Terrestrial Paradise

 

The word Paradise, as the very image of a celestial garden, ultimately entered most European languages (cf. French paradis, German Paradies, Italian paradiso, Latin paradisus) via Greek παραδεισος  [paradeisos]. However, its Persian origin is more of a political concept rather  than its later (religious) derivations. Etymologically, the very root of the word can be traced in the Old Persian term pairi-daêzã. It is combined of two parts: ‘pairi’ (cf. Sanskrit pįri, Greek περι), which literally means ‘around’, and ‘daêzã’ as ‘pile or heap’. The second part, however, is the origin of the words ‘دژ’ [dezh] or ‘diza’, in modern Persian all stand for ‘fort’ or ‘enclosure’. ‘Daeza’ also has another root in the Indo-Iranian verb ‘dhaizh’ that originally means ‘to construct out of earth’, and the noun ‘dhaizha’, ‘that which has been built out of earth’.

Source: http://thecityasaproject.org/2011/07/paradise/

Dawn is performing flawlessly in this new orbit...

 

The closest-yet views of Ceres, delivered by NASA’s Dawn spacecraft, show the small world’s features in unprecedented detail, including Ceres‘ tall, conical mountain; crater formation features and narrow, braided fractures.

Source: www.stone-ideas.com
 

the scale of humanity is not getting any smaller

 

S, M, L, XL is the title of a book of projects by Rem Koolhaas’s architectural firm OMA, ranging from the small, to extra-large. It is also the title of a current show at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, featuring work on a similar range of scale, all united by the theme of making “sculpture more accessible.” The four works of the show have a similar challenge facing them to that of architecture. These works must tackle the task of moving humans through space against their will, while allowing the humans to feel as if their will is not being violated, and in fact, their motions are of their own volition.

Source: http://blog.sculpture.org

Master Drawings Uncovered

 

A major exhibition of Giovanni Battista Piranesi’s last master works—15 exquisitely rendered drawings made in 1777 of three ancient Greek temples in Paestum, southern Italy—opens at the Cantor Arts Center on August 19. Piranesi’s Paestum: Master Drawings Uncovered, which also includes prints and rare books of the period, sheds new light on this celebrated 18th-century artist’s working method and on the considerable impact of his oeuvre on 18th- and 19th-century architectural taste. The Cantor is the only West-Coast venue for this exhibition, which originated at Sir John Soane’s Museum, London.

Source:

http://www.stone-ideas.com/2015/08/25/fascinating-views-of-the-doric-stone-temples-in-the-former-greek-colony-of-poseidonia/

http://museum.stanford.edu/news_room/piranesi.htm
 

towards a sustainable typology

By introducing the WEST SIDE BOULEVARD – a 126-meter long street which contracts and expands to create small, intimate plazas and pocket parks, the project successfully addresses not only to the client’s demands on creating a shopping street, but also to the tremendous opportunity to re-invent the contemporary pedestrian street.  The WEST SIDE BOULEVARD links both ends of the parcel, operating as an urban component to connect with different plots and programs (Museum District and Shopping COMPLEX), by doing so this inner pedestrian street propels the flow of people, program and activity needed to activate the entire site.

Source:  http://www.evolo.us/architecture/molewa-west-side-boulevard-or-the-contemporary-pedestrian-street/

Routes of initiation in Eleusina

Eleusina is located in West Attica, in a distance of 23 km outside of Athens city. Despite the intense presence of historical legacy in the town, the axes which connect its history, are remaining deserted, especially during winter and aren't being reclaimed by the town's inhabitants. What's more, the seafront is quite fragmented and abandoned because of the land uses of heavy industry and the commercial port. That's why many studies have been conducted for the decontamination of the seafront and its revitalisation. These plans are also integrated in european programs and legislative frameworks.
Source: http://www.greekarchitects.gr/en/projects2015/routes-of-initiation-in-eleusina-id10361
 

the Garden of Clouds

 

Italian Recycled Stone Company, as the name implies, is dedicated to reclaiming stone from natural stone manufacturing processes. We recently reported on its household products. Here, then, is the „Giardini Incantati“ (enchanted garden) collection comprising 7 miniature arrangements in an unusual implementation of natural stone remnants. The artist was Matthew Broussard.

Source: http://www.stone-ideas.com/2015/08/06/giardini-incantati-enchanted-gardens-consisting-of-natural-stone-refuse-and-other-materials-by-matthew-broussard/

great stones

 

Stone is a great floor finish and is affordable in many countries; Italy and India are both known for the variety and quality of stone they produce. There is a great advantage to stone that is almost unique to floor finishes: you can polish it, and thus make it look and feel like new, at any time in its life.

Source: http://www.understandconstruction.com/stone.html

 

the Marble as Painting

 

It can only be hoped that visitors will not make a habit of touching works of art or the alarm will go off frequently at Madrid’s Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum.

Source: www.stone-ideas.com