Building of the year award 2009, RIBA award was won by Lord Richard Rogers with his amazing building, The Maggie's Centre, London.

The building was opened to the public by Nigella Lawson and Maggie's Patron, Sarah Brown, on 29 April 2008.

The small, orange building with a roof that seems to float above it has enlivened a challenging corner of Fulham Palace Road, with a tranquil garden leading up to the entrance. Stone sculptures and wooden benches provide welcome and pleasant places to sit along the winding path to the front door.

Designed on a domestic scale, the centre's heart is the double-height kitchen, from which the three sitting rooms, library, courtyard gardens and a number of other spaces for more private or personal conversations, open. Light fills the interior, coming through the glazed walls at first floor level and through openings in the roof.

Despite being on a busy main road, the centre is surprisingly quiet inside, thanks to the protection of the wall and birch trees which wrap around it. The birch-faced ply and fair-face concrete finishes and furnishings - that include rugs by Paolo Lenti and furniture by Alvar Aalto - add to the relaxed, homely atmosphere.

Since opening its doors, the team at Maggie's have welcomed a constant stream of visitors with cups of tea, knowledge and support, as well as a wide range of events and activities, from lunch clubs to yoga. Maggie's Centre, London is already receiving in the region of 50 visitors per day.

Building also won the Civic Trust award see link

Top 10 Buildings of the Modern Era
Greatest Buildings of the Past 100 Years
By Jackie Craven, About.com

1. 1905 to 1910 : Casa Mila Barcelona
Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi defied rigid geometry when he designed Casa Mila Barcelona. Casa Mila Barcelona is an apartment building with a fanciful aura. Wavy walls seem to undulate and a comical array of chimney stacks dance across the roof. "The straight line belongs to men, the curved one to God," Gaudi asserted.


2. 1913 : Grand Central, New York
Designed by architects Reed and Stern and Warren and Wetmore, the $43 million dollar Grand Central terminal building in New York City featured lavish marble work and a domed ceiling with 2,500 twinkling stars.


3. 1930 : The Chrysler Building, New York
Architect William Van Alen lavished the 77-story Chrysler Building with automotive ornaments and classic art deco zigzags. Soaring 319 meters / 1,046 feet, the Chrysler Building was the tallest building in the world... for a few months.


4. 1931 : Empire State Building, New York
When it was built, the Empire State Building in New York City broke world records for building height. Reaching a height of 381 meters / 1,250 feet, it rose above the Chrysler Building. Even today, the Empire State Building is nothing to sneeze at, ranking within the top 10 for building height. The designers were architects Shreve, Lamb and Harmon.


5. 1935 : Fallingwater, Pennsylvania, USA
Frank Lloyd Wright fooled gravity when he designed Fallingwater. What seems to be a loose pile of concrete slabs threatens to topple from its cliff. The house is not really precarious, but visitors are still awed by the improbable structure.


6. 1936 - 1939 : Johnson Wax Building, Wisconsin, USA
Frank Lloyd Wright redefined space with the Johnson Wax Building in Racine, Wisconsin. Inside the Johnson Wax Building, opaque layers of glass tubes admit light and create the illusion of openness. "Interior space comes free," Wright said of his masterpiece. Wright also designed the original furniture for the building. Some chairs had only three legs, and would tip over if a forgetful secretary did not sit with correct posture.


7. 1946 - 1950 : Farnsworth House, Illinois
Hovering in a green landscape, the Farnsworth House by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe is often celebrated as his most perfect expression of the International Style. All the exterior walls are glass.


8. 1957 - 1973 : Sydney Opera House, Australia
Jorn Utzon broke the rules with his modern expressionist Sidney Opera House in Australia. Overlooking the harbor, the Opera House is a freestanding sculpture of spherical roofs and curved shapes. A scandalous political affair forced architect John Utzon to withdraw from the project in 1966. The Opera house was completed by other designers under the direction of Peter Hall.


9. 1958 : The Seagram Building, New York
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Philip Johnson rejected "bourgeois" ornamentation when they designed the Seagram Building in New York City. A shimmering tower of glass and bronze, the Seagram Building is both classical and stark. Metallic beams emphasize the height of the 38-story skyscraper, while a base of granite pillars leads to horizontal bands of bronze plating and bronze-tinted glass.


