Bamboo House in Guanacaste, Costa Rica by Benjamin Garcia Saxe

Benjamin Garcia Saxe used the inspiration of the forest to design his ‘Bamboo House’ in Guanacaste, Costa RicaThe house inverts the role of the forest by bringing it inside the house.An internal patio provides space for functions to rotate about.The house is divided into two living modules, one private bedroom and one public kitchen/living area. Read More
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Think Tank team tackle the 2010 Mazda Blenheim Triathlon

Members of The Think Tank team, Dragana Knezevic, Louise Gough, Kelly-Anne Steenbok, Lisa Officer, Paul Stroud & Wil Roberts will be tackling the 2010 Mazda Blenheim Triathlon this year.

On 5th June 2010 they will be taking part in a course that consists of a 750m swim in a lake followed by a 20k cycle and finished off with a 5k run. For five members of the team this will be their triathlon début and in fact for one person it will be her sporting début since the late 80's. (Can you guess who?)

Wil Roberts commented, ‘We are putting our ageing bodies on the line with the aim to raise money for a fabulous charity, Camp Quality UK. We hope that you can make a generous donation.’

You sponsor these intrepid souls at http://www.justgiving.com/tfive

15 electrifying carbon fiber made vehicles robust to the core

With the advent of motor sports, carbon fiber has become an important part of the modern sports cars, which makes them lightweight as well as robust to resist the bumps during competitive racing events. However, modern auto designers are using carbon.

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Law Office by Limit Architects

You may not guess it from the colour scheme, but the inspiration for Limit Architects’ law office design is not so black and white. See more

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Deuces Wild Chair finished in 350 cut up playing cards

Displayed at ICFF 2010, the “Deuces Wild Chair” from BRC Designs is an innovative seating that makes clever use of recycled materials to present a stunning handcrafted design. Designed by Benjamin Rollins Cadwell, the chair draws inspiration from... Read more

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Chris Rucker show, Washington DC

Chris Rucker's new show at Industry Gallery isn't for those who like their furniture sleek and polished. Here, glossy surfaces are swapped with edges that appear freshly sawn, and expensive materials are replaced by oriented strand board, a material usually found on constructions sites. His chairs, recliners and desks are even emblazoned with the blurry logo from the wood mill.…

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New Silk Road by Basso and Brooke

Basso and Brooke will show their capsule collection, inspired by Uzbek weavers, in the Design Museum Tank in London.

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Talking Point: Mokena Makeka

“A young, black Muslim who is supposed to learn from others and only do good buildings when I turn 55 – it's a reality. I'm not naive about the subtext of relationships in South Africa.

My first building was a station for the railway police. There was a police architect who had to overcome her prejudice about whether I was a competent architect or not. The moment you see a black architect the perception is that it's a BEE (Black Economic Empowerment) appointment, there to fill a quota – ‘here we go again, another black professional whose hand we have to hold.' It was particularly difficult in terms of my age – I'm 34 now but when I designed the building I was 29.

The railway police were disbanded because it was believed the state police were using them to beat up and torture people, but after the end of apartheid in 1994 they were reinstated. The commissioner didn't really know what he wanted, he just said, ‘We've had a bad reputation so can you help us transform it?' But he was still talking about a face-brick building with slot windows and resistant to riot attacks. I said to them, ‘But that's how you guys used to operate.'

I decided to make a delicate building, almost feminine. The way it presents itself, I see it more like a flower than an ominous space. Some people say that institutional buildings should express strength, but I thought it was important for the building to almost feel vulnerable so that it could speak to the vulnerability of the people in that area.

I had to confront my own fears. Even now if I see a police vehicle coming down the road my heart jumps – even though I've done nothing wrong. Having grown up in a context where police do things to you whether you've done something wrong or not, it takes time to trust the police. I wanted to make a place were the police is a place of refuge.

As part of the World Cup programme we've been redesigning Cape Town Railway Station. We wanted to deal with the apartheid legacy of the station. It was very much a building designed on Afrikaner nationalism. There's a concourse that was historically for white people, and a concourse at the back traditionally for coloured people. So how do you dismantle that? How do you democratise a building that was not designed with democracy in mind? One of the things we did was to open it up. The idea is that when you come off the train you should be able to see the city, and likewise when you are coming in you should be able to see the trains. The sense of legibility, the sense of openness speaks much more to democracy than controlled access points.

I don't fit into many of the boxes that Cape Townians like to use and that means there can sometimes be a little bit of mistrust. Being a non-conformist has served me well in some instances, but it also means that sometimes I don't win the stuff that I could be winning. I have had to learn how to put ideas across in a way that makes people feel included and not being lectured to.

In terms of my peers, I actually relate more to an international group like the architects in the Ordos 100 housing project in China. They're also young and they are inquisitive and pushing. We're all nerds – we're all misfits.

