Visit Melbourne (March 9, 2023) – Step outside the city and spend a night or two with Stella the Stargazer, Victoria’s newest limited-edition off-grid accommodation experience.
Stella is a uniquely Victorian tiny home, paying homage to the Aussie shed, crafted with repurposed timber and steel salvaged from a historical farming shed.
Stella is fitted with everything a hotel guest needs, and nothing they don’t. She’s all about quality over quantity, exuding authenticity and craftsmanship not before seen in a tiny home. With a focus on low environmental impact, the materials provide an aesthetic which is sustainable and distinctively Victorian.
Guests will truly be able to get back to nature and embrace the elements during their stay – enjoying a bespoke roll-out sleeping platform for stargazing.
ABC News In-depth (March 9, 2023) – On Australia’s northern doorstep lies one of the most extraordinary places on earth – some environmentalists call it the second Amazon. The Sepik River Basin in Papua New Guinea is a natural wonder and home to rich and ancient cultures.
It’s a place few outsiders ever get to see. For some time, PNG correspondent Natalie Whiting has been hearing rumours about what’s going on in the remote areas upriver – claims of a logging land grab, police brutality, even killings. She undertakes the journey far up the Sepik River to see for herself what’s happening. In the rainforest of the Upper Sepik a community is divided.
Logging operations and a proposed massive mine site bring hope of economic prosperity for some. But others fear development of the land by international companies means environmental destruction with little benefit. PNG is the world’s largest exporter of tropical round logs but out of sight in the Sepik region some landowners say the logging is happening without proper consent and there are consequences for those who stand in the way.
With a long history of mistrust of big corporations and the promises they make, many of the locals are angry and ready to do whatever it takes to preserve some of the most unspoilt rainforests and waterways on the planet. Read more here: https://ab.co/3Jr8kWE
Architectural Digest (March 7, 2023): Richard Weiss has been a movie theater architect for over 25 years, designing Alamo Drafthouses across the United States. Today on AD he joins us to break down the evolution of theaters from the dawn of commercial motion pictures to the present day.
From the earliest projections featuring Thomas Edison’s Vitascope in converted vaudeville theaters to the contemporary multiplexes we visit now, learn the detailed history of where and how we’ve gone to the cinema for over a century.
Yu Shan or Yushan, also known as Mount Jade, Jade Mountain, or Mount Yu, and known as Mount Niitaka during Japanese rule, is the highest mountain in Taiwan at 3,952 m above sea level, giving Taiwan the 4th-highest maximum elevation of any island in the world.
Video timeline: 00:00 Drone Intro 1:49 Meeting up with Curtis and Larry 2:07 4 hour drive to trailhead 2:53 Yu-Shan National Park 3:37 Trailhead Police Station 3:52 Yushan Trailhead 4:08 Day 1 – Trailhead to Paiyun Lodge (5 miles) 6:50 Day 2 – Paiyun Lodge to Summit (11 miles) 9:29 Tataka Visitor Center 9:47 Why did I visit Taiwan? 10:22 Which route did you take? 12:57 How much did this hike cost? 13:33 Who did I hike with? 14:53 How did you shoot this video?
March 2023: The Seeker is my new drone 2023 reel. This short film is a kind of aerial footage reel that showcase the variety of different videos that I shot during the past several years.
Divided into two categories “nature and city” this 2-and-a-half-minute reel reveals just a glimpse of the diversity of some of my drone footage. Shot primarily in European locations this reel featured countries such as Russia, Spain, Portugal, Iceland, Italy, Norway, UAE and others.
Open Space (March 5, 2023) – Ralph Haver AIA was an American Architect who was highly accredited to bringing Modernism to Arizona. Malcolm and Lea weren’t necessarily looking for a modernist home when they stumbled upon their current Ralph Haver home.
Always intrigued with design and making a space into their own, they saw the potential through their designer Joel Contreras who at the time was one of the few people redesigning historic homes in Arizona. Ralph Haver was known for his use of affordable and practical building materials, such as concrete block and plywood, which allowed him to create affordable postwar homes. Malcolm and Lea are a part of a small tract of Ralph Haver homes with only 30 homes in their neighborhood.
Throughout the past several years, they have seen a new generation of buyers coming into the neighborhood and lovingly caring/restoring/ remodeling the homes. Ralph Haver homes are reminiscent of the Cliff May homes in Southern California, similar construction, design elements and die hard homeowners that are uplifting the legacy of these architects.
