The Costa Rica Vagabond is Moving

Dearest friends, I am happy to announce that Costa Rica Vagabond has a new home. I appreciate your patience during this transition. You will automatically be redirected to the new site once its ready, so no worries! You'll find our behind the scenes coverage of Art Basel and much much more! Stay tuned...
PS below is a picture I snapped of one of my favorite pieces at Basel. Of course the Abir's Tekrar took the spotlight and really live up to it - was the highlight of Pulse and an amazing thing to see. The reactions of those touched were priceless, including a young lady running up to him with tears in her eye, and saying "thank you!" while she reached in for a hug. These are the true moments where an artist gets his/her gratification. These moments make the sleepless nights, applying plaster to finish the piece, worth it.

The Luna 2 by David Wahl and Melanie Hall

Stunning minimal design - beautiful intersection of perpendiculars and just a well balanced, clean design.

Gorgeous! Look at the details of the stones on the roof, the concrete spine to the home, the glass cubes with light white roofs. Bravisimo! The pool design, the immaculate garden, how everything pieces together! Fantastic execution. Really among my favorite designs in a while. Such great attention to detail and homage to geometry.


Love those stepping stones! Concrete. Raw.

Throw a Warhol on thewall and your done!

The Torres House by GLR Arquitectos

Gilberto Rodriguiz has incorporated so many incredible elements into this home in Mexico. From the water feature at entrance with the tree as one's entry sclupture and concrete stepping stones, to the floating roof over the glass wall, the natural brick colored minimal interior and exterior, the landscaping lighting - it just doesn't stop!

Yep thats a floating chimney - wow.



Well done, and an excellent example of the integration of a modern structure of concrete and glass so well with the natural surroundings.

The Laidley Street Residence by LSarc

Simple, sleek, and excellent use of space. Just very well done. Window details are great and simplistic white frame provides the accentuation of the spacious interior.

VIlla in Woods by Zecc Architects

To cut to the point, wow. Material used is incredible. The natural color of the stone creates a very cool exterior. Pay attention to the detail in the bottom two images. This type of thin stone slab exterior won Peter Zumthor the honor of top architect in 2009, and so this style lives on...

Pavgen

We expend a lot of energy in our every day lives, whether walking or driving, it seems only logical that we recycle that expended energy. Remember, energy can never be destroyed rather only transferred.

Any one point on a busy street can receive up to 50,000 steps a day, so imagine if you could take all that foot traffic and turn it into something useful – like energy! A new product designed by Laurence Kemball-Cook, the director of Pavegen Systems Ltd., can do just that. With a minuscule flex of 5mm, the energy generating pavement is able to absorb the kinetic energy produced by every footstep, creating 2.1 watts of electricity per hour.
Via Inhabitat

Kengo Kuma Water/Glass House

Love that Frank Gehry threw this up in his blog, even though its a throw back. This house designed by Kuma in 1995 achieved a very specific goal. Kuma tried to frame space with only two horizontal planes - the floor and the ceiling and to generate between the planes, a transparent and fluid time-space.

In the Western architectural tradition, a building is primarily framed by means of walls and windows. That interposes a frame between the subject and the object. The subject is inevitably cut off from the object. The space becomes a painting in a frame (i.e. a static image); it becomes frozen. On the other hand, in traditional Japanese architecture, horizontal planes (i.e. the floor and the ceiling) are the dominant framing devices. This enables the subject and the object to coexist in a continuous space, without being cut off from each other by the frame. In such a case, the main concern of planning is the introduction of a sequence and speed into a continuous space. One cannot help but introduce into the building the parameter of time as well as the parameter of space. As a result, become inextricably entwined.

My appologies for the delay, we have a lot to catch up!

