Architect Richard Leplastrier's house in Lovett Bay.Credit:Leigh Woolley

"Sophisticated camping," Lambert calls it in a new documentary on the gold-medal-winning architect, Framing the View.

A series of four modest corrugated iron roof buildings set on large wooden decks, Leplastrier's home has no "flash carpets", no pull-down blinds, no TV. And, most noticeably, no glass windows.

"Glass would be nice occasionally," Lambert says wistfully to camera.

"It's better with wine in it," the architect retorts. "Glass sucks the colour out of things," Leplastrier explains. "You can't hear the birds. It's better to be able to remove walls and have them open and clear to the outside. I learnt that from the Japanese."

But the Japanese don't have to contend with two-metre pythons falling on their bed an incident Leplastrier laughs off.

Instead of glass windows, his Lovett Bay house has large portholes and hatches reflecting not just a Japanese influence, but his lifelong pursuit of sailing. Walls lift up, enveloping the interior in nature. The main plywood building has just one room (4.8 x 9.6m), doubling as bedroom and office where he draws. The documentary captures the rich familial bonding that such intimate living provides. As the children grew, Leplastrier enclosed one side of the veranda. Outside on the deck, underneath three-metre eaves, is a Japanese style wooden bath and the exposed kitchen.

"We tend to live on the floor a lot," says Leplastrier. "We sleep on the floor. We eat on the floor. And that's a lesson learned not only from Japan, but most Pacific Islanders live like that. It makes a lot of sense. You can do with a house half the size. It's good fun to live like that. Our real room is the whole bay and our real walls are the cliffs on the other side."

Leplastrier, who turns 81 in November, has built more than 30 houses and a handful of public buildings, including the Birabahn Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Centre at the University of Newcastle (with Peter Stutchbury and Sue Harper). Currently, he's collaborating with Architectus and landscape architect Craig Burton on the National Herbarium of NSW at Mt Annan.

One of Australia's most respected architects and teachers, Leplastrier received the Australian Institute of Architects' highest accolade, the gold medal, in 1999. Intensely curious and generous with his knowledge, the softly spoken architect eschews publicity and rarely appears in the architectural press. So why agree to a film?

"You value your own work, but you shouldn't have any pretences about it," he says. "Work shouldn't be judged for 20 years and see how it fared over time. But if it has any value, it's good that it's recorded properly at least once."

Framing The View director Anna Cater, who spent15 years filming Leplastrier.Credit:Mark Rogers

Aside from Leplastrier's modesty, director Anna Cater says the architect wanted a record for his three sons as he started his family late in life.

Cater spent some 15 years filming Leplastrier. One hundred hours had to be edited. At the centre of the observational documentary, she records the two-year process of building a house in Blackheath. The architect describes his houses as "pure theatre" or a "film set" stages for living. Yet one of the most striking aspects of Leplastrier's process is the flexible, collaborative approach he applies on site. He adjusts ideas and details as he goes, based on the input from builders and clients. If there's one regret with the film, it doesn't feature enough of his builders and makers, Leplastrier says.

He shares this love of craftsmanship and working in small teams with his early mentor Jorn Utzon. Just 25 when Utzon hired him in the late stages of his Sydney Opera House commission, Leplastrier and the great Dane bonded over sailing. After working a couple of weeks on the Opera House, Utzon asked his young acolyte if he'd like to work on his house at his Palm Beach studio.

Leplastrier's Palm Garden House (1974) in Bilgola.Credit:Michael Wee

After Utzon was forced off the Opera House, Leplastrier spent five years studying in Japan and travelling. From the Japanese he learnt the value not just of the flexible space, but anticipation and timing. "The framed view was part of Japanese culture," he says.

These influences coalesce in the Palm Garden House, Bilgola (1974) his most important work, according to Pritzker prizewinner Glenn Murcutt. "It's probably one of this country's finest works of any architect in this country," Murcutt asserts.

Set among a grove of palms, the building's high semi-circular roof rolls back and opens to the elements. When required a drape folds up in origami-like pleats to fill the arch and form a wall.

"[The house] demonstrates a way of falling in love with landscape actually disappearing into it," says Adrian Carter, professor of architecture at Bond University and author of a forthcoming monograph on Leplastrier. "It's much closer to an Indigenous way of living in this environment."

Among Leplastrier's high-profile clients are filmmaker George Miller and his editor partner Margaret Sixel, politician Tom Uren and novelist Peter Carey.

"He won't work with people unless he has a rapport with them," says Carter. "And they all become his friends."

Carey has known the architect for some 30 years and had "years of pleasurable conversations that informed Illywhacker and Oscar and Lucinda". The novelist says he "paid tribute" to the architect in his 1988 Booker-prize-winning novel, naming his heroine Lucinda Leplastrier.

Leplastrier says Carey "was having a go at me [because] I'd never build a glass church in a million years", he laughs. "I was always telling him how crook glass was."

Framing the View may be the documentary's title, but how should one frame a view? Floor-to-ceiling glass windows or a row of window frames capturing vistas like cinematic film aren't the only solutions. Subscribing to the Japanese concept of ma', Leplastrier creates anticipation by glimpsing views through slits in walls, oculi, and small windows. The part tells the whole.

"Implicitness is far more alive and rich and experiential than explicitness where everything is on the table," he says. "Select what it is you want to refer to outside."

But what if you live in a more urban environment than the Blue Mountains or Lovett Bay? "The sky is the free faade in the city," Leplastrier reassured Miller and Sixel. The roof of their Watson's Bay house (1997) is, like the Palm Garden house, a convertible'. This time a hydraulic roof lifts and opens to the trees and sky.

