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What are we thinking?......What were we thinking!

Every project has a (back)story: BKSK LAB is a forum to share these stories of process, research, innovation, and engagement.

Façade

Collaborative Design Across Borders: An Interview with Partner George Schieferdecker and Alexandra Hutchison

AUGUST 21, 2018 | The Lambaye Learning Center will provide a library, skill training area, women’s center, and other communal spaces for the village of Lambaye in Senegal. The project was made possible by the hard work from a diverse cohort, including BKSK, an enthusiastic chemistry teacher originally from Lambaye, Students for Senegal, a world-renowned furniture designer, local builders and craftsmen, and the villagers of Lambaye.

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In Response

Out with the New, In with the Old

JULY 11, 2018 | Over 90% of New York City's building stock in the year 2050 already exists today. Buildings in New York City account for almost three-quarters of the city’s current greenhouse gas emissions. These two simple statements outline the challenge before us: to meet the New York City's goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050, an aggressive approach to energy reducing retrofits is essential.

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Four Brilliant Ideas

[Nourishment]

DECEMBER 30, 2015 | We come across a lot of brilliant ideas through our design and research, including the many ways that the concept of nourishment translates beyond the dinner plate.

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Four Brilliant Ideas

[Embodied Learning]

AUGUST 13, 2015 | We come across a lot of brilliant ideas through our design and research, including the many lenses available for considering the body's role in learning.

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Four Brilliant Ideas

[Drawing]

JULY 10, 2015 | We come across a lot of brilliant ideas through our design and research, including how drawing enables exploration, both of worlds as they exist and worlds as we might make them.

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The NYC Strategy Field

APRIL 27, 2015 | Developed by the BKSK LAB, the field is an interactive database reflecting the existing stock of multi-family buildings in our city that have been marketed as “green" and highlighting the specific strategies that designers and developers have used to attract tenants and buyers.

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Four Brilliant Ideas

[Ethnography]

MARCH 30, 2015 | We come across a lot of brilliant ideas through our design and research, including the variety of approaches to ethnography and its application to architecture.

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Washington Square Park House: A Model for Low Carbon Design

MARCH 13, 2015 | On February 27th, BKSK went before members of the New York City Council to present design solutions that work toward a carbon-balanced future and, specifically, support the achievement of an 80% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

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In Response

Active Design Guidelines

JANUARY 20, 2015 | The publication of the Active Design Guidelines was a critical milestone in New York’s commitment to building a healthy, living city. Here, we reflect on how the guidelines could grow.

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“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” Buckminster Fuller

Strategies In Practice

Blue Roof

OCTOBER 20, 2014 | A blue roof captures and slowly releases rainwater in order to slow the rate of runoff and reduce the potential for related flooding, which can be especially helpful for buildings in urban settings.

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Strategies In Practice

Solar Hot Water

AUGUST 28, 2014 | Solar hot water systems use solar radiation to heat water year-round for domestic use, a process that results in zero emissions and uses no nonrenewable energy.

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Four Brilliant Ideas

[Empathy]

AUGUST 28, 2014 | We come across a lot of brilliant ideas through our design and research, including a growing body of critical thought about compassion and empathy.

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Strategies In Practice

Floodproofing

AUGUST 26, 2014 | Floodproofing is any combination of structural and non-structural adjustments to a building, which collectively reduce or eliminate damage from flooding, and increase a building's safety and resiliency.

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Ground Source Heat

AUGUST 22, 2014 | Ground source heat, an approach that harnesses the stable temperatures of the earth, is highly efficient and highly cost-effective relative to other common heating and cooling systems.

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The story behind our human-centered research

AUGUST 21, 2014 | The LAB at BKSK exists to instigate and propel meaningful research and discourse. We invite you to learn more about our people, our approach, and our ongoing commitment to advancing the building industry. And we encourage you to join our open dialogue.

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“Can we design buildings to be future-proof? Can we again make buildings that mature and improve with age?” The LAB Asks

“How can we act as effective collaborators across disciplinary fields? How should we define integrative practices and processes?” The LAB Asks

“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

Understanding The Syntax

Long Life + Loose Fit

AUGUST 18, 2014 | For a building to be and remain relevant, it must welcome the shifts of its occupants and contexts, while also supporting the immediate goals of a project. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with long life and loose fit in mind.

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Understanding The Syntax

Health + People

AUGUST 18, 2014 | As design studios begin to adopt elements of a chemistry lab, wherein the intricate properties of building materials become more clearly understood, architects can better understand a building's impact on human health. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with health and people in mind.

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Understanding The Syntax

Ecology + Resources

AUGUST 18, 2014 | We believe in architecture's potential to inspire an attitude of conscious consumption, and to extend ecologically restorative benefits beyond the site and into society. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with ecology + resources in mind.

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Understanding The Syntax

Context + Stewardship

AUGUST 18, 2014 | By viewing the environment as a set of interwoven relationships, we can more effectively celebrate place and protect what is vulnerable. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with context and stewardship in mind.

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Understanding The Syntax

Comfort + Delight

AUGUST 18, 2014 | Comfort is a mercurial friend. Delight, a subjective goal. Yet to fully nurture the human condition, the provision of both is essential. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with comfort and delight in mind.

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Understanding The Syntax

Measure + Time

AUGUST 14, 2014 | The information we measure today, and the methods we use for accumulating a building's stories over time, set the framework for what we manage tomorrow. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with measure and time in mind.

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Understanding The Syntax

Skin + Climate

AUGUST 14, 2014 | The envelope of a building provides shelter against the elements, but it also serves as the interface through which interior and exterior climates communicate. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with skin and climate in mind.

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Four Brilliant Ideas

[Libraries]

AUGUST 14, 2014 | We come across a lot of brilliant ideas through our design and research, including the histories and latest developments in the rich world of libraries.

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Understanding The Syntax

Light + Heat

AUGUST 1, 2014 | The correlation between light and heat, and the techniques for balancing them, directly influence our ability to create more comfortable, energy efficient, and contextual spaces. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with light and heat in mind.

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Understanding The Syntax

Water + Conservation

JULY 25, 2014 | Too often, our buildings are dissociated from site hydrology, particularly in urban settings. By demonstrating water’s inherent qualities, a building can encourage the conservation of water and of other natural resources. Learn about the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of designing with water and conservation in mind.

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In Response

The Features of a Sustainable City

JULY 16, 2014 | Sustainable Cities Collective started a list of features that "make cities truly sustainable." Here, we offer a few more.

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Four Brilliant Ideas

[Pools]

JULY 3, 2014 | We come across a lot of brilliant ideas through our design and research, including insights into the social and environmental impacts of swimming pools.

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“Humans are nature. We do not live in straight lines.” Living Future unConference

“Architecture has to be greater than just architecture. It has to address social values, as well as technical and aesthetic values.” Samuel Mockbee

Topics

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Adaptive Reuse
Collaboration
Community
Façade
Four Brilliant Ideas
Healthy Materials
In Response
Passive House
Performance
Place-based design
Preservation+
Resiliency
Strategies In Practice
Sustainability
Understanding The Syntax

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