This week, we left the building. We waved a big goodbye to the assembled crowds, thanked the staff, and after one farewell stroll around the grounds stepped into the waiting helicopter--and flew away. We appreciate your support, and we'll see you again. Click through for our exit music.

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David Rockwell, William Bostwick, Dan Wood, Rustam Mehta, Thom Moran, Donald Barthelme, Jr., Clive Owen, Amale Andraos, Joseph Grima, Martin Pedersen, Michael Cannell, The Sorkin, the Swiss, the Cap'n, Francois Roche, Pilar Viladas, Paola Antonelli, Billie Tsien, Star Wars, Tom DeKay, Hella Jongerius, C U P, Infrastructurist, Alice Rawsthorn, Noel Millea, Kelsey Keith, Starbuck, Michael Silverberg, Stephen Zacks, Brad Cloepfil, Didier Faustino, Roman and Williams, Sophie Donelson, Simon Boudvin, Karrie Jacobs, Jerry Helling, Donald Barthelme, Sr., xlxs, Storefront for Art and Architecture, Zoe Ryan, Mary Ellen Carroll, Laura Kurgan, Star Trek, Thomas de Monchaux, Triple Canopy, Alissa Walker, Mimi Zeiger, Jonathan Glancey, industrial espionage, Scarlett Johansson, Lulu.

We miss anyone? Let us know. Oh wait. This is final.

End of line.

Settle in, beloveds, for our last run around the Greatest Section of All Time. Today, as if the universe knew we needed some cheer, it's an awfully lurid series of stories, raunch-tastic all the way. For the lead, Penelope Green goes investigatively hogwild for sex toy art--and, okay, buildings--in the California desert. As if that weren't enough, we learn about the ShabbHOT (yeah it is...), and hang out with cookbook author Giulia Melucci, a conversation that leads Joyce Wadler into discussions of one of Melucci's visitor's "limp noodle." Yes. That would be an impotence joke right there. Published in the pages of the New York Times. Soar, Gray Lady, soar! Back down to earth, with some extremely proper insight into the appropriate arrangement of a correct bookshelf, and a terrifying reminder not to leave our windows open willy-nilly. (A stretch, but bear with us.) And then, just as we'd forgotten the trauma behind and ahead, what would be under by any other name a harmless story about terraces becomes so much more with the introduction of this sentiment: "In a restricted space like a balcony or rooftop, the key is to be ruthless." Also, Stuff-You-Can-Buy. Of could, if you were employed.

And so, we leave you, as we embark upon the next great section of our lives, with, as ever, our scores:

Eva: 5.5, 4.5, 5.9, 5.2, 5.6, 3.0
Ian: 4.7, 5.9, 4.5, 4.9, 5.2, 5.1

We don't know what you knew or when you knew it, Tom and Noel Dekay and Millea, but you really cheered us up today. Thank you for the monkey leads, for Julie Scelfo, and for always sending Joyce on assignment. We will forever be the Tai to your Randy, the Sasha to your Kimmie, the Nancy to your Tonya. And just remember; anytime you feel like taking us out for a Biellmann spin, you know where to find us. It just might be serendipity.

The Master Builder Cuts Loose [New York Times]
Making Kosher a Little More Convenient [New York Times]
Romeo is Late for Dinner [New York Times]
Shelving Done Right [New York Times]
Opening Windows So Only Breeze Passes Through [New York Times]
When Your Only Space is a Rooftop or Terrace [New York Times]

Oh, boo and hoo. Since the network decided to cancel our show, it's been pretty lugubrious around Edificial HQ: tears and lamentations, long faces and short tempers. The divers stages have been gone through, and in the customary sequence--shock, denial, vodka, anger, gin, bargaining, vodka. But the time has come, the walrus said, to speak of other things, and so we present you with the last Thursday FotoShoppe (at least barring a possible revival on this or another station).

Today's cutey-pie design is a contemporary classic, a standby of 21st century consumer cuteness: the famous "Banquete chair with Pandas" by Brazilian artists Fernando and Humberto Campana, designed for Moss in 2006. The bloody thing costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $75,000, though whether they intend to come off that price given the ailing stuffed panda market is uncertain at present writing. Click through to see more of the Campanas' dear, dear chairs, as well as pictures of our cat. Her name is Lulu.

