The Living, David Benjamin's design studio, has been acquired by Autodesk. Combined, the two will create the Autodesk Studio (part of Autodesk Research), which will "create new types of buildings, public installations, prototypes and architectural environments," Autodesk's blog states.
The Living has seven staff members at the moment, as well as a handful of part-time collaborators. Benjamin's area of specialty is synthetic biology, though he's been collaborating with Autodesk for years in the fields of architecture, art, and computer science.
Some projects the studio is currently working on include a university center for research on robotics and color-changing mussels that track water quality in New York's East River.
Hy-Fi, The Living's latest project (and a collaboration with Autodesk), was released last week at MoMA. The project will provide seating, shade and water while creating almost no waste for the 2014 Warm Up summer music program. It will be composted at the end of the summer.
Of the acquisition, Benjamin says: “This will enable The Living to do more of what we are already doing and supercharge it.” Take a look at Hy-Fi below to see what he means.
Related Stories
| Jan 28, 2014
First Look: BIG's Honeycomb building for Bahamas resort [slideshow]
BIG + HKS + MDA have unveiled the design for the new Honeycomb building and adjacent plaza in The Bahamas – a 175,000-sf residential facility with a private pool on each balcony.
| Jan 28, 2014
2014 predictions for skyscraper construction: More twisting towers, mega-tall projects, and 'superslim' designs
Experts from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat release their 2014 construction forecast for the worldwide high-rise industry.
| Jan 28, 2014
16 awe-inspiring interior designs from around the world [slideshow]
The International Interior Design Association released the winners of its 4th Annual Global Excellence Awards. Here's a recap of the winning projects.
| Jan 28, 2014
Big Ten Conference opens swanky HQ and museum [slideshow]
The new mixed-use headquarters includes a museum, broadcast studios, conference facilities, office spaces, and, oh yeah, a Brazilian steakhouse.
| Jan 27, 2014
A climber's dream: Rock climbing hall planned near Iran's highest peak
Forget the rock climbing wall. A developer in Iran is building a rock climbing hall. That's right, an entire building dedicated to the sport, with more than 48,000 sf of program space.
| Jan 24, 2014
First look: Foster + Partners' new home for Yale School of Management [slideshow]
Edward P. Evans Hall, the new home of the Yale School of Management, has opened for business. The 242,000-sf facility was designed by Foster + Partners, with Gruzen Samton as architect of record.
| Jan 24, 2014
Reed Expansion Index predicts widespread economic improvement for the year
Reed's December Expansion Index stood at 1.48, indicating overall construction in the United States is expected to grow over the next 12 months.
| Jan 24, 2014
Urban Land Institute, Enterprise outline issues in rental housing shortage: Report
Bending the Cost Curve: Solutions to Expand the Supply of Affordable Rentals outlines factors that impede the development of affordable rental housing – causing the supply in many markets to fall far short of the demand.
| Jan 24, 2014
ZGF announces formal partnership with Vancouver's Cotter Architects
ZGF has announced the formal establishment of a Vancouver, British Columbia, presence in partnership with Cotter Architects.
| Jan 24, 2014
Structural concrete requirements under revision: ACI 318 standard
The American Concrete Institute (ACI), an organization whose mission is to develop and disseminate consensus-based knowledge on concrete and its uses, is finalizing a completely reorganized ACI 318-14: Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete.