(incli)NATION

Dream Holiday: Bucky Fuller, Chris Burden and David Byrne

If I were not going to be floating in my father's Arizona pool week after next, here is a list of the things I would be seeing on my [imaginary] trip to NYC. [not that I in any way take for granted my father's generosity...]

Erector Set Skyscraper at Rockefeller Center Is Adult Fantasy: ...a sweet, old-fashioned tribute to boyhood optimism...Chris Burden's "What My Dad Gave Me"... [images]- Bloomberg News

Dymaxion Man: The visions of Buckminster Fuller: By staging the retrospective, the Whitney raises—or, really, one should say, re-raises—the question of Fuller’s relevance. Was he an important cultural figure because he produced inventions of practical value or because he didn’t?- New Yorker

and of course...

[David] Byrne’s new installation produced by Creative Time, “Playing The Building,” is located downtown in the Battery Maritime Building, which was built in 1909, closed in 1938 and hasn’t been open to the public for 50 years.

Sugar Cube City: Floating New Orleans by Kim & Stayner

It's pouring rain here today which lends poignancy to this project by Kiduck Kim and Christian Stayner of Harvard's GSD. Utopian in the best sense of the word, the project serves to highlight the reasons it could not work, rather than the reasons it could; class, capitol, private property, and common sense.

What a wonderful world it would be if we could rise above these limitations and enter a new era of urban development, a world of sweet sugar cubes floating without malice in a sea of good will. Kudos to Kim and Stayner for imagining such a future.

From Inhabitat:

It’s been almost three years since New Orleans weathered Katrina’s wrath, and debate still rages over plans to reconstruct the sunken city. Myriad options have surfaced ranging from rebuilding the levees to designing storm resistant structures to not rebuilding at all. Here’s an approach that endeavors to ride the river rather than stem it’s course. Harvard Graduate School of Design students Kiduck Kim and Christian Stayner have conceived of a Floating City that will “rise safely in an Archimedean liquid landscape.”

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Reclaimed Lumber Bookshelf by Blankblank

Anything that makes me laugh out loud must be shared.

via Inhabitat

Giant Toasted Leafcutter Ants from Edible.com

So we're having a BBQ here in the burbs for Memorial Day and I'm thinking these little guys should be a big hit. Giant toasted leafcutter ants from Colombia, the largest species of ant in the world.

From Edible:
"Hormigas Culonas are harvested in the Colombian Amazon by the Guane Indians, during the short rainy season between March and June. They are then toasted in a mud pot over an open fire by the Indians.

The Guane Indians believe that these Ants have youth giving and Aphrodisiac properties and they are often served as fertility giving marriage food during nuptial ceremonies. Hormigas Culonas taste similar to crisply fried bacon with an earthy taste, and make the perfect alternative party snack instead of nuts or olives!"
YUM!

Get yours here.

Natural Retreats, UK: Stylish Eco-tourism

I will be staying here next time I visit Little England...

"Combining the highest levels of luxury and sustainable development with beautiful locations, Natural Retreats offer a chance to explore beautiful national parks, bask in luxury, and feel confident that your holiday has a low environmental impact. Built with sustainability in mind, these eco-getaways can be found within four of the UK national parks, with plans to acquire sites in, or alongside, ten more. At current, green-minded travelers can escape to Yorkshire Dales, Snowdonia, Lake District, and North York Moors - all beautiful landscapes and perfect settings for an eco-friendly nature retreat."

more after the jump HERE and HERE

H1 by Brio54, Knock-out Sustainable Residential Design

I fell in love with the creative simplicity of the design of the new H1 residence by Brio54, a new Arch. firm made up of partners Gernot Bruckner and Philip Macari. These are still in design development with construction slated to begin later in the spring. Be sure to check out their site for detailed descriptions of all the mechanicals and such:

from the always fabulous Inhabitat: "As soon as we saw them, we instantly fell in love with Brio54’s new set of prefab residential prototypes. A young, design-driven development firm, Brio54’s mission is to provide sustainable, affordable design while delivering high quality construction. Home buyers of all types will delight in Brio54’s wide variety of offerings - whether you live in a suburban area, are looking to refurbish or rehab, or have an empty urban infill lot. Brio54’s first prefab prototype, the H1, (pictured above) is currently in the final stage of planning, and construction is slated to begin production in the spring of 2008.

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