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Audrey Wilke, Spring 2020 graduate in Landscape Architecture from the University of Maryland, Credit: Zandra Jia

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (PRWEB) October 13, 2020

In time for National Disability Awareness Month, the Landscape Architecture Foundation (LAF) recently named Audrey Wilke of the University of Maryland Department of Plant Science & Landscape Architecture as an Olmsted Scholar, one of only eight students to receive this top national honor among students in landscape architecture. As a finalist of the Olmsted Scholars Program, Wilke is using her award funds to create a comprehensive guide for disability-inclusive landscape design in the industry. While the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has set minimum standards for accessibility, Wilke is fighting to change the designer mindset from accessibility to a truly inclusive user experience that considers the perspectives of all those using outdoor spaces. She has seen firsthand as a student with dyslexia how her disability can actually be an advantage as a designer, and how a better understanding of all disability types can help future designers produce more inclusive and welcoming work.

I want to have some part in creating landscapes that are more equitable, especially for people with disabilities, says Wilke. I think it is so forgotten because most designers havent had a firsthand experience with disabilities, so its easy to get lost in ADA code. Unless you have that experience of having to go around the side of a beautiful outdoor space to find a ramp and feeling forgotten, it wont be the first thing you think about. I want to draw that to designers' attention more broadly because I dont think it will change unless someone riles up some change - its not just going to happen on its own.

To help inspire this change, Wilke decided that when applying for the Olmsted Scholars Program, she would share her experiences as a dyslexic student to help shed additional light on the issue of inclusivity.

Even just to write about my experiences, it was very personal to me, says Wilke. To put myself out there so vulnerably and so authentically about the challenges I have faced and to have people acknowledge that is truly amazing. I was so overjoyed to receive this award. Disability is actually the largest minority group, but its often forgotten or not thought of that way.

At the same time, Wilke expressed the many strengths that being dyslexic has given her as a designer.

Landscape architecture is not only something I love for the impact on peoples lives and the time outdoors, but it actually works a lot better with my brain, explains Wilke. Dyslexics often struggle with memorization which is the basis of a lot of traditional education programs, but aside from memorizing plants and trees, LARC [the College of Agriculture & Natural Resources Landscape Architecture program] teaches concepts and how to apply them, and thats what Im really good at. Another strength from my dyslexia is that I have an easier time with spatial reasoning and visualizing things in my head, and thats been really helpful for design. I remember doing exercises where they give you a shape and you have to rotate it in your mind and draw it, and I was so fast at it I was helping other people in the class. I would struggle in the lower level math classes, but once we get to more conceptual work, I can do it easier than some of my classmates, so its interesting to see that you have to put effort into the opposite areas.

Wilke laughs, I would have more trouble in third grade than in my last year of my undergraduate program. If you had me go back and do spelling tests again and memorize multiplication tables, Id fail that again without spending three times as long on memorization as most people. And I think that the education system doesnt really have a firm grasp on that either because a lot of people just dont even make it past those elementary and high school years to get into college because its so hard for them in the beginning, and dyslexics excel after that.

Wilke says that one in five people are actually dsylexic but may never be diagnosed or get the learning accommodations they need, but also that there needs to be a better understanding of what and why accommodations are needed for those with disabilities.

I think it comes down to lack of awareness, says Wilke. I think a lot of people dont understand disability or accommodations. Accommodation isnt an advantage Im getting, its bringing me up to an equal playing field.

Wilke says that the Social Theory of Disability really helped her reconceptualize her own dyslexia, as well as the disabilities of others. The theory states that disability is not a fault within a person, but is rather the result of a society not being built for everyone. So theres nothing wrong with the way I think or the way my brain functions, says Wilke, but the problem comes when everything is taught to a different way of learning or a different brain structure. That really flipped everything on its head for me outside of just my own disability story. The problem isnt someone using a wheelchair, the problem is the building that doesn't have stairs or the cobblestone paving that is difficult to navigate.

It is this revelation that motivated Wilke to become an advocate for others with disabilities the way she has had to advocate for herself.

Being dyslexic through my lifetime has really taught me that you have to advocate for yourself because no one else is going to, and that you have to put in the time, says Wilke. I dont have a physical disability, but I have the empathy from my own experiences. Its those moments when someone makes a joke about dyslexia and I think, Okay, well I know this is how people with physical disabilities feel when they are excluded as well. So Im going to apply my skills and my experiences to help.

Wilke says there are guides in landscape architecture for ecology and stormwater, so a guide for disability-inclusive design could make a difference in the industry. With her funds from the Olmsted Scholars award, she is currently interviewing people in the disability community to learn from their experiences so that designers can be better informed.

Unless youre experiencing it yourself, youre going to miss a lot, says Wilke. People talk about ADA compliance, but never about user experience. So I decided I was going to walk only non-stair routes for two months to see what the difference is. Ramp routes are so much longer, you cant easily tell if a sidewalk ends in stairs and youll have to backtrack, they often take you by the trash cans instead of the landscape, and a lot of older ramps have high barriers enclosing them to try to hide them, which makes you feel unsafe at night. And that was only one experience - there are so many more disabilities. For example, difference in texture is really good for people with visual impairments, but bumpy textures can be hard for people with knee scooters. And peoples experiences when they are on the autism spectrum are completely different. When plants are really fragrant, it can be overwhelming. Or if the water feature dominates the space, people cant find a less overwhelming spot to take a break. It goes against some of the design principles that youre taught in school because fragrance gardens or water features relax a lot of people, but for some it is their worst nightmare, so how are we accommodating them?

