Shigeru Ban focuses on architecture that is created from re-used material such as shipping containers and paper tubes.

So imagine that you’re the city of Chicago, home to famous architects Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright and Mies van der Rohe. You are widely respected for having the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), a school whose architecture was designed by Mies and houses the masterpiece known as Crown Hall. Given other options, why would you destroy one of Mies’ buildings, even this minor one (which, it should be noted, is outside the Mies master-planned area of IIT)? Well that is what’s happening with the “Test Cell” later this week as it is demolished to make room for a new commuter line.

“If you had even a minor doodle by Rembrandt, and you weren’t forced to throw it in a fire, why would you?” another proponent of saving the building, Chicago architecture critic Edward Lifson, wrote on his “Hello Beautiful!” blog.

Given what Edward Lifson has posted on the subject, I don’t understand why they couldn’t redirect the line a bit to go around this site. I was there last year and there’s quite a bit of open space around IIT and the “Test Cell.” It seems a pretty intentional move to obliterate this structure. I agree with Lifson, the line would be much more interesting if it passed next to the work of Mies van der Rohe instead of through where it used to be.

I also know that Chicago is a big city and is going to have to increasingly balance the new with the old. In cases like this, the new just better improve upon the old. It’s hard to say that the new Metra station design is better than even a minor work of Mies. To read a thoughtful piece on why they are moving forward with the demolition, you should read the Chicago Tribune piece by Blair Kamin. The postscript at the end of the article makes some salient points on behalf of Mies’ grandson.

No matter what, a small piece of Mies’ history will be removed this week. If you live in Chicago and are a fan of Mies van der Rohe, get your photos now.

• Picture of the “Test Cell” on flickr

As some of you know, I own a piece of mountain property in the hills above Walla Walla that we use for camping. The property overlooks the Walla Walla valley and consists of an excavated flat spot, driveway, shed and fire pit – that’s it. The remoteness of the property and the fact that we don’t live there, has us constantly discussing what we’d eventually like to build out there as a recreational property. We don’t want to put up something that gaudy or out of place as most of the neighbors live in simple cabins or manufactured homes, but we don’t exactly love the idea of owning an uninspired manufactured home either. This has us searching out alternatives that don’t beg to be broken into when we’re not there, that can hold up to some of the extreme weather that rips through the area, and that still offers us our own little slice of heaven when we’re out in the area wine tasting, enjoying the local restaurants, etc.

I love the unassuming exterior of this cabin and how it doesn’t hint at the modern enhancements that have been made to the interior. The cabin is over 200 years old but was remodeled in 1997 by Andreas Fuhrimann Gabrielle Hächler.

A week or so ago, Jan and I went and visited an architect over at Hybrid Architecture to discuss a possible cargo container solution for our property. We came away pretty interested in something resembling the c320 Studio model (you’ll have to click through to see the images since they’re all glommed together into one image for the page). Again, we love that the exterior is non-descript (in this case, rather industrial) but that the interior is nice, allowing us to open up to outdoor living most of the time that we’re out in Walla Walla. We also like the idea of sealing the place up to become two impervious shipping containers when we leave.

[Cabin via Treehugger]

Lately, in strident conversations with friends, I’ve noticed myself returning to a particular viewpoint. For ease of use, let’s call it the “imagine everyone lived that way” view. When my friends discuss locavorism or transportation one of the first things I try to do do is scale the conversation to infinite participants and see where it breaks; not so that I can pooh-pooh the idea, mind you, but so that we can actually scratch below the surface and have a meaningful engagement around the topic. How do people in arid landscapes practice locavorism when their climates are being impacted by industrialized nations, their people are being starved by oppressive regimes, and there’s no reliable water? What do they do? Sounds like a job for “evil agribusiness” to me.

These types of conversations make many of my friends uncomfortable. That’s understandable considering that most of them live pretty well with generally high-paying jobs. They are perfectly content to spout the newest buzzword, beatifically discuss the merits of said newest trend, and go about their latte-hazed days. Many I know suffer from a self-centered knee-jerk liberalism. They really feel for the plight of everybody, but they do so in a way that’s skewed towards their own self-interest. Hey, I love locavorism because I live in Seattle and have access to some of the most outstanding produce and seafood on the planet. I wouldn’t feel the same way if I lived in Sudan.

I love my friends, I do. This isn’t about them, per se, but more about what see when I look at my observable universe and I expand outward from there. No prescription, just observation.

How’s all that for a really discursive means of getting to the fact that I really love this rehabilitated house project in Normandy, France? Franklin Azzi architects took a broken down old farmhouse and renovated it, largely in its existing footprint. Isn’t it refreshing when people who can afford to live large, don’t?

