My work on display right now, at CNU’s Art of the New Urbanism. Thanks to Eliza and Ed for sending this photo!

(via Video: Jan Gehl | ArchDaily)

it’s taken a while for casual observers to take notice, but the verdict is finally out: the American pattern of suburban growth is running out of steam. The folks at Archdaily have done a nice little job of summarizing the situation with this internet-ready infographic.

(via Infographic: The Decline of Suburbia | ArchDaily)

I’m not much for product promotion, but this new paintbrush tool for the iPad looks like a game changer. Check it out here:

 A Paintbrush That Works On The iPad | Co.Design: business innovation design

On this Friday the 13th, we have some great news to report, courtesy of friend and client Randy Vinson.

The Walker’s Bend neighborhood project is now well underway, with the first homes under construction. While this kind of humble project isn’t often praised in the high-design media, it is every bit as cutting edge.  The City of Covington GA is transforming this foreclosed subdivision from a blight into a bustling new neighborhood, including these dignified affordable dwellings.

Fabric contributed the project’s new master plan and marketing services during the project’s infancy. And soon, families and businesses will inhabit this new neighborhood that was once a vacant and declining subdivision.

Conceptual sketches from the Seattle Urban Intervention design process

When Over the past week, I went through a quarterly process of archiving drawings from past projects, digitizing most and archiving the keepers.  Above is a sampling of the design process from one of our recent collaborations.  These site sketches, each one different, represent only half of the design options we explored.

This past Monday, we presented the results of our ongoing corridor study for Covington, GA. The project, in collaboration with Altanta-based architect Peter Drey, proposes a new street design, zoning ordinance and land uses for a 2.5 mile street. Above, a sketch depicting the results of the new street design and ordinance. 

FS2 Offices Published in Designlines.de

Our recent office incubator design, FS2, was recently published in the Berlin-based design journal Designlines.

Seattle Urban Intervention

Recently, I collaborated with Chicago-based landscape architect Ryan Wilson for a major design competition in Seattle. The project was submitted under our long-running collective called PublicHouse Projects.

While we sadly didn’t win, I’ve posted our two competition boards above. And you can see all the competition entries here including one of the winning entries.

And with that…no more competitions for us. For now.

I’ve recently had the honor to be included in the upcoming exhibition and publication titled Art of the New Urbanism (see previous post for link.) Here’s another one of the four drawings which were selected, this one drawn in 2005 with colleagues Peter Musty, Peter Harmatuck and Edward Erfurt.

Medium: Graphite and watercolor on 90lb cold press.

We are thrilled to report that 4 of Jacob’s drawings have been selected for the upcoming exhibition and publication, Art of the New Urbanism. The event has been assembled specificaly to showcase hand-drawn artwork from New Urbanist proposals over the past 20 years.

Drawings will be displayed at the upcoming Congress of the New Urbanism in May, with a book to follow. Above, a plan drawing for the unbuilt neighborhood called Scuppernong.

Competition and Collaboration

Fabric (Charleston, left above) was thrilled to work again with Ryan Wilson (Chicago, right above), old friend and co-conspirator in the design collective PublicHouse Projects.  We united to compete on the recent Urban Intervention competition, to design a new campus near the Seattle Space Needle. We’ll be posting our competition entry here after winners have been announced.

I/Jacob teach teach urbanism theory at the Clemson University School of Architecture, and was thrilled to see some of our students take First Prize at Design to Zero Competition.

New life for retail megastructures:

Making Over the Mall With Parks and Sermons - NYTimes.com

What happens when a town turns off the traffic lights?

This morning, we came upon a great article by Christine Grant on the Sightline Daily. She recently spent six months traveling the world to document cycling culture. Her great article highlights ten big lessons. Read it here:

http://daily.sightline.org/2012/01/23/two-wheels-and-high-heels/

We’ve just returned to Charleston after three days of continuous work. Our new project, in conjunction with Peter Drey Architect, has the potential to transform a 2.5 mile corridor in the town of Covington, GA (near Atlanta). We’ll post ideas and updates in the coming weeks.