Japanese architects ARTechnic have completed Shell, a holiday villa in Karuizawa, Japan.
“Being in sync with nature isn’t about yielding to nature – it’s about coexistence,” explains Kotaro Ide of ARTechnic. “The existence of the structure depends on its power to endure nature.”
Photographs by Nacasa.

Via Dezeen.

Pierre Blanc is the man behind these ‘heavy metal’ vases. Logos of bands such as AC/DC, Metallica, and Kiss are painted onto existing vases to create this brash collection of ceramics.

Studio Arne Quinze transposed the concept and vision for the interior design of die kunstbar under the steps of the Dome in Cologne, Germany. The cathedral shews up the entire scenery, looking down over the entire city. A Dome referring to the catholic history of Köln, a Dome watching over the mass as the domineering replacer of God on earth.

Via Dezeen.

Advertising Agency: The Partners, London, United Kingdom.

Via ibelieveinadv.

Andy Scott is a Glasgow-based artist specializing in large-scale public art installations. One of his most ambitious projects is ‘The Kelpies’, a set of two horse heads based on the mythical scottish creatures of the same name. Looking at the project you may be thinking that the two welded-steels sculptures aren’t that big, but if you look closely, you will notice small people standing at the base of the sculpture. The reason for these small people is because these sculptures are actually scale models. Scott is building
the real ‘Kelpies’ to be 10-stories high. The heads are not only decorative but will also slowly rock forward and back to push water into a lock and raise boats into the nearby canal. The model ‘Kelpies’ will be scanned and then magnified and recreated in their final resting spot, weighing a whopping 400 tonnes when complete in 2010 or 2011.

Via Designboom.

The project takes place in a former 1200 square meter anti-atomic shelter. An amazing location 30 meters down under the granite rocks of the Vita Berg Park in Stockholm. The client is an internet provider and the rock shelter hosts server halls and offices. The starting point of the project was to consider the rock as a living organism. The humans try to acclimate themselves to this foreign world and bring the ‘best’ elements from earth: light, plants, water and technology. We created strong contrasts between rooms where the rock dominates and where the human being is a stranger against rooms where the human being took over totally.

Architects: Albert France-Lanord Architects
Photographs: Åke E:son Lindman

Via Archdaily.