In some respects I've had to take the crumbs off the table and make them into a pie. The railway police station was seen as a throwaway project and I really had to make something of it. Even with Cape Town Railway Station, at first people said that it was just a lick of paint, but then you transform it. I would like to have a project where from the outset the intentions are in sync – an art gallery or museum or something of cultural significance as its departure, rather than having to add the cultural significance.

I would also like to expand the practice out of South Africa – I'm planning to enter a lot of competitions this year, and just see how it goes.”

Interview by Justin McGuirk for icon's Africa issue. For more about icon's Africa issue, click here

top image Portrait by Jonx Pillemer

image Thusong Services Centre

image Cape Town's railway station

image Ordos 100 villa

Source: www.iconeye.com

Jormungand wristwatch flows time back to it

Based on Norse mythology, wherein Jormungand, a large serpent, encircles the earth and hold onto its own tail, the “Jormungand” by designer Dave Prince is a funky watch to attract gen-next towards wristwatches. Developed for Integrated Design...

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Interview: David Kohn

Architects aren't exactly trained in the art of impermanence, but it seems to be something with which David Kohn is rather comfortable. First he created the interior of Flash, a temporary restaurant in the Royal Academy's Burlington House in London, which opened for just three months from November 2008; now he's devising a series [...]

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Coffee Clock made using discarded alarm clock and coffee mug

Recycling the discarded French press, a small alarm clock, and a coffee mug, Philadelphian designer Gregory Siegal has come up with an innovative clock that adds sustainability to your timepiece. Entitled the “Coffee Clock,” the eco-friendly... Read more

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Levi’s windows by Alex Turvey

As part of an ongoing collaboration with Levi's, London-based designer and director Alex Turvey has completed three statement mirror sculptures for the London flagship store. Read More

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Pop-up outdoor furniture retreats neatly into the floor

Removing the boundaries between public and private spaces, Dutch designers Carmela Bogman and Rogier Martens has come up with a unique outdoor furniture installation named the “Pop-up” that as depicted by its name pops up from the ground to place...

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Nuda & Cruda | Casprini

Bar stool with shell in anodized aluminium. Frame in chromed or painted steel.

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Folded Paper by Simon Schubert

It's not really clear if he really folds the paper or if he rubs the lines into the paper. Anyway, amazing work! View full entry...

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Stack Architecture

The Stack is taking over the world. This architectural strategy, which began in the tightly packed hothouse of Todoroki in suburban Tokyo, has moved to New York and Europe. Perhaps the Stack's most renowned iteration is the offset boxes of the New Museum by SANAA – a sophisticated assemblage of anodized aluminium mesh boxes, it [...]

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Immersed Senses lets scuba diver breathe and move freely underwater

Improving the limitations of current scuba diving system, designer Adam Wendel has come up with a futuristic device named the “Immersed Senses” that changes the way the diver sees, hears, and breathes underwater, allowing them to become a part of.

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Sand-Printing by Zanadesign

Making the most of manpower, Zanadesign’s oversized stamping tool – Sand-Printing – was used to promote the City Hall in Cádiz, Spain.

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Boris Johnson unveils London Routemaster bus design

Mayor says new jump-on, jump-off Routemaster will give passengers a 'greener, light and airy' service from 2012

Boris Johnson has unveiled the final design for London's new-look double-decker buses.

The mayor said the updated jump-on, jump-off Routemaster would give passengers a "greener, light and airy" service when it is introduced in the capital in 2012.

The vehicles were a key part of Johnson's 2008 election manifesto and will feature two doors as well as an open platform allowing passengers to hop on and off. According to the mayor's office they will have two staircases and be made of lightweight materials, making them 15% more fuel-efficient than existing hybrid buses and 40% more efficient than conventional diesel double-deckers.
The buses are being made by the Northern Irish manufacturer Wrightbus.
Johnson said: "This iconic new part of our transport system is not only beautiful but also has a green heart beating beneath its stylish, swooshing exterior. It will cut emissions and give Londoners a bus they can be proud of, complete with cutting-edge design and the freedom of an open platform."
The Routemaster was withdrawn from regular service in December 2005 by the then mayor, Ken Livingstone, although some still run on a limited basis on two tourist routes. Johnson took office in 2008 promising to bring back a "greener" version of the Routemaster, which was first introduced in London in the mid-1950s.
"I expect to eventually have hundreds of these on London's roads, and for cities around the globe to be beside themselves with envy for our stunning red emblem of 21st-century London," Johnson said.

• London
• Transport
• Transport policy
• Boris Johnson
• London politics
• Design

Matthew Taylor

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#architecture Heron Tower, London - http://bit.ly/9GqYg0