In addition to working as an apprentice landscape architect after graduating in Spring 2020 and working on her Olmsted guide for disability-inclusive design, Wilke is also still an active member of the Presidents Commission on Disability Issues (PCDI) Student Advisory Committee (SAC).

According to Paul Jaeger, professor in the College of Information Studies and a co-chair of the PCDI, PCDI is the primary advocacy organization for disabled people at UMD. It is an all-volunteer organization with about three dozen members representing most units on campus. We consult with campus leadership on disability issues and policies, and provide reports to campus leadership regarding campus needs related to disability. We also provide materials and events to educate the campus about disability. Together, the board is helping raise awareness for disability issues on campus and beyond to create a more inclusive environment for all.

Going from accessibility to inclusion requires a change in mindset from, Lets make things easier for people with disabilities to Lets make things easier for all people, says Adith Thummalapalli, a founding member of the PCDI SAC and recent graduate in Spring 2020 with a bachelors in mechanical engineering. Inclusion is associated with all people, and measures to achieve inclusion can oftentimes benefit those without disabilities as well. For example, installing a ramp doesnt just help people who use wheelchairs or have mobility impairments. It helps the elderly, people with small children in strollers, people who have suffered broken bones, and more. The events this month for Disability Awareness Month [October] all relate to changing the mindset by way of conversation and sharing many different perspectives.

As these issues gain more traction, Wilke and the others feel that things are truly on a path to change. People are genuinely very interested in the work that Im doing, and thats incredibly touching, says Wilke. Sometimes on the disability board, we are fighting this fight and it can feel like change comes so slowly. But to see people in the landscape architecture community taking notice with this award, and having the support of my professors in LARC for this work has been really touching. Its a genuine honor.

To learn more about the events coming up this month for National Disability Awareness Month, visit https://pcdi.umd.edu.

Continue reading here:
Landscape Architecture Student Audrey Wilke Named One of Eight National Olmsted Scholars, With a Goal of Making Landscapes More Inclusive for Those...

A LOVERS DISCOURSEBy Xiaolu Guo

JUST LIKE YOUBy Nick Hornby

Not even the most starry-eyed Europhile would claim that the relationship between Britain and the European Union was ever a love match. But somehow, for over 40 years, they held it together, like a pair of bickering partners who fight bitterly but are still in it for the long haul. Brexit, of course, changed everything.

Two new novels reflect on the meaning of this still-unfolding breakup. They each dramatize a love affair set against the backdrop of Brexit, using the most universal and gratifying human experience to illuminate one of the most arcane and incomprehensible.

Helpfully, the unnamed narrator of Xiaolu Guos novel A Lovers Discourse is an anthropologist. Shes able to cast her ethnographic eye over the mystifying natives and try to make sense of their impenetrable customs in this case, the inhabitants of 21st-century Britain and their disagreements over Europe.

The book reverses the common theme of a perplexed Westerner baffled by the habits and rituals of an Asian country. Transplanted to London, the Chinese-born narrator struggles with the citys transport system, tries to find Brexit in her dictionary and wonders if London Wall is anything like the Great Wall of China. (In fact, its a largely notional vestige of the citys Roman boundary).

Our heroine meets a half-Australian, half-German landscape architect, and a love affair begins. They move passionately and possibly rashly through the early stages of romance to set up home in a very particular corner of London: its floating subculture of itinerant narrow-boat dwellers.

Guo is an unsparing noticer. She paints a vivid but unflattering portrait of her new dwelling in her adopted country: I stared at the canal. This was the English water, cold, gray and full of deadly discharge. Just a few ducks floating by, with their feet trapped in plastic shopping bags.

The truthfulness and accuracy of Guos language gives the book mischief and energy. There are shades of Lydia Davis in her carefully etched sentences as she details the ups and downs of the relationship without sentimentality. Once we got onto the bed, I no longer felt horny, Guo writes. The bed was cold, the duvet heavy. I was distracted by a patch of bird poo, dried on the bedside window. But we made love.

What propels the book forward is in part the sense of suspense that hangs over the nascent relationship: Has our heroine made an enormous mistake getting together with an itchy-footed boat lover? But theres also something compelling about the breadth of the world the narrator inhabits. The book moves briskly from the canals of North London to Scotland, Australia, Germany and China. Along the way, its capacious enough to touch on moments of real darkness, while somehow managing to be mordant, funny and, ultimately, life-affirming.

The English novelist Nick Hornbys best-selling books are rooted in an engaging and funny literary persona. Over the years, his writing has anatomized commitment and relationships with a sharp eye for foibles especially male ones. In his ninth work of fiction, Just Like You, he focuses on a pair of mismatched lovers: Lucy, a 42-year-old English teacher, and Joseph, the 22-year-old assistant in the butchers shop where she buys meat for her two young sons.

Stuck for child care and perhaps taken by Josephs good looks Lucy asks Joseph to babysit for her. This relationship deepens when he fends off her drunken ex-husband and forms a bond with her soccer-mad sons. It soon becomes clear that despite the age gap, theres a sexual spark between the two main characters.

