Friday Finds 2.26.2010

Aaron: Bustler.net

Every two seconds some new design competition is announced. A massive museum in Rio, a new embassy in Athens, the new library at the University of Chicago. Nothing better than watching tony architecture firms do battle, but to be honest, I can never keep up with who wins, who is a finalist and if the damn things are ever actually built. Enter Bustler. I just stumbled across it today and is it ever the spot to keep track of who wins what commission. Start keeping score at home, sports fans! 

Michele: Sound Experiment by André Michelle

My friend Wendy turned me on to this sound experiment from German computer developer André Michelle. According to Michelle's page, it's a "simple sinewave synthesizer triggered by an ordinary 16-step sequencer. Each triggered step causes a force on the underlaying wave-map, which makes it more cute." Make your own music by clicking and unclicking the squares in the matrix and you'll see this experiment is indeed insanely cute—and completely addictive.

Miyoko: Austria Passive House in Whistler

Last weekend I headed up to Whistler and Vancouver for three days to cheer on the athletes competing in the Olympic Games. In addition to gold medals and skating mascots, the Austria House, located in the woods between Whistler's upper and lower villages, caught my eye. Built by the Austrian Passive House Group to showcase energy-efficient construction, sitting in the snow it was a beautiful example of sustainable modern design.

Amy: The Black Harbor

I'm really loving this online art and design magazine right now. It's a collaborative effort by a collective of folks, one of whom is Justin Fantl who shot L.E.D. lights for Dwell a while back. Great posts, interesting artists, lovely things to look at.

Jordan: Procrastination

Procrastination is many things, not least of which is taking four minutes and 18 seconds out of your afternoon to watch this awesome animated short by London-based illustrator Johnny Kelly. Countless cups of tea in the making, I'm sure, it details the different ways we work so hard to avoid getting things done. via Neatorama

Amanda: The 1950 Small Houses book

I have no clue where Wary Meyers found this little treasure, but I love that scavenging pair all the more for taking the time to scan some of the interior pages. Among the images: drawings for a Wright Usonian, intended for those with a "$5,000-$6,000 income", a $1,000-prize-winning Neutra rendering for an abode in LA (above), and a Yukio Kako-designed floor plan that garnered the architect a cool $200 from Aga.