Inspiration vs. Imitation

Who is BIG?

Some student in TUDelft (NL) hung on the Faculty’s corridors’ walls a funny poster in which two famous buildings are portrayed: at left there is the Mountain Dwellings by BIG, 2008, while in the right side we have the Office Building Centraal Beheer in Apeldoom, Herman Hertzberger, 1972. Beside the malicious thought that may be behind this association of pictures, a deeper reflection arises almost spontaneous. Where is the limit of the “inspiration” and “imitation” or between “copy” and “improvement” that may be between two architectures realized by different architects, with different purposes, period and location? -- TheArchHive

the old new: urban dwelling

Looking through another Best Building of the Year 2009 Award Winner, gave me that “I-think-I’ve-seen-it-somewhere” though. But urban dwelling is a timely issue at any decade and here improving the old concept can be only beneficial. -- design apothecary

Architectural Patents: On what Grounds?

Apple successfully getting an architectural patent for the design of a store in the Upper West Side in New York City, asking “On what grounds can you patent architecture?”  The inventors listed in the patent are architects Karl Backus, Peter Bohlin and George Bradley of Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, and Robert Bridger, Benjamin L. Fay, Steve Jobs and Bruce Johnson for a design that Architect’s Newspaper describes as “meticulous and seamless as its clients”. -- ArchDaily

Trademark Awarded to Apple Retail Stores

Apple has successfully been awarded a trademark for the “design and layout” of their retail stores. Since opening their first in Virginia over a decade ago, their stores have been at the heart of the companies branding; with the late Steve Jobs heavily involved in their design.  -- ArchDaily

Source: popupcity.com

Clone City: Austrian Village Erected In China

.... an identical clone of Hallstatt, a UNESCO World Heritage Site located on Austria’s Hallstätter See. Not a single detail was left out on the perfect simulacrum, including building details and major monuments. Simulacritecture at its absolute finest, one could say. What does this mean for urban design, anyway? We generally think of urban planning as a slow process, adding buildings to our urban environment in a piecemeal way. But these ancient(-looking) structures can pop-up pretty quickly, as was the case here. -- the Pop-Up City

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Source: East © ZHA archdaily.com

Zaha Hadid Seeing Double in China

Unfortunately, Hadid has found herself in a race to finish the Wangjing SOHO office and retail complex in Beijing before pirates complete their doppelgänger version in Chongqing, a megacity near the eastern edge of the Tibetan plateau. -- ArchDaily

Why China’s Copy-Cats Are Good For Architecture -- ArchDaily

Video: Inside a Chinese, Parisian Ghost Town -- ArchDaily