Were in familiar territory for the author: a North London setting, amiable comedy and nebbishy internal monologues about the awkwardness of social interactions. He found himself wondering whether he would ever go to the cinema with Lucy, Hornby writes. It was completely possible, of course, in the sense that very small ambitions can be achieved quite easily, if one can be bothered. He could just ask her, maybe after a couple more babysitting sessions.

However, age is not the only obstacle. Theres another difference tiptoed around in the novels promotional copy in a way that suggests nervousness, at least on the part of the publisher: Josephs of a different class, a different culture and a different generation. Different culture here means that Joseph is Black and Lucy is white.

How do two people from such different backgrounds manage to transcend their differences? Without too much difficulty, it turns out. As we slip between their viewpoints, Lucy worries about meeting Josephs mother and Joseph frets about introducing Lucy to his friends, but the actual relationship progresses with enviable ease. Josephs smart, wise beyond his years, a natural with the kids. The sexual side of things gets underway smoothly: He learned quickly and within a few days or nights or dates or whatever they had entered a Golden Age. No bird poo or asynchronous libidos here. Even their inevitable setbacks are handled with dignity.

In fact, theres no great sense of jeopardy at all, beyond the readers vague anxiety over whether Britains most genial living novelist is going to get canceled by an indignant Twitter mob for straying out of his lane.

The charm of Hornbys previous books has been the way they balance middlebrow uplift with enough emotional truth to make the fantasy feel grounded. Here, theres something underimagined about the two main characters. Tackling the intractable subjects of race and Brexit, the author seems constrained to make Lucy and Joseph exemplary and consequently rather bland.

Though theres a lot of dialogue internal and external were not permitted to see much. It feels as if the leads have yet to be cast and the fictional world awaits the vision of a director. The characters thoughts linger on innocuous subjects and hurry past potentially awkward ones. The sex is obliquely described and the question of whether Lucy is fetishizing her handsome young Black partner is raised for an instant, then dashed. Shes able to recognize the tendency in her friend: Would Emma be licking her lips if he were a handsome young white butchers assistant? she wonders. But the thought an intriguing one is swiftly dispelled, too uncomfortable for the books PG-certificate world.

The novel saves its ridicule for cartoonish minor characters and predictable targets: pretentious art, middle-aged white novelists, elderly theatergoers, racist police officers, libidinous middle-aged women. While its never a disagreeable book, its hampered by a flatness that comes from our feeling that the author has deliberately wired things so the conflict will never rise above a certain voltage. And in the fraught times in which the novel has arrived, its bonhomie comes off as strained and false.

Both A Lovers Discourse and Just Like You suggest that in a time of struggle between seemingly irreconcilable opposites, who hold each others differences to be moral failings, it might be instructive to consider how humans overcome obstacles in other types of relationships.

Guo gives her characters scope to live and suffer, so her books final affirmation has a hard-won quality that carries weight. But, in the end, the child-proofed world of Just Like You cant tell us much about difficult negotiations. Conflict-averse, it seems to endorse Josephs approach to the Brexit referendum: Check all the boxes so no one has a reason to dislike you.

Link:
The Brexit Romance: Finding Love in Irreconcilable Times - The New York Times

Open to all creative professionals, students and those involved in the built environment the competition seeks bold visions for how urban public spaces could better serve people following the challenges and upheaval of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The call for concepts will identify a range of solutions for how pressures resulting from Covid-19 and other major challenges such as climate change could create a positive and long-lasting legacy in which streets, squares and other public spaces are radically improved for everyone.

According to the brief: COVID-19 has had a devastating and unprecedented effect on our lives, economies, the places where we live and our lifestyles. These effects are likely to be long lasting and profound. Yet in the midst of these dark times there have been some glimmers of hope city dwellers have heard birdsong for the first time; urban air is visibly cleaner; Venices water more clear and car use has reduced.

Many of the changes that are needed to help combat climate change were implemented rapidly to minimise the spread of the disease. This presents us with a unique opportunity to use the effects of the pandemic to create a positive and long-lasting legacy to the benefit of our communities, the places where we live, work and play and the environment.

The coronavirus pandemic started in January 2020 and has so far resulted in at least 37.5 million infections and 1.07 million deaths. The spread of the disease often via droplets in the air between people in close proximity has resulted in profound shifts in the organisation of societies around the world.

Temporary and potentially lasting requirements for social distancing have forced a rethink of many public spaces, centres of consumption, workspace, and homes severely impacting economies and increasing structural inequalities.

The latest contest divided into separate categories for students and professionals invites participants to select a place and explore how it could be adapted to respond to these new challenges.

Proposals should consider the benefits of a greener recovery, address the climate and biodiversity emergency, and help citizens to lead healthy and safe lives. Submissions must include two A3 sized digital display boards featuring illustrative images and a 250-word description.

Judges will include Ally Lu, lecturer at the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at the University of Sheffield; Cathy Parker, co-chair of the Institute of Place Management; and Krystallia Kamvasinou, senior lecturer at University of Westminsters School of Architecture and Cities.

The overall winner of the professional category will receive a 2,000 prize and a student prize of 500 will also be awarded. All entries will feature in an online exhibition.

The deadline for applications is 5pm, 4 December.

