What’s scarier, Ando as a mime or Zaha as a witch? With their Costume Critique | Morbid Models post, Building Satire transformed Tadao Ando, Bjarke Ingels, Zaha Hadid, Rem Koolhaas and Jean Nouvel into creepy trick-or-treaters. Review them all after the break!

By Linda Bennett, for Archi-Ninja

Initially, Architecture School was overwhelming. In my early assignments I struggled to learn the new design ‘language,’ to manage the intense studio hours (goodbye to mum and dad for a while), and deal with the tough criticism – with barely a passing mark, I was lucky to make it through my 1st year! Then there were the ‘super-students,’ those who appeared to achieve the unattainable: draw in plan, section AND perspective, as well as eloquently communicate and sell their ideas.

Six years on from this tough beginning I graduated with high distinction, achieving the highest overall aggregated marks of all students in the areas of History, Theory, Construction, Practice and Design. I was the University of Technology (UTS) winner of the most Outstanding Design Student in 2010, awarded a scholarship to study in L.A. and was also nominated by UTS for the NSW Architects Medallion in 2011.

Today I reflect on my time at university (or college for my US readers) to recognize that the most important lessons didn’t come from the curriculum, but from what I discovered along the way. In no particular order, here is what I uncovered about surviving and achieving in architecture school:

Forget about Winning or Losing

The rest of the 10 Things You Don’t Get Taught in Architecture School, after the break…

Start your weekend early with this Zaha Hadid-inspired track by the internationally renowned DJ, Roger Sanchez. The former Pratt architecture student is currently working on a starchitect-themed, tech house series that musically interprets the work of his favorite architects, such as Frank Gehry, Frank Lloyd Wright, IM Pei, Tado Ando and Gaudi.

Supple Design shared with us their Sydney Architecture Walks, which consists of an ongoing series of public walking and bicycle tours of Sydney that use contemporary architecture to open up conversations political, cultural, economic and environmental. Their premise is that cities are made not found, so architecture becomes the lens to open up other conversations.

Chris Mullaney shared with us a project he designed for his parent’s house in Stroud on a relatively small budget. Through working with form and construction and a chance to put academic work into practice, the Origami Coop sees the ubiquitous chicken coop as an opportunity for experiment. More images and Mullaney’s description after the break.

The first prize in the DesignByMany competition for the Electric Vehicle Charging Station was recently awarded to Arcollab for their Plug + Play proposal. Their design functions as a visual meter of the substantial gap between the production and consumption of energy. This generates a renewed consciousness of energy use in our modern lives. More images and architects’ description after the break.

LEGO® has just announced the newest building in their Architecture series, the iconic Sydney Opera House designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon.

Sydney Opera House is not only a building with great beauty but it has also become known throughout the world as a symbol for not only a city, but a whole country.

The LEGO version of the Sydney Opera House seeks to capture the essence of this grand building in a small scale. Like the other models in the series it was created by Adam Reed-Tucker.

The set will be available in stores on March 1st at a suggested price of $39.99. More images after the break:

You may remember our coverage on the Flight Assembled Architecture exhibit by Gramazio & Kohler and Raffaello D’Andrea, in collaboration with ETH Zurich, that featured a team of flying drones constructing an architectural structure at the scale of a 600m high “vertical village” out of foam blocks. Well, check this out! Roboticists at the University of Pennsylvania’s GRASP Lab, along with developer Kmel Robotics, have created these autonomous Nano Quadrotors capable of flying in formation and flawlessly performing complex maneuvers. Imagine the possibilities!

Interface Studio Architects shared with us their proposal for the Hong Kong Car Parc competition, which aims at romanticizing the car as an active urban object while simultaneously implementing sustainable strategies. In addition to including parking spaces in the rotational design, shopping, food and landscaping aspects are also included in the program. More images and architects’ description after the break.

HORIZONTE, a journal for architectural discourse just announced its latest Call for Papers for their 5th issue dealing with the topic “Fetish”. The journal is an interdisciplinary and collaborative effort of students from the School of Architecture, the School of Design and the School of Media Studies and is an independent student organization at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Germany. For more information, please visit their website here.

The psychology behind what we consider or value to be our homes presents some interesting concepts. While it is easy to answer the question “Where are you from?” when someone is asked “Where is home for you?” the resulting answer may be influenced by a variety of perceptions of what home really is. A recent article entitled The Psychology of Home: Why Where You Live Means So Much discusses such implications. Read more after the break.

