize...
2 months ago
This is the tenth official episode of our ongoing series breaking down the 1974 Pulitzer Prize winning book, The Power Broker by our hero Robert Caro. This week, Roman and Elliott also sit down with Clara Jeffery, the editor-in-chief of Mother Jones and the Center for...
The Modern House
Picture erfect: an ingenious creative sanctuary in the leafy heart of London Fields
a week ago
The Modern House
Shore thing: Six homes close to the Sussex coast
Although once a single entity – and one of the kingdoms that made up the Heptarchy of Anglo-Saxon...
5 months ago
Although once a single entity – and one of the kingdoms that made up the Heptarchy of Anglo-Saxon Britain – Sussex has been divided into East and West since the late 20th century. With all those years of shared history, it’s no surprise that there’s […]
The Modern House
A couple’s self-renovated 1960s home built on to a 17th-century cottage in Somerset
a year ago
The Beauty of...
Clean Lines and Integrated Transport (Florastrasse transport hub, Adliswil, Switzerland)
The thing about Switzerland’s affordable, hyper-reliable, hyper-integrated and hyper-ubiquitous...
a year ago
The thing about Switzerland’s affordable, hyper-reliable, hyper-integrated and hyper-ubiquitous public transport system is that the regard in which its phenomenal operational expertise is held can overshadow the architectural successes it also demonstrates. Even when transport...
Archinect - Features
'Starting a Successful Woman-Owned Business in a Heavily Male-Dominated Industry Is No Joke':...
In this episode of our Studio Snapshot series, Archinect connected with Allison Bryan, Founding...
2 months ago
In this episode of our Studio Snapshot series, Archinect connected with Allison Bryan, Founding Principal of multi-disciplinary design practice Open Studio Collective, based in Bozeman, Montana, and Ojai, California.
Trained in both graphic design and architecture, Bryan talks...
CONTEMPORIST
This Tall Black House Appears To Be Made From A Series Of Stacked Boxes
Studio for Architecture & Collaboration (StudioAC) has designed a modern single-family home with a...
11 months ago
Studio for Architecture & Collaboration (StudioAC) has designed a modern single-family home with a black exterior in Toronto, Canada. The home has a gable roof and appears as a series of stacked boxes, with different levels defining the various areas of the home. The rear of the...
Old Structures...
It Looked Familiar: Iconic
There are all sorts of tricks – visual shorthand – for saying “you’re in New York” in movies, TV,...
3 months ago
There are all sorts of tricks – visual shorthand – for saying “you’re in New York” in movies, TV, and photos. One of them is to include some roof-top water tanks. Comics, too: The purpose of the tanks is very simple. They store water pumped up form the municipal main, and water...
Old Structures...
Baseball in New York 5
This is the last of the collection of little-known ballfields, following Brooklyn, Manhattan, and...
2 months ago
This is the last of the collection of little-known ballfields, following Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens, and the little-known teams who played in those fields. It’s very difficult to find information about the only Bronx important ball field in the Bronx. While it’s sometimes...
CONTEMPORIST
Lighting Highlights The Alternating Curvilinear Balconies Of This New Apartment Building
Omniview Design has completed the Golf Apartments, a high-end residential development adjacent to a...
a year ago
Omniview Design has completed the Golf Apartments, a high-end residential development adjacent to a famous golf course in Glyfada, Greece. Key to the design of the building are the curvilinear balconies that alternate directions creating a lively facade. In the evening, lighting...
The Solarchitecture...
The effectiveness of solar passive principles
Improving health, freedom one house at a time.
over a year ago
Improving health, freedom one house at a time.
Common Edge
Declaration of Independence From Sprawl
Toward the New Urban Place and away from the Industrial Development Complex.
7 months ago
Toward the New Urban Place and away from the Industrial Development Complex.
CONTEMPORIST
This Renovated 1970s Home Now Has Concrete Floors That Flow Between The Interior And Exterior Spaces
ANACAPA Architecture has shared photos of a 1970’s-era residence and combination guesthouse/home...
7 months ago
ANACAPA Architecture has shared photos of a 1970’s-era residence and combination guesthouse/home office they updated in the hills of Montecito, California. Collaborating with the client, the designers reworked the home to bring it up to date. They did this by maintaining the...
99% Invisible
Devil in the Details [EPISODE]
In 1994, an independent producer made a short, earnest video featuring an eccentric cast of...
a year ago
In 1994, an independent producer made a short, earnest video featuring an eccentric cast of characters who were focused on a very specific paranoia. The tape was made to look like a TV news special. It opens with a cheap, Jerry Springer-era computer graphic of a gold pentagram...
devonzuegel.com
Making is Show Business now – alexdanco.com
Nadia Eghbal’s new book, Working In Public: the Making and Maintenance of Open Source Software, may...
over a year ago
Nadia Eghbal’s new book, Working In Public: the Making and Maintenance of Open Source Software, may not have been on your short list of books to read this year. It’s admittedly a nerdy topic: it’s about open source projects, roles and responsibilities; the rise of GitHub as a...
Old Structures...
Tiny and Cute, But Purposeful
This is the lighthouse at the northern tip of Roosevelt Island. The island is two miles long and a...
6 months ago
This is the lighthouse at the northern tip of Roosevelt Island. The island is two miles long and a tenth of a mile wide, cutting the East River into two roughly-equal half-channels. That alone makes the need for lighthouses at its tip reasonably clear, but the conditions are...
CONTEMPORIST
Patterned Brickwork Is Featured On The Exterior Of The Ace Hotel In Toronto
Photography by Scott Norseworthy Shim-Sutcliffe Architects has sent us photos of the Ace Hotel in...
a year ago
Photography by Scott Norseworthy Shim-Sutcliffe Architects has sent us photos of the Ace Hotel in Toronto, Canada, which has a red brick facade that draws guests in with a wood-lined opening. Working closely with the creative agency Atelier Ace, the architects of the hotel...
Old Structures...
Fake History For Real People
Most people don’t properly understand the built environment of their childhood until they grow up,...
4 months ago
Most people don’t properly understand the built environment of their childhood until they grow up, and even then maybe not until they’ve lived somewhere else and come home. Growing up in Queens, I didn’t question some of the styles around me that are not unique to the borough but...
CONTEMPORIST
These A-Frame Cabins Were Built To Create An Eco-Hotel In Italy
Atelier LAVIT has sent us images of their latest project LILELO / Little Leisure Lodge, which is an...
a year ago
Atelier LAVIT has sent us images of their latest project LILELO / Little Leisure Lodge, which is an eco-hotel made up of four independent cabins. Three of the cabins are dedicated to housing suites, with the fourth cabin acting as a common area with a generous outdoor space and a...
CONTEMPORIST
A 1970s Four Bedroom Home Renovated For A Couple That Loves To Entertain
Architecture firm Side Angle Side, has shared photos of a 1970s ranch home they renovated in Austin,...
2 months ago
Architecture firm Side Angle Side, has shared photos of a 1970s ranch home they renovated in Austin, Texas, for their clients that wanted a home for entertaining. The transformation involved converting a four-bedroom floor plan into a spacious, open, one bedroom home. A long...
CONTEMPORIST
An Exterior Of Vertical Wood Siding Helps This House Blend Into The Surrounding Forest
77 Architecture Studio has shared photos of a home they designed on the edge of a housing estate...
11 months ago
77 Architecture Studio has shared photos of a home they designed on the edge of a housing estate near the forest in central Poland, near Warsaw. The house with its vertical wood facade, gives way to the natural beauty of its surroundings, discreetly immersing its architecture...
The Modern House
Our guide to Twickenham: architectural splendour and riverside walks in south-west London
11 months ago
Old Structures...
Always Something New
No matter how many buildings you’ve seen, you can always find something that will surprise you. The...
7 months ago
No matter how many buildings you’ve seen, you can always find something that will surprise you. The picture above is not an underwater shot from the Titanic, it’s the cellar of a circa-1900 rowhouse. This was a house of some pretension when first built. As in most wider...
Old Structures...
Travelog: Far From Home
Traveling to another country usually gets you views of a built environment that is in some respects...
9 months ago
Traveling to another country usually gets you views of a built environment that is in some respects fundamentally different than the one you’re used to. London is, for a New Yorker, the worst place in the UK to get that feeling because of the many similarities between the two...
Contemporist...
Brick Is The Material Of Choice For This New Home
Architecture and interiors firm Enter Projects Asia, has shared photos of a home they completed in...
3 months ago
Architecture and interiors firm Enter Projects Asia, has shared photos of a home they completed in Phuket, Thailand, that blends design and traditional artisanal craftsmanship.
