On Saturday, March 24, the Farnsworth Art Museum will be presenting a panel discussion entitled The Homestead Architects. The architects and architectural designers participating in the panel discussion will present and discuss their re-envisions of a modern day homestead located in downtown Rockland.

Rockland, Maine (PRWEB) March 16, 2012

For the exhibition The Homestead Project, ten architectural firms have been asked to present their designs for a house on the same lot as the existing Homestead, one that meets the needs of a twenty-first century Farnsworth family. The architects and architectural designers participating in the panel discussion will present and discuss their re-envisions of a modern day homestead located in downtown Rockland.

The architects and architectural designers participating in the panel are:

The fee for the discussion is $8 for members and $10 for nonmembers. For more information or to make a reservation, please contact the museums Education department at 207-596-0949 or online at farnsworthmuseum.org/education.

After the discussion, the Farnsworths newest membership group, The Collective, will be hosting Art Trivia 101 with a Twist! at the future home of Fog Bar, 328 Main Street in Rockland. Those interested in reserving a spot for a team of up to 6 players should contact the Membership Department at 207-596-6256. The fee for the Trivia is as follows: Collective members play for free, Farnsworth members $5, nonmembers $10. This Collective event is sponsored by Bangor Savings Bank and Fog Bar.

The Homestead Project is made possible through the generous support of: A.E. Sampson & Son, Anonymous, Bench Dogs, Inc., Cold Mountain Builders, J.C. Stone Inc., Marvin Windows and Doors, Thos. Moser Fine Furniture, Tidewater Millwork, and Windsor Chairmakers. The primary media sponsor for the exhibition is Maine Home + Design.

David Troup Farnsworth Art Museum 207-596-6457 128 Email Information

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Farnsworth Presents a Panel Discussion: The Homestead Architects

MONTREAL, March 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - GENIVAR Inc. (TSX: GNV.TO - News) ("GENIVAR" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that Smith Carter Architects and Engineers Inc. and Smith Carter (USA) LLC (collectively referred to as "Smith Carter"), international leaders in the areas of integrated architectural design and engineering, are joining the GENIVAR team. Headquartered in Winnipeg and with offices in Calgary, Ottawa, Atlanta and Washington, DC, Smith Carter has a workforce of some 190 employees and has designed some of the world's most complex buildings in some of its most challenging environments.

Scott Stirton, Smith Carter's current Chief Executive Officer, will be joining GENIVAR's National Leadership Committee, where he will play a key role in developing an architectural platform. All of Smith Carter's partners applaud this transaction and will become GENIVAR shareholders.

Smith Carter's core specialities are designing and engineering complex projects in the science and technology, healthcare, security and defence as well as urban impact markets. Known for excelling at high-profile projects, the firm is a world leader in bio-containment laboratory design. Its clients include a mixture of government, academic and healthcare agencies undertaking critical missions, including Boston University, the Public Health Agency of Canada, Defence Construction Canada, the Centers for Disease Control, the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority and the Army Corps of Engineers.

Smith Carter's outstanding track record has been recognized with numerous awards, including a Royal Architectural Institute of Canada Innovation Award for the use of business information modeling in connection with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in 2011; a Canadian Architect Award of Excellence for the Women's Hospital at the Winnipeg Health Sciences Centre in 2010; most Innovative Building and Best Building Award for structural, mechanical and electrical engineering in 2005; LEED Platinum status for their headquarters building in 2009; and the Governor General's Medal in ArchitectureCanada's highest architectural honour in 2006.

"We are very pleased to welcome Smith Carter into the GENIVAR family. Smith Carter is recognized as a leading firm in the architectural/engineering building industry. With this transaction, we have achieved two expansion objectives, which were to strengthen our presence in Western Canada and enter the U.S. market, where we believe there are many other opportunities for growth," said Pierre Shoiry, GENIVAR's President and Chief Executive Officer. "Over the past few years, our architecture partnerships has grown significantly, with firms like PBK Architects, ANO Architects, WHW Architects, the Arcop Group and most recently AE Consultants tying up with GENIVAR. The time has now come to unify these practices and their respective areas of expertise. This will be Scott's main responsibility. Under his leadership, we are confident that this architecture practice will become an essential component in GENIVAR becoming a leading global player in the building market," he added.

