Hasta La Ideas

This Halloween, we’ve brought together the best photography of spooky spaces, including a city consumed by sand, a deserted Japanese theme park, and decaying insane asylums.

Les Sables du Temps by Romain Veillon

French photographer Romain Veillon explored an abandoned town that is slowly being consumed by the Namib desert to create these images of once-opulent buildings filled with sand dunes.

The discovery of diamonds at the turn of the 20th century prompted the establishment of Kolmanskop as a settlement for German miners, but it was abandoned just 50 years later when the resources ran out. Now little more than a tourist destination, the ghost town is gradually disappearing under sand.

See more images from Les Sables du Temps ›

Nara Dreamland by Romain Veillon

Veillon also photographed the abandoned and overgrown landscape of Nara Dreamland, a theme park built in 1961 as Japan’s answer to Disneyland.

It eventually closed in the summer of 2006, but its attractions were left in place for over 10 years – before eventually being demolished at the end of 2016. Veillon managed to capture the decay of the structures before the bulldozers moved in.

See more images from Nara Dreamland ›

Abandoned Asylums by Matt van der Velde

Canadian photographer Matt Van der Velde toured the deserted and decaying hospitals in North America, once used to house and treat patients suffering from psychiatric disorders, where many patients in the 19th century spent most of their lives institutionalised.

These grand buildings were used up until the 1950s, when less isolating methods of care were introduced. The wards were left in various states – some completely empty, and others still with all the furniture and equipment in place.

See more images from Abandoned Asylums ›

Soviet Ghosts by Rebecca Litchfield

Photographer Rebecca Litchfield has toured former Soviet countries to document the once-monumental structures around the Eastern Bloc that have fallen into decay.

She visited hospitals, military barracks, prisons, spy stations, sports halls and more – dodging security and military personnel, and risking radiation exposure to gain access to the derelict structures.

See more images from Soviet Ghosts ›

Abandoned by Christian Richter

German photographer Christian Richter has broken into more than 1,000 abandoned buildings across Europe since 2011, to capture their “swan song”.

Aided by a network of friends who suggest new places for him to visit, he tries to keep the locations secret to prevent the structures being vandalised.

See more images from Abandoned ›

Übergang by Josef Schulz

Disused military checkpoints and border stations across Europe are catalogued in this series by Polish-born photographer Josef Schulz.

Named Übergang after the German word for crossing, the series of images depicts transnational borders that have become redundant. Each shot has also been digitally manipulated so that the surroundings appear shrouded in fog.

See more images from Übergang ›

Home Less by Nelson Garrido

These images by Portuguese photographer Nelson Garrido reveal buildings left deserted in the aftermath of the last financial crisis.

First presented at the 2016 Venice Architecture Biennale, the Home Less series features buildings from all across Portugal, from holiday villas to mass housing blocks. Some were left deserted after completion, while others were abandoned before they were even finished.

See more images from Home Less ›

The post Eerily beautiful photographs of abandoned architecture for Halloween appeared first on Dezeen.

Having finished binge-watching Stranger Things 2 just yesterday, I have to say, I really want a walkie-talkie so I can scream “Code Red!” into it whenever I’m in trouble! However, there’s nothing I have my heart set on more than the Onyx Smart Walkie-Talkies!

These beauties look nothing like the clunky brick-shaped walkie-talkies from Ye Olde days, but rather look like amazing badges you wear on your clothes. With the color gradients that look nothing short of lick-worthy, and a twisted metal rod that allows it to fasten itself to your clothes while giving the device a beautiful touch, the Onyx work like walkie-talkies, but take due advantage of technological advancements to make them better products. The Onyx has “unlimited range, and unlimited channels”, allowing you to converse over long distances (even overseas!) like a walkie-talkie, without paying a single penny to a telecom provider, and allowing you to speak mano-a-mano or even to teams.

The Onyx pairs with its smartphone app, allowing you to converse one-on-one with people on your list, or even to groups. With its own built-in speakers and microphone, the slick device works via touch-to-communicate, much like a Star Trek Communicator Badge (exactly like a ComBadge!) and can be muted by just rotating the dial. Available in a pack of twos (and with the most eye-catching gradients on the face), the Onyx is great for communicating naturally (because who makes phone calls these days). Its spontaneous, on-the-spot communicating platform helps you talk to anyone, anywhere on the planet, instantaneously! The future is officially here, ladies and gentlemen… and it looks good!

Designer: Orion Labs

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The cocktails on signature menus move around as quickly as the bartenders making them. Some sippers have moved on from the longstanding staple Bloody Mary to its tequila-based sibling the Bloody Maria. Last week’s Tequila Herradura Legends bartender……

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Dezeen promotion: highlights from the Architecture and Design Film Festival taking place in New York City this week include a documentary about Australian architect Glenn Murcutt and a movie set among the modernist gems of Columbus, Indiana.