Old Structures...
A Year Later, Maybe
Yesterday, I was pondering the purpose of some of the strange steel framing near the top of the...
a month ago
Yesterday, I was pondering the purpose of some of the strange steel framing near the top of the Singer Building. Here’s another stereoscopic view of the building, after it was completed: We’ve got two men standing on a tiny setback roof – not a terrace or official observation...
Old Structures...
An Engineer For Dinner
The picture above is the front page of the menu and program from a dinner held in 1941, when...
11 months ago
The picture above is the front page of the menu and program from a dinner held in 1941, when “…engineers and patriots are needed!” I wrote about John Ericsson five years ago, and I still walk by his statue in Battery Park almost every day. I feel like the menu picture – which...
Common Edge
The Making of Ponchartrain Park in New Orleans
How a pair of wealthy outsiders, Edith and Edgar Stern, helped inspire the first neighborhood...
9 months ago
How a pair of wealthy outsiders, Edith and Edgar Stern, helped inspire the first neighborhood development exclusively available to Black middle-class families.
Archinect - Features
10 Controversial Buildings That Became Iconic Landmarks
Architectural landmarks often become beloved symbols of their cities, but many were not always...
2 months ago
Architectural landmarks often become beloved symbols of their cities, but many were not always welcomed with open arms. Throughout history, some of our most acclaimed structures have in fact provoked heated debates, divided public opinion, sparked fierce controversy, and in one...
Old Structures...
The Back Side
I’ve discussed the old Croton Distributing Reservoir several times before. It was the southernmost...
9 months ago
I’ve discussed the old Croton Distributing Reservoir several times before. It was the southernmost visible part of New York’s first really good water system, and occupied the same spot that the New York Public Library does today: 40th to 42nd Street, from Fifth Avenue to a little...
99% Invisible
Dear John and Roman [EPISODE]
Last year, Roman Mars teamed up with Hank Green to guest host Dear Hank & John — this year he’s back...
a year ago
Last year, Roman Mars teamed up with Hank Green to guest host Dear Hank & John — this year he’s back on the Greens’ show once again, but this time with Hank’s brother John. In their podcast Dear Hank & John, “hosts John and Hank Green (who are also authors and YouTubers) offer...
devonzuegel.com
Book notes: Against the Grain, by James C. Scott
Here are some notes and quotes that particularly stood out to me from each chapter of Against the...
over a year ago
Here are some notes and quotes that particularly stood out to me from each chapter of Against the Grain. This isn't a summary of the book. It's mostly for my future self to refer back to (and thus probably missing a lot for someone who hasn't read it), but the tidbits are so...
The Wandering...
Constructing the Pattern on the Sala de la Barca Ceiling
I was flipping through Owen Jones’s Grammar of Ornament a couple months ago, and my eye was caught...
8 months ago
I was flipping through Owen Jones’s Grammar of Ornament a couple months ago, and my eye was caught by this handsome pattern I had not noticed before. This is Jones’s Plate XLII, in the chapter on designs from the Alhambra in Granada, Spain. He calls it, “Part of the ceiling of...
Blog - Guerrilla...
Shelter of Man
With the publication of Shelter of Man in Guerrila Cartography’s forthcoming Shelter: An Atlas, I...
over a year ago
With the publication of Shelter of Man in Guerrila Cartography’s forthcoming Shelter: An Atlas, I can officially call myself a guerrilla cartographer. I’m not just an artist anymore. My relationship with cartography developed while studying architecture in Australia. I might have...
Old Structures...
180 Years
I found myself in Greenport NY for a project and was pleasantly surprised by the presence of the old...
4 months ago
I found myself in Greenport NY for a project and was pleasantly surprised by the presence of the old train station there. It’s not the current station, which is a bare concrete platform off to the right of the picture, and it’s not the original station, but that’s okay. As you...
Common Edge
The Enduring Legacy of Frank Lloyd Wright
Why we still care, almost seven decades after his death.
3 months ago
Why we still care, almost seven decades after his death.
Archinect - Features
Architects, How Is Work Feeling These Days?
We want to hear from our community: How are you feeling about the economic outlook of your firm and...
7 months ago
We want to hear from our community: How are you feeling about the economic outlook of your firm and sector? How easy or difficult are you finding it to secure projects? What is your employment outlook? What are you hearing from clients?
Fill out our anonymous survey below.
Old Structures...
Possibly
The title of this 1958 photo by Angelo Rizzuto is “Aerial view of street, possibly Park Avenue, with...
8 months ago
The title of this 1958 photo by Angelo Rizzuto is “Aerial view of street, possibly Park Avenue, with raised medians separating traffic in each direction, high-rise buildings lining both sides of the street.” That’s definitely Park Avenue looking north from approximately 89th...
Coffee with an...
Design Paths
Design is hard. The path you follow from start to finish is never a straight line. If only there...
9 months ago
Design is hard. The path you follow from start to finish is never a straight line. If only there were a handful of clear diagrams to explain the process. This isn’t that:
99% Invisible
The Power Broker #07: Sec. Pete Buttigieg [EPISODE]
This is the seventh official episode of our ongoing series breaking down the 1974 Pulitzer Prize...
5 months ago
This is the seventh official episode of our ongoing series breaking down the 1974 Pulitzer Prize winning book, The Power Broker by our hero Robert Caro. This week, Roman and Elliott sit down with Pete Buttigieg, the US Secretary of Transportation. One of his major...
Old Structures...
Even A Joke Takes Effort
From 1911, Cass Gilbert’s sketches of his father (top) and himself (bottom): From the Woolworth...
8 months ago
From 1911, Cass Gilbert’s sketches of his father (top) and himself (bottom): From the Woolworth Building lobby as completed in late 1912, the grotesque* of Gilbert holding a model of his building: Given that the grotesque is wearing glasses bit not a laurel wreath, a sketch much...
CONTEMPORIST
Metal Cladding Wraps Around The Large Gable Roof Of This House
BLA Design Group has shared photos of their latest project, a unique modern home that marries the...
a year ago
BLA Design Group has shared photos of their latest project, a unique modern home that marries the West and the East, linking a Chinese-Canadian family’s present lifestyle to their past memories. Located in Vancouver, Canada, the home has a prominent gable form that floats atop...
The Modern House
Architect Anaïs Bléhaut of Daab Design on restoring the balance of a Battersea terraced house
a year ago
A Weekly Dose of...
A Modernist Reads About Lutyens
Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens, the English architect who was born in 1869 and died in 1944, that is....
a year ago
Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens, the English architect who was born in 1869 and died in 1944, that is. Although a famous name, Lutyens was not an architect I had much familiarity with before I received a review copy of the first volume of The Architecture of Sir Edwin Lutyens....
devonzuegel.com
My questions about Próspera, answered
I recently visited Próspera, a Honduran startup city. I had a ton of questions and figured others...
over a year ago
I recently visited Próspera, a Honduran startup city. I had a ton of questions and figured others might too, so I wrote an FAQ to share what I learned:
Próspera FAQ
This FAQ is intended as a reference, covering the basic facts and current status of the project. My hope is that...
Old Structures...
Old-Fashioned Spelling
From 1907, an article called “New Sky-scrapers for New York” in the Metropolitan magazine gives us...
10 months ago
From 1907, an article called “New Sky-scrapers for New York” in the Metropolitan magazine gives us “The Willams [sic] Street Cañon”. The drawing seems pretty accurate. Here’s a similar view in a photo from 1928: I am a little suspicious of an article that misspells a street name...
Construction Physics
How did solar power get cheap? Part I
Solar photovoltaics (PV) have become one of the cheapest sources of electricity. Lazard’s estimate...
a year ago
Solar photovoltaics (PV) have become one of the cheapest sources of electricity. Lazard’s estimate of unsubsidized levelized cost of energy (LCOE)
Old Structures...
The Uniform of the Chief Engineer
From the UK, 1879, a picture of what the well-dressed chief naval engineer should wear. Perosnally,...
11 months ago
From the UK, 1879, a picture of what the well-dressed chief naval engineer should wear. Perosnally, I’m not very good at keeping clothing this good-looking for more than about ten minutes after I put it on, but I wouldn’t mind the sword. Below, the 1879 launch of HMS Agamemnon,...
Contemporist...
This Sculptural Home Is Full Of Curves And Surrounded By Landscaping
Niko Architect has shared photos of a sculptural home with curves they designed that's been built...
9 months ago
Niko Architect has shared photos of a sculptural home with curves they designed that's been built into an artificially created landscape.
Benny Kuriakose
Kanadukathan - A journey Through This Hidden Gem
On a splendid morning, I got down from the bus, greeted by the enchanting allure of Nemathanpetti...