Ryan Shirley Travel Videos (March 2023) – Brazil, officially Federative Republic of Brazil, Portuguese República Federativa do Brasil, country of South America that occupies half the continent’s landmass. It is the fifth largest country in the world, exceeded in size only by Russia, Canada, China, and the United States, though its area is greater than that of the 48 conterminous U.S. states.
Brazil is the fifth most-populous country on Earth and accounts for one-third of Latin America’s population. Most of the inhabitants of Brazil are concentrated along the eastern seaboard, although its capital, Brasília, is located far inland and increasing numbers of migrants are moving to the interior. Rio de Janeiro, in the eyes of many of the world, continues to be the preeminent icon of Brazil. The nation’s burgeoning cities, huge hydroelectric and industrial complexes, mines, and fertile farmlands make it one of the world’s major economies. However, Brazil struggles with extreme social inequalities, environmental degradation, intermittent financial crises, and a sometimes deadlocked political system.
CBS Sunday Morning (March 5, 2023) – Charles M. Schulz’s comic strip “Peanuts” continues to garner fans 23 years after the cartoonist’s death, from the lovable loser Charlie Brown to the dog with the greatest imagination, Snoopy. Correspondent Lee Cowan talks with Schulz’s widow, Jean, and with “Pearls Before Swine” cartoonist Stephan Pastis, about the timeless influence of the man they called “Sparky” and his beloved cast of characters.
Known as the Oriente, Ecuador’s Amazon Rainforest is home to truly astounding biodiversity, with more than 300 species of mammal, 800 species of fish and 350 species of reptile.
Occupying approximately one third of Ecuador’s land area, the Amazon basin lies to the east of the Andean Highlands. It’s easily accessed by visiting the main gateway city of Puerto Francisco de Orellana, which is more widely known as El Coca.
The Local Project (March 3, 2023) – Surrounded by large fields, Casa di Campo is a modern farmhouse that responds to the landscape and offers an oasis-like lifestyle for its owners.
Video timeline: 00:00 – Surfshark VPN 00:10 – Introduction to the Modern Farmhouse 00:42 – Designing in Response to the Landscape 01:03 – The Brief and the Clients 01:34 – Impressions On Arrival 01:50 – A Walkthrough of the Home 03:00 – The Different Aspects 03:21 – The Material Palette and Textures 04:49 – Proud Moments 05:17 – Surfshark VPN
Located in Werribee South, Victoria, where homes are spaced out by green fields and red dirt landscapes, the family of second-generation market gardeners requested a modern farmhouse. Responding to the client’s brief, Neil Architecture built a home with inward facing courtyards, a private garden space and a pool that the family could find reprieve in. Whilst a calming residence from the inside, Casa di Campo appears as a solid monolithic form that stands out from nearby farming houses.
Once inside, the house tour first reveals a lush green garden that is designed like a Roman courtyard. With a portico that runs along two sides, the pond traditionally included is instead a swimming pool. Acre also installs cut granite boulders as stepping stones that become a major aspect to the garden’s function. Following a short passage leads into the family living rooms, which have been divided by a large centre fireplace.
With no white walls featuring in the interior design of the modern farmhouse, the architects have used textures throughout to provide a unique aspect to the home. The floor is also distinct, appearing as one poured slab with smooth edges and a fine aggregate finish that the clients have fallen in love with. Separate from the living zone, the children’s bedrooms offer a view through the colonnade and into the garden, giving them ample space to play and enjoy the modern farmhouse.
At the eastern end of the home, the main bedroom holds a small private courtyard that invites in the morning sun and offers a space for the parents to unwind and enjoy. Putting together material elements of the modern farmhouse, the architects employed rammed earth for its warm pale tone and unique interior experience. Alongside the rammed-earth architecture is timber wall panelling, Quartzite stone in the kitchen and bathrooms and a green elemental tone within the bathrooms and hallways that helps to sooth the interior features of the modern farmhouse.
Although set among the fields, where the brown rich soil and the bright greens mix harmoniously, the residence separates itself from the working environment and becomes its own destination. Taking on architecture, interior design and styling, Neil Architecture turns a family home into a pleasantly surprising paradise with an exterior that provides no clues as to what is inside.
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