yes we can
March 31, 2008barack obama’s just too convincing for his own good.
i’m not even american and i feel patriotic when i hear him speak.
i think he’s finally convinced me with his talk about mixed race.
Archive for March, 2008
genetic algorithms in architecture
March 30, 2008
farms in cities
March 25, 2008Surprisingly enough, there do exist urban farms in Canadian cities.
Ottawa Central Experimental Farm from above, Image from Google Earth
One is the Ottawa Experimental Farm, which is very close to downtown (just southwest of Parliament Hill). This farm not only has a large swath of land dedicated to growing crops and testing out new cultivation techniques, it has an extensive built campus of research laboratories, government ministries, greenhouses, visitor facilities, and even an arboretum.
McGill University’s MacDonald Campus from above, Image from Google Earth
eisenman on slavery
March 13, 2008
architorture. stop it.
from eikonographia.
“In response to the deleted post here at Eikongraphia about the working conditions as an unpaid intern at SANAA, Matthew Allen has send me the following conversation between Peter Eisenman and Jeffrey Kipnis. It’s the fourth of December 2007, GSD Harvard:
Audience: ”I would really appreciate it if you could give us your perspective on the employment of unpaid interns.”
Peter Eisenman: “I think that I want to answer the question clearly because, first of all, it’s a practice that occurs in journalism, it occurs in art, it occurs in film, et cetera. I know more people that are unpaid interns, that want to get experience. First of all, we are not allowed to pay people without work permits and most of our unpaid interns are in fact foreign workers, and the way you get into our office, is - an internship is three months, you can’t do anything for three months anyway - and then we usually hire those people who survive, et cetera, and pay them, and get them working papers, and get them into graduate school, and give them seminars, et cetera. So, I don’t want to even deign to even give that question - because it was meant in a kind of snarky way.”
Jeffrey Kipnis: “No it was not!”
Peter Eisenman: “It was! It was meant snarkily.”
Jeffrey Kipnis: “I don’t think it was.”
Peter Eisenman: “I want to respond to it and say: thank god for people who are unpaid interns. When I started in architecture, I was an unpaid intern. I think the practice is fabulous. People who move up in the world all start as unpaid inters. Thank you.”
Jeffrey Kipnis, pointing to Jacques Herzog: “They don’t have any unpaid interns.”
Peter Eisenman: “No. They only pay people.”
Peter Eisenman, the boss
a designed parking lot
March 12, 2008
Hotel Puerta de America parking lot, Madrid. Photo courtesy of teresasapey.com
Even the most successful designers have to get their big break somewhere. It was Tobias Wong who made his own big breaks by self-financing his projects like the Money Pad and Philippe Starck Chair-Lamp. I truly believe you have to be willing to bet on yourself with your own money before you can expect others to invest in your projects.
Tobias Wong went to a number of print shops, including Kinkos, before he finally found a printer willing to bind his stack of 100 one dollar bills. Photo courtesy of Theme Magazine.
Teresa Sapey got her break designing the Hotel Puerta de America parking lot in Madrid. Instead of going the traditional route of designing hotels, store interiors, and restaurants, Teresa decided she coud do something different. It’s a spectacular space and the novelty of it has brought her into the world of celebrity: Madonna has held a party in the space, Frank Gehry has contacted her about doing a joint project, and she has become well-known by artists and other architects alike.
Hotel Puerta de America parking lot, Madrid. Photos courtesy of teresasapey.com
‘tokyo in a box’
March 10, 2008i got the most pleasant surprise in the mail today. a pop-up card of tokyo, tokyo in a box, as my friend calls it!
1. laid flat
2. pop-up card.
i must admit, mesmerizing is the perfect word to describe it. thanks, don!
freight train graffiti
March 9, 2008Some photos from the decommissioned CN freight yards in the north end of Montreal.
A talk with Sandra Ainsley
March 5, 2008
Peter Bremers’ Icebergs and Paraphenalia, photo courtesy of sandraainsleygallery.com
“Sandra Ainsley established her first gallery in Hazelton Lanes in Toronto in 1984, and has since established herself as a leading dealer on the global market. In early 2002, Sandra was approached by developers interested in reconstructing the old Gooderham and Wort’s Whiskey Distillery. This 10,000 square foot space is now home to one of the finest collections of glass art in the world. 1
Susan Rankin’s Garden Columns (stacked), photo courtesy of sandraainsleygallery.com
In January, I had the opportunity to speak with Sandra Ainsley as a part of my Entrepreneurial Leadership course at McGill University, a course where prominent Canadian leaders from diverse fields are invited to share their life experiences. Below are my thoughts on her visit.
Dale Chihuly’s Red Chandelier, photo courtesy of sandraainsleygallery.com
Sandra Ainsley is many things. Owner of an internationally renowned glass gallery, mother to three children, recognized entrepreneur, friend of Dale Chihuley. Even so, describing Sandra Ainsley in one word is easy.
I would choose genuine.
neat furniture + booths at ids08
March 3, 2008some highlights from this year’s show:
clever.
A booth made entirely from flatten-able paper boxes!
ids 2008 collaborations
March 3, 2008The four ‘collaborations‘ were designed by Toronto firms Teeple Architects, KPMB, Johnson Chou, and Giannone & Associates. Each team was allowed to use just one material for the construction of a concept from floor to ceiling.
Contours, Teeple Architects and Willis, using Dupont Corian
KPMB Architects, Taproot, & Tron-X, using Smith and Fong PLYBOO
