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‘Mass to membrane’ continues to influence the future of architecture
August 1st, 2018
Nicholas “Nic” Goldsmith, FAIA, has been a major player for more than 40 years in the development of fabric architecture in North America and around the globe through his leadership of the innovative architectural/engineering firm FTL Design Engineering Studio, based in New York City. I’ve known Nic for more than 20 of those years, and […]
Selling shade, comfort and style
July 1st, 2018
Who could have predicted, even 10 years ago, that Amazon would have driven shade and awning companies, let alone everyday retail stores, into changing their operations to meet the demand for overnight response rates? Yet today, more than we’d like to believe, sales behemoths like the online portal Amazon and similar services have taught consumers […]
Choosing between fabric and metal awnings depends on customer needs
June 1st, 2018
If you have ever had to source sustainable materials for a building design, you know about rating systems like Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), administered by the nonprofit U.S. Green Building Council, (USGBC). The LEED systems consider the amount of energy used to manufacture the building material and the carbon footprint it leaves […]
Fabric structures defined by technology and sustainability
June 1st, 2018
Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) is celebrating the 30th anniversary of Fabric Architecture (FA) magazine. The inaugural issue editor, Gene Rebeck, touched on a number of topics that proved to be insightful, clairvoyant and representative of how FA (originally called Fabrics & Architecture or F&A) has been able to represent trends in thinking and practice […]
Textiles add mood and character to entertainment spaces
March 1st, 2018
Fabric and lighting have an ages-old relationship that elicits something visceral, and when done skillfully there's a quality to backlit fabric that nothing else can provide," says Eric Bury, director of project development for the Toronto, Canada-based custom architectural fabrication company Eventscape. Bury acknowledges that of all the construction materials his company uses to create […]
Acoustical fabric updates arts facility in Toronto
March 1st, 2018
Built more than 20 years ago, the Toronto Centre for the Arts' underused main theater needed updating. The solution involved reducing the overall size and upgrading the systems to create a more efficient facility. Designers of the retrofit, Diamond Schmitt Architects, brought Eventscape into the project to engineer, fabricate and install over 3,000 sq. ft. […]
Architectural shading systems find new markets
February 1st, 2018
Ever since the 1970s back-to-earth, energy enlightenment era of oil embargoes and the beginning of the environmentalism movement, architects and government officials have acknowledged the importance of making ever more energy-efficient buildings. It has been proven that buildings (the construction of them and the manufacturing of all the materials that go into making and operating […]
Retractable awning offers clear ocean views
January 1st, 2018
The Cane & Canoe, an exclusive hotel restaurant known for its unique blend of Hawaiian and Polynesian cuisine, is located in the Montage Hotel at the Kapalua Bay resort, one of Hawaii’s premier oceanfront resorts. Kapalua Bay, a 22,000-acre former pineapple plantation on Maui, has developed into a popular resort that includes two award-winning championship […]
Parking structure complements Atlanta market
December 1st, 2017
The Ponce City Market on the eastern edge of Atlanta, Ga., has aggressively aspired to become the fourth nationally recognized food hall in America after Chelsea Market in New York, N.Y., Pike Place in Seattle, Wash., and Ferry Building in San Francisco, Calif. The location for the market is the revitalized historic 1926 Sears, Roebuck […]
Smithsonian installation combines design and fabrication
December 1st, 2017
Nine ceilings represent notable American buildings. Since the 17th century (with the debut of the French École des Beaux-Arts), drawing has been the first basic skill taught to architects. This still holds true, despite the advent of computer aided drafting (CAD) and sophisticated rendering software. And today there is a segment of the architecture community […]