JULY 29TH, 2010
By BUILD LLC
Whenever we travel we like to design up a TEXTURES series post – they’re just quick snapshots of the color, texture and grit that make places unique and special. They’ve been a ton of fun because it’s easy to grab a few photos with a smart phone and it makes us think a bit differently about our surroundings. We haven’t done one on Seattle yet and we’re opening up the ‘Urban TEXTURES Seattle’ to BUILDblog fans. So here’s the deal:
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JULY 27TH, 2010
By BUILD LLC
Lately on our travels we’ve been putting together collections of textures that jump out at us. It gets us thinking a little differently as we explore cities and places and it makes us more deliberate about where we go, what we do, and what we take photos of. On a recent trip to San Francisco we pointed our iPhones at some textures that communicated significant qualities about the place, time and conditions.
L: Inside Three Gems sculpture by James Turrell
R: Aperture of Three Gems sculpture
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JULY 23RD, 2010
By BUILD LLC
Shortly after the January 12th earthquake in Haiti, team BUILD did some serious research on emergency shelter and all signs pointed to ShelterBox as an excellent organization to put our resources towards. Their motto is “an international disaster relief charity that delivers emergency shelter, warmth and dignity to people affected by disaster worldwide”. Those are words that we could get behind and we’ve been huge fans ever since. Earlier this summer we sponsored a buddy of ours to visit Haiti for assessing structural damage; after being in the field and experiencing the disaster on the ground in Léogâne, he reported back that ShelterBox was indeed the real deal and was making a significant difference to people struggling with survival.
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JULY 21ST, 2010
By BUILD LLC
[All photos by BUILD LLC]
On a recent trip to Tofino on Vancouver Island of British Columbia’s west coast, we came across a hike through the rainforest of Florencia Bay. The hike was particularly inspiring because of how the raised boardwalk trail delicately snaked its way through the lush rainforest, leading the way to a pristine stretch of beach.
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JULY 12TH, 2010
By BUILD LLC
[All photos by BUILD LLC]
In this tidy digital information age (that we’re all getting a bit too comfortable in) there’s a new movement boiling up. It’s gritty, imperfect and requires a bit of elbow grease. It’s physical, authentic and most of all, it’s changing the rules.
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JUNE 23RD, 2010
By BUILD LLC
We had so much fun with the last textures post that on a recent trip to Alaska and Vancouver Island we couldn’t stop thinking about how the texture of a place should be unique and special. Texture should tell you something about the people, the place, the weather… and Alaska didn’t let us down. In addition to taking in some visual eye candy – consider how your favorite places have textures all their own.
L: Forest near Juneau
R: Glass façade of the Anchorage Museum
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JUNE 16TH, 2010
By BUILD LLC
Recently we did some traveling up north; to Vancouver Island, then up through the inside passage to Alaska. While the natural wonders of this part of the world are well known and well documented, we had very few expectations in terms of the architecture and urban design. We were thrilled to reach Anchorage and find handsome design, ambitious ideas and forward thinking construction. Admittedly, we didn’t think Alaska would be pushing the architectural envelope; however we found several project types that rival, if not beat, most of the architecture here in the northwest. Here’s our top 5, hit that comments button if you’ve got others.
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JUNE 4TH, 2010
By BUILD LLC
The death industry is a challenging place for design. When the subject matter of a human’s passing is actually dealt with in a direct manner, the design around death is typically conservative, traditional and safe. Familiar forms and customary protocols prevail, whether or not they are applicable to the situation. All fine and well if this is what a person wants, that is, if a deliberate choice is being made. As architects who have spent our lives thinking and breathing design, as individuals trained to understand the form and function of our physical surroundings, we have a difficult time understanding why irrelevant forms and outdated customs play such a weighted role in the final marking of a life. In our opinion, the homogeneous polished granite and plastic urns lack a connection with the deceased and create an unhealthy relationship with death.
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MAY 28TH, 2010
By BUILD LLC
…but it’s not always in the obvious places. Sometimes it’s worth skipping the art museum and the gallery walk, sometimes the best design is in the trenches. Recently we bypassed the formalities of the design world and spent some time down on the farm. We were entirely captivated by the design of utility trucks over the years and today’s post is a gallery of sorts – paying tribute to the timeless nature of good industrial design.
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MAY 14TH, 2010
By BUILD LLC
On our recent Manhattan trip we were struck by the texture and grittiness of the city, more so than previous trips. Maybe it’s because New York finally got a real coffee shop and subsequently our senses were running on all cylinders. Maybe it’s due to a couple of key exhibits in town at the moment. Or maybe texture is back in. Who knows, but we couldn’t keep our iPhone cameras in our pockets and for today’s post we’ve compiled the BUILDblog Urban Texture Portfolio.
L: 5th Avenue Apple Store with reflection of the Plaza Hotel
R: Metropolitan Museum of Art Big Bambu rooftop exhibit
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