"His buildings make you feel happy," says Sixel. "It makes you feel connected that's really what he's about. It's incredibly elemental."

Richard Leplastrier: Framing the View, screens on the ABC, Tuesday, May 12, 9.30pm.

See original here:
Falling in love with landscape - The Age

The National Capital Commission (NCC) is telling Ottawa tulip admirers not to stop and take photos of flowers this year over fears it could cause crowds to form and put people at risk of spreadingCOVID-19.

No stopping and no photography signs have sprouted upat theNCC's flower beds, just in time for the start of the Canadian Tulip Festival Friday.

Corey Larocque, a spokesperson for the NCC which owns and maintains the tulips said it's neitherthe stopping nor the photography that poses a risk in terms of COVID-19,but the gathering of people.

"The small signs are part of our effort to limit crowding or gathering around the tulip beds and to ensure that people getting to the park on foot or by bike can do so safely, with enough space for physical distancing," Larocque said in an email to CBC.

The signs appeared asboth the City of Ottawa and the NCC announced they would resume allowing people to linger in greenspaces to play catch or have a picnic, for instance.

Park amenities are still off limits, like benches and basketball courts, and Ontario bars groups of more than five people but, aside from around tulip beds owned and maintained by the NCC,it's OK to stop and take photos. Health officials are still urging Canadians keep a two-metre distance between themselves and others they do not live with.

Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said he disagrees with the no-photo policy and hopes the NCC will reconsider.

"The whole purpose of going and seeing the tulips is not only to see the beauty in person but also to snap a quick picture," said Watson.

For its part, the Canadian Tulip Festival which celebrates a gift of tulips given by theDutchafter the Second World War, honouring Canada's role in the liberation of the Netherlandsis also trying to encourage people to stay away from the flowers.

"What we have done is come up with every possible way of bringing the tulips to you," Jo Riding, the festival's general manager,told Ottawa Morning's Robyn Bresnahan Thursday.

"We're asking folks to stay home and stay safe and help us save lives."

The Canadian Tulip Festival is offering a range of virtual experiences this year, including aerial photography, musical performances, virtual gardens and a behind-the-scenes look at the festival with NCC's landscape architectTina Liu.

Riding said people who live near thefestival grounds at Commissioners Park and other NCC tulip gardensare welcome to walk through, butNCC conservation officers will be on hand to encourage people keep moving and keep their distance.

"There is signage basically everywhere, saying please do not stop, don't take photos, keep walking and join us online to celebrate," she said.

In Japan, authorities mowed down tens of thousands of tulips near Tokyo to ensure crowds stayed away. That's something Riding said the officials here don't want to do.

That being said, Riding said people also need to exercise some discretion.

"If you're there bright and early and if it is your local park, and you want to take a photo, and you're all by yourself, you know, use common sense," she said.

See the rest here:
No photos allowed at this year's Canadian Tulip Festival - CBC.ca

Daniel Tabone is an architect by education, graduating in 2018 with a master's degree in architecture and urban design from the University of Malta

Architects arent of much use during a pandemic. Internationally, some firms have been redesigning face masks or entering competitions for hospital or open market concepts mainly boosting their websites or creating a false sense of essential service vibe to justify years of study and sacrifice when what is required is the continuous manufacture of that which has been tried and tested ages ago.

Locally, weve been even less useful to the public just look at the news. There are, however, some problems which could be tackled or at least observed at this point, namely the issue of open or buffer enclaves within the spaces we design.

These spaces not only serve as a point of contact with the outside, but if designed with some sense, they can offer so much to the dwelling. Such as the integration of services like waterpoints at dwelling entrances or hallways and porches, where it is more practical to sanitize oneself prior to entering ones own sanctuary: essentially, its useless entering directly through the living area and washing hands in the bathroom at the end of the corridor, as with common apartment layouts these days. Typical of older dwellings, entrance halls were commonplace and even though not primarily designed as such, they could offer this amenity and separate the heart of the dwelling from the street.

Present policies and laws on internal and back-yard size give minimum open space allowances for light and ventilation, but cannot always promise adequacy. They are also very restrictive, not allowing designers to get truly creative. Lets face it, in a rogue free market, these minimums have become a rule of thumb. In a society facing calls to stay inside, any architect should be studying these spaces and others like balconies, terraces, front gardens, roof airspaces and even solar rights.

On an urban scale, we should kindle solutions for the distribution, and creation, of pavements and other public routes that integrate public services, re-thought to suit the human scale beyond the sardine-like hoarding of people. Internationally, traditionally congested cities are finding it necessary to open roads for pedestrians on major thoroughfares, allowing for actual social distancing while not necessarily closing shop. In Malta, where healthcare has been so far more successful in COVID-control, this might be even more effective.

Rather than seeing the empty roads solely as an opportunity for more road construction, now would be the time to test the waters on tactical alternatives, and who knows, we might like it.

Its not only architects who are at fault. If youre selling you should be responsible for a good product and if youre buying, youd know your priorities and what youre investing in. If a garage is more important than the size of your terrace, theres always the promenade to visit when not in lockdown. However, pandemic or not, a building which falls short of providing adequate buffer and contact with the outside, can just as well be classified as a container with a nice gypsum soffit ceiling.

Even when outside, the car is an excellent capsule to sit comfortably in, but youd have to get out eventually. Think about all this whenever you feel stuck at home or when you try to understand why there are still people on the streets. Remember, these thoughts will come in very handy as we next tackle climate change.

