360 DEGREES Weblog

Patrick Tighe, principal of Santa Monica’s Tighe Architecture, may hate space-age references. But, here we go: Tighe’s work for Moving Picture Company’s (MPC) Los Angeles office IS space-agey. With its pod-like central spaces, curving ledges and white drywall expanses, it evokes memories of retro space movies.

But it all fits. The U.K-based MPC is in the business of computer animation, color-grading and digital effects, so you wouldn’t want color, hard edges or natural light to mess with that. MPC is known for its work on the past six James Bond films, Slumdog Millionaire and commercials.

It is fitting that the 70-year-old Frank Gehry ended up re-envisioning the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) for his native city of Toronto. As a boy, Gehry visited the AGO often, and the effect of those visits on him and his future career was important. Gehry has lived most of his life in the U.S., but the AGO remake allows Toronto to reap some of the benefits of his massive talent before it’s all too late.
One of Gehry’s early sources of career inspiration was the Finnish architect Alvar Aalto (1898-1976), known as the father of Scandinavian modernism. The influence of Aalto’s love of gently curving light-color wood, and his clean and airy architectural lines, can be sensed at the newly refurbished AGO. Whether or not Gehry thought of Aalto when he designed the spiraling plywood-faced staircase for the main entry hall is irrelevant, but the feel of the space is decidedly Aalto-esque.

Thanks Coolhunter

One of the perks of being an architecture firm such as Spain’s Selgascano is that you get to design yourself an awesome place to work. Check out Selgascano’s “office in the woods,” designed by the company’s Jose Selgas and Lucia Cano. It’s one long, tunnel-like office covered by a curved transparent acrylic window that’s 20 millimeters thick and lets in plenty of natural light. The 110-millimeter-thick opaque wall is made from layers of insulated fiberglass and polyester, and shades the office.

To keep things inside cool, one of the ends of the office is attached to a pulley system and the slab can be raised or lowered, letting in some fresh air.

Mecanoo Architects is designing the city hall and central train station for its home town of Delft, in the Netherlands. The top level will be glass-ceilinged, and even the underground levels will have a feel of transparency and light. Vaulted ceilings, archways and a strong use of white and blue will lighten the visual weight of the complex that will include a 30,000 square-meter public hall. The four-year construction will begin next year.

The Dutch-born and educated architect Francine Houben established Mecanoo Architects in the mid-80s. Mecanoo has since completed an incredible variety of public and private projects, including retail stores, theaters, hotels, libraries, museums, chapels, residential neighborhoods and parks. Houben’s focus on “sensory beauty,” color and light has produced many spectacular buildings in Europe and around the world. Most recently, Mecanoo won the competition to design the new master plan for a central business district in Shenzhen, China. The district will include 8,000 houses and 400,000 square-meters of commercial and cultural facilities.

Aspiring kid architects can learn from greats with the Lego architecture series. Bright and Spacious has a gallery of the Lego’s Architecture Series by Adam Reed Tucker that includes the Empire State Building and the Seattle Space Needle and now has a couple of offerings by Frank Lloyd Wright. The NY Guggenheim Museum model is shown above. I’d love to see Lego interpret the works of Frank Gehry, now that would be a challenge. Each set sells for $45.

Italian company KOS is well-known for expanding its product line incessantly in terms of both shape and space, while keeping a tight check on the total quality. The company is now flaunting a new in-house pool concept called Faraway Pool. Guaranteed to add a unique, inviting touch to any home, the Faraway Pool can be built-in into the floor. The contemporary asymmetric shape of the mini-pool gives a clear reflection of the ethos of the company. The pool is always in level with the floor and the water doesn’t overflow, thanks to the ground-level fissure that doubles the pool’s outline. To top that, the Faraway Pool features underwater illumination, which will make for a truly romantic experience. The steps of this mini pool double as sources of illumination. The blower located under the steps ripples the surface of water. The KOS Faraway Pool is indubitably a great addition to any already luxurious home.

With its sleek and innovative design, the OfficePOD is guaranteed to turn heads and give you the space you need. The smart OfficePOD allows the employers to capitalize on the changing nature of work as it provides a new additional space that is dedicated to work only. With the OfficePOD, you will get to spend more time at home, but at the same time, it will help you keep your work separate. The basic idea behind the design of the OfficePOD was to create a self contained office that tops all standard office accommodation regulations and requirements. The modular design enables speedy construction, even in gardens with the most difficult access. High quality materials have been used in the making of this office pod. Power is provided via a protected connection to the house or garage. The OfficePOD comes with a secure locking system of the highest quality, which ensures utmost security when empty or occupied.

I’ve mentioned the ambitious plans for the Paris skyline before. Now Foster + Partners is showing plans for a dramatic new addition. Two new towers, which will be part of a mixed-use development called Hermitage Plaza, are set to go up in the center of Paris. They will be Western Europe’s tallest mixed-use towers and will contain a luxury hotel, spa, apartments, offices and retail space. Construction won’t start until next year and is expected to be finished in 2014.

The second U.S. store (after N.Y.) of the Japanese brand BAPE® has become a solid street-corner anchor at 8001 Melrose Avenue in L.A. With only a few flimsy palms outside, the eye-catching, BAPE signature camo print in juicy neon tubes strikes a commanding visual presence especially at night.

Inside, a huge glass cylinder, six meters in diameter, dominates the cool 4.5-meter-high space. Inside the cylinder, sneakers revolve on conveyer belts giving both an industrial and a museum-like feel. The oldest BAPE stores in Japan have already celebrated their first decade, but in Europe and the U.S., the brand has only recently started to gain a retail presence. In addition to Japan, BAPE stores exist in Hong Kong, Paris and London, and now two in the U.S.

The L.A. store was designed by Masamichi Katayama and his company Wonderwall. The 43-year-old Katayama is well known for retail work in Japan, France, U.K., the U.S., Russia, Hong Kong and China.

Thanks Coolhunter

Lovely shoes and bags will literally be on pins and needles this Saturday, when the Kymyka shoes and bags boutique opens in Maastricht, the Netherlands. The beautiful store, established by Chantal Hermans and Jurgo Muthaan, begins its life with an impressive line-up of brands, including Dolce & Cabbana, Etro, Stella McCartney, Dsquared, YSL, Giuseppe Zanotti, Luciano Padovan and Theory. Jimmy Choo will join the list soon, as will other brands.

Hermans and Muthaan chose well when they picked the industrious Maurice Mentjens to design their store. His work has been rewarded at many design competitions, including the Dutch Design Awards in 2005, 2006 and 2007.

His design for the Stash bag shop won not just the Dutch Design Award in the Retail Category but also the German Design Award. Maurice Mentjens Design is engaged in a vast variety of project ranging from interior, exhibit, retail and hospitality design to product and furniture design.