10 months ago
On a splendid morning, I got down from the bus, greeted by the enchanting allure of Nemathanpetti near Karaikudi. Gopichettan was waiting...
CONTEMPORIST
Arched Geometry Adds Personality To This Office Building Lobby
Architect and interior design firm Atelier Cho Thompson, has shared photos of the lobby in a...
a year ago
Architect and interior design firm Atelier Cho Thompson, has shared photos of the lobby in a building in Boston, Massachusetts. Originally constructed as a shoe factory, the exterior of the building has an ornate stone facade, decorated with imagery depicting shoe manufacturing,...
A Weekly Dose of...
The Architecture of Suspense
The Architecture of Suspense: The Built World in the Films of Alfred Hitchcock
University of...
over a year ago
The Architecture of Suspense: The Built World in the Films of Alfred Hitchcock
University of Virginia Press, September 2022
Paperback (also available in hardcover and ebook) | 6-3/4 x 7-3/4 inches | 274 pages | 66 illustrations | English | ISBN: 9780813947679 | $29.50
PUBLISHER'S...
99% Invisible
The Fever Tree Hunt [EPISODE]
“Most heists target gold, jewels or cash. This one targeted illegal seeds. As the British...
a year ago
“Most heists target gold, jewels or cash. This one targeted illegal seeds. As the British established their sprawling empire across the subcontinent and beyond, they encountered a formidable adversary — malaria. There was a cure — the bark of the Andean cinchona tree. The only...
The Modern House
Suea is the cook and creative playing with her food in Brooklyn, New York
a year ago
Archinect - Features
Exploring Architecture’s Uncertain Nature With Schidlowski Fellow François Sabourin
Academic fellowships provide unique opportunities for designers and researchers to explore specific...
a year ago
Academic fellowships provide unique opportunities for designers and researchers to explore specific topics of interest while teaching. Archinect's Fellow Fellows series showcases individuals who are currently in or have recently finished an architecture fellowship.
For our...
Old Structures...
Two Ridiculous Snippets
First, Batman at the plate as a bat man: Second, the National League standings:
2 months ago
First, Batman at the plate as a bat man: Second, the National League standings:
Common Edge
Social Housing in America: Architects Must Answer the Call
They have a responsibility to the public to visualize the potential of social housing in America.
9 months ago
They have a responsibility to the public to visualize the potential of social housing in America.
The Modern House
Furnishing Futures: the charity improving the lives of domestic abuse survivors – one piece of...
When a domestic abuse victim is given the keys to their new home, many will find that it comes...
3 weeks ago
When a domestic abuse victim is given the keys to their new home, many will find that it comes unfurnished, often without even carpets on the floors. It can be the cause of much stress for these women, who have recently fled an abusive home […]
CONTEMPORIST
3D Printed Sculptural Walls Surround The Interior Of This New Retail Store
Barcelona-based architecture firm External Reference, led by Italian architect Carmelo Zappulla, has...
5 months ago
Barcelona-based architecture firm External Reference, led by Italian architect Carmelo Zappulla, has shared photos of a retail store design they completed for fashion brand PINKO, which includes an interior lined with 3D printed design elements. Based on the history of the...
Common Edge
Art & Architecture Writers Demand Fair Pay
Wages for free-lance journalists, covering the built environment, have been stagnant or in decline...
a year ago
Wages for free-lance journalists, covering the built environment, have been stagnant or in decline for years.
Common Edge
The Deceptive Grandeur of City Skylines
Empty office towers are likely to remain that way for years.
4 months ago
Empty office towers are likely to remain that way for years.
99% Invisible
Spirit Halloween [EPISODE]
Each fall, across the United States and Canada, around 1500 empty storefronts are taken up by the...
2 months ago
Each fall, across the United States and Canada, around 1500 empty storefronts are taken up by the signature yellow, orange and black signage of Spirit Halloween. The seasonal retailer sells Halloween masks, Halloween costumes, Halloween costumes for dogs, Halloween decorations,...
Old Structures...
Someone Else’s Entertainment
Not everything you find on a rooftop is of much interest.
21 hours ago
Not everything you find on a rooftop is of much interest.
99% Invisible
Orange Alternative [EPISODE]
In the months following the invasion of Ukraine, cryptic anti-war graffiti began popping up across...
a year ago
In the months following the invasion of Ukraine, cryptic anti-war graffiti began popping up across Russia. People started writing out the phrase “no war” using asterisks instead of the various letters in order to disguise the meaning of the message. Then back in September, a...
Old Structures...
Travelog: Damage and Weirdness
Just because a building is cute, doesn’t mean it won’t have damage. Someone has done a pretty...
9 months ago
Just because a building is cute, doesn’t mean it won’t have damage. Someone has done a pretty thorough job of strapping the corners of this small building in Bath, as well as installing some kind of pinning at the middle of the side wall. It’s not clear which way the floor spans...
Old Structures...
Just Because I Like It
A view of 99 Prince Street: It’s a little hard to believe it today, but this was built simply an...
a month ago
A view of 99 Prince Street: It’s a little hard to believe it today, but this was built simply an ordinary commercial building with retail and office space. It was completed in 1888 by architect William Schickel working for “J. J. Astor.” That was either John Jacob Astor III near...
The Modern House
Explore Simon Allford’s ‘family home in the sky’ in our new film series
10 months ago
The Modern House
How to reduce carbon emissions at home
a year ago
Old Structures...
Overgrowth
It’s worth taking a look at two pictures of Newspaper Row/Printing House Square. First, around 1900:...
9 months ago
It’s worth taking a look at two pictures of Newspaper Row/Printing House Square. First, around 1900: Second, 1936, from Berenice Abbott’s “Changing New York” project. We have the same line-up in both pictures, from left to right: The World Building, the Tribune Building, the New...
The Solarchitecture...
7 key principles of solar passive design - Part 2.
Balance it all with local climate and a holistic energy calculation.
over a year ago
Balance it all with local climate and a holistic energy calculation.
Old Structures...
Silly. But…
After a site visit in Sunset Park yesterday, I was on the ferry back to Manhattan and I happened to...
5 months ago
After a site visit in Sunset Park yesterday, I was on the ferry back to Manhattan and I happened to look out the window. Maybe it’s only obvious to me. That’s our office, as seen looking up Broad Street from its foot at the East River.
CONTEMPORIST
Before & After – Remodeled Kitchen And Bathrooms For A Mid-Century Modern Home
M Monroe Design has sent us photos of a contemporary remodel they recently completed for a...
a year ago
M Monroe Design has sent us photos of a contemporary remodel they recently completed for a mid-century modern home in Newport Beach, California, that includes a new kitchen as well as the main bathroom and a kids’ bathroom. Before – The KitchenThe original kitchen had a tiled...
devonzuegel.com
Inflation propagates unevenly
Inflation hits some parts of the economy harder and faster than others. It's obvious once you say...
over a year ago
Inflation hits some parts of the economy harder and faster than others. It's obvious once you say it, and yet the way pundits and academics talk about inflation glosses over this reality. As a result, most people who haven't had direct experience with high inflation have a flawed...
The Modern House
How a love of Japan and the 1970s shaped Sherrill Smith’s Hackney home
a year ago
CONTEMPORIST
Before & After – A Remodeled 1950s Ranch Home
Photography by Studio Robert Jamieson (before photos), August Haeuser (exterior), Sam Orberter...
a year ago
Photography by Studio Robert Jamieson (before photos), August Haeuser (exterior), Sam Orberter (kitchen) Studio Robert Jamieson has shared photos of a 1950s ranch home remodel they completed in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. When the owners purchased this home outside of...
The Modern House
How time-worn textures – and rethought spaces – brought new life to woodland cabin-like home in...
11 months ago
There are two types...
My Meals With Bob: My Mini Memoir in Common Edge
A photo of New York 1900. showing two of the four images of the Colonial Club in the book. We...
over a year ago
A photo of New York 1900. showing two of the four images of the Colonial Club in the book. We included so many images of the pleasant but unremarkable building because that was where we wrote the book, in Robert A.M. … Continue reading →
The post My Meals With Bob: My Mini Memoir...
Construction Physics
How the Car Came to LA
Since at least the 1960s, urbanists have bemoaned the car-centric nature of US transportation. In...
a year ago
Since at least the 1960s, urbanists have bemoaned the car-centric nature of US transportation. In her 1961 “The Death and Life of Great American Cities," Jane Jacobs notes that “everyone who values cities is disturbed by automobiles”: Traffic arteries, along with parking lots,...