"We are delighted to be joining GENIVAR, which has a reputation for promoting solid values while focusing on excellence and strong client relationships," said Scott Stirton. "Contributing to GENIVAR's continued success while spearheading the long-term growth of our combined architectural and engineering practices will be a wonderful opportunity for our respective teams. We have similar market capabilities and expertise, complimentary cultures, a focus on design excellence and a passion for professional service delivery that responds to market opportunities and client expectations. Through the power of partnership, we are convinced that GENIVAR will benefit from the knowledge we have honed through years of experience."

ABOUT SMITH CARTER ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS INC. Established in 1947, Smith Carter is one of North America's leading integrated architectural design and engineering firms. With offices in Winnipeg, Calgary, Ottawa, Atlanta and Washington, DC, Smith Carter works with government, institutional and private-sector clients from across Canada and around the world. Offering expertise on all types of complex projects, the firm specializes in designing healthcare and research environments. Smith Carter is committed to supporting the vital urban fabric of the communities in which its projects are located.

ABOUT GENIVAR INC. GENIVAR is a leading Canadian consulting services firm providing private and public-sector clients with a full range of professional consulting services through all project phases, including planning, design, construction and maintenance. Ranging in size, its clients operate in various market segments, including the building, industrial and energy, municipal infrastructure, transportation and environmental sectors. GENIVAR is one of the largest engineering services companies in Canada by number of employees, with more than 5,500 managers, professionals, technicians, technologists and support staff in over 100 cities in Canada and internationally. http://www.genivar.com

Forward-looking statements Certain information regarding GENIVAR contained herein may constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may include estimates, plans, expectations, opinions, forecasts, projections, guidance or other statements that are not statements of fact. Although GENIVAR believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. These statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties and may be based on assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. GENIVAR's forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The complete version of the cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements as well as a description of the relevant assumptions and risk factors likely to affect GENIVAR's actual or projected results are included in the Management Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine-month periods ended October 1, 2011 and the year ended December 31, 2010, which are available on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and GENIVAR does not assume any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless expressly required by applicable securities laws.

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Smith Carter joins forces with GENIVAR

WARROAD, MN--(Marketwire -03/13/12)- Architects from around the world have a chance to inspire and be inspired by the myMarvin Architect's Challenge, which is accepting entries for its fourth annual competition.

The Architect's Challenge is fast becoming one of the premier showcases in the architectural world. Winning projects in previous years have displayed the remarkable inspiration of designers in styles both traditional and contemporary, in both the residential and commercial arenas.

Among the projects that impressed the judging panel were a San Francisco townhouse, a Minnesota hunting lodge, a Mediterranean villa and a Catholic church in Wisconsin. There are no limits to the creations you can enter; all that's required is that they use Marvin windows or doors.

"Marvin is the preferred window and door of architects because we provide tailored solutions to a project to help achieve design objectives," said Christine Marvin, director of marketing for Marvin Windows and Doors. "In that spirit, we're proud to showcase the work of architects who have been inspired by Marvin to create some of their best work."

Entries will be judged on solution-driven design, classical beauty, innovative use of windows and sustainability. William J. Devereaux Jr., Mark Scheurer, AIA, and David Furman, FAIA, will judge this year's challenge.

Winners will be promoted through traditional and social media and will be featured in our permanent Winners Gallery. We invite architects to submit their best designs featuring Marvin windows and doors by May 31, 2012. Find complete entry information and contest rules at:

http://www.marvin.com/window-door-ideas/mymarvin-project/architects-challenge

ABOUT MARVIN WINDOWS AND DOORSMarvin Windows and Doors brings its "Built around you" philosophy to life with every customer and every solution. A premier manufacturer of made-to-order wood and clad wood windows and doors, Marvin offers the industry's most extensive selection of shapes, styles, sizes and options to fit the diverse needs of builders and match the personalities of homeowners.