Banquete Chair with Pandas [Moss]

Chicahgo, Illinoiz: "Three conceptual designs for a new memorial planned for Grant Park have advanced to the second and final phase of a competition launched to celebrate Daniel Burnham's impact on Chicago. The finalists are David Woodhouse Architects of Chicago, Hoerr Schaudt of Chicago, and Boston-based Sasaki Associates." [Bustler]

Jolly Old, England: "US practice Tina Manis Associates has won an open competition to design a pavilion to sit outside Marks Barfield’s Lightbox gallery in Woking, Surrey. The competition for the Art Fund Pavilion was launched last December by the Architecture Foundation, Tent London and the Lightbox." [BD]

Dublin, Ireland: "The President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, presented the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland's (RIAI) Gold Medal to the architectural practice Gilroy McMahon. The project for which the medal was presented was Croke Park Stadium." [Irish Architecture Foundation]

Vienna, Austria: "Vienna practices Span and Zeytinoglu have won a competition to design the Austrian pavilion for Expo 2010 in Shanghai, China." [Dezeen]

Allison's first maneuver is to rip off, however unknowing, our blanket coverage of l'affaire Cannell, recapping the whole business with only somewhat less flair and wit. To review: Cannell's original piece put a lit match to "frivolous" design and called for architects to rally around the flag of social responsibility, as (he claimed) they inevitably must following an economic crisis as severe as the present Pigfu*!k. Design-monger Murray Moss struck back in Design Observer, to the effect that he would always lurve him some white gold lobster forks and all y'all haters should go back to Cuba. And then Pilar Viladas and Philippe Starck weighed in for (PV) and against (PS) Moss' argument; feelings were hurt, lives were destroyed, and the whole thing ended in a hail of bullets.

So what could Allison Arieff possibly have to add to this discussion?

What's that, Doctor Grima? Spacebusters is coming? You! Hop in the Ecto-1 with us and travel around the city, catching lectures and performances and talks and events, all in an inflatable pavilion courtesy Raumlabor and the Goethe (pronounced Goethe) Institute and Storefront for Art and Architecture! But what is it, Doctor Edificial?

The pavilion is comprised of an inflatable bubble-like dome that emerges from its self-contained compressor housing. The dome expands and organically adjusts to its surroundings, be it in a field, a wooded park, or below a highway overpass. The material is a sturdy, specially-designed translucent plastic, allowing the varying events taking place inside of the shelter--dance parties, lecture series, or dinner buffets--to be entirely visible from the outside and likewise the exterior environments become the events’ backdrops.

Did somebody say buffet?

Spacebuster by Raumlabor [Storefront for Art and Architecture]

It slices. It dices. And it makes dozens of boxing kangaroo skeletons wearing Dixie cup Navy caps in just seconds! It's the "Hybrid Tattoo Machine" from Neuma and RKS Design. "Artist and inventor" Carson Hill came up with the idea for this lean, green tattooing machine after noting the absence of eco-sensitivity in the tattoo industry: his new Hybrid operates on air power, and it's a pretty little devil to boot. Wait a minute--what are we saying? You know, if you're going to insist on injecting hot ink into your own flesh, wouldn't you want the damned thing to be operating at optimal speed, using the maximum amount of energy necessary to get the job done as soon as possible? Investing this much thought and good design into a self-defacement device is definitely WTF--which is the word of the day for Wednesday FotoShoppe, so click through and freak the freak out.

Neuma Hybrid Tattoo Machine [Gizmodo]

Please help us welcome back, and then say goodbye to, the splendiferous Ms. Kelsey Keith, as she takes us through our last Domestic Officer column, a semi-regular feature the writer and blogger and cookie eater introduced as a way of adding a little reality to our addled fantasy. See you at the (soft serve) donut counter, Ms. Keith!

Tazuka Architects is a small Tokyo-based firm that designs serene, elegant buildings all over Japan, from houses that “catch the sky” to the rusty, totemic Matsunoyama Natural Science Museum.

Sandou House is situated five meters from the Inland Sea in Hatsukaichi. Though relatively small (less than 1,800 square feet), the space feels expansive, heightened by views of the seascape from every corner of the abode. The street elevation is a straightforward concrete modernist cube, evidence to the architects’ claim of Louis Kahn reverence. The interior is a barely divided living space that can feel panoramically open or insular, depending on the back walls being open (most of the time) or shut (typhoon season).

We put our questions to the test with principal architects and husband/wife team Takaharo Tezeka and Yui Tezuka (though in truth, we’re not sure whose answer is whose). Much like the enigmatic duo’s designs, their responses are spare, Zen-like, and a little mysterious. Onwards and sideways!

Each stadium subtly reflects the character of the franchises that built them. Yankee Stadium is the kind of stoic, self-conscious monument to history that befits the most successful franchise in American sports. The new home of the Mets, meanwhile, is scrappier and more lighthearted. It plays with history fast and loose, as if it were just another form of entertainment.

