Green Scene

Critic, Diane Dewey, Reviews the New Salvador Dali Museum, St. Petersburg, Florida

If you are concerned about the numerous fake Salvador Dali signatures floating around, here’s another one to consider: located at the top of the Yann Weymouth designed, (HOK, http://www.hok.com/) the Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida, this one is etched in reinforced concrete. Distinguishing the planar façade of the building – what amounts to a hurricane proof bunker – the signature asserts individuality. Another human touch emanates from the building entrance where a living wall of plants and the fountain of youth, courtesy of Dali, greet you. Is this new iteration more vital than The Dali Museum’s former location? fine arts magazineMore

New York City Architect, William Green, Takes a Critical look at Our ‘Built Environment’

urban architecture artes fine arts magazine — A mid-20th century architectural rendering for urban renewal

“E xcept man, nobody lies. A rosebush cannot lie. It has to produce roses; it cannot produce marigolds — it cannot deceive. It is not possible for it to be otherwise than it is. Except man the whole existence lives in truth. Truth is the religion of the whole existence — except man. And the moment a man also decides to become part of existence, truth becomes his religion.” –Indian Mystic, Osho

Architectural Forensics is a term to describe how it is that the ‘built environment’ perfectly expresses the intrinsic quality of any society’s sociological, economic, and political nature. In the search for truth, the parsing of concepts, deliberation of ideas, or the use rhetorical analysis to glean the essence of our reality pales in comparison to the truth at it is revealed by the world which we have wrought; and with this fact, there can be no mistake or equivocation. fine arts magazineMore

Norwegian Architects, Jensen & Skodvin Create Woodland Escape with Minimal Environmental Impact

ARTES: This is such an unusual structure, projecting so much of the natural beauty of its surroundings, that it attracted my attention at a recent Scandinavia House exhibition in New York. I just had to contact you. Tell me a bit about the inspiration for the Juvet Landscape Hotel.

J&S: The Juvet Landscape Hotel is located at Valldal, near the town of Åndalsnes in north-western Norway. Passing tourists are attracted by a spectacular waterfall, in a deep gorge near the road in Gudbrandsjuvet. The client, Knut Slinning, is a local resident. The idea emerged as an opportunity to exploit breathtaking scenery with minimal intervention, allowing locations which would otherwise be prohibited for reasons of conservation. fine arts magazineMore

Photographer, Alex Maclean Documents Two Threatened Settings in Unlikely Parallel

At first glance, the only similarity between Vegas and Venice is that they both begin with the letter V. Look closer though, and you’ll see another parity—they’re both vanishing. Pilot, trained architect, and fine art aerial photographer, Alex Maclean, sees a disturbing beauty in these doppelgangers. Disturbing because of the environmental destruction these two iconic cities are experiencing, even though their impending demise is at the extreme ends of environmental catastrophe: drowning and desertification. But he beholds remarkable beauty there, too; because he brings to his task no preconceived ideas of what the lay of the land should be. From the sky, he surveys beauty wherever he finds it- even in the most unlikely settings. Fine Arts Magazine

Above: Alex Maclean, Las Vegas, Housing subdivision built out in the desert, from his solo exhibition, ‘Vegas-Venice’More

Faithful Restoration of Rhode Island Architectural Landmark by Centerbrook Architects

Fine Art Magazine — The original Ocean House, Bluff Ave. view at the turn of the last century

More than half a dozen grand hotels once graced the Watch Hill, peninsula on the western shore of Rhode Island, but a decade ago only one remained, Ocean House, an aging and ailing wooden behemoth whose top floors had been condemned for years. Odds were increasing that this iconic landmark, its era long past, would soon vanish like the rest.

By 2003, bumper stickers around Watch Hill implored “Save Ocean House.” The 1868 renowned, resort, ocean front hotel, where the silent movie “American Aristocracy” starring Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. was filmed, had just closed for good. Its future was manifestly uncertain. If Ocean House was torn down, could a litter of McMansions be far behind? Fine Art MagazineMore

Canada’s, Sable Island Wild Horses, Subject of Roberto Dutesco Photography

This is the tale of a man and an island—and how, in the course of time, their stories became entwined. It is also a tale of devotion to a craft, passion for a cause, and the recognition that sometimes, when we least expect it, fate charts an unexpected course for each of us.

