Named Tangling, the entire exhibition is contained within an installation of knotted walls, which curve around one another to create arched openings.

The exhibition is Hirata's first solo show outside of Japan and follows his recent collaboration with Toyo Ito, Sou Fujimoto and Kumiko Inui at the the Golden Lion-winning Japanese Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale.

The clustered model collections on display show how the architect develops the spaces of his buildings from complex geometric and organic forms.

Hirata explains his idea of tangling as a concept for "linking the architecture of the future to the nature of living things."

Films documenting the interiors of Hirata's completed buildings are projected onto the curving walls of the exhibition, alongside a series of concept sketches.

Past exhibitions organised by the Architecture Fundation include an indoor terrain of moss arches and a city orchard.

See all our stories about the London Design Festival »

Photography is by Daniel Hewitt, apart from where otherwise stated.

Above: photograph is by Yukata Endo / Luftzug Co. Ltd

Above: photograph is by Yukata Endo / Luftzug Co. Ltd

Above: photograph is by Yukata Endo / Luftzug Co. Ltd

Above: photograph is by Dezeen

Above: photograph is by Dezeen

Dezeen's London Design Festival map

.

The post Tangling by
Akihisa Hirata appeared first on Dezeen.

The Architecture Foundation in London has appointed Sarah Ichioka as its new director.

Ichioka, currently deputy director of the London Festival of Architecture, replaces architecture critic Rowan Moore, the outgoing director who resigned in May.

Here's a statement from the Architecture Foundation:

--

The Architecture Foundation announced today that Sarah Ichioka has been appointed its new Director. She will take up her new post on 13 October 2008.

Sarah Ichioka (29) is currently Deputy Director of the London Festival of Architecture. She previously worked as a consultant curator for the exhibition 'Global Cities' in Tate Modern's Turbine Hall.

She was exhibition content coordinator for the 10th Venice Architecture Biennale 'Cities, Architecture & Society', and co-edited the exhibition catalogue.

She was also a founding research associate of the Urban Age, an interdisciplinary project investigating the future of global cities. She holds an MSc in City Design & Social Science from the LSE and a BA from Yale.

Brian Clarke, Chair of The Architecture Foundation, said: ”The Architecture Foundation under its new director Sarah Ichioka will inevitably be changing its shape to accommodate what it perceives as the changing needs of this challenging period. The board of trustees are thrilled at the prospect of working with Sarah and are confident of an exciting future bringing our passion for the best in contemporary architecture to an ever wider audience. We will need the support and help of the profession, students and a wider public to provide the service we are here for.”

New Director, Sarah Ichioka, said: “I am absolutely delighted to be given the opportunity to lead The Architecture Foundation into its next stage. I look forward to building a focussed, pertinent programme for the Foundation, developed in close collaboration with its trustees, staff and patrons, and inspired by its history as an independent advocate for innovation and emerging talent in contemporary architecture and urbanism”.

The post Sarah Ichioka appointed director
of Architecture Foundation appeared first on Dezeen.

The Southwark Lido by French architecture collective EXYZT and filmmaker Sara Muzio was open to the public as part of the London Festival of Architecture last weekend.

Curated by The Architecture Foundation, the temporary scaffolding structure included a sauna, paddling pool, spray deck, viewing platform and changing rooms.

Photo by Agnese Sanvito except where stated otherwise. Renderings by EXYZT, commissioned by Architecture Foundation.

The following information is from the London Festival of Architecture, which continues until 20 July:

--

An exciting temporary lido, created by acclaimed French architecture collective EXYZT and filmmaker Sara Muzio will appear on Union Street, London SE1 this summer. Following in the tradition of Roman baths and Turkish hammams, which provided a setting for social gathering, ritual cleansing and uninhibited political discussions, the Southwark Lido will host a variety of activities in an unusual, architecturally innovative environment. Curated by The Architecture Foundation, the Lido will provide bathing and breathing space for the general public, residents of Southwark and visitors to London Festival of Architecture alike.

Within a futuristic low-tech complex, visitors of all ages can enjoy the refreshing spray of the water deck, or sweat it out in a sauna; there will be a paddling pool for children; beach huts doubling as changing rooms and living pods for staff; a sun deck; a bar operated by east London restaurant Bistrotheque.

On hand to assist visitors will be the lido team wearing uniforms designed by House of Holland. Adding colour will be a mobile garden, created on-site in collaboration with Bankside Open Spaces Trust, which will be distributed throughout the neighbourhood at the end of the Festival.

The Southwark Lido expresses EXYZT’s strategy of urban renewal, based on the idea that a community of users actively creating and inhabiting their urban environment is key to generating a vibrant city. This project explores the potential of using a site in transition from empty lot to new residential and office buildings, generously lent by Solid Space, to create a vibrant point of community and cultural engagement during its transformation.

The run-up to its installation will see the organisers forming links with the local community and specific groups, providing them with a new place to hold events and share their work.

The Lido sits within LFA2008’s Southwark & South Bank Hub curated by The Architecture Foundation, which occupies a dynamic part of London that has moved away from its traditional label as ‘the other side’ of the Thames. It is now a major cultural quarter, with key venues like Tate Modern sitting alongside proposed urban redevelopments such as ‘The Shard’ (Renzo Piano’s new office tower) and developments at London Bridge. Above photo by Jack Goffe.

Lively activities across the Hub will build on the area’s history, reveal a hinterland of hidden territories and offer new visions for the contemporary city.

The post Southwark Lido by EXYZT and Sara Muzio appeared first on Dezeen.