Riverfront Reboot

                                             The following images are from Archpaper.com.

I have just heard from Archpaper.com that a bi-coastal team will redesign the Minneapolis waterfront.  The waterfront is physically and psychologically seperated from the lives of the people of Minneapolis because of highways, railways, a commercial port, and abandoned industrial sites.  It is all going to change because of the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board.  They gave the 5.5 mile project to landscape architects Tom Leader Studio and Boston-based Kennedy & Violich Architects. 

Archpaper said, "Among the team's ideas: creating artificial wetlands at key run-off points to filter and remediate stormwater, and constructing floating islands built on rafts of recycled water bottles with the excavated fill, which would serve as wildlife refuges."  The project will also aim to maintain industries and new green industries and to increase public access in and around industry sites.  The waterfront project will serve for not only park uses, but industrial uses too. 

With new resources and technology, the design team expects to refine their plan, and focus on specifics over the next four to six months.  If I ever get a chance to go to Minneapolis I would go see the new waterfront as soon as I could.  The design looks new and refreshing, and I bet the residents in the city will love their new waterfront.  For a full image gallery of the new Minneapolis waterfront design, click here.

Today's ArchiPic #34

Photo by Feserc.

This is a crazy house in Dalat, Vietnam.  It is pretty crazy!  The house was built into a tree and is mostly carved wood covered in concrete.  The Crazy House more than defies architectural classification!  

Dazzling Designs | Hydropolis

The Hydropolis by Dubai.com.
 
The Hydropolis, when it will be built, will be the world's first underwater luxury resort.  This is a very ambitious design, and it will be built in Dubai.  It will be a 10-star hotel resort with 220 suites, villas, shopping malls, cinematic theaters, children's Seaworld.  The Hydropolis will cost 300 million euros.  Designed by  Joachim Hauser, it is located 20 meters beneath the surface.  It has been constructed in Germany and brought to the site piece by piece for re-construction in 2009.  This amazing structure will be another one of Dubai's famous landmarks.  Wow, Dubai has so many landmarks you can't even count them!

Quoted | Most Useful Tools...

All quotes were read by me before being put on this blog, and they will all be formally credited.  All are inspiring quotes that continue to show me what architecture is.  Welcome to Quoted. 

"An architect's most useful tools are an eraser at the drafting board, and a wrecking ball at the site."

- Frank Lloyd Wright 1867-1959

This is a very true statement to architecture.  Frank Lloyd Wright is my favorite architect.  All of his quotes are very interesting to read.  

Today's ArchiPic #33

[All pictures' links were broken. I will make sure this never again happens in the future. Sorry for the inconvenience. This has been fixed for most recent posts. Older posts might still have this issue.]

Museum of Contemporary Art in Niteroi, Brazil by instantshift.com.

Today's ArchiPic features the Museum of Contemporary Art in Niteroi, Brazil.  It is one of the city's main landmarks and was built in 1996.  The museum has a 817 square meter reflecting pool around the base.  It is one of the most amazing museums I've seen!

RCT3 Let's Play | Visitors' Center

As you can see here, I started with a flat slab as a foundation for the Visitors' Center.  It took a little over an hour of trial an error until I actually got the design the way I wanted it.

That's weird.  It almost looks like a shopping center!  Technically it is because it sells information and food.

Here are some better angles of the Visitors' Center.

The inside took the longest.  The walls are slate with red paint.  In the very middle are the information stands.  The food court is right behind the photo.

This is a photo of the Visitors' Center in the morning.  I haven't opened the park (city) up yet.  I can really only pretend it is a city because this is a theme park game.  So it's kind of hard to get the city to work and look right.  I will also be adding a lot more vegetation outside tomorrow.  I'm still looking for a good city game.  I would say Sims 3, but you have to buy all these packs that cost money to have a full experience.  And I'm not up to that.  The only reason I like the Sims 3 is because you can design a house with almost no limits.  I just hope I can find something that I can express architecture and design more easily without any limits.  Anyway, stay tuned for my next RCT3 Let's Play post, and enjoy the ARCHITECTURE!