We like this review. Nicky does what he always does best, which is to describe what he's seeing and noticing, as a way of both explaining his more top-down critique, and of gently encouraging even the layperson to be their own critic, demonstrating that all you really have to do is look. Of course, it couldn't all be good, so he has to end on this little twist of a knife:

Even so, most serious architects today strive to create buildings that reflect the values of their own era, not a nostalgic vision of the past, no matter how open they may be toward their surroundings. And in that regard both stadiums will be a disappointment to students of architecture. For us, the buildings are just another reminder of the enormous gap that remains between high design and popular taste.

We have to say, that gap's getting smaller. And it could get even tinier, if reasonable writing would just keep getting got.

Two New Baseball Palaces, One Stoic, One Scrappy [New York Times]

Monocle the store covers just 115 square feet. The interior's modular Vitsoe shelves are meant to echo the magazine's modular black-and-white design, while the merchandise--designer collaborations from around the world--communicates the magazine's international editorial mission.

That's great! Better still is Tyler's theory of the Future of Print: luxury, luxury, luxury. "Print should fight back by adding richness," sez he, and the new shop is obvs. part of that process of brand enrichment. But inquiring minds want to know: Who was actually responsible for designing the store?

It would be a pity if Brûlé chose to do the store designs in-house, simply conforming to the present look of the magazine. If print publications are going to have to go into retail, it stands to reason that the retail spaces they create will have to be flexible enough to change with the times in tandem with the evolving aesthetic of the publications to which they're attached. Cross-promotional opportunities! Intermittent designer showcases! If not in LA, Tyler, why not try it out in New York? Pleeeease?

Monocle Shop Opens in Brentwood [LA Times]

Gawker continues to vex us by refusing to admit, in its ongoing coverage of the slow death of print journalism, that design publications are taking by far the worst beating in the industry. To wit,

WebMediaBrands (formerly Jupiter Media, owner of Mediabistro), is folding the print versions of two design magazines, Dynamic Graphics+Create and Step Inside Design.

Add those two to the Edificial Index--though honestly, we can't say we were ever devotees of either. Or had ever heard of them. Hey, we were in grad school. Reading books.

Great Magazine Die-Off [Gawker]

That's it. Blame architecture. As if things weren't bad enough in the profession, here's RedOrbit jumping on the pile (what the frak is RedOrbit?):

The devastating earthquakes in central Italy this week have tragically revealed the architectural vulnerability of many of its buildings...

Rome-based architect [and preservationist] Paolo Rocchi has called the partial collapse of a 15-year old hospital in L’Aquila “absurd...” Rocchi told reporters that the L’Aquila hospital should have been built in accordance with modern safety standards.

What's worse is that it wasn't always thus.

Giorgio Croci, an expert in ancient architecture, says that there are so many ancient Roman ruins still standing in Italy today because Romans [sic] architects preferred to build massive stable structures and used only the best quality building materials.

As opposed to architects nowadays, who prefer papier-mâché and Bazooka bubblegum. Way to go, gang! Just so you know, you'll probably all be sued for this.

Disaster Reveals Italy’s Lack Of Quake-Proof Architecture [RedOrbit]

Herewith, the Edificial Index.

2: number of new beauty product-focused columns in Coastal Living.
2: number (at least) of new beauty product-focused advertisers in Coastal Living.

22: percentage Elle Decor ad pages are down.
27: percentage Metropolitan Home ad pages are down.
70: percentage of new House Beautiful advertisers.
190: pages in Metropolitan Home.
253: pages in Elle Decor.

10: number of pennies Architectural Digest publisher says the title "doesn't do design on."
50: percentage Architectural Digest ad pages are down.
80: age, in years, Architectural Digest editor Paige Rense will imminently turn.
1: flatly denied item that Rense will be replaced.

8: dollar amount that typical Architectural Digest contributors are paid per word.

350: exhibitors at this year's Architectural Digest home show.
250: exhibitors at last year's Architectural Digest home show.

235: monthly cost of a mid-grade Freelancers Union insurance plan.
14: average number of times, per day, that we contemplate opening a bakery.
4: number of offers from our mother to "stay in my spare bedroom." In Aberdeen.

Memo Pad: Less Shelter [WWD]

As part of the Wipe Away The Tears Program(TM), we encourage you to check out tonight's Architectural League multi-colon-ed event, Globalization: Perspectives, Time Place and Practice: SOM.

Nicholas Adams, author of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill: SOM since 1936, will spotlight projects from over seven decades of the firm’s international work, beginning with some of the little-known World War II and post -War projects. Adams will then moderate a discussion with past SOM chairman John Winkler and current partner Mustafa K. Abadan examining the changing relationship between practice abroad and practice at home.

Rare chance to hear the inside scoop on SOM, a firm that actually takes a pretty serious approach to getting the inside scoop on itself (viz: SOM Journal).

Tonight, 7pm, the Urban Center (457 Madison Avenue)