Chicago architect Thomas Beeby, FAIA, is awarded the 2013 Richard H. Driehaus Prize at the University of Notre Dame and becomes the prize’s 11th laureate.
Credited with helping to bring traditional architecture and classical city design back to the practice during the 1970s and 80s, Beeby co-founded the Chicago practice HBRA where he is currently the chairman emeritus. He is a graduate of Cornell University, where he received his B.Arch., and he received his M.Arch. from Yale University. After graduating from Yale, Beeby returned to Illinois to start his practice.
Many say traditional and classical architecture was ‘reborn’ in 1976, when the travelling exhibition One Hundred Years of Architecture in Chicago was to be shown in 1976 at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago. The show focused largely on Mies, his predecessors and followers, that it distorted the historical reality. Four local architects simultaneously mounted a counter-show in the Time-Life Building which attracted nationwide attention. With the addition of three more architects, Beeby included, the group became known as the ‘Chicago Seven‘. The feisty group introduced a fresh spirit of critical engagement, one which recognized that talking, and thinking, are every bit as important as building.
[ driehaus prize ]
The following may best describe the ethos behind this prize:
Traditional and Classical Architecture and Urbanism
Twenty years ago the curriculum was reformed to focus on traditional and classical architecture and urbanism. It is worthwhile to reflect for a moment about what those four words mean.
Classical architecture is the best that a tradition produces. Every culture has a tradition. Ours runs from ancient Greece and Rome through the founding of the United States (think of Jefferson’s wonderful buildings) and on into the present.
Urbanism is the counterpart to architecture. In training our students to be leaders in the profession of architecture, we must equip them to build and improve our cities and rural areas. In a well-designed, livable city, the public realm complements the private realm, and not all buildings are classical. Indeed, most are good traditional buildings contributing to a complementary public realm (think of Rome). We therefore teach our students how to work with the appropriate national, regional, and local traditions of urbanism, architecture and construction. What works in America won’t necessarily do well in Panama. What is right for Boston is not right for Phoenix.
Rejecting tradition or launching a radical transformation at its expense as occurs in most other schools of architecture ill equips a person to use his or her God-given gifts to make the built world a better place for everyone. Such an education deprives a person of the inexhaustible fund of experience tradition makes available for guiding leaders. Tradition is much broader than classicism. Classicism is only the narrowest, highest peak of achievement standing out above the broad plain of tradition, an inspirational example of the best to be sure, but an isolated peak nonetheless. No plain, no peak. We can live on the plain, but a peak is a rather narrow roost.
— Carroll William Westfall
Past chairman and Frank Montana Professor, University of Notre Dame School of Architecture
harold washington center in downtown chicago
james a. baker III institute for public policy rice university houston texas
The starting signal for the “red dot award: product design 2013“ has just been given. As of now, product designers and companies are again called upon to submit their well-designed products and thus hunt for the renowned red dot quality seal. Until 7 December 2012, they can benefit from a reduced participation fee within the early bird period. [ red dot award ]
[ registration dates ]
Early bird> until 7 December 2012
Regular> 8 December > 18 January 2013
Latecomers> 19 January > 6 February 2013
Judging> February 2013
Award ceremony> 1 July 2013
Special exhibition of the winning products> 1 > 28 July 2013
[ details ]
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Here comes another wooden bike concept. This one is a bit different though. It’s built for Thonet using their steam bent-wood know-how developed in the 1930s.
At the end of 2010 London based designer andy martin was asked by Thonet to design and develop a concept road bicycle using their steam bending process. He developed three designs of which the final was selected because its beauty and modest connection with the heritage of the company.