Read the original:
An open letter to architects: how shall we plan the post-COVID landscape? - MaltaToday

Three white-brick chimneys rise from this house in Virginia, which US studio T W Ryan Architecture designed to reference a modernist Mies van der Rohe house and a nearby plantation.

Three Chimney House comprises a series of structures that are organised in a Y-shape on a 45-acre (18-hectare) property outside of Charlottesville in horse country.

The slender, white chimneys reach 30-feet (nine-metres) high in the sky, enhancing the home's varied construction. Two double-height structures have gables while a low-slung, single-storey volume is topped with a slanting roofline and links to a flat-roofed portion.

Unifying the design are brick walls with flush mortar joints painted white and copper roofs that extend down to form exterior walls and which will patinate over time.

T W Ryan Architecture designed the residence for a young family with deep roots in the region that wanted the house to link with the natural landscape and the area's historic colonial homes.

"We wanted to create a house that is pure and primitive in form, defined by chimneys, walls and roofs," said studio founder Thomas W Ryan.

"The hope was that the construction success of the house would be measured against the nearby colonial forbearers rather than the modern houses under construction today."

In response, the studio took cues from a variety of local sources such as Thomas Jefferson's nearby Monticello house, which has as a natural copper roof, and the chimneys of the 18th-century plantation Stratford Hall not far from where the clients grew up.

"The architecture takes inspiration from traditional Southern colonial houses," Ryan added.

"Abstracting and re-interpreting these materials and archetypal elements, both the client and architect envisioned finding a timeless yet contemporary voice for Southern architecture in America."

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Brick Country House that he conceived 1924 but never built also formed a precedent for the project. It influenced the white barrier walls that extend from the house to mark the sloping terrain.

"It serves as an inspiration for how the natural landscape can be made clearer by the built construction, while not being tamed," Ryan added.

Upon entering via the single-storey structure, called the Main Hall, is a large room with a soaring ceiling. A fireplace divides a sitting area on one side and a shared kitchen and dining area opposite.

Sliding glass doors access a patio and provide unobstructed views of the Shenandoah Mountains and the sunset. A powder room, two closets, a laundry and a living room are nearby.

Connected to the Main Hall to the south is a volume with two bedrooms on the ground floor and a master suite upstairs called the Residential Wing. A detached volume is on the north side and contains an art studio and a guest suite.

Interiors are pared-down with white walls and pale wood floors. Vertical cedar boards with a black stain clad feature walls as a nod to the property's black cedar post fencing, as well as barns and farmhouses.

A variety of window sizes in square and rectangular shapes frame country views and usher in natural light.

Other homes in Virginia include Deep Point Road residence by BFDO, a black home by Architecturefirm and Buisson Residence by Robert Gurney.

T W Ryan Architecture has also renovated a black home Surf House in Montauk, New York for a family from Ireland.

Photography is by Joe Fletcher.

See the rest here:
Modernist and Southern colonial styles meet in Three Chimney House - Dezeen

From Zombie flicks to handlebar moustaches, miniskirts to macram pot plant holders, and winklepicker shoes to paisley ties, every fashion trend eventually makes a comeback.

Its just that some trends, such as hanging dried flowers from your rafters or embalming your wedding bouquet, take much longer than others to witness a resurrection.

It has been over a decade since I first predicted a popular revival for dried flowers. I was wrong then, and in 2011, when I gave them a hurry-up in NZ Gardeners special edition, Homegrown Flowers, and again in 2015, when I wrote in my Sunday Star-Times column that it was definitelytime to give botanical taxidermy another go.

In a case of better late than never,my prediction has now come true,as anyone on Instagram can attest.

READ MORE:* This florist's hacks will help you create lovely, long-lasting arrangements* Why dried flowers are back* The best plants to use for a pink garden

Search for #driedflowers and morethan half a million photos of driedflowers and foliage will pop up.

These, however, are not the driedflowers of old, which had all the lifeslowly sucked out of them in trays ofkitty litter or tins of silica gel, so thatthey remained as life-like as possible.

Thankfully, preserved perfection isno longer the ideal. These days, driedflower arrangers tend to celebratetheir subjects lack of uniformity,embracing the beauty of wrinkledleaves, crooked stems and age-spottedpetals that have shrivelled up likecrumpled crepe paper.

In the coastal Wellington suburb ofMiramar, florist Annwyn Tobins weeshop, Floriade, is famous for its driedflower room (one customer describedit as a dried flower fairy cave).

Annwyn, an Australian landscapearchitect, began her floristry businesstwo years ago but when I asked herhow long she has loved dried flowers,she told me all my life.

I grew up in a house with a hugegarden in Sydneys inner-west. ForMum and me, our idea of fun was hanging out at a garden centre thengoing home to plant whatever we hadbought. I made my own potpourriand dried flowers from our garden.

Im passionate about everythingbotanical, adds Annwyn, but unlikelandscape design, where you deal withplans and wait for plants to grow,working with flowers has a wonderfulinstantaneous nature to it.

Her design process now begins, notwith a site visit or brief, but with thematerial she sources from the flowermarkets, growers, the local coastlineor fellow gardeners.

Friends tidyingup their gardens might offer a carloadof hydrangeas otherwise destined forthe compost heap, or shell forage forwild bunny tails (Lagurus ovatus) onthe sea shore, or salvage the skirts ofold fern fronds from her own garden.

I dont like waste, not just from anecological perspective but because itsnot economic for a floristry business.

"If something doesnt sell when fresh,Ill transfer it to the dried flower roomat Floriade so I can reuse or repurposeit in a different way, she says.

