DESIGN

Lady Gaga & Barneys New York | “Gaga’s Workshop”

Just in time for the holiday season, specialty retailer Barneys has linked with pop icon Lady Gaga to present “Gaga’s Workshop.” The project has seemingly transformed Barneys New York into a Gaga-themed wonderland, closely associated with Santa’s workshop. The celebration features elaborate transformations of retail locations and windows, along with a plethora of unique Gaga merchandise. One-fourth of the proceeds from the special event will go to the Born This Way Foundation, recently founded and announced by Lady Gaga and her mother.

Air Jordan XIV | Pizza Box

If you ever wanted to build your own pair of Air Jordans the opportunity is now yours. Unfortunately there is a disclaimer; this rendition WILL NOT be wearable. A creative decorative piece for any residence, the Air Jordan XIV Pizza Box allows the purchaser to assemble various cardboard cutouts, with instructions included, to create a replica model of the iconic Ferrari-inspired design. Although the box itself may be the selling point, the actual product being offered for purchase is the “XIV Blueprint” tee sold inside, featuring the same cardboard cutout silhouettes graphically etched on a solid white tee. Unfortunately we do not have any official information on the delivery of this product, so be sure to check back in the coming weeks.

YTL Residence | Kuala Lumpur

Paris-based Agence Jouin Manku took on its first large-scale integrated architectural and interior design commission in 2003, when YTL Design Group from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, invited it to design the residence of a Malaysian power family.

Completed in the latter part of 2008, the residence is the ultimate expression of the taste, influence and industrial-scale capabilities of the prominent family whose entrepreneurial activities have shaped Kuala Lumpur’s skyline.

Three generations of the family inhabit the 3,000 square-meter residence designed to accommodate both private and public functions.

The building includes nine bedrooms, two family rooms, a family kitchen and a private dining area, a family library, a game room, a study, a public reception area, a formal dining room, a ballroom, chapel, 21 bathrooms, a swimming pool, two guest suites plus indoor private and guest parking.

The initial sketches exploring the owners’ usage requirements reveal resemblances to the boring stacked-boxes look still so ubiquitous in residential architecture. And while traces of the ”heaped trailers“ syndrome remain in the finished building, this is not the Jetsons, neither are we looking at EPCOT, Tomorrowland or the 1964 New York World’s Fair.

We are in the lush vegetation of a posh Kuala Lumpur residential area, and in spite of the boxiness of the structure, an elegant circular softness manages to permeate the sightlines and key details of the building, making it an agreeable part of its landscape.

Inside, prominent examples of this curvilinear elegance include the amazing staircases resembling the inside of a shell when viewed from above, and the round ballroom chandelier of 13,000 custom-designed undulating petals of unglazed cast porcelain biscuit.

The curved walls both inside and out have a functional purpose of providing privacy and enclosing each function gently in its own space. The overall sweeping feel inside the spaces invites the viewer in and creates soft, arching vistas.

The concept consists of three layers: the base for public functions, the ring for guests and the private house for the family.

The inside of the magnificent residence is gorgeous with its high ceilings, large windows and abundance of light. White color and natural wood are dominant elements but they allow the view from the vast, mostly retractable, windows to remain the main visual attraction.

The residence is also a wonderful study of contrasts between inside and outside, private and public, traditional and ultra modern, man-made and natural.

YTL Design Group of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was the architect of record. The Agence Jouin Manku design team included Patrick Jouin, Sanjit Manku, Yann Brossier (architect), Richard Perron (designer). Officina del Paesaggio from Lugano, Switzerland was in charge of the landscape design, and L’Observatoire, New York, USA handled the lighting. - Tuija Seipell

Images - Roland Halbe

Theatrical Masterpiece | Melbourne

Cities grow organically, and while some areas thrive and prosper, others parts undoubtedly deteriorate over time as industry evolves, social dynamics shift and economies fluctuate.  Many accomplished urban designers look at the multi-dimensionality of any city within which they work regardless of where a project is sited.

Ashton Raggatt McDougal (ARM) architects completed the design of the Melbourne Recital Center and the neighbouring Melbourne Theater Company helping to transform the formerly derelict Southbank area of the city to the dynamic district it has now become. The firm has been so successful in their designs of the two buildings that they have been honored with the 2009 Victorian Architecture Medal winning highest accolades in three categories for public architecture, interior design as well as urban design.

In a country where the two largest cities compete for just about everything, is Melbourne set to de-thrown Sydney for a higher quality performance space?  Granted we’re not here to critique Utzon’s Opera House, but we are prepared to say that ARM, in collaboration with Arup Acoustics, designed a dynamic and original 1000-seat performance space and 150-seat Salon.  “The fusion of architectural and acoustic design throughout the development of Elisabeth Murdoch Hall has produced a visually and aurally exciting hall,” a designer from Arup explains. “Based on the proportions of the classic shoe-box shaped European concert hall, the geometry has been enhanced to provide greater acoustic intimacy and improved sightlines for the entire audience.”

The design for the Melbourne Theater Company begins with the dramatic façade: 3D iridescent steel tubing folds and bends against black aluminum cladding – just as an actor brings performance to life against a dark backdrop. The interior is comprised of the Sumner Theater, a 500-seat hall noticeably without a balcony or mezzanine space, but still allowing exceptional site lines to the stage regardless of where your season tickets land you. The most striking element inside the main theater is the Word Wall – 70 quotes from different plays are illuminated when the stage is dark. The building also houses a full rehearsal hall that can be used as an event space or a smaller performance space, as well as a café and bar at the front of the house. - Andrew j Wiener

Wesley Townsend Kitten | The City

Wesley Townsend Kitten photography brings us a beautiful, year-long time lapse video of San Francisco spanning from June 2010 to August 2011 called The City. The project started as a way to photograph San Francisco in a different way, because of the staggering amounts of still photography over its long history. While the time-lapse video isn’t every single day, the artist estimates that around 250 to 300 hours of work were put into making the video over the year period. The film includes 28,000 frames and 85 different shots, with most places filmed around the city, without the help of a car. Enjoy Empire!