Architecture

Pop-Up Hotel Room: 5-Star Accommodation Or Glorified Trailer?

by Beth Hodgson

Pop-up concepts are literally popping up across the globe; and pop-up hotel rooms are one of the front-runners in the portable business brand. Pop-up hotels offer luxury accommodation where it's not possible to put a full size hotel. The pop-up hotel brand is growing in popularity in Europe in particular, because it's portable, convenient accommodations are ideal for festivals and other outdoor events.

Project Green Prom Contest Ends March 30th

by Gloria Campos

For some teenagers there are only a few months left before prom night arrives. While many of these teenagers are buying new dresses, new shoes, new jewelry, renting limos, etc., others are a concerned about the carbon footprint prom night leaves on the planet. To encourage a greener prom, maybe a greener lifestyle too, high school juniors and seniors are encouraged to enter the Project Green Prom Video Contest.

The Groundbreaking Shanghai Tower

by Guest Blogger

When Shanghai Tower is completed in 2014, its twisting design will be self-sustainable and able to withstand the high winds of a typhoon.

Inspired By Ferns: Eric Vergne's Dystopian Farm

by T Goodman

Global food prices have surged 75 percent since the year 2000 because of the over-foresting, over-cultivating, and global warming affecting soil conditions in farming regions throughout the world. It's very promising then that there are forward looking architects like Eric Vergne whose entry in Evolo's 2009 Skyscraper Competition is something to be seriously considered -- so seriously, that Evolo has awarded his "Dystopian Farm," third place in the competition.

Vertical Wind Turbine Could Be Successful

by Gloria Campos

Imagine spending your life savings on an invention you are sure will someday be successful, even if skeptics think it is impossible. It's pretty risky right? Well Adam Fuller from Racine, Wisconsin has done this very thing. He has spent his life savings designing an invention he believes in, a vertical wind turbine. Will it work?

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Keyboard Made of Stepping Stones: One Weird Russian Monument

by M Dee Dubroff

Although most of us would probably agree that the computer keyboard is a symbol (or stepping stone, if you will) for universal communication, there are those Yekaterinburg, Russia who have gone a bit too far with the creation of the most unusual QWERTY Monument. Read on but avoid commands for a few moments more.

Feng Shui Compass: For Inner Order, Direction and Wha?

by M Dee Dubroff

For the person who has everything (or at least thinks so), comes the electronic Feng Shui Compass, the newest creation from Fortune Compass, LLC. If you have been working in a room with your back to the door, now is the time to move, as this compass will indicate in no uncertain terms. Read on and be prepared to …calculate!

Adam Norton’s Apartment Inside an Armoire

by Gloria Campos

My husband and I bought an armoire a few years ago from a consignments store. We fell in love with at first sight and it appeared to be worth every penny we spent on it (a couple of hundred dollars), but alas when the center right door fell off 3 weeks ago we began to wonder if there was a way someone could restore or recycle it for us. We never imagined turning our armoire into an apartment like Adam Norton did with his.

Water Fountain Digital Clock Displays the Flow of Time

by Steve Levenstein

Kanazawa Station Fountain Clock - Time to Get Wet

Digital clocks may be the norm these days, but the Kanazawa Station Fountain Clock is a delightfully liquid variation on the theme.

New Japanese Export: "Hako-Ie" (or) Room In A Box

by Toby

A special space of one's own, where you can rest, meditate, create... is what Japanese architect Asao Sakamoto was after when he created the Hako-Ie. Literally, "room in a box," Hake-Ie won a 2008 international Good Design Gold Award for Sakamoto's do-it-yourself pre-fabricated room for your home. Like Japanese food, clothing, and cars, the Hako-Ie can be exported and enjoyed all over the world.

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Tokyo Tower Celebrates Golden Anniversary with 24-Carat Gold Replica

by Steve Levenstein

Tokyo Tower notched an important milestone this past December 23 by celebrating its 50th anniversary. In tribute, Ginza Tanaka is offering a 26.4 inch tall replica made of 24-carat gold for the towering sum of 50 million yen - about $510,000.

Incredible Russian Design Innovation: Asadov Floating Aerohotel

by M Dee Dubroff

Russian architect, Alexander Asadov, is an anomaly in many ways. Well-known in his homeland for his controversial designs, which defy traditional structure and form, he ventures literally into unknown waters with his new and daring concept, the Aerohotel.

Find Environmental Resources Through Green Map System

by Pria Ingrum

When you consider visiting or moving to a place, wouldn't it be great to know where the environmentally-friendly places are? The revolutionary Green Map System allows just that with its ecomaps.

Architecture For Communal Living: Dupli Casa By J. Mayer H.

by Toby

German architect J. Mayer H. was challenged to create a villa for a family and the families of their offspring. The original house had been built on the same spot in 1988 and since, several modifications and additions were made to that house. Now, starting from scratch on the footprint left by the original house...

Transparent World: Moscow’s New Underwater Theater

by M Dee Dubroff

Read all about this amazing Moscow culture center still under construction, which is expected to finish in the year 2012. It will be built within the framework of an oceanarium and house a unique underwater theater troupe. Get your tickets now, but bring along those life preservers, just in case.

Check Into The Top Ten Hotels of the Future

by Ron Callari

How different will checking into a hotel in 2028 vs. 2008, or even as far out into the future as 2050? While architects and designers are fast at work conjuring up new hotel models. Here is a list of my top ten hotels of the future!

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Go Ahead! Send Me To The Dog House!

by Lady Bee

Yes, you can design a Swiss chalet for your St. Bernard and have it built to your specifications. Your dog or cat can have his own house, excuse me, his own Pet Mansion, that's the spitting image of your home. The only thing is... no sub-prime mortgages on the Pet Mansions.

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The Cardboard Cafe - All Cardboard, All Functional

by Toby

Cardboard furniture is in now, especially as DIY projects. But seldom do you see cardboard structures as large as the one architect/design group B3 made for the London Design Festival last month. They made a whole Cardboard Cafe!

A Toast to the Buddhist Beer Bottle Temple and Thai Monks

by Gloria Campos

Many creative people have made many amazing new things with used material, but I have to say this one eco-friendly structure is my favorite. Take a look at this beautiful green and brown Buddhist temple, built by Thai Monks. The temple stands strong and tall with the structural help of over one million beer bottles.

A New Material Could Change the Way We Build Our World

by George Delozier

When talking about moving vehicles, weight is almost always the enemy of performance. It takes more power to get moving, longer to stop and reduces the speed at which you can turn. While aluminum can solve some of these issues, many applications call for something stronger and this is where we turn to steel. However, a new material, called Buckypaper, may almost completely wipe out the need for steel in automotive and aeronautical applications.