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A Profound and Minimalist Church in Louisiana

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This subtle and lovely minimalist sink is not where you might expect it.

In a complex of church buildings in a rural Catholic Parish in South Louisiana designed by Trahan Architects, this is a part of the new Holy Rosary Church.

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The almost angelic peace of these buildings struck me.

These are intensely modern and minimalist – and yet with the medieval quality of cloisters.

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The sober sight lines suggest the architecture portrayed by medieval artists like Fra Angelico, yet these structures are also modern and minimal.

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The architect develops a meditative environment using the limited palette of light colored concrete with plate glass.

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These minimalist surfaces draw attention to the play of light on these humble materials. Read the rest of this entry »

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Design Dilemma: An Ecletic Approach to the Country Kitchen

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Can you  blend an old farmhouse kitchen with the clean, austere lines of a modern kitchen?
Although rusticity and modernism would not seem natural partners, we’ve found examples of several kitchens which perfectly blend the modern and the rustic.
Oz Architects eclectic kitchen
What’s the key to bringing modernism effortlessly to your rustic cabin, country manor or farmhouse?
1) Make use of natural materials. Just because you’ve gone modern doesn’t mean you have to banish all wood and stone from your kitchen. Instead, make use of these traditional materials but keep the lines clean and simple. Above a modern light fixture and bright white cabinetry with simple lines help lend a modern air to an otherwise country kitchen, replete with wooden beams and brick  fireplace.
Urban Homestead contemporary kitchen
2) Use modern lighting as a contrast with more traditional elements. If you’ve got traditional cabinets, one of the easiest ways of adding contemporary flair  is with lighting. The lighting you choose can make an obvious statement, or stay subtle. The kitchen above successfully mixes both modern and traditional elements.  The plaster hood and wood cabinets have a European farmhouse feel, and the built-in hutch wall and butcher-block topped island feels very traditional as well. But both the modern pendant lights and the full-height marble backsplash make it clear that this is no old-fashioned kitchen.
3) Use old-fashioned lighting in a modern kitchen. Below, we’ve got the complete opposite, modern cabinetry, kept stark white along with a modern island. The traditional elements, this time, come in the tiled backsplash and wall, that reaches right up to the ceiling and the traditional brass lamps.
Structures Building Company eclectic kitchen
4) Change just one or two elements. One of the big concerns when mixing styles is the potential to combine styles that clash, without ever achieving that sense of effortlessness that is always a goal in rustic surroundings. One way to avoid a potential clash is to focus on changing just one or two elements. For example, in most of the kitchens above, there is just one element that stands out as a divergence from the dominant style of the kitchen, whether it be modern or traditional. It could be a lighting fixture, a backsplash or a table. Below, a traditional kitchen feels modern, thanks to clean lines and a modern pendant lamp.
Ben Herzog eclectic kitchen
Below, a rigorously modern kitchen is softened by the use of wooden cabinets and a more traditional table.
Kitchen contemporary kitchen
Finally, another photo of a beautiful country kitchen, that is warm and modern at the same time:
cool4 how to tips advicecool3 how to tips advice

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Zero Energy Community Designed to Foster Solar Production

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Wow. This has been a very long time coming.

This work by a U.S. architect – who really gets the solar aesthetic – was uncovered by my friend Tafline Laylin over at Inhabitat.

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The zHome community designed by David Vandervort in Issaquah, Washington incorporates solar into the overall design right from scratch.

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Look at how elegantly the sun-facing shed roof repeats, not only soaking up all those rays, but making good clean power using a lot more beautiful design than traditional energy does.

(By contrast, imagine an ugly coal power station making that same power on your roof!) Read the rest of this entry »

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3D Manufacturing Creates Mythical Reindeer Lookout

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Using digital 3D-models driving milling machines, an incredible shaped and contoured wooden pavillion has been constructed, to serve as a reindeer observation platform, in Norway’s Dovrefjell National Park.

With the Norwegian Wild Reindeer Centre Pavilion, Snøhetta Oslo AS architects make history. This kind of construction was never before possible.

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An almost mythical appearance is created by the resulting organic wooden inner shape, behind the reflecting wall of glass that seems to contain the sky.

The mythical appearance is appropriate, because Norwegian legends, myths, poetry, and music have long celebrated the mystic and eternal qualities of this powerful site in the Dovre mountains.

reindeer award3 architecture

Very advanced 21st century computer-aided technologies were used both in the design and the construction process.

Norwegian shipbuilders in Hardangerfjord built the pavilion using digital 3D-models to drive the milling machines. Read the rest of this entry »

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Visionary “Lens” Wins St Petersberg’s Pier Competition

The Lens 6 architecture

A network of looping walkways and sweeping bridges will soon add a sweeping landmark off the waterfront of St. Petersburg in Florida.

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The winning entry creates circles of new “land” out to sea that can be experienced by moving around, in and under the futuristic swooping shape, all while being above the water.

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“The Lens” designed by Los Angeles firm Michael Maltzan Architecture with landscape architects Tom Leader Studio, has been selected as the winner of an international competition to redesign the St. Petersburg Pier.

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Echoing the vast dome of Florida’s eternal blue skies, the wide sweeping shape outlines an enticing new outdoor play area out of the water. Read the rest of this entry »