The Modern House
How designer Alison Lloyd’s Hackney home and garden caters to her collecting
a year ago
The Solarchitecture...
Create homes that are havens for health and vitality
Life is too short to spend it in bad buildings.
a year ago
Life is too short to spend it in bad buildings.
Contemporist...
A' Design Awards & Competition - Call for Entries
A’ Design Award & Competition is the Worlds’ leading design accolade reaching design enthusiasts...
10 months ago
A’ Design Award & Competition is the Worlds’ leading design accolade reaching design enthusiasts around the world, and showcasing 18,000 award winners from 139 different design disciplines.
99% Invisible
Autism Pleasantville [EPISODE]
A few years back, journalist Lauren Ober was diagnosed with autism. She then made a podcast about...
9 months ago
A few years back, journalist Lauren Ober was diagnosed with autism. She then made a podcast about her experience called The Loudest Girl in the World. And she found herself imagining a fantasy world where everything is tailored to Lauren’s very specific autistic needs. And she...
99% Invisible
Cooking with Gas [EPISODE]
Back in January, Bloomberg News published a story quoting an obscure government official named...
a year ago
Back in January, Bloomberg News published a story quoting an obscure government official named Richard Trumka Jr. He works with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which regulates stuff like furniture and electronics and household appliances. Basically, the agency is supposed...
The Modern House
A handsome mid-century house designed by a Hepworth in Glastonbury
a year ago
Old Structures...
A Sense Of The Past
The thing about spending a week discussing the caissons of the Brooklyn Bridge is that it all feels...
a year ago
The thing about spending a week discussing the caissons of the Brooklyn Bridge is that it all feels almost like fiction. The caissons have been buried in the sand at the bottom of the East River for more than 150 years. I know they are there because I know how to read historical...
CONTEMPORIST
A Black Kitchen Is A Bold Design Choice For This Home
Photography by Aaron Pocock sense of space [SOS Architects] has sent us photos of a contemporary...
a year ago
Photography by Aaron Pocock sense of space [SOS Architects] has sent us photos of a contemporary home they recently completed, that includes an unexpected all-black kitchen. Photography by Mike Baker The striking black kitchen facilitates the owners’ love for cooking and...
The Modern House
Hot on the heels of modernity: how our heritage buildings are catching up with us
This summer, Sphinx Hill in Oxfordshire became Britain’s youngest listed building. Built in the late...
4 months ago
This summer, Sphinx Hill in Oxfordshire became Britain’s youngest listed building. Built in the late 90s, the listing was was the result of a successful application by the Twentieth Century Society. Its chairman Hugh Pearman suggests that it stands as a youthful reminder of where...
Contemporist...
A’ Design Awards And Competition – The Winners
A’ Design Award & Competition is the Worlds’ leading design accolade reaching design enthusiasts in...
a year ago
A’ Design Award & Competition is the Worlds’ leading design accolade reaching design enthusiasts in over 114 countries.
Construction Physics
Goolsbee and Syverson on Construction Productivity
Several people have asked me about a new NBER working paper that takes a look at construction...
a year ago
Several people have asked me about a new NBER working paper that takes a look at construction productivity (a popular topic around here), “The Strange and Awful Path of Productivity in the US Construction Sector,” by Austan Goolsbee and Chad Syverson. This paper doesn’t bring any...
devonzuegel.com
Markets in everything at the Duomo
You're not allowed inside the Duomo with your shoulders uncovered. We learned this the hard way. I...
over a year ago
You're not allowed inside the Duomo with your shoulders uncovered. We learned this the hard way. I was wearing a spaghetti strap dress (it's 92℉/33℃ and humid here in Milan), so they stopped my little group at the entrance, after we'd already purchased 3 tickets.
Luckily, we...
devonzuegel.com
Part 6: Is the proposed new city in California climate resilient?
A new city has been proposed in California, and I’ve never been more captivated by a vision for the...
8 months ago
A new city has been proposed in California, and I’ve never been more captivated by a vision for the future of my home state in my lifetime. This post is part of a series I’m writing about this bold proposal.
One of the biggest questions I had when I first learned about this...
The Solarchitecture...
Case study #2 - Sunbeam A-frame
Let's start 2023 with presenting one of my dearest projects.
a year ago
Let's start 2023 with presenting one of my dearest projects.
Common Edge
The Brilliant, Unhinged Spectacle of Megalopolis
A rare film that celebrates design and urban planning, Coppola’s latest epic is a mishmash of...
2 months ago
A rare film that celebrates design and urban planning, Coppola’s latest epic is a mishmash of architectural, cinematic, and literary history.
99% Invisible
The Los Angeles Leaf Blower Wars [EPISODE]
The leaf blower is one of the most hated objects in the modern world. They’re loud, they pollute,...
6 months ago
The leaf blower is one of the most hated objects in the modern world. They’re loud, they pollute, and… how important is a leafless lawn anyway? In a lot of towns and cities, the gas-powered leaf blower has been banned. In others, there are strict guidelines on where and when they...
The Architectural...
The Classic Planning Herald International: A Window into the Global New Traditional Architecture...
The Classic Planning Herald International is a new quarterly magazine from the Classic Planning...
5 days ago
The Classic Planning Herald International is a new quarterly magazine from the Classic Planning Institute. The project offers insights into what is happening in the New Traditional Architecture community and aims to challenge the modernist dogma. In this article, Michelle Sofge...
Construction Physics
How to Build a 50,000 Ton Forging Press
In the late 1940s and early 1950s, a revolution took place in American military aircraft design.
4 months ago
In the late 1940s and early 1950s, a revolution took place in American military aircraft design.
SOCKS
Man Ray, Mathematical Objects (1934-36)
The collection of 19th-century three-dimensional models of algebraic and differential equations at...
11 months ago
The collection of 19th-century three-dimensional models of algebraic and differential equations at the Institut Henri Poincaré in Paris made a great impression on Surrealist artists. Allegedly, after Max Ernst brought these wood, metal, wire, and plaster forms to Man Ray’s...
Common Edge
Our Cities Aren’t Dead Yet!
Forget the “doom loops,” there are plenty of indicators that urban centers are recovering.
a year ago
Forget the “doom loops,” there are plenty of indicators that urban centers are recovering.
devonzuegel.com
Buenos Aires recommendations
I wrote a Buenos Aires guide with recommendations and tips for a group of friends I was traveling...
over a year ago
I wrote a Buenos Aires guide with recommendations and tips for a group of friends I was traveling with in December 2021, and I figured it might be useful to other people too. I adore Buenos Aires and spend about a month each year there, so I'm always thrilled to hear when friends...
Common Edge
The Clever Trick for Living in 350 Square Feet
The solution, surprisingly, lies beyond the walls of our home.
4 months ago
The solution, surprisingly, lies beyond the walls of our home.
Old Structures...
Travelog: Listed
When I’m traveling and therefore don’t know anything about most of the structures around, I simply...
9 months ago
When I’m traveling and therefore don’t know anything about most of the structures around, I simply take pictures and hope that I’ll be able to identify them later. Sometimes it’s quite easy. I came across this little Victorian masterpiece last week and it turns out it’s listed,...
The Modern House
Discover the Secret Garden House | A Modern Eco Home Hidden Behind a 300-Year-Old Wall
a month ago
Common Edge
Warlords in Our Midst
Why Elon Musk is worse than science fiction.
4 months ago
Why Elon Musk is worse than science fiction.
Old Structures...
Elsewhere in the Archipelago
After more than 30 years, it will soon be possible for the public to again visit Hart Island, at...
a year ago
After more than 30 years, it will soon be possible for the public to again visit Hart Island, at least on some days and as part of guided tours. Given the nature of the island – it’s been the potter’s field for New York City for over 150 years – it’s a slightly weird place to go,...
Old Structures...
The Queen Anne Style Is Rare In New York
I was on the Upper East Side and saw two houses that don’t quite fit in on Park Avenue north of 69th...
10 months ago
I was on the Upper East Side and saw two houses that don’t quite fit in on Park Avenue north of 69th Street. Those two rowhouses are listed in the records of the Upper East Side Historic District as having been built between 1882 and 1885 as part of a larger row, with the other...
Common Edge
In Praise of a Great Mentor: Working With Geoffrey Bawa
Life-long lessons from the father of Tropical Modernism.
a year ago
Life-long lessons from the father of Tropical Modernism.
Old Structures...
Fuzzy
Structural steel and composite steel deck used with concrete slabs need to be fireproofed. Ducts,...
a month ago
Structural steel and composite steel deck used with concrete slabs need to be fireproofed. Ducts, pipes, lights, and electrical conduits do not.
