6 - Reversible Destiny Lofts - Hillary Kidd

     The Reversible Destiny Lofts are located in Tokyo and were built in Memory of Helen Keller. Completed in 2005, the building has attracted many visitors from around the world. The building stimulates the visitor and brings attention to the full potential of the body.

     

      The building provides different uses for each individual according to their physical abilities. There are spaces that a three year old could use better than an adult, and there are spaces that a seventy year old may be better suited to explore and that is the reason the lofts were dedicated to the memory of Helen Keller.

     The Lofts are currently used as residential, educational and cultural facilities. Some of the units are available for long and short-term lease.

--- 6 ---Walker Tower - Luan Vinicius

The Walker Tower was my first residence here in USA. Most of the people don`t like so much the Towers, but I really loved to live there. Sometimes was a little boring because there are a lot of rules like visitors until 11pm, no noise after 10pm and others. Anyway, the fact is that the experience that I had there was really different from what I had in my entire life. I`m only son and I had never divided my space with anyone, principally my bedroom. In the towers, I had to share my space with someone from a different culture than mine and the bathroom with him and more two. I was really lucky because my life in Towers was really nice. My roommate had a lot of electrodomestics in the room what turned the little space very usual and cozy as a mini fridge, a TV, a Xbox and a microwave. With all these, the little space turned into a really functional “kitchenette". Another interesting thing is that I had never lived in an apartment and in Walker I lived in the 10th floor and my view was really nice because I could see all the Stadium in front without any barriers. The amenities in Walker were really cool, each floor has its own lounge and a study room, but in the last floor (12th), there were a lot of amazing study rooms available 24hours and each one with a private space. On the first floor were the social lounge (with games and sofas that were nice to spend time talking and hanging out with friends), the computer lab and one of the best amenities… the Xcetera, a little market where you can buy food, candies and beverages. In the beginning it was really strange to live in Walker because I had never did something like that, but this experience was important to me because I could grow personally and I learned how is necessary and important to know to divide and to manage my space and time because I was not the only one who was living there.

2) House of Glass - Charlotte Robert

5 - Crystal River Tree House - Hillary Kidd

 

     Tree houses are not just for kids anymore. In addition to being a creative, inspiring space for children, this tree house also serves as a quiet meditative space for the adults. 

     Green Line Architects design their tree houses as organic spaces that come together as the forest and locally available materials will allow. For this tree house every piece of wood was hand-picked during the construction process. The framing materials of this tree house are made up of either re-claimed or blown-down timbers. The sheathing and siding are locally sawn white pine, and wavy edge cedar.  The pin foundation system used here was chosen for its minimal impact to root systems of the surrounding trees.

“There is always a place for fun and frivolity in architecture!” - David Rasmussen, resident tree house expert of Green Line Architects

 

1 Pruitt Igoe- Seth Gebhart

Pruitt Igoe. The home to many people in the 1950's to 1970's when it was finally demolished in 1972. The housing units were a part of a large facility that was home to thousands. It was a housing option for people who could not afford housing at the time. This housing complex ended up being a disaster. With the high rate of crime in this area this part of the city became a breeding ground for disorderly conduct and violence. While it was "home" to so many this place was also very dangerous to many as well. As seen in the pictures the complex was not kept up due to the high rates of vandalism. When anything was fixed it was later demolished and vandalized by people who lived in the complex.

1) Hines House - Charlotte Robert

4) Sod House - Taylor Johnson

This sod house was built in 1894 by Marshal McCully in 1894 neat Aline, OK and is the only one still standing in Oklahoma that was originally built by a homesteader. I grew up not too far from here so naturally when I was younger we took filed trips to see this house. I remember wondering how people lived back then, not completely understanding what those people went through. As it turns out, sod houses provide great insulation. As you can see from the picture above, there is a museum that encases the house to protect it from the elements.

3) Overholser Mansion - Taylor Johnson

The Overholser Mansion is considered the first mansion built in Oklahoma City. Constructed in 1903 by W.S. Matthews, it is a great look into Oklahoma's past. The furnishings are meant to reflect that time period and is an amazing place to go for a tour. I love the way Matthews designed this three story French Chateau style house.

3 - Tassel House - Barbara Franco

I studied this house in my Modern and Contemporary Architecture class. I like this house because of its importance to the period. The Tassel House was designed by Victor Horta in 1892-93, in Brussels, Belgium. In this project, it is notable how Victor Horta inserted the Art Nouveau into architecture and associated with new materials, such as rot iron. In this project, Horta was able to illustrate a balance between the past and the new technologies to create an innovate space as never seen before. Even though the Tassel House looks like a townhouse, especially because its size, shape and even the roof it is possible to notice that this house demonstrates how the details can make a considerable difference. The details are the main points of this project and the shape of some spaces such as the stairs and columns proves how innovative Horta was, adopting organic forms to regular elements. Its design evokes a search for nature, creating a new expression in a sort of a musician way.