How to apply

Visit the competition website for more information

Contact details

Landscape Institute85 Tottenham Court RoadLondon W1T 4TQ

Tel: 0330 808 2230

View original post here:
Transforming the urban landscape - Architect's Journal

Open International Architectural Competition: Territory of the Right Bank Embankment of the River Moskva From Moscow Ring Road to Stroginskoe Shosse

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The Open International Architectural Competition to develop the territory of the right bank embankment of the River Moskva from Moscow Ring Road to Stroginskoe Shosse (Highway) has started on October, 2.

The competitive territory with a total area of 105.5 hectares has a linear configuration: it is almost 5 km long with an average width of about 0.5 km.

The competition has been initiated by Committee for Architecture and Urban Planning of Moscow (Moskomarkhitektura) and is organized by the State Research and Design Institute for Urban Development of the City of Moscow (GRADPLAN Moscow) as a singe municipal operator to implement the urban development concept to develop territories adjacent to the Moskva River and the Khimki Reservoir.

The main goal of the competition is to prepare architectural, planning, volumetric and landscape solutions for the embankment improvement that meet modern trends in the formation of a comfortable urban environment, taking into account the characteristics of the territory that is part of the protected areas.

The starting point for global changes was the International Competition for Urban Development of the Territories Adjacent to the Moskva River, announced in 2014. Based on its results, the further vector of development of the embankments and the need for a detailed study of each section were determined. Thanks to this approach, it is planned to transform tens of kilometers of river embankments in Moscow. They will become the centers of public life, where there will be significant territories for the city.

The organizers are waiting for proposals coming from participants on architectural and planning, spatial and landscape solutions for the improvement of the embankment to integrate into the environment, taking into account the requirements for a specially protected natural area. That is why landscape architects, professionals in the field of strategic development of territories and urban planning, architecture, design, creation and development of public spaces are invited to participate. Preference will be given to teams with proven experience working with natural areas.

The jury is headed by Sergei Kuznetsov, chief architect of Moscow. The jury consists of landscape architects, environmentalists, representatives of public authorities, experts in the field of architecture, economics, marketing, real estate and urban planning.

The Open International Competition will be held in two stages. The first one ends on October 21, when the jury will announce three finalists depending on the results of submitted applications. The winners will be determined based on their portfolios of completed projects that demonstrate relevant experience, as well as essays describing the main ideas to form the future concept base. The teams will start developing their concepts, and a winner will be determined at the final jury meeting on December 2. The total prize fund of the competition is 14,000,000 rubles. The Agency for Strategic Development CENTER is responsible for the competition procedure.

Open International Architectural Competition: Territory of the Right Bank Embankment of the River Moskva From Moscow Ring Road to Stroginskoe Shosse

Competition Announcement (Built Projects & Masterplans)

October 15, 2020 11:59 PM

October 15, 2020 11:59 PM

Moscow

Free

This competition was submitted by an ArchDaily user. If you'd like to submit a competition, call for submissions or other architectural 'opportunity' please use our "Submit a Competition" form. The views expressed in announcements submitted by ArchDaily users do not necessarily reflect the views of ArchDaily.

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Open International Architectural Competition: Territory of the Right Bank Embankment of the River Moskva From Moscow Ring Road to Stroginskoe Shosse -...

Girls and their dog in a field of daisies at Sunset Cliffs Park- OB Exposed submission, Ocean Beach Historical Society

By Kathy Blavatt

What do you think of when you think of Sunset Cliffs Natural Park: Daisies, Native Plants, and Eucalyptus Trees?

As I was writing San Diegos Sunset Cliffs: A History, over the last couple of years, I was surprised that the number one thing people were most passionate about was the parks plants.

Just telling people I was writing a book about Sunset Cliffs Parks history seemed to be a trigger to many people when it came to the parks plants. The impassioned comments I received included: Why are they taking out the daisies? Why did they cut down the eucalyptus trees? and The park should be native plants!

Native plants blooming in the spring at Sunset Cliffs Natural Park.

Sunset Cliffs Park and the surrounding community have a unique and extraordinary history of horticulture, landscape, the development of food crops, and the propagation of plants that grow in coastal zones. I hope people read the book to learn the history of the plants and habitat, which is fascinating.

The Point Loma peninsulas early human inhabitants included the native Kumeyaay. They migrated annually to the coast from inland. They brought many native plants to the Point Loma Peninsula to be used as food and for utilitarian uses.

At the turn of the 1900s, many changes came to the Point Loma Peninsula. Katheryn Tingley and the Theosophists formed Lomaland. Their properties included the (the now) Point Loma Nazarene University campus, properties to the east and north, other plots scattered throughout Point Loma, and the hillside section of Sunset Cliffs Natural Park south of Ladera Street.

The Early 1900s properties owned by Spalding and the Theosophists were planted by some of the United States of Americas most renowned names in landscaping. In 1901, Kate Sessions started the planting on the westerly slopes of the Theosophists properties. Others followed her.

Map of Lomaland documents trees planted, dated 1906- 1909.

Ninety-nine years later, the western hillside became part of Sunset Cliffs Natural Park.

Excerpt from San Diegos Sunset Cliffs Book: A History Another visitor attraction on the peninsula and Sunset cliffs was the beautiful vegetation. Over the years, several people worked on planting countless plants on the peninsula, which drew visitors worldwide. Among those involved were Katherine Tingley; landscape architect Kate Sessions; horticulturist Alfred D. Robinson; M.G. Gowell, formerly with the U.S. Geological Survey, who, in 1905, was placed in charge of Point Loma Forestry; and Fred G. Plummer of the U.S. Geological Survey and chief of geography in the U.S. Forestry Service.

