Luminale

Luminale is a bienalle of lighting culture, that was held in Frankfurt from 15-20 April 2012 in conjunction with Light+Building, a trade fair for architecture and technology.

This is the 6th time that Luminale will cast its spell on Frankfurt and the Rhine-Main region. After the rapid growth of the early years, it has levelled off with around 170 events and thus ranks among Europe’s established and important architecture and design festivals. Luminale puts the spotlight on Frankfurt and the region. Thanks to the combination of Light + Building and Luminale, target groups as varied as industrial companies, artisans, the retail and wholesale trades, research, the property business and the cultural scene can find everything they need together at the same place and time – discussions, business transactions, inspiration and the good feeling that the sector’s products are needed for the ecological conversion of society.

See report from Deutsche Welle about the Dutch design team DRIFT



Stunning. See also Luminale 2012 photos from hr online.

A logo for Human Rights

A universal symbol for Human Rights was announced in New York on 23 September 2011 following a world-wide competition seeking a suitable design. The Human Rights logo is an open source product, free to be used by everyone, everywhere, without restrictions for the purpose of promoting Human Rights.

The logo was designed by 32-year old Serbian graphic designer Predrag Štakić from Belgrade.

See reporting in Deutsche Welle (in English) and German Federal Foreign Office (Auswärtiges Amt) media release (in German).

The logo in different formats can be downloaded from a Logo for Human Rights.

The Story of Eames Furniture

I've previously written about the Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman and its launch in 1956.

German publisher Gestalten released a book in September 2010 about the designers, The Story of Eames Furniture. Publisher details

Release Date: September 2010
ISBN: 978-3-89955-230-0
Authors: Marilyn Neuhart with John Neuhart
Language: English
Features: 800 Pages, full cover, hardcover, 2 volumes in slipcase
Format: 25.5 x 29.2 cm
Catalog Price: €150,00 | US$199,00 | £140,00

In this unique 2-volume, 800-page book with more than 2,500 images, Marilyn Neuhart tells the story — to paraphrase Charles Eames himself — of how Eames furniture got to be the way it is.

The Story of Eames Furniture was written and designed by Marilyn Neuhart together with her husband John. Both have worked at the Eames Office in various capacities since the 1950s. They have looked after the house of Charles and Ray Eames since the designers’ deaths and have supervised the Eames Archive. More familiar with the material and protagonists than almost any other, Marilyn Neuhart has spent the last 15 years compiling the stories, images, and recollections featured in this book.

In this video from Gestalten, the Neuharts talk about the Eames and the book.


The Story of Eames Furniture: Marilyn Neuhart with John Neuhart - Interview from Gestalten on Vimeo.

The book is wonderful tribute to two of the greatest designers of the twentieth century. On my wishlist.

See also Brain Pickings and The Casual Optimist.

La Sagrada Familia - finally consecrated, but still unfinished

Templo Expiatorio de la Sagrada Familia, usually referred to as la Sagrada Familia, designed by renowned architect Antoni Gaudi in the neo-Gothic style, has been under construction in Barcelona since 1882. The Roman Catholic church is not expected to be completed until 2026.

Today, Pope Benedict XVI consecrated the yet unfinished church, and the main nave is now open for daily Mass for the first time.

See BBC News

Reporting by Al Jazeera (in English before consecration)


Reporting by RTVE (in Spanish during consecration)

La Sagrada Familia es desde hoy una basílica

La Sagrada Familia is one of my favourite buildings in the world. The detail on the facade outside is amazing to observe. Of course, there are a number of Gothic cathedrals in Barcelona that are also worth visiting including Catedral de la Santa Cruz y Santa Eulalia.

What every suburban chick needs

Rearing chickens was once common in Australian suburban backyards. Chickens were kept as a steady source of fresh eggs. After nearly a generation's absence, keeping chickens has yet again become popular, particularly in the last few years.

Unfortunately, chickens tend to poo everywhere. A smart entrepreneur supplying chickens in the Brisbane area has come up with a chicken nappy. From City Chicks - product information

The perfect accessory for the city chicken. Straight from the catwalk to your home. Our chicken nappies are designed and made to fit most chickens. The nappy is made from pure cotton so it shouldn't irritate any delicate bottoms.

These look ridiculously hard to put on but as long as you have 10 fingers and sense of humour, you will be fine. They come with full instructions on how to put on and we are only a phone call away. I can talk you through my adventures like my escaping white hybrid running down the driveway with her nappy hanging from her neck. That is what happens when you want to work with highly stressed models. I settled in the end with my isabrown, Luscious Legs as my model.

