Berlin’s J. MAYER H. is currently designing a series of twenty rest areas along a new highway in the Caucasus Republic of Georgia, connecting Azerbaijan and Turkey. Two rest areas have already been completed, and a third one is currently under construction with completion scheduled for this year. Continue Reading →
Bathroom Suites – Choosing The Right Style To Suit Your Home
Redecorating any room can be an exciting time as we are given the freedom to let our creative juices flow. This is perhaps even more so for the bathroom, which we don’t tend to get the opportunity to update as regularly as the other rooms in the house, with perhaps the exception of the kitchen. So when we do finally get the chance, we can’t wait to start picking out the tiles and looking at bathroom suites. However, before your rush into a hasty purchase; you should first take some time to carefully consider your choices. After all, it could be ten or more years before you get round to updating the bathroom again. Even then it may be that you decide to leave the bathroom suite that is in place and simply update the decor. Continue Reading →
‘Tetra Shed’ by Innovation Imperative
Coming early 2012, ‘Tetra Shed‘ is a new modular building system which, as a single module, has been designed to be a modern garden office.
‘Tetra Shed’ is inspired by the growing need to accommodate the desires of more and more people wanting to establish a home office. The architects at Innovation Imperative designed this garden office as a challenge to the notion that a home office is simply a converted room in one’s house. It is an alternative solution to the “cuboid offices” that have grown in popularity over the last few years. This concept and mock-up will be on display at Grand Designs Live London between May 5th and May 13th. Continue Reading →
Christmas Vacation Planning
This time of year, many people are only just beginning to figure out their plans for the summer, such as when and where to spend a bit of vacation time. Of course, it is quite easy to leave this process until a little bit too late in the year, which results in the unnecessary stress of planning a vacation at the last minute. This can also make your vacation more expensive in the long run, as flights and property rentals are often cheaper the further they are in advance. So, with this in mind, as you go about planning out your summer, you may actually want to look ahead a bit more and figure out what you’ll be doing over the Christmas holiday. Continue Reading →
‘Victoria Tower’ by Wingårdh Arkitektkontor AB
Wrapped entirely in a cloak of glass, ‘Victoria Tower’ by Wingårdh Arkitektkontor AB stands like a lighthouse along the road between downtown Stockholm and the city airport. The 117,6-meter tower is a landmark for the Kista IT office park and for the conference center at the base of the tower and a manifestation of the area’s high-tech profile. Continue Reading →
‘Emmen Theater and Zoo Entrance’ by Henning Larsen Architects and Van den Berg Groep
‘Emmen Theater and Zoo’, designed by Henning Larsen Architects and Van den Berg Groep, is an unusual cultural building that brings together culture and nature. The building design, which won the first prize in the international competition, will constitute the entrance to a large zoological park of 10 hectares and comprises two main stages with a capacity of 1,150 people in total, an additional stage, exhibition and conference facilities. The building in itself covers 16,000 m2. More images and architects’ description after the break. Continue Reading →
Hong Kong-Shenzhen Boundary Control Point by WAU Studio
A complementary and mutual beneficial partnership, Hong Kong and Shenzhen will join the globalization as an integrated image and get benefit. With intimate collaboration, the proposal for the Hong Kong-Shenzhen boundary control point by WAU Design will serve as a symbol of close communication. The scheme concept comes from ‘ink’: many single units can be twisted into a solid and integrated form. This scheme, a twisted link, indicates multi-level and deep cooperation between Hong Kong and Shenzhen on economic, cultural, and multi-faceted levels.
’499.SUMMIT’ Prison Concept Proposed by Andreas Tjeldflaat and Greg Knobloch
Architecture students Andreas Tjeldflaat and Gregory Knobloch (University of Pennsylvania) shared with us their design proposal for contemporary prison design. The concept called ’499.SUMMIT’ was designed for Journal Square, Jersey City, New Jersey. Continue Reading →
Calatrava’s ‘Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge’ in Dallas
Spanning the Trinity River and Dallas Floodway in Dallas Texas, the ‘Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge’ by Valencian architect and engineer Santiago Calatrava has officially opened to the public with a ceremonious ribbon-cutting ceremony and fireworks. Rain fall had pushed construction back along the access ramps and delayed the opening from March 5 until recently.
The bridge, Calatrava’s first vehicular bridge in the United States, is supported by a cable-stayed structure spanning its 1,870-foot length with a 400 foot tall steel arch with an array of twisting cables. Attached to the underside of the curved pylon, 58 delicate white strands descend and secure themselves along the centerline of the platform. The 16-foot diameter support is comprised of 25 individual segments, secured with 20,000 pounds of bolts and additional 450 tons of concrete. Continue Reading →
Travertine Tiles – Tips for a Longer Life
One of the great things about travertine tiles is the fact that they have a much longer lifespan than other alternative flooring options. However, getting the most value out of your Travertine tiles requires proper installation and regular maintenance, neglecting them once they have been installed could make them start to look old and tired way before their time. Continue Reading →