It was awesome to be part of the Design Team and help the Mississippi Watershed Management Organization create a new educational and office facility. This past weekend was the Grand Opening. I gave building tours, ate cookies, and meet a ton of great people. Below is a video put together of the event by John Akre of the Minneapolis Television Network. We appreciate him taking the time to document the day!

And if you want to see some of the landscape features in action, check out this video by MWMO showing that ‘Green is Not an Afterthought’.

Here is another update of a fun residential project we are working on. Things are moving fast because winter is coming and the contractor wants to get it enclosed. Take a look!

Ahhh the memories. This video shows the ‘behind the scenes’ at the Department of Architecture Building Technology Program at MIT. Most people think that we learn how to ‘draw buildings’ at college but that is just a small part with the thought that that ability will develop during our internship with a firm. We really focus on studying shape, texture, light, color, etc. Architecture is habitable art, to be experienced emotionally as well as functionally. You may be surprised to see the abstract exploration and how it allows us to be creative in making places special.

MIT Architecture from Paper Fortress on Vimeo.

This beautiful and thoughtful library was designed by London firm CZWG Architects. It truly is a gathering point that not only has the usual reading and learning areas but also a community performance space. The challenge is that the program of desired spaces ‘out-sized’ the site. Take a look and see how the architect responded.

via I Like Architcture

The Shard Tower is the tallest skyscraper in the UK. Photographer Paul Raftery and director Dan Lowe teamed up to create a timelapse documenting the final weeks of construction. Looks like a great project… and who doesn’t like a good timelapse!

The Shard: A Timelapse Study – A Film by Paul Raftery and Dan Lowe from Paul Raftery and Dan Lowe on Vimeo.

We wanted to post a quick update on this project and show a few of the ‘test’ concepts. This initial effort was to incorporate the entire Client wishlist and see how this small home could be transformed. The tough part, which we all knew, was getting feedback and reality checks from contractors, banks and realtors. The problem with this project is not the house, it’s the site. A third of the property would need to be excavated and hauled out of a city setting just for a new garage. That is a big chunk of any budget.

The other challenge is that this project was looked at as a development opportunity and could the neighborhood actually support this financial investment? Now comes the tough part for the Client – evaluating all of the feedback, adjusting priorities and deciding which way to go… Stay tuned!

Here is an amazing video showing a unique way to see the architecture of Buenos Aires. I don’t know how many hours this took to put together but what a fun ride!
Source: Black Sheep Films

Panelized and factory prepped, this 30 story hotel in China was built in 15 days… once on site. There was much design and prep time completed prior to pull this off. Impressive non-the-less. Take a look at the time-lapse video to see it happen.
Source: Huffington Post

We are having fun with this project! An overall plan and design direction is set but the main discussion over the past month related to the roof form. The flat roof was out of the running early. The Owner’s had always desired an offset barrel roof but the shed roof was intriguing as well. Each had their pros and cons as it related to the interior and exterior function, aesthetic and costs. After much discussion and many sketches, the Owners decided to stay with their original desire for the offset barrel.

We are now working on the folding in the details, including the finishes and textures. Be sure to check previous posts to see how this project began! Click on the images below to enlarge.

Contractor: Cates Fine Homes

Just another day in the life of an architect. We are finalizing the finish selections for a new $4 million office facility and making all of those selections can be overwhelming. We thought this video might help explain a bit of that process.