Andy says ‘The challenge was to take on fairly low tech process of steam bending and then apply it to a 21st century bicycle with highly complex engineering’. With the many restrictions of hand bending the beech frame the final jointing and contours would be cut and adjusted on a cnc machine. Andy has also developed a series of connectors and sprung rods to reinforce joints and the major stress areas in the frame. The bike itself is a fixed wheel, which is the tradition of cycling; one has a greater connection to the bike and the surface one rides on. The bike comes with no brakes and has several interchangeable gear ratios. The seat is solid beech wood supported on a sprung rod supports. The wheels, not designed by andy are carbon fibre HED H3’s. I may like the firmness of my Brooks B17 Special vs a solid beech saddle though.The bike will be available in limited edition and cost £43,000. [ andy martin studio ] [ thonet ]
[ andy martin ] Established in 2000 and based in London, Andy Martin’s studio is a new generation design practice. The studio incorporates craftspeople, furniture designers, product designers and futurists. Andy, who has worked with some of the most illustrious names in design and creative fields and spent 5 years working alongside Marc Newson in Paris. In London his architectural practice, AMA, is better known for designing some of London’s best restaurants and he has more recently designed the private homes of Noel Gallagher and the Hotelier Olga Polizzi. Andy who was born in Australia, was designing furniture at 18 when he shaped his first chair in the same method as a surfboard. Growing up in Sydney’s northern beaches Andy was a keen surfer and had been making surfboards for both himself and friends since 15yr old.
[ Thonet ] today, as in the past, is considered a pioneer of furniture design throughout the world. The company was established in 1819 by Michael Thonet to produce his own designs, using the then new bentwood process, which he developed. Within a short period of time it became a major furniture manufacturer with a global distribution network. In the 1930’s a major expansion took place with the addition of tubular steel furniture from famous Bauhaus associated designers such as Mart Stam, Marcel Breuer and Mies van der Rohe. Today, as well as continuing with the manufacture of many of the tubular steel and bentwood classics, Thonet, in their long established tradition of innovation and design quality, introduce products by renowned contemporary architects and designers such as Claudio Bellini, Stefan Diez, Naoto Fukasawa, Hadi Teherani, James Irvine, Glen Oliver Löw, Lepper, Schmidt, Sommerlade. This family enterprise managed by the 5th generation of Thonets, has its corporate headquarters and production facility in Frankenberg, Germany.
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We received the images and the press release. There’s little doubt the origin. The market category, the style, the materials, and the innovation and colors. The unique effort of twin brothers Richard and Antony Joseph. Here’s a sneak at 2012-13.
above> Tri-scale. When open, its three arms provide a stable platform on which to place bowls and other items for weighing. When closed, the unit folds down to an extremely compact size of 4.5 cm x 15 cm x 1.5 cm, enclosing and protecting the screen and controls, which makes it perfect for storing in a kitchen drawer. The scale weighs/measures in the following units: gms, lbs, ozs, fl.ozs and mls. Maximum capacity: 5kg/176.4 fl.oz/11lb/5000ml. Designed by [ Morph ].
below> A new product in the Elevate™ collection: carousel with knives. Dishwasher safe.
This isn’t a knock but an expectation: Kitchen and tabletop is not yet as green ( not the color ) as it could be. These award-winning guys are so consistently solid we expect them to lead the way with the innovative greener solutions in contemporary kitchenware. [ joseph joseph ] Booth 3502 | 19 > 22 august [ nyigf ]
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The Gagosian Gallery app for iPhone and iPad has just come to our attention. We also learned the app won a Silver Lion at Cannes 2012 Lions in June under a new “mobile lions” competition category. Below is the entry description:
The Gagosian App for iPads is the first free app of its kind to provide exclusive access to distinguished artists from around the world, giving the user the ability to explore art in an entirely new way. With its 360-degree views and 3-D exploration of actual galleries, an art lover, collector or student can tour the Gagosian gallery in London, Paris or New York from their apartment in Prague or LA. Organized around current Gagosian exhibitions, the app offers a wealth of information and historical knowledge in multiple audiovisual formats, immersing users in an interactive art experience that entertains and educates. Leveraging the gestural interface of the iPad, the app allows users to experience art in new ways, from gigapixel zoom to touch-based 180 and 360-degree virtual reality. Site: Richard Serra 360 Immersive Experience The cavernous gallery exploration of Richard Sera’s Cycle and Junction sculptures is re-created with a virtual walk through in the app. Layers of artwork can be peeled away, inviting the viewer to discover how art is created, evolving from sketch to colorisation to completion. Site: Jon Currin or Roy Lichtenstein Sketch Viewers Compare the initial sketches of an artist’s work to their finished piece by simply scrolling over the image. Since viewing and interpreting art is a personal experience, exploration is encouraged, as users are drawn in to discover, get lost, rediscover and create all on their own. Innovative technologies allow our users to touch, feel and learn. Site: Damien Hirst’s Dynamically Generative Spot Paintings Create new combinations of Damien Hirst’s spot paintings by leveraging the iPad’s gyroscope technology. Simply tilt the device to see the dots fluidly change color within Mr. Hirst’s pre-set color scheme. The HD resolution images displayed in app allow users to look at the artwork so closely that they can see the brushwork and nearly feel the texture of the works created by world renowned and widely respected artists. Bold, innovative, creative, and totally unique, the Gagosian app brings the world’s most unique fine art collections into the living rooms of the art lover, the collector, the creative, and those simply interested in observing the beauty of innovative thinking.