Common Edge
Architecture and the God Problem
Defining divinity and higher powers, in the context of design, is often fraught.
a year ago
Defining divinity and higher powers, in the context of design, is often fraught.
Contemporist...
An Undulating Wood Ceiling Inspired By Ocean Waves And Nearby Mountains
ARRCC has shared photos of a remodel they recently completed for a home in Cape Town, South Africa,...
a month ago
ARRCC has shared photos of a remodel they recently completed for a home in Cape Town, South Africa, that retained the original footprint, and received a contemporary update with a new undulating cast in-place concrete roof lined with wood on the inside.
The Wandering...
Mapping Francis Younghusband in the Gobi Desert, 1887, Part 3: Hun-kua-ling sandhills to Ya-hu oasis
[Go back to Part 2: From the Galpin Gobi to the Hun-kua-ling sandhills.] From here to the Ya-hu...
over a year ago
[Go back to Part 2: From the Galpin Gobi to the Hun-kua-ling sandhills.] From here to the Ya-hu oasis (which Younghusband reaches on June 23rd) the route is obscure, and we find old maps less useful. We have to rely more upon comparing his route description with images of the...
Archinect - Features
Let's Talk About Architectural Licensure
Welcome to Archinect In-Depth: Licensure. Over the coming weeks, Archinect will explore the journey...
7 months ago
Welcome to Archinect In-Depth: Licensure. Over the coming weeks, Archinect will explore the journey undertaken by those in the United States seeking to practice as a licensed architect, including reflections on the history of licensure, comparisons to other countries, the cost...
Construction Physics
Semiconductor fab reading list
Like with most types of construction, there's no one source that explains how a semiconductor fab is...
7 months ago
Like with most types of construction, there's no one source that explains how a semiconductor fab is built and operates. But there's an enormous amount written about semiconductors and the technology used to manufacture them, much of it excellent and informative, which makes it...
CONTEMPORIST
Ceramic Forms Surrounding The Windows Of This New Building Give It A Unique Character
Photography © Sebastian van Damme De Zwarte Hond and Loer Architecten have shared photos of a...
a year ago
Photography © Sebastian van Damme De Zwarte Hond and Loer Architecten have shared photos of a building they recently completed in Groningen, Netherlands, that combines modern design with ceramic elements. Photography © Marcel Ijzerman The architects worked together with ceramic...
Blog - Guerrilla...
Guerrillas in the Midst: Crowdsourcing Cartography
When I think about what Guerrilla Cartography does, I think of building and creating something new...
3 months ago
When I think about what Guerrilla Cartography does, I think of building and creating something new from many different pieces, like a puzzle that only makes sense once it’s put together. But unlike a puzzle, there is no single correct way to put the pieces together, as they can...
The Wandering...
Mapping Francis Younghusband in the Gobi Desert, 1887, Part 4: from the Ya-hu oasis to Hami.
[Back to Part 3: from the Hun-kua-ling sandhills to the Ya-hu oasis] From Ya-Hu to Hami, we can see...
over a year ago
[Back to Part 3: from the Hun-kua-ling sandhills to the Ya-hu oasis] From Ya-Hu to Hami, we can see that Younghusband now has to turn south, as his own map shows. The journey takes from June 23rd to July 4th, or twelve days. His mapmaker places Ula Khutun almost halfway from...
Common Edge
How Architects Deal With Demolished Designs
Buildings don’t belong to architects, but to the culture that created them.
a year ago
Buildings don’t belong to architects, but to the culture that created them.
Old Structures...
Not Saved
I vaguely know Fort Tilden – a former army base near the west end of the Rockaway peninsula – but...
3 months ago
I vaguely know Fort Tilden – a former army base near the west end of the Rockaway peninsula – but its remote location and the lack of anything there that really interests me mean that I don’t know it particularly well. So the headline “Time to pay last respects to the abandoned...
SOCKS
Architectural Narrative: “New York City: The Edge of Enigma” by Francisco Javier Rencoret (1991)
In 1991, Francisco Javier Rencoret, a Chilean architect and then Fulbright scholar at Cornell...
a year ago
In 1991, Francisco Javier Rencoret, a Chilean architect and then Fulbright scholar at Cornell University, published New York City: The Edge of Enigma, (Princeton Architectural Press), a visual essay that retraces the myth of the foundation and development of New York City....
The Modern House
Father Studio, creators of our sonic identity, on why sound is an integral part of design
a year ago
CONTEMPORIST
Exterior Lighting Shows Off The Post And Beam Structure Of This Home
Ward + Blake Architects has shared photos of a modern post and beam home they completed in Wyoming,...
a year ago
Ward + Blake Architects has shared photos of a modern post and beam home they completed in Wyoming, that’s been placed on a hillside, just above a farmable portion of the site to preserve the ongoing agricultural use of the property. The home has generous roof overhangs that...
Common Edge
Everything Is (Not) Architecture: Environmental Design and Architecture’s Slippery Slope
Does it exist, distinct from buildings and bodies?
a year ago
Does it exist, distinct from buildings and bodies?
The Modern House
A fossil-shaped eco home in the rolling countryside of Devon
a year ago
Old Structures...
A Year Late…
…but who cares? Today is a de facto holiday for a lot of people, and that seems like a good time for...
5 months ago
…but who cares? Today is a de facto holiday for a lot of people, and that seems like a good time for a blog post I should have written last summer. Some of our projects are very big, involving hundreds of thousands of square feet of building. Some are not. The smallest structure...
A Weekly Dose of...
This Blog in 2023
One year ago, in the first post of 2022, I shifted this blog from (almost) daily posts about...
a year ago
One year ago, in the first post of 2022, I shifted this blog from (almost) daily posts about architecture books to just once a week, changing the name of the blog to reflect that. In the fifth of five bullet points reasoning why that was happening, I wrote: "I'm planning on...
99% Invisible
Player Piano [EPISODE]
The Last Archive is a history show. Our evidence is the evidence of history, the evidence of...
a year ago
The Last Archive is a history show. Our evidence is the evidence of history, the evidence of archives. Manuscripts, photographs, letters and diaries, government documents. Facebook posts, Youtube videos, DVDs. Oral histories. This stuff is known as the “historical record,” but of...
Archinect - Features
Exploring Coffee and Architecture With These Ten Mesmerizing Cafes
October 1st marks International Coffee Day, and to celebrate, we explore exceptional projects that...
a year ago
October 1st marks International Coffee Day, and to celebrate, we explore exceptional projects that exemplify the distinctive attributes and meticulous design considerations behind a diverse array of cafes across the globe.
Old Structures...
The Downside of Going Topless
The picture above shows two photos of the same building in Chelsea, where we finished a repair...
a month ago
The picture above shows two photos of the same building in Chelsea, where we finished a repair project about a year ago. The left side is a tax photo from the 1940s; the right photo was taken after we were done with our work. The viaduct in the back is the Highline. This 1902...
The Modern House
A mid-century gem among the treetops on the Dulwich Estate in Crystal Palace
a year ago
Benny Kuriakose
Athangudi Palace : The Chettinad Architecture Marvel
The Nattukottai Chettiars were traders since the time of the Chola Empire in the 12th century and...
a year ago
The Nattukottai Chettiars were traders since the time of the Chola Empire in the 12th century and were the trading and banking group in...
Archinect - Features
AI, Complexity, and Ecological Futures: A Conversation with Alisa Andrasek
For Alisa Andrasek, a career in architecture represents a point of convergence for her dual passions...
a year ago
For Alisa Andrasek, a career in architecture represents a point of convergence for her dual passions for art and science. For the past two decades, a respect for both the mathematic and emotional, the computational and the creative, has propelled Andrasek's enthralling...
The Modern House
Akram Khan: the poignant story of a man who found his voice through dance
Matt Gibberd’s guest on this week’s podcast is the dancer and choreographer Akram Khan. Having...
11 months ago
Matt Gibberd’s guest on this week’s podcast is the dancer and choreographer Akram Khan. Having danced since he was very small, Akram, who was born in London to Bangladeshi parents, is one of the most acclaimed names in contemporary dance working today, known for his […]
Archinect - Features
How ‘Architect’ Became a Protected Title in the United States
In the second part of Archinect In-Depth: Licensure, we chart the origins of licensure in the United...
7 months ago
In the second part of Archinect In-Depth: Licensure, we chart the origins of licensure in the United States. We explore how a combination of safety concerns, technological advances, and insecurity among architects over their own relevance led to the protection of the title...
CONTEMPORIST
A Contemporary Ranch Home Bathed In Light And Natural Materials
Farmer Payne Architects together with interior designer firm Suede Studio, have completed a ranch...