10. 1970 - 1977 : World Trade Center, New York (Demolished by terrorist attacks)
Designed by Minoru Yamasaki, New York's World Trade consisted of two 110-story buildings (known as the "Twin Towers") and five smaller buildings. Soaring above the New York skyline, the Twin Towers were among the tallest buildings in the world. When the buildings were constructed, their design was often criticized, but in the aftermath of their destruction, they became a valuable part of America's cultural heritage.

IHT reports On Monday, February 09, 2009 , "A fierce fire engulfed a major new building in Beijing that houses a luxury hotel and cultural center Monday, the last day of celebrations for the lunar new year when the city was alight with fireworks." That major new building is the smaller of the two buildings Rem Koolhaas designed for CCTV (China Central Television). The Television Cultural Center (TVCC) was set to open in a few months.

[photo by Alfred Cheng/Reuters | image source]

IHT further states, "The fire was burning from the ground floor to the top floor, the flames reflecting in the glass facade of the main CCTV tower next to the hotel and cultural center. ... Flames were spotted around 9:30 p.m., and within 20 minutes the fire had spread throughout the building. ... The main CCTV tower appeared to be untouched by the fire."

A hotel made entirely of ice, yaah right, an ice hotel located about 200 kilometer (124 mile) north of the Arctic Circle in Sweden. Ten thousand years ago, glaciers carved a riverbed and the Torne River was born. Since then, the crystal-clear, pure water of the Torne River has flowed freely along its 600-kilometer path through Lapland out to the sea in the southeast.

The entire Ice Hotel is on loan from the mighty Torne River and is a place where time stands still. When the spring comes and then finally the summer, the entire creation will once again become part of the rushing rapids coursing toward the sea.

Thousands of tons of snow and ice make up this hand-crafted fantasy land. Thousands of guests and voyeurs will experience it every year, before it melts.

This documentary is your chance to see one. Witness the construction and disappearance of this most megastructure.


MegaStructures: Ice Hotel by National Geographic, 2004
Duration 47 minutes



Enjoy this amazing structure

Sweden's no 1 destination: Ice Hotel in Jukkasjärvi.

30 St Mary Axe (The Gherkin), London

One of the half a dozen or more City of London office schemes by Foster & Partners on site or planned in 2001. Yet it stands out from the rest of the other offices because if its shape and its technical and environmental innovation.  I see the building as the finest product of Sir Norman Foster, I’m not sure how he sees it but I think it’s his Fallingwater.

The top of the building is used as a bar and restaurant, it gives an stunning view of an open space of 360o degree

It's hard to miss the Gherkin when you're in London. Rising out of a tight pedestrian square in the City, it's become one of our most recognisable buildings. Designed by Norman Foster, Britain's most famous architect, it's the 6th tallest building in London at 180m (590ft) and 40 storeys. Despite its rounded shape, the only curved piece of glass in the Gherkin is the lens-shaped cap at the very top.

It's also one of London's most energy-saving buildings - gaps in each floor create 6 shafts that act as a natural ventilation system for the entire building. The shafts also insulate the inside office space and allow sunlight to flow through the building, reducing lighting costs. Although the Gherkin is a private building, it's stunning to look at from the outside.

It is worth knowing that the Gherkin building has been sold for £600 million in a deal thought to be the most ever paid for an office property in Britain. 

Insurers Swiss Re sold the three-year-old 41-storey office block, officially known as 30 St Mary Axe, to German real estate group IVG Immobilien. 

The Gherkin's sale price is double the estimated cost of construction and beats the £520 million sale last year of CityPoint in London. 

Swiss Re could make £250m profit and will remain as a tenant in the building, which can command £65 a sq ft in rent. 

IVG bought the building in a joint venture with investment bank Evans Randall. They are not planning any changes to the building or its use. Swiss Re chief executive Jacques Aigrain said: " IVG will preserve the superior quality of this property."

Also see:

•          Official website of the 30 st mary axe
  
•          Norman Foster's site about the project — including Quicktime movies illustrating the design process.
  
•          30 St Mary Axe at Emporis
  
•          30 St Mary Axe at SkyscraperPage.com
  
•          London Architecture.co.uk: 30 St Mary Axe
  
•          30 Saint Mary Axe in the Structurae database
  
•          About the Gherkin's energy usage
  
•          360x180 Panorama of St Mary Axe
  
•          Images of 30 St Mary Axe
  
•          Gallery, architecture images.
  

