Archinect - News

MoMA PS1 pauses the popular Young Architects Program

2019-11-26T18:58:00-05:00

After a 20-year run as the launching pad for a generation of aspiring architects and young designers, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and MoMA PS1-sponsored Young Architects Program (YAP) will be going on hiatus for at least one year.

Martino Stierli, Philip Johnson Chief Curator of Architecture and Design at MoMA, told The Architect's Newspaper, "Following the 20th anniversary of the Young Architects Program, MoMA and MoMA PS1 have decided to place the program on a one-year hiatus. We remain deeply committed to supporting and recognizing emerging architectural talent."

In the statement, Stierli added, “We’ve already started to use the hiatus to bring together a diverse group of influential scholars and professionals, experimental architects and designers, and previous YAP winners to assess the program’s impact for the past two decades, explore its potential, and strategically chart its future. We look forward to sharing more news as we move along in this process.”

The shift follow...

Francis Kéré fashions arts pavilion from pine logs

2019-07-12T15:12:00-04:00

Architect Francis Kéré has completed work on Xylem, a new pavilion at the Tippet Rise Art Center in Montana that is fashioned from a collection of tree trunks.

The 2,100-square-foot pavilion, described as "a quiet place to contemplate nature" by the organizers, draws inspiration from the wooden and straw toguna structures in West Africa's Dogon communities. In their native context, togunas are seen as sacred structures and are often located at the center of each village where they host communal discussions and debates. Designed with squat proportions that force visitors to sit down when inhabiting the space, the traditional structures play a vital role in the governance and everyday life of their respective villages.

Interior view of the pavilion, which is made up of from ponderosa and lodgepole pine logs. Image courtesy of Iwan Baan, Tippet Rise Art Center.

For the pavilion in Montana, Kéré has created a lively and textured space built entirely from the logs of ponderosa and lodge...

Meditative pavilion designed by Francis Kéré for Montana's Tippet Rise Art Center soon to break ground

2018-12-13T14:33:00-05:00

Montana's sprawling, 12,000 acre sculpture and music park will soon begin construction on a permanent pavilion designed by the Berlin-based Burinabé architect Diébédo Francis Kéré. The commission for Tippet Rise Art Center, which will kick off their 2019 Summer concert season, is being funded by the Tippet Rise Fund of the Sidney E. Frank Foundation, which is also helping to construct a new school in Kéré's hometown of Gando.

The wooden pavilion is derived from Kéré's 2017 Serpentine Pavilion and his 2015 canopy structure for the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. It is inspired by the traditional togunas of the Dogon culture of Mali and will be constructed of locally and sustainably sourced ponderosa and lodgepole pine. Described by the architect as creating a "rain of light" effect, the structure will offer visitors a space to gather, contemplate the views, and/or meditate.

Naaba Belem Goumma Secondary School.

“At Tippet Rise, we want the buildings to have the material and formal int...

Francis Kéré will design a canopied log pavilion for the Tippet Rise Art Center in Montana

2018-05-17T16:29:00-04:00

Francis Kéré is the latest architect commissioned to design a new permanent pavilion on the grounds of the 10,260-acre Tippet Rise Art Center in Montana. Nestled in a cluster of aspen and cottonwood trees on the banks of a flowing stream, the design of the 1,900 square-foot pavilion is derived from Kéré's 2017 Serpentine Pavilion and his 2015 canopy structure for the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art.

Kéré's design pays tribute to the traditional sacred toguns of the Dogun people in Mali, which are shelters made from ornamented wooden pillars that are carved with representations of one's ancestors, and a roof of layers of wood and millet straw.

Exterior view of the pavilion. Credit: Francis Kéré.

Circular aerial bridge. Credit: Francis Kéré.

Built from locally sourced logs of ponderosa pine and lodegepole pine, the Tippet Rise pavilion will be a round structure connected to a circular aerial bridge that spans the stream. Touching the ground at only a few points to preserve the landscape...

The Shed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Rockwell Group takes shape on the High Line

2018-03-09T19:12:00-05:00

Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in collaboration with Rockwell Group, The Shed will open to the public in spring of 2019 with commissioned programs filling its expansive multi-use hall, galleries, and theater situated along NYC's High Line.

The Shed rendering, by Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Image: Diller Scofidio + Renfro.

The Shed is a 200,000-square-foot structure that can physically transform to support ambitious ideas across many disciplines. The eight-level base building includes two expansive, column-free galleries, a 500-seat theater that can be subdivided into even more intimate spaces, event and rehearsal space, and a creative lab.

The Shed extendable shell rendering, by Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Image: Diller Scofidio + Renfro.

A movable outer shell can double the building’s footprint when deployed over the adjoining plaza to create a temperature-controlled space named The McCourt. The space will be able to house large-scale performances, installations, and events for a...

Frank Gehry's Merriweather Post Pavilion roof collapses during renovation

2018-01-25T13:21:00-05:00

One of architect Frank Gehry’s earliest public buildings collapsed this month as it was nearing the end of a five-year, $55 million renovation, forcing the owners to revise their plans. The roof of the Merriweather Post Pavilion, a 19,000-seat open-air concert venue in Columbia, Maryland, crashed down in the middle of the night on Saturday, January 13, burying the seating below. No one was injured.

The concert pavilion was designed by Frank Gehry, Walsh, and O'Malley in 1967 and is being renovated to maintain presence among other performing arts centers. The design team opted to keep the original roof seeing it as the defining element of Gehry's design and were in the process of raising it 20 feet on hydraulic lifts improving sightlines when it collapsed.