Ever since I was a child, Ive likedto make things and to keep them,she adds. I suppose Im a botanicalhoarder. Im always collecting upbranches and offcuts that otherswould probably send off to the tip.

No two dried bouquets are thesame.

Sometimes Im in the moodto make something delicate, soft andairy like a cloud, with limonium andbabys breath, and other times Illcreate something robust and chunkywith proteas or lotus pods.

When the Duke andDuchess of Sussex now betterknown as Archies Mum and Dad visited New Zealand on their RoyalTour, Annwyn was commissioned tocreate some of the official floralarrangements at their functionsupporting youth mental health atthe Maranui Caf in Lyall Bay.

I did a large dried arrangementin a recycled olive oil tin, referencingthe coastal landscape with thingslike native toetoe, leucospermum,craspedia and wattle.

And when American rapper Eminencame to town for his concert in2019, his dressing room and otherentourage-only backstage areas wasadorned with fresh flowers mixedwith dried toetoe and copper beechbranches. (Interestingly, Eminemsmanagement team discoveredAnnwyns work on Instagram.)

BETTER OFF DEAD

When I asked Annwyn to list someof her favourite species for drying, herlist was as long as it was wide-ranging.

She namechecked a few Aussiecompatriots, such as waratahs andbanksias, as well as dainty Englishladies (Alchemilla mollis), tropical lotus pods, dried native ponga frondsand golden sheaths of wheat.

Delicate favourites to give bouquetsan ethereal, everlasting femininityinclude astilbe, dainty gypsophila, Queen Annes lace and so-calledsea lavender, which is actually a typeof statice. Sea lavender (Limoniumlatifolium) has drought-tolerant greenfoliage topped with billowing headsof small, ever-so-pale-blue flowers that lend it the appearance of silvermist. It must have free drainage andsuits a rockery situation in a hot, dryspot, though do keep it wateredduring its first season. Limoniumis available from parvaplants.co.nz,owairakaseeds.co.nz and bmn.co.nz.

Papery-petalled strawflowersor everlasting daisies (Helichrysumbracteatum) dry beautifully andretain their vibrant colours, thoughthe stems tend to weaken as theyshrivel, so larger blooms often needwiring for the vase. But short or evenstemless strawflowers can still be hotglue-gunned to wreaths and othercraft projects, or used as decorationsfor cakes, so simply deadhead thoseto dry in a single layer on an old soilsieve or fine mesh stapled over a box.

Blue delpiniums and larkspursboth hold their colour well duringthe drying process.

The prickly pom-poms of perennialglobe thistles (Echinops ritro) andspiky sea holly (Eryngium planum)both retain their eerie colour, dryingto shades of steely-blue, while thehalf-hardy safflower (Carthamustinctorius) has tangerine thistle topsthat are prized as cut flowers eitherfresh or dried. Egmont Seeds sellOrange Grenade, which is easy toraise from seed in spring or summer.

Craspedia globosa, aka billy buttons,has cute yellow bobbles that canbe incorporated, fresh or dried, intofloral arrangements. Source fromEgmont Seeds.

Bachelors buttons (Gomphrenaglobosa), which come in white andpink and have clover-like buds onshortish stems, are also charming,and make natty buttonholes.

For white or green bobbles, seek outthe button bush, Berzelia albiflora(previously known as brunia), whichhas needle-like foliage on slenderstems. Pick it in tight bud. Note thatthis South African shrub has a fairlytemperamental nature; its ofteneasier just to buy bunches fromflorists to take home and dry than totry to grow it yourself. With smallerbobbles, Berzelia lanuginosa is thespitting image of the Australian riceflower, Ozothamnus diosmifolius,which Ive found far easier to keepalive. Prune it hard(ish) to encouragelonger stems as nipping awayat it produces short, stubby growththat isnt much use for picking.

Good luck with love-lies-bleeding (Amaranthus caudatus) in either its traditional blood red or pale greenalternative. Its spectacular dried but,again, easier to buy than grow.

Plant celosias, both the brain-likecockscombs and the fluffy argenteaforms (I planted the latter in a bedwith colourful Rainbow Lightschard over summer).

Dry the seedheads of ornamentalgrasses such as miscanthus, sea oats(Chasmanthium latifolium) and nativetoetoe (our indigenous cortaderiasare known as austroderias).

HUNG OUT TO DRY

Not all flowers dry well overblownblooms will drop their petals andanything too fleshy or green will rot, but theres nothing to be lost bytrying. Keep in mind that anythingthat quickly wilts in a vase (such ascottage annuals in spring) or has alot of sap (like bulbs) wont dry well.

JASON DORDAY/Stuff

DIY: How to make a flower vase sleeve

Its best to cut flowers for dryingwhen most of their buds are on thecusp of opening. Do this on a warmday as soon as the morning dew hasdried off. When harvesting seedpods,wait till after theyve shed their seeds.

Hang largeflowers, such as proteasand delphiniums, individually todry. Slender-stemmed and smallersubjects can be hung in bunches.

Always tie the stems together withrubber bands, rather than string ortwine, before you hang them to dry.

The stems will shrink as they dryand even tightly tied bunches canloosen and fall apart and if they hitthefloor from a height, theyll break.

To retain the best colour, hangflowers upside down in an airy,warm location out of direct sunlight.Condensation is the enemy of driedflowers; keep them away fromwindows. The rafters of a gardenshed or garage are ideal, or geta freestanding coat rack.

MY DEN OF ANTIQUITY

In Hunua, the deep blue shepherdshut in our vegetable garden doublesas a damson-and-dried- flower den.

