Gridskipper is hosting The Urban Blogging Awards.

They are currently calling for nominations, so get over there and GET VOTING for gravestmor in the Best Architecture Blog category.

Like, NOW if g-mor is going to have any chance at beating those prolific yanks…

In Gilbert Garcin’s photographs, a melancholic rotund figure, raincoat adorned, navigates and interacts with various environments. He may be on holidays or he may be lost. Occasionally he hooks up with a chick, but such romantic endeavours are not the concern of gravestmor.

“The Softness of Eventide”

“The Beach”

Like Jeffrey Smart’s fatman, he is an observer of a seemingly alien environment. However, unlike the more famous besuited figure, Garcin’s protaganist often participates in the making of his world, sometimes giving it order:

“Change the World”

“Space Conquest”

And other times getting all Balmond on its ass:

“Home Straight”

Am I going to go to hell for this?

Damn my clumsy paws.

Tonight, Miralles (sic) and Chipperfield engaged in an epic duel. Chipperfield, of course came up trumps with a quiet, relentless, somewhat ordered attack and now, for the first time in 32 years, Australia is going to the World Cup.

I am sure we are all familiar with this image - appearing as it does in the Old Testament, (The Book of the Skyscraper, Chapter 2 Verse15 to be precise)

For those yet to partake of the delerium, it was taken in 1931 at the Beaux-Art Costume Ball and features a bunch of New York’s architects of the time dressed as zoning a setback controls with skyscrapers for hats. That’s William van Allen in the centre outshing the rest with his spectacular deco leather and timber veneer smock.

In a similar, albeit slightly slicker, slightyl corporate, vein the IIDAM in Boston holds a yearly fashion where interior design firms partner up with suppliers and dress up as furniture.

This year, first prize went to the Gensler/Knoll team for a wonderful rendition of Saarinen Tulip chairs, table and Corb Vase:

Kneeling, the chairs skirts became saarinen bases and perched around the table they made quite the setting.

Second prize went to the Eames Eiefel chair rendered in plastic coat hangers:

It goes without saying that interior designers and furniture reps are always going to be better costume makers than architects - their tools are often softer and stretchier than ours. While some have mastered the art of the pliable, the supple and the parametric-non-uniform-splineal-splendour, our craft is generally one of hard edges. Thus, when clothing is attempted there is always an element of improbability and the ridiculous attached.

Which of course leads to CARPARCH - DARCH’s Dress Ups Christmas Party. It will be in the carpark of Tusculum, the venue for our first slidenight, on Friday 2nd December.

The Dress code is White Paper so get stapling, folding, ripping, creasing, taping, holepunching, scissoring, scrunching today, because it is only three weeks away…

All drinks and food are covered in the ticket and there will be prizes for best dressed etc.
Click here now to download an order form.

Previous Darch_DARCH+10×10x10+REMARCH

This is a general alert (RELAX. I’m holding things at a demure Elevated, Yellow) for all those that have visited Ronchamp in the fifty or so years preceding September 11 2005. For, before then ye faithful sketching hordes, Ronchamp ’twas not a consecrated church, which I guess until now made it just a humble shed.

The word is, that it was blessed in 1955 at its inaugruation, however it was not formally consecrated. Consecration involves the devotion of relics - Corb himself could have filled this role - the recitation of the litany, some incense burning, some candle lighting and the anointing of the walls and the altar. Without consecration, mass can only be carried out in a building with express written permission from the local bishop. It is unclear whether Ronchamp was given this dispensation, however consecration was carried out in September this year so if you have been there since the 12th you should be dandy.

I for one am not dandy. I visited earlierthis year and while I wouldn’t be so crass as to demand my 1 euro donation for the candle I lit refunded, it would be nice to know if the Chapel of Notre Dame du etc had some kind of scheme in place whereby previous prayers, solemn thanks, grateful silence and general goodwill to all peoples could be reimbursed.

DARCH is holding a forum - REMARCH - to continue the discussion on the East Darling Harbour Competition and its role in the future of Sydney’s working harbour foreshore. Part of the problem with the competition was that the architects were brought in too early in the process - before the Sydney Ports Strateegic Plan 2020 had been reviewed, the myriad of infrastructural and public transportural woes had been untangles, before an appropriate use for the site had been considered and before an adequate brief could be written. To this end DARCH has assembled a panel of pollies, activists and architects to discuss and dissect the problem under the watchful eye of eminent silk, Malcolm Craig QC.

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Entry including drinks is free for RAIA members and only $5 for non-members. The last DARCH event was massive, so make sure you RSVP as seats are limited this time around.

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If you have any issues you would like addressed or specific questions for the panel, email them to DARCH and they will be addressed on the night.

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Download a PDF of the flyer! Print it out!

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Previous EDH gear on gravestmor: Entry. The shortlist. Other entries. Open letter to the Jury. Slidenights.

Metropolis Magazine is holding a competition to design the Next Big Thing. They are offering $10 000 for the winner, which is to be used to put the idea into practice.

In 2005 there were two winners: Josef Hagerman proposed the Biopaver. A paving system in which phytoremediating plants - those that remove pollutants from the air - are seeded. And Alisa Andrasek introduced the Genware: The Algorithmic Library, a means by which engineers, architects, designers etc can wok in a more connected manner. The winners in 2004, Single Speed Design proposed using the dismantled pieces of elevated highways in Boston for sustainable housing.

Here at Gravestmor, I tend not to have too many Big Ideas, but well, wouldn’t it be great if one if you dear readers did? GET CRACKING TEAM!