Merriweather Post Pavilion, image via Youtube

So far a cause for the collapse has not been disclosed. This incident marks the concert pavilion as one of the first major Frank Gehry buildings to be considerably lost or modified despite efforts to retain its architectural integrity.

Renovated Merriweather Post Pavilion rendering by JP2 Architects. Image: JP2 Architects.

Gehry Partners is not a part of the renovation design team headed up by JP2 Architects, but was briefed on the project. A new roof will be built in time for this summer's concert season with the first show scheduled for July.

SHL's Shanghai Cloud Pavilion is a stunning glass and steel extrusion of a cartoon cloud

2016-08-18T12:44:00-04:00

Intended as both a counterpoint to the heavy industrial cranes that line Shanghai's West Bund as well as an art/exhibition space, SHL's new Cloud Pavilion is the permanent version of the wildly successful 2013 Shanghai biennial installation, which was intended only to last for two months.

While the first iteration's ephemeral 20,000 white ropes have been replaced by steel rods and a glassed-in viewing area, the hope is that the initial free-floating feeling remains.

As Schmidt Hammer Lassen design partner Chris Hardie explains, "The new pavilion creates a singular space in the form of an extruded glass cloud. The cloud shape in plan directly relates to the cartoon like form associated with how a child would draw a cloud, and how clouds are often seen depicted in traditional Chinese prints. The cloud is considered a symbol of luck in ancient Chinese painting."

Here's a video showing the Pavilion and the context of its site:

A tour of OMA's Pierre Lassonde Pavilion

2016-04-20T15:15:00-04:00

Described in a press release as a "spacious and distinctively contemporary gateway to the institution's existing complex of buildings," the new Pierre Lassonde Pavilion of the Musee National des Beaux Arts du Quebec by OMA appears to have an exceedingly functional quality. Admittedly, the building won't open to the public until June 24th, so these initial photos by Iwan Baan feature a higher than average amount of protective tarps and plywood.

The concept behind the three gallery stacked structure, according to OMA partner Shohei Shigematsu, is meant to continue the topography of the nearby park.

"The activity of the city extends below, providing a new point of interface between the city and the park," Shigematsu continued. "Art becomes a catalyst that allows the visitor to experience all three core assets—park, city, and museum—at the same time."

Smiljan Radić’s Serpentine Pavilion Moves to Somerset

2015-03-24T17:44:00-04:00

Last year, Chilean architect Smiljan Radić revealed his Serpentine Pavilion—an enormous shell-shaped structure perched atop jagged quarry stones in Hyde Park—as part of the London gallery’s prestigious architecture program. Thousands of visitors examined its translucent fiberglass walls over the course of the summer. This week, the pavilion will be unveiled at its new, permanent home, amid the spring gardens of Hauser & Wirth Somerset in Bruton, about two and a half hours from London by train.

UPDATE: KSR Architects’ fluorescent “chandelier” pavilion at the Camden Create Festival

2014-05-20T17:39:00-04:00

After being chosen to have the winning design in the competition, KSR Architects got to realize their proposal for the Camden Town Pavilion at the iconic Britannia junction during the town's first Camden Create Festival that recently occurred in Camden, London. KSR Architects' colorful pop-up pavilion must've been quite the statement piece to celebrate the town's unique creative culture.

Check out some photos of the pavilion:

More details on Bustler.

“Floating Art Platform” - winner of the West Kowloon Arts Pavilion competition

2014-02-07T20:36:00-05:00

Here's a better look into the first-place entry of the West Kowloon Arts Pavilion Design Competition by VPANG architects ltd + JET Architecture Inc + Lisa Cheung. Their proposal 'Floating Art Platform' will be realized into the new Arts Pavilion as part of the growing development of Hong Kong's West Kowloon Cultural District.

You can find out more on Bustler.

XML’s Arts Pavilion proposal for the West Kowloon Cultural District

2014-02-04T00:01:00-05:00

In light of the recent conclusion of the Arts Pavilion Design Competition for Hong Kong's developing West Kowloon Cultural District, Dutch design practice XML shared their competition entry "A²" with us. Although they were met with stiff competition and didn't place, their proposal is still worth knowing about.

Catch a glimpse of how XML would've designed the pavilion.

Find more project details on Bustler.

Winners of the West Kowloon Cultural District Arts Pavilion

2014-02-03T20:45:00-05:00

Development plans for Hong Kong's West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) continue to grow with the recently concluded Arts Pavilion Design Competition, wherein the new waterfront pavilion will become the main exhibition space for the to-be-built M+ Museum. The new Arts Pavilion is set to be built by 2015.

The jury chose three prize winners out of 100 submissions:

1st Prize: VPANG architects ltd + JET Architecture Inc + Lisa Cheung

2nd Prize: ROGERSPARTNERS and Arthur C. S. Kwok Architects & Associates

3rd Prize: Hestia & Vish Limited

Six honorable mentions were also selected: Matheson Whiteley and Andrew Lee King Fun & Associates Architects Ltd; ESKYIU and LEAD; O Studio Architects Limited with ARCA Limited; Jägnefält Milton with Leigh & Orange Ltd; David Kohn Architects with TFP Farrells; and Nina Lesser, Michel Chung, Man Hok Wai, Nic Banks, Glory Wang.

Find additional details on Bustler.