Results tagged “architecture”

TALK: Join architects Andrew Kudless and Alex Schweder and "jellymongers" Bompas & Parr for a talk with curator Henry Urbach, about their work in SFMOMA's current exhibit, Sensate: Bodies in Motion, which is in conjunction with AIA San Francisco's 2009 Architecture and the City festival. The exhibition reflects recent debates about what bodies are and how they are met and mirrored by design.

Writing in the Chron, John King examines the current state of the Tonga Room preservation debate, in which preservation architect Chris VerPlanck is preparing a nomination package for saving the Fairmont hotel's pseudo-Polynesian paradise as a historic interior. "My preservation ethos gears me toward pop kitsch and industrial vernacular," says VerPlank, whose firm Kelley & VerPlanck is working on a 21-page report (link via Grub Street SF) to be filed with the Historic Preservation Commission. Unlike New York City, where places like Philip Johnson's Four Seasons Restaurant have been declared landmark interiors, San Francisco's preservation board doesn't yet have a protocol for preserving interiors -- only buildings, sites and landscape features. VerPlanck argues that the Tonga Room "represents a highly evolved and rare example of the so-called 'High Tiki' style," but King isn't buying it, playing devil's advocate and asking whether we should be saving anything that anyone claims a kitschy attachment to.

The Embarcadero Building

The Jackling House, built by California architect George Washington Smith in 1926 for mining guru Daniel C. Jackling, will be taken off of life support. Yesterday, the Woodside City Council decided, after years of fighting over the issue, that the 17,300 square-feet Woodside mansion can be torn down by its current owner, Steve Jobs.

In case you aren't tuned into City Planning and Architectural Preservation news, the SFBG has a new piece about the battle surrounding the possible demolition of 113 Steuart Street, which once housed the Longshoremen's union during a historic labor strike in 1934. It seems the developer hired preservationist architects Page & Turnbull to write up an assessment of the property which failed to mention anything about the historic strike or the events that took place there, and it was only after Supervisor Aaron Peskin and preservation activists researched the building themselves that Page & Turnbull amended their report. The Guardian asserts that this was a primary reason why the Board of Supes voted to reject Newsom's nomination of one of P&T's principals, Ruth Todd, to the city's Historic Preservation Commission.

A Glen Park home recently received an award for being so stunning, as well as its own article in the Wall Street Journal. The American Institute of Architects Housing Award, which is handed out annual to outstanding residential designs, bestowed local architect James Zack and Lisa de Vito with one of this year's big prize. The house, located on Laidley Street, was described by WSJ as such: "From the street, its four light-gray cubes, neon-green door and huge, perfectly square front window all look as if they could have been assembled from massive pieces of Lego. Inside, a three-story translucent staircase made of acrylic filters sun from the skylight up top to the basement below ground. Virtually every room of the 3,000-square-foot home has large windows displaying views of the city so vast they're sometimes harrowing." Gorgeous.

Don't you just love the call-and-response aspect of op-ed YouTubery? After posting about the persnickety trekkie upset by the scale of buildings in the 24th Century version of San Francisco depicted in the new Star Trek trailer, we got all sorts of calls, and mail, and comments. But we can't resist posting this special response by DocWha using a little piece of vintage SNL.

San Rafael-based Autodesk released a new web service called Project Dragonfly that lets users build virtual rooms, fill them with virtual furniture and appliances, and ultimately view them in three dimensions.

San Francisco is Sexy has an filthy post on the seven most phallic structures in San Francisco. (Which we came across at Curbed while drooling over images of the Paul Smith store, which cannot open soon enough. We pray to God Allison Speer PR isn't in charge if the velvet rope during the opening night party!) It's a great topic. So much so we couldn't help but think about all of the other structures in the city that resemble engorged penises. We would be remiss not to point out that One Rincon Hill is, and will forever be, the youngest hot cock in the city. The longest apartment building west of the Mississippi River surely would have come in at No 8. (Sutro Tower, by the way, came is at No. 7. Oooouuuuuuch.) Can you think of any others?

While we're soft on retail chains opening shop on Valencia, there would be a hair-pulling match tot he death if someone dared suggest removing the houseboats that line Mission Creek. You know, right across from that Mission Bay condomegaplex? They're gorgeous. And unique. And precious. And today, Curbed has a brilliant gallery of the boats. They boats underwent a facelift over the last few years, so they're worth a second look. And we wish there were more of them along the creek. Anyway, you can check them out right over here.

