Latest news with #Structures
TimesLIVE
21-06-2025
- General
- TimesLIVE
Inside our built environment
After last year's Ecospheres which saw artists from across the Global South respond to the natural world, the Joburg Contemporary Art Foundation (JCAF) has launched Structures, the second show in its 'Worldmaking' trilogy, which explores the built environment. The exhibition traverses the world from Brazil to South Africa, Algeria and Tunisia. It reflects on the ways in which indigenous forms of knowledge and artistry have contributed to the creation of distinctive vernacular architectures that speak to how artists and architects navigate questions of space, place and race. At the entrance to the museum, visitors are greeted by Stephen Hobbs's installation Mnara (the Swahili word for 'tower') a non-functional scaffold that speaks to and riffs on the ever-present sight of building scaffolding seen in cities across Africa, and the lofty ambitions and sometimes shattered hopes they invoke. Originally created as a small-scale model referencing a photo the artist took in 2002 of scaffolding in Tanzania, the new life-size version offers a thoughtful invitation to ponder the many ways that people have aspired to reach the heavens across time and place. Inside the foundation Rebecca Potterton's mural Marks of Home illustrates the innovations in structure building made by different cultures across the Global South. It highlights the unique characteristics of a vernacular architecture often pushed to the margins in traditional, Western-centric thinking and teaching about the subject. It took the JCAF staff days of patient couscous boiling and careful pouring into molds to install French Algerian artist Kader Atta's striking installation, Untitled (Ghardaïa), a reconstruction of the ancient Algerian city of Ghardaïa that will, over the course of the exhibition, begin to disintegrate as the grain it's made from is exposed to the vagaries of time and the elements. Originally from the Maghreb region, couscous is now globally consumed, and Atta's installation evokes questions about the relationship between Algeria and its former colonial occupier France, and the cultural impact of the periphery on the centre. This point is underlined by accompanying prints referencing modernist legends Le Corbusier and Fernand Pouillon, whose work was much influenced by the architecture of North Africa — without acknowledgment. Atta's installation is the first work in the exhibition's first section, titled 'Situatededness,' comprising works made by artists with relationships to North Africa and the Middle East. Iran-born, Cape Town-based Kamyar Bineshtarigh's work uses the marks made on the wall of a panel-beater's workshop in Cape Town to ponder the ways that human labour and gestures leave their shadows on the spaces in which they work. Canadian artist Hajra Waheed's This Is Not a Door, Just a Sense There Might Be One at Some Point 1-2 consists of a small pair of porcelain sculptures of door frames, emphasising the space of uncertainty and hope that exists between them. Franco-Tunisian photographer Jellel Gasteli's Série Blanche quietly considers changes in light as a marker of time in the stone architecture of mosques on the Tunisian island of Djerba, inviting quiet personal contemplation of memory and the 'pure spirit of place'. In 'Infrastructures,' the second section of the exhibition, artists from South Africa, Angola and Brazil deal in singular ways with the relationships between structures, ideology, power and society. Here six photographs by David Goldblatt from his long-running series examining the structure of things offer imposing reflections on the ways in which the architecture of built spaces, such as churches, monuments and miners' compounds, imposed apartheid ideology on the built environment. The more contemporary work of the all-female architecture collective Matri-Archi(Tecture) invites viewers to interact with ideas of place in relation to nationally symbolic sites like the Union Buildings and Constitution Hill, and reflect on the ways that these have symbolically changed through the various histories of South Africa. Angolan artist Kiluajani Henda's Structures of Survival (Namibe Desert) poses questions about land and settlement through its series of photographs of the construction of an informal dwelling in the bleak wastelands of the Namib desert. Brazilian artist Hélio Oiticica's installation of a favela shack within the museum serves as a celebration of ingenuity and resilience that can be experienced by visitors as they walk through it, shifting stones and sand beneath their feet. The final section of the show, 'Typologies,' comprises two impressively complex and layered installations by MADEYOULOOK — the collaboration between South African artists Molema Moiloa and Nere Mokgotho — which has, for many years, investigated questions about history, land and dispossession in South Africa. The work shown here, Dinokana, was exhibited at the South African Pavilion at last year's Venice Biennale and consists of an installation and soundscape that considers the histories of the Bahurutse and Bakoni people and the cultural significance of rain and water in traditional life. Cape Town-based artist Igshaan Adams's ethereal installation of woven tapestries and wire sculptures Gebedswolke offers a surreal and bittersweet portrait of the ways that residents of Langa, Bonteheuwel and Heideveld forge new paths through the imposed boundaries of apartheid-era spatial planning and how these reflect the dreams, desires, necessities and daily struggles of the people who carve them over time on the Earth. There are, as demonstrated by Structures, many ways of living, building and navigating the relationship between humans and their environment. The exhibition offers a wide-ranging and provocative consideration of the way we build and shape the world around us through the crucible of necessity, knowledge and ideological and creative expression.
