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Distinctive exterior fabric shade sculptures
November 1st, 2012
Tensile Shade Products’ SUNAMI II™, recently installed in Pierce’s Park, at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, extends the shade structure company’s line of pre-engineered exterior fabric shade sculptures. The distinctive curved frame and double curved canopy of SUNAMI II follows the dynamic form of the SUNAMI I™, and comes in many colors. The original five-pointed SUNAMI I […]
Foldable shade fills a market niche
November 1st, 2012
En-Fold roof from Uni-Systems, is a new high-performance retractable roof system designed for large commercial applications such as outdoor dining areas, outdoor event centers, pool decks and sports facilities. The En-Fold system fills a market niche between off-the-shelf and custom one-off retractable membrane structures. Uni-Systems, a leader in the design and integration of large-scale, high […]
Canopies reflect restaurant’s Latin beat
November 1st, 2012
A Cuban café in Florida brings rhythm to the streets, under shade. Emilio and Gloria Estefan know how to treat their guests. Bring lots of interesting people together, provide good food and drink, and mix in generous amounts of top-quality music—Latin music, of course. The Estefans’ new Bongos Cuban Café is a classic supper club […]
Eco-friendly structures upgrade historic buildings
November 1st, 2012
A Staten Island museum teaches while going green. At the northern end of Staten Island, N.Y., is a cozy community called Snug Harbor where a recent upgrade of historic buildings for the Staten Island Children’s Museum (SICM) has been pulling in visitors with its new educational facilities. The SICM is part of the largest ongoing […]
Innovative and inspiring tents
November 1st, 2012
Small tents push the envelope with high-tech materials. By Glenn W. Strand Ultralight backpacking has gained enthusiastic and nimble participants, even faster than its innovative minimalist gear’s weight has dropped. Tents, usually the heaviest but most critical system carried by backpackers, have been one of the first places to cut weight. At this year’s annual […]
Fabric architecture’s material origins
November 1st, 2012
The fascinating and often surprising histories of today’s fabric manufacturers. By Frank Edgerton Martin Many of today’s leaders in industrial fabric began their corporate lives by making something else—mirrors, chemicals, conveyor belt and metal cables. Yet if we consider how these companies grew over the last several centuries, we soon discover that the manufacturing histories […]
Awning study offers cool solutions
November 1st, 2012
A new awning energy study shows residential cooling energy savings across the U.S. By Michelle Sahlin The Professional Awning Manufacturers Association’s (PAMA) Awning Energy Study 2012: The Impact on Energy Use and Peak Demand of Awnings and Roller Shades in Residential Buildings provides data on how the use of awnings and roller shades affects cooling […]
Spontaneous Interventions wows Italian cognoscenti
November 1st, 2012
U.S. design contingency wowed at 13th International Architecture Exhibition of la Biennale di Venezia. By Mason Riddle What’s not to like about Venice? Not much if you are the Institute for Urban Design (IFUD) and your project, Spontaneous Interventions: Design Actions for the Common Good, just won the 2012 Special Mention Award at the 13th […]
Swiss art sees the light
November 1st, 2012
Visitors to the Art House Uri, Altdorf, Switzerland, can now experience their art under a new modular illuminated fabric ceiling system by Sefar Architecture. As part of a recent expansion project to the museum, the Art House Uri gallery is a permanent home for the works of local artist Heinrich Danioth. The Uri ceiling, designed […]
Reinventing architecture with fabric
November 1st, 2012
Dutch artist and designer Petra Blaisse believes in “the reanimation of desolate buildings,” and her latest “intervention” at the 13th International Architecture Exhibition in Venice, Italy, uses daylight, shadow and space-transforming curtains to bring a vacant exhibit space new life. Blaisse founded Inside Outside, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, a design studio that specializes in textiles, light […]