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News: the Australian Institute of Architects has announced 38 winners of this year’s National Architecture Awards, including a pointy artists’ studio in Japan, a bright blue stadium in Perth and a Melbourne university building covered in scales.

A total of 55 awards were presented by the Australian Institute of Architects in a ceremony today at the Sydney Opera House. Projects were recognised from each Australian state and territory, including a copper-clad medical centre in Tasmania, a community centre in Sydney with plant-covered trellis walls and a weathered steel kiosk on the beach in Torquay, Victoria.

“We were thrilled to see so many buildings and places that were engaging with social impacts beyond their immediate brief, offering something really significant to society at a higher level – architecture which is not merely responsible, but which is generous,” said architect Shelley Penn, who chaired the awards jury.

Housing projects chosen included a residence designed as a cross between an archaeological site and playground, and a social housing complex that looks like a pile of single-storey homes.

Awards also went to a prison modelled on a utopian Aboriginal community, an office block that curls around a large public park and a series of paths and pavilions along and across the Derwent River.

“These projects offer a legacy of positive urban spaces, connections and approaches that will influence how their cities function and are perceived,” added Penn.

Here’s a full list of the winning projects:

2013 National Architecture Awards

The Colorbond Award for Steel Architecture 

The COLORBOND® Award for Steel Architecture
» Waterloo Youth Family Community Centre by Collins and Turner with City of Sydney

The COLORBOND® Award for Steel Architecture – Commendation
» West Kimberley Regional Prison by TAG Architects and Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects

Commercial Architecture

The Harry Seidler Award for Commercial Architecture
» Darling Quarter by Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp (fjmt)

National Award for Commercial Architecture
» Mountain Retreat Medical Clinic by Circa Morris-Nunn

National Commendations for Commercial Architecture
» Brookfield Place by HASSELL and Fitzpatrick + Partners
» One One One Eagle Street by Cox Rayner Architects

Enduring Architecture

The National Enduring Architecture Award
» Parliament House by Mitchell Giurgola and Thorp 1988

Heritage

The Lachlan Macquarie Award for Heritage
» Hamer Hall by ARM Architecture

National Award for Heritage
» Good Shepherd Chapel, Abbotsford, by Robert Simeoni Architects

Interior Architecture

The Emil Sodersten Award for Interior Architecture
» Perth Arena by ARM & CCN – Joint Venture Architects

National Awards for Interior Architecture
» Hamer Hall by ARM Architecture
» Translational Research Institute by Wilson Architects + Donovan Hill; Architects in Association

National Commendation for Interior Architecture
» The Kinghorn Cancer Centre by BVN Donovan Hill

International Architecture

The Jørn Utzon Award for International Architecture
» Australia House by Andrew Burns Architect in association with Atelier Imamu

Award for International Architecture
» Finding Country Exhibition 13th Venice Architecture Biennale 2012 by Kevin O’Brien Architects in association with the Finding Country Collective and Venti di Cultura

Public Architecture

The Sir Zelman Cowen Award for Public Architecture
» Perth Arena by ARM & CCN – Joint Venture Architects

National Awards for Public Architecture
» Queen Elizabeth II Courts of Law by Architectus in association with Guymer Bailey Architects
» RMIT Design Hub by Sean Godsell Architects in association with Peddle Thorp Architects
» Swanston Academic Building by Lyons
» Translational Research Institute by Wilson Architects + Donovan Hill; Architects in Association
» Waterloo Youth Family Community Centre by Collins and Turner with City of Sydney
» West Kimberley Regional Prison by TAG Architects and Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects; Architects in Association

National Commendations for Public Architecture
» Hamer Hall by ARM Architecture
» The Braggs University of Adelaide by BVN Donovan Hill & Hames Sharley in association
» The Kinghorn Cancer Centre by BVN Donovan Hill

Residential Architecture – Houses

The Robin Boyd Award for Residential Architecture – Houses
» Fairhaven Residence by John Wardle Architects

National Awards for Residential Architecture – Houses
» Edward Street House by Sean Godsell Architects
» Tír na nÓg by Drew Heath Architects

National Commendations for Residential Architecture – Houses
» (-) Glass House by Charles Wright Architects
» Balmain House by Fox Johnston
» Bisley Place House by James Russell Architect

Residential Architecture – Multiple Housing

The Frederick Romberg Award for Residential Architecture – Multiple Housing
» McIntyre Drive Social Housing Altona by MGS Architects