Today's ArchiPic #32

ING Headquarters (Amsterdam, Netherlands) by instantshift.

Today's ArchiPic features the ING Headquarters in Amsterdam, Netherlands.  The ING group is a Dutch financial institution.  ING stands for International Netherland Group.  The headquarters is truly amazing.  I love the design!

RCT3 Let's Play! | Starting the Road

Welcome to my RCT3 "city build" series called "RCT3 Let's Play!"  This will be a continuing series for my blog until I stop building or am done with the city.

    The road is the start to my city.  Turning left will get you to the visitors' center that will be built soon.

This is the bridge over the road.  It took me about 20 minutes of thinking of how to do the design.

This is the bridge at night.

As you can see, this is the parking lot to the visitors' center that will be built.  It will include shops, information, maps, and a food court.  The next update will be soon on The Art of Architecture!  I might even include some videos!  Stay tuned.

Today's ArchiPic #31

Experience Music Project by drocpsu.

Today's ArchiPic features the Experience Music Project in Seattle, Washington.  The colors look amazing to me.  It's crazy how they can bend and shape the materials like that.  Creative minds have created this creative structure!  That's way too many creative words!

Quoted | The Drawer of Dreams...

All quotes were read by me before being put on this blog, and they will all be formally credited.  All are inspiring quotes that continue to show me what architecture is.  Welcome to Quoted.

"An Architect is the drawer of dreams."

- Grace McGarvie

(For some weird reason, I can't even find a Wiki page on him.)

Church Sundays | Week 6

This Sunday's church is in Spain and is called the Seville Cathedral.   It is very beautiful!

Thank for looking at this weekend's Church Sundays.  Stay tuned for more next weekend!

RCT3 | NEW CITY!!!

I am finally starting a new city after weeks of thinking whether or not I should.  I don't know what the name will be yet, but I'm sure it will be awesome!  I have had RCT3 since 2008, and it has never let me down.  The game continues inspiring me to create.  So without anymore waiting, here is my first RCT3 city update.

My RCT3 City | Shaping the Terrain

 When I get into the scenario editor, I can choose from tons of settings.  I first set the climate to "Mountain Range" so there will be thunderstorms once in awhile in the spring.

 I can make the land bigger by changing the "Set Park Land" option.

Then I start to color the terrain in different variety.

After that, I start to shape the terrain.  (I will probably change it overtime as the city grows.)

This is an overview of the terrain.



Then I start to make the area I can build on bigger.

The next update might be later today.  So stay tuned or you'll miss out on my RCT3 city! 

 Enjoy the ARCHITECTURE!

Dazzling Designs | Atkins Lighthouse

      Atkins Lighthouse Tower by Atkins-me.

It doesn't take much effort to guess where this lighthouse will be constructed.  Especially when my Dazzling Designs series features structures that are a lot of the time in the great city of Dubai in the UAE!  Well, it looks like I gave it away.  The Atkins Lighthouse Tower will be constructed in Dubai in the near future.  The designs have been fully completed. 

Anyway, the lighthouse will set a new benchmark for Dubai.  It is aimed to reduce its energy consumption 50 percent, and its hydro power will be increased by 40 percent.  It makes the lighthouse more energy efficient and more greener for the environment. 

The tower will be 400 meters tall.  That is half the size of the Burj Dubai! (Burj Khalifa)  The tower will include solar architecture, many low energy water solutions, better recovery strategies, integrated renewable resources, and photovoltaic panels. 

Atkins-me said, "Seven levels of parking are provided over the podium, ground floor, and five basements offer 1706 parking spaces.  A swimming pool sits on the third and fourth floor with a fully equipped gym, clad in a bubble like structure made from glass and metal floats above the pool deck." So far the design is amazing.  It has a great structure with beautiful architecture.  The Atkins Lighthouse Tower in Dubai will be another one of Dubai's amazing pieces of architecture for the years to come!