4 months ago
Farmer Payne Architects together with interior designer firm Suede Studio, have completed a ranch house in Idaho, that seamlessly integrates rustic charm and contemporary elegance. Adorned with authentic hand-hewn heavy timber and stone with big grout joints reminiscent of...
Old Structures...
Boarding
Sometimes the degree to which the past was simultaneously similar to the present and different...
8 months ago
Sometimes the degree to which the past was simultaneously similar to the present and different catches me by suprise. I was in the far west Village a few days ago and this building caught my eye. It’s a nice 1890s semi-industrial building turned into apartments There’s a sign...
A Weekly Dose of...
The Past and Future of Architecture Books
The recent receipt of two review books got me thinking about the past and the future of architecture...
a year ago
The recent receipt of two review books got me thinking about the past and the future of architecture books. The first one is This is Architecture: Writing on Buildings, a collection of excerpted texts about buildings, spanning from the mid-1800s to the 2010s.
This is...
Archinect - Features
'Architect' is a Protected Title. What About 'Architectural?'
Our Archinect In-Depth: Licensure series continues with an examination of exceptions and nuances...
4 months ago
Our Archinect In-Depth: Licensure series continues with an examination of exceptions and nuances related to the protection of the title 'architect' in the United States. In particular, we ask how architect-adjacent titles such as 'architectural designer,' 'architectural intern,'...
devonzuegel.com
To rent or to sell, that is the question
As a real estate developer, one of the big decisions you need to make is whether you will rent or...
a year ago
As a real estate developer, one of the big decisions you need to make is whether you will rent or sell the buildings you've built.
Income from rentals flows in steadily over years, while income from sales hits all at once. This essential difference is simple but has many...
The Modern House
Outside chance: six homes with spectacular gardens
“Gardening is a promise,” said Piet Oudolf in Thomas Piper’s meditative documentary about the...
4 months ago
“Gardening is a promise,” said Piet Oudolf in Thomas Piper’s meditative documentary about the pioneering Dutch garden designer. “It doesn’t have to be there. You’re looking for what will be there.” From a particularly pastoral front garden in Brixton, to a transportive Cornish...
Old Structures...
Scant Evidence
A piece of a single sentence in the 1893 Baedeker description of New York sent me down a rabbit...
a week ago
A piece of a single sentence in the 1893 Baedeker description of New York sent me down a rabbit hole. In a proper library I believe that I’d find a hard answer but playing around on the internet from hime, I’m left with a partial guess. The phrase, under the heading of Theaters...
The Modern House
Bright Futures: six projects packed with potential
The best spaces are seldom served to you on a silver platter, instead requiring a bit of hard graft...
11 months ago
The best spaces are seldom served to you on a silver platter, instead requiring a bit of hard graft to bring out the glimmer. From an incredible volume at the foot of a Barbican tower to ambitious Oxford expansion, we present six doer-uppers ideal for […]
Old Structures...
Four, Maybe Five, Maybe Six Bridges
Walking along South Street, which is to say along the East River waterfront. First up, the view from...
7 months ago
Walking along South Street, which is to say along the East River waterfront. First up, the view from Rutgers Street and South Street: We’ve got a pseudo-dramatic, badly framed view of the Manhattan tower of the Manhattan Bridge, with the elevated FDR Drive blocking most of it....
Construction Physics
How to Build an AI Data Center
This piece is the first in a new series from the Institute for Progress (IFP), called Compute in...
6 months ago
This piece is the first in a new series from the Institute for Progress (IFP), called Compute in America: Building the Next Generation of AI Infrastructure at Home. In this series, we examine the challenges of accelerating the American AI data center buildout. Future pieces will...
Archinect - Features
At Tyler’s Urban Workshop, Architecture Students Build With, and For, Underserved...
On November 8th, the Tyler School of Art and Architecture at Temple University will host the...
a month ago
On November 8th, the Tyler School of Art and Architecture at Temple University will host the Urban Workshop Symposium, the latest iteration of the Urban Workshop's engagements in community-based design and education. The event brings to the fore questions, conversations, and...
The Modern House
Architect Sophie Hicks on life in her hidden concrete haven in Kensington
a year ago
Archinect - Features
The Industry Reacts to Interest Rate Cuts: Archinect’s State of AEC September 2024
Welcome to the fourth installment of Archinect's new series, State of AEC. At the end of each month,...
2 months ago
Welcome to the fourth installment of Archinect's new series, State of AEC. At the end of each month, we will guide you through the latest analyses, indexes, and trends on how the architecture and construction industries are performing economically.
Since our last edition, the...
The Modern House
New Wave: seven coastal homes for sale in Kent and Sussex
In the middle of the 19th century, well-meaning Victorian doctors would advise their patients to...
a year ago
In the middle of the 19th century, well-meaning Victorian doctors would advise their patients to take ‘the sea cure’. Dutifully, they would go to the coast – particularly in the south – bathe in the waters and draw in lungfuls of salty air. Smart promenades, […]
Old Structures...
An Unfortunate Comparison
I’m not a big fan of mid-twentieth-century modernism, and I still agree that Bertrand Goldberg’s...
6 months ago
I’m not a big fan of mid-twentieth-century modernism, and I still agree that Bertrand Goldberg’s Marina City is remarkable architecture. From the north: From the south: There’s just one little detail that got stuck in my head that partially ruins looking at it for me. Every...
CONTEMPORIST
A Modern L-Shaped Home Surrounded By A Pine Tree Forest
Design build firm MAFCOhouse, has shared photos of a contemporary home they completed in Haliburton,...
a year ago
Design build firm MAFCOhouse, has shared photos of a contemporary home they completed in Haliburton, Ontario, for a family that wanted a place in cottage country with a cozy vibe. Working with the family, MAFCOhouse searched hard and found a four-acre lot with southern and...
Contemporist...
This Wood Watchtower Is Also A Home For Bats
NEXT Architects has shared photos of Watchtower Einderheide, a lookout in The Netherlands, that also...
2 months ago
NEXT Architects has shared photos of Watchtower Einderheide, a lookout in The Netherlands, that also doubles as a shelter for bats.
The Modern House
Bright Sparks: five light-filled homes for sale
The magic of natural light is not to be underestimated: it can lift our spirits, improve our...
a year ago
The magic of natural light is not to be underestimated: it can lift our spirits, improve our circadian rhythms, inspire us to learn and make our plants happy. But that’s not all: when it comes to our homes, it can transform a space entirely, elevating […]
Old Structures...
Providing Constructibility
You never know what you’ll find in the subway. Above, one of the columns on the Brooklyn-bound...
a year ago
You never know what you’ll find in the subway. Above, one of the columns on the Brooklyn-bound platform of the R train at Whitehall Street, supporting the station roof, some twenty feet of soil, and the street above. The station opened in 1918 as part of the Dual Contracts...
The Beauty of...
Tubular Belle (Køge Nord station, Køge, Denmark)
Stuck on the E20 motorway heading for Copenhagen? Køge Nord station very much hopes you are...
over a year ago
Stuck on the E20 motorway heading for Copenhagen? Køge Nord station very much hopes you are...
The Wandering...
Transforming French WW1 Lambert Coordinates to WGS84
Nord de Guerre Here’s a survey plat made in 1919 by a US Army unit in France. In the aftermath of...
11 months ago
Nord de Guerre Here’s a survey plat made in 1919 by a US Army unit in France. In the aftermath of WW1, teams of American military surveyors produced these as they went around France mapping the grave sites of fallen soldiers. On this plat we can see a number of bearings and...
Common Edge
An AI Experiment: Why Do Lawyers Make More Than Architects?
We asked ChatGPT a question that has plagued the profession for decades.
a year ago
We asked ChatGPT a question that has plagued the profession for decades.
99% Invisible
The Big Dig [EPISODE]
Over its more than 40 year journey from conception to completion, Boston’s Big Dig massive...
a year ago
Over its more than 40 year journey from conception to completion, Boston’s Big Dig massive infrastructure project, which rerouted the central highway in the heart of the city, encountered every hurdle imaginable: ruthless politics, engineering challenges, secretive contractors,...
Construction Physics
The Story of Titanium
The earth contains a lot of titanium - it’s the ninth most abundant element in the earth’s crust. By...
a year ago
The earth contains a lot of titanium - it’s the ninth most abundant element in the earth’s crust. By mass, there’s more titanium in the earth’s crust than carbon by a factor of nearly 30, and more titanium than copper by a factor of nearly 100. But despite its abundance, it's...
A Weekly Dose of...
