Hollywood’s House of Modern Architecture Design : Tucked in the Hollywood Hills, this 7000 square foot piece of architectural splendor, which was designed and built by Temple Home, is not only drop-dead gorgeous it’s really, really smart. Packed to the rafters with top-end technology, it features ‘a CinemaScope theater, 7.1-channel surround-sound, intricate TV concealment, [and] extensive automation’ among other things. No word on how much moo-la it would fetch in the open market, but, as they say, if you have to ask you cannot afford. Contemporary home designs typically provide all of the amenities, conveniences, and comforts afforded by today’s technology. Read more about the property here. (more…)
A company trying to harness energy from sunlight and interior light to wirelessly power everything from cell phones to signboards now has financial backing from the White House.
President Bush’s program to help solar energy compete with conventional electricity sources will help fund Konarka Technologies’ development of flexible plastic solar cell strips _ material that could be embedded into the casings of laptop computers and even woven into power-producing clothing to energize digital media players or other electronics.
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Many managers of aging Canadian health-care facilities are beginning to see the benefits of changing old buildings into innovative and green health-care environments. This is exactly what happened with Ste-Anne Hospital in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Québec, where the clients and ARCOP architects – a joint venture with Cardinal Hardy / Provencher Roy/ Jodoin Lamarre Pratte & Associates architects (PCJA) – designed a long-term psychiatric-geriatric facility that feels like a contemporary home rather than a typical health-care institution. (more…)
“Texarkana was once home to numerous fraternities and lodges, and their meeting sites were important to the downtown scene.”
The large Masonic Temple located at 215-219 W. 7th Street was constructed in 1923 to house five entities: Border Lodge No. 672, A.F. & A.M.; B.T. Estes Chapter No. 263, R.A.M.; B.T. Estes Council No. 198, R. & S.M.; Texarkana Commandery No. 64, K.T.; and Border Chapter No. 211, O.E.S. It is a beautiful two-story building that presents the image of strength and permanence in its Greek Revival architecture. Its tan bricks have been laid in patterns to suggest Greek columns with broad capitols, and the roof eaves mimic temple pediments. Flanking the entrance are two fluted marble columns and above the door is a carved stone announcing that this building is the “Masonic Temple.” Green hedges cut in square forms march along the front and sides of the Temple.
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Because the country is in the middle of the international trading pool, cross cultural interaction and influences are inevitable from music to clothing to architecture. Turalba added that “architecture is about culture. Culture is about use of space and different people use it differently. Our own culture asserts itself.”
In addition, architecture is a noble and creative profession. In designing, Turalba said “you can discipline people or you can destroy the Filipino people though your architecture. It is being sensitive to the need of the person, to the nature of the person.”
She cited the inherent Filipino warmness and hospitality. Part of our culture is to welcome and escort family and relatives to the airport, which should be considered in the design of airport terminals. “A foreigner may not appreciate this but this is our culture. This is us. Isn’t it heartwarming to have all these people waiting to bring you home?” (more…)