Today's ArchiPic #30

    Kerala Boat House by villageofjoy.

Today's ArchiPic features a boat house in Kerala, India.  It really is a "boat" house!  (No pun intended.)  Besides, why would there be a pun.  It's just a boat house! 

WNL | Week 6

Welcome to WNL Saturdays!  Today's Lights are from the great city of Berlin, Germany.

Thank you for looking at this week's WNL.  Stay tuned for next weekend!



RCT3 | When?

I bet a lot of you are wondering what I have been doing these past couple of weeks in RCT3.  Well, I haven't been doing much.  The past two weeks I have been playing Minecraft, doing homework, studying, and looking at youtube videos.  Which now begs the question, "Am I ever going to start an RCT3 city?" 

It seems as though I have hit a brick wall.  Yesterday I found a group of videos about RCT3 architecture.  The videos were inspiring.  However, when I found the custom scenery from the videos.  The custom scenery packs were made in groups, not in pieces.  That means that when I downloaded the pack, the amazing buildings that I saw in the video were not in a set of constructable pieces.  They were pre-built structures.  So for a guy that likes to build architecture from scratch with little pieces, that was a bit of a let down.

But that didn't stop me.  I have been looking back at my old cities, and I noticed that I don't need custom scenery to build a great city full of design.  I already have the tools to create amazing pieces of architecture from the in-game structure sets.  So as of today, I am starting to construct an architecturally modern city in RCT3.  My city will consist of structures that will boggle your mind and beautiful pieces that shine in the brightness of the RCT3 sun!  Don't forget nighttime.  With RCT3 having night-mode, it adds another element that is important to creating a beautiful city.  I also have a full list of custom scenery in the game that I can use to create even greater structures than ever before.  My RCT3 updates will start later today on The Art of Architecture!  So stay tuned or you'll miss out!

Today's ArchiPic #29

     Image by instant shift.

Today's ArchiPic features an upside-down church in Vancouver, Canada.  It is called, "The Device to Root Out Evil".  That's a really creative name.  And that actually makes sense, sort of.  However, does it look fake?  Although, the shadows seem to match up.  Besides, it is possible.  The building would have to have a strong underground structural support to stand up.  Is it fake or real?  I will let you decide.

Quoted | The Price of Success...

All quotes were read by me before being put on this blog, and they will all be formally credited.  All are inspiring quotes that continue to show me what architecture is.  Welcome to Quoted. 

"I know the price of success: dedication, hard work, and an unremitting devotion to the things you want to see happen." 

- Frank Lloyd Wright 1867-1959

"The most abundantly creative genius of American architecture." That is how thinkexist.com described Frank Lloyd Wright.  He was an American architect, interior designer, and writer. 

Dazzling Designs | Artistic Foyer

The following images are from nganu.

A new design has been made for the Izmir Opera House Project.  It will be called an Artistic Foyer, and it is an urban art dome.  The idea is very futuristic with a curve shaped design.  The building flows with its environment making it look gorgeous and magnificent.  Architecture is an art, and it is expressed through this new dome in the city of Izmir.  

The designer Nuvist said, "Art has a great role in showing what happens in human beings’ life. Soul, intelligence and the emotions are the reflections of the community, and Art forms the social identities of communities. It also shows us the difference between the various social identities. Global influences effect the types of knowledge acquisitions or the social values in the art, and the artists determine the standards of modern life." 

 

The project will reflect the culture, history, and modern lifestyles of the residents of Izmir.  It is also designed in a facade style.  The dome is a functional future space that will show interaction between the architect's creation and the people of Izmir. 

Today's ArchiPic #28

    [ image source ]

Today's ArchiPic features a place called Mammy's Cupboard in Natchez, Mississippi.  Luckily, the inside isn't nearly as creepy as the outside.  Mammy's Cupboard serves pies as I saw in some other pictures.  They do look good!  It is also listed in the top 50 of the world's strangest buildings on ipakway.com.  See, I told you it looked creepy!  "Mammy" sounds really creepy too!  Although, I would still go for their pies.

