Materials

Materials are the core of any design. The new and coming rise of the electric car requires that lithium be dug out and used to power these new type of automobiles. Sure it seems like a great idea now but we are always running out of materials and design always has to evolve to work with what is at hand.

Milan

It's interesting to look at how things might become or how they might have been... Pantopicon wrote a blog about a new book being released about Milan in 2020, about how the city might become. It was written by Stefano Boeri and speaks about three different scenarios that Milan could have.

A forgotten art

Graffiti isn't always the most appreciated form of art that there is. Surely it is art though, Its a way of expressing yourself and an easy way to showcase your work. It reminds me of anime or cartoons. something that doesn't have to necessarily be realistic but still people can relate to. Graffiti the forgotten art.

Will Ferrell

So I ran across this blog about Will Ferrell exploring things that never where made but that we had, in a way, been promised. I remember watching Jetsons or Back to the Future and thinking how awesome it was gonna be when I got my own jet pack or flying car or what not. But, it hasn't happened yet... It's 2010 people where is my jet pack? Design sometimes offers things that aren't technologically plausible yet... Is design mostly imagination?

Media Art

I was watching an ad on the television about one of X-box's new series of games which use the Kinect. It's a new device which enables you to be the controller. But this technology can be used for more gaming.

An article on Wired points out that this new software can be used to create art installations. Microsoft has begun a new era of art which involves interactivity between the art and the onlooker.

Plastic Chairs

Plastic charis on there own are pretty simple creations. When first introduced the designer would be able to mould the chair into whatever his vision. But as time passed life became more automated and it was less about the design and more about making more faster. Well this kind of ruins design.

One designer by the name of Dirk Vander Kooij programmed a machine to produce a plastic chair out of one continues long, endless, piece of plastic. He programmed the machine to outline the basic design and layer it over and over to form a 3D plastic chair. In this way the designer has control of overall design but the production of it is faster.

Endless from Dirk Vander Kooij on Vimeo.

The Future of Architecture

The Taiwan Tower Conceptual International Competition was hosted in November and brought together 237 entries from 25 different countries displaying an amazing array of unique vision and talent. Second place was given to Sir Peter Cook and Gavin Robotham of Crab studios in London. There design was named the Tower of Droplets. It incorporates steel cages which contain live algea in order to produce biofuel.

A most innovative design it makes me think of tarzan which is a good think. I like how it incorporates both organic and inorganic pieces. So, best of both worlds architectural fiction becoming reality.