Super Colossal

By George! A call for proposals by inter-disciplinary teams for temporary art interventions in Sydney’s few remaining laneways.
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NASA’s scientists unable to wait for the computer to translate the series of data points into an image, plotted the results on strips of paper, coloured it in with crayon, and in doing so captured the first television image of Mars by hand. The close up of the drawing could pass for a piece of a Cy Twombley painting.
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If I was in London, this Friday, I would be going to the AA for ‘Thilling Wonder Stories: Speculative Futures for an alternate present‘. I mean, Warren Ellis? Geoff Manaugh? Ian McLeod? Vickto Antonov (art director for Half Life 2)? Peter Cook? Could there be a better way to spend a day?
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Creative Sydney has released its ‘Creative Catalysts‘ list; with 100 people in Sydney that promote and enable creative pursuits in Sydney. I am terribly excited to have been nominated and readers of this site will be happy to see the inclusion of Dan Hill, Eoghan Lewis and Simeon King, Rod Simpson, Andrew Frost and of course Magaret Pomeranz.
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Required reading: Geoff Manaugh interviews Jim Rossignol, author of This Gaming Life. 7,000 words ( ! ) on the possibilities of architecture in games and games in architecture.
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This is from 2003, but news to me. In responding to a shooting at Case Western University’s business school building designed by Frank Gehry, the SWAT team found that Gehry’s characteristically warped and twisting geometry put them at a strategic disadvantage: The distinctive design of the five-story building, which has no right angles and hallways that dip and swerve, complicated the job for police. “As the SWAT team entered the building, they were constantly under fire,” Lohn said. “They couldn’t return fire because of the design of the building. They didn’t have a clear shot.” Thanks Mr Gribben!
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Lego Architecture. I always thought Lego’s primary use was for the creation of architecture, but I guess when the lineup includes bioicles they felt the need to turn buildings into a niche product line.
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The space shuttle Atlantis and the Hubble Telescope in silhouette against the sun.
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Urban Islands 2009 – Sydney’s excellent inter-university winter studio on Cockatoo Island is happening again. This year with Geoff Manaugh, Mette Ramsgard Thomsen and Mark Smout taking the studios.
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Stuart Harrison’s review of the Parallax conference for Australian AR.
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Who would have thought — Jack Kirby wrote and drew a 10 issue comic series on 2001: A Space Odyssey that was launched simultaneously with the film. While it apparently shared the same source material at the start of its run, Kirby’s pop-cosmic style is a world away from Kubrick’s quiet detachment and it veered off in altogether other directions as it went along. Part 2 has the covers of all ten issues.
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Do you have a copy of Domus 923 lying around? If so, did you notice that the issue features a hidden fold-in puzzle? Not as funny as Mad Magazine but way more complex.
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DARCH is holding the second of their ‘remarch’ events this Thursday at the Institute in Potts Point. It will be a Salon des Refusés for the UTS Broadway competition, with 15 offices presenting their rejected proposals in 5 minutes.

Something like a live action version of the UTS Broadway gallery with a few special guest stars thrown in.

We will be talking about our scheme amongst a line-up saturated with talent: Choi Rophia, Philip Nobis, Searle + Waldron, Louise Nettleton, Colins + Turner, Hassell, Terrior, Andrew Burns + Hamish Watt, Studio R, Draw, Suters Architects, DNA Architects and Nic Moore + Daniel Fink.

REMARCH: UTS Broadway

Thursday 14 May

Australian Institute of Architects

‘Tusculum’, 3 Manning Street, Potts Point

See you there!

The results of the re-growth pod competition are up online. Congratulations to the winning entries. There are some good ideas in here. And thanks to Ben Edwards from 1:1 Architects for inviting me to be a judge on the competition.
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The UTS Broadway Gallery has been updated with a whole lot of new entries. So if you haven’t taken a look at it in a while, head on over.
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JG Ballard’s ‘Crash’ as retold as a golden age comic book. “Sorry, buddy! But maybe real ‘Pervert’ is society!” Via.
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Us

Tuesday, 5th May 2009 Tweet

While I get my thoughts together on Parallax, which I hope to post later this week, here is our new office photo. Erin made it just in time for my presentation of our office and its blog at the Parallaxed session at the conference. It leverages several technologies that allow us to add to it over time without having to pose awkwardly for a photographer. I am not sure what happens if anyone ever leaves though… Hang on, that’s right, no one is allowed to leave.

From left to right, and in order of appearance: Marcus, Erin, Sarah.

Australian Design Review is a new site from the publishers of Architecture Review (the Australian one) and Inside magazines. Very nicely put together. Check out the interview with Bjarke Ingels and the Parallax summary for a taste.
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Star Wars: A New Heap. Viewing Star Wars and 2001: A Space Odyssey through the minimal art of Robert Morris, James Turrel, Robert Smithson et al. Via @the_art_life
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Obscure Design Typologies: Life Guard Chairs. Baring no resemblance to the life guard chairs familiar to Australian beaches, these appear like a cross between leisure surveillance and some bizarre medical practice.
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mmmmound. Like ffffound but distilled to only, you guessed it, mounds.
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