The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has announced a ten-year commitment to develop design and technology solutions for cities that address challenges faced on public health, sustainability, and resiliency to natural disasters. AIA EVP and Chief Executive Officer Robert Ivy, FAIA, announced the Commitment to Action at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting, where more than 1,000 global leaders are gathering to address the theme, “Designing for Impact.”

“This commitment by the AIA represents an all-out effort to demonstrate the link between building design and the health of building occupants,” said Ivy. “And it will enable us to bring the force of design to bear in the public health arena and debate.”

The Winnipeg Art Gallery has selected six architectural teams to be shortlisted for the design of its new Inuit Art and Learning Center (IALC). The Center will house the WAG’s celebrated collection of contemporary Inuit art, the largest of its kind in the world, and the Studio Art and Learning programs.

Selected from 64 international submissions, the six shortlisted teams are:

What makes a good architecture school? Clearly there is no single factor that comprises a good, or even a great, architecture school. Different aspects are important to different people. Students often cite access to well-known faculty members—otherwise known as “starchitects”—as an important feature. Professors and instructors mention their school’s outreach programs, pioneering studios, technologically innovative labs, and exchange programs. All of these are valid and important.

Of course, these factors must be weighed against practical considerations that include tuition, the cost of housing, and other expenses. Why? Because in Western Europe and North America, tuition can be measured in the tens of thousands. What’s more, in the U.S., student loans aren’t forgivable which means your survivors can inherit up to US $90,000 worth of debt. And if the current economy has taught us one thing, it is that it’s cyclic.

So before investing all that money, it’s important to determine how a school will help you succeed. What are the practical and critical skills the school’s curriculum will impart to ensure a) your professional success, and b) your personal success (that means your overall quality of life). Because upon graduation, the goal is to gain skills to support yourself well while doing what you enjoy.

Read our CASE profile after the break

Kickstarter, a site based on the seductive idea of “crowdfunding” – in which consumers collectively invest in a product in order for it to become reality – has taken on a life of its own. From straightforward consumer products (like a cool watch) to creative projects (Roman Mars’ radio show) and even to large-scale Urbanism projects (including an entire riverwater pool), Kickstarter has evolved to finance ever more complex, ambitious, and risky endeavors.

But are there limits? Can you harness the purchasing power of the public to “crowdfund” anything? To, say, design/build a city?

Well, if Colombia’s BD Bacatá building, the first ever crowdfunded skyscraper, is anything to go by – the answer would seem to be yes.

More images of the first ever crowdfunded skyscraper, BD Bacatá, after the break…

Designed by OOIIO Architecture, the Patchwork City Masterplan focuses on organizing the future growth of Linkoping, a city in southern Sweden with 100,000 inhabitants. The architects were challenged to experiment and explore new ways of designing cities, with all the complexities, sustainable construction systems and social cohesion aspects that a XXI st century city needs. The result is a contemporary city where the inhabitants colonize and personalize their own structure as they wish, crocheting their own city piece to generate a large patchwork all together. More images and architects’ description after the break.

ASAR Consulting Engineers shared with us their winning proposal in the competition to design the JAY mixed-use complex in Tehran, Iran. With the aim of a long-term plan to create a vibrant urban complex in a 54 hectare area site, their proposed response to these challenges begins with a public garden which improves the existing green spaces and plays a role as an urban structure to integrate the 4 different zones of the project. The program includes about 173 hectares of commercial, recreational and administrative activities. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Architects: Mestura Arquitectes Location: Lugo, Galicia, Spain Design Team: Humbert Costas, Manuel Gómez, Jaime Blanco, Carlos Durán, Josep M. Estapè Project Year: 2009 Project Area: 5,293.83 sqm Photographs: Andrés Fraga

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DawnTown, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting architecture in Miami, is announcing an open call for portfolios for their Design Build competition. Now in its fifth year, Dawntown seeks the talents of a designer or design team to create a low cost, innovative, and temporary installation in Miami. The competition is open to architects, artists, and all creative professionals. Designers can work individually or collaboratively in teams, with the requirement that at least one team member is located in the United States. Dawntown Design Build is made possible by the generous grant of the John S and James L Knight Foundation and The Miami Downtown Development Authority. Don’t miss out on a chance to be a part of this inaugural architectural event for Miami! Entries will be collected from September 17th 2012 to October 31st 2012, with finalists being announced on November 15th 2012. To register and for more details, please visit here.

Architects: Studio Elmo Vermijs Location: Island Terschelling, The Netherlands Design: ElmoVermijs and Arievan Ziel Project Year: 2012 Photographs: Gemma van Linden

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Architect: Wendell Burnette Architects Location: Ellington, Wisconsin Project Size: 5,000 square feet Photography: Bill Timmerman

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Design: Jason Kelly Johnson & Nataly Gattegno at Future Cities Lab Team: Ripon DeLeon (lead), Osma Dossani, Jonathan Izen, assisted by David Spittler Client: ZERO1, San Jose Public Art Program, National Endowment for the Arts Consultant: Elliot Larson created the Twitter trends [xml link] Technology: Text to Speech Module by TextSpeak, Arduino Mega and Uno, WiFly Shield by Sparkfun, Verizon Mifi, LCD panels by Sparkfun, LEDS by superbrightleds.com, IR sensors by Sharp Photography: Peter Prato

As we announced earlier, Pritzker Prize Laureate Wang Shu of Amateur Architecture (China), Rahul Mehrotra of RMA architects (India) and Francine Houben of Mecanoo (The Netherlands) participated in GREENHOUSE TALK at the 2012 Venice Biennale. The informal discussion focused on the current reality of design culture in the great countries of Eastern Asia and Europe.

