Unreal. That is the first word that swims around our heads when we look at images of Google’s new offices in Tel Aviv. While some plebes schlep to work amid carpet covered cubicles and everlasting beige, Google’s employees have an indoor orange grove reminiscent of Jaffa’s longstanding industry, a wall covered in a giant giclée of the […]
Just two hour’s drive east of Dubai, the Al Hayl Fort or Palace paints a succinct picture of Emirati life before artificial islands and enormous skyscrapers became “normal.” Located in a wadi among the Hajar mountains, the remarkable earthen compound was built in 1932 by then ruler of Fujairah Sheikh Abdullah Bin Hamdan. It’s a […]
Just about everyone learned in their early geography classes that the Nile Valley was once a fertile haven. Crops proliferated on the green banks due to natural flooding that deposited rich nutrients, although occasionally these floods inundated and destroyed crops as well, and the land of the Pharaohs was a mecca for agriculture. But when […]
On a VIP media tour of the zero-carbon city Masdar, Tafline unveils these new pics of the stunning green oasis in the desert A lot has happened at Masdar City since our first visit two years ago. Back then the “zero carbon, zero waste” development received a pile of bad press for falling short of […]
Now in Abu Dhabi, a wild 56 foot tall pavilion cleans air around it; like taking 260 cars off the road at any given time. New York’s HWKN (Hollwich Kushner) is a New York based architecture and design office whose projects span the worlds of architecture, branding, and development. Their spiky blue air-scrubbing pavilion called Wendy has […]
Gaza's five star hotel, especially one that is made with adobe brick. Designed by the Palestinian architect Rashid Abdelhamid, who was born and trained in Algeria, the 22 room Aldeira Hotel features domed ceilings and arches and a resplendent earth-toned facade. The hotel is regularly used by foreign journalists covering Gaza.
Exploring issues such as clean energy and air pollution, the FeliCity exhibition in Tehran focuses on the need for green solutions The environmental state of Iran is far from rosy. Pollution is amongst the highest in the world, their groundwater supplies are being overexploited and lack of food security means Iranians are turning veggie (part-time, […]
Despite the many stereotypes about residents of Gulf countries, many people prefer creative, sustainable boutiques to shopping in big glitzy malls, though their options are typically fairly limited. Which might explain why Bahrain’s Market 338 has become such a popular destination. Inaugurated by Al Riwaq Art Space, the temporary souq in Manama’s Adliya district started with […]
What can graphic design do to help tackle environmental degradation? Well, these Iranian designers think a lot. Exploring the nexus where art and nature meet, Iranian designers look at the environmental problems riddling their cities and the innovative ways they can resolve them. Whether it’s reducing the use of cars, discussing the place of graphic […]
Israeli architects Moshe Fluhr, Lee Davidson Lehrer and Yinnon Lehrer submitted this design for a contemporary memorial home for Ramat Yishay – a community situated in northern Israel. The design competition for Yad Lebanim, which means Fallen Sons Commemoration, called for a mixed-use development complete with activity rooms, educational facilities, a library and an amphitheater. […]
A new marketplace for Casablanca – complete with rainwater harvesting and a clever trash chute? While the souq or market is integral to Moroccan culture, they are frequently crowded and polluted as population density expands throughout the North African country. TomDavid Architecten from The Netherlands submitted a proposal as part of an international design competition […]
Lacking the necessary raw materials has been a major barrier to any kind of paper industry in Oman, but that could change if a young inventor commercializes his patented palm leaf waste to paper technology. A recent graduate of Sultan Qaboos University, Mustafa Salim Abdullah Barami first learned how to use the palm leaf waste […]
Israeli eco-innovation is spreading to all reaches of the planet, often sowing great green seeds where it touches down. The Tel Aviv-based architecture studio Talmon Biran sent us images of their entry into a recent design competition for the Nikola-Lenivets artist community in Russia’s Kaluga region. Conceived in tandem with Anna Leshchinsky, the proposal calls for […]
Craig Deebank and Gina Gallaugher were selected as finalists in the Sukkahville design competition held in Toronto recently with their extraordinary Embryonic Canopy – a giant floating seed bomb (and a contemporary Sukkah.) Comprised of a CNC-cut central platform that resembles real trees along with several biodegradable balloons, the design is a whole new take on an […]
Three years of sustainable lighting for fifteen bucks? United Nations Relief Agency, you hearing this? The LuminAID inflatable solar light was created by a pair of architecture students focused on disaster-relief solutions to the 2010 Haitian earthquake. Their light offers a safe, inexpensive and sustainable alternative to kerosene and oil lamps that’s ideally suited to […]