Sessions designed the first stage of tree landscapes. Due to harsh conditions and little water, only part of the trees survived.

Under Plummer and Gowells team, the forestation went forward rapidly. Sunset Cliffs vegetation took hold when an ample windbreak of eucalyptus trees was planted along the bluff overlooking the ocean.

Eucalyptus trees used as early wind blocks to protect foliage seen in early postcard.

Other varieties of trees were planted that included the Point Lomas iconic pines, cypress, palms, pepper, acacias and other trees. By 1910, twenty-two thousand planted trees were thriving on the theological estate, and an unbroken forest of forty acres stretched up the slope from the oceanfront to the area of the Homestead buildings.

Also planted were colorful flowers and a variety of plants, ranging from ornamentals to blooming ice plants. Tingleys orchards of fruit trees, pines and olive groves covered much of the top of the hill and toward the east side.

Lomalands upland trees and greenery dotting the nearby hillsides could be seen from Sunset Cliffs Park. Torrey pines, Northfolk Island pines, and star pines shaded Lomalands Homestead and campus.

As the theosophists were creating a forested community, plans for the cliffs were being put into place by visionary Albert Spalding, who built the first in a series of Sunset Cliffs Parks in 1915. Spalding built his park toward the north bordering Ocean Beach, along the ocean side of Defoe Street (later changed to Sunset Cliffs Boulevard).

Albert Spaldings 1915 rustic Japanese style Sunset Cliffs Park was landscaped with pickleweed as seen in this early postcard. Notice they called the Sunset Cliffs Park area Ocean Beach.

Many people referred to the park as Spaldings Park, but he named it Sunset Cliffs Park. It was built in a Japanese style with rustic arched wood bridges, protected picnic areas, and benches. Sunset Cliffs Park was planted with low-water plants that grow well in harsh environments. These included a flowering ice plant called pickleweed and the purple flowering Status.

These were also used on the Lomaland sites.

Around 1969, my parents planted their front yard on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. A neighbor offered them mounds of with yellow and purple flowering pickleweed, that they were taking out. That low-water pickleweed saved my parents a fortune in water bills and has held up well over the decades. I feel very fortunate to have grown up at Sunset Cliffs.

As I was writing my latest book, I had a chance to immerse myself in the history of Sunset Cliffs Park, take photos and sort through historic postcards, maps, photos, and other materials. This project has brought a flood of beautiful childhood memories, such as playing in the daisies, building tree-forts in the Monterey Cypress Trees, and looking for butterflies among the spring blossoms. It has been fabulous to relive those childhood memories and expound upon the history of the cliffs. I hope readers enjoy the book as much as I loved writing it.

For San Diego Sunset Cliffs Park: A History information and book orders for go to: http://www.blavatt.wordpress.com

Photos from San Diegos Sunset Cliffs: A History

Related

Original post:
Love or Hate: The Daisies, Eucalyptus, and Native Plants of Sunset Cliffs It's All History! - OB Rag

By Eric Althoff

DOYLESTOWN, Pa.Architecture firm SLAM Collaborative and healthcare operator Doylestown Health have announced the completion of a 100,000-square-foot, three-story addition to Doylestown Hospital. The $54 million project, the Cardiovascular and Critical Care Pavilion, is being touted by the companies as a facility that will focus on patient-centered care in a setting that is modern and with technological capabilities that are up to the moment.

The exterior for the new area matches the red brick facade of the existing structures, but inside, the design emphasis is on a natural, open environment. Furthermore, the cafeteria that greets visitors offers only healthy dining options, keeping in line with the heart health mission the facility is promoting. (The cafe staff will also be offering cooking classes.) Beyond the cafeteria, visitors will be greeted by a family waiting area featuring a fireplace and furnishings to make it appear more like a home than a hospital setting.

The pavilions second floor hosts the Center for Heart and Vascular Care, which features 28 beds that can each be segregated for maximum privacy. Each bed is also designed to toggle between servicing patients in either interventional vascular or cardiovascular care. The center features patient pods to expedite the response time of clinicians for patient needs.

Completing the Center for Heart and Vascular Care was the first phase of the three-part project. Of primacy in the new construction was the desire for noise reduction, which can be a major detriment to both patients and staff. Dawn Thornton, SLAM architect and lead designer on the project, said that noise levels can actually elevate heart rate and increase patient stress levels.

Well-being is not only the absence of a disease or injury, it is also psychological, Thornton said in a recent statement, adding that a well-planned design can alleviate those very issues. As designers, we need to understand that, while the hospital is a healing environment, it is also a functioning one, she said.

SLAMs three-area layout entails a Clinical Zone, Patient Zone and Family Zone, the last of which is placed farther away from the entranceway to the clinic, and thus gives patients families a peaceful space next to large windows offering views of the natural splendor of eastern Pennsylvania. Also, the Family Zone offers a pull-out sofa for those who might need to stay overnight.

Earlier work that was part of the overall expansion included an endovascular hybrid surgical suite and a brand-new hybrid operating room. An expansion of the cardiac procedural suite on the second floor for 20 pre- and post-op bays is also nearly finished.

Moving forward, future phases of expansion at the Doylestown Hospital include an outpatient cardiac services suite on the first floor, as well as a 32-bed universal room intensive care/intermediate unit on the third floor.

