Ayers Saint Gross’ Post

How can we reshape our public spaces to nurture our cities and create healthy, sustainable and resilient places to live? Landscape Architects Churchman Thornhill Finch led the Shape My City students in a rethinking of Bristol's harbourside Amphitheatre. The session started with studying the site - looking at both the macro and micro scale - and then students reimagined the space through 3d sketches in collage and modelling. The students interrogated how we can create places to sit and spend time, to move through and to socialise, and how public spaces can give back to people of all ages and to nature. Proposals included water features, art work and play spaces, as well as plentiful planting 🌿 Consideration was given to permanent and temporary uses, how the space evolves through different times of day and year, and allowing people to walk, sit, cycle and skate through the same area in harmony with one another. This is the eighth session in the 2023-24 Shape My City programme. Applications for the 2024-25 programme are now open. To apply visit: https://lnkd.in/ejU5vdTw #ShapeMyCity #SocialPublicSpaces #TalentAccelerator #FutureLeaders #ChurchmanThornhillFinch #LandscapeDesign #ShapingBetterPlaces #HealthyCities #HappyCities #DesignForWellbeing

They say that ‘A good deed never goes unpunished.’ It’s mad to think that Sir Christopher Wren (1632 — 1723), designer of the beautiful St Paul’s Cathedral, is also partly the reason behind some of London’s more recent carbuncles, such as the Walkie Talkie and the Cheesegrater… These behemoths aren’t just architectural folly. It’s all down to ‘St Paul’s Heights’, a statute that protects the viewing corridors of the Cathedral. It states that the view of the dome cannot be obscured from Primrose Hill, Greenwich Park or Richmond Park, where there’s a special hole cut in a hedge to preserve the view. In all, there are eight protected views that crisscross the capital. So, the Walkie Talkie, all curved up in its top-heavy-car-incinerating-sun-reflective-shape, is that way to allow for the corridor view, and equally, the steep incline and leaning back to the North of the Cheesegrater owes its shape to the same reason. It’s remarkable how what we create now can echo through the centuries. This underscores the immense power of design and its ability to shape a future that is yet unknown. ‘St Paul’s Heights’ was ostensibly aiming to do a good deed, but it has had unexpected and, some might say, negative results. I’m sure Wren would be flattered by the statute, but I wonder what he’d think of the architectural anomalies it helped create. #stpaulsheights #designforthefuture #gooddeeds

Checkpoint Charlie Reverie: A Student’s Encounter with Modernist Legacy In Berlin’s heart, where histories collide, Stands the Checkpoint Charlie apartments, a modernist pride. By Koolhaas and Sauerbruch, its structure unfolds, A narrative of past and present, intricately told. Seven stories rise with twenty-one homes, An elevated skeleton where legacy roams. Once customs and allied forces held their sway, Now homes and memories in layers play. The entrance hall, vast, a Le Corbusier baton, Echoes grand, with whispers of times bygone. No lightbulbs shine, yet ACME’s glow I recall, A magical orb, illuminating a student’s thrall. Through halls of camouflage, the urban tapestry weaves, Spaces where function and form interleave. Balconies and porticos, a dance in the sky, An architectural dialogue that catches the eye. Walking through history, a film on rewind, My tutor Matthias, REM’s genius combined. Faces of fame, yet a lightbulb within, A spark of ambition, where dreams begin. Caught in the grandeur, the scale so immense, A cinematic moment, intense and dense. In the shadows of masters, a student’s quest, To surpass, to shine, to be the very best. Checkpoint Charlie, a monument to strive, A beacon of design where past lives thrive. In its corridors, I found my path, Guided by architects’ wisdom, a light in the aftermath. #CheckpointCharlie #OMA #RemKoolhaas #MatthiasSauerbruch #BerlinArchitecture #IBA1987 #ModernistLegacy #ArchitecturalExperience #StudentJourney #UrbanCamouflage #ArchitecturalIcons #DesignInspiration #HistoricMonuments

🧡 All the stories from the Sep/Oct 2023 issue of Metropolis Magazine are now online and available for free. The theme is North American Design, with a special section on Outdoor Spaces. 🌳 📖 Read all the stories here: https://lnkd.in/ePjYs__F 📖 From my editor's letter: "Rich people’s friendship networks are more likely to be made up of people who went to college with them than people who live in the same neighborhood. The inverse is true of most low-income individuals. These are indicators that as income inequality in the United States continues to rise—as reported by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office—the social chasm between the haves and have-nots is likely to deepen. Even worse, if we don’t create more ways for people to encounter those unlike themselves, the chances to close that gap will get slimmer and slimmer." Don't miss: ✴ Lakisha Ann Woods, CAE, Cheryl Durst, Hon. FIIDA, and Khoi Vo on the future of architecture and interior design in the United States. ✴ How Future Green Studio is reframing public space. ✴ Transformative projects from Mithun and Weber Thompson, both AIA COTE Top Ten Winners. 🧡 https://lnkd.in/ePjYs__F 🧡 ... #communityengagement #inequality #publicspace #architecture #interiordesign #landscapearchitecture #sustainability #cannabis #outdoors

