Kunsthaus Zürich -Competition Winner

David Chipperfield Architects has won the competition to build an extension to Kunsthaus Zürich.

The jury, presided over by Walter B. Kielholz and moderated by Prof. Carl Fingerhuth, has declared the project submitted by David Chipperfield Architects the winner of the competition to design an extension to the Kunsthaus Zürich.

The Kunsthaus extension's partners – the Zürcher Kunstgesellschaft, the city of Zurich, and the Stiftung Zürcher Kunsthaus – will present the winning project at a joint press conference to be held on 15 December at 10 a.m. at the Kunsthaus Zürich. Submissions were made anonymously to the international competition, which was organized by the Department of Structural Engineering of the city of Zurich, and provided the jury with a broad spectrum of potential winners to choose from. The winning project, selected by a solid majority of the jury, meets the complex demands of town planners and architects while also offering a functionally persuasive solution. All 20 projects submitted will be available to public view from 16 December 2008 until 11 January 2009 at the Kunsthaus.

The Kunsthaus Zürich aims to realize its vision of a museum for the 21st century with an extension planned to open on Heimplatz by 2015. It is to cost CHF 150 million (without adjustment for inflation or reserves), to be financed equally by the public and private sectors. The project will be among the first elements to be realized in the University District/Central Zürich development plan, of which it is a part. The Kunsthaus extension is a key project on the municipal council of Zürich’s legislative agenda.

See www.kunsthaus.ch for a list of jury members and participating architectural offices, as well as to read documentation of the project’s aims and status. For information on the prize winning architect see www.davidchipperfield.co.uk.

Image Coney -submit your ideas

It's time to hear your ideas for Coney Island. Coney Island was once the most astonishing place on earth – from the minarets and lights of Luna Park to the water chute rides and freakish sideshows of Dreamland. It was a place of extraordinary spectacle, inventiveness and fun. Over the last several decades, Coney Island has declined – but survived. Millions still visit the beach, the boardwalk and its remaining attractions each year. But the area needs revitalization. How can we restore Coney Island to be one of the world’s most exciting and original entertainment and amusement destinations once again?

MAS has launched ImagineConey, a new initiative to develop new ideas for Coney Island's future. The goal is to see Coney Island restored to its place as one of the world's great entertainment and amusement destinations - the "world's playground." On that day, we brought together a world-class team of designers, engineers, producers and economists at Brooklyn Borough Hall to listen to presentations from key stakeholders (click here to see photographs from the day and here to watch a NY1 broadcast).

The team will return for a two-day "charrette" - an intense design workshop - on November 13 and November 14 and present their initial ideas to the public on November 17.

But first, it's time for architecture and planning professionals and Coney Island fans everywhere to fire up their imaginations and weigh in. We need your ideas for Coney Island's future: for events and activities, for new amusement rides, for the design of new structures and even for interim activities that could happen as early as the summer of 2009.

Here's how to submit your ideas. 1) Visit our new website ImagineConey.com. You can submit ideas as text (less than 150 words) on the website or as graphics which can be emailed to us at imagineconey@mas.org. 2) Attend a workshop next Monday, November 10 (in Coney Island) or next Wednesday, November 12 (at Brooklyn Public Library). For more information about the workshops, click here.

All of the ideas will be displayed online at ImagineConey.com and also at an exhibit that will open in January 2009 here at MAS. The deadline for submission is December 15, and ideas submitted before November 12 will also be considered by the team for potential inclusion in their presentation on November 17.