The nappy has a little plastic bag cut to fit and safety pinned to the top of the nappy. This gets thrown away once full and replaced with another bag. Each nappy comes with 1 bag. You also receive an instruction sheet on how to cut the bags so they fit your nappy.

The nappy is fitted by lifting the long strap over the head and then secured to the 2 long flaps on the back of the chicken. The instructions on our sheet are clear and helpful.

Very stylish! Presumably, there are instructions concerning when the chickens wish to lay eggs.

Hamburg house boats

From Deutsche Welle, a fascinating report on a new style of housing in Hamburg

Space for ten floating homes was reserved on the Eilbekkanal in Hamburg back in 2006. Now, five of these homes are already finished, the sixth is being moved into its place, and the others will be completed by the end of the year. The homes feature unusual architecture thanks to Hamburg's unqiue laws: everything that floats must comply with maritime law and not according to normal building law as is the case elsewhere. Architects can let their imaginations run riot.

English narration


More information (auf Deutsch)

Innovative.

Council House 2 visited

In early 2008, I wrote about CH2, the administration building of the City of Melbourne.

During the weekend, I finally found the building (it was next to the hotel) and had a closer look.













Quite impressive really.

Centre Pompidou-Metz

As part of cultural decentralisation in France, the Paris-based Centre Pompidou (and one of my favourites) built a new cultural centre in Metz, capital of the Lorraine region in the north east and near the German border.

Designed by Shigeru Ban and Jean de Gastines, the centre was built by Demathieu et Bard.

The Centre Pompidou-Metz building is a superstructure curving at both sides, held together by wooden slats forming hexagonal units, and supported by a central metallic spire and four conical pillars.

The structure is covered by a membrane in Poly-Tetra-Fluoro Ethylene (PTFE –fibreglass covered in teflon). The facades are made of retractable glass panes and vast picture windows. The three galleries and the support function areas (storage, offices, etc.) are concrete.


photo by AP via Der Spiegel - more


photo from BBC (see also report)

Built at a cost of €70 million, Centre Pompidou-Metz was officially opened on 12 May 2010, with free admission on 16 May.

In addition to the artwork exhibited, the building is worth a visit.

Nature by Numbers

An awesome movie by Cristóbal Vila, inspired by numbers, geometry and nature.



Also check out the theory behind the movie at Etérea.

@ at MoMA

New York's Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) has acquired the @ symbol into its collection. For free. It's a strange acquisition as @ belongs to everyone and to no one.

The symbol @ was more commonly used to denote 'at' or 'at the rate of' in commercial transactions, such as 5 apples @ $1.

In 1971, Ray Tomlinson appropriated the symbol for use in the first email. Today, it is used in Twitter to address tweets to tweeters. You can send me a tweet @daniels_den (I don't receive many tweets addressed to me).

See New York Times.

The thing is, we don't have to visit MoMA to see @. It's right there on your keyboard. I wonder if MoMA also has ampersand & in its collection.

9 Hours - capsule hotel

From Monocle magazine (one of my all time favourite monthly reads) comes a report about a new innovation in the capsule hotel called 9 Hours, located in Kyoto.

The 9 Hours - Capsule Hotel from tier1dc on Vimeo.

See also - designboom

Capsule hotels challenge the concept of space, our use of space and how much we need and use.

Not for the claustrophobic.

Aqua Tower in Chicago

Under construction in Chicago at 225 North Columbus Drive is a mixed-used building tower, Aqua Tower, designed by Jeanne Gang of Studio Gang Architects and developed by Magellan Development.

Aqua Tower will stand 250 m (819 ft) tall with 82 floors, containing a mix of apartments, hotel rooms, offices and retail space.

From the Studio Gang website

In an increasingly dense city like Chicago, views from a new tower must be negotiated between existing buildings. Aqua tower considers criteria such as views, solar shading and function to derive a vertical system of contours that gives the structure its sculptural form. Its vertical topography is defined by its outdoor terraces that gradually change in plan over the length of the tower. These terraces offer a strong connection to the outdoors and allow inhabitants to occupy the building façade and city simultaneously. The result is a highly sculptural building when viewed obliquely that transforms into a slender rectangle from further away. Its powerful form suggests the limestone outcroppings and geologic forces that shaped the great lakes region.

I think it would have been more appropriate to call it Iceberg. According to the UK Guardian, it is also the tallest building in the world to be designed by a woman.