What a great article ⬇ Some interesting insights into how we should all be thinking about our 'play spaces'. As developers we have a responsibility to make sure we think about the needs, wants and desires of the community we are creating, so why not become innovators and visionaries?! 🤷♀️

As our planet grows warmer, the responsibility to design for shade becomes increasingly critical. At CannonDesign, we believe building owners, civic leaders and designers must collaborate to increase shade cover through creative approaches. Projects like our Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation, designed in partnership with Hepner Architects, is just north of Tampa, Florida. The project employs a minimum 2:1 ratio for shading full glazed walls. All other windows are covered with a perforated metal panel to provide shading and safety to the exterior. Simple things add! We can provide comfort, energy savings, and quality of life. These shaded spaces aren’t just performing - they become social centers, places to get away, or meet with friends. Discover how we can work together to create cooler, more comfortable environments for our communities: https://lnkd.in/gtf67FhR

Why So Many U.S. Government Buildings Are Brutalist The post-World War II era saw a significant expansion of the U.S. bureaucratic state. The federal government's roles and responsibilities grew, leading to the construction of numerous headquarters and administrative buildings. This period of expansion coincided with the peak of the Brutalist movement, resulting in many of these new buildings being designed in this style. The need for large, functional office spaces to accommodate the growing bureaucracy found a fitting solution in Brutalism’s utilitarian and scalable design approach. A significant yet often overlooked influence on the architectural direction of U.S. government buildings was Daniel Patrick Moynihan. As an advisor and later a senator, Moynihan played a crucial role in shaping federal architectural policies. His "Guiding Principles for Federal Architecture," written in 1962, emphasized that federal buildings should convey dignity, enterprise, vigor and stability, which brutalism conveyed to people of the time. While not explicitly advocating for Brutalism, Moynihan's principles supported the creation of monumental and enduring government buildings, which aligned well with the Brutalist aesthetic. His vision helped ensure that government buildings would be seen as symbols of the nation's strength and stability. Brutalism evokes strong opinions. We see merits but definitely appreciate our current era of sleek parametric curves and abundant greenery. https://loom.ly/nV3eWw0 #architecture #design #brutalism

Highlighting Landscapes | Avendo Tips Illuminate your outdoor landscape to create breathtaking nighttime vistas! Up lighting, grazing, and shadowing techniques showcase trees, shrubs, and architectural elements, transforming your outdoor space into a work of art. #LandscapeLighting #NighttimeScenery #DesignImpact  #virtualdesign   #designvisualization  #goldcoastrealestate #buildingdesign #contemporarydesign #constructioninnovation #newhomebuild #designeducation #buildingexterior

This summer I was lucky enough to spend two weeks at @art_omi in a gorgeous old barn making hundreds of tiny plaster houses. While there I met Elgin Cleckley @_mpathicdesign and got to know his powerful work on empathy and design. Just got my hands on a hot-off-the-presses copy of his newly released book Empathic Design: Perspectives on Creating Inclusive Spaces. “Empathic design supports by recognizing that people are seen and acknowledged in public space through layers of identity, culture, history, and memory. It affirms that our layered emotional responses to places are both valid and complex and that in the built environment, form, symbol, material, and scale all play a role—ideally, one that culminates in deeper relationships with nature and the landscape. It says, “We are here,” and, equally, “We see you.” In my course E/Quality Architecture we investigate whose voices are included in determining quality in contemporary architecture. We discuss topics including child’s perspective, design for aging, universal design, hostile urbanism, participatory design, community focused design, racism, and feminism. We read many foundational texts that establish a historical basis for our contemporary condition: Race and Modern Architecture by Irene Cheng, Charles L. Davis II, and Mabel O. Wilson Art and Visual Politics by Bell Hooks Architectural Exclusion: Discrimination and Segregation Through Physical Design of the Built Environment by Sarah Schindler The Arsenal of Exclusion and Inclusion The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America By Richard Rothstein Elgin’s editing, his collection of texts, looks forward - building on these histories - offering perspectives on the future of inclusion as a primary factor in determining quality in design. —— #inclusivedesign #inclusion #uva #equitableurbanism #architecture #architecturepedagogy #architectureeducation #empathicdesign #bellhooks #richardrothstein #raceandmodernarchitecture #islandpress #voice #artomi #empathicdesign #artomi #thecoloroflaw #artandvisualpolitics #architectureschool #architecturebooks