Life...

I am back... at least I will try to be. It seems that this blog could really become for me a powerful tool/database for research in architecture. I am now on my 3rd week at FIU Architecture accelerated masters program. My journey as a student becomes more interesting and challenging everyday; I was very successful at Broward College both academically in the the architecture program and honors college and leadership wise as the president of the AIAS Browards College chapter.
I felt competent and strong, but I had a discouraging moment when my professor in my last year at BC turned out to be detached from the design process of his students and we were left blinded towards an idea of the future that seemed scary and unsure, graduating and the feeling of growing up and being thrown into the next stage of life means choosing your career that you will become a professional in the field, meant not having doubts of your capacities and decisions, it meant no take backs...

Now I jump back in at FIU, eager to adapt to the programs requirements and carefully observing my environment scanning for people that will become meaningful in my professional life and education. I know now that I cannot keep putting off research. I need to read, not only focus on what they can teach me at school, now I am an individual in university, it is my duty to create experiences and knowledge about my field to be able to define not only my principles as a designer but to learn from the already established names of my era to look up to someone and one day work for them.

So that is said. I will start posting about architects, their principles and their projects.

Tori Tori and Rojkind Architectos Design

      On December 19, 2011 I found the Tori Tori restaurant in México City and fell in love with the outside facade and unique interior design; I posted computer renderings of what the restaurant would  look like after it was built, today I have been looking for interesting doors for a project for my materials and methods class and found Tori Tori again and found pictures of the built structure that I found in this webpage: http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/9/view/17762/rojkind-arquitectos-tori-tori-restaurant-now-complete.html
I love the design and it just makes me want to go to Mexico and work there, but for now I will continue focusing on my education in the USA.

image by paúl rivera, © rojkind arquitectos

image by paúl rivera, © rojkind arquitectos

image by paúl rivera, © rojkind arquitectos

image by paúl rivera, © rojkind arquitectos

image by paúl rivera, © rojkind arquitectos

image by paúl rivera, © rojkind arquitectos

image by paúl rivera, © rojkind arquitectos

image by paúl rivera, © rojkind arquitectos

Project information:

Program: restaurant
Construction area: 629 m2
Status: completed
Design date: 2009
Completion date: 2011
Location: Polanco, Mexico City

Architectural project: Rojkind Arquitectos + Eseawe Studios
Rojkind Arquitectos: Michel Rojkind [founding partner], Gerardo Salinas [partner]
project team: Tere Levy, Agustín Pereyra, Raul Araiza, Carlos Alberto Ríos, IsaacSmeke J., Enrique F. de la Barrera, Daniela Bustamante, Daniel Hernández.

Esrawe Studios: Héctor Esrawe [principal in charge]
project team: Ricardo Casas, Basia Pineda, Ian Castillo, Karianne Rygh, Alejandra Castelao, Jorge Bracho, Alejandro Zárate, Marcela Muños, Edgar Sanchéz, Rodrigo L. Franco.

Design computational consultants: Kokkugioa [Roland Snooks, Robert Stuart- Smith]
Construction: ZDA desarrollo + arquitectura[Yuri Zagorin]
Structural Engineering: Ing. Juan Felipe Heredia
Facade engineering: Grupo Mas [ing. Eduardo Flores]
M.E.P.: Quantum Diseño
Lighting Design: Luz en Arquitectura [arq. Kai Diederichsen]
Audio & Video design: NTX New Technology Experience
Landscape Design: Entorno taller de paisaje
Furniture: Esrawe Studio
Kitchen: San-Son
Visualization: © glessner group [www.glessnergroup.com]
Interior Visualization Esrawe Studios
Photographer: Paúl Rivera


..................
All these names reminded me that the career I am perusing will become a job that will require team work abilities for all types of projects, there are so many creative people and making a good team creates great designs.

The Tangga House

The Tangga House is another Singapore’s dream home designed
by Guz Architects.
Completed in 2009, the 7,663 square foot residence is located in Holland Village, an elite district of Singapore that is famous amongst the expatriate community.
It is luxury single-family home.

I had already posted about this house on my last entry, but I looked at the link I have on the last post, and I was shocked how beautiful the house was. I fell in love again. So I thought it would be a great idea to put some of the pictures from the link in my blog to share with you.
The house has  a great design and beautifull bambu and unique wooden finishes which are very classy and in harmony with nature.

LOOK AT THAT CEILING!

wonderfull lighting !

awsome pool desing, very jello-looking !

great lighting and water ambient!

YOU HAVE TO LOVE THIS HOUSE <3

Urban 'Pop-Up' Bench

 The innovative and practical design developed by ducth designers Carmela Bogman and Rogier Martens,  'pops-up' from the pavement only when needed. Its design allows the space where it is to be multipurpose, as it adapts to the pedestrian's usage.   

The First pop-up installation can be found in the Quarter Lombok in the city of Utrec, Netherlands.

The design, to me, is something worth remembering when designing anything, because everything that man makes should be intended for the benefit of society and should be useful to the users. I think that architecture should also have in mind the adaptability of humans and the user friendly aspect of the structure.

Good news for me

     By the way following the journal-type blog I write, I will say that I am now the President of the Broward chapter of the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS). I am very excited and I will try and make the best out of this experience to benefit my comminity :) I am very happy to say that we had the first official meeting yesterday and we are going to start a design contest for a gazebo and benches so we can chose a design and build the design in the park :) I cant wait to start the events oficially in the fall.

Arquitectura Orgánica, de Javier Senosiain

Mexican Architect Javier Senosiain

                While watching HGTV, in the Travel channel, I was introduced to a Mexican architect whose work I actually have seen and posted on this blog... but I have to admit I never really researched more projects he has done, HGTV showed a house he designed called "The Whale House" or "Casa la Ballena" in Mexico City, the house is an organic structure in the shape of a whale that seems to swim in the grassy surroundings of its garden. The architect is Javier Senosiain, he is a professor in the National Autonomous University of Mexico(UNAM), his work is extremely whimsical and it reminds me of the indeginous artisan work typical of Mexico. 


The buildings are colorful and covered with distinct textures of colorful tiles and concrete; one of the Mexican artisan work that this buildings remind me of are the colorful folk art sculptures of Alebrijes (pictures on the left and below this text).









The Beautiful work of the Hiochol art of beading is used in one of Senosiain's recidential buildings as texture of the exterior facade.






 Beautiful work that combines with nature, reminding the human of its natural origins and honoring Mexican traditions and art work makes Senosiains architectural designs amazing and original. 

here is the link to the architects webpage, I am not sure if it is his real website or some fan that created it... its not the coolest of webdesign but Senosiain's work is worth seeing:
http://www.arquitecturaorganica.com/inicio_i.html



Javier Senosiain

Facade of the building "Nido de Quetzacoatl"