The video begins with an introduction (in Italian) by architect and Senior curator of MAXXI Roma, Pippo Ciorra, which then leads into some fascinating commentary (in English, with Italian subtitles) by the highlighted protagonists.

The GREENHOUSE TALK event was promoted by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Rome, in collaboration with MAXXI and NAi. 

Architects: Charles Rose Architects Inc. Location: Waltham, MA, USA Project Year: 2009 Project Area: 24,000 sq ft Photographs: John Linden, Peter Vanderwarker

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This week we propose a classic from the ’80s by Terry Gillian. Brazil is a film where he shows his vision of the future generated by societies’ bureaucracy and organisation entities. In many ways, it depicts some, nowadays, facts of rigid urban spaces that do not allow individuality or any kind of freedom.

What do you think about architecture representing or being the result of social organisations? Let us know your ideas about this subject, as always, we’re waiting for your comments and suggestions.

Architects: Atelier Feichang Jianzhu Location: Dayi, Sichuan, China Architect In Charge: Liu Lubin Project Team: Wu Xia, Guo Qingmin, Liang Xiaoning, Feng Bo Project Year: 2009 Project Area: 2114.0 sqm Photographs: Yang Cao

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ArchDaily’s Architecture App Guide will introduce you to web and mobile apps that can help you as an architect: productivity, inspiration, drafting, and more.

Today we introduce you Morpholio Trace, an intuitive drafting tool that brings one of the most frequent tools from our desk to a mobile touch device: the tracing paper. The app, developed by our friends from The Morpholio Project, lets you draw on top of images (imported from your iPad camera or other sources) as if you were using tracing paper. A collapsible menu provides you basic set of tools (add more layers, choose from two colours, three widths, save) that enable you to to draft, sketch and review. No fancy fatures, just what you need. Functional minimalism that is not often found in many apps, related to the architectural background of Trace’s creators.

Trace, essential to any design or creative process, allows users to instantly draw on top of imported images or background templates, layering comments or ideas to generate immediate, intelligent sketches that are easy to circulate.  

I tested the app, which is available at the App Store, and it was very intuitive to use. I used it with both my fingers and with a my Pogo Sketch pen, and it was very easy to grab a photo, put a tracing paper on top of it, start sketching on different layers and send it via email.

The app won’t replace the good old tracing paper we have in our boards, but will rather extend its functions and make it more collaborative.

More info from the creators after the break.

The call for entries was recently announced for the ninth annual Travel + Leisure Design Awards. Honoring the best design in the world across twelve categories completed in the past year, the winners are honored in a feature spread in our March issue as well as online. Winners will be chosen by a panel of outstanding experts in their fields, including architect Deborah Berke, chef and restaurateur Marcus Samuelsson and fashion designer Reed Krakoff. The deadline to apply is Oct. 1. To register and for more information, please visit here.

Architects: Frei + Saarinen Architekten Location: Zurich, Switzerland Design Team: Barbara Frei, Martin Saarinen; Nicolaj Bechtel, Stefan Wülser, Corina Trunz, David Winzeler, Bastien Turpin Client: Roman-Catholic Church Zurich Build Area: 1,200 m2 Usable Area Finishing Material: Floor / Wall / Ceiling Floor: Brushed, Coloured and Sealed Parquet (Oak) Completion: 2010 Photographs: Hannes Henz & Frei + Saarinen Architekten

Vessel is a site-specific response to the theme of Common Ground – a wooden structure, composed of a stacked planks, that works in conversation with the layered brick construction of the Arsenale. Irish architects O’Donnell + Tuomey have created a contemplative space, hollowed out of solid matter, that is at once a light funnel, a lantern chamber, and a passage.

This past weekend, we were invited to attend The Architectural League’s Beaux Arts Ball 2012: Tender at One Hanson Place. Despite the unforgiving weather forecast, hundreds came to share in an evening of great company set within the beautiful 1929 Halsey, McCormack & Helmer’s landmark Williamsburgh Savings Bank. In typical architectural fashion, the former main banking hall was a complete sea of chic black outfits (okay, okay, there were a few dashes of color), underneath a silver pillow-like floating installation designed by SOFTlab.

More after the break.

Architects: Alarcón + Asociados Location: Avda. Punto Es, 4. 28805 Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain Associated Architect: Cristina Álvarez Project Year: 2012 Photographs: Pablo Cruz, Luis García Craus, Courtesy of Alarcón + Asociados

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Architects: Daniel Mòdol Location: Plaza Pere Torrent S/Nº Lloret de Mar‐Girona‐Spain Project Year: 2010 Photographs: Jordi Bernadó

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