The New A Bathing Ape Store in Los Angeles
May 12, 2008 | Categories: Architecture / Clothing / Design

A couple weeks ago I was driving down Melrose heading toward the Beverly Center when I was shocked to see a pink, neon glow that I hadn’t seen before. Bear in mind I’m driving at dusk, a little after the sun had set, so this was BRIGHT. As I get closer I realize that this has to be the brand new A Bathing Ape store that has been in the process of opening forever.

For the five you who’ve never heard of A Bathing Ape, it’s basically this cult clothing brand in Japan, mostly because of it’s limited edition t-shirts and sneakers. Is it really all that exciting? I personally don’t think so, but Nigo, the man behind A Bathing Ape, is pretty smart and has come up with some great designs over the years. So while you won’t see me shopping there any time soon, it was still exciting to come upon.

The store was created by one of the best architecture/design firms companies out there, Wonderwall. I’ve been a huge fan of Wonderwall’s work for years now, so it’s exciting to have something of theirs here in Los Angeles. It’s a lot like the other BAPE stores out there, a lot of glass and patterns and neon, but it’s pretty cool in person. While I was taking photos there was a couple taking Facebook photos from the reflected neon light, so I thought that was funny.

Check under the cut for a bunch more photos!

Keep reading The New A Bathing Ape Store in Los Angeles…

Photos of the High Line
May 6, 2008 | Categories: Architecture / Photography

The folks over at Curbed have a nice gallery of photos showing the construction going on the High Line. From the looks of it there’s still a long way to go, but they’re making some good progress so far.

For those who don’t know, the High Line used to be an elevated railway used by freight trains that went into disuse in the 80’s. But a group of concerned citizens called Friends of the High Line decided to put this old landmark to use and proposed to turn the space into an elevated park. I’m a huge fan of taking existing spaces and making them new and exciting again, so I’m really excited to see this project come to a conclusion. Parts of the High Line might be finished by this summer, but as far as I can tell there’s no FINAL final date.

Bobby

House Uc by Miyahara Architect Office
April 26, 2008 | Categories: Architecture

When it comes to architecture I prefer clean and minimal. I’m also a fan of smaller spaces, which is probably why I’m so smitten for Japanese architecture like the building above, called House Uc. House Uc was created by Miyahara Architect Office, a company run by Teruo Miyahara.

I pretty much love everything about this house, but what stands out to me most is the stained, polished concrete that surrounds the whole it. It look so natural but clean at the same time. I’m also in love with the shape of it as well, the way they took a large slice of the building away. The front door is also pretty smart as well, leaving a place for people to stand in case it’s raining. The interior is extremely white and minimal which is good, but I’d need to throw in some color here and there.

To see more photos of the house, click here.

Found through today and tomorrow

Bobby

Jorge Pardo
April 18, 2008 | Categories: Architecture / Art / Books / Design

When it comes to art with a deeper message, or that requires you to think about what the artist was intending, I’m usually pretty turned off by it. Art to me is meant to be simple, if you look at it and you like it, it’s good. Thinking hurts my brain… But reading this new monograph of Jorge Pardo at least helps me understand that frame of mind better.

Pardo was born in Cuba, raised in Chicago, and then eventually made his way Los Angeles where he studied fine art at Art Center.
Since then he’s been creating works of art that are not only beautiful, but intend for people to think about the art he creates as well the industry of art in general. The book covers numerous points in his career, ranging from architecture to designing lights to fake J. Crew catalogs featuring Matthew Barney as the model. His use of color is also astounding, especially in reference to his ceramix tiles and lights.

His monograph is being published by Phaidon and will be coming out at the end of next month. Check out under the cut for more photos!

Keep reading Jorge Pardo…

New Graphic Design in China
April 15, 2008 | Categories: Architecture / Art / Design / Films / Illustration

China if you hadn’t noticed has hit a huge economic boom from the last 20 years, and with this summer’s Olympics being hosted there, people are starting to become more and more interested in the country. So PingMag wrote a great article talking about design in China, who’s doing it and where it’s going.

It’s pretty crazy but design hadn’t really taken off in China until 20 years ago at most, so it’s still almost in it’s infancy there. But from the examples given in the article, there are some pretty interesting things going on nonetheless. Reading this also reminded me of a Monocle video which talks about all of the new structures being built in China, but none of the major landmarks have been built by Chinese. It’s interesting to think about, although here in America, our greatest symbolic landmark was built by the French…

Bobby

New Retail by Raul Barreneche
March 7, 2008 | Categories: Architecture / Books / Films / Science

I was browsing around Phaidon’s site earlier this week and came across a new book they’ve released called New Retail. It’s 208 pages of innovative retail stores from all around the world. What caught my eye was that they posted the Mpries grocery stores which I posted about last May. The fact that they caught onto those stores was pretty exciting for me, not to mention stores like Prada and Hermes, which are both in Tokyo. And of course, the giant beautiful photos are the biggest sell, and it looks like they’re filled to the brim with them. Definitely check this book out if contemporary architecture does it for you.

