peter zumthor one of my favorite living architects

don't miss the exhibit about peter zumthor at lacma
which i will try to see again before it ends on september 15

and view his design for their new building
and the largest structure in central la

see his fascinating film of some of his other buildings
i have admired and blogged about him before
but when i saw the film of his works and got a more in depth view of his conceptual thinking and his execution and acuity of light and materials-it's a must see!

take the bruder klaus field chapel for example
"a mystical and thought-proving interior is masked by a very rigid rectangular exterior" by samuel ludwig

floor is molten lead

 "Arguably the most interesting aspects of the church are found in the methods of construction, beginning with a wigwam made of 112 tree trunks. Upon completion of the frame, layers of concrete were poured and rammed atop the existing surface, each around 50cm thick. When the concrete of all 24 layers had set, the wooden frame was set on fire, leaving behind a hollowed blackened cavity and charred walls."

Thermal Bath Vals, Graubünden, Switzerland, 1996 

he was trained as a cabinet maker and that evidence is clearly noted in his work

swiss pavillion expo

all lumber was erected temporarily and recycled later for other use

a building i most want to see

kolomba museum cologne

"Part of the success in this fusion lies in the simplicity of form, color and material that embed these Gothic-style fragments' from architecturalmoleskine

highlights from paris

i was fortunate to see a few great exhibits this trip

bouroullec exhibit at musee des arts decoratifs

i have been dying to see the rudy riccioti's canopy at court visconti in the louvre

just as amazing in person
while there couldn't help being seduced by the louvre splendor

while on the metro, saw a sign that there was a rudy riccioti exhibit at the cite de l'architecture
and i had never been and it was probably one of my most favorite museums in all paris!

the palais de chaillot has the spectacular architectural elements from cathedrals and chateaux in france as well as other fragments

and of course i am always marveling at something on the streets of paris when it comes to design

it' s so inspiring

tuscany mostly gardens

have been out of country for 3 weeks and seduced by tuscan gardens
my recorded highlights

lucca-a charmed city-less touristy then most and authentic

puccini opera house lucca

siena

 

such texture

of course the duomo goes without saying

a random midieval church in a small town

but the gardens are the most stunning ever
understated and spectacular

villa torrigliani in sant'andrea in caprile

i had the pleasure of being in a villa in the tuscan hills near lucca for two weeks so saw many wonderful gardens here are some of my favorite images

noteable grills

beautiful paving

moss growing over all stone elements

architects to watch

departures issue of home and design is full of fabulous finds
the may 2013 issue
article on the six architects to watch
i agree wth all
but these are my two favorites
 fernando romero of fr-ee

miami chapel

david adjaye

national museum of african american history, washinton, d.c.

don't forget my own personal list of architects to keep watching

joseph dirand

rudy ricciotti

haute normandie residence

peter zumthor

and about some great never built designs

Atelier Jean Nouvel, Tour de Verre, New York

Coop Himmelb(l)au, Strongoli, Italy

Dominique Perrault, Thermal Station, San Pellegrino, Italy

MAD Architects, Urban Forest, Chongqing, China

Tom Wiscombe, Busan Opera House, Busan, South Korea

also found in departures
i think they have a great shelter editor