RCT3 UPDATE #2

This is an update for RCT3 on my blog.  It just so happens that I got a new game Wednesday of last week.  The game is called Minecraft.  It is a game that you wouldn't think you would get hooked on.  However, it gives a fantastic gaming experience.  So anyway, the RCT3 city has been postponed for now.  That doesn't mean that I won't come back to it.  I just need time to play more of this new game that I bought.  Although, RCT3 is still one of my favorite games to play! (It is probably because I can be very creative with it!  It's just like Minecraft!)

                                                                                                                       - Zach

ArchiPic.com...What?

It just so happens that I found an ArchiPic.com.  That's weird since I have a series called Today's ArchiPic.  I didn't even know ArchiPic existed until a couple of minutes ago.  Just to clarify, I didn't take my series from ArchiPic.com.  It was strictly made up by me.  My series was changed from Random Architecture to Today's ArchiPic by putting the words architecture and picture together.  So anyway, I didn't take their name.  I just didn't want to be seen as copying somebody else's material.  Thanks for your time.

                                                                            - Zach

EASTON+COMBS | Innovation at its Greatest

The following information and images are brought to you by World Architecture News.

You never no what architecture will be like in the future.  It is always changing.  EASTON+COMBS, as they are called, use innovation at its greatest.  They are an award-winning architectural firm that have expanded their technological and architectural advances.  They have applied research with innovation to make an amazing architectural experience.  The top picture is a museum that has the interior walls totally removed generating light chambers that make the building shine.

World Architecture News said, "EASTON+COMBS approaches the production of architecture as a context for the exploration of environments and the development of new spatial typologies towards critical models of social and cultural production at the scale of architecture and urbanism."

EASTON+COMBS' work has included research into sustainable, lightweight material for public space intervention.  Flexible & lightweight skin, shell structural peformance, and transparency effects come from long, experimental research that I think showed the maturity of EASTON+COMBS.  So if you want some flexible, totally awesome architecture, EASTON+COMBS is the one to choose.  They are a very creative company making successful and flexible architecture for all of our enjoyment.  For more information on EASTON+COMBS, go to eastoncombs.com.

Today's ArchiPic #27

Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Canada, by Rene Ehrhardt.

Today's ArchiPic features an awesome stadium in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.  The incline on the stadium, which stands at 574 feet, is the tallest inclined structure in the world.  The stadium is the sixth tallest building in Montreal, and it was built as the main stadium for the 1976 Summer Olympic Games.

Quoted | Series Premiere

Welcome to a new "Today's ArchiPic" style series called Quoted.  It is a spin-off of Today's ArchiPic and consists of almost daily architect quotes that are legitimate.  It will also consist of usually one quote. (for the series premiere I will do three)

The following quotes are from architects all the way back to the Middle Ages and further.  They were read by me before being put on this blog, and they will all be formally credited.  All are inspiring quotes that continue to show me what architecture is.  Welcome to Quoted.

"The mother of art is architecture.  Without architecture of our own we have no soul of our own civilization."

Frank Lloyd Wright 1867-1959

“A doctor can bury his mistakes but an architect can only advise his clients to plant vines.”

Frank Lloyd Wright

"We are searching for some kind of harmony between two intangibles: a form which we have not yet designed and a context which we cannot properly describe."

Christopher Alexander 1936-Present

Quoted

I'm starting a new series today I like to call Quoted.  It will consist of almost daily architect quotes.  A spin-off of Today's ArchiPic, the new series will be another important part of my blog.  Quoted will premiere in a couple of hours only on The Art of Architecture.  Enjoy.  “Architecture is the learned game, correct and magnificent, of forms assembled in the light.”  - Le Corbusier

St. Patrick's Day

It's Saint Patrick's Day everyone!  Today I will be showing you some awesome green architecture pictures!

Again, happy St. Patty's Day, and I will be back posting daily on The art of Architecture soon!