Its where I house my collection ofplum-themed crockery alongsidean upside-down selection of lastsummersnest floral moments.

Mop-headed hydrangeas, opiumpoppy seedheads, delphiniums,larkspurs and statice in all shades bar white (which in my experience driesto an insipid pale brown) hang froma recycled offcut of steel reinforcing mesh. I painted the mesh the samepale blue as the interior beforehooking it to the curving ceiling.

When the flowers arefirst hungin summer, lying on the bed belowis enough to induce a hayfever attack, but by the end of autumnthat fusty haybarn smell has fadedand I can finally stop vacuumingfallen seeds off the bedspread!

My dried flower choices are fairlyexperimental. Achillea in particularwas disappointing and just madea mess. But having successfully drieda bunch of store-bought ornamentalallium flowers a few years ago,I figured Id have a go at drying someof the gone-to-seed leeks from myvege patch. It worked; their blobby,ball-shaped blooms look groovy.

TRICKS OF THE TRADE

Buy and dry straight away,is Annwyns advice for getting thebest results from storeboughtflowers.

Mix and match exotic fresh flowerswith homegrown foliage, prunedbranches and seedpods. Seedpods that dry well include opium poppies,love-in-a-mist, many grasses, grainssuch as barley and wheat, andornamental corn cobs such as MiniBlack and Strawberry popcorn.

If you have grown your ownflowersto dry, make sure you clear the stemsof as much foliage as possible beforeyou hang them, as this will turnmouldy or rot. Buy flexible rubber rose strippers (the metal ones canbruise the stems, advises Annwyn)from craft orfloristry supply storessuch as oceans floral.co.nz.

Roses and peonies can be driedin bud, or open, but theres an artto it. Annwyn pops hers in the oven, set to the lowest heat. Red, purpleand dark pink hold their colour best.

Original post:
Return of the living dead: How dried flowers made a comeback - Stuff.co.nz

RX Architects incorporated part of an unfinished building into this house with a cantilevered upper story on the Rye Nature Reserve in East Sussex, England.

Called Druim, the house was built over an existing foundation and ground floor.

The previous owners of the site had been unable to secure permission for two planned properties due to the area's protected status, and opted to sell the site complete with a half-finished structuree

RX Architects built on this existing masonry base with a cantilevering upper-storey clad in Siberian larch, positioned to maximise views across the landscape out towards the sea.

"When the [new] owners commissioned us it was on the basis of completing the existing house, but I quickly came to the conclusion the proportions of the house were all wrong to meet their brief," project architect Rob Pollard told Dezeen.

"A key move here was to re-use the existing foundations and external load-bearing ground floor walls, then place a new steel structure over it so that the first floor could cantilever out."

The house is split horizontally, with a living, kitchen and dining area opening onto two terraces at ground-floor level and bedrooms on the first floor at either side of a library space.

This library space opens out onto a deeply recessed balcony through glass sliding doors, framing a panoramic view across the site.

"We clad the ceiling in this [balcony] space with the same narrow larch batten strips on the external soffits to create a sense of being partially outside," said Pollard.

"It almost has the feel of a bird hide overlooking the nature reserve."

A single-storey games room with an adjacent studio flat has also been created to the west of the main house, accessed via a garden path.

On the ground floor, the existing structure of engineering bricks has been retained and painted with black Keim paint, usually used for marine environments and lighthouses.

"[The Keim paint] seemed fitting for this very exposed coastal location, and the dark colour would compliment the first floor cladding," said Pollard.

"The top floor will naturally weather and silver and appear very rough and textured, whereas the ground floor will retain a very robust and solid datum feel."

Above, the more lightweight first floor projects over this base with a steel and timber structure.

The cantilever shelters the entrance and south-facing elevation below.

This contrast continues internally, with a more "robust" and tactile ground floor and a bright, calm upper floor.

"We wanted to keep a calm palette so everything felt very natural in the environment but didn't detract from the views over the landscape," said Pollard.

RX Architects was founded in 2016, and is led by Rob Pollard and Derek Rankin.

Also in Sussex, Paul Cashin Architects recently completed the refurbishment of a 19th-century cottage in the seaside village of Sidlesham Quay.

Photography is by Richard Chivers.

See the original post here:
RX Architects builds larch-clad house that cantilevers over landscape - Dezeen

It is a scientific fact that the occasional contemplation of natural scenes of an impressive character, particularly if this contemplation occurs in connection with relief from ordinary cares, change of air and change of habits, is favorable to the health and vigor beyond any other conditions that can be offered them. Frederick Law Olmsted

Relationships are of primary importance in our lives, and the relationship between a City and its designers and architects is no different. Exploring this story by way of the planets, offers a new take and creative depths in its chapters. In the City of Buffalos historical timeline, its intersection with landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted (Olmsted) is one such relationship well explore in this series of Buffalo Rising articles (see Buffalo as Taurean city).

The City of Buffalo, incorporated or born in April 1832, was profoundly shaped by Olmsted, born in April 1822 in Hartford, Connecticut. Both born under the Suns passage in Taurus, their identity immediately shares an innate affinity towards nature, establishing environments and structures and delighting the senses. This connection continues beyond the solar reach. By casting a birth chart (chart) to reflect the planetary placements and aspects on the day each of our subjects were born, and then comparing together, we see how far deeper the storied relationship between the two goes. Full of uncanny direct hits and ties, a yield of pleasant curiosities follow.

