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The article focuses on the exhibition Unknown Quantity conceived by Paul Virilio held in Paris, France in March 2003. The exhibition featured a major installation by Lebbeus Woods, New York's resident architectural visionary. The site of Woods's ruminations is usually a zone of crisis on which he builds. Woods, who teaches at New York City's Cooper Union, is the rare architect who draws rather than writes theory, but over the years he has actualized his paper drawings as space drawings through exhibition installations. In 2002, at the Cooper Union gallery, in one of his infrequent shows in the United States, he visualized a force field shooting through space by constructing wires and batons streaming into a midair collision that formed other vectors.

The article presents an interview with Japanese architect Shigeru Ban. Ban discusses his work with disaster-stricken areas, how he selects which disaster-torn area to work with, and what inspired him to take on relief work. Ban also discusses his work with nongovernmental organizations and offers advice to architects who wish to become involved with relief efforts.

The article looks at Trace Architecture Office (TAO), an architecture firm headed by architect Hua Li and based in Beijing, China. Emphasis is given to the firm's focus on social concerns and the environmental impact of architecture. Details on the design of the Xiaoquan Elementary school in Sichuan province, China, are presented. Other topics include the personal values Hua learned during his childhood in Lanzhou, China and his motivations for founding TAO.

The article offers information on several information resources on architecture. Dusk, in collaboration with Tricycle, Mohawk Paper, and Aquafil USA, has produced Reverb, a report showcasing essays about interior design and sustainability. WindsorOne released a new full-line catalog for its specialty lumber, molding, and millwork products. Watt Stopper/Legrand is featuring its Miro RF wireless lighting controls and architectural wiring devices in a new product portfolio.

The firm Corian's six new colors were influenced by the Japanese aesthetic of "wabi-sabi" based on the concept that there is beauty in nature's imperfections. Understated tones and textures and a random scattering of particles gives the colors, featuring organic names such as Green Tea, White Jasmine, and Rice Paper, a slight patina and weathered look.

Perhaps no other American city's identity is so entwined with the profession of architecture as buildings of Chicago, Illinois. On April 4, the Art Institute unveiled a hypothetical skyline for the Windy City, one recorded in pixels and on paper rather than in concrete, glass, or steel. Chicago architect Dan Wheeler, of the firm Wheeler Kearns, drew from the Institute's collection of more than 130,000 architectural objects to showcase some 90 drawings, renderings, and models of never-built projects dating from 1880 to the present. The show reveals Chicago's long history as fertile ground for design ingenuity at all scales. The theoretical work Expanding Skyscraper by Reginald Malcomson, a tower to which cantilevered floor plates could be added over time, is an intriguing attempt to weigh the fluctuating demands of the city against the immutable nature of completed buildings.

Reports developments on commercial products as of October 2002. Features of Scoop Series lounge chairs from Barbara Barry; Introduction of modular products for corporate interiors from Mannington Commercial; Awards given to architects from Solutia.

Presents the highlights of the online panel discussions on computers in architecture. Downside of speedy communications and task completion on professional judgement; Technological concerns; Web-based project management sites; Lack of data integrity in drawing; Architects as integrators of knowledge; Addressing the question of responsibility; Five-step process on the role of technology in design and constructions. INSET: Software developers have their say, by B.J. Novitski..

Reports on several conferences, symposium and lectures related to architecture to be held during October 2002 and November 2002 in the United States. Conference entitled AIA California Council Desert Preactice Conference 2002 to be held in Indian Wells, California; Lectures from the Dallas Architecture Forum on architecture to be held in Dallas, Texas.

The article presents an interview with Matteo Pericoli, who has written several books related to architecture for children. Matteo reveals that he is writing and illustrating another children's book, and he is also thinking about a new drawing project for New York. Matteo comments on his books for children and says that he thought that if he could make a drawing of the apparent or stereotyped chaos of New York that is clear and understandable even to children, he would believe that he had achieved something.

The article focuses on a compilation of drawing experimentations by Caleb Crawford, the new director of the architecture school at Mississippi State University-Starkville, which he calls for poems. The drawings, which Crawford describes as personal, political and layered, are available on his Web site. They serve as a thought laboratory for his practice, Coggan Crawford, where he can examine the nature of space, shadow and volume.

Discusses the advantages of Smart Permit project, a range of programs and software aimed at upgrading the regulatory environment, to architects in the United States. Standardization of permitting processes; Unifying building codes and their interpretations; Testimony of David Bendet of MBT Architecture, on the effectiveness of Smart Permit.

