So, I’ve just finished reading China Miéville’s novel The city and the city - the first novel I’ve actually made it through in quite some time.

Courtesy of Wikipedia, here is the low-down on the dual cities that are the main character/s of the book:

The City & The City takes place in the cities of Besźel and Ul Qoma. These two cities actually occupy much of the same geographical space, but via the volition of their citizens (and the threat of the secret power known as Breach), they are perceived as two different cities. A denizen of one city must dutifully ‘unsee’ (that is, ignore, or fade into the background) the denizens, buildings, and events taking place in the other city — even if they are an inch away. This separation is emphasized by the style of clothing, architecture, gait, and the way denizens of each city generally carry themselves. Residents of the cities are taught from childhood to recognise things belonging to the other city without actually seeing them. Ignoring the separation, even by accident, is called “breaching” - a terrible crime by the citizens of the two cities, worse than murder. Read the rest of this entry »

Architectural prizes: love them or hate them? In New Zealand, we seem to have a growing number - of course, the more you have, the lesser the value to those that get selected. We have, of course, the NZIA, and their award giving scheme. At one stage, many years ago, only one prize was given out in the whole of the country: a Gold Medal for the architecture (or, perhaps, the architect). Some years they (anonymous judges) gave out none. Really? Nothing in the whole country that was good enough to award? They must have had high standards in those days… or perhaps just a different attitude to rewarding merit. Read the rest of this entry »

As a child growing up in Dunedin, the curious behemoth of layered concrete known as the Dunedin Public Library (designed by the City Council’s Architectural Division) always had a seemingly omnipresent feel as a ‘civic surveyor’ of the Octagon city-scape.

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Looking to maximize space in your apartment? If so, then the following apartment in Hong Kong may be for you… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lg9qnWg9kak

Yes its finally online for all of us to enjoy… ‘on demand’…

NZ On Screen

In today’s Queen’s Birthday Honours List, primarily headed up by Knighthoods for people involved with sausages, rugby, and giant wetas, there is just one solitary award for Architecture.

Maurice Edward Mahoney, long time work partner of the long-since gonged Miles Warren, Read the rest of this entry »

50 years of broadcasting - no mean feat, I guess, but then, let’s take a moment to look at what we have been served up over those 5 decades: Read the rest of this entry »