The SmartPlayhouse children`s houses are authentic pieces of design work inspired by contemporary architecture. A modern and comfortable space that provides the children with their own private and safe place to play, developing their creativity and ability to share. Built with the highest quality materials and very resistant to rough weather conditions, they give children their own place to play, organize themselves and invite friends over. It`s a place where they can socialize, share with others, express their creativity, mature and have great experiences. It makes a great gift for the holiday season! Check them out here. More images of playhouses can be seen after the break.

MASS Design Group is encourage everyone to help, in any way, in their efforts to design, build, and advocate for buildings that improve health and strengthen communities. Architects have a unique ability to affect change by producing Well-Built Environments, those that are efficient, effective, and empowering. By applying architectural thinking to the full project delivery process we can engender social and political affects that help fight social inequity. For more information and to find out ways you can help, please visit their website here.

During these days we have received close to a thousand seasonal greetings from architects, photographers and editorials around the world. We are very grateful to have collaborated with an amazing group of professionals, who mixed creativity and humor on their e-cards.

Enjoy a selection of these e-cards, including this nice Ginger Bread Vitra Haus, along with Snøhetta, SOM, Richard Meier, BIG, CEBRA, and more!

We found this great image from The All Nighter – a tumblr dedicated to students who want to share and prospective students who would like to know about the architecture studio experience. The ArchDaily team would like to wish you a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!

For those of you still in search for some last minute gift ideas, we present to you part three of the 2011 ArchDaily Holiday Gift Guide. We hope this provides you with that last bit of inspiration to finish your holiday shopping. In case you missed our previous guides, view Part One and Part Two for more gift ideas that is guaranteed to please any architect.

De Rotterdam is a unique multifunctional building on the shores of the river Maas on the Wilhelminapier in Rotterdam designed by Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) of Rem Koolhaas. Its remarkable mix of functions makes this building a true vertical city.

By following the construction for 4 years (January 2010 – end of 2013), Ruud Sies presents a photographic report on a very special project in the development of Rotterdam, one that also forms a link to the Wilhelminapier as a historic spot. The full report can be viewed here. More images after the break.

What is the function of gossip in architecture? Let’s face it, architects don’t openly criticize or debate each other’s work in public; they prefer to gossip within their chosen networks, aiding social bonding through subtle passive aggression. Gossip has always been around in architecture as one of the oldest ways of sharing, maneuvering and convincing. But how does it manifest itself today within the instant culture of internet and social media?

These are the questions Conditions Magazine is hoping you will be able to answer through an abstract design for their new, upcoming issue. More information on the call for submissions after the break.

Highlighting fashion one more time this week (take a look at An Architect’s Dress Code) we wanted to share with you this Le Corbusier inspired design. Taking a nod from one of architecture’s greats the Corneliani man for Fall/Winter 2011 is an interpretation of the Swiss architect and designer Le Corbusier’s timeless elegance and the ‘talking jacket’. Setting a scene reminiscent of a 1940s movie set the Italian brand’s new collection is described as ‘a suit with peak lapels, a soft, enveloping, deconstructed overcoat, thick glasses and a bow tie symbolise with an eccentric touch a sophisticated and relaxed chic.’

What would the world’s landscape look like if it were concentrated into one megalopolis?  This graphic analysis illustrates the amount of land required to accommodate all 6.9 billion people based on the densities of cities across the globe.  The differences illuminate the adverse affects of suburban sprawl.

Architect: Sanders Pace Architecture Location: Manchester, Tennessee Project Team: Brandon Pace, Michael Davis, Michael Aktalay, Larry Davis, Matthew Davis, Carah Ferry, Will Spencer, Garrett Ferry, Ashley Pace, John Sanders, Stephanie Dowdy, David Scott, Shane Elliot, Leslie Smith Project Area: 900 SF (x2 pods) Project Year: Summer 2011 Photographs: Sanders Pace Architecture

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Zaha Hadid Architects have launched a new interactive website that has a large archival library of the many works, built and un-built by the firm. Looking through this vast collection of projects, it becomes obvious how much of Zaha Hadid’s work is public architecture: between urban projects, museums and galleries, this architect’s project are made for masses. We are the real users of her architecture. The new website allows visitors to not only appreciate her work, but participate in an internet forum of sharing a common appreciation for the work. Each project can be “starred” and added to YourZHA, which becomes a log of her work that the visitor to the site can then refer back to.