Kitchens

New York City's infamous Bowery is quickly evolving into a trophy case for Pritzker Prize-winning architects. First, SANAA stacked their blocky New Museum among the area's restaurant supply stores, then the rippling facade of Morphosis's new academic building redefined nearby Cooper Square. The latest modern injection into the botoxed Bowery is Foster + Partners' Sperone Westwater Gallery. Its defining feature? The elevator.

“Assessing the conditions of the nation’s public schools remains a difficult process,” says the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) in their 2009 Report Card for America's Infrastructure. The problem leading to this "D" grade seems to be funding. However, part of the problem is that we don’t know how much of a problem we have.

For those of you who grew up in the ‘70s, wallpaper may conjure memories of obnoxious stripes and florals that made you want to plan a great escape from your vinyl seat at mom’s aluminum breakfast table. I’m going to attempt to replace the outdated misconceptions that may plague your mind when you hear the word “wallpaper” and introduce a new perspective into your psyche: not only are today’s wallcovering options beautiful and environmentally friendly, many can truly be considered an art form.

Reducing paper usage has been one of the most iconic and understandable of the green movement’s mandates. The intricacies of forest management have remained obscure to most of us, however,  although forest management is the real key to preserving woodland habitats as well as our wood supply. Most consumers now recognize that it is an eco-friendly choice to look for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) label on wood products, to guarantee that they are sustainably produced … but what does this label mean, exactly, and is there more to the story of sustainable forestry?

In 2007, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. acquired Dow Jones, publisher of the Wall Street Journal. Within months, the announcement was made that the Wall Street Journal offices would be moving from their long-time home in the financial district to a building in midtown Manhattan, where News Corp. was based. The firm STUDIOS Architecture was hired to design the new space, which occupied 240,000 sq. ft. (22,297 m2) across five floors of a building located on the Avenue of the Americas.

“A tradition has been broken in Indian architecture. Too much has intervened, and modernity, or what is considered to be modernity, has now to be swallowed as a whole. Year by year, India's stock of barely usable buildings grows. Old ideas about ventilation are out, modern air conditioners are in. They absolve the architect of the need to design for difficult climate, and leave him free to copy.” – V. S. Naipaul

Buying a home and moving are two of those life events that are often considered to be extremely stressful. As you decide which house is right for you, the time, decisions, and financial commitment necessary can become burdensome. Once you find a home to buy, your concerns immediately switch to questions about it. Why are they selling? Is anything wrong with it? How much out-of-pocket expense comes with buying this home? Having the home inspected by a qualified professional prior to finalizing the purchase can help to address these concerns. A professional home inspection will also deepen your understanding of the property and give you some peace of mind prior to completing the sale.

Hale Pilihonua Connects Home, Land, and Sea

When most people picture Hawaii, pristine beaches and sparkling blue waters come to mind. teamhawai'i aims to preserve this image for future generations. For the first time, the University of Hawaii was selected to participate as one of the 20 teams in the 2011 Solar Decathlon, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Previously, Universidad de Puerto Rico was the only tropics-based team to participate, although this climate type comprises 40% of the Earth's surface. Not only has teamhawai'i strived to create a design that addresses the unique challenges presented by the tropics, but they also hope to cultivate and retain local talent.

It's a competition of Olympic proportions, but can an event dedicated to piquing public interest in alternative energy technologies draw crowds like a sporting event? The Solar Decathlon is a biennial competition established in 2002 and supported by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Twenty teams from colleges and universities around the world are selected to design and build solar-powered homes over the course of the two-year period. This fall, the 2011 teams will showcase their homes in Washington, D.C., for 10 days with free admission to the public. Visitors will learn about sustainable design and hopefully find inspiration to incorporate some strategies into their own homes. Following the competition, the houses will be sold to families or developers, used for research, or displayed at their respective universities.

Danish Broadcasting Corporation’s (DR's) new headquarters gathers all of their activities into one very large and diverse facility. Almost 10 years after the first competition, the inauguration of the Concert Hall (Koncerthuset) marks the completion of the new headquarters, aptly named DR Byen (DR City).