The ninth edition of the Architecture and Design Film Festival (ADFF) New York takes place from 1 to 5 November 2017 at the Cinépolis theatre complex in Chelsea.

The programme includes more than 30 short and feature-length films selected by festival director Kyle Bergman, along with panel discussions, filmmaker question-and-answer sessions, a pop-up bookstore by Phaidon, and VR experiences created by Gary Hustwit, director of Helvetica and Objectified.

The festival will host the world premieres of four movies. The first, SuperDesign, is a documentary about the emergence of Italian Radical Design during the country’s tumultuous political period in the 1960s and 1970s. It includes previously unseen archive footage, and interviews with key members of the movement such as Gaetano Pesce, Ugo La Pietra and Alessandro Mendini.

Another film making its debut is Made in Ilima, which follows the construction of a conservation-focused primary school and community centre in an isolated part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The project was completed by MASS Design Group and the African Wildlife Foundation in 2012, and involved using local craft and ecological knowledge to help preserve the forest and its endangered inhabitants.

MASS Design Group co-founders Michael Murphy and Alan Ricks will sit down with film director Thatcher Bean following the screening at 9pm, Friday 3 November 2017.

Glenn Murcutt: Spirit of Place will also have its US premiere during the festival. The documentary explores the life and work of the famous Australian architect and 2002 Pritzker Prize winner, as he undertakes an ambitious project: a contemporary mosque for Melbourne.

Other highlights will include Columbus, a feature film based and shot in the small Indiana city that is home to one of the world’s best collections of significant modern architecture. It follows the story of two young people who bond and share their emotional strife as they explore buildings by the likes of Eero Saarinen, IM Pei and Richard Meier. The film’s director Kogonada will be present following the screening at 6:45pm, Saturday 4 November 2017.

Kevin Roche: The Quiet Architect provides a glimpse into the career of the 95-year-old Irish-American, whose work includes the Ford Foundation, Oakland Museum of California, and four decades spent designing new galleries for The Met in New York. Roche will be present for a discussion with director Mark Noonan following the screening at 4:15pm, Saturday 4 November 2017.

For more information, and to see the full line-up of films, screening times and Q&A sessions, visit the ADFF website.

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Architecture firm Snøhetta has revealed its plans to overhaul the New York skyscraper designed in the postmodern style by Philip Johnson and John Burgee, which involve replacing the street frontage but retaining its recognisable classical pediment.

The 647-foot (197-metre) tower at 550 Madison – formerly known as the AT&T Building and then the Sony Tower – will receive a makeover that will update its public, retail and office spaces.

Snøhetta proposes transforming its “fortress-like base” with an undulated curtain wall of translucent glass, opening up the lower levels so passers-by can see in.

“While the recognisable top of the tower will remain a fixture of the New York City skyline as it has since its completion in 1984,” said the studio, “the new design will transform the base into an inviting street front, extending the lively activity of Madison Avenue further south to 55th Street.”

“From the street, the reconceived facade dramatically highlights the multi-story arched entry while revealing the craftsmanship of the building’s existing steel structure,” the firm added.

The building, which is regarded as the first postmodern skyscraper, has sat vacant since electronics giant Sony left a year and a half ago.

It was originally designed for single-tenant use, and the interior updates are intended to modernise the offices and help lease the floors to multiple companies. More retail and restaurant spaces, and other amenities, will be included to help entice occupants.

The outdoor space beside 550 Madison will also be opened up, doubling the amount of publicly accessible space on the site.

An annex building will be removed from the passageway connecting 55th and 56th Streets behind the tower, and the area will be planted with seasonal foliage to create a place for eating lunch or relaxing.

“Snøhetta’s design approach stitches the life of the building back into the street,” said the firm.

The building will also be fitted with a dedicated outdoor air ventilation system (DOAS), which will supply clean fresh air to the offices and consume less energy than a typical mechanical ventilation system.

Johnson was best known for his modernist buildings like the 1940s Glass House in Connecticut, but later adopted postmodernism after partnering with Burgee from 1967.

They gave the 550 Madison tower granite cladding and a “Chippendale” roof line, while brass and marble finishes featured on the interior – marking a distinct shift from Midtown’s glass and steel skyscrapers at the time.

Snøhetta has offices in Oslo and New York. The firm’s work in the US includes the recent transformation of Times Square and an extension to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

The post Snøhetta reimagines New York’s postmodern icon 550 Madison appeared first on Dezeen.