The design firm SLAM has offices around the country and offers consulting on such design elements as landscape architecture, site planning, structural engineering and pre-construction. The company has also worked on other healthcare projects such as a redesign of the UMass Memorial Medical Center in Massachusetts and the Lighthouse Surgery Center at St. Francis Hospital Medical Center in Connecticut.

The contractor on the project was the Norwood Company, based in Malvern, Pa.

The rest is here:
Pennsylvania Hospital Adds $54M Addition - HCO News - Healthcare Construction and Operations News

At the end of August 2019, British carmaker Aston Martin Lagonda revealed its ambitious Aston Martin Automotive Galleries and Lairs initiative, a service for designing customized garages (and homes) for Aston Martin customers looking to show off their high-end automobiles.

Now the auto manufacturer has revealed the first fruits of its labor, in collaboration with the New York City-based S3 Architecture: A faceted, sloping residential compound on a sprawling 55-acre landscape in Rhinebeck, New York, called Sylvan Rock.

True to its name, Sylvan Rock takes advantage of and emulates Upstate New Yorks dramatic glacial rock formations. The two-story private residence is topped with a sharply sloping metal roof intended to reference mountain peaks that dramatically dips to cover the semi-subterranean garage and glass-walled car gallery. The 8,430-square-foot home itself will be wrapped in blackened-cedar cladding and expansive glass, a palette repeated across the three pods (basically cabins) nearby for guests.

Sited on a small bluff, the house was elevated and designed to give 360-degree views of the surrounding landscape, including the Catskill Mountains. Other perks include an underground wine cellar, lounge, and executive office, and high-end finished throughout.

Even accessing Sylvan Rock is car-centric, as S3 and Aston Martin are touting the homes 2,000-foot-long driveway.

The collaboration is also (somewhat paradoxically, given the heavy car emphasis) sustainability-minded. Aside from the wellness pavilion, complete with spa, Aston Martin noted that an on-site garden, accessible through a separate service entrance, is anticipated to produce enough food to make the home self-sufficient. A treehouse on the property, with the same sharply gabled roof as the main house and pods, will allow on-site camping and elevated views of the surrounding wilderness.

When designing, we always let the land speak first and respond to it, said S3 Architecture partner Christopher Dierig in a press release. The roofline mimics the jagged edges of the rock ledge reaching down into the earth, as if the home is born of and launching from the landscape. The resulting design blends our modernist aesthetic with the privacy and context of the rural location to create a unique luxury experience.

Construction on Sylvan Rock is expected to begin sometime in early 2021. It seems that Aston Martin and S3 werent designing for an individual client, as the home has already been listed by Corcoran Country Living for $7.7 million.

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Aston Martin teams with S3 Architecture for its first secret lair home - The Architect's Newspaper

Its not easy to organize events these days, with a pandemic rushing into its second wave. For that very reason, the second edition of the Rome architecture festival called SPAM, which stands for Settimana del Progetto di Architettura nel Mondo, organized by the Rome association of architects is proposed in two versions. On the one hand, the events with live audiences being held in the splendid backdrop of the Roman Aquarium also called the House of Architecture the headquarters of the association of architects, designers, landscape architects and curators of Rome and its province (Ordine degli Architetti Pianificatori Paesaggisti e Conservatori di Roma e provincia). The building was inaugurated in 1887 to a design by Architect Ettore Bernich in line with Quintino Sellas plan to make Rome a centre of science.Leading figures on the international architectural scene will take part in the SPAM 2020 events entitled NEEDS, both in person and online, presenting a gratifying combination that can be watched live on the dedicated YouTube channel. Indeed, the House of Architecture will be set up as a TV studio to enable as much interaction and participation as possible, including by video call. This is an effective response to the current world emergency, making the event all the more enjoyable.Following the first edition, in 2020 the festival also aims to deliver an up-to-date overview of international design, with the involvement of architects, scholars and critics, professionals, artists, and institutions. In the 2019 edition of SPAM, entitled DreamCity, the Rome association of architects invited guests to discuss their Visions of the city to an audience of colleagues and citizens of the capital city: images and descriptions of possible futures, with alternative solutions and specific details about the parameters of growth and transformation. Architects are called on to address many aspects of society; these include anticipating and understanding current changes and those that have not yet begun. It is essential to harness their knowledge of these transformations when planning the future. To make this possible, it is necessary to look at the emerging needs that generate mass phenomena and are capable of grabbing peoples attention and channelling it into an essential driver of change. NEEDS analyses these.Each of the days of the festival will focus on one of the eight themes: FRAGILE, TRANSITION, EDUCATION, HERITAGE, URBAN METABOLISM, HEALTH, LEISURE & GREEN and CO-CITY.Highlights of the packed programme include a lecture by Javier Arpa Fernndez, Research and Education Coordinator of the Why Factory think tank at the Faculty of Architecture of TU Delft on day 12, dedicated to the theme of education, and Martin Rein-Cano, landscape architect, founder and creative director of Topotek 1 on day 15 as part of the day on health, leisure & green. The concluding lecture on day 16, which covers the CO-CITY theme, will be delivered by architect and urban planner, Ute Schneider, partner of KCAP architects&planners.In addition to lectures, focus groups on the themes and round tables to draw attention to the dynamics and mechanisms governing our cities, the festival also includes two exhibitions at the Architects House and film evenings. More information on the dedicated site:https://spamroma.com/