The man is Roberto Dutesco, a Romanian-born photographer splitting his time between New York City, Montreal, Canada and San Paulo, Brazil. The island is Sable, a tiny spit of sand in the North Atlantic, far removed from civilization as we know it. The passion is Dutesco’s concern for the preservation of the island and its wild horses. As for devotion to a craft—that is manifest in his photographic studies of the horses, which are on exhibit at the SoHo, Wild Horses Gallery, in New York City.More

New York & Connecticut Architectural Firms Exhibit Green Building Solutions

Contemporary art is the art of our times. Although time can seem linear, exacting and in some ways predictable, life today can nevertheless feel chaotic and filled with contradictory agendas. Health issues, economic woes, war and global warming seem to headline the news constantly. Artists, sensitive to their surroundings, perceive these sudden shifts as critical matter deserving of attention and often attempt to address them before their importance fades. Occasionally, the realities of today’s world are skillfully combined with the sensitivity of the artistic perspective. Connecticut’s, Sacred Heart University, Gallery of Contemporary Art, addresses this union of aesthetics and technology in its current exhibition, The Art of Sustainable Architecture, in meaningful and dramatic ways.

“Sustainability is a topic of our time,” Sophia Gevas, SHU’s gallery director, says with conviction. “We can no longer ignore the environmental challenges our world is facing. These problems are real and there are real solutions that are both beautiful and quantifiably which can make a difference in our quality of life.”

above: Exterior Facade & Courtyard of the General Theological Seminary, NYC
Architect: Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners. Photo Credit: Fed Charles
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Green Architecture Company Works with UNICEF to Build African Schools

Grain Storage Huts in Nigeria. photo courtesy Patricia Thrane

“It takes a village to raise a child,” is the oft quoted ancient African proverb when discussing education and building community. Partners for Architecture, an architecture firm in Stamford, CT, that bases its mission on this core value, flew into action when approached by UNICEF (the United Nations Children’s Fund) in October 2008 to create one master plan for eighty schools to be built across the borders of four civil-war ravaged African countries: Republique de Guinea, Côte D’Ivoire, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. The LAB4LAB (Learning Along Borders for Living Across Boundaries) project objective is to ease conflict by creating safe places of community education and social activity to stimulate development and interdependence between the countries. A goal easier said than done, Partners for Architecture’s role was to translate this utopian concept into a real, physical solution within six weeks time.More

Clifton Monteith Creates Rustic Art Nouveau Furniture from the Heart

Michigan native and artist, Clifton Monteith, feels at home in Japan, understanding the subtle complexity and silent social consciousness that links custom and culture there. This affection is rooted in his earliest memories of a much-admired Japanese silk embroidery and a Chinese rosewood cradle in his grandparents’ home and in the exercise of his craft, which has been a life-long commitment.

(left: Clifton Monteith with a hand-crafted lantern)

“My work is not about the easiest way of working. It relates to the ancient Shinto concept of spirit being in all things – wind, water, stone, wood. I have grown to believe that consciousness is vested in our work and translates to the experience of others who participate with the work when it is done, whether I know them or not. That my work’s process is slow bothers me not as much as if it were hurried and embodied less consciousness.” – Clifton MonteithMore

Randall Whitehead’s High-Tech Lighting Solutions Transform a Traditional Home

whitehead ext_trad — Exterior: Traditional homes reap benefits from energy conscious. Here, exterior lanterns use two 8 watt CCFL by Litetronics, providing 45 watts of light, lasting 25,000 hrs. Resembling standard household bulbs, they dim with a standard incandescent dimmer.

Our California-based lighting expert explains a remodeling project in dramatic before/after images that is both earth friendly and cost effective

People are constantly being hit over the head with green design. In these hard economic times homeowners are not moving into the next bigger house but are instead staying put and investing their hard-earned…if somewhat deflated…equity into upgrading their present residences. Energy efficient lighting plays a big role, especially here in California where Title 24 requires the use of high efficacy lighting in kitchens, bathrooms and outdoor areas.

Design magazines looking to remain current offer up contemporary architectural layouts and stark, eye-catching interiors. While it’s true that futuristic design and green design seem to go hand-in-hand, it’s not for everyone. How does the owner of a more traditionally styled house make use of today’s earth friendly lighting and interior design techniques? Can progressive lighting design be applied to non-cutting edge spaces to enhance the sense of warmth and comfort that these cozy interiors inspire? Absolutely!More