Riverside Museum wins award for engagement

The Riverside Museum in Glasgow has won the prestigious European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA).

Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the museum which opened in June 2011, has received the award for it’s ability to “demonstrate brilliantly how a specialist transport collection can renew its relevance through active engagement with the wider social and universal issues.”

The museum, which has received over 2 million visitors in less than 2 years, was chosen out of 40 museums from 21 European Countries and fulfilled the EMYA's criteria of public quality at the highest level.

The Riverside Museum showcases Glasgow’s transport, shipbuilding and engineering heritage.

Foster Partners design two new London skyscrapers

British architecture firm Foster + Partners has unveiled plans for two residential skyscrapers as part of the 250 City Road project, led by property developers Berkeley Group.

The skyscrapers will form part of a cluster of residential towers proposed for the City Road area in Islington, a redevelopment of a 1.9 hectare site currently occupied by a cluster of commercial buildings.

Other companies involved in the project include landscape architects Gillespies, Dutch firm UNStudio and US architects SOM.

Elsewhere in London, Foster + Partners recently received planning permission for three residential towers on the south side of the river Thames near Lambeth Bridge.

More about the 250 City Road project can be found here.

Watch the top of One World Trade Center spire be installed

After some delay the final piece was put in place on the One World Trade Center tower.

The spire for the building was installed, making it the tallest building in the western hemisphere and will stand as a focal point  in a group of buildings designed to replace the Twin Towers that were destroyed in the September 11th attacks.

To commemorate the topping off, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey released a video of the spire's installation. Filmed using a GoPro camera which was attached to the spire itself, it gives a stunning glimpse at the height of the tower.

Watch it below, but be warned it can cause vertigo!

Clerkenwell Design Week reviewed

It's been a hub of activity near the office this week as Clerkenwell Design Week kicked off in great style. So far we’ve managed to take a look at what’s on display in the Farmiloe Building, which provides a fantastic backdrop for the exhibitors to showcase their designs, with four floors of the building filled. The vast colours and textures on display from international interior design and architecture suppliers provide a stunning contrast to the exposed brickwork and floorboards of the elegant Victorian former glassworks.  

A few stands caught our eye including James Burleigh’s classic furniture with a modern twist and splashes of colour.

Duffy London made us smile with playful yet beautiful designs such as the UP dining table and the swinging chairs.    

The trail of showrooms and fringe events creates a really fun atmosphere and luckily the weather has stayed dry encouraging visitors to spill onto the streets with chatter and inspiration. A scenic walk up to the House of Detention was peppered with installations in gardens and pop up shops. The House of Detention was really exciting as it was underground, there was an acoustic performance and all the stands were in the cells of the Victorian Prison – a huge contrast for those who had just been to ExCel May Design Series! Particular favourites were Foundation Rugs graffiti style soft decorations; Mirror Glow’s beautiful pieces which really lended themselves to the surroundings and Merve Kahraman’s genius and luxurious furniture.

Clerkenwell Design Week has established itself as the UK’s leading independent design festival. The event finishes on Thursday 23rd May so there is still time to see what’s happening at any of the 60 showrooms taking part.

Man-Made Tornado in a Museum

The Mercedes-Benz museum in Stuttgart has a bit of an unusual attraction.

The building has the world's most powerful man-made tornado, and whilst this does attract visitors, this is not the reason for its existence.

Created from 144 jets spewing 28 tons of smoke in a 112-foot-high column, the idea of a tornado in a showroom containing over 150 luxury vehicles may seem like an odd one, but it is actually a clever fire-safety mechanism.

The building is made from a steel structure based on a double-helix, featuring a massive central atrium viewable from the floors that spiral around it. All rooms are open, all walls are curved and each of the 1800 triangular window panes on the exterior walls is unique. This however means that there are no fire zones within the building so by creating this tornado they are able to expel smoke emissions from within the building. It is said to take about 7 minutes for the jets that line the interior walls to get the smoke to whirl into a tornado and escape through vents in the roof.

Watch a video of the tornado in action below.

Clerkenwell Design Week

Next month will see the return of the Clerkenwell Design Week. The event is a showcase of architecture and design works from across the globe, with a focus on British designs.

Held in a variety of locations in the historic Central London area, it will see show regulars returning as well as some new faces such as Arper, Plumen and Foscarini.

Brands returning to the festival include Vitra, Knoll, Boss Design, Domus Tiles, Deadgood, Dare Studio, Jennifer Newman, Muuto, Magis, Zanotta, Johnson Tiles, and Dezeen.

The week takes place across 50 furniture showrooms and several special locations. The Farmiloe Building, a former Victorian merchants warehouse, will play host to high-profile international brands; The House of Detention, a subterranean Victorian prison, will form the festival’s hotspot for new designers, and the 12th century crypt and charming garden of the Priory of the Order of St John, will act as the hub for interior decoration trends.

Taking place the 21st to 23rd May 2013, it is the fourth time the event has taken over the area, being spread out over several different sites, and will offer talks, debates and parties throughout it's course.

To register for the event click here.

Regent Street windows

Have you popped down to Regent Street recently? Well if you can handle the crowds you should, as this year's RIBA Window Project is currently in place.

The project includes six architecture studios working with shops along the famous road, creating unique displays in six of the most iconic stores.

Supported by RIBA and the Regent Street Association, the project is in its fourth year and runs until 6th May 2013.

Topshop has a rotating wheel of mannequins designed by George King and Mark Nixon from Neon, which will allow for different outfits to be displayed throughout the day.

The installation at Karen Millen is made of sports fabric and cable ties, and spans the 30-metre length of the window. It is the creation of Mamou-Mani.