[review ] This is a well organized and well designed app. However, all the features described above did not work on my iPad2 v5.1.1. Possibly the app needs iPad3. The help section (ty) lists icons for various functions such as 360 view, 360 room view, rotate, audio commentary, but these icons were nowhere to be seen. The only icons found and tested and did work: full-screen, map, and shop. Somewhat surprised that this app won the prestigious Silver Lion despite the good looks and ease of navigation. The 360 Immersive Experience must be a difference maker and especially if this is the first free app of its kind to provide exclusive access to distinguished artists from around the world. Just made a note to again play with iPad3 and download this app while at the Apple store.
[ gagosian gallery ] is a contemporary art gallery owned and directed by Larry Gagosian. There are currently eleven gallery spaces: three in New York; two in London; one in each of Beverly Hills, Rome, Athens, Paris, Geneva and Hong Kong. [ cannes lions ] app design by [ @radical.media ]
artusi complete outdoor kitchen | click > enlarge
don’t simply think summer | do think outdoor. this post started one month ago researching
[ 24 outdoor chairs ] these and other select objects will be found in [ objects > outdoor ] shortly.
fifty | dögg & arnved | ligne roset
halley | jordi vilardell & meritxell vidal | vibia
emu heaven | jean-marie massaud | coalesse 2009
peanut | miki astori | driade
[ object | designer | producer || special feature ]
1> a-bench | felix de pass | established & sons | 2011
2> artusi kitchen | artusi | complete outdoor kitchen
3> bali parasol | odosdesign | gandia blasco 2012 | thermo lacquer stainless steel
4> clessidra | antonio citterio | flos | LED
5> clione | ernesto gismondi | artemide | 2009 | LED
6> dehors | michele de lucchi + philippo nigro | alias | 2009
7> emu heaven | jean-marie massaud | coalesse | 2009 | an expansive collection
8> emu re trouvé | patricia uriquiola | coalesse | 2009 | an expansive collection
9> fifty | dögg & arnved | ligne roset | anti-uv lacquer and polypropylene cord
10a> floora floor lamp | alfredo chiaramonte + marco marin | emu | 2008 | LED
10b> ivy low stool | paola navone | emu | solar power
11> grand plie | ludovica & roberto palomba | driade | 2010
12> grillage | francois azambourg | ligne roset | option cushions with magnets
13> halley | jordi vilardell & meritxell vidal | vibia | LED
14> long frame – alberto meda | alias | 1995
15> m´afrique | patricia uriquiola | moroso| weaving technique from traditional fish nets
16> marais A stool | xavier pauchard | tolix | 1934 | made the same way since 1934 and stackable
17> ombrellini | missonihome | 2012 | indoor + outdoor
18> peanut | miki astori | driade | unique! cast aluminum
19> s1 sunshade system | subsolo | structurelab | 2006
20> stix | hiroshi tsunoda | ecosmart | 2011 | green-bioethanol
21> tetra shed | innovation imperative | tetra shed | 2012 | modular
22a> tipi tent | josé a. gandia-blasco | gandia blasco | portable
22b> pirámide lamp | josé a. gandia-blasco | gandia blasco | portable
23> waver | konstantin grcic | vitra | 2011
24> what a melon | luke bonner | fieldcandy | green + spirited
The Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum today announced First Lady Michelle Obama will celebrate the 2012 National Design Awards Friday, July 13, with a White House luncheon for the winners of the awards. In support of the First Lady’s emphasis on education and outreach to the Washington, D.C., community, the award winners will participate in an education program for local high school students before the event. Mrs. Obama serves as the honorary patron for this year’s National Design Awards. [ national design award ]
Just in: Essen/Stuttgart. Style Porsche design team has been awarded as the ”red dot: design team of the year 2012.” Chief designer Michael Mauer and his team of 80 have been dedicated to the task of sustaining and advancing the Porsche identity across all model ranges since 2004. With the new Porsche 911 Carrera, the design team has triumphed in carrying forward the success story of the 911, which has spanned a period of nearly 50 years up to now. For this, the design icon was already awarded the “red dot: best of the best 2012” this year.
