january 5, 2007
  project watch
Turning Over an Old Leaf
Rare platinum coating discovered in the historic Breakers mansion
The Preservation Society of Newport County in Rhode Island has discovered rare platinum leaf decorating wall surfaces and ceiling panels at the historic Breakers mansion, a 70-room, 138,000-square-foot Italian Renaissance-style palazzo completed in Newport in 1895 by the prominent Vanderbilt family. Using non-invasive, state-of-the-art conservation techniques, the Preservation Society worked with the Delaware-based Winterthur Museum to uncover why the 100-year-old, silver-colored surfaces—thought to be decorated with silver, aluminum, or tin leaf—hadn’t tarnished in more than a century. Their analysis confirmed that the leaf’s silver appearance belied its true identity: platinum.

Tokyo’s Chanel Tower Provides Canvas for Israeli Artist
Michal Rovner installation combines art with architecture
A new commercial tower, designed by New York City-based architect Peter Marino, FAIA, opened December 4 in the Ginza district of Tokyo. Drawing on Marino’s incorporation of 700,000 embedded light-emitting diodes (LED) in the tower’s façade, Israeli artist Michal Rovner created her newest video installation, “Tweed, Tokyo.” Rovner’s work radiates out from the Ginza tower as well as Chanel’s boutique in Osaka, both designed by Marino, and are on display through the end of the year.

AIA Westchester/Mid-Hudson Celebrates Architecture
AIA Westchester/Mid-Hudson honored 18 outstanding projects for design excellence at its annual “Celebration of Architecture” Gala in November. The venue for the awards presentations was Frank Gehry’s Bard College Fisher Performing Arts Center in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y. The evening’s program included a behind-the-scenes facility tour and a musical presentation by Bard College students demonstrating the spectacular acoustics of the hall.

 

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Welcome to the Design Zone
Here is where you will find our weekly Project Watch, short vignettes on notable projects in this country and abroad. The Design Zone is also where you fill find coverage of awards programs, including the national Honor Awards as well as state and local component awards.