John Tollitt and his team at Gensler drew on the emotional response one may feel driving one of their cars for their display for the flagship store of Ferrari.

The atrium of Espirit's store was transformed by naganJohnson into a beach scene, complete with a wave of chestnut paling fencing.

Carl Turner Architects referenced American artist Gordon Matta Clark's images of cut-out buildings at Jack Spade's Brewer Street store, just off Regent Street, creating fantasy New York streetscapes on the facade, in the windows and on blackboard illustrations.

Finally, interlocking panels to form freestanding screens at Moss Bros, creating a three-dimensional herringbone effect was the idea of AY Architects.

Find out more information and see more images here.

Photographs are by Agnese Sanvito.

Elevated bike path for Regents Canal

The paths along the Regents canal in London are incredibly busy with cyclists and pedestrians, especially under bridges.

To offer a solution for this problem, Anthony Nelson, a landscape architect from Design International, has offered up a design for an elevated path for cyclists. The proposal, which is still being worked on, would see a steel pathway constructed that would hug the canal and it above the current path. 

The new path will offer more than a safe route for the 500 cyclists that use the canal each hour as it will provide retail opportunities at off ramps. The only issue yet to dealt with is how to accommodate the larger boats that use the canal. Nelson will be working on the plans further before presenting them to the city in Autumn.

Design of the Year award winner unveiled

The Design Museum in London has announced the  winner for the 2013 Design of the Year Award, the Gov.uk website!

The website, which won by a unanimous vote, was chosen for it's simplicity and ease of use, being built to allow visitors to quickly find the services they are looking for.

Chosen from a shortlist of seven catergory winners,  which were unveiled on Wednesday 10th April, the overall winner was announced on the evening of 16th April.

The catergory winners include a folding wheel for wheelchairs, the Medici chair and a medicine packaging designed to fit between bottles of coke.

The Catergory winners are as follows:
Architecture: TOUR BOIS-LE-PRÊTRE, PARIS
Designed by Frédéric Druot, Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal

Digital: GOV.UK WEBSITE
Designed by Government DigitalService

Fashion: DIANA VREELAND: THE EYE HAS TO TRAVEL
Directed by Lisa Immordino Vreeland

Furniture: MEDICI CHAIR
Designed by Konstantin Grcic for Mattiazzi

Graphics: VENICE ARCHITECTURE BIENNALE IDENTITY
Designed by John Morgan Studio

Products: KIT YAMOYO
Designed by ColaLife and PI Global

Transport: MORPH FOLDING WHEEL
Designed by Vitamins for Maddak Inc.

Previous winners of the award include the Olympic Torch by BarberOsgerby and the Plumen 001 light bulb by Hulger and Samuel Wilkinson.

The exihition will remain open until the 7th July 2013, further information can be found on a previous blog post here.

Photographer captures artistic design of airports

New York based photographer Jeffrey Milstein has captured the design of two well known airports from above. In his series entitled 'flying' he has captured scenes of Newark Liberty Airport and JFK International Airport as well as a couple of shots of the city.

The images allow us to see the true artistic design of airports, which at ground level can seem sterile and daunting. Seeing them from above grasps the true nature of the design.

Milstein was inspired from his childhood, which was spent filming planes at LAX, and he is now renowned for his images of the underbellies of planes.

Milstein’s work was on display at the AIPAD Photo Show New York between April 4-7, 2013. View the full portfolio for 'flying' here.

Sunken platform gives different view of lake

An observation platform in Vöcklabruck, Austria is giving visitors a new perspective over a picturesque scene.

The platform is set below the water level in the middle of a lake, giving those from the shore the impression that people are below the water line.

The platform is a huge attraction for visitors to the region and consists of a ramp from the shore down to the cirlular enclosure which has seating provided for tourists to sit and enjoy the beautiful views. 

The Shed at the National Theatre

A new temporary venue has been built on an unused plaza  of the National Theatre in London.

Called 'The Shed', the venue will show new productions that it deems "adventurous, ambitious and unexpected".

Open for a year from April, The Shed provides a new way to watch theatre, offering seats from £12 up to £20, with special days planned, including talks before or after shows. 

Seats are either located at stage level or in a gallery providing patrons with an intimate view of the productions.

The building was designed and built by Haworth Tompkins, who are also incharge of the current redesign materplan for the artistic hub, and the design would seem to match the type of productiosn they plan to put on, with its vibrant colour and shape.

To find out more watch a video of lead architect Paddy Dillon talking about the design below.

haworth tompkins: the shed at the national theater, london from designboom on Vimeo.

10 of the most unusual homes in the world

Delightfull, a lighting company, has compiled a list of 10 homes that have an unusual characteristic. From the world's slimmest house to a replica Flintstones' house, it has them all.

The collection is a series of 'homes' that have been designed and built with a unique idea behind them, including a 1sq.m house (not sure how you could really live in there),  a fully transparent house and our favourite, a house with a giant slide.

Take a look at the full list here.

PuLSaTe pop-up installation

Architects Lily Jencks and Nathanael Dorent have been commissioned by Capitol Designer Studio to design a unique pop-up installation in London called PuLSaTe.

Using Marazzi’s SistemN tiles, from a range stocked by Capitol, they fitted out a showroom in Primrose Hill to create PuLSaTe, a pop-up installation that will not only show off the uses and colours of the tiles but also provide a cultural hub.

The zig-zag design, along with sloped floors, plays with your perception. Benches built into the walls of the installation become a consumer experience like no other. The pop-up installation on Chalcot Road, opened on the 21st March and will remain open, running a variety events including workshops, until 27th October 2013.

Take a look at a video about the project below.

Pulsate from STRIPE on Vimeo.