Presents an interview with architect Maya Lin, discussing her work and the use of architecture in her art. Information on her travel show `Maya Lin: Topologies'; Proposed designs of Lin for a recycle plant and paper mill in the Bronx, New York City, shown at the Municipal Art Society in New York.

The article explores the use of natural ventilation and passive cooling systems in hospitals and health care facilities in Asia. Emphasis is given to the ventilation system design for the Ng Teng Fong General Hospital in Singapore and the XiangYa Hospital in Changsha, China. Other topics include infection control, building codes, and the Peace Island Medical Center in Washington state.

The article evaluates the architectural design of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) in Athens, Greece, which was designed by the architectural firm Renzo Piano Building Workshop.

The article presents news briefs on topics related to architecture and design, including the release of a shelter design for Nepali earthquake refugees, attempts by the city of Los Angeles, California to conserve water, and an exhibition on architect David Adjaye at the Art Institute of Chicago.

The article presents information on the 2005 World Exposition, an exhibition on architecture that is being held in Aichi, Japan. The fair, which is one of the twice-a-decade world exhibitions sanctioned by the Paris-based Bureau of International Expositions, runs through September 25 on a park like site east of Nagoya, the industrial city between Tokyo and Osaka. The Expo has attracted more than seven million visitors in its first twelve weeks. Inside the fairgrounds, it's impossible to avoid being educated about alternative energy sources, green-building methods, and extreme recycling.

The article focuses on the 45,000-square-foot Nomadic Museum, which opened on March 5, 2005 on Manhattan's historic Pier 54. Japanese architect Shigeru Ban designed the temporary, transportable museum for artist Gregory Colbert's show Ashes and Snow, a collection of settings. At first glance the building could be mistaken for a meticulously stacked pile of shipping containers awaiting pickup by a cargo vessel. Borrowing on the principle for his 1998 design for a small traveling exhibition of furniture, Ban proposed to employ steel shipping containers as the principal building unit for the museum.

Focuses on the evolution of digital design in the field of architecture. Importance of digital design to the conception and construction of cultural monuments; Influence of digital imaging on aesthetics; Implications of computerization in architectural practice.

The article reports on the design and construction of shelters for victims of the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. It examines the work of Japanese architect Shigeru Ban in designing shelters that included privacy and temporary homes for the victims. Topics include financing for the project, aid from architecture students from Tokyo, Japan, and Ban's commitment to persuading the Japanese government that such structures are necessary.

This article features Guy Nordenson, a structural engineer who began his career drafting in the joint studio of R. Buckminster Fuller and Isamu Noguchi. He established the New York office of Arup in 1987 and his own practice in 1997. After the World Trade Center (WTC) attacks of 9/11, he undertook structural inspections of some 400 buildings around the site and continued to provide his services with the various design deliberations that followed, including collaborating with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill on the scheme that became the Freedom Tower.

Several letters to the editor are presented in response to articles in previous issues including an article about the Boyarsky Murphy Architects' Christ Church Tower, an article in the April 2007 issue about swimming pools and an article about a building designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro.

This article reviews several building materials and architectural products. DuPont Corian remains a vital supplier to the architectural and design community. The latest patent-pending technology developed for the material is Dye Sublimation in Corian, manufactured exclusively by R.D. Wing Co. of Kirkland, Washington. For the atrium of the 300,000-square-foot Kendall Square Biotech Laboratory in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a Cambridge Architectural Security & Safety mesh system was specified to provide fall protection using panels of metal fabric within railings. iLevel Trus Joist Commercial, formerly Trus Joist, has introduced a new family of commercial framing products to the market. The TimberStrand LSL beam allows for the drilling of multiple holes and has capacity for larger holes up to 45/8″. Parallam PSL beams and columns reach up to 60′ long.

This article presents an interview with Daniel Libeskind, the World Trade Center master planner. Answering a question Libeskind said, " I think all of it is quite literally around. The Freedom Tower reaches to 1,776 feet. It has a garden. It is shaped to be part of an ascending spiral of skyscrapers. It fits into the master plan. The same is true for the memorial. The site goes 35 feet below street level; it has the slurry wall as an important design element; it has a waterfall and possesses space for cultural buildings.

