Hasta La Ideas

Danish architect Bjarke Ingels has defended his decision to meet with Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro and said he intends to work in the country in the future.

Ingels released a statement rejecting the idea that countries like Brazil should be off-limits to architects after a photograph of him and Bolsonaro led to widespread criticism, including from the commenters on Dezeen.

“Creating a list of countries or companies that BIG should shy away from working with seems to be an oversimplification of a complex world,”  said Ingels, who is founder of Danish studio BIG, in a statement.

“Dividing everything into two categories is neither accurate nor reasonable. The way the world evolves isn’t binary but rather gradual and on a vast array of aspects and nuances. If we want to positively impact the world, we need active engagement, not superficial clickbait or ignorance.”

Ingels happy to engage with “a government that is willing to listen”

Ingels was in Brazil on a fact-finding trip with hotel developer Nômade Group to investigate developing a tourism masterplan in the northwest of the country.

During the trip, he met with president Bolsonaro, who is a vocal opponent of same-sex marriage and drew widespread criticism for his response to fires in the Amazon last year.

“How better to impact the future of the region and the country than to plant the ideas we believe in at the highest level of government?” asked Ingels.

“Neither the president nor the ministers are our clients, but we are happy to share our ideas and ideals with a government that is willing to listen.”

“I want to be actively involved with the necessary transformation of Brazil”

According to Ingels, places like Brazil, which may have governments with political leanings that do not align with his own, are places that can most benefit from interventions.

“As much as I would enjoy working in a bubble where everybody agrees with me, the places that can really benefit from our involvement are the places that are further from the ideals that we already hold,” said Ingels.

Ingels also stated that he is keen to work in Brazil in the future.

“Slash and burn agriculture is one of many examples of how socioeconomic problems can become environmental problems,” he continued.

“That is why I want to be actively involved with the necessary transformation of Brazil and share ideas that I believe would be a great alternative to the traditional development that destroys the landscape, deteriorates the ecosystems and displaces the local community. We may not succeed, but I am certain that we will not succeed if we don’t even try.”

Ingels established his studio BIG in 2006. It has completed projects in numerous countries around the world. The studio is currently designing a mixed-use tower in Ecuador, a “bow-tie-shaped” theatre in Albania, and a mixed-use complex in Canada.

Bjarke Ingels’ full statement:

Many have asked what we are doing in Brazil.

My colleague and I have been on a fact-finding trip with Nomade Group to gather background information for a holistic masterplan for responsible tourism in socially and environmentally sustainable destinations in Northeast Brazil. Some may know the incredible, barefoot, light impact environments that Nomade is known for – a form of tourism that doesn’t replace the forest or the sand but rather inhabits and preserves it. A much-needed alternative to the high-rises on the beach that often happens when international tourism arrives as it has in Cancun only hours north of Tulum.

We traveled the northeast coast of Brazil from Fortaleza to Atins, crossing three states, meeting mayors, governors and ministers across the entire political spectrum, and most importantly, amazing people from all walks of life. The observations and ideas we presented in our preliminary research to the ministries of Economy and Tourism impacted them so much that they asked us to present our ideas directly to the president’s office.

How better to impact the future of the region and the country than to plant the ideas we believe in at the highest level of government? Neither the president nor the ministers are our clients, but we are happy to share our ideas and ideals with a government that is willing to listen.

As much as I would enjoy working in a bubble where everybody agrees with me, the places that can really benefit from our involvement are the places that are further from the ideals that we already hold. I love Brazil as a country, and I really want to see Brazil succeed.

Slash and burn agriculture is one of many examples of how socioeconomic problems can become environmental problems. That is why I want to be actively involved with the necessary transformation of Brazil and share ideas that I believe would be a great alternative to the traditional development that destroys the landscape, deteriorates the ecosystems and displaces the local community. We may not succeed, but I am certain that we will not succeed if we don’t even try.

Creating a list of countries or companies that BIG should shy away from working with seems to be an oversimplification of a complex world. Dividing everything into two categories is neither accurate nor reasonable. The way the world evolves isn’t binary but rather gradual and on a vast array of aspects and nuances. If we want to positively impact the world, we need active engagement, not superficial clickbait or ignorance.

I believe we have a great responsibility that comes with the creative platform that we have created. We should use that platform to change the world for the better. We can’t expect every public instance to be aligned with all aspects of our thinking, but we can make sure that we bring the change we want to see in the world, through the work we do.

The ideas and ideals of the projects we propose bear their legitimacy. That means working in countries like Brazil (and the USA for that matter) despite the controversies that their elected leaders may generate. One of the core principles of democracy is the ability to coexist and collaborate despite political differences.

In my mind that is a way for us architects to have ethical impact. To engage actively to create the future that we want, by proposing our ideas to people, governments and businesses even if they have different points of view than we do. We have to engage and embrace our differences if we want to dare to imagine a different future.

The post Criticism of Jair Bolsonaro meeting is “an oversimplification of a complex world” says Bjarke Ingels appeared first on Dezeen.