Time of India
20-06-2025
- Science
- Time of India
SMSS lab of IIT-K completes 25 years
Kanpur: The Smart Materials, Structures, and Systems (SMSS) Laboratory, department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Kanpur, completed 25 years on June 8 this year. The lab celebrated its 26th Foundation Day. The laboratory was developed through generous Grant-in-Aid support from the AR&DB, ACECOST project as a Centre of Excellence in Smart Materials, along with support from the Institute and the Ministry of Education (then MHRD, through the MODROB Grant). Subsequently, ISRO, HAL, and GAIL funded the laboratory significantly in various phases of development. "We are delighted to reflect upon the incredible journey of our research group. Since its establishment on 8th June 2000, the SMSS Lab has been at the forefront of cutting-edge research, consistently striving for excellence in the fields of smart sensors, actuators, intelligent system design, and robotics," said IIT Kanpur in a release.
Irish Independent
11-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
An Bord Pleanála give green light for major extension to Wexford hotel despite objections
The original application that was submitted back in January 2023 detailed their intention to build an extension to the rear of the building that would accommodate 24 additional bedrooms, an office space and stores at ground floor level with outdoor plant area on the roof, all over lower ground level parking area with attached single-storey bin store, and a standalone gas tank enclosure relocated from the existing location. The application also looked for permission for the alteration and extension of the main function room to comprise an adjoining pre-function room facility on the front elevation at ground level. The proposed bedroom extension connections at three upper levels will result in the loss of two rooms at each level, resulting in the proposed development providing a net addition of 18 bedrooms. The application outlined that the slanted roof will minimise scale and address any potential overshadowing to the front of the residential properties located on the opposite side of the external road to the west Bedrooms in the southwest section of the proposed extension are orientated south to exclude potential for any undue overlooking to the west. End balconies have a privacy screen on the west end to avoid overlooking Although the Millhouse Bar, which is located in the northeastern part of the Riverside Park Hotel is on the Record of Protected Structures (E084), they stipulated that the protected structure would not be impacted/materially affected by the proposed development. However, 13 local residents submitted a letter of objection to Wexford County Council, outlining flooding and overlooking concerns believing that these were not addressed satisfactorily. Resident George Kehoe highlighted that the proposed west elevation would increase the risk of privacy violations for a number of residents within the Gurteen / Saw Mill Lane area. "As per the proposed west elevation, there are eight houses overlooking house nos 5,4, and 3. These windows directly impact the privacy and residential amenities of the neighbouring properties. In the case of no.4, these windows directly look overlook the primary garden area at the south of the house.' He added that there are significant concerns that the already existing noise concerns will increase with the equipment required for the maintenance of the proposed plant room. ADVERTISEMENT "Noise from existing heat pumps/generators/extraction fans/ air conditioning units are clearly audible in a number of neighbouring properties in Gurteen. There is a generator at bedroom level of houses in Gurteen that is in use intermittently. There is little to no buffering from these noises. We are concerned the additional noise introduced by the new outdoor plant area, that includes more heat pumps, will further impinge on the neighbouring properties,' he wrote. He also raised concerns over the loss of public car parking spaces and the 'lived' experience of hotel traffic. "Our experience of living in close proximity to the hotel is that the existing 126 hotel car park spaces is not sufficient. There is encroachment onto the private road of Gurteen / Saw Mill Lane. There is huge congestion when concerts and weddings are held in the hotel, leading to road infringements and parking on our road.' Despite this An Bord Pleanala ruled that the scale and nature of the development was acceptable as long as it followed some conditions. One of the conditions included the provision of a plan that would provide protection measures to maintain the integrity of the existing western boundary wall with Saw Mill Lane, as well as details of intended construction practice for the development, hours of working, noise and dust management measures and off-site disposal of construction/demolition waste. The inspector also conducted a number of nature assessments and found that the development would not seriously injure the visual or residential amenity of the area, create any additional flood risk or impact the integrity of the adjacent European sites and would be in accordance with the Wexford Development Plan 2022-2028. Speaking on the decision on behalf of the hotel, Marketing Manager with the Riverside Park Hotel Millie Moore said they are happy with the decision and believe it will bring more opportunities to the area. "We are delighted to have received a positive decision from Bord Pleanála for this expansion of our hospitality offering. We believe this planned expansion of bedrooms from 100 to 118 rooms will allow us to welcome up to 10,000 more visitor nights to Enniscorthy per annum resulting in more and more visitors on the streets of Enniscorthy as well as visiting Wexford Local attractions.' "We believe it will generate up to a further ten full time jobs in the hotel, resulting in up to €300,000 in extra wages back into the community of Enniscorthy,' she added.
