Bluarch

http://www.bluarch.com/

NY architecture/interior company

Ian McDougall, Melbourne Theatre Company

“The robust sculptural facades have already become iconic and the changes to traffic and pedestrian patterns at an urban level have transformed the area into an active domain,” praised the jury.

Corroded Copper

Emilio Pucci

Wild Reindeer Foundation, Oslo

Wave Pier design proposal

The Candy Room, RED design Group

CUBEME Creativity website/Blog

http://cubeme.com/

Nature Factory Store, Tokyo

http://cubeme.com/blog/2010/12/10/nature-factory-store-by-suppose-design-office/

'Tree' design to bring nature to the retail space, made out of recycled pipes.

‘Café Day,’ Japan

For their renovation of this Izakaya (Japanese style bar) based in the quiet residential area of Numazu-shi, Shizuoka Suppose Design Office have taken inspiration from car parks, a driving school and a road. Benches designed to emulate bus stops and car seats transformed in sofas accompany the startlingly unique painted asphalt flooring complete the sensation that a road runs right on through this thoroughly unique space.


The former Izakaya was easily transformed into the Café/Day without betraying any element from the former program. It has incorporated socializing and gathering over a mug of coffee with a now new bolder effect. The architects used the power of a ‘word’ in a paradoxical manner and found a new approach in the renovation works’ design process of. Suppose Design Office has stated that they would like to start out their design process without giving a particular ‘name’ to the program, but by defining the space through the program.





http://cubeme.com/blog/2011/11/16/cafe-day-japan-by-suppose-design-office/

Tham and Videgård Arkitekter

http://www.tvark.se/

Plywood

• The Eames brothers: Charles Eames and Eero Saairnen entered a 1940 MOMA design competition and win two awards for moulded plywood pieces, setting the stage for the Eames brothers influential career of modern design using plywood
• The chair: The chair is the most popular form in molded plywood furniture with stackability remaining an important design component
• Tables, desks and stools: Contemporary plywood coffee tables, end tables and desks are gaining in popularity
• Interiors: Plywood’s perception as an honest and modern material makes it a natural choice for contemporary interiors, including panelling and kitchen cabinets
• Whimsical wood: Past and present designers have used the simple shapes of moulded plywood to express a sense of modern whimsy and the material lends itself to designs for children and pets
• Furniture and beyond: Designers have taken plywood outside of the realm of simple furniture, including Tapio Wirkkala who created plywood bowls and sculptures, and Grete Jalk who designed nesting tables and stools. Today, the Benjamin Stool by Ikea is a DIY pop culture icon
• Plywood 2.0: Plywood offers attainable and modern design and relies on historical elements like stackability and cutting from a single piece while incorporating new cutaway/layering and patchwork veneer techniques

PLYWOOD TREND link

SHELTERS: TREND ANALYSIS

As private/personal space becomes popular for the consumer this article explores all the latest trends of modern shelters/pods.

Shelter Trend Hub WGSN link



Consumers are moving towards the mindset described in WGSN's autumn/winter 2011/12 macrotrend Your Space: “People are increasingly creating self-contained, portable, self-generating environments.... Take control. Play with concepts such as invisibility and absence. Create a sense of personal space to let consumers breathe, think and let a little beauty in.”

Within architecture and spatial design, this direction manifests in the form of isolated constructions and physical hideaways that allow the consumer space and time to relax and reflect.

WGSN has identified four key approaches within the trend: fortified and heavily protected structures, treehouses and hidden getaways, contemplative retreats and working pods for employees.

• Architects are increasingly utilising a bunker aesthetic, creating buildings that look as if they could withstand a doomsday scenario or future ecological catastrophe

• The idea is similar to that of the "safehouse", often found in science fiction and literary considerations of dystopian scenarios

• Tough, strong materials such as concrete and stone are shaped into simple block forms and left unfinished, creating a rough and ready feel

• The landscape around the building is often exploited, with architects burying projects into rocks or hillsides, or designing forms which blend into their environments almost to the point of invisibilityThe recent increase in dwellings located high in the trees denotes a more playful take on the shelter trend
• Tree Hotel, a two-person residence in a forest in Sweden by Tham Videgård Arkitekter, is clad in a mirror-panelled shell that reflects the surrounding trees so effectively, it’s difficult to even notice its presence

• Other projects act as calm areas for solitude and spiritual exploration

• These buildings are usually located in isolated environments, are difficult to access and are extremely peaceful in their elective seclusion

• As space and tranquility become more rare in our daily lives, consumers crave extreme antidotes to cramped and crazed urban life. Remote outposts offering stillness and an opportunity to reflect provide an attractive alternative, even if just for a short time

• Individual outposts also provide a great opportunity to minimise distractions when working and allow employees to complete tasks both more quickly and effectively

• It’s long been the case that writers use secluded spots to focus on their work – British authors Roald Dahl and Philip Pullman both famously wrote/write in sheds at the bottom of their gardens – and now the idea spreads to other types of employment

• The trend began inside the office (see our earlier report) with sheltered work stations, and is now moving outside to utilise the health and productivity benefits of access to fresh air and the natural environment