Volkan Alkanoglu, a Portland, Ore.–based designer and founder of VA | Design, has completed Drift, a site-specific bridge installation in Fort Worth, Texas, that aims to demonstrate the potential of "plug-and-play urbanism," according to a press release from the designer. Commissioned by Fort Worth’s Public Art Program, the 62-foot-long bridge spans a creek that physically divides seven blocks of the city's South Hills neighborhood, providing the residential community a safe way to cross the culvert. Inspired by the smooth curves of driftwood and ship hulls, the arch bridge comprises a steel frame clad with "CNC-cut and flip-milled timber planks," according to the designer. Alkanoglu then stack laminated the structure, creating "one large, volumetric, undulating form." To minimize its environmental impact, Alkanoglu fabricated the bridge off-site.
“In this way, the bridge could be fabricated off-site, transported to the location by any oversize truck as one piece, and lifted into place with a crane,” Alkanoglu said. “Our cities urgently need upgrades on all levels, and plug-and-play urbanism is an economically feasible way to produce mid-scale infrastructure off-site and deliver it to its urban context. We can leverage advancements in computational design to be efficient and innovative.” [Volkan Alkanoglu]
Join us today as we hand raise the truss!
— The Catholic University of America (@CatholicUniv) August 3, 2021
Learn more about the truss raising event here: https://t.co/FGchqc0U0H https://t.co/7YG3vWF0sW
The Norwell, Mass.–based educational nonprofit Handshouse Studio and the Catholic University of America's School of Architecture, in Washington, have hand-raised their re-creation of an original truss from Notre Dame Cathedral, in Paris. After a week on CUA's campus, the truss will spend one day on the National Mall before moving to the National Building Museum for an exhibition. [Catholic University]
Though glazed façades can increase access to daylight and views for building occupants, they also introduce the possibility of glare. Using your hand to block light is not feasible long term and lowering the shades negates the purpose of glazing. So Kevin Van Den Wymelenberg, a University of Oregon architecture professor and ARCHITECT contributor, worked with a team of students to create Taskshade, a “personal shading companion" to improve workspace conditions by reducing glare at an individual level while maintaining sunlight into an environment, according the product website.
Made of steel, aluminum, and acrylic, Taskshade allows individuals to enjoy the health and environmental benefits of daylight while mitigating some of glare's harmful side effects, including migraines and headaches. Taskshade is available through Aug. 19 via the project's Kickstater campaign. [University of Oregon]
Researchers from Princeton University have determined that humans are almost certainly responsible for climate change, according to a Princeton press release. "It is exceptionally unlikely—less than 1% probability—that this trend can be explained by natural variations in the climate system,” said Princeton graduate student and researcher Shiv Priyam Raghuraman in the same release. [Princeton University]
Toronto-based WZMH Architects and Ryerson University have developed MySun, a portable and personal "DC microgrid-in-a-box," according to WZMH announcement. Each MySun uses organic solar film from ASCA to generate off-grid energy; it can also be powered by a separate solar panel. Users can integrate the MySun into their building walls and plug devices directly into MySun's USB ports, reducing the need for conventional wiring in walls. [WZMH Architects]
What are the best ways to identify greenwashing and hold corporations accountable for upholding meaningful ESG (environmental, social, and governance) standards? Fast Company offers five factors that can help the public spot preformative sustainability practices. [Fast Company]
The New York Times Style Magazine sat down with Toshiko Mori, FAIA, Annabelle Selldorf, FAIA, Vincent Van Duysen, designer Tom Dixon, and artist and set designer Es Devlin to compile a list of the 25 most significant works of postwar architecture. Finalizing the group—which includes Lina Bo Bardi's SESC Pompéia in São Paulo, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House in Plano, Ill., and Amanda Williams's “Color(ed) Theory: Ultrasheen” series in Chicago—proved a challenge. “The real trouble is there are more than 25 important buildings,” Selldorf said. [T Magazine]
Kate Orff, the director of Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation's Urban Design Program and founding principal of the New York–based landscape architecture studio SCAPE, hopes that oyster reefs prove to be an economical way of mitigating storm surges and rising sea levels. The New Yorker takes a closer look at Orff's work and the potential of green infrastructure. [The New Yorker]
In 2014, New York–based Ennead Architects won an international competition to design the 420,000-square-foot Shanghai Astronomy Museum in Lingang, China. Design partner Thomas Wong, AIA, gives ARCHITECT an inside look at the world's largest astronomy museum, which opened to the public last month. [ARCHITECT]
Log cabins, the birthplace of many historical figures, hold a special place in the American psyche. This month's collection from the Building Technology Heritage Library looks at log cabin plans and construction techniques from the 19th and 20th centuries. [ARCHITECT]
Building scientist and environmentalist Lindsay Baker has been named the new CEO of the Seattle-based International Living Future Institute. The former global head of sustainability and impact at WeWork and more recently a senior fellow at the Rocky Mountain Institute and a lecturer at University of California, Berkeley, Baker will begin her role Aug. 9. [ARCHITECT]