Marvin's tradition of delivering the finest craftsmanship in windows and doors began in Warroad, Minn., a small town just six miles from the Canadian border, where the privately-held, family-owned and operated company is still headquartered today. Learn more at http://www.marvin.com.

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Marvin Windows and Doors Now Accepting Entries for Prestigious Fourth-Annual myMarvin Architect's Challenge

MARC GREENHILL

Kirk Hargreaves

TEAMWORK: Andrew Charleson, an associate professor in architecture at Wellington's Victoria University speaks to the commission today.

Engineers and architects must work together to integrate earthquake technology into new Christchurch building designs, an inquiry has heard.

New technology for the central-city rebuild was discussed before the Canterbury earthquakes royal commission today.

Academics, senior engineers and professional engineering organisations have been invited to debate building design philosophies, such as life safety versus building survivability, and associated economic impacts.

Andrew Charleson, an associate professor ofarchitecture at Wellington's Victoria University, today told commissioners the interaction between architects and engineers was "always a struggle", but the challenge now was to work together to achieve a design that met the needs of both professions. "It's particularly challenging in the area of seismic design because the structure we need to resist earthquake forces is so much larger in its plan area than the structure needed just to resist the weight of the building," he said. The use of new seismic technology need not reduce the architectural quality, Charleson said. He once asked a group of architecture students to determine the "most exciting" design from 10 cities with high seismic activity and 10 with low seismic activity without knowing which category each city was in. "When we analysed all the results, it came out that if anything, the buildings that were in the seismic zones had more architectural appeal than the buildings in non-seismic zones," Charleson said. "This was incredibly encouraging because intuitively you would think of the constraints imposed on architects because of the need for large shear walls and large braced frames. You'd expect that the architecture would be somewhat blander and less interesting, but that was proven not to be the case."

- Fairfax NZ News

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Engineers, architects 'must work together'

REHOVOT, Israel, March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Rietveld Architects, a NY-based architecture firm known for its large-scale international projects, acquired its Objet 3D Printer and now creates architectural models in just a few hours - a fraction of the two-month turnaround time it required previously. Rietveld Architects has also discovered that the Objet 3D Printer can help secure new projects.

The Objet 3D Printer was a fairly straightfoward choice for Rietveld Architects. "We were particularly impressed by the ability of this system to quickly produce highly detailed, accurate models with minimal office clean-up," Rijk Rietveld, the firm's partner, commented. "Other technologies produced brittle models and just didn't have the fine detail of the Objet solution".

Soon after installing the Objet 3D Printer, the architects discovered that the 3D Printer also boosted sales. According to Piet Meijs, a Senior Associate at Rietveld Architects, the Objet prototyping capabilities have helped the firm secure new projects. "There is still very much a 'wow' factor. A potential client asked us to produce a completely re-designed plan because the program changed. Within two weeks we put on the table a 1:400 model of a new design. They knew they could only get it from us and not from other architects."

Using Objet 3D printing, highly accurate architectural models can be produced within hours - reflecting the most recent change requests and updates. Clients can view a physical model with the most intricate details, feel confident about the overall design and how it fits with the surroundings, and reach faster decisions.

Watch the video to learn how Rietveld Architects shortens decision cycles and secures more business with Objet 3D Printer.

About Rietveld Architects

In 1993 Margaret Rietveld founded Rietveld Architects and Rijk Rietveld joined a year later. Presently, Rietveld Architects has an international staff, interior projects in New York City, and substantial new construction in the Netherlands. The built projects reflect the result of fifteen years of the successful cross-fertilization between European design sensibility and American ingenuity and know-how. In recent years, the work of Rietveld Architects has been commended in publications and recognized.

About Objet

Objet Ltd. is a leading provider of high quality, cost effective inkjet-based 3D printing systems and materials. A global company, Objet has offices in North America, Europe, Japan, China, Hong Kong, and India.