Publish Post

Art Basel Miami

Hi friends, I will be documenting Art Basel Miami this year in a search for the ultimate experience. As art steps out of the realm of exclusivity and into our lives, it is the experiential element that allows anyone to appreciate it. As a layman myself, there are few pieces that really touch me and teach me about my sense and my understanding of art. The below installation will be a feature at Pulse in the center of Art Basel. David Abir is an artist, composer, philosopher and has become a dear friend. The below images do not do justice to his work, but it has changed the lives of many of my peers and has opened my eyes. These massive rooms combine a shifting of the most emotionally powerful colors and moving pieces of music David creates. I am not only happy to have experienced this in my lifetime, but excited for others to have this in their lives. I will not bore you with the typical art banter, but David's work is truly next level. Timeless, moving, and truly valuable in the emotion it evokes and the state of mind it puts one in. This is one of the great artists of our time, and we need not a museum or a gallery or a critic to tell us this, this has been validated by each and every person i've taken to his studio.


See Live coverage of David's work and others at Basel on Dec. 3!

Costa Rican Architect Ricardo Ramirez

Dear friends, in search for original design, sometimes it is best to rely on the young architects of our time. Ricardo Ramirez has an imagination, a passion, and a drive to create better ways to live. I've known him for about a year now, and have always been impressed by his ideas. Part artist, part architect, part young visionary, he has an amazing discipline to build structures that challenge convention yet provide a real living space. There is a tough balance to strike between one's ideas and what people would like to live in, and Ricardo does this with a graceful ease. His latest design below is being built in Costa Rica as we speak! Well done my friend and thanks for sharing it with the world.

Notice the beautiful angles allowing natural sunlight through the large windows. I love skylights but this is the ultimate sky light. I believe sun is essential for people in their everyday lives. The juxtaposition of wood and concrete, all warm up the living environment - modern yet comfortable and livable. This will be a key direction in modern design, as modernism often suffers the reality of creating a comfortable home. As an artists you want to create beauty but you also want people to live in this beauty so a balance has to be struck. Ricardo achieves this flawlessly and I am excited to see his future design!

Richard Meier Architect Volume 5

Thanks to my amigos at Proof7 for keeping me in the loop on the freshest of Rizzoli publications! I trust them for anything related to print, they are the mavens in NY in this regard and many others.

In celebration of Richard Meier Studio’s 45th anniversary, Rizzoli new monograph looks at the Pritzker Prize-winning American architect's recent work. Titled "Richard Meier Architect Volume 5," this latest volume reveals that time hast slowed Meier down at all.Focusing on his work between 2004 and 2009, the book offers a thorough and intimate understanding of Meier’s style—particularly the qualities of light and fluidity across a variety of project sizes—through case studies, photographs, illustrations, renderings and drawings of his recent work. Continue reading...

by Anna Carnick

Emerging Landscapes by KLab Architecture

Its amazing how this home interacts with the surrounding environment. The Angles are beautiful and the glass really brings the environment into the home. Notice the details as well - the green roof has a railing, so its really a neat little green terrace you can enjoy and walk on.


Images via Arch Daily

Slit House by Eastern Design

Interesting how this home is not one I particularly love or would live in, but I can recognize the beauty and really appreciate it as an amazing work of architecture. These slits make me feel a bit cold, but you see the interior picture and the effect it creates with light, and it changes my opinion completely. Its a bit like the famous example of a painting of Hitler - even though I hate Hitler and his image disgusts me, the artist achieved his goal in evoking an emotional response from me. This art work, this home below, evoked an emotional response from me, even though its not a home I would build for myself.


Via Yatzer

Queensland artist Sebastian Di Mauro

Sebastian Di Mauro creates these beautiful pieces that I feel would compliment many homes. Its a nice element to liven up and color up one's interior.

Link

Helix Wind Turbine

This is one of a number of beautiful wind turbines I've seen hit the market recently. I like this as it plays into architecture, because one does not have to sacrifice beauty for sustainability. If people are to incorporate wind turbines into their homes and everyday lives, someone has to make them beautiful. Philippe Starck just created one as well, so this sentiment is obviously a growing one in the community. I think its awesome that people are branching out to do this. I've been interested in this since some of my earliest posts (see energy ball etc.), I think the future will see a lot of innovation in this regard, and I can't wait.