Olmsted visited Buffalo in the summer of 1868 to identify a site for a central park design, which ultimately resulted in his alternative proposal for an integrated park system instead. Most resources identify Olmsteds visit taking place in August that year, with dates of either August 16 or August 18. Curiously, on August 18 a solar eclipse culminated. Consistent with ancient traditions of many cultures, in astrology a solar eclipse is regarded as a particularly potent aspect indicating a storied new and life-changing event and beginning. Not only did Olmsteds visit occur under this unusual and generally auspicious event, the zodiacal placement in which it occurred highlighted a close tie that both the City and Olmsteds charts share.

Both the City and Olmsted were born with an emphasis of Leo in their charts, sharing the astronomically-calculated lunar node placement in this sign.

The August 18 1868 solar eclipse occurred in Leo, the astrological sign ruled by the sun. Both the City and Olmsted were born with an emphasis of Leo in their charts, sharing the astronomically-calculated lunar node (node) placement in this sign. In astrology, the nodes are ascribed weighted significance as reflecting peak events in the natives life journey that serve as hallmarks and milestones in its definition. Approximately every 18.5 years, nodes return to the same position and are seen as potently charged-times in the life cycle when significant events occur that sweep in and greatly impact our life-path. Node placements in Leo emphasize identity, creativity and play. Curious to find that our paired City and landscaping architect both previously born under a Leo node, meet as the nodes return to Leo and under the auspices of a solar eclipse! As a result, as they remain today, the Olmsted Parks became an integral part of our Citys identity and are places born of, and that foster, creativity and play. These are all hallmarks of the 1868 Leo solar eclipse the relationship was born under.

There are yet more uncanny chart commonalities between the two, for example, the story of the moon, the planetary storyteller of mood, heart, spirit and natural instinct in both. The City was born under an industrious, self-made, stiff-upper-lip moon in Capricorn. Olmsted was born under its polar opposite, the moon in Cancer. Their two moons face each other straight on and enjoy a relationship together; Capricorn and Cancer are two sides of the same astrological coin. During Olmsteds 1868 visit, not only did these moons relate well to each other, but also inspiring creative brilliance in them was another specific astrological event that summer, which occurs about once every 84 years. Uranus was in Cancer during this time and reflected to us the story of a passionate drive being fueled into the hearts (moon) of both Olmsted and the City. This storyline heralded a time of ingenuity, innovation, and desire to depart from the norm. As evident in Olmsteds alternative design proposal, our integrated park system reflects this inventive time and its impact on the heart of our City.

As the list continues, the spot-on connections between the two charts spark more curiosity and quizzical head tilts. Like the moon relationship, both the City and Olmsted have the planet which reflects the storyline of passion, drive, energy and motivation (Mars) in signs of polarity as well. The Citys Mars is found in clever and innovative Aquarius and Olmsteds in Leo. The two Mars facing each other, in the same fashion as did the respective moons, highlighting again the direct relationship and impact the two had upon each other.

A further enrapturing connection is the near-exact placement of the Citys Jupiter and Olmsteds Venus, both found together in Pisces. Planets and the stories they reflect for us are impacted, strengthened and weakened, by their placements in various signs and aspects made to them by other planets. Because of these qualities, Venus and Jupiter generally reflect themes of connections and relationships and particularly so, when in Pisces. Both planets enjoy great comfort in this sign and signal to us, an ease of relationship and understanding and also, of natural beauty and harmony. This pairing lent a clever astrological underpinning to Olmsteds the genius of a place approach to landscape architecture in Buffalo.

Quite literally, the landscape architect (Olmsteds Saturn in Taurus) designs a new park system which becomes integral to the Citys identity (Citys Sun in Taurus).

While yet there are more intimate connections, it is likely the impact that Olmsteds Saturn in Taurus had on the Citys Taurean Sun remains the singular bellwether of this relationships yield. Saturn, the planetary archetype of architecture, design, structure and efficiency reflects a well-placed story in Taurus in our evaluation of this relationship. Quite literally, the landscape architect (Olmsteds Saturn in Taurus) designs a new park system which becomes integral to the Citys identity (Citys Sun in Taurus).

Born under the auspices of a solar eclipse, the yet-enduring relationship between the City of Buffalo and Frederick Law Olmsted continues to radiate its steadfast shine across the 716. Peering through the stories mirrored by planetary connections and placements, we catch a new glimpse of an old friend.

Stay tuned for more articles as our series continues.

If you like what youre reading, be sure to visit Starry Wonder online.

Lead image: Courtesy University at Buffalo University Libraries

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Exploring the Celestial Relationship between a City and its Designers - Buffalo Rising

VDF teams up with reSITE today, with the Prague conference sharing five lectures from its 2019 conference starting with Design Indaba founder Ravi Naidoo's talk about the South African design platform he founded in 1995.

The five talks, which will be exclusively shared on VDF, are all from reSITE's REGENERATE conference that took place at the Ricardo Bofill-designed Forum Karlin in Prague in September 2019.

In the first lecture, Ravi Naidoo tells the story behind the Design Indaba conference and discusses the importance of design.

"The fundamental question is this: what's design?" said Naidoo. "Is design a handmaiden to consumption? Is design just to sell more widgets? Or is design in service of people? What's design for?"

Naidoo launched the annual design event in 1995, a year after the country held its first free elections. Since then it has strived to help South Africa make the most of its human capital through design.

"We were so infused with hope that I gave up my day job," he said. "I was an academic at med school, and I just went in and did the leap of faith into trying to reinvent myself as the country was reinventing itself."

"Design has enough power to give dignity"

Describing Design Indaba as a think tank and a do tank, Naidoo said the aim of the project is to be a crucible for change.