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Rietveld Architects, NY-based Architecture Firm Wins New Projects with an Objet 3D Printer

Reporting from Shichigahama, Japan

Five architects made presentations to a design jury, hoping for a chance to design a replacement for the local middle school, heavily damaged a year ago by the earthquake and tsunami that killed an estimated 19,000 people, including at least 58 here, and destroyed more than 120,000 buildings.

Kumiko Inui, a 42-year-old rising star of the Tokyo architecture scene, ultimately won the competition with an impressive design featuring tall glass-wrapped classroom wings paired with smaller wooden pavilions in a lush tree-covered landscape.

INTERACTIVE PHOTOS: Before and after tsunami cleanup

But an ugly reminder of the disaster loomed over the presentations: A three-story-high pile of tsunami debris, visible through large picture windows along the side of the room, that didn't so much mock the architectural discussion as dwarf it.

As Japan nears the anniversary of the disaster this Sunday, such scenes are playing out all over northeastern Japan. Huge, neatly sorted piles of debris dot the Tohoku region, symbols of a recovery that has stalled at the cleanup stage.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, his approval rating in danger of sinking below 30%, has faced wide criticism for failing to articulate a broad vision for rebuilding. The national Reconstruction Agency wasn't officially launched until February, 11 months after the disaster.

And though Toyo Ito, Kazuyo Sejima and other leading Japanese architects have joined emerging talents like Inui in sketching out thoughtful plans for new housing and civic architecture, their efforts have so far garnered little support from politicians in Tokyo.

The most intractable issue is whether the hardest hit fishing villages, already losing population before the disaster, should be rebuilt as they were or consolidated. In a broader sense, the nation has struggled with basic issues at the core of reconstruction, particularly the way the tsunami has exposed gaps between rich and poor, young and old, rural and urban, and between the nation's technological haves and have-nots.

In much the same way that Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath gave Americans a discomfiting picture of their own society, the events of March 11 have laid bare a Japan more divided than the national discourse here lets on.

Continue reading here:
Japan Disaster: A Year Later: Without a blueprint

New campus buildings get designed, built and renovated no matter who's leading the University of Memphis.

But Shirley Raines has the university building architects as well as their designs, and she's using design to engage the campus with the surrounding community, architects say.

American Institute of Architects Memphis is honoring the U of M president's contribution to the field by bestowing its 2012 Francis Gassner Award on Raines during its annual Celebration of Architecture Design Gala on March 31.

The Francis Gassner Award honors each year an architect or member of a related profession for outstanding contributions to the quality of Memphis' built environment.

In her first 10 years as university president, Raines has led more than a dozen key building projects, including the new University Center, Honors residence hall, the FedEx Institute of Technology, the Kemmons Wilson School of Hospitality and Resort Management, and the relocation of the law school to the historic Downtown location on the Mississippi River.

The new or improved facilities "have had an immeasurable impact on the student body and surrounding community," AIA Memphis states.

Raines said Monday she's accepting the award on behalf of the university.

"We have sought to build environments representative of one of America's great metropolitan research universities," she said.

"We seek to create environments that promote learning and involve students' and community members' engagement on and off the campus."

There's always been a construction cycle on campus.

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Local architects to honor University of Memphis president Shirley Raines

With the help of 21st-century technology, architects are harnessing that oldest of Earth's resources - sunlight - as never before.

Builders have been manipulating it for centuries, says Dr. Wayne Place, architecture professor and head of the daylighting lab at N.C. State's College of Design. Consider the Gothic cathedrals, he says. "Basically, they were all about two things, structure and light."

The difference today is that, with computers and other design tools, architects and daylighting consultants can make maximum use of the sun's benefits while blotting out its heat and glare.

"When the sun gets down low on the horizon, it's like a headlight shining through your window," says architect Steven Sweat of Neighboring Concepts in Charlotte. And that, says Dr. Dale Brentrup, professor and head of the daylighting lab at UNC Charlotte's College of Architecture, can send air conditioning bills through the roof.

During the gas crises of the 1970s, energy bills and uneasiness about dependence on foreign energy sources jump-started the current embrace of the Earth's oldest resource.