The balconies do not look safe and it would be a nightmare to people suffering from acrophobia. The railing should be as high as a person's shoulder.

The question remains, how energy efficient is the building?

Musée Hergé

Musée Hergé was officially opened to the public on 2 June 2009 in the university town of Louvain-la-Neuve 20 miles south of Brussels. The building was designed by architect Christian de Portzamparc.





More from CONTEMPORIST

Definitely one not to be missed on the next trip to Brussels.

I still want one

Two years ago, I wrote about the Eames lounge chair (and ottoman). 53 years old, and it remains a design classic.

The chair was introduced in 1956 on NBC's Home hosted by Arlene Francis. The segment has now found its way on to YouTube and makes fascinating watching.

In part 1, both Charles and Ray Eames are introduced - with Ray as the 'woman' behind the 'man'.


In part 2, the chair is 'previewed' at 3.48min into the video, showing how it is put together.


Awesome.

Dubai Towers - Dubai

Dubai Towers Dubai is currently under construction in Dubai by developer Sama Dubai.

A series of four towers, inspired by the movement of candle light, the tallest will be 400 metres when completed in 2009.



In the meantime, Dubai municipality is cracking down on expats sharing rental properties, who do so due to high rents.

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I wonder why I find Gossip Girl addictive.

Jørn Utzon 1918-2008

Jørn Utzon (9 April 1918 – 29 November 2008)



Utzon gave Australia and the world one of the most iconic buildings of the 20th century, finally World Heritage listed in 2007 (I also blogged about this at the time).

The Sydney Opera House constitutes a masterpiece of 20th century architecture. Its significance is based on its unparalleled design and construction; its exceptional engineering achievements and technological innovation and its position as a world-famous icon of architecture. It is a daring and visionary experiment that has had an enduring influence on the emergent architecture of the late 20th century. Utzon's original design concept and his unique approach to building gave impetus to a collective creativity of architects, engineers and builders. Ove Arup's engineering achievements helped make Utzon's vision a reality. The design represents an extraordinary interpretation and response to the setting in Sydney Harbour. The Sydney Opera House is also of outstanding universal value for its achievements in structural engineering and building technology. The building is a great artistic monument and an icon, accessible to society at large.

Reported by Associated Press

Utzon's earliest buildings were private homes. It came as a surprise to many when he won the competition for the Sydney Opera House in 1956. The building, with its distinctive white roof shells resembling sails, is perched on the edge of Sydney Harbour.

Utzon received the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2003 for his design of the opera house. The jury singled it out as among the most iconic buildings of the 20th century, saying it "proves that the marvelous and seemingly impossible in architecture can be achieved."

See also
- Sydney Morning Herald
- ArtDaily



It is still one of my favourite buildings. I love going to the opera there. Aside from the superb performances by Opera Australia, being at the Sydney Opera House is part of the experience.

Perhaps I should forgo a football game next year and go to the opera instead.

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Aside from some gardening and having Kim over for dinner, this weekend has been a restful one.

Philippe Starck about 'why design?'

Philippe Starck is considered to be one of the world's best designers. He has designed bathroom fittings (sinks, bathtubs, toilets, taps for Grohe), a mouse for Microsoft, furniture, interiors such as hotels and for Eurostar, toothbrushes, lamps, shoes, vehicles, etc.

In March 2007 he gave a talk to the TED conference Technology, Entertainment, Design).

He was also funny.

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Happy Wednesday.

Lobster Chair

The Lobster Chair was designed by Danish design and architecture company Lund & Paarmann for Danish furniture manufacturer Strictly Design. It was launched at IMM Cologne in January 2008.



I like the cocoon effect and the homage to Eames.

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Today was another do nothing day.

Alien lamp

Designed by German design studio Büro für Form , the Alien lamp looks like a blob.





More from Contemporist

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Today was a very lazy day.

The Chicago Spire

A super skyscraper/tower under construction in Chicago is the Chicago Spire, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava and being developed by Garrett Kelleher of Shelbourne Development Group, Inc.

When completed, it will be 609.6 m (2000 ft) tall with 150 floors, and the ninth-tallest freestanding structure in the world. It will contain 1200 apartments/condominiums with a price range from $800,000 to $40 million (US dollars).





I think it looks like a drill bit. The Giant Drill Bit.



The design is rather phallic. I wonder if the architect has any issues.

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Emily came over for dinner tonight. I made baked pork ribs (with bbq sauce), with mash potatoes and broccolini.