This hotel is getting a lot of press today, and we couldn’t help but post it as well. Above is a construction shot of Hotel Inntel Zaandam by WAM Architecten in the Netherlands. The hotel is made to look like a mass of houses typical of the region, “from a stately notary’s dwelling to workers’ cottages,” according to the firm’s chief architect, Wilfried van Winden. His favorite is the blue house at the top of this photograph and is modeled on one featured in a painting by Claude Monet. (We were unable to find said painting, so we’ll take Mr. van Winden at his word.) Mr. van Winden told The Guardian that the idea came from him when thinking about traditional hotel design and felt that hotels should be a “home away from home.” He may have taken that idea quite literally, but we like the results.

Hotel Inntel Zaandam

WAM Architecten (site in Dutch)

We stumbled on this today and thought it was hilarious. Nothing beats kids’ forts made from couch cushions (and other various household materials) paired with serious architecture criticism. Here’s the review for the above photo, one of our favorites: The crisp, orthogonal structure is, in a way, camouflaged by the informality of the landscaping. While a clear bifurcation exists between site and structure, we give high marks to the close coordination of architect and landscape architect in using similar materials to exaggerate the divergent design concepts. Grade: B+

Having worked for years at architecture and design magazines we give the reviews an A+.

Couch Cushion Architecture, a Critical Analysis @ Build Blog (via Neatorama)

We love reading Scouting New York, a blog by the once-anonymous Nick Carr, a film location scout in NYC. A couple of days ago he posted some amazing pictures of 570 Lexington—originally built for RCA-Victor, then sold to GE, and finally donated to Columbia University. The building is an Art Deco-lover’s dream with beautiful details depicting electricity everywhere you look. It’s unbelievable the flourishes incorporated into such a magnificent building…and a shame that most people don’t even notice them. Take a look at Nick’s blog for even more photos, including a spectacular image of the building’s top.

Grabbing Electricity at the Old G.E. Building (Scouting New York)

Last month we posted about a project in Detroit by Gregory Holm and Matthew Radune. The Ice House was an architectural installation meant to call attention to the foreclosure plight in the city. The project was completed, and Holm contacted us this week to point us to the video above which he and a film crew put together, documenting results of their work. The film is beautiful and eerie, and a great look at a project we weren’t able to see ourselves. Watch the video on Vimeo at the link below.

Ice House Detroit on Vimeo

Somewhere in Detroit photographer Gregory Holm and architect Matthew Radune are encasing an abandoned house in ice. The “architectural installation,” Ice House Detroit, is being blogged about from start (fundraising) to finish (disassembling the house and recycling the usable materials). Their purpose is to bring attention to the foreclosure problem in Detroit (Holm estimates “nearly one in every four homes in the neighborhood is either in a state of disrepair or abandoned”) and some of the funds they raised went to paying the back taxes on another foreclosed house, allowing a single mother and her family to move in. The project is starting to gain a lot of attention as it nears its February 7 completion date.

Check out their blog and follow their progress. We can’t wait to see the finished product because it already looks beautiful.

Ice House Detroit

Continuing with our theme of things that trick your eye is this log cabin-like structure. Although it appears to be a large, very well-stacked wood pile, it is in fact a moveable study/workspace designed by Piet Hein Eek for a musician. Not only does it offer a new take on a traditional log cabin, it also provides interesting camouflage for what could be a generic outbuilding.

Log House Study (via Better Living through Design)

The brilliant and beautiful short “The Third & The Seventh” from Alex Roman is a surreal look at movement, light and architecture. On top of that it was entirely computer-generated and is some of the best CG work we’ve ever seen. Take a moment to relax and enjoy it.

(via Boing Boing)

Late last year we did a shoot for one of our favorite clients, architect Dillon Kyle. He had us style this gorgeous house to be shot for his web site and other promotional materials, and we loved working on it! There are more pics posted under Spaces.