SFist commenter jacksevanroo's facetious reference to buying a geodesic dome in response to Larry Ellison's questionable tax break on his "functionally obsolete" compound, reminded us about this Silicon Valley geodesic dome home ("Brigadome") that went up for sale last month. If we could buy it, we would -- hippie stigma be damned! (Buckminster Fuller was the most under-rated genius of the 20th century, as far as we're concerned.)

"Architecture of Density" -- Fox Plaza Apartments

Certain blocks speak to specific eras. While the local architecture can play a significant role, perhaps the most crucial factor is intangible...one that can’t be defined. It’s a mood we begin to sense as we sift around an area - what we imagine it to have been like so many years before, and in the case of certain places, how little it’s changed in the years since. Mission St. in the Excelsior had us thinking 1972 or so. Country Club Drive in the Parkside had 1954 down pat. Sturgeon St. on Treasure Island seemed rutted in about 1987. Amethyst Way in Diamond Heights feels like 1966.

Protest over national vs. regional chains, the never-ending debate over the place of cars and bicycles in our metropolises, professional sports scandals, remembering a solemn day, and being issued a search warrant - it all happened across our sites this week!

-- Benefit Show Honoring Erno "Tattoo" Szabady: Local rock bands Slowfinger, DickDusters, and the Walker Brothers get together to raise money for a burial "niche" for well-known, recently deceased tattoo artist, Szabady. Show starts at 8 p.m. at Peacock Lounge, 552 Haight Street (at Fillmore); $10-$15.

We really enjoyed our sweet milk fritter! (above.) It was like a cream puff encased in sugar. Mmmwah! But we're getting a little ahead of ourselves.

Daly City's "Little Boxes on the Hillside"

Duck meatballs from the Oakland Tribune.

In artist Paul Madonna's weekly comic series All Over Coffee, San Francisco architecture—and coffee—seem to be the main characters. Beautifully technical drawings of SF scenes, combined with disembodied voices that almost feel like the city's collective consciousness, give an ethereal quality to the pieces. You can catch All Over Coffee every Sunday in the Pink section of the Chronicle, and it's archived online as well. Paul also updates his web site every Monday with a new free cartoon. This month, there are several ways you can get to know Paul and his work a little better. • Tonight from 7 to 10 pm at 312 Valencia @ 14th street, there is a Book Release Party for Paul's collection of past to present work from All Over Coffee. You can also buy the book at a discounted price from City Lights Books.

Spring is when we get busy here in the Ist-A-Verse. Very busy. But, after staying bundled-up indoors all winter, it's nice for us to be out, about, and collecting things to write about for you. Here's a glimpse at what's been keeping your favorite citybloggers busily away from home and out of bed.

We don't know about where you are, but it seems like spring can't decide whether or not to happen. Some days are warm, some days are cold, and sometimes you aren't sure which. Baseball may have started up (and soccer/football winding down) but it still seems cold out there. Unless it's not. Anyways, onto the -ists.

Sorry, we've become so obsessed with the upcoming Fake Question Time and those Yalie a capella singers that got beaten up that we totally didn't cover any of the other city news from today! So here you go:

Happy Holidays! Chances are, you're reading this the day after Christmas, back at your day job after all-too-short a holiday, and the last thing you want from us is stuff about the holidays. But that's just too bad. Because, see, here in the Ist-A-Verse, we do things ahead of time. It might be December 26 for you, but that's what you get for not checking your Favorite Local Blog on Christmas Eve.

The SF Opera revived yesterday its 2003 production of the Barber of Seville, with Nathan Gunn returning in the role of Figaro. 2003, you say? Indeed, smack in the heart of the Rosenberg era, which means a re-invented version of the popular opera, set in some period best desribed as achronistic, rather than anachronistic: the set is the star of the show, a beautiful, white two story house which spins on its axis to reveal here a bedroom, here a balcony, or downstairs a music room, or a doctor’s office. The rotating set allows the opera to flow smoothly without a break for set change (there is a 25mn intermission still), and the doll house effect is breathtaking, despite a few blind angles here and there.

Paging beleaguered Chronicle architecture critic John King! There's an article by Witold Rybczynski on Slate.com lamenting the lack of attractive buildings in San Francisco. We'd get more upset about this piece except, well, it's not like San Franciscans haven't been complaining about this for awhile themselves.

about the Westfield San Francisco Shopping Centre's reopening of the old Emporium space on Market and Powell this Thursday (the 28th). Cross your fingers along with us that the opening ceremonies will include Gavin cutting a red ribbon with a big ol' pair of scissors!