"We have to be advocates, but we also have to be exemplars for what it is that we are suggesting to be a great toolkit for the 21st century," he said. "So we get back to the simple honesty of making and we love making."

Design Indaba works in one of the most unequal societies in the world and as a result, it has conceived a number of projects that focus on improving conditions locally.

"What we're wanting to do with design is to give it a higher purpose," Naidoo said.

"A more noble purpose for design, not just to be about consumption. But design, could it improve the quality of life and how could it do it, not just for the haves, but also for the have nots," he continued.

"So, put higher-level questions to design: can design give dignity? Design has enough power to give dignity."

Among these initiatives is the 10 x 10 low-cost housing project, which teamed 10 global architects with 10 local architects. The resulting designs included Luyanda Mpahlwa's now-complete proposal that made use of sandbags to keep construction costs low.

Design Indaba also helped lay the ground for British architect Thomas Heatherwick's design for the Zeitz MOCAA contemporary art museum in Cape Town, by introducing him to the defunct grain silo that would eventually house the museum.

"We can conceive of a better world through creativity"

In 2018, the conference commissioned Norwegian studio Snhetta to design Arch for Arch, a tribute to human-rights activist and anti-apartheid campaigned Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

For Naidoo the arch, which is located close to Cape Town's parliament building and its cathedral, is an example of how design can convey a message.

"What does Archbishop Tutu say to this generation, and the generations after, and what the message really is?" Naidoo said.

"He used the metaphor of the Constitution. The Constitution has 14 chapters. It also has 14 lines in the preamble. So this has 14 arcs of wood, 14 arcs of Siberian larch, five stories high," he continued. "It starts to say 'protect my legacy, protect this constitution jealously', and as parliamentarians looking down every day, must understand that this constitution is what we need to uphold jealously."

Naidoo explained that Design Indaba has one simple mission. "Ideas are just the most amazing powerful force," he said. "Creativity is the ultimate renewable energy. We can conceive of a better world through creativity."

About reSITE

reSITE is a non-profit organisation with a focus on rethinking cities, architecture and urban development. Its aim is to connect leaders and support the synergies across real estate, architecture, urbanism, politics, culture and economics.

reSITE's flagship event is held in Prague, but it has also held events in Lisbon and Berlin. reSITE was founded in 2011 by Martin Barry, a landscape architect originally from New York.

About Virtual Design Festival

Virtual Design Festival, the world's first digital design festival, runs from 15 April to 30 June 2020. It aims to bring the architecture and design world together to celebrate the culture and commerce of our industry, and explore how it can adapt and respond to extraordinary circumstances.

To find out what's coming up at VDF,check out the schedule.For more information or to join the mailing list, emailvdf@dezeen.com.

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VDF x reSITE: "Creativity is the ultimate renewable energy" - Dezeen

In a recent piece for City Lab, Klaus argued that the biggest shifts our cities might experience after the pandemic have already been taking shape. Factors like climate change and noncommunicable epidemics like obesity already influence the way urban planners and architects think about how to build the cities of the future. What something like the current pandemic can do is accelerate those efforts, turning proposed changes like expanded bike lanes, more walkable city districts, and smart buildings from computer simulations and white papers into real-world experiments. Its a story of acceleration and continuity rather than one of super profound disruption revolution, Klaus tells AD PRO of the epidemics impact. It's much more about the acceleration or deceleration of trendsthe question for us is, what are those trends going to be?

The current state of the world offers a few hints. A potent combination of anxiety and government mandates has rendered many public places inoperable. Those that are still thrivingparks, bike paths, streets, and sidewalksnow give Olmsteds early vision a prescient gleam. In Bogot, Colombia, the government moved quickly to expand the citys bike lanes by 47 miles to reduce crowding on public transportation. In Oakland, the mayor shut down 74 miles of streets to motor traffic to allow pedestrians to spread out and get fresh air.

A cyclist wears a facemask in Bogot, Colombia on March 13. To reduce density and curb the spread of COVID-19, the government moved quickly to expand the citys bike lanes.

Less tactically, the debate around the impact of density on public health will continue to rage as architects and planners weigh how to design buildings and cities that cater to both environmental and public health. There will be questions, too, about how technology should be integrated at the city and building level, as Silicon Valley companies grapple with how to deploy their technologies to track the spread of the disease.

Alone, none of these issues will immediately alter the trajectory of the built environment. Tomorrow youll wake up, and your street will likely look the same as it has every other morning this month. If you think about cholera, there were three major outbreaks over a period of 30 years in the United States, Carr says. Nothing changed overnight. The built environment, especially the public realm, takes a long time to catch up.

Its more likely that the pandemic will chip away at our entrenched habits and beliefs. Some people might decide they no longer care for city life and will decamp for less crowded places; others will decide that loosening their convictions about privacy is worth the public health tradeoff. The way many people work, and where they do it from, will shape real estate decisions for years to come. Will there be a reinvigoration of neighborhoods as self-sufficient hubs of activity? Will we come to expect hand sanitizer placed outside of every business? There are more questions than answers at this pointwere witnessing a large-scale public experiment that will slowly, but surely, reveal itself in time.