Architectural Exhibitions and Their Books
Preparing for this post I counted roughly one hundred books in my library that are related to...
a year ago
Preparing for this post I counted roughly one hundred books in my library that are related to exhibitions. Surprisingly, given that I tend to buy catalogs and other companion books to exhibitions I visit, only a quarter of those hundred are exhibitions I have seen in person....
The Beauty of...
R.I.P. W.C. (1930s Southern Railway toilets, Havant station, Hampshire, UK)
So farewell then, Havant station’s 1930s railway toilets. It is doubtful whether many passengers...
a year ago
So farewell then, Havant station’s 1930s railway toilets. It is doubtful whether many passengers will mourn their loss, but they are another piece of railway heritage that has slipped beyond grasp. If you care about the story of our railways, expressed through their built...
Common Edge
I’m A New Yorker, Not a NIMBY
Most New Yorkers care deeply about their great city and believe development shouldn’t be top-down...
2 months ago
Most New Yorkers care deeply about their great city and believe development shouldn’t be top-down and hidden from public scrutiny.
Benny Kuriakose
The Making of Unique Athangudi Tiles : An Unforgettable Experience
Chettinad, the land of wealthy Chettiars in the southern part of Tamil Nadu, is famous not only for...
a year ago
Chettinad, the land of wealthy Chettiars in the southern part of Tamil Nadu, is famous not only for its mouth-watering cuisine but also...
Old Structures...
Born In The Bronx
The central dome of the US Capitol on May 9, 1861: There was a certain symbolism to its incomplete...
6 months ago
The central dome of the US Capitol on May 9, 1861: There was a certain symbolism to its incomplete state given that the Civil War had begun the previous month, but that was a coincidence. The replacement of the original wooden dome had been planned for some time. The old dome was...
Common Edge
Awesome and Affordable: Making the Case for Great Housing
A new project in Los Angeles highlights the challenges—and the opportunities.
10 months ago
A new project in Los Angeles highlights the challenges—and the opportunities.
CONTEMPORIST
The Black Exterior Of This Home In The Forest Covers A White Minimalist Interior
Matière Première Architecture has completed a new home in Stanstead, Quebec, Canada, that has a...
a year ago
Matière Première Architecture has completed a new home in Stanstead, Quebec, Canada, that has a striking black exterior surrounded by the forest. The house’s design emphasizes its connection with a nearby stream by incorporating strategic window placements and a layout that...
Contemporist...
A Modern Farmhouse By The Sea In New Zealand
New Zealand architecture firm Studio John Irving Architects has shared photos of a modern farmhouse...
a year ago
New Zealand architecture firm Studio John Irving Architects has shared photos of a modern farmhouse they completed that's been designed like a collection of linked farm outbuildings.
The Modern House
Laurence Quinn, architect and founder of Modern Works, on the power of production
a year ago
99% Invisible
Empire of the Sum [EPISODE]
Whether or not you’re a fan of math, we’ve always had a need to count things. Maybe it’s to figure...
a year ago
Whether or not you’re a fan of math, we’ve always had a need to count things. Maybe it’s to figure out the maximum weight an airplane can safely hold, or the appropriate amount to tip after a meal, or the exact number of minutes in a year so you can accurately write the...
Archinect - Features
'The Relationship Between AI and Architecture Is Old Enough to Receive Social Security'; A...
Molly Wright Steenson's introduction to the world of computing came when she was ten years old. From...
a year ago
Molly Wright Steenson's introduction to the world of computing came when she was ten years old. From there, her career as a writer, designer, historian, and professor has taken her on a journey of understanding the past, present, and future of artificial intelligence and its...
devonzuegel.com
Everything is Amazing, But Nothing is Ours
Back in 2015, I wrote a blog post called Dropbox: the First Dead Decacorn. At the time, it was the...
over a year ago
Back in 2015, I wrote a blog post called Dropbox: the First Dead Decacorn. At the time, it was the most widely shared take I’d ever written. I learned several things from writing this piece, and none of them had to do with Dropbox: I learned, for instance, that a great way to get...
devonzuegel.com
Independence for whom?
I recently spent a day at Sea Ranch, a strange and beautiful place. Sea Ranch is a planned community...
over a year ago
I recently spent a day at Sea Ranch, a strange and beautiful place. Sea Ranch is a planned community with a distinctive architectural style: simple timber-frame structures clad in wooden siding, and gardens all planted with native flora. The Sea Ranch Design Committee enforces...
Benny Kuriakose
Designing Student Amenities That Encourage Creative Growth
Providing spaces in schools that promote extracurricular activities in children and grow interests,...
a year ago
Providing spaces in schools that promote extracurricular activities in children and grow interests, hobbies, and talents is highly...
Construction Physics
How I Write Posts
I sometimes get asked what my process is for researching and writing Substack posts. I always enjoy...
10 months ago
I sometimes get asked what my process is for researching and writing Substack posts. I always enjoy reading other people’s discussions of their writing process, so I thought it would be worthwhile to explain mine. First, some background. In school I was a competent but...
Contemporist...
A Contemporary Home Inspired By The Fachwerk-Style Houses Of Germany
Interior designer Tamara Strugova, together with her husband, has completed a contemporary home...
7 months ago
Interior designer Tamara Strugova, together with her husband, has completed a contemporary home whose design was inspired by the Fachwerk-style houses found in Hamburg, Germany, with their prominently exposed posts and beams.
Old Structures...
A Hidden Surprise, But Not Really
The picture above shows the nearly-complete Astor Court Apartments, on Broadway between 89th and...
a year ago
The picture above shows the nearly-complete Astor Court Apartments, on Broadway between 89th and 90th Street, in 1915. (As a side note, we’ve got some heavy hitters involved: the architect was Charles Platt, the contractor was Marc Eidlitz & Son, and the photographer was Irving...
Old Structures...
It Looked Familiar: A Perfect Match
Some gangsters in a car, running from The Shadow: A circa 1920 view of the Broad Street roman-temple...
6 months ago
Some gangsters in a car, running from The Shadow: A circa 1920 view of the Broad Street roman-temple facade of the New York Stock Exchange, with the Wilks Building immediately to its right and Federal Hall, with George Washington standing out front, on the far right. I don’t know...
Old Structures...
It Looked Familiar: Edward Hopper
From the comic “Powers”, Christian Walker sits by himself in a diner: Hopper’s 1942 painting...
3 weeks ago
From the comic “Powers”, Christian Walker sits by himself in a diner: Hopper’s 1942 painting “Nighthawks”: I’m a fan of Hopper, but this is his most famous work, so it’s not like it was all that difficult to place the reference. In his words, it’s a simplified version of reality...
Common Edge
Revisiting Brooklyn’s Barclays Center—a Telling Landscape
The arena and plaza have become notably more commercialized since 2012, while the towers lag in...
a year ago
The arena and plaza have become notably more commercialized since 2012, while the towers lag in affordability and represent a modular failure.
Contemporist...
A Glass-Enclosed Library And Home Office Creates A Separate Space Inside This Apartment
Canadian design firm Level Studio has shared photos of a loft apartment located in a building that...
a year ago
Canadian design firm Level Studio has shared photos of a loft apartment located in a building that was once home to offices but has been converted into residential apartments.
Old Structures...
Non-Demolished
When the West Side Highway – the limited access, elevated highway that was demolished in the 1970s...
5 months ago
When the West Side Highway – the limited access, elevated highway that was demolished in the 1970s and 80s – was planned in the 1920s, it made sense. From a viewpoint any later than about 1940 it was a terrible mistake. Bad planning and little maintenance doomed the old highway,...
Archinect - Features
The Longevity & Legacy of the 'Vanilla Architect': How a Monoculture Yields Cycles of...
This Op-Ed explores how unconscious bias of mentors, tokenism, and resultant patterns of system...
4 months ago
This Op-Ed explores how unconscious bias of mentors, tokenism, and resultant patterns of system justification reinforce a status quo that marginalizes women and people of color. These complex and long-lived dynamics are unpacked through personal anecdotes, historical analysis,...
The Modern House
Roksanda Ilinčić: the fashion designer’s colourful journey through Belgrade, Britain and Brazil
Roksanda Ilinčić has achieved that most select marker of success: a mononym. Since 2005, her name...
11 months ago
Roksanda Ilinčić has achieved that most select marker of success: a mononym. Since 2005, her name has been indelibly associated with her ethereal dress designs – by turns fluid, fantastical, functional and feminine – which have won her fans in some seriously high places, from […]
The Solarchitecture...
7-Stage Solar Design Review - launched!
Together we make your home healthier, full of sunlight & abound with natural energy
over a year ago
Together we make your home healthier, full of sunlight & abound with natural energy
A Weekly Dose of...