Check out more photos under the cut!
Keep reading New Retail by Raul Barreneche…

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault
March 3, 2008 | Categories: Architecture / Science / Technology

I read about the Global Seed Vault last year in Wired, but it wasn’t until recently that I saw a real photo of the place and how amazing it is! To make a long story short, the Seed Vault is a giant store house with over 10,000 seeds and plant material. The reason for this bio-bank is to “provide a safety net against accidental loss o diversity in traditional genebanks”. Basically it’s a giant vault of plant life, so that plants that could be important to us in the future don’t die out or go extinct.

The Seed Vault is located on a Norewgian island called Spitsbergen, which is only 700 miles from the North Pole. The reason they built the vault in such a barren frosty location is three-fold. The first reason is that it has a relatively low amount of tectonic activity, so no earthquakes, which a lot of other genebanks could possibly be damaged by. The second is that the average temperature of the sandstone mountain that the vault was built in is 30º F. The seeds are cooled down to a temperature of -0 to -20º F, so even if the power went out, the seeds would be okay for at least weeks. The final reason is that the location is 430 feet above sea level, so even if global warming occurs, and the oceans begin to rise, the seeds will be safe.

But no matter how important and immense this project is, how effing cool is the building itself?! Could you imagine randomly coming across it in the middle of this island and thinking, “There are modern design loving aliens hanging out around here?!” I think it’s totally beautiful, and I love how narrow and simple it looks. I’m sure it’s a much prettier site than just some random concrete bunker.

Check out some cross-sections of the building under the cut.
Keep reading The Svalbard Global Seed Vault…

Julian Schnabel’s Palazzo Chupi
February 22, 2008 | Categories: Architecture / Design / Films

Reading through the newest issue of Vanity Fair I came across an amazing article about Julian Schnabel’s architectural masterpiece, the Palazzo Chupi. As some may know, Julian Schnabel is a man of many talents. Most recently he directed the movie ‘The Diving Bell and the Butterfly’, but he’s also been a painter, and obviously, a part time architect. He helped create the Palazzo Chupi while he directed ‘Diving Bell’, communicating through faxes drawings and questions about the project in New York as he worked on the movie in France.

He had bought the building itself in 1997 for $2.1 million dollars and used at as a place for his family live, previously using it as a refuge from his divorce and as a painting studio. The really amazing part is that he added the entire top of the building, basically anything that’s dark salmon colored. The architecture itself was inspired by Addison Mizner and Stanford White, two of Schnabel’s favorite architects, as well as Scrovegni Chapel in Italy. The building itself is split into a triplex, two duplexes, and two single-floor homes, so this is a very cozy 50,00 square foot building.

I personally think the building itself is immensely beautiful, a breath of fresh air away from the sometimes overwhelming contemporary minimalism or weirdness that abounds today. I didn’t even fully realize how much I enjoy hand made things until I really started reading about this. The idea of hand troweled plaster on a wall so much more comforting than white, flat walls. The inside decor is a but gaudy for my taste, but it looks like it would be really fun to come home to every night as well. I’m also in love with all the hand laid tiles and the wood paneling, as well as (I’m sure) amazing views of the Hudson River.

If anyone is in the market for buying a new space in Soho, you too can move into this beauty of a place for a mere $27,000,000! Check out more photos under the cut.

Keep reading Julian Schnabel’s Palazzo Chupi…

The 6th Crossing Bridge in Dubai
February 12, 2008 | Categories: Architecture

The city of Dubai is slowly becoming one of the most amazing cities in the world, a city that looks almost like science fiction come to life, something you would only see in a Philip Dick novel. It already plays host to the world’s tallest hotel, and come 2012, it will also be home to the world’s largest arch bridge, the 6th Crossing.

The 6th Crossing is one mile long, 670 feet tall, and will be spanning the Dubai Creek. It will have 12 lanes, 6 in each direction and the Dubai Metro will run through the middle of it. It also looks like it will also allow people access to the upcoming opera house. The bridge was created by NY based architects FXFOWLE INTERNATIONAL, who had this to say about the bridge:

The bridge’s design was inspired by multiple sources, each evoking similar imagery – the rhythmic grace of Dubai Creek’s current, the elegant splendor of the sand dunes adjacent to the City, the lighting patterns of the lunar cycle and the design of the future Opera House. We believe that our bridge design is not merely to link the City’s cultural and commercial developments or ease congestion, but an opportunity to connect people both physically and emotionally by creating an iconic landmark, destination, and gateway between the old, the new and the future Dubai.

I think the bridge looks really beautiful, and I can only imagine how amazing it would look in person. English is their main second language, so maybe I’ll have to learn a little Arabic and pop over and see it 4 years from now! Also of interest, check out this great Wikipedia entry on the upcoming projects in Dubai, which make it seem like a grown up Disneyland on crack… and I mean that in the best way.

You can also see some more pictures of the project under the cut.
Keep reading The 6th Crossing Bridge in Dubai…

Water Cube Opening Photos
February 8, 2008 | Categories: Architecture

As a follow up to my previous post, here are some more photos of China’s Water Cube. The pictures were taken by Chris Bosse who was the associate architect on the project. As you can see, it looks much better at night, and pretty surreal during th day. The day shot looks completely computer generated, it’s so damn smooth and flawless!

You can check out more photos over on Chris’ Flickr.

Found through Dezeen

Bobby