Selfridges at The Bullring, Birmingham:

The Selfridges store at The Bullring shopping centre is a great example of innovative and fun architecture in Britain. Designed by the Future Systems architectural practice, the design was inspired by a chain-mail Paco Rabanne dress - could this shopping mecca get any more fashionable? The building is covered with 15,000 shiny aluminium disks, which are cleaned once a year, and make the Bullring unmissable.

The Selfridges store cost £60million to build, and covers an area of 25,000m2. The store has won 8 awards including RIBA Award for Architecture 2004 and Destination of the Year Retail Week 2004.

The Eden project © Britainonview.com

Eden Project, St Austell, Cornwall:

The Eden Project is a large scale environmental project in Cornwall. Nicholas Grimshaw, one of Britain's most gifted architects, was responsible for Eden's biomes - the largest greenhouses in the country. The giant conservatories reach about 55m at their highest point and span 110m at their widest.

The very futuristic-looking bubbles were constructed in a disused China pit, and were designed to efficiently capture solar energy and make a controllable environment for the plants inside. The pillow-like structures making up the biomes are adjustable. On cold days they're pumped with more air for insulation, and on hotter days they're partially deflated to allow more cooling.

Entrance of the iconic Wales Millennium Centre with bilingual inscription reading 'Creu Gwir Fel Gwydr O Ffwrnais Arwen, In These Stones Horizons Sing' © Britainonview.com / David Angel

Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff:

The Wales Millennium Centre has become of Cardiff's iconic sites since it opened in 2004. Situated on Cardiff Bay, it's a centre for performing arts and is home to 2 theatres, shops, bars and restaurants, and 7 resident Welsh arts organisations.

The brief to the architects, Percy Thomas, was that the building had to be 'unmistakably Welsh and internationally outstanding'. In the dome at the front of the building are 2 poetic lines formed by windows in the upstairs bar. The lines were written by Welsh poet Gwyneth Lewis - the Welsh inscription reads 'Creu Gwir fel gwydr o ffwrnais awen' which means 'Creating truth like glass from the furnace of inspiration'; and the English inscription reads 'In these stones, horizons sing'. At night, the lights in the bar area are switched on, illuminating the letters and creating a spectacular sight.

Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King, Liverpool:

This is one of 2 Cathedrals in Liverpool (the other is the Anglican Cathedral) – both are situated on Hope Street. In 1960, architects all over the world were invited to design a Cathedral for Liverpool which would relate to the existing Crypt, be capable of construction within 5 years, cost at the current prices no more than £1million for its shell, and most important of all, express the new spirit of the liturgy then being radically reformulated by the Second Vatican Council.

Of 300 entries from all over the world, Sir Frederick Gibberd's (1908-1984) design was chosen, and the Cathedral opened in 1967. Unlike most cathedrals, the layout of the pews is circular, with the altar in the centre. The most striking feature of the building is the raised dome in the centre, which is made out of stained glass, creating a stunning effect inside.

National Cold War Exhibition Building, RAF Museum, Shropshire:

The distinctive National Cold War Exhibition building at the RAF Museum (www.rafmuseum.org.uk/cosford/index.cfm) in Cosgrove is the world's first display dedicated to documenting the social, political and military conflicts of the Cold War. Designed by Feilden Clegg Bradley Architects, it's a physical metaphor for the Cold War's opposing forces.

The landmark building cost £12.5million, and contains 17 aircraft, military transport, missiles, memorabilia and interactive kiosks and information hotspots. The architects used materials which emphasise the building's simple and strong statement: the smooth lines of the aluminium roof dominate the exterior, and the robust industrial interior provides a stark contrast.

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We are all affected in one way or another by buildings, they are around us, we live in them, and we were born in them, study in them, work in them and usually we get married in them.

That is why we study, examine, learn and observe existing buildings, not to intentionally to copy them but to learn from its mistakes and to improve its excellent areas. It is very rear nowadays to find a unique building which was never built before, it could be different in the design but its principles is copied from an old existing building.

Many people do not understand the different between good architecture and bad architecture and this is a misunderstanding which comes from the fact that the term architecture is misunderstood.
Sir Henry Wotton came with a definition which clarifies what we mean by architecture:
“Well-building has three conditions: firmness, commodity and delight”

This is why some buildings more interesting, more memorable and better loved than others.

