Architecture

China has set itself the goal of transforming half of its rural population of 700 million people into productive, comfortable members of urban conglomerations in the next three decades. Thus far, the process has moved along with a great deal of work for civil and mechanical engineers and the construction industry, but very little role for architects in the generically styled concrete and brick urban buildings. Award-winning architect at the University of Hong Kong John Lin and his associates believe that this process of urbanization also calls for a flexible approach to house design in rural areas. The result is a project that looks at the role of the stereotypic village house and attempts to propose a prototype which reaches toward contemporary living styles while respecting the functionality and traditions of the past.  Read More

This modest sized apartment situated on the fifth floor of a tall building in Moscow was strongly overshadowed by surrounding buildings and a dark central courtyard. To correct the problem, architect Peter Kostelov transformed the interior design into an “Oak Tube” that allows natural light to filter through the entire abode.  Read More

How do you build a restaurant at the top of a mountain? Quickly, and from anodized aluminum and other lightweight materials, apparently, if the newly-opened Gipfelrestaurant (summit restaurant) 2650 meters (8700 ft) up atop the Arosa Weisshorn in the Swiss Alps is anything to go by.  Read More

Daiwa House, Japan's largest homebuilder, has introduced a line of prefabricated hydroponic vegetable factories, aimed at housing complexes, hotels, and top-end restaurants. Called the Agri-Cube, these units are touted by Daiwa as the first step in the industrialization of agriculture, to be located in and amongst the places where people live, work, and play.  Read More

With his Luxodrome concept, architect Charles Wagner has put forward a novel take on the cycling velodrome, with two tracks side by side with adjoining lanes that form one long figure eight track.  Read More

As useful as 3D printers are becoming in industrial design, they still aren't exactly eco-friendly and are still mostly limited to small scale objects. You couldn't really use one to print a building just yet, but a group of architects may have taken a step in the right direction with a new machine called the Stone Spray. Using natural soil and sand, the Stone Spray can construct intricate solid structures at almost any location, even on vertical surfaces.  Read More

"People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones," is a proverb not usually taken literally, but anyone brave enough to live in architect Carlo Santambrogio's glass house (designed by Ennio Arosio) may want to do so. They'll also need to not be the shy and retiring type, have a fair amount of money in the bank, and own a plot of land with no close neighbors or easy points of access. Not for the faint-hearted then, but a property we can all aspire to one day live in ... if we ignore the obvious practical concerns.  Read More

French architectural firm St. André-Lang has designed and built a compact circular housing prototype that incorporates corn cobs within the walls. The 20 square meter (215 square foot) pavilion style home is located in the protected parklands of Muttersholtz, France and recently won the Archi<20 competition for low-cost, environmentally-friendly architecture. “The total cost of the project was €7,000 [US$8,705],” St. André-Lang architect and co-creator Bastien Saint-André told Gizmag. “But we had some partners (carpenter, woodworker) – the real cost would be around €10,000 [US$12,435].”  Read More

Czech architect Marek Štěpán and his studio Atelier Štěpán has come up with a stylish take on the prefabricated home designed for affordable off-grid living. Though compact, the "Freedomky" nevertheless comes complete with laundry and cooking facilities as well as security and heating systems.  Read More