The UK
The Royal Institute of British Architecture (RIBA) has revealed the shortlist for 2012’s Stirling Prize. The UK award is presented annually to the ‘building that has made the greatest contribution to the evolution of architecture in the past year’. This year’s six shortlisted projects range from a theatre, a laboratory, a bank tower, an art gallery, a cancer centre and the Olympic Stadium. The winner will be announced in October.
The Six Shortlisted
2012 Olympic Stadium, London. By Populous.
Maggie's centre, Gartnavel, Glasgow OMA
New Court, Rothschild Bank, London OMA (with Allies & Morrison and Pringle Brandon)
The Sainsbury Laboratory, Cambridge StantonWilliams
Lyric Theatre, Belfast - O'Donnell + Tuomey
The Hepworth, Wakefield David Chipperfield Architects
Courtesy The Guardian UK
Japan
The Japan Sport Council has announced the opening of an international design competition for the redevelopment of the Kasumigaoka National Stadium. The stadium’s completion is scheduled for 2018, after which it could be used for major events such as the 2020 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, as well as another number of sporting, cultural and artistic events.
The current kasumigaoka national stadium
Courtesy JPN Sport
Christchurch, New Zealand
New-Zealand heritage advocates are asking architects to move away from non-descript ‘concrete boxes with glassfronts’ and instead rebuild earthquake damaged Christchurch through sensitive controlled design that will preserve the city’s architectural reputation.
“Designers need to get out of their comfort zones and their cubism classrooms and look closely at what is right for Christchurch and not what's right for their own personal statements,” says heritage commentator Rodney Laredo.
The new and old Carlton Hotel, Christchurch
Courtesy The Press
Paris & Rwanda
The 2012 Zumtobel Group Award has been awarded to an innovative MACCS Design Group hospital project in Rwanda and an integrated research project by Atelier d’architecture autogérée, in a socially deprived suburb of Paris. The recipients of the award, which was established in 2007 to encourage humanity and sustainability in the built environment, were applauded for the immediate relevance of their concepts, the involvement of the local people and the replicable nature of the projects.
Atelier d’architecture autogérée (France) wins the Research & Initiative category with the R-URBAN project in Paris
MASS Design Group (USA) wins the Built Environment category with the Butaro Hospital project in Rwanda.
Courtesy TheZumtobel Group
Malaysia
20 Malaysian architecture firms will showcase their innovative ideas at the 13th Venice Biennale for Architecture next month. Inspired by materials such as torn palm leaves, bent rattan and a Rubik’s Cube, the exhibit “Voices” is an ideas-driven showcase which gave the Malaysian architects total freedom to be as creative as they want.
These multiple ‘explosions’ of slivers of wood represent recorded sound waves of people in an architect’s firm speaking in different languages and accents.
Courtesy The Star Online
