Legendary Spanish architect Ricardo Bofill passed away today, January 14, according to a statement released by his firm, Taller de Arquitectura (RBTA). Born in 1939, Bofill was one of the world’s most celebrated contemporary architects, completing over 1,000 projects in his lifetime. He was best known for his ambitious multifamily housing work, including La Muralla Roja in Alicante, and Walden 7 in Sant Just Desvern—both in Spain—a city that was also home to La Fábrica, RBTA’s headquarters, and Bofill’s home, since 1975. “Architecture is more than just a social phenomenon, more than simply a place in which to live or work,” Bofill said in a July 1987 issue of Architectural Digest. “It relates directly to man’s desire to survive, to leave a legacy. If I can accomplish that, then I have not worked in vain.”
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Openings
Alexis Bittar Gets a Swanky New SoHo Storefront
Last year, Alexis Bittar reinvented his jewelry company as an all-around lifestyle brand, bringing home decor, accessories, and a wide range of products into the mix. His new outpost on Prince Street will showcase all of the new goods in a sleekly designed showroom alongside the company’s jewelry. “I was intrigued to create an immersive experience that blends different sensory elements,” Bittar tells AD PRO of his inspiration. “[From my experience of] public school in the ’70s in Brooklyn, I came up with the idea of an abandoned institution. [I] wanted to fuse past and future, [with] the future represented in a glacial mirror sculpture that looks like it’s [been] beamed down from the past.”
Awards
Wayfair Calls for Design Submission for Their 7th Annual Tastemaker Awards
On January 11, the online home furniture giant Wayfair announced the return of its 7th Annual Tastemaker Awards. Hosted by Wayfair Professional—a membership program offering a host of tools and services—the 2022 awards will choose winners for: most dramatic renovation, best residential design, best bathroom design, most effective use of color, best outdoor design, and best commercial business design. The finalists will be chosen from a panel of judges, including AD PRO editor Lila Allen, along with AD100 designer Joe Haken and Hadley Keller, the digital director of House Beautiful. Entry is for members of Wayfair Professionals only. The submission process requires that members upload their designs to Instagram using both #WFPTastemakers and #WayfairProStyle hashtags, and that they tag and follow @wayfairprofessional before February 1. The winner will receive $1,000 to shop across Wayfair.com, along with design promotions on the company’s social media channels.