GESAMTKUNSTWERK – A Curated Exhibition on Vancouver Architecture and City-Building

BY Angie Holubowich
Vancity Buzz, March 21, 2014

You may not be able to say it, but Gesamtkunstwerk (pronounced ‘guess-amt-kunst-verk’) is best defined as the world through “total design” or  ”life as a total work of art”.

The integration of all the creative arts and scales of design. The German word was coined in the 1820′s and popularized by composer Richard Wagner.

The exhibit opens Saturday March 22 and will stay open until May 18, 2014. Admission is free-of-charge and will offer patrons an opportunity to explore the detailed plans for the site surrounding the Granville Street Bridge. Along with sketches and textile samples, the exhibit features scale models, videos, and guided, audio tours. Read more…

 

Hope through architecture

The Economist
Mar 25, 2014

Jewish and Arab architects might one day share their heritage and skills.

NOT only in 2013 did the building of Jewish settlements on the West Bank, the core of a would-be Palestinian state, grow at twice the rate of 2012; its uniform architecture is increasingly attracting Palestinians. In place of their distinctive rough-hewn stone houses, Palestinian builders now tend to prefer the uniform style of red-roofed houses that mark out Israeli settlements. “People always look up to the colonial power, even if they resent it,” says Renad Shqeirat, a Palestinian architect and conservationist. “They see their architecture as a sign of modernisation.”

It is increasingly hard to tell settler and new Palestinian housing estates apart by their style. Fuelled by high Jewish and Palestinian population growth and a facts-on-the-ground struggle to control as much territory as possible, the Jewish settlement of Har Homa on Jerusalem’s southern edge merges with the new estates of the once pastoral Palestinian village of Beit Sahour. Read more…

Shigeru Ban Wins the 2014 Pritzker Prize

By Carolina A. Miranda
ARCHITECT 2014, March 24, 2014

The Japanese architect, known for his paper structures, is the 36th architect to win the industry’s highest honor.

In 1994, 2 million Rwandan refugees streamed into neighboring countries as they fled the ethnic conflict in their homeland. They set up crude camps, living in a stew of mud and plastic tarps. Like much of the rest of the world, Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, Hon. FAIA, was watching. Unlike much of the rest of the world, he did something. Ban got on a plane to Geneva, where he talked his way into the offices of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. He could do better, he told them. A simple, paper-tube frame he had devised would allow the refugees to turn the plastic tarps into functioning, walk-in tents. The UN agreed. Since then, Ban has devoted himself to considering the ways architecture can function in crisis—even as he has maintained a bustling practice designing private homes, office buildings, and museums. Read more…

Member Advisory: InterCoast Building Solutions Inc.

The AIBC Registered Educational Provider Program allows the institute to extend a wide variety of valuable professional development opportunities to Continuing Education System (CES) participants throughout the province. Providers pay an annual fee to take part in the program. In turn, they enjoy the benefit of connecting directly with the architectural community. AIBC attendees benefit from knowing each associated learning activity has been pre-approved for AIBC learning units, with the assurance that their AIBC transcripts will be automatically updated upon successful completion of each provider activity and submission of attendance lists.

AIBC CES participants are advised that InterCoast Building Solutions Inc. is not a current AIBC Registered Educational Provider. The company’s web site currently states that attending InterCoast learning presentations will allow CES participants to gain AIBC Core Learning Units.

Please be advised that as InterCoast is not a current provider, attendance records have not been submitted to the AIBC for review. All CES participants who have taken part in InterCoast learning activities over the current CES reporting cycle are requested to self-report these learning activities directly to the AIBC prior to the CES reporting deadline of June 30, 2014. As with all self-reported activities, the institute will review each learning activity and assess the claimed learning units as appropriate.

Women in Architecture: Party for Architects

Join colleagues and friends for a special evening of celebration and networking. The evening features guest speaker Stephanie Robb Architect AIBC, who will discuss the evolution of Vancouver Special houses over the past 25 years. There will also be a cash bar, as well as music spun by DJ Looped before and after the presentation. It takes place Thursday, March 27 from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. at Vancouver Special (3612 Main Street, Vancouver). No advance RSVP is necessary.