two distinct brands lensvelt and modular lighting instruments merge together in a performance: all new!
in collaboration with the scenography of janpaul scholtmeijer (jps architects), the rough, industrial space under the arches of ventura centrale is being transformed into a brand new atmospheric theater where the directors modular and lensvelt give a spectacular show.
in the spotlights: the new chesterfield armchair by baranowitz & kronenberg, table five by luc binst (b brand), the seating system blocks by oma, the new balance by fabio novembre, and chairs by i29 (felix), studio piet boon (fold) and rick minkes (rna). in addition, expansions of successful chair collections by richard hutten (this chair), maarten baas (mb chair), atelier van lieshout (lazy modernist and office chairs), gerrit rietveld (military chair), maarten van severen (k7v90, s88) and also stefaan jamaer makes his debut with a coat rack (sjh).
modular lighting instruments has been rewriting the rules for architectural lighting since 1980 and comes to ventura centrale with luminaires that leave the audience impressed, enlightened and maybe even a little bit puzzled. amongst others: marbul suspension, a playful luminaire that has won multiple design awards. pista, an innovative track rail system that shakes up the definition of minimalism. or dent: an ultra-thin wall fixture that combines a minimalistic design with a certain ‘je ne sais quoi’.
fashion lures architecture and design to the metropolitan museum of art’s costume institute spring 2016 exhibition, manus x machina: fashion in an age of technology. the exhibition explores how designers are reconciling the handmade and the machine-made in the creation of haute couture and avant-garde ready-to-wear. manus x machina features over 170 garments, diverse in their designers, techniques and details.
the credits manus x machina is organized by andrew bolton, curator in charge of the metropolitan museum of art’s costume institute. shohei shigematsu, director of oma new york, led the design of the exhibition in collaboration with the design department (amo) of oma new york.
the architecture from the architect> the exhibition is presented in the robert lehman wing, a double-height, octagonal addition on the museum’s central axis constructed in 1975. in order to preserve access to the permanent galleries, the exhibition space is located in the lehman wing’s central atrium and corridors. the space posed a number of unique environmental challenges for the costume institute’s show: excessive daylighting unconducive to textile exhibition, split levels, a corridor condition lacking dedicated display walls and an eclectic material palette.
a white, translucent volume was inserted into the existing brick and stone corridors of the lehman wing, softening its hard geometries. echoing the sectional relationship of a central clerestory and perimeter naves, the resulting ghost cathedral resonates with the classical language of the adjacent medieval art gallery. a raised platform built across the double height atrium provides continuous circulation and a 2,300 square foot central gallery– an unprecedented intervention in the lehman wing. upon arrival, this domed clerestory orients visitor’s with a 2014 chanel wedding dress by karl lagerfeld that embodies the exhibition’s theme. details of the 20-foot train’s baroque pattern are projected on the dome’s black out scrim, recalling the sistine chapel. four chapel-style pochés provide an area to focus on case studies.
exhibition designer shohei shigematsu commented, “the diverse range of garments required a neutral, integrated environment to focus on the pairings of manual and mechanical processes. an armature of scaffolding wrapped with a translucent fabric introduces a unique temporality within a historic institution.”
as a high-performance theatrical scrim, the perforated membrane material of the ghost cathedral offers the tensile flexibility required for the dome geometries as well as varying degrees of transparency. when lit from the front, the scrim appears opaque enough to function as a projection backdrop for garment details. lit from behind, the scrim appears transparent, exposing a sense of the lehman wing’s existing material palette and language. the unexpected spatial depth of the scrim allows for visual connections to the wedding dress from all quadrants of the lehman wing, while also revealing silhouettes of the temporary scaffolding framework housed within. in the lower level, scrim enfilades provide a permeable divider for each technique. as an integrated system for lighting, signage and projection, the scrim seamlessly serves multiple curation needs that would otherwise rely on overpowering media screens.