Via Inhabitat

Via Luxist

House Bierings by Rocha Tombal Architects

This house in the Utrecht achieves something I personally find amazing. Besides the exterior (the wood is gorgeous) and interior aesthetic beauty, the use of light is incredible. I love natural sunlight, makes me feel warm and happy, and I like to live with it. The window design and the wall design allow the sunlight to play an integral part in this home. The minimalist white walls add to that warmth and the subtle angles allow for light to make certain areas glow with energy. This house, in its subtly and simplicity, achieves a lot.



Link

Wooster x Costa Rica

I like the interaction between graffiti and urban architecture! Like the zipper on the side of the building posted last month. There is so much room for creativity and so many interesting examples I've seen in Costa Rica. This one brought to us by the Wooster collective.

Via Wooster Collective

Pedro Almodovar´s Monument / Enproyecto Arquitectura

Location: Calzada de Calatrava, Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain


Read more at Arch Daily...

Change, Change, Change....

Dear Friends,
I want to firstly apologize for the lack of posts these last few weeks. It had to stop for a week or two and step back to look at the CR Vagabond from a distance. I did this while in Costa Rica last week. Its hard to step back and not get taken up by the storm of new design, architecture, and cool material flooding my screen on a daily basis. I have an itch to post, post, post but had to treat that itch with some Calomine lotion and re-think things a little. While the overall philosophy, content, and site design of the CR Vagabond blog will stay the same, there is a major overhaul happening and the key word is FOCUS. You will see the new selection of carefully curated updates starting to appear this week. Thank you for your patience and continued support.

PS if you haven't already, take a look at the new teaser site for Puerta a la Vida... My first project, the result of 5 years of planning, passion, and hard work, and what took me to CR in the first place!
Link: Puerta a la Vida

Moss House

Nendo Studios renovated this house in Tokyo with dry moss and it looks ridiculously cool. The vivid green moss against the white walls really makes it look alive and most of all there is texture! You can touch it and enjoy an experience beyond the mundane flat walls with paint/wallpaper that we are so used to in our everyday lives. Challenge convention and I'll always approve.


Read more at Inhabitat

Google x Life Magazine

Google has done it again! They now have every single issue of LIFE magazine every published. This is a ridiculous achievement. Not only is this one of the most coveted collectors magazines, but a cultural staple. I have a nice collection of vintage LIFE mags I picked up at an antique shop in Norwich, CT and I know many people who go nuts about them. Whats amazing about this is that you can actually browse through them so easily and even just look through the covers to get a feel of history. Its a photographic journey through time and so cool to see what made the covers and what was a big deal back in the day. The Year In Pictures - 1972 is one of the coolest, so make sure to check it out.

Take a look yourself!

FU-1 house by Takao Akiyama

Experiments in grandeur meet Japanese minimalism. Almost a sure shot to land on a design or architecture site - make it grand - add the Meier wall - big solid color space with connecting structures and large voids. We've discussed this before in some of my earliest posts. I like it, not saying anything bad, just a very popular trend these days in architecture. Like making a Jet Li x DMX film - may not get an Oscar but always a guarantee to make money.

Link

Kengo Kuma x MA,YU

Kengo Kuma teams up with Mayumi Ohmori to create a jewelry line inspired by his designs. Normally I stray away from anything about jewelry etc. but this is an exception for Kengo. He is not only one of the most incredible architects of our time, but someone who has inspired even the most famous of architects. He is one of my favorites, and even the inspiration of a high-end clothing line my friend own called Rochambeau. The jewelry really captures the essence of his designs and does great justice to his work. There are some amazing books that showcase his work, but none better that his Selected Works by who else - Rizzoli! Love the book and love anything Rizzoli publishes. When I make a lot of money, I will not spend it on a Ferrari, I will spend it on a Rizzoli library. Yes I am quite sick in the head!



Read on...

Bloom Gin

Beautiful new bottle design by Bloom Gin of London

Link

J&B Start a Party Campaign

Great new ad campaign by J&B!



Via Fubiz

WOODEN HOUSE BY WIM GOES

Located on the outskirts of Gent, Belgium’s third-largest city, is this stunning private sanctuary.

Read More...