Inhabitat

BARRIER BENCH

by Piper Kujac, 07/31/06

safe: design takes on risk, barrier, philippe million, steel, MOMA

When societies undergo jarring events, fresh cultural expression emerges. For example, in a post-9/11 climate, our heightened awareness of security – both personal and national – has redefined the way we draw boundaries and deal with fear.

For the MOMA’s recent exhibition, SAFE: Design Takes on Risk, French born designer Philippe Million created this galvanized steel utility barrier to be a little more inviting than the standard variety; it may prevent passage, but it also offers a place to rest.
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GRASS WHEEL

by Sarah Rich and Jill Fehrenbacher, 07/31/06
Photo credit: Andre Forget
grass wheel, dalhousie school of architecture

If you’ve gotta run the wheel, you might as well do it in bare feet. Many of us are so busy being good little hamsters that we never have face time with green space. A group of students from Dalhousie School of Architecture — David Gallaugher, Kevin James, and Jacob Jebailey — decided to remedy this problem with a street-ready grass-lined wheel.

The wheel is of simple construction–just plywood, mesh, fishing line, and sod–but it’s loaded with meaning. On one hand, it’s a playful protest to the lack of public green space in Halifax. On the other hand, using sod for their material offers a deeper critique on urban greenery.



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C2C HOME: First Cradle to Cradle house underway

by NK, 07/30/06

C2C Home, Cradle to Cradle, Cradle to Cradle Home Competition, Green Architecture, Green Building, Sustainable Homes, Coates and Meldrum, William McDonough
above: entry by Coates and Meldrum

Anybody remember the launch of C2C Home a couple of years ago? It was an open competition for residential design using the values of sustainability set forth by William McDonough’s Cradle to Cradle philosophy. We were highly anticipating the futuristic housing that would emerge through the collaboration of forward thinking developers, talented designers, and dedicated contractors striving to reduce our living footprint. Having heard little in the last two years, we were thrilled to learn that the first Cradle-to-Cradle house is nearing completion in Roanoke, Virginia.

So which entry was chosen? And what fabulous design is about to materialize as a monument to the principles of sustainable living? Here’s a hint: the competition winner (pictured above) will not get that particular honor………



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COROFLOT v4

by Sarah Rich, 07/29/06

Core77, coroflot, industrial design

The good people at Core77 have just launched a new and improved iteration of Coroflot, their career and community network for design professionals. At Coroflot, you can create your own portfolio that gives you a personal URL and the ability to network with other creatives, seach for employment, or scout for new talent.

It also features “CoroSpy,” a real-time feed of activity across the Coroflot horizon. Check it out, build a portfolio, browse the more than 34,000 others — it’s all free!

+ Coroflot

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REVERB: New Book on Sustainability from Tricycle

REVERB: New Book on Sustainability from Tricycle

The award-winning sustainable design company, Tricycle, Inc., recently published an “anthology of the moment” about sustainability in the interiors industry. It’s called Reverb and features the collected musings and criticisms of ten eco-consultants, designers, and editors sounding off on where the industry stands today, and how design can be an agent of change.

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PREFAB FRIDAY: Tsubomi

PREFAB FRIDAY: Tsubomi

Glass house meets prefab sophistication in this upscale version of the modern shed by Tsubomi. The creators of Tsubomi have dubbed their structure the “aluminum space packaging system,” which speaks to the lightness and modularity of the design.

Glass and aluminum guard against the elements while maintaining a constant connection to the outdoors. But for those who like to throw stones, panels are available in an assortment of non-transluscent materials including lumber.


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IAN GONSHER’S BOX TABLE

IAN GONSHER’S BOX TABLE


Designer Ian Gonsher, a recent graduate of the MFA program in furniture design at RISD, offers a refreshing proposal for repurposing cardboard packaging with his origami-like Box Table.

A concept for encouraging the reuse of cardboard boxes, the Box Table is assembled from a pre-printed box with only a few simple cuts and folds. Gonsher writes, “By creating an incentive for reusability, there are obvious ecological benefits as well as greater product desirability with little extra cost.”


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MANUFACTURING IN INDIA WITH MICHAEL ARAM

MANUFACTURING IN INDIA WITH MICHAEL ARAM

Michael Aram is on the forefront of two of today’s top trends: eco-inspired design and outsourcing to India. For the last 18 years, he has been creating exquisite decorative objects like these bark vases and luna bowls made from recycled aluminum in India. He also happens to live there, so it’s not exactly outsourcing per se…

Nonetheless, with a flagship store opening in New York this October, we thought we would inquire if the location of his workshop helped or hindered the sustainable aspects of his business.

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GREEN BUILDING 101: Materials & Resources, Part II

GREEN BUILDING 101: Materials & Resources, Part II

Last week we dug into the LEED-H criteria for sustainable residential materials and resources. Now that we’ve given you the low-down, it’s time to get specific. While the variety of options and applications in this category can be overwhelming, it happens to be one of the easiest avenues for going green at home.

From decking and roofing to countertops and indoor paints, these are the places where the decisions are yours; and they matter. Read on for tips, resources, and product recommendations that will guide you towards beautiful materials that ensure a safe, healthy home.

