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Architecture as Advocacy

Published by rwatstein November 23rd, 2008 in libraries and architecture. 0 Comments

The new Amsterdam Public Library is an architectural gem that features skylights, terraces, a seven-story atrium, walls of windows, stunning views and an open floor plan that constantly presents new spaces and interesting places. The facility is the foundation of the city’s redevelopment for the Oosterdokseiland area—and the heart of the library’s new attitude.

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British Architect to Redesign New York City Library

Published by rwatstein October 25th, 2008 in libraries, architecture, NYPL and design. 0 Comments

Norman Foster, the eminent British architect who has made something of a specialty out of inserting contemporary designs into historic buildings, has been selected for a major renovation of the New York Public Library’s landmark 1911 main building, on Fifth Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets. Mr. Foster and his London firm, Foster & Partners, are to create a new circulation library in a space below the library’s Rose Reading Room and overlooking Bryant Park that now houses seven levels of stacks and a basement.

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Museum Designer’s Task: Explain Mission of Gates Foundation

Published by rwatstein September 15th, 2007 in museums and architecture. 0 Comments

A sleek glass, copper and concrete visitor’s center in the new headquarters of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation may become a Seattle tourist attraction when it opens in 2010. The foundation, the largest in the world with $33.4 billion in assets, has given museum design firm Ralph Appelbaum Associates the task of creating a 15,000-square-foot center that explains the nonprofit’s work in global health, development and education.

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Buy! Buy! Buy! - Why are so many architects snapping up ‘land’ in Second Life?

Published by rwatstein July 21st, 2007 in Second Life, virtual worlds and architecture. 0 Comments

It is one of the web’s most extraordinary creations. At first glance, SL, as most residents call it, resembles a computer game - a 3D landscape you navigate with your own customised character or “avatar” - but there are no dragons to slay or points to score. In fact, it’s not clear what you’re supposed to do at all. One thing SL is well primed for, however, is building: anyone can make anything, from teapots to skyscrapers. The essential building blocks are “prims”, short for primitives. These are geometric solids - cubes, spheres, cones - that can be dragged off a template then stretched, positioned, sized, textured and combined to form anything imaginable. Unlike the real world, there’s no gravity, weather, site preparation, sloppy workmanship, or planning committees to worry about. It should be an architect’s paradise.

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