Dezeen Wire: Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry talks to CNN international about OPUS, his first building in Hong Kong. The 12-storey apartment building is due for completion in early 2012 and features an undulating façade. It looks set to become the most expensive rental property in the region – CNN International
Dezeen Wire: architecture and design magazine Icon has published its 100th issue, featuring a cover designed by Rem Koolhaas’ practice OMA, an exploded cake made by food designers Blanch & Shock and birthday cards from previous cover stars.
The magazine also includes a review of the new extension to the High Line park in New York, a profile of design gallerist Libby Sellers, a behind-the-scenes look at OMA‘s Rotterdam headquarters and a feature on the playful and conceptual work of designer Dominic Wilcox.
Icon will be on sale at Dezeen Space, 54 Rivington Street, London EC2A 3QN from 17 September to 16 October.
Dezeen Wire: architecture critic Jonathan Glancey reports from the opening of Westfield Stratford City, describing it as “a hermetic citadel of commercial seduction” – The Guardian
See a previous story on Westfield Stratford City by Rowan Moore of The Observer here.
Dezeen Wire: the Royal Institute of British Architects has released a report stating that house builders are failing to meet minimum space requirements for new homes. The Case for Space report claims that customers are not being provided with necessary information about the size of space they are purchasing. The report is part of the RIBA’s HomeWise campaign that demands better information from estate agents and house builders and provides an online resource for house buyers.
See coverage of the report on the BBC, The Independent, The Daily Telegraph and The Guardian.
Here is some more information from the RIBA:
Shameful shoe box homes: new research reveals how thousands of brand new houses are failing to provide the space families need
Business leader Sir John Banham to lead major new inquiry into British homes as the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) launches HomeWise campaign
The average new three bedroom home currently being built by the UK’s top house builders is around 8% smaller than the basic recommended minimum size, leaving thousands of people across the country short-changed. This squeeze on size is depriving thousands of families the space needed for children to do homework, adults to work from home, guests to stay and for members of the household to relax together. The findings feature in Case for Space, new research revealed today by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
The RIBA’s Case for Space report, based on 80 sites across England, exclusively reveals:
The RIBA Case for Space report exposes the lack of transparency existing around the size of UK homes – details are simply not recorded or publicly available. Home buyers repeatedly fail to get detailed information about properties for sale or rent, and are rarely given the overall floor area; consumers can therefore be left confused about the actual amount of space they are purchasing.
The figures exposing the lack of choice and information available to home buyers, have been released today at the launch of a new national housing campaign and inquiry led by the RIBA.
The RIBA’s HomeWise campaign calls for:
The HomeWise website also launched today at www.behomewise.co.uk features a series of online resources to help people to ask the right questions when choosing a home. The resources include The Nest Test – an easy-to-use online calculator that helps home seekers to find out what the floor area of their home should be according to the recommended standards.
Speaking today, Harry Rich, RIBA Chief Executive said:
“Our homes should be places that enhance our lives and well-being. However, as our new research confirms, thousands of cramped houses – shameful shoe box homes – are being churned out all over the country, depriving households of the space they need to live comfortably and cohesively.
“At a time when the Government, housebuilding industry, economists and housebuyers and renters are concerned about whether we are building enough new homes in the UK, it might seem odd to suggest that the focus should move to thinking about the quality of those homes. And yet this is the very time to do so. In a rush to build quickly and cheaply we risk storing up unnecessary problems for the future. There does not need to be any contradiction between building or refurbishing enough homes and making sure that they are of the highest quality.
“It seems clear that people have too little influence on the design, quality and size of homes available to them. The RIBA’s Homewise Campaign will engage households, architects, builders and policy-makers in a conversation about how to deliver homes to meet or exceed the real needs of our population in the 21st century. This report is the beginning of the conversation. We hope to ask the right questions and we look forward to working in partnership with consumers, housebuilders, government and many others as we seek the answers.”
Sir John Banham, Chair of the Future Homes Commission said:
“We want to find out from people what they think about their homes and communities where new homes are being built as well as garner intelligence and research from industry about the housing market before making some recommendations about what might happen next.
“It seems clear to me from my recent work in Cornwall, from industry and when looking at local government that there are some fundamental issues that need to be addressed to ensure we have more of the right kind of affordable homes in villages, towns and cities right across Britain. I am convinced that there is no necessary conflict between addressing the current housing crisis effectively and protecting the countryside. But new thinking and financing approaches will be needed, which I hope and expect the Future Homes Commission will be able to provide.”