The article previews upcoming design and architecture exhibits including "St. Louis Modern," an exhibition of architecture in St. Louis, Missouri at the St. Louis Art Museum November 8, 2015-January 31, 2016, "Making Music Modern: Design for Ear and Eye," an exhibition on music and design at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City November 15, 2015-January 17, 2016, and "Pushing the Press: The Typecraft Design Library," an exhibition of print design at the A+D Architecture and Design Museum in Los Angeles, California November 19, 2015-February 26, 2016.

The impassioned controversy over the now-complete addition to the land-marked Harvard Club of New York is not over. While for some, the Modernist-style glass and limestone exterior respects the original neo-Georgian brick clubhouse built in 1894 by McKim, Mead and White, for others, the addition is a desecration. Members opposed to the Davis Brody Bond addition went to extraordinary lengths to kill it before construction started. Stephen Raphael, a club member who served on the New York City Landmarks Commission from 1991 to 1997, says he would have voted against the Bond addition if he were still a commission member.

Presents news briefs related to architecture and interior designing, as of June 17, 2003. Features of the web site developed by the U.S.-based American Institute of Architects; Reasons for which the American Society of Interior Designers created an online information center; Benefits of using tablet personal computers for designing and constructing buildings.

The article features the designs made by David Leven and Stella Betts, partners of Leven Betts Studio in New York City. The partners have constructed a house patterned to its landscape as well as the materials used. The team is proposing for the expansion of the Kennedy Expressway that would be both accommodating to the travelers and pedestrians.

The article looks at several green building product certification protocols. There are a few ASTM standards that act as umbrellas for sustainability, such as the ASTM E2129-05 Standard Practice for Data Collection for Sustainability Assessment of Building Products and ASTM E2432-05 Standard Guide for General Principles of Sustainability Relative to Buildings. In 2007, the most recognizable of the multi-attribute certifications is McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry's Cradle to Cradle program.

The article features the architectural design of the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) in New York City. The facility was completed in 2006 and is one of the public-sector emergency-response buildings designed in the U.S. after the September 11 tragedy. Contractors and designers demolished the building's interior partitions, finishes and exterior enclosure making the interior's structure environment-friendly. Because of this, county officials plan to pursue LEED certification for the new building.

Highlights the annual meeting of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture held in New Orleans, Louisiana. Discussion on the issues about distance education; Impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks on architectural schools and students; Elimination of time requirements for a professional degree by the National Architectural Accrediting Board.

The article discusses the adoption of interactive envelope systems or small robots that patrol building facades, regulating energy usage and indoor conditions, in architectural projects. While these systems are fashionable and possibly advantageous, its adoption has been slow. Primary concerns of skeptical architects include worrying that operable components are magnets for value-engineering or foreseeing them being unplugged and later stripped off their buildings due to poor performance of deficient maintenance. Still there are supporters of the technology. First is that it would be easy for architects to analyze an operable shade with daylight analysis tools. Another is the solid performance of photosensors, lighting controls and solar-tracking devices.

The article focuses on the dependence of architects and researchers on building process to manage the flood of products, materials, and options. Building process usually refers to the methodology, often inventive and personal, that the architect relies on to steer a project from concept to completion. Associate professor John E. Fernandez argues that our knowledge base must be expanded to include advances in materials science and engineering.

Reports the use of digital planning techniques in architectural designing of charrette in Honolulu, Hawaii. Development of massing models of the sites; Accessibility of the process to designers and local community; Importance of digital media in design and planning.

Reports on the development of the Architectural Studio software by Autodesk in the United States. Features of the software; Emergence of digital design; Role of the software in architectural design formulations.

This article discusses the use of build-design by architects and clients. Design-build proponents say changes have occurred largely because many more clients and industry members came to feel that the design-bid-build's enforced separation fostered conflicts among the various parties holding separate contracts with the client, thus fueling litigation and increasing overall costs. One of the biggest fears architects have about leading a design-build project is the increased risk associated with construction. While the tasks traditionally associated with architecture are insurable, work occurring on a construction site is not.

This article describes how clients impact the outcome of museum architecture. The article begins by identifying several factors involved in the proliferation of museum architect. Next, the author presents several examples to illustrate what a difference a client can make concerning the outcome of museum architecture.

The article presents information on the expansion of the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The expansion was carried out by architectural firm Herzog and de Meuron. A series of four skewed, box like structures, embedded in a broad glassy passageway, now extend up the hill from the Barnes building. In spinning off from the Barnes building, the new volumes take the original notions of geometry and surface into a whole other realm. Galleries occupy two of the other new boxes, and the loading dock a third one.