I’ve chosen Ritchard Neutra’s house for this week's famous architectural house, The Kufmann Desert House for the following reasons:

• The architect’s history and teachers
• The previous projects before this house
• The actual design of the house and it’s surrounded landscape
• The achievements of the project as one of the most important house of the 20th century
About Richard Neutra:

Richard Joseph Neutra was born on the 8th of April 1892 in Vienna. He graduated in 1917 from the Technische Hochschule, , Vienna, where he had been studying under Adolf Loos who was one of the most important and influential architects of the modern period in European architecture. Richard Neutra was influenced by Otto Wagner.

Otto Wagner believed in changing the current way of design buildings and he called for an architecture based entirely on modern materials and modern construction methods. Wagner was a highly influential figure in the development of Modern architecture and he is one of the architects whom had a great influence on Richard Neutra.


Later after graduation, Neutra worked in Germany in the studio of Erich Mendelsohn a German architect who was known for his expressionist buildings in the 1920s, after that by few years Richard Neutra moved to America in 1923 where he worked for Frank Lloyd Wright who was one of the world's most prominent and influential architects and a good friend of Neutra.

Richard Neutra the met his close friend from the university Rudolf Schindler and accepted his invitation to work and live communally in Schindler's Kings Road House in California. Neutra later opened his own practice in Los Angeles.

Although Neutra was influenced by the architecture of Vienna which left a sense of prosperity and elegance that was to come forward in his work, but he also came with in entirely new forms of design.

He was famous for the great attention he gave to defining the real needs of his clients, whether he was commissioned to build a simple house or a mansion. This was in contrast with other genial architects, who would often do everything to impose their artistic vision on a client, regardless of what was really needed to create a home. He would sometimes use detailed questionnaires to find out exactly what the owners would need, much to the surprise of many of his clients. His domestic architecture was a blend of Art, landscape and practical comfort.

Neutra believed that the architect should strive for a response to space and time that may be only momentary, yet in its intensity becomes truly memorable. Both houses have such: a chance reflection in the pool, or glass in shadow; the roof hovering above the sunset, or the rustle of leaves.

About Kaufmann Desert House:


The Kaufmann House, or Kaufmann Desert House, in Palm Springs, California, was one of the last domestic projects conducted by Richard Neutra in 1946, but it is also one of his most famous homes.

The house was one of the fines masterpieces of the Modern movement, and it was among the houses which inspired many architects to adapt the unparalleled modernism and sophistication of Richard Neutra in their buildings.

Now fully restored the house will soon take its rightful place amongst the five most important house of the 20th century among:

1. Falling Water,
2. Robie House,
3. Gropius House,
4. Kaufman House, Gambell House)


View Larger Map
Kaufman House, 1946 Richard Neutra 470 W. Chino Canyon Road, Palm Springs

"The Kaufmann house, Palm Springs, 1946, moved in the direction of the pavilion, which is Neutra's last development in domestic architecture. Horizontal planes resting on horizontal planes hover over transparent walls. The material loses its importance—magnificent as the dry-joint stone walls are in themselves—and the gist of the house is the weightless space enclosed. The victory over the front door is almost complete; it is reached by slow stages, like the Mexican house whose entrance on the street leads through a garden to an unemphasized door." Esther McCoy. Richard Neutra. p16-17.

The House was an isolated five-bedroom, five-bathroom vacation house in Palm Springs, California and it was sited on 60 x 90 meter (1200 x 300 foot) plot, it was designed to enjoy the spectacular views of the surrounding desert and mountains it was also offering shelter from the harsh climatic conditions.
The main entrance was to the south, and from it a covered path led past a large carport to the living and dining areas, organized around a central fire place. The savant’s quarters were placed to the west and guest accommodation to the north, across a covered patio which was later filed in. The master bedroom was to the east, beyond the living room to allow a stunning view of the swimming pool. Both living spaces and master bedroom has a large sliding glass walls opening to adjacent patios.
The over all feeling of the house is light and airy, spacious and it emphasizes a connection to the desert landscape.
The house could be one of its kinds at the time, the heaviness of the stone walls being set off large areas of glass; it was also a model of sophisticated design by today’s standards, fully energy conscious and environmentally friendly design, the roof overhangs and lows adjustably with an under floor heating and cooling system combined to provide comprehensive and unobtrusive climate control.
Around the house Richard Neutral created a natural garden of indigenous rocks and cacti this was to prove even more that the building is connected to its surrounded desert landscape.