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Health and Disease Have Always Shaped Our Cities. What Will Be the Impact of COVID-19? - Architectural Digest

In 1943, when food was scarce during World War II, Americans were urged to grow their own crops wherever they could. Its estimated that 20 million victory gardens flourished in the United States that year, and New York City alone produced 200 million pounds of tomatoes, beans, beets, carrots and lettuce. Seventy-seven years later, as millions of Americans are self-quarantined, and many worry about trips to the grocery store and the strength of the food-supply chain, the coronavirus pandemic has revived the victory-garden movement. There is a simple, beautiful logic to having food security within your own home, says David Godshall, the principal of the Los Angeles- and San Francisco-based landscape architecture studio Terremoto. In my lifetime, I dont think theres ever been a more pertinent moment to start gardening. For those wondering what will thrive in a limited outdoor space, the short answer is lots. A small garden on a rooftop or balcony can produce abundant harvests. Even inside, a sunny windowsill can yield fragrant clouds of herbs such as mint, lemon verbena, thyme, rosemary and Thai basil. Below, a handful of urban-garden experts explain how to grow your own food in a space of any size.

The first step to creating a victory garden, no matter the dimensions, is figuring out where you get the most sunlight, says Zilah Drahn, the owner of Plants & Spaces, a houseplant styling service in Los Angeles. In her own apartment in Hollywood, the most sunlight enters through her south-facing windows, so Drahn installed planter boxes on each sill. Its a joy to see the progress of my basil, parsley and cherry tomatoes every morning, she says. Gardening provides a tranquil challenge with tangible results. To measure the light, as Lauri Kranz, the founder of Edible Gardens LA, outlines in her 2019 book A Garden Can Be Anywhere, take a photo of the area being considered every two hours between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Your garden should go in a place that gets six or more hours of direct sunlight a day.

Once youve identified a sunny spot, assess how much space you actually have available for planting, advises the Parisian landscape architect Arnaud Casaus, who maintains a small herb garden of sage, chives, tarragon and bay leaf in terra-cotta pots on his 108-square-foot terrace in the Second Arrondissement. Then, make sure the area can bear the weight of the soil, plants and water (if youre uncertain, ask your building manager or consult with a professional). For rooftops and balconies with raised beds or planters, Cecilia de Corral, the design and build director at the rooftop farm Brooklyn Grange, suggests low-maintenance crops, such as rainbow chard, dinosaur kale, snow peas, hot peppers, purple shallots and any and all herbs. Tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuces and sweet peppers will also work but require extra attention. For those with just a sunny windowsill, crops such as carrots and radishes can be grown in containers or coffee tins (just make sure to punch holes in the bottom for drainage). If youre a beginner, consider store-bought herbs or experiment with fast-growing seeds like beans, says Taryne Messer, a designer at the New York-based plant-focused creative studio ETVERNAL, which specializes in planting gardens for clients in the tiniest of spaces. In her own container garden on a rooftop in Brooklyn, Messer cultivates bronze fennel for salads, nasturtiums for a spicy pesto and geraniums, which quickly become dynamic, sculptural houseplants, she says.

Light and space dictate what you can grow, but you should only plant what youll eat. Plan a functional palette that reflects your culinary tastes and is easily utilized for meals, Messer says. In his home garden in San Francisco, Val Cantu, the owner and chef at the two-Michelin-starred restaurant Californios, tends essential French herbs like rosemary and thyme. Rosemary is easy to throw on any roast dish and adds a ton of delicious grassy, piney flavor, he says. Thyme is another favorite and good for adding some complexity to a broth. For something more unusual, Cantu recommends hoja santa, an anise-scented herb that can be added to quesadillas or cooked with beans; its large, heart-shaped leaves can also be used as taco shells and loaded up with whatever you want (Cantu fills his with purple masa, wild mushrooms and fermented watermelon radish). Meanwhile, Keegan Fong, the owner of the Chinese comfort-food restaurant Woon Kitchen in Los Angeles, suggests baby bok choy, a leafy green that can be grown in a window box. Its hearty and healthy and so good in soup or stir fry. He also proposes cucumber, cilantro and spinach, which can be served Chinese style, he says, with some garlic, soy sauce and sesame oil. Those who cook less frequently might try growing lavender or chamomile for teas, or mint for Moscow mules.

Check the back of each seed packet to determine your plant-hardiness zone, and when you can sow the seeds. If youre in the Northern Hemisphere and able to plant directly in the ground this month, focus on cool-weather crops until temperatures become more consistent: Direct sow lettuce and carrots, or transplant onion and broccoli seedlings, says de Corral. For warm-season vegetables that cant handle the cold, like tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and squash, start the seeds indoors, and then transplant them after the last frost has passed (generally toward the end of April in Los Angeles, and in the first or second week of May in Chicago and New York City). And if you cant find seeds, dont panic. You may have some dried spices in your pantry, such as dill, fennel and coriander, that can be used instead. Even table scraps carrot tops, onion, celery and lemongrass bottoms, lettuce and cabbage cores will start to regrow if placed in a shallow bowl of water and set in the sun.

Once youre settled on where, when and what to grow, youre ready to plant. Fill your container with organic soil and some fertilizer, making sure its deep enough to accommodate a few more inches of soil both in perimeter and depth than your plant requires, Messer says. This accounts for future growth and acts as a water reservoir. The arrangement of the garden will depend on your individual needs, but you can plant in single rows or experiment with intercropping (growing two or more plants next to each other in the same area). Weve seen it all, and it all works, de Corral says, as long as youre giving your plants enough sunlight, water, good organic fertilizer and lots of love. Lastly, adopt a regular watering schedule: once a day in cooler months, and twice a day if its hot or dry (the soil should be moist but not muddy). Theres poetry in any daily practice or ritual that makes you slow down, observe and act more deliberately, Messer says. If you need additional help, Brooklyn Grange is offering virtual consultations on planning urban-vegetable gardens. But, as Godshall advises, I wouldnt get stuck trying to design the thing too much.

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How to Plant a Victory Garden, Even on a Windowsill - The New York Times