Veg.itecture #36

Vegetated Architecture for the week... First a link, via I (heart) Public Space - check out a tour of South Bronx green roof projects - with some interesting examples of rooftop vegetation if you are in the vicinity. Not on the tour, but in the area, is the fantastic, this one has been shown before, but worth another look - the headquarters for Diane von Furstenberg Studio by Public Farm 1 darlings Work AC ... this one is really nice...




:: images via Dezeen

Via Dwell, the first LEED-Gold planned commerical building in San Francisco - with a dual pv/green roof... by Matarozzi/Pelsinger Builders.


:: image via Dwell

Via Jetson Green, the very vegetated: (and significantly softer rendering of the) "...Zero Energy Idea House located at Bass Cove near Bellevue, Washington."


:: image via Jetson Green

Via BDonline, some roof terrace amidst the glass in a Glasgow development...


:: image via BDonline

And a very green earth-sheltered ZedFactory house in Bath, UK by Bill Dunster - via BDonline... an interesting quote on this net-positive house, from homeowner Andrew Mercer: “If we aren’t off-grid within 12 months, the council will ask us to pull the house down, which shows how committed we are.”




:: images via BDonline

And an odd little sliver of grass atop this urban example in this UK development...


:: image via BDonline

Finally... the reason I dislike green roof tray systems... Great house, bad roof - Concourse E in Atlanta via Jetson Green.


:: image via Jetson Green

Details: Illuminated Paving

I've seen some examples of in-pavement lighting - and interesting idea for plazas and more subtle... from working on a competition, and doing a few streetscape projects at work, these alternative pavings (and recent post about new(er) forms of adaptated lighting) are some great tools in the designers arsenal. First, last year when in Seattle, I spotted the plaza at Qwest Field, with pinlights arrayed in a pattern in the pavement. My pic was kind of off, so I found this one online - a good example of some fine night photography as well.


:: image via Forrest Croce

A couple of great posts from Atelier A+D from a couple of projects featured in June. First from, "...Howeler + Yoon... a landscape design - Switch - in which new and old techonologies, and soft and hard textures are braided together to created an integrated and interactive landscape."






:: images via Atelier A+D

Another: "This modern intervention in an old Geneva square (or actually... a trapezoid) by Swiss firm 2b Architectes is quite beautiful. The design manages to be completely modern, yet still evoke images of the past. Using traditional sandstone, as well as glass blocks or cobblestones in a random pattern, the architects are letting you in on a secret - a lake used to occupy this land. The closer you get to the location of the medieval lake, the closer the glass blocks are spaced."






:: images via Atelier A+D

While new lighting products are coming out every day, and they are definitely outside of the traditional boxes, these solutions offer some opportunities provide unique site specific and interesting ways of integrating with the specific design solution. Any other examples out there...?

Details: Light up the Streets

I am working on a couple of streetscape/Main Street redevelopment projects and it's definitely focused my attention on the ways in which trends of street furnishings get adopted and perpetuated through environments. I think we all know about the unfortunate 'cobra head' and the ubiquitous 'acorn' light fixture - meant to span the utilitarian and neo-historic continuum of streets.


:: Cobra - image via Choptank Electric


:: Acorn - image via Ross and Associates

Some research along these lines has led to a few interesting fixtures... building on some old posts (here and here) that scratched the surface of this idea. Street lighting for the 21st Century, is perhaps the theme. It is refreshing to see some alternatives popping up through artists, designers, and manufacturers breaking the mold and looking at some different forms, as well as more energy efficient and long-lasting fixtures.

Is this a case of needing a paradigm shift in what is acceptable and accepted by clients - as well as what is offered up by designers. While both of the communities I'm working in right now are smaller towns - both have a anti-provincial and innovative spirit that has expanded our thinking as designers. Is this an opportunity to adopt a new style - not something non-contextual or overly urban, but something that is reflective of the unique spirit of community? Sure, although all of these aren't appropriate, something new, sustainable, and different, just may be.
First, one that's been in the hopper for a while. Ross Lovegrove's Solar Trees made an appearance before, but a few more images here:




:: images via Treehugger

Second is brand new, from The Design Blog, Invisible Streetlight is an interesting concept by designer Jongoh Lee.




:: images via The Design Blog

Another recent bit of news that Anchorage, Alaska is going to install LED Streetlights... which is definitely new, as LED technology has slowly crept into all facets of lighting, but not streets - until now. So this examples are remarkably unremarkable... the energy savings and sustainability are laudable. But as I've said, wrap the green in a well design package, and it's just even better.


:: image via Treehugger

A couple of sexier and sustainable versions. Starting off is the Autonoma, via Treehugger, by French designer Mauricio Clavero: "This solar public lighting pole is totally autonomous and can be placed in any isolated area where electricity is not available. Built with power LEDs which offer lighting performance and energy saving it also can be programmed. It also includes a motion detector, so when a pedestrian comes close the light intensity of the pole raises to full power, and decreases to a third to save energy when there is nobody around. It comes in two versions : urban and country side."


:: image via Treehugger

Another, via Interactive Architecture, a "...wind powered streetlight from the Panasonic Center in Tokyo..."


:: image via Interactive Architecture

An oldie as well as a more artistic and poet gesture, which I still think has some positive ramifications for using residual EMF to power flourescent tubes... Tropolism led to Pruned, which led to a Richard Box installation called Field: "The project involved over a thousand fluorescent bulbs “planted” underneath high voltage AC transmission lines. Unwired, the bulbs drew energy from the surrounding electromagnetic radiation and lit up..."




:: images via Pruned

Just think of the potential opportunities for artistic expression, such as this gateway bysculptor Dan Corson created the Empyrean Passage... (via Dezeen)




:: images via Dezeen

Finally, via The Design Blog, some more organic and flexible lighting: "Created by industrial designer Doron Hadar, EcoTreeCity is an ambitious public lighting project that uses integrated freestanding solar element that can produce energy even in extreme conditions like the northern countries that get less hours of light. Thanks to a flowing independent form, the light can be randomly put together anywhere making each light unique like a real tree."


:: image via The Design Blog

Also, check soon for a related post on some hot in-pavement lighting options.