"As an architect, my life has been governed by the goal of building environmental harmony, functional efficiency, and human enhancement into the experience of everyday living. These things go together, constituting the cause of architecture, and a life devoted to their realization cannot be an easy one.
"I have been privileged, or perhaps doomed, to eschew simpler, lighter burdens. Shaping man's surroundings entails a lot more than spatial, structural, mechanical, and other technical considerations—certainly a lot more than pontificating about matters of style. Our organic well-being is dependent on a wholesome, salubrious environment. Therefore exacting attention has to be paid to our intricate sensory world."
Richard Neutra. from William Marlin, ed. Nature Near: late essays of Richard Neutra. p1-2.
Kaufman House, 1946 Richard Neutra 470 W. Chino Canyon Road, Palm Springs

References:

* Hines, Thomas S. Richard Neutra and the Search for Modren Architecture: A Biography and History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1982.
* Neutra, Richard Joseph. Nature Near: the Late Essays of Richard Neutra. Santa Barbara: Capra Press, 1989.
* Neutra, Richard Joseph. Richard Neutra, Promise and Fulfillment, 1919-1932: Selections from the Letters and Diaries of Richard and Dione Neutra. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1986.
* Sack, Manfred. Richard Neutra/ Sack Manfred. Zurich: Artemis, 1994.
* Francis D. K. Ching. Architecture: Form, Space, and Order. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1979.
* Thomas S.Hines. Richard Neutra and the Search for Modern Architecture. New York: Oxford University Press. 1982.
* John Julius Norwich, ed. Great Architecture of the World. London: Mitchell Beazley Publishers, 1975.
* Dennis Sharp. Twentieth Century Architecture: a Visual History. New York: Facts on File, 1990.

Links
• http://www.neutra.org/
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Neutra
• http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,888091,00.html
• http://www.socalhistory.org/Biographies/neutra.htm
• http://www.greatbuildings.com/architects/Richard_Neutra.html
• http://davidszondy.com/future/city/neutra.htm
• http://www.isdesignet.com/Magazine/J_F'01/cover.html
• http://www.modernsandiego.com/RichardNeutra.html
• http://www.usc.edu/dept/architecture/shulman/architects/neutra/projects2.html
• http://www.houseind.com/index.php?page=showfont&id=18
• Troxell Residence (LandLiving.com)
• Winkens.ie (Info from the Winkens family with photos)

Images:

* Richard Neutra’s picture, source: http://library.thinkquest.org/C006928/architects.htm
* Kaufmann Desert House • Palm Springs, California, source: http://www.greatbuildings.com

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LA


Shaping the northernmost barrier of the Los Angeles Basin, the houses of the Hollywood Hills have long been representative of everything that forms California real estate shine. Here you are able to find houses that range from rambling cattle ranch houses to impressive modern architectural buildings of stone and glass. It is one of the reasons why folks from all over the world visits The City of LA.

The Hollywood Hills cover some of the most well known streets and neighbourhoods on the west coast. From Mulholland Drive to Paris Hilton and Laurel Canyon, these are the hallmarks of Southern California. Home to the world famous Hollywood sign, these abundant green slopes are constellated with some of L.A's most beautiful houses, as well as its most desirable land. But there's another, less known life in the Hollywood Hills. Hiking trails, parks, and acres of pristine land make this a Mecca for nature lovers and privacy seekers alike.



Nature and the Hollywood Hills:

CA. is base to an impressive array of natural beauty, and the Hollywood Hills are no exclusion. As a matter of fact, the exclusivity of Hollywood Hills' property market has helped keep its natural state throughout expansion and development. Hawks are still abundant throughout the tall trees of The Hills, and it's not uncommon to see deer grazing throughout the foothills. For those that are drawn to the scents and colours of wild flowers, the houses of the Hollywood Hills are surrounded by naturally abundant jasmine and gardenia, as well as deep burgundy bougainvillea, and the brilliant purple jacaranda trees so typical of the area.

Cristóbal Vila: Fallingwater
Do you remember the article about Etérea by Cristóbal Vila and his stunning 3D works like Snakes, Isfahan, or Canestra di Frutta?

Now he has a new project! And it's just AMAZING:

Fallingwater - La casa de la cascada
A short computer grafic movie featuring
the Frank Lloyd Wright masterpiece

Fallingwater has always been my preferred work from one of my favourite architects: Frank Lloyd Wright.

Fallingwater from Cristóbal Vila on Vimeo.