Before

After

For more on this project (including interior shots), see the following posts:

• Tiny House Design
• Franklin Azzi Architecture
• MoCo Loco

• Two new Roberto Bolaño novels (as well as a piece believed to be the 6th section of the 5-part “2666″) have been discovered
  “2666″ is one of the most anticipated books I have on my “to read” shelf at home. Based on the reviews, I know it’s going to be right up my alley. With that in mind, the news of new books excites me. The quote below shows the level of commitment Bolaño exhibited for his craft.

  Bolano died in Spain after spending the last part of his life in the Costa Brava region, where he worked a series of menial jobs including washing dishes, selling jewellery to tourists and as a night watchman at a campsite in order to support himself, a wife and young family while he pursued his literary ambitions.

• Exclusive Crank 2 Trailer on io9
  I didn’t see the first one but apparently people loved it. As a fan of “Death Race,” I ‘ll probably like it too. It looks nutty.
• Tor’s got a nifty post on Ryunosuke Akutugawa and how the visions that formulated stories such as Rashomon may have eventually killed him
  

  Akutagawa committed suicide by poisoning at 35, following a rapid descent into mental illness that in many ways resembled the madness of his mother. I suspect that a lifelong obsession about becoming insane creates a self-fulfilling prophesy.

• Yes, 32,000 square feet is a bit excessive, even when it’s as stunning as this Kuala Lumpur residence

The Television Cultural Centre by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture burned down in Beijing last night. Exquisite photos of the aftermath as well as the fire itself can be seen on Andrew Lih’s Flickr Album. While I don’t have any fascination with chaos and destruction, the thought of these urban symbols of time do interest me.

When I see movies set in New York prior to 9/11, and the city skyline proudly exhibiting the two towers of the World Trade Center, I have a visceral and nostalgic response to that time. Pre-9/11 New York City means something, just as the years of “the hole” at Ground Zero mean something. It remains to be seen how we’ll interpret the Freedom Tower once it’s completed. Let’s hope that it comes to stand as the changing of the guard, patching over the deep political scars of the last eight years. Let’s hope that in 20 years we look back at the new tower as the time when we turned the page and moved on. Given the current economic environment, our hopeful future seems to be, at best, fairly harshly attenuated.

I know much less about the Television Cultural Centre (which was due to open in mid-May) and while it’s certainly not a revisitation of the tragedy of 9/11, it must constitute a severe setback for a country which is rapidly industrializing and in need of new cultural symbols. How sad for such a symbol to be destroyed by the errant fireworks of revellers celebrating Chinese New Year. What a powerful metaphor.

Update (February 10th, 1:14PM): Apparently the Chinese government is squelching media reports of the fire in an effort to restrict public speculation. Sad. I’m glad that we can at least consider what this means from here.

Also, another flickr photo album of the fire.

NBC news does a short piece on tiny houses and tiny living.

At first blush I thought the thing was hideous and the video below didn’t help much… initially. If you can get past the atrocious elevator music though, you can see a pretty interesting dynamic structure and design which would be highly resistant to high winds and earthquakes.

I love this house on a Chilean hillside, particularly the way the house amplifies the view by opening its entire downhill facade onto the valley. The sloped deck leading into the lap pool may be a little bit of an accident waiting to happen. I can’t help but wonder if that would violate some crazy US building code.

The linear usage of wood which wraps the entire roof, back wall, and deck is also beautiful. Some great concepts focused on simplicity and taking advantage of the privacy and natural light.

• Literature: The image of Franz Kafka as a saint and a recluse is turning out not to be true. A new book explores Kafka’s porn collection and how it may change academic readings.
  

  Why You Should Read Kafka Before You Waste Your Life

• Architecture: I absolutely love the way that light and color interplay on the Planar House by Steven Holl Architects.
• Architecture: The plans for the Kilden Performing Arts Center in Kristiansand, Norway make it appear as if the building is a force of nature, rather than a man-made building. Striking work from ALA Architects.
• Art, Design, and Architecture: You’ve just gotta love a Big Bowl O Fire!
• Art: The work of Greg Gossel is explosive, poppy and just plain fun to look at.
• Architecture: Funny, broken Engrish but if you want to see something hilarious, watch the intro videos for the dome house. A woman dressed in Japanese school-girl style will walk you through it. You should definitely buy one if you live on Tattooine or if you have a Japanes schoolgirl fetish, which I’m guessing, is the same audience. Those sand storms can be awfully dangerous.