Tag Archives: architecture

Frank Lloyd Wright Did Care

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A Wright house isn’t a build­ing, it’s a philo­soph­i­cal text about fam­ily, nature and land­scape. An inglenook is impor­tant — it draws fam­ily and friends into con­ver­sa­tions. Views into the sur­round­ing land­scape are impor­tant — they con­nect us to nature An Apple prod­uct isn’t about but­tons and screens, it’s about elim­i­nat­ing bar­ri­ers between the user and what the user chooses to care about when using the device.

The proof that Frank Lloyd Wright cared is that he sold houses in every decade from the 1890s to 1960s. The proof that Steve Jobs cared is not found in the fact that Apples sells mil­lions of prod­ucts, but that Apple sells mil­lions of its prod­ucts to peo­ple who already own Apple prod­ucts.

[Link to Frank Lloyd Wright Did Care]

Norman Foster and Steve Jobs

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But the culture of Foster and Partners (as it was then called) was different from firms in Silicon Valley with one notable exception – Apple, the place that combined geek business inventiveness without its reputation for poor aesthetic sensibility. Perfecting the model of selling design that is compatible with big business, Foster simultaneously grew one of the largest architecture practices in the world while still winning awards for design excellence. The secret was to design buildings like the limited edition, invite only Porsches that Foster drove and fellow Porsche drivers would commission them.

More alike than you would imagine.

[Link to Norman Foster and Steve Jobs]

A Brief History of Moving Buildings

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Richard Neutra’s Maxwell House was chopped up and moved to a new location this week (photos from the L.A. Times documenting the mid-century classic being towed along Sunset Boulevard, below).

An admirable save, to be sure — though we wonder whether treating such a building like a status object that can be moved around according to the will of the owner somehow detracts from the dignity of the original architectural intent.

[Link to A Brief History of Moving Buildings]

MIT150 – Massachusetts Institute of Technology 150th anniversary

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This spring the Massachusetts Institute of Technology celebrates its 150th anniversary with a series of events and exhibits honoring the Institute's past and envisioning its future. The School of Architecture + Planning — the first architecture department in the country, now 145 years old — will play a central role in the festivities.

[Link to MIT150 - Massachusetts Institute of Technology 150th anniversary]

Crazy Cantilevers

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Constructing a cantilever structure is one of the most difficult things for a structural engineers to do. Remember the thumb-rule – for every foot cantilevered, you must anchor it at the support to a depth of 1.5 feet. For an architect, cantilevers are beautiful things and can literally extend capabilities of their building while remaining beautiful. They offer limitless opportunites but are beyond the technical capabilities of architects to maximize their utility completely. This struggle between the structural engineer and the architect has always been fraught with compromises and hence mediocrity in design. That’s why it is a refreshing change to see structures that push the envelope and exist in defiance to all logic:

cantilever buildings in netherlands

[source]

Falling Water Animated Walkthrough

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Pretty cool animation walkthrough of the famous Kaufmann house or as popularly known, Falling Water by architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Although this animation doesn’t compare to the real thing which I did couple of years back, it can be the next best thing. However, don’t expect someone to jump out and start shooting. If you do, probably you should be playing fewer video games and watching more walkthroughs :)