National Awards for Residential Architecture – Multiple Housing
» 29-35 Prince Street Cronulla by Candalepas Associates
» Constance Street Affordable Housing by Cox Rayner Architects

Small Project Architecture

The Nicholas Murcutt Award for Small Project Architecture
» Djakanimba Pavilions by Insideout Architects

National Awards for Small Project Architecture
» 7th Heaven, Ormond College by Nest Architects
» Art Gallery of NSW Forecourt Upgrade by Johnson Pilton Walker
» Keperra House by A-CH (Atelier Chen Hung)

National Commendations for Small Project Architecture
» Abbotsford Convent Breezeway by Jackson Clements Burrows
» Third Wave Kiosk by Tony Hobba Architects

Sustainable Architecture

The David Oppenheim Award for Sustainable Architecture
» West Kimberley Regional Prison by TAG Architects and iredale pedersen hook architects; Architects in Association

National Award for Sustainable Architecture
» Waterloo Youth Family Community Centre by Collins and Turner with City of Sydney

National Commendations for Sustainable Architecture
» (-) Glass House by Charles Wright Architects
» Constance Street Affordable Housing by Cox Rayner Architects
» Darling Quarter by Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp (fjmt) with ASPECT Studios, Lend Lease, E.G.O. Group and Davenport Campbell
» Djakanimba Pavilions by Insideout Architects
» One One One Eagle Street by Cox Rayner Architects

Urban Design

The Walter Burley Griffin Award for Urban Design
» Revitalising Central Dandenong: Lonsdale Street Redevelopment by BKK/TCL Partnership

National Awards for Urban Design
» Flinders Street Revitalisation by Cox Rayner Architects
» GASP Stage 1 by Room 11 Studio

National Commendations for Urban Design
» 2 & 4 National Circuit Precinct by Fender Katsalidis
» Brookfield Place by HASSELL and Fitzpatrick + Partners
» Darling Quarter by Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp (fjmt) with ASPECT Studios and Lend Lease
» Hamer Hall by ARM Architecture
» Pitt Street Mall Public Domain Upgrade by Tony Caro Architecture

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2013 winners announced appeared first on Dezeen.

News: trainers with rubber loops on the soles to give extra spring have won the product design prize at a Swiss design awards (+ slideshow).

The running shoes first launched three years ago, by Swiss designer Thilo Alex Brunner for new Swiss sports brand On, won the award at the Design Prize Switzerland last week.

“The award is a big recognition for Thilo Alex Brunner and for On”, said On co-founder David Allemann. “In the tradition of functional and sleek Swiss design, the visual language of On is as unique as its groundbreaking technology. Function and form have been winning over elite athles and casual runners alike. Thilo has given On a face that is a radical departure from the crowded design of conventional running shoes.”

Flexible rubber sections on the soles, which the brand calls clouds, compress to act as shock absorbers when landing then lock together using small teeth to form firm pads for launching the body forward.

“Hollow pods on the sole of the shoe stretch back on impact to cushion the landing and then lock to form the solid foundation required for a powerful push-off,” said Allemann. “The result is a new running experience: fast, light and agile.”

Athletes including Ironman world champion Frederik Van Lierde and 2012 Olympic triathlon gold medalist Nicola Spirig have worn the shoes in competitive races.

Pairs are available with different uppers for different running distances, with a selection of bright laces and matching details.

Two product designs prizes were given out at the awards as part of the Market category for products available to purchase. The other winner was a swivelling lamp that clamps to the edge of a desk or shelf.

Photos are by Ingmar Swalue and Thomas Stöckli.

Read on for more information from the brand:

On wins the prestigious Design Prize Switzerland

The Swiss sports company On and designer Thilo Alex Brunner win the prize for best product design.

The young Swiss sports company On wins the prestigious Design Prize Switzerland. Thilo Alex Brunner, one of the most successful upcoming Swiss designers, impressed the international jury in the category Product Design Market.

“The award is a big recognition for Thilo Alex Brunner and for On”, explains David Allemann, co-founder of On. “In the tradition of functional and sleek Swiss design, the visual language of On is as unique as its groundbreaking technology. Function and form have been winning over elite athles and casual runners alike. Thilo has given On a face that is a radical departure from the crowded design of conventional running shoes.”