Irish Times
04-05-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Fast-track planning approval for 112 houses and apartments in Co Cork overturned by High Court
A fast-track planning approval for more than 100 houses and apartments in Co Cork has been overturned after the High Court dismissed An Bord Pleanála's 'conveniently Jesuitical' reading of the county development plan. The permission was quashed over the board's failure to justify, in accordance with planning law, its material contravention of objectives of the Cork county development plan (CDP) providing that it 'should' carry out a proper historic buildings assessment, in this case of a post-medieval heritage structure, Highlands House, and associated buildings, before granting planning approval. The board defended its decision on the basis of the notion that the best interpretation of the wording, intention and purpose of the CDP was to say 'that 'should' means you don't have to do it' and the word 'assess' means to assess after the decision has been taken to knock the structure down, Mr Justice Richard Humphreys said. Neither the developer nor board had inspected the interior of Highlands House, which appears on maps from the 1840s and therefore benefits from the protections in the objectives of the CDP, he said. READ MORE The board incorrectly placed 'outsize reliance' on the non-inclusion of the buildings in the Record of Protected Structures and the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. The scheme of the CDP was clearly to extend protection for structures not included in those, he held. In his judgment on Friday, he rejected the board's 'conveniently Jesuitical reading' of the CDP and upheld the challenge by a local resident, Deirdre Condon, to the permission granted in late May 2022 to Ruden Homes Ltd. The permission was for demolition of existing buildings and the construction of 112 residential units – 72 houses and 40 apartments – on the site at Ballynaroon, Glounthaune. Cork County Council objected to permission in the absence of an archaeological assessment of the site structures and the board's approval was made under what the judge described as the 'ill-fated', 'much-criticised' and since repealed strategic housing development (SHD) procedure. This particular application was coming before the board as its record of SHD permissions in breach of development plans was 'coming to something of a crunch point, as its deputy chairperson [Paul Hyde] stepped aside on May 10th, 2022', he noted. A board inspector had completed a site visit on May 16th 2022 and, in his report, had recommended permission be granted. The report said Highlands House and other buildings had been heavily modified over time, with 'little' remaining of importance, and disagreed with the local authority's view the house should not be among structures for demolition. Having agreed with the inspector's report, the board directed on May 31st, 2022 that permission be granted. The judge agreed with the board that the relevant CDP – which was replaced on June 6th, 2022 by the Cork County Development Plan 2022-28 – was not mandatory in relation to preserving historic buildings in situ. Before demolition, other options included preservation by a record or by recovered artefacts. However, an assessment, in the clearly intended sense of a physical survey, was envisaged by the CDP as required in advance of demolition, he said. In this case, the board had decided that a full physical survey was required but argued that did not have to be done before a grant of permission and could instead be addressed via a planning condition. That logic was 'incompatible' with the view that there was compliance with the CDP, the judge held. The primary purpose of a survey of historic buildings can only be to guide whether development consent should be granted. Otherwise, if anything of interest that would affect the permission to demolish was discovered in the survey, all that could then be done was to close an empty door 'with the runaway horse just a dot on the horizon'.
