From The Wall Street Journal — Classic New York Streetscapes, Then and Now

It is an essential paradox of New York City that its streetscapes seem both ageless and ever-evolving. Photographer Berenice Abbott captured that vibrant contradiction in the 1930s when she created her landmark series “Changing New York,” more than 300 black-and-white images of the metropolis shot with a large-format camera while she was working under the auspices of the Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration. Her visual time capsule documents everything from soaring skyscrapers to neighbourhood storefronts, churches, tenements, warehouses and bridges.

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What makes New York is how we recycle buildings. 

— Mitchell Moss, professor of urban policy and planning at New York University

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The New York Public Library recently released free, high-resolution scans of the “Changing New York” portfolio, prompting one Wall Street Journal photographer to reshoot more than a dozen of Abbott’s images of Manhattan and Brooklyn. They reveal how much, and in some cases, how little, New York City has changed. Read more: Classic New York Streetscapes, Then and Now - WSJ

From The Link — Japanese Architect Manabu Chiba Presents Alternative Design to Canadian Audience — People First Urban Planning

Graphic Madeleine Gendreau 

Madeleine Gendreau  Walking through the city, it’s often forgotten that the environment in which we live has been wholly and meticulously planned to dictate our every move. Each intersection, metro entrance and building orientation has been sent through scores of plans and approvals to be put in its exact place. Read more: A People First Approach to Urban Planning | News – The Link

Bing Thom re-imagines downtown Vancouver

MT @rdtvan: Bing re-imagines #downtownVancouver http://t.co/W4h9TXU8Vx #rdtvan http://t.co/ioZirDl557 pic.twitter.com/dipdZwWywm

— Bing Thom Architects (@BTArchitects) July 4, 2015

From Urban Toronto — Westbank Proposes Fully Rethought Mirvish Village Redevelopment

Ever since it was announced last year that David Mirvish had sold his family's iconic Honest Ed's store and Mirvish Village properties at Bloor and Bathurst Streets to Vancouver-based developer Westbank Corp, people have been wondering what the proposed redevelopment of the site would look like. Would the quaint and eclectic atmosphere of Markham Street be maintained? How tall and dense would the proposal be? Will it end up with a monolithic feel? More at: Westbank Proposes Fully Rethought Mirvish Village Redevelopment | Urban Toronto

Post by The Sidewalk Ballet.

Women in Design: An interview with Johanna Hurme of @546arch @spacingvan

Post by The Sidewalk Ballet.

Guggenheim Museum: ‪#‎FrankLloydWrightFridays‬

Post by Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.

From @ArchDaily — Unfolding Accommodation and Panelized Modular Housing

Post by Architecture Daily.

Architecture Daily shared Homesthetics's video. - Architecture Daily

From @ArchiDaily — Architecture Music

Post by Architecture Daily.

From @Dezeen — 3D Animation Completion of Sagrada Família

More at: One-minute 3D animation shows final phases of Gaudí's Sagrada Família

Rotterdam Markthal goes supersized in psychedelic ‪#‎marketplace‬ @guardian

Post by Nanaimo Commons.

From Price Tags — Arthur Erickson on False Creek development – 1983

Fascinating Jack Webster interview with Arthur Erickson in 1983, discussing the development of B.C. Place (when it was a proposed megaproject to be developed by the Province) for which he was the consulting architect. Renderings start at 9.45. (A very-80s Dave Podmore, head of planning for B.C. Place, shows up – that’s him pictured.) Full post at: Arthur Erickson on False Creek development – 1983 | Price Tags

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The (amazing) density of Barcelona Eixample @cnunextgen

Post by CNU NextGen: The Next Generation of New Urbanists.

From craftsy.com —Bright Lights, Big City Inspiration: Urban Sketching Tutorial

Illustration: Bird’s eye view via Craftsy member artistkierstan.

Urban sketching might seem intimidating at first, but there’s a whole world of subject matter out there just waiting to inspire you. In this post, we’ll explore a number of different ways to approach sketching in the city, from subject matter to style. More at: Bright Lights, Big City Inspiration: Urban Sketching Tutorial

James McNabb Solo Exhibition — Metros @McNabbDesign @Vimeo

James McNabb Solo Exhibition - METROS from The Greatest Trick on Vimeo.

This Thursday: Built City @MOV — Cornelia Hahn Oberlander and Friends

Post by The Sidewalk Ballet.

RT @humansofny "We're all victims of the architect."

"We're all victims of the architect. Architecture is the only art that you can't help but feel. You can avoid..." pic.twitter.com/1hqgCc2eGl

— Brandon Stanton (@humansofny) October 14, 2014

New York 1915 (colourized). @jen_keesmaat

New York 1915 (colourized). Note the size of the street trees, the width of the sidewalks, the architectural detail. pic.twitter.com/Q3jWTtMLSF

— jennifer keesmaat (@jen_keesmaat) October 12, 2014

From @architectmag — @snohetta and @DIALOG Release #Calgary Central Library Designs

Post by Nanaimo Commons.

— @BrentToderian in @planetizen — Tall Tower Debates Could Use Less Dogma, Better Design

It's the debate about tall buildings, possibly the most polarizing argument in CNU circles (arguably even more than the lingering traditional vs contemporary architecture debate), and maybe in urbanism circles in general.

In previous posts and talks, I've discussed the importance of what I call "density done well." It might be impossible to discuss the controversial issue of density (still referred to by some politicians as “the d-word”) without discussing height. In fact, height is often more polarizing and controversial than density itself. Height and density have a relationship, one that can be over-simplified or mischaracterized, but they aren’t the same thing - you can have density without height, and yes, you can have height without density. Read more: Tall Tower Debates Could Use Less Dogma, Better Design | Planetizen: The Urban Planning, Design, and Development Network

From CBC Radio — Ideas with Paul Kennedy Witold Rybczynski: Art We Live In

We love and hate them, but we can't escape them either - we're all obliged to live and work in buildings, and we all have strong feelings about how they look, how they function, and how they affect us.

Witold Rybczynski plays architecture tour guide to explore some big questions: What makes buildings work (or not)? What were the architects thinking? And what do buildings tell us about ourselves, our times and what we do? More at: Art We Live In | Ideas with Paul Kennedy | CBC Radio