The high-calibre jury with Liesbeth in’t Hout, Ascan Mergenthaler, Jasper Morrison, Lars Müller and Robb Young selected from 300 entries. The jury about the winner On: “The market for running shoes is overcrowded and hotly contested – so when a new brand comes along and takes the market by storm, the innovation behind it must convey a promise which it manages to keep – a shoe with qualities never heard of before.

In this case a clever design idea has proved capable of competing against the million-strong budgets which the big brands in the industry assign to research and marketing. The straightforward design of the shoe deliberately refrains from indulgence in stylistic frills, and is wholly consistent in focusing on the basic functional requirements. The attention is drawn to the sole, which here constitutes the crucially important element.”

Land soft but push off hard – this is the radically new idea of On’s patented technology and far from self-evident. The merely three year old Swiss company is able to combine the best of soft yet slow training shoes and fast yet hard racing flats.

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on the soles win Swiss design prize appeared first on Dezeen.

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News: an island in the Venetian Lagoon used as a landfill site could be transformed into a huge theme park under controversial plans by Italian fairground designers Zamperla.

Zamperla, the company responsible for the latest rides on New York’s Coney Island, plans to invest €80 million (£68 million) converting the uninhabited San Biagio island into a four-hectare park that will feature a 55-metre-high Ferris wheel, a roller coaster, other rides and an exhibition that illustrates the history and ecology of Venice.

“We’re talking about the history of Venice – one of my passions – but done my way,” company founder Alberto Zamperla told news agency AFP, explaining that his plans are for a cultural attraction, not just “an amusement park”.

The artificial island is currently filled with waste from an incinerator that closed in 1985. Zamperla says the project will involve decontaminating the toxic site, creating as many as 500 jobs.

However the project has already proved contentious among both residents and city officials, who fear that the rising number of tourists will overwhelm the city’s economy.

“We are completely against it,” Matteo Secchi of community organisation Venessia told AFP. “I am not criticising the idea of renovating a degraded area. But we do not need more attractions, we have enough. Venice has other priorities. Its inhabitants are leaving, it has already become an amusement park.”

City mayor Giorgio Orsoni told the Telegraph: “The environmental rehabilitation of San Biagio should go ahead, but it must be done with respect for this city. Venice is not a theme park, and everyone must take account of that.”

The park, known as L’isola San Biagio, is expected to attract up to 11,000 visitors a day within two years. Without opposition it could be open by late 2015, according to reports.

Venice residents have already managed to prevent one major project from going ahead this year: fashion tycoon Pierre Cardin cancelled his plans for a futuristic skyscraper on Venice’s mainland, after failing to gain support from the public bodies involved.

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abandoned landfill island appeared first on Dezeen.

News: biohacker Tim Cannon has taken wearable technology to a new extreme by implanting a device into his arm so he can monitor his biometric data on a tablet.

Cannon had the body-monitoring device inserted under the skin on his left forearm to track changes in his body temperature.

Built by his company Grindhouse Wetware, the Circadia 1.0 contains a computer chip within a sealed box about the size of a pack of cards and is powered by a battery that can be wirelessly charged.

Realtime readings of Cannon’s body temperature are transmitted from the chip to his Android-powered device via Bluetooth.

He is able to monitor fluctuations and notice if he is getting a fever, as well as look back at recorded data to find patterns he can use to adjust his lifestyle and help keep him healthy.

“I think that our environment should listen more accurately and more intuitively to what’s happening in our body,” Cannon explained to tech blog Motherboard. “So if, for example, I’ve had a stressful day, the Circadia will communicate that to my house and will prepare a nice relaxing atmosphere for when I get home: dim the lights, let in a hot bath.”

A fellow body modification enthusiast implanted the chip in Cannon’s arm without anaesthetics, as doctors aren’t authorised to insert non-medical devices.

LEDs built into the case flash when the device connects to the tablet, lighting up the tattoo on Cannon’s forearm.

The Circadia 1.0 will be available to buy in the next few months at an estimated cost of $500 (£314). Cannon has reportedly already been able to make a smaller version the device and plans to incorporate a pulse monitor.

By embedding the technology into his body, Cannon has taken a leap forward from removable body-monitoring devices worn around the wrist such as the Nike+ FuelBand and Jawbone’s Up, or concept for the flexible electronic circuits that stick directly to the skin. Dezeen editor-in-chief Marcus Fairs discussed how wearable technology will “transform our understanding of ourselves” in his Opinion column earlier this year.

Images are from Motherboard’s Youtube video.

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device under his skin appeared first on Dezeen.