Christiane Brklein

SPAM (Settimana del Progetto di Architettura nel Mondo) Rome Architecture Festival9 - 16 October 2020organized by the Rome association of architects and directed by Roberto GrioImages: see captions1 - Topotek 1 - Hannover, ph. Hanns Joosten2 - SPAM3 - KCAP, Hafencity Hamburg, ph. Elbe&Flut4- Topotek1 - Luxemburg, ph. Hanns Joosten5 - The Why Factory6 - KCAP, Hafencity Hamburg, ph. Fotofrizz7 - Topotek1, Superkilen, ph. Iwan Baan8 - Topotek1, Graz, ph. N. Lackner9 - The Why Factory10 - KCAP, Hafencity Hamburg, ph. Elbe&FlutFind out more: https://spamroma.com/

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Second edition of the Rome architecture festival | Livegreenblog - Floornature.com

By Nancy Sorbella

We are all just trying to find our way, with more than enough uncertainty to go around.

It has been a lost year, one of challenge, to be sure, but in many ways a time of discovery. Personally, I feel more connected to my inner circle than before. Time spent together, whether socially distanced or digitally, is more intentional, and ironically, feels as though we are more present. I am acutely aware of the take-away from each day, because I am not rushing around doing a million things, and am able to spend that elusive quality time doing the things I must, and those that I choose.

I did my time mourning what I took for granted, debating what matters and to whom. Done. As restrictions have eased with each reopening phase, I am all in for living my best life with new parameters.

I am excited that it is fall in the Hudson Valley. Ive already been out and about more now as my daughters activities have been canceled. I no longer catch a 6 a.m. train on Monday mornings and we are more flexible and eager to be outdoors. I do believe that the best is yet to come, but for now we will be making the best of what has come. I hope that these detours along the way will make that path smoother.

The summer was all about gardening for me experimenting, learning and letting my landscape speak to me. There have been some surprises. The pumpkin seeds I planted didnt deliver. However, in the middle of the hosta, somehow pumpkin seeds were sown, and I now have a robust small sugar pumpkin patch. A few dwarf Alberta spruces and some bearded Iris left with free signs on the roadside were a win.

Next up, more native plantings, so next year, when things return to normal (as I hope), there will be less garden maintenance.

So, it is no surprise really, that my recent detours have been outdoors, and in gardens and natural spaces. Visiting them has been inspirational, aspirational and accessible.

Wethersfield Estate & Gardens

I so love experiencing something magnificent, yet at the same time finding that point of connection where I can get ideas, imagine them coming to life in my world, or in this case, on my property.

Wethersfield is one of those magical places. The estate is over 1,000 acres, the legacy of Chauncey Devereux Stillman, who created a cultural, equestrian, intellectual and agrarian space that is open to the public Friday through Sunday from 12 to 5 p.m. There are formal Italian gardens, colorful seasonal plantings, fountains, water gardens, statuary and uncompromised views of the lush hills and valleys of Dutchess County.

What not to miss: Walking your dog, horseback riding or carriage riding (yes!) on the trails. Keep this in mind for next year. Guided tours are suspended because of the pandemic but so are the entrance fees, making Wethersfield the ideal spot to enjoy the natural surroundings to meditate, resuscitate and reset.

Wethersfield Estate & Gardens is located at 257 Pugsley Hill Rd., Amenia, N.Y. 12501. Info: Visit http://www.wethersfield.org.

Dover Stone Church

Unless you are looking for this hidden gem, and maybe even if you are, finding it can be tricky but worth it. Identified only by the New York State blue and yellow historical marker, this ancient cave and trails is the perfect pandemic diversion.

It is not a real church, but rather a natural cavern with a history that dates to the 17th century and includes exquisite rock formation and outcroppings, a peaceful habitat for native flora and fauna with hiking trails for most abilities. It is dog-friendly and free, open daily dawn to dusk. Parking is available at the nearby Dover Elementary School when school is not in session, Tabor Wing House and Freshco 22 Deli. The entrance is at the historic marker, between two private homes.

What not to miss: Viewing the 30-foot natural waterfall that can be seen from inside. Hop over to the Appalachian Trail for more hiking but nothing compares to the contrast of the rugged water/rock hiking and the long nature trails and views of the West Mountain ridge.

Dover Stone Church is located at 3128 NY-22, Dover Plains, N.Y. 12522. Info: 845-832-6111 or visit https://www.doverny.us/dover-stone-church-preserve.

Innisfree Garden

Innisfree Garden, another Dutchess County horticultural treasure, is just the balm we need to get through another season of pandemic isolation. Often considered one of the worlds best gardens, Innisfree is a remarkable example of American environmental sustainability, design, artistry and conservancy.

The 185-acre historic natural resource provides a unique experience, especially as seasons change. Created by a nearly 50-year collaboration between the legendary landscape architect, Lester Collins, and owners Marion Burt Beck and Walter Beck, Innisfree is designed for sustenance, to maintain the ecosystem, beauty, artistry and the personal experience between each of us and nature.

Included in the gardens mission is the encouragement of visitors to find beauty, inspiration, mental respite and healthy activity surrounded by art and nature. This couldnt be more appropriate today.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, reservations are required, Wednesday through Sunday, for slots from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

What not to miss: A visit to Innisfree Garden is best enjoyed every season to experience the changing shape, color and view and from each unique cultivated space. Also, take in the water sculpture. There is nothing like it.