On the Future of Cities
The recent publication of two books prompted me to ponder the future of cities and do a write-up of...
a year ago
The recent publication of two books prompted me to ponder the future of cities and do a write-up of them together:
Implementing Urban Design: Green, Civic, and Community Strategies by Jonathan Barnett, published by Routledge, June 2023 (Amazon / Bookshop)
Renewing the Dream: The...
CONTEMPORIST
Red-Pigmented Concrete Screens Surround This New Home In Cape Town
Architecture firm SAOTA, together with interior design firm ARRCC, has recently completed a modern...
a year ago
Architecture firm SAOTA, together with interior design firm ARRCC, has recently completed a modern house in Cape Town, South Africa. The home was designed by Philip Olmesdahl, principal of SAOTA, for himself and his family, with him sharing, “When architects design their own...
devonzuegel.com
Inside Argentina's currency exchange black markets
In Argentina, your money is worth double if you skip the airport currency exchange and instead go to...
over a year ago
In Argentina, your money is worth double if you skip the airport currency exchange and instead go to one of the many black market exchanges hidden throughout Buenos Aires.
These illegal exchanges are called "cuevas" (the word for "cave" in Spanish), and they are a crucial part of...
McMansion Hell
New on Patreon: New Jersey Bonus Post (5 additional, “wonderful” rooms!“
new jersey bonus post: 5 additional, wonderful rooms | McMansionHell
New on Patreon: New Jersey...
3 weeks ago
new jersey bonus post: 5 additional, wonderful rooms | McMansionHell
New on Patreon: New Jersey Bonus Post (5 additional, “wonderful” rooms!“
The Wandering...
Mapping “Buffalo Days and Nights” by Peter Erasmus
The Maps for Books collection has a new page: Peter Erasmus’s Buffalo Days and Nights. In 1920,...
over a year ago
The Maps for Books collection has a new page: Peter Erasmus’s Buffalo Days and Nights. In 1920, Henry Thompson, an Alberta newspaperman, began interviewing 87-year-old Peter Erasmus, who lived near him in the area of Whitefish Lake, Alberta. Erasmus, who had been born in 1833 in...
The Modern House
Room for Improvement: designer Nat Buckley rethinks Energy Performance Certificates
2 months ago
CONTEMPORIST
A Tree House That Feels Like It’s Floating Inside The Forest
INTEGRA STUDIO ARQUITETURA has shared photos of a modern Tree House project they completed for the...
a year ago
INTEGRA STUDIO ARQUITETURA has shared photos of a modern Tree House project they completed for the NaCarapina accommodation complex, that’s located in Brazil. The Tree House which has the feeling of ‘floating inside the forest’, is fully integrated with the imposing Araucaria...
Old Structures...
Peeking Ahead
The picture above – an aquatint according to the New York Public Library – was created in 1834, and...
a year ago
The picture above – an aquatint according to the New York Public Library – was created in 1834, and shows an active urban setting, with families, men talking business or politics, carriages, and dogs. If you didn’t know the date you’d probably guess the nineteenth century; if you...
Contemporist...
Giant 'Woven' Fabric Graces The Window Of This Flagship Store
Architecture firm LAAB has shared photos the Cozey flagship retail store they designed in Toronto,...
a month ago
Architecture firm LAAB has shared photos the Cozey flagship retail store they designed in Toronto, Canada, that includes an eye-catching window showcase.
Common Edge
Urban Farming: A Sustainable Pathway Out of Nigeria’s Unfolding Food Crisis
Havana, Tokyo, and Paris offer successful examples of how it might work.
5 months ago
Havana, Tokyo, and Paris offer successful examples of how it might work.
Contemporist...
Large Folding Glass Walls Open This Home To A Courtyard
Narch Arquitectes has shared photos of a home they designed in Barcelona, Spain, that has large...
a year ago
Narch Arquitectes has shared photos of a home they designed in Barcelona, Spain, that has large folding windows that connect the interior to the inner courtyard and garden.
The Modern House
Spotlight on South-East London: listings for £500,000 and under to set your sights on
From the waterside delights of Deptford to the local-first feel of Dulwich, Crystal Palace’s...
a year ago
From the waterside delights of Deptford to the local-first feel of Dulwich, Crystal Palace’s community spirit to Camberwell’s gorgeous Georgian architecture – by way of Brockley, Blackheath and Borough, in all their vibrant variation – there isn’t much South-East London doesn’t...
CONTEMPORIST
A Cantilever At One End Allows This Home To Project Over The Land
Leah Martin, partner and founder of Allied8 Architects in Seattle, Washington, has shared photos of...
5 months ago
Leah Martin, partner and founder of Allied8 Architects in Seattle, Washington, has shared photos of a modern Orcas Island home she designed for herself and her family. This small home, which cantilevers at one end, sits on the top of a ridge and is anchored to the bedrock in six...
CONTEMPORIST
Fluted Concrete Walls Cut By Continuous Window Openings Define This Villa
NOMO STUDIO has shared photos of a modern home they’ve designed in Menorca, Spain, that features a...
a year ago
NOMO STUDIO has shared photos of a modern home they’ve designed in Menorca, Spain, that features a textured facade of fluted concrete walls. The fluted concrete walls are sliced by continuous window openings creating a combination of horizontal stripes that alternate between...
CONTEMPORIST
A Kansas Ranch Home Gets A Mid-Century Modern Inspired Renovation
FORWARD Design | Architecture has sent us photos of a home renovation they completed for an existing...
a year ago
FORWARD Design | Architecture has sent us photos of a home renovation they completed for an existing mid-century ranch in Leawood, Kansas. Before Photos The existing house was a small two-bedroom home, with the clients originally wanting a temporary addition with the intent of...
The Modern House
How Robin and Bronwen Burgess created a haven overlooking Hampstead Heath
a year ago
Archinect - Features
The US Just Defined a Zero Emissions Building: Is It Enough?
For the first time, the US government has issued a definition of a 'zero emission building.' While...
5 months ago
For the first time, the US government has issued a definition of a 'zero emission building.' While the effort to define a 'zero emission building' is both timely and commendable given the proliferation of unverified titles such as 'net zero' and 'carbon positive' in the AEC...
Old Structures...
Little, Yet Big
That’s 65 Phila Street in Saratoga Springs, an 1851 wood-frame house that had fallen on hard times....
7 months ago
That’s 65 Phila Street in Saratoga Springs, an 1851 wood-frame house that had fallen on hard times. People at the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation have been trying for a very long time to get the building repaired and re-occupied – the best way to ensure an old building’s...
Common Edge
How AI Can Help Us End Design Education Anachronisms
Let’s use the power of technology to actually improve architectural learning.
9 months ago
Let’s use the power of technology to actually improve architectural learning.
The Modern House
Knock on Wood: five homes making the best of nature’s most versatile material
Abundant, strong, durable – not to mention beautiful – wood has been used to build our homes for...
a year ago
Abundant, strong, durable – not to mention beautiful – wood has been used to build our homes for millennia. It’s not surprising, really, when you think how easy it is to access and work with, to say nothing of the ways in which it provides […]
CONTEMPORIST
A Seamless Terrazzo Flows From The Wall To The Countertop In This Kitchen
Studio Modijefsky has shared photos of a project where they transformed a 17th-century inn into a...
a year ago
Studio Modijefsky has shared photos of a project where they transformed a 17th-century inn into a modern family home in Nieuwersluis, The Netherlands. As part of the renovation, they designed a new inviting, and open-plan kitchen with a cooking island and a terrazzo countertop....
Contemporist...
This Prefab Home Was Installed On The Property In Just One Day
BIO-architects together with DublDom, have sent us photos of their latest project, DUB, a modular...
a year ago
BIO-architects together with DublDom, have sent us photos of their latest project, DUB, a modular single-family home in Russia.
Old Structures...
Outlived Its Welcome But Not The Need
I’ve been trawling in the HABS index and came across a survey from 1974 of the Bronx portion of the...
7 months ago
I’ve been trawling in the HABS index and came across a survey from 1974 of the Bronx portion of the Third Avenue elevated. After the rest of the line (in Manhattan and the very southernmost bit of the Bronx) was closed and demolished in the early 1950s, the portion from 149th...
Common Edge
Why Time Is a Problem for Architects
For many, it’s a lurch between copying the past or pretending that time doesn’t exist.
a year ago
For many, it’s a lurch between copying the past or pretending that time doesn’t exist.
Common Edge
What I Learned From Six Recessions in Architecture
Life is imperfect, and architects understand this better than most.
a month ago
Life is imperfect, and architects understand this better than most.
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