No More Noddy Boxes! Design Judges’ Dismay at British Buildings

By Andrew Liddle, The Independent
October 13, 2012

British architecture is in a “dreadful” state, with dispiriting and badly designed developments blighting the country, according to two judges of the UK’s leading architectural award. Sir Mark Jones and Naomi Cleaver spoke out before tonight’s announcement of the winner of the 2012 RIBA Stirling Prize, which is awarded to the best new building in Britain. More … http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/architecture/no-more-noddy-boxes-design-judges-dismay-at-british-buildings-8209895.html.

Rise of The ‘Plyscrapers’: New Wooden High-rises Promise a Quick And Eco-friendly Solution to Building For The Future

By Damien Gayle, Daily Mail
October 12, 2012

Anyone who’s heard the story of the three little pigs might have some reservations about the use of wood as a building material. But architects and engineers are reviving the use of wood as a quick and eco-friendly solution to modern construction – and not just for pioneer-style log cabins. The recent completion of an eight-storey wooden office block in Austria and a nine-storey residential block in London shows how the ‘plyscraper’ is fast becoming a reality. More … http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2216724/Rise-plyscrapers-New-wooden-high-rises-promise-quick-eco-friendly-solution-building-future.html.

 

 

Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye is The Newest Addition to Lego’s Architecture Series

By Tom Vanderbilt, Architecture Digest
October 9, 2012

The building materials were on site, the plans laid across the table. The would-be client, surveying the detailed drawings, cast a discerning eye and asked: “Are there any doors?” The client was my daughter Sylvie, all of three, and the presumptive building happened to be the Villa Savoye. Not Le Corbusier’s landmark machine for living in Poissy, France, but an exceedingly faithful, if slightly abstracted, collection of 660 Lego blocks waiting to take shape on my dining room table. (Hey, Le Corbu didn’t exactly bring the project in on time or on budget, either.) More … http://www.architecturaldigest.com/blogs/daily/2012/10/lego-architecture-collection-villa-savoye-model.