The beloved Pigalle basketball court (located on Rue Duperré in Paris’ 9th Arrondissement) has received a makeover, the first since its bright gradient look from three years ago. The Pigalle brand (founded and helmed by Stéphane Ashpool) joined forces again with creative agency ILL-Studio and Nike for the gaming-inspired refresh, which features only recycled materials and”blocks of color intertwined with graphic icons, including arrows, plus signs, and target symbols.” Shades of blue, along with splashes of peach, plum and lavender have been used. The court, which used to be a parking lot, is once again open to the public. See more photos by Alex Penfornis at designboom.

Published by FUEL and compiled by Trunk Records owner (and self-proclaimed nostalgia lover) Jonny Trunk, Wrappers Delight features 500+ images of British drink, confectionary, and candy packaging from 1950 through 1980. “Decisions about what to include were based on three parameters set by FUEL and myself,” Trunk writes in the book’s introduction. “1) We had to like the item for nostalgic reasons. 2) We had to like it for graphic reasons. 3) We had to have room for it in a 240-page book, which was looking problematic as we started with well over 1,500 items I had selected.” Whether using the book as a reference point for design projects or source of inspiration and entertainment, the contents are sublime—bright, bold, retro, kitsch and everything between.

OMA New York, led by Shohei Shigematsu, has revealed plans to reconfigure and renovate the design galleries inside the Denver Art Museum designed by famed Italian architect Gio Ponti.

The renovations are part of a series of phased reopenings of the Colorado museum’s Martin Building designed by Italian architect Gio Ponti in 1971.

Other components of the multi-stage project, led by Machado Silvetti Architects and Fentress Architects, include campus reunification, exterior site improvements and providing visitor access to the seventh floor terrace.

OMA’s plan involves overhauling 10,000 square-feet (929 square-metre) of the building’s original footprint to create three distinct spaces: the Joanne Posner-Mayer Mezzanine Gallery, the Ellen Bruss Design Studio and the Amanda J Precourt Design Galleries.

“The three new spaces are more than just galleries for consuming design,” said OMA partner Shohei Shigematsu.

“They each have their own spatial and programmatic identities but work collectively as a platform for discourse around the boundless contexts of design.”

To create the new areas, the studio will horizontally bisect a gallery on the museum’s first level. By doing so the architects, will add a “piazza-like” galleries and an interactive design studio that takes cues from Ponti’s works.

“The three new rooms amplify Ponti’s intention – distinct yet interconnected, the interactive Design Studio and piazza-like Design Galleries simulate urban activity within the museum,” the studio added.

“The rooms also integrate subtle references to Ponti – floating abstract planes within the Mezzanine Gallery; compositional techniques reminiscent of Ponti’s furniture design within the Design Studio; and in the Design Gallery, the use of a curved entry echoing those within the Martin Building and a rotation of platforms and walls to the city grid.”

In the gallery, an alternating sequence of rooms and islands will be positioned on the perimeter encircling an open, central piazza.

Inside these rooms, visitors will be surrounded by the objects on display, while in other spaces items will be placed on centrally located islands and piers that allow for views from several different vantage points.

All of the display platforms will be modular and flexible to account for the varying types, sizes and medium of the objects on display. The spaces are intended to be easily and efficiently rearranged for different exhibitions.

The renovation also involves the creation of the Design Studio, a space where visitors can respond and contextualise what they see through hands-on experiences. Imagery shows the room filled with several tables surrounded by stools and colourful shelving units mounted on the walls.

It will also include a set of hinged walls that will be able to be arranged in a number of configurations within the room, which is intended to be used as a library, lounge, workshop, presentation and space for community activities.

OMA‘s renovation will open to the public on 6 June 2020, while the rest of the campus is anticipated to complete and reopen in Fall 2021. An inaugural exhibition showcasing the work of Gio Ponti will go up in the newly designed gallery spaces.

Shigematsu heads up OMA’s New York with fellow partner Jason Long. The outpost is intended to function independently from the other international offices, including Rotterdam, Beijing, Hong Kong, Doha and Australia, as part of an initiative of founder Rem Koolhaas.

Last year, the New York office, reconfigured and updated galleries for Sotheby’s auction house in Manhattan and unveiled its design for the extension to the city’s SANAA-designed New Museum.

The post OMA to renovate galleries in Gio Ponti’s Denver Art Museum appeared first on Dezeen.

Du 24 au 26 janvier, Trajectoire Studio met le basket à l’honneur avec une exposition de plusieurs artistes contemporains. Chacun donne sa propre interprétation du sport à l’occasion de la semaine où deux équipes du NBA s’affrontent pour la première fois à Paris. On pourra également y découvrir une collection capsule en exclusivité avec BENKLARK, marque de streetwear made in France soutenue par les célèbres basketteurs Rudy Gober et Evan Fournier ou encore DJ Snake mais aussi une exposition d’une sélection de sneakers ayant marquée l’histoire du basketball en collaboration avec SHINZO (référence de sneakers addict à Paris). Plus d’informations sur Facebook.