The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said:
“In London we want to see new developments that enrich the capital’s architectural vernacular and that will be admired and cherished for decades to come. This is why, despite challenging economic times, we have successfully introduced clear guidance to improve the design standards of new developments to ensure that homes have the space people need to lead happy, fulfilling lives. It is vital that we build more homes to boost the economy, but as RIBA’s campaign rightly points out, we must not compromise on quality and design to do so.”
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Dezeen Wire: British pop-art pioneer Richard Hamilton has died aged 89 – The Guardian
Dezeen Wire: the practical trend of adapting and reusing existing buildings is the focus of an article by Giovanna Dunmall in The Economist.
Dunmall points to an office building by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM) and the redevelopment of The Royal Shakespeare Company headquarters by Bennetts Associates Architects, both of which were nominated for this year’s Stirling Prize. Read the full story here.
Dezeen Wire: Justin McGuirk of The Guardian is the latest critic to write about the kitsch revival of postmodernism, which he says remains popular with consumers – The Guardian
A retrospective about the postmodern movement opens at the Victoria & Albert museum on 24 September. See recent articles on postmodernism by Alice Rawsthorn for The New York Times and Rowan Moore in The Observer.
Dezeen Wire: the first issue of new design magazine CLOG is out now and features an interview with architect Bjarke Ingels, plus critical analysis of his Copenhagen firm BIG with over 40 contributions. The magazine is published three times a year and explores architectural issues in depth with insight from practicing professionals.
Dezeen Wire: ahead of the opening of Postmodernism: Style and Subversion 1970-1990 at the Victoria & Albert Museum next week, design critic Alice Rawsthorn describes the hype and controversy that surrounded the movement and its influence on subsequent designers – The New York Times
See a previous article discussing the definition of postmodernism by The Observer’s architecture critic Rowan Moore here.
Dezeen Wire: Dutch architect Alex de Rijke of dRMM has been appointed as dean of the School of Architecture at the Royal College of Art in London.
Nigel Coates announced his retirement from the role in May, as reported on Dezeen Wire.
See all our stories about dRMM »
Here is some more information from the RCA:
The Royal College of Art has appointed Alex de Rijke as Dean of the School of Architecture. He will take up the position in January 2012.
Professor de Rijke will be responsible for creating a new, enlarged School of Architecture with two new programmes – a one-year MArch course and a Master’s in Interiors, both of which will begin in Autumn 2012. He will also lead the current Master’s in Architecture (RIBA Part II) programme, formerly led by Professor Nigel Coates who left the College in July 2011.
de Rijke is a founding Director of the architectural practice dRMM, whose work is well known for innovative construction technologies and materials. Perhaps de Rijke’s most inventive design is his much-lauded ‘Sliding House’, created for a private client in 2009, which won an RIBA Award and both Grand Designs ‘Best new building’ and overall ‘Best house’ categories.
In 2004-5, awards for dRMM’s Centaur Street base included RIBA London ‘Building of the Year’, and Kingsdale School won the Wood Award for Structure and the Royal Fine Art Commission’s ‘Building of the Year’ Award. dRMM’s Clapham Manor School won The Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the London Planning Awards 2011 and was shortlisted for the 2010 Stirling Prize.
de Rijke has taught most recently at the Architectural Association, London; the Aalto University, Helsinki; and as Guest Professor at the School of Architecture in Düsseldorf. He has served as External Examiner at the AA, London Metropolitan and Oxford Brookes universities. He was educated at the Polytechnic of Central London, the Academie van Bouwkunst, Amsterdam, and the Royal College of Art. He completed RIBA Part II at the Polytechnic South West School of Architecture and RIBA Part III at South Bank University, London, where he subsequently began teaching what he called, ‘The Culture of Construction’.
According to Dr Paul Thompson, Rector of the Royal College of Art, “Alex will create a unique Architecture School focusing on theory and practice. With an emphasis on making and materials, I know he will exploit the excellent technical facilities of the RCA. What makes his appointment as Dean so exciting is the freshness of his vision: he is driven by a strong ethical and values-based agenda, with a radical desire to change both the educational model of architecture and also the profession. His vision accords entirely with the charter and mission of the RCA – an institution committed to thinking through making.”
Alex de Rijke said:
“I am delighted to accept the role of Dean of Architecture at the RCA. Having always regarded education as a parallel discipline to practice, I will continue as Director of dRMM Architects while developing a new course for the RCA, one which repositions future architects as the most highly skilled prime movers in the currently deregulated and debased market for building design and procurement.
I am proposing that Architecture and Interiors at the new School are studied in the global context of new sustainable materials and manufacturing processes, as a remit and broad parameter for creative study and research. Together with developed workshop and studio connections to facilitate 1:1 prototyping, we will build a momentum that will make the new RCA School of Architecture become the postgraduate school that defines architecture as ‘Useful Art’.”
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