Soon, other reasons for including as much daylight as possible in new buildings emerged. It's a nonpolluting energy source, and the U.S. Green Building Council started giving LEED points for it.

Studies in selected elementary schools in Washington State, Colorado and California and in a large retail chain showed that both children's grades and retail sales went up in the presence of ample daylight.

N.C.'s best examples

Showcase buildings in North Carolina have bought into the philosophy, using everything from exterior glass walls individually tailored to the amount of sunlight (University of North Carolina at Charlotte's new $50.4 million Center City building in Charlotte) to 11-foot-2 ceilings with super-tall windows (the Wildlife Resources Commission's 2005 LEED Gold-rated headquarters on Raleigh's Centennial Campus).

Gantt Huberman Architects of Charlotte, partnering with Kieran Timberlake Architects of Philadelphia, divided the 12-story UNCC building into multistory blocks cantilevered above each other. They give both shade and a distinctive appearance that the university likens to "a stack of books."

Continue reading here:
Computers help architects harness sun

By James S. Russell - Tue Mar 13 04:01:00 GMT 2012

James Ewing/Museum of Modern Art via Bloomberg

A proposal for flexible housing to be built on an abandoned industrial site in Cicero, Illinois, by the Chicago architecture firm Studio Gang. It is one of five concepts for five cities envisioned in the exhibition "Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream," at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

A proposal for flexible housing to be built on an abandoned industrial site in Cicero, Illinois, by the Chicago architecture firm Studio Gang. It is one of five concepts for five cities envisioned in the exhibition "Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream," at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Photographer: James Ewing/Museum of Modern Art via Bloomberg

The New York architecture firm MOS proposes to insert housing in the underused streets near a train station in Orange, New Jersey. Their concept is displayed at the Museum of Modern Art, in New York City, as part of the exhibition "Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream."

The New York architecture firm MOS proposes to insert housing in the underused streets near a train station in Orange, New Jersey. Their concept is displayed at the Museum of Modern Art, in New York City, as part of the exhibition "Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream." Source: MoMA/MOS via Bloomberg

A rendering of the edge of Keizer, a suburb of Salem, Oregon, as imagined by the architecture firm WORKac. It posits higher density as a means of preserving nature. It is part of the exhibition "Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream" at MoMA.

A rendering of the edge of Keizer, a suburb of Salem, Oregon, as imagined by the architecture firm WORKac. It posits higher density as a means of preserving nature. It is part of the exhibition "Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream" at MoMA. Source: WORKac via Bloomberg

Museum of Modern Art via Bloomberg

For an almost empty residential tract in Rialto, California, architect Andrew Zago conceived houses draped with sheltering grill work on sites where property lines have been rearranged to make more efficient use of land. The project is displayed at the Museum of Modern Art's exhibition "Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream."

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Foreclosed Homeowners Inspire Museum’s Architects Show: James S. Russell

HARRISBURG, IL (KFVS) -

Saturday kicks off a week-long effort to help get displaced storm victims started on repairing or replacing their homes.

A team of students and faculty from the SIU School of Architecture will be at the Harrisburg Public Library from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, March 10, and every day through March 17.

They'll be offering free residential design services to families whose homes were damaged or destroyed.

The architects and architects-in-training will visit the home sites, take pictures and collect information about the location. Then they'll evaluate what remains of the home. Based on interviews with the families, they'll create working drawings to repair or replace the homes.

"They'll design new homes at no cost to homeowners to walk them through the entire process of putting their homes back together," said Harrisburg Mayor Eric Gregg. "Those are things you don't think about on day one, but you definitely think about it going forward because that's a huge need. There are hundreds of homes that have been damaged and if you've got people who are experts willing to come in and help us, we're going to greet them with our arms wide open."

SIU organizers say the goal is to offer a valuable service to families at this early stage, to help them plan and begin preparing for the future as well as offer students valuable hands-on learning experience.

Homeowners are encouraged to bring in photographs of their home before the tornado to help with the design.

Copyright 2012 KFVS. All rights reserved.

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SIU architects to help Harrisburg tornado victims redesign homes