Innisfree Garden is located at 362 Tyrrel Rd., Millbrook, N.Y. 12545. Info: 845-677-8000 or visit http://www.innisfreegarden.org.

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Finding Some Solace While Taking Some Detours Along the Way - The Examiner News

Dominic West the 50-year-old actor who starred in Showtime's controversial show The Affair seems to have stirred a scandalous real-life affair. Ironic, isn't it? The actor was recently spotted passionately kissing and cozying up to his latest co-star, Lily James, 31, in Rome on Sunday, October 11, 2020. Pictures of the two celebrities currently filming the mini-series The Pursuit of Love were splashed across Daily Mail where they could be seen tenderly touching each other.

Paparazzi also captured them riding on an electric scooter around the city and eating lunch together. In one of the photos, West's hand was placed on her back. He could also be seen affectionately caressing James head, planting a kiss on her neck and stroking her as he flaunted his wedding ring free hand. As per the outlet, they also had their friend and mutual manager Angharad Wood for company.

Married to college sweetheart Catherine FitzGerald, the father of five tied the knot with his wife in 2010. Ten years ago, the pair got married in Glin, County Limerick, on June 26 after having dated each other when they were both undergraduates at Trinity College Dublin. It goes without saying that the controversial snaps soon sparked much distress in the couple's life. Although a separation has not been announced, the two were last photographed together publicly in early 2019.

Born as Catherine Celinda Leopoldine FitzGerald in 1971, she was raised as a member of the Irish royal and aristocratic FitzGerald dynasty that originated in Normandy. Her father,Desmond FitzGerald, 29th Knight of Glin, was the lastKnight of Glin.

The royal descendent who grew up with two sisters Honor and Nesta now works as a landscape designer and gardener in Ireland and the UK. She runs a garden studio with famed landscape architect Mark Lutyens. She has worked on plenty of landscaping projects with him including redesigning the gardens at Hillsborough Castle, Lansdowne Crescent, Clarendon Park, Holland Park Avenue, Glenarm Castle and St Olav's Church.

She dated Dominic while studying at Trinity College Dublin. In an interview with Belfast Telegraph, she said, "We went out together for six months, and we had great fun. He actually came to my 21st (in Northern Ireland), then he left and we split up." She added, "Our best friend was also at Trinity with us. We all went on to have separate lives, but were linked through our best friend, Dominic Geraghty, also an actor. And I went to Wisley, and did all this garden stuff and retrained. Then, when Dominic was doing The Wire, we met again through our friend Dominic (Geraghty); I was 32 then. I feel so lucky."

While FitzGerald was previously married to Viscount Lambton, the 7th Earl of Durham, in 1995, she divorced him in 2002. Meanwhile, West was dating his then-girlfriend Polly Astor, the daughter of Michael Astor, and had a daughter named Martha with her. Soon after, West and FitzGerald rekindled their romance when both had separated ways from their partners.

They had four children Dora, 13; Senan, 12; Francis, 11; and Christabel, 7. In 2019, the pair bought Glin Castle, their 14th century ancestral home, to rescue it from being sold. "My children are surrounded by Irish wit and humanity. They have a far broader existence than they would anywhere else in the world," Dominic once said in an interview and the husband-wife duo has even renovated the castle and rented it out to superstars such as Taylor Swift and Mick Jagger.

Back in 2015, Dominic had said of his wife in a Vogue UK interview: "I think, really, what marriage is is two people helping each other to live the best lives they can. And that's what happened with me and my missus. That's why it works. She doesn't get jealous, either. If she were doing the scenes I'm doing in The Affair, I would hate it." He added, "She's incredibly undemanding in that way and it gives me a freedom I never want to give up, and I hope I do that for her, too." The couple reportedly split their time between a townhome in Shepherd's Bush, London, and Glin Castle.

The pictures soon circulated on social media and raised many eyebrows. A female friend of Catherine who came to console her at the family home near Chippenham, Wiltshire, told MailOnline on October 12 that she has seen the pictures and is devastated as she thought they were very much together".

The source said, "Catherine has seen the pictures and she's devastated. I came over to speak with her as soon as I knew about them. Catherine has been trying to speak with Dominic but he's not answering his phone. She's totally shocked because she didn't know anything was going on. They were very much together, so this is completely out of the blue." The insider further added, "She thought they had a good marriage and now it's probably over. That's how she feels right now but the two of them need to speak but at the moment, she's lost for words."

A gardener also spoke to the outlet and said, "This is their family home and as you can see it's a wonderful place. They've got great kids and everything that you can imagine. Catherine was devastated when she saw those pics and they also left us feeling quite numb. It's a total shock to all of us who know them." A neighbor added, "To say she's in shock would be an understatement. She's heartbroken and has got nothing to publicly say. She needs to be left alone and have some time to herself."

If the pictures were not enough, Daily Mail also claims that a source revealed Dominic and Lily "spent two nights in a suite at the top Hotel De La Ville with a panoramic view over the whole city and just at two minutes' walk from the Spanish steps".

James split with her former beau Matt Smith in December 2019 after five years together. Recently, she was pictured enjoying a night out in London with Captain America star Chris Evans.

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Who is Dominic West's wife Catherine FitzGerald? How Lily James kissing pics shattered their 10-year marriage - MEAWW