Be Open think tank

#BeOpenARCH Local H&P architects has unveiled ‘Tile Nest’ house, the studio’s latest clay tile structure that unfolds as a nature-infused dwelling in a newly developing urban area outside Hanoi in the Ha Nam province, Vietnam. Tile, a familiar and popular material with Vietnamese people, is applied to this house in an unusual way to create a porous architectural skin. The house communicates the idea of creating a space, a blend of the Nest with many nooks and crannies finding all their way up to the ground and the Ancient Pit House partially hidden underground. This combination gives the house’s architecture a distinct corrugated appearance, with the shell felt like porous/ perforated on the outside and large space on the inside.

#BeOpenDESIGN Architecture studio Grimshaw and the team from University of East London have collaborated with sugar brand Tate & Lyle Sugars to develop Sugarcrete, a low-cost and low-carbon reusable biomaterial, which serves as a sustainable alternative to brick and concrete. Made from the sugarcane by-product bagasse mixed with mineral binders, the material in an interlocking shape was designed to be four times lighter and have 15 to 20 per cent of the carbon footprint of traditional bricks. Using only 30 per cent of the world bagasse production, Sugarcrete is claimed to be able to replace the traditional brick industry entirely, offering a potential saving of 1.08 billion tonnes of CO2, three per cent of the global CO2 production.

#BeOpenART Empty food cans become portals to cozy, miniature reading rooms in the latest project by Japanese artist Kiyotaka Mizukosh from Mozu Studios. Titled The Book CAN, the artworks are incredibly detailed in execution and include tiny replicas of ordinary household objects. The artist uploads behind-the-scenes videos documenting the creations of each project on his YouTube channel.

#BeOpenARCH US-based Olson Kundig Architects has unveiled a two-storey studio designed to move back and forth upon repurposed railroad tracks from the Great Northern Railroad line joining or disconnecting from the main living volume as desired. Named MaxonStudio, the structure crafted from weathering steel and wood pays homage to Washington’s rail industry. The team used both old and innovative technologies, including a Japanese high-speed railway-inspired earthquake-proof stabilising bar, and a dumbwaiter for transporting heavy items between the two floors.

#BeOpenDESIGN French illustrator Jean Jullien has teamed up with Fernand Surfboards to create a playful series of fun and cute designs. Each of the four surfboards boasts a different sea animal illustration. All four pieces are hand-painted straight away on the foam, before being glassed by resin league and polished. More creative and sustainable surfboard designs in our blog

#BeOpenDESIGN Concerned by the fact that the skateboard is often inconvenient to carry, Taiwanese designer Chia-Wei Chen has developed The Board, a mini cruiser skateboard concept with a unique dynamic structure. Its iconic feature is 57 interlocking pivot hinges that transform the classic cruiser shape into a perfect circle that can easily fit into a backpack. Chen is currently developing the prototype and considering open-sourcing the design as a DIY kit for 3D printers. More extraordinary skateboard designs in our blog

#BeOpenDESIGN The Fairfield Parent+Child Carrel design was based on insightful challenges from the staff of Henrico County Public Library for their Fairfield Area Library. The staff noticed that parents with toddlers struggled to use the library‘s adult reading room computer workstations and reached out to Michigan-based TMC Furniture to solve the problem. The solution features an inside play space, designed for infants and toddlers up to two years of age, which includes a mirror at the lowest level and a series of interactive panels above. Library staff can switch these panels out to provide a variety of content, which might change for the season, curriculum or other community needs.

#BeOpenNEWS #BeOpenART We are happy to announce that Sarah Tantawy, a young Egyptian painter, has been voted the Artist of the Month by the visitors of art.beopenfuture.com Sarah has a great interest in women's feelings, so the woman is the main character in her pieces. As a woman, she portrays and expresses the feelings of loss and loneliness, as well as the lack of social support - feelings that are familiar to many women around the world. Her delicate and sincere works were chosen by art enthusiasts from across the globe among emerging talents exhibited in our online gallery in April. We praise all the featured artists and thank everyone who voted!

#BeOpenDESIGN Based on the research, Japanese design firm Nendo has designed a beer can with two pull tabs that can precisely control the level of foam that is created while opening it. Slightly different distances between each pull tab and the lid change the degree of opening. When the can is opened by the first tab, the lid opens a little to create more foam. Once the glass is about half full of bubbles, the user is advised to stop pouring and wait for the bubbles to settle. The second tab then opens the lid to the fullest, which allows the user to gently pour the rest without any excessive foam pouring out.

#BeOpenARCH Ūti Architectes has used artificial intelligence design tool Midjourney to reimagine the French capital’s urban spaces and creates a series of photographs that show skate venues hidden within the Parisian landscape. Having grown up in Paris with the culture of skateboarding, which is deeply rooted in certain iconic places, the team sought to take a new look at Paris as an architect.