“That we won both of these most renowned awards this year makes me and my team proud indeed. It means we pursue the right design philosophy. With our work, we have ensured that a Porsche has always been a signature Porsche for many decades – from the 911 up to the Cayenne. The quality of our design is founded on our brand values: tradition and innovation, sportiness and suitability for everyday driving. This unique combination and the conviction that good design has to be honest, functional and timeless constitute the foundation of our characteristic Porsche design language,” says Michael Mauer, Director Style Porsche.
Prof. Dr. Peter Zec, initiator and CEO of the red dot design award, explained the decision to bestow the honorary title to Style Porsche: “The Porsche 911, like no other sports car, actually like no other vehicle as such, stands for tradition and innovation in the finest and truly symbiotic sense.” The team of Style Porsche, he said, realizes this balance to perfection, creating a profound product identity. “Even beyond the 911, Porsche has continually done great things. The successful introduction of the new generations of the Boxster and the Cayenne, as well as the launch of the outstanding Panamera, are product coups without precedent.”
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The Porsche 911 is 49 years old. For just the seventh time since 1963, changes to the 911 aren’t merely evolutionary. It’s total re-engineering based on a new platform that is lighter and allows a new level of dynamics. Porsche released a video about redesigning the 911. “What we as designers are striving to above all is to optimize the width to height ratio with the result that although the 911’s width has not increased, the front axle area has become wider, and we’ve managed to make the roof a bit lower.”
Visit a special exhibition in the red dot design museum in Essen. “Style Porsche – The Future of History” of the “red dot: design team of the year 2012.” [ porsche 911 ] [ red dot ] [ official release ]
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The boom box is back—again. Portable sound in the age of the IPad and Iphone has taken the form of an electronic picnic basket—the Beolit 12. The Beolit 12 features Apple’s AirPlay technology. Place a device in its tray top and it charges and plays. That link is simpler and surer than the Bluetooth used in such devices as Yves Behar’s brick like Jambox for Jawbone.
The basket, in graphite or blond colors, was designed by a 40-year-old Danish designer Cecilie Manz. She said, “I wanted Beolit 12 to have a clear expression showing its functionality and at the same time blending in naturally in people’s home. The natural leather handle invites you to move Beolit around—it makes it more approachable somehow.”
The look is new for B&O known for its Scandinavian modern space age electronics in the 1960s and 1970s. The work of Jens Jensen and his British born heir David Lewis, B&O was at its height in 1978, when the Museum of Modern Art gave the company’s work a show and has included some 20 of its pieces in the collection: the Beogram phonograph with its sliding tone arm, the CD player that magically opens when a hand approaches.
But B&O audio was never taken very seriously by audiophiles of whom there were many in the 1970s, before the focus of cool tech switched to computers. B&O stuff was for well off guys who wanted to impress women; in films of the 1980s it signaled the cad or villain.
The bright aluminum and glass of that look is absent in the Beolit 12, which just won the Red Dot design award in Europe, also echoes portable tube radios from the 1950s. Manz has designed several hand blown glass products, as well as lighting fixtures and furniture. On her web site is a wicker basket rendered in composites, foreshadowing the Beolit.
The company’s long time design consultant, David Lewis, died in November of last year. One of B&O fans of course was Steve Jobs, who happily adapted the wheel style controls of the first iPod from B&O phones. In January the company announced a new sub brand, supposed to be more accessible. But the Beolit 12 lists at $770. [ b&o ] [ cecile manz ]
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about phil patton
peanut | miki astori | driade