The article reports that City Hall houses of Richmond, Virginia, is home to more than 800 employees. The building had served the community well for 27 years, but in the mid-1990s, the city discovered that the facade was losing its structural integrity at a steady and alarming rate. In 1997, Richmond commissioned a team of consultants led by Fred Ortiz, AIA, of Scribner, Messer, Brady & Wade Architects of Richmond, and Daniel Lemieux, AIA, of Wiss Janney Elstner, of Fairfax, Virginia, to identify the extent of damage and devise a plan to revive the building and the city hall's image as expressed in its architecture.

This article informs that architectures demand a great deal from the building envelope--the skin that shelters people from the outside world. Fortunately, three recent national efforts to improve the performance of building envelopes are laudable steps toward remedying the current situation. These include the publication of the Building Envelope Design Guide, a comprehensive resource for the design and construction of institutional and office buildings; the Exterior Enclosure Technical Requirements for the Commissioning Process, which outlines a step-by-step process to ensure that a new envelope will function as intended.

This article focuses architectural technology. Whether low or high frequency, manmade or natural, noise is the bane of modern living. Even people hermetically sealed in office buildings suffer from disruptive noises created from within, humming light fixtures and air handlers, distracting conversations, and ringing phones. Cubicle dwellers ward off aural assaults by wearing earplugs or expensive, high-tech headphones. Their adaptability, while admirable, only highlights a problem that studies show undermines productivity. INSET: A-weighted Sound Level.

The article informs that splendor of the Pantheon in Rome, attributed to Emperor Publius Aelius Hadrianus Hadrian, lies in both its architectural form and its engineering virtuosity: a rational domed cylinder of reinforced concrete that soars to a height that equals its diameter, reaching 143 feet at its oculus. Thanks to Joseph Aspdin's invention of portland cement in 1824 and Joseph Monier's introduction of the reinforcing bar in 1867, the 20th century was an era of intense technological progress in both concrete and steel. Trial-and-error engineering no longer takes place on-site or requires knowledge of precedent. So extensive is the innovation in concrete that now a discussion of the material requires a new vocabulary of modifiers. INSET: Liquid Stone: New Architecture in Concrete.

The article discusses the trade of exporting architecture jobs. The practice of paying less-expensive workers located beyond the borders of the U.S. to do tasks once done here by architects and interns is extremely controversial. A representative of a U.S.-owned drafting service that sends some of its work abroad spoke extensively to the periodical about the practice, but several days later asked that the company not be named in this article. Other offshore providers were willing to speak about the practice, but said they could not reveal the names of the architecture firms for whom they work. To be fair, U.S. architects have made millions selling their services abroad for decades. INSET: ARCHITECTURAL RECORD'S Offshoring Questionnaire.

The article deals with the growing number of sckyscrapers at Manhattan in New York City. Within a year's time from 1999 to 2000, Four Times Square opened, Battery Park City's environmental guidelines for Residential construction were passed, and the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification program was established.

The Barcelona chair designed by Mies van der Rohe is the mezuzah of American architecture firms, installed by the front door as a symbol of devotion to the tribe of Modernism. It is a pleasant surprise, then, to find it missing from the lobby of the new San Francisco quarters of Huntsman Architectural Group, replaced by a trio of Egg chairs, a lesser-known but still classic icon by midcentury Danish designer Arne Jacobsen. It is telling, too, because the robin's-egg-blue chairs also signal a devotion to high design, yet they convey warmth, comfort, and the atmosphere of hospitality that envelops each area of this clean-lined office. The Huntsman practice moved to this location from offices scattered over several floors in a nearby historic building designed by architect Julia Morgan.

Viennese architect Georg Driendl likes to name the houses he designs after the sun. His Solar Box, for instance, combines an orthogonal, glazed section with a 19th-century home. Solar Deck, a concrete-and-glass structure, has wraparound balconies on two levels. The Solar Tube House, in the northwest outskirts of Vienna, Austria, stands out as the most inventive and visually intriguing of the series. Rising to a metal-clad, glass-fronted tubular form, the building is like a telescope topping an amply glazed rectangular volume. Neither its name nor form are frivolous. Driendl was inspired by the humble tubular skylight, a device that channels sunlight indoors by means of a rooftop collector, reflective pipe, and diffuser. His novelty was to envision the entire house as a solar collector, one that needs little heating, cooling, or electric illumination.