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INTERVIEW: Paul Kephart of Rana Creek Part II

INTERVIEW: Paul Kephart of Rana Creek Part II

Last week we published the first half of an interview with Paul Kephart of Rana Creek Habitat Restoration and Living Architecture. Paul has brought his ecological brilliance to the design tables of some of the world’s leading architects. But it’s not just the celeb-scale projects that excite him. In fact, Paul’s enthusiasm is clearest when he speaks of Rana Creek’s public projects, and of introducing principles of sustainability into urban communities where nature is scarce.

Read on for Part II of Inhabitat’s interview with Paul Kephart…


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REFORM FURNITURE

REFORM FURNITURE

Much like a one-pot meal, furniture constructed from a single piece of material is efficient to make, leaves little waste, and offers plenty of room for variation and innovation. The new Reform collection of furniture at Vivavi is all made from a single sheet of ¼” aluminum, cut and folded origami-style into sleek minimalist pieces that would make Mies proud.

Impressively, the furniture uses no adhesives or hardware to hold any of the pieces in shape, and all materials are 100% recyclable, in case you ever need to switch up your decor. They could even be recycled into another piece from the Reform Collection, if you ever get bored with your table and decide you want a chair instead!


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LIGHT-SENSITIVE WALLPAPER

LIGHT-SENSITIVE WALLPAPER

The all-female Front design quartet never misses an opportunity to redefine the boundaries of the possible. Their portfolio contains a vast collection of staged interactions between science, technology and nature.


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FEUERWEAR: Bags and Belts

FEUERWEAR: Bags and Belts

What Freitag did for tarps, Feuerwear does for fire hoses. Launched earlier this year by engineering graduate Martin Klusener, Feuerwear creates three different models of bags and an assortment of belts from used fire hoses. All of Feuerwear’s products are extremely durable, given the strength of the hose — you could set these things on fire and they’d withstand the heat.


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SOLAR HELICOPTER

SOLAR HELICOPTER

We spend a lot of time talking about sustainability and design, but it’s important not to overlook the value of experiential learning — especially for kids. That’s why we love this Solar Powered Helicopter. The blades of the propeller have compact solar panels that store energy while the copter sits on a window sill, and then use it to make the propeller spin. It’s a simple lesson in the natural power of the sun.

We also love this helicopter because it’s …

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GREENING YOUR COFFEE HABIT: Ecotainer Hot Beverage Cup

GREENING YOUR COFFEE HABIT: Ecotainer Hot Beverage Cup


America runs on coffee, and Americans are a people on the run. Every year, we drink more than 100 billion cups of coffee and of those, at least 14.4 billion are served in disposable paper to-go cups. That’s enough cups to wrap the earth 55 times!

Traditionally, those paper cups have been made with a non-renewable, non-biodegradable petrochemical plastic coating. But all that could end with the recent introduction of the new Ecotainer cup from Green Mountain Coffee Roasters.

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FORTUNE BOOKMARK

FORTUNE BOOKMARK

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PREFAB FRIDAY: F3 Arquitectos’ Minga

PREFAB FRIDAY: F3 Arquitectos’ Minga

Our highly scientific reader survey revealed that you want to see more flying houses! So here you go – and as a bonus, we’ll throw in some heavy machinery. It is this very image of prefab that many of us dream about: a modern, elegant, minimal space, gliding through the air, gently touching down where there was once only a blank lot o’ dreams. The delivery guys plug in a few hoses, collect a signature, and drive away with a smile – just like the guys who delivered your washing machine.

In alignment with that dream, Espaciao Minga and the design firm of F3 Arquitectos have developed this compelling prototype known as the Minga. We’re a little rusty on our indigenous Chilean languages, but word on the street is that “Minga” means something along the lines of “an act done by a community for the benefit of a single family”.


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A ROOFTOP MEADOW IN NYC

A ROOFTOP MEADOW IN NYC

Talk about having your cake and eating it, too, a family in the West Village has brought a little country into the city by plopping a bucolic meadow and a classic front porch on the roof of their Manhattan apartment building.

With research and architectural planning, they figured out how to plant out a 1,200-sq-ft sedum roof that wouldn’t compromise the structural integrity of the building. On the contrary, it would offer natural insulation …

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THE NEW GREEN IS BROWN?

THE NEW GREEN IS BROWN?

The 92nd Street Y in New York hosted a fantastic panel discussion last night (7/19) entitled The New Green: The Changing Face of Environmentalism in New York. The participants (full list below) had many great insights into how a city known for innovation, but not necessarily environmentalism, is now marrying the two in a number of extremely dynamic ways.

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THE MATERIALIZED LIGHT OF PADLAB

THE MATERIALIZED LIGHT OF PADLAB

Look up in the sky: is that light a particle? A wave? A drinking implement? In the hands of super talented Los Angeles designer/architects Dan Gottlieb and Penny Herscovitch of Padlab, light is several thousand drinking straws, packed into a honeycomb to make a beautiful pendant.


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LOTS MORE GREAT GREEN DESIGN STORIES HERE... KEEP READING!

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