photography courtesy of oma
technical information manus x machina: fashion in an age of technology location: new york city usa year: 2016 status: completed (commissioned 2015 / completion may 2016) program: 18,300 sf exhibition scrim surface area: 23,000 sf architect:oma lead architect: shohei shigematsu / oma nyc team: scott abrahams, wesley ho, nicholas solakian, sergio zapata, daniel rauchwerger, lawrence siu, darby foreman, matthew haseltine, christine noblejas engineering: arup lighting: dot dash media: 3 legged dog membrane: newmat scaffolding: ubs masonry: cw keller photography: albert večerka
the fashion
andrew bolton’s brilliant new exhibition at the metropolitan museum of art’s costume institute – the costume institute began as the museum of costume art in 1937, merged with the met in 1946, and reopened its space as the anna wintour costume centre in may 2014 – explores the relationship between the handmade and the mechanized in fashion. bolton’s vision pays homage to craftsmanship, innovation and the role designers play in the creative process.
the show’s galleries are divided into tenets of design outlined in diderot’s 1751 encyclopedia: embroidery, featherwork, artificial flowers, lacework, leatherwork, pleating, tailoring, and dressmaking. another interesting counterpoint emerges: haute couture versus prêt-à-porter.
alber elbaz succinctly explained why “manus x machina” is so important at a lecture prior to the opening: “it was almost an exhibition that was done for designers and with designers’ work. it was about workmanship, about know-how, about time, and the one thing that impressed me the most was that it was almost silent. . . . please go and see it.”
this is an exhibition for true fashion lovers.
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”10″ gal_title=”manus x machina 2016″]
Landscape architect Tom Balsley, founding principal of Thomas Balsley Associates (TBA), was honored with an award from the Waterfront Center on Friday afternoon. The award recognizes achievement in waterfront parks design, and was given in honor of Balsley’s new Riverside Park South on Manhattan’s historic Hudson shoreline.
left>before | after >click to enlarge
how to be rid of an ugly, noisy, smelly freeway that runs alongside the waterfront? how about bury and place a park over it? hello!
The prize announcement was the second piece of good news for TBA last week, coming just days after Balsley received word that his firm has also been included on a shortlist – along with major international practices like OMA, Zaha Hadid Architects, and Diller Scofidio + Renfro – for the redesign of the public spaces on Chicago’s Navy Pier.
Riverside Park South, which extends a full thirteen-blocks from 59th St. to 72nd, is the final link in a continuous recreational corridor from Battery Park to Harlem. Incorporating walkways, bike lanes, lush lawns, and Balsley’s signature public furniture, the park also preserves still-standing relics of the former industrial waterfront, turning old gantry towers and piers into dramatic sculptural landmarks. Still more exciting is that, when complete, Riverside Park South will run directly over the West Side Highway, whose elevated roadbed will be dismantled in favor of a tunneled route covered by uninterrupted green space, all of it design by Thomas Balsley Associates.
Balsley, who was also honored at the 30th anniversary Waterfront Center Conference for his Top Honor-winning Gantry Plaza State Park of 1999, accepted the award on behalf of his clients and collaborators, including the Riverside South Planning Corporation, Extell Development Company, and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
[ about thomas balsley associates ]
For over 35 years, Thomas Balsley Associates has reshaped urban space around the world by designing landscapes that teem with public life. Thomas Balsley Associates projects’ range from feasibility studies to built urban parks, waterfronts, commercial, residential, and recreational landscapes. Scales of work range from master plans to small urban spaces and urban furniture. Central to the firm’s design approach is Thomas Balsley’s belief that “public open spaces are the great democratic spaces, the ultimate common ground.” In New York City alone, the firm has designed more than 100 public parks and plazas including Chelsea Waterside Park and Riverside Park South. Projects outside New York include Hunters Point Shipyard/Candlestick in San Francisco, Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park in Tampa, Skyline Park in Denver, West Shore Park in Baltimore, the World Trade Center Plaza in Osaka, Japan and the Magok Waterfront in South Korea. [ thomas balsley associates (tba) ]
[ about the waterfront center awards ]
The Waterfront Center, a leading advocate for the preservation and enhancement of America’s waterways, gives its annual Honor Awards to outstanding projects that demonstrate a commitment to the Center’s core principals: quality in design, contribution to civic life, and sensitivity to water itself as a precious natural resource.
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