Pretty Cool Things

You’d never know from your first glance that this building in the district of Izola, Slovenia, is actually a public housing project. We’ve grown accustomed to the usual stale and oppressive concrete bunker-like structures when we think of public housing.

Enter a team of Slovenian designers, who’ve taken their cues from the modular honeycomb clusters of a beehive, putting together a structure of brightly colored shells, staggered balconies, and eco-friendly features.

The striking development boasts beautiful views and makes smart use of solar shading and natural ventilation to regulate its interiors all year-round.

Designed to mimic the rhythmic structure of honeycomb, the layout creates “dynamic elevations and offers privacy to the neighboring owners.”

Each of the balcony modules is topped with a colorful textile shade that provides for efficient solar shading and ventilation: “Textile elements fixed on the front of the balconies block direct sunlight and accumulate ‘air buffer’ zone. In the summer, hot air accumulated in the area behind the shadings is naturally ventilated through (10 cm holes) perforated side partitions of the balconies. In the winter the warm air stays in the area and provides additional heating to the apartments.”

Absolutely brilliant!

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In in attempt to draw attention to the issue of global warming, Spanish artist Juan Galdeano designed this unusual fountain in Rome, Italy. The installation was created to look like the fountain is supporting a hatchback Seat Ibiza on a jet of water, but it reality the vehicle is supported by an intricate and well hidden support mechanism. The installation will be available for public viewing from June 5 to August 10.

My question… of all the cars to choose from, why a Seat Ibiza? If Galdeano was attempting to draw attention to global warming, a gas guzzling pig like the Hummer would have been a more suitable choice, assuming of course, that the supports could hold it up.

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Just days before the first kickoff of UEFA EURO 2008, Adidas launched an oversize campaign of its own. In co-host Switzerland, fans passing through the Zurich train station were welcomed by a 55-foot tall huddle of players. Eleven colossal doubles of football stars from nine different countries make up the circle. The players stand arm in arm and cheer for each other at the top of their voices and in their own language twice a day during rush hour. The huddle is made up of Ballack and Lahm (both Germany), Van Persie (Netherlands), Cech (Czech Republic), Charisteas (Greece), Villa (Spain), Benzema and Vieira (both France), Chivu (Romania), Ivanschitz (Austria) and Barnetta (Switzerland). It took more than 50 people working daily for a year to create this exhibit.

In Vienna, Austria, Adidas installed a 130-foot-high likeness of the Czech national team goalkeeper Petr Cech, one of the best goalies in the world. The Chelsea FC superstar is presented with an octopus-like eight arms mounted onto a giant ferris wheel that rotate around him. The entire area covered is about the size of a football pitch. “Being chosen for this fascinating project by adidas is a great honor for me,” said Petr Cech.

Apart from the giant goalie, Vienna also exhibits the third Adidas spectacular. Within the F50 TUNiT 16 range, Adidas designed an individual UEFA EURO 2008 football boot for each of the 16 participating nations featuring the national colors, details and facts of the respective country. These 16 different shoes are now on display as oversized models in front of the MuseumsQuartier in Vienna, each shoe as big as a mid-sized car.