If it's ugly, light it up. It's an aloftism.

Developer of the new aloft Portland, a trendy-traveler aimed hotel out by the Portland airport, calls the space "sassy and smart" in a story in today's O.

Myhre Group's designing the $12 million project, which will feature trademark aloft "swoof" on the roof.

The swoof, if you're unfamiliar with such a thing, contains nearly 70 different colors and is exceedingly ugly. But it'll be lit up at night, which may trick the hipster crowd the hotel's targeting into thinking that it's so ugly it's sexy. Like yellow eyeshadow and bowling shoes.

Flumeoxed

Interesting things on the internets:

• Entries in Living Future 07 are now downloadable in PDF form, Ethan Timm of Worldchanging Portland points out. Entries include North Portland projects by SERA and Sienna.
• Nancy Keates is chronicling the teardown-rebuild of her Portland home, which is being designed by Dave Giulietti of Giulietti/Schouten, for the Wall Street Journal. And she has been for months and months...I'm just ultra slow on the uptake.
• And in the real, reading-leads-to-paper cuts world, the Spring 2007 issue of Oregon Land showed up on my desk last week. I'm pleased to report that it contains the phrase "turd flume," as well as an neat mix of essays on Laurie Olin, the downtown waterfront, and water in the city (all of this goodness is available for download).

Do I hear one million?

AIA Portland's looking for art by architects (and members of the architecture community) to auction off as a fundraiser for its new

Center for Architecture (that's it in the photo).

Rules and stuff are here.

I wish it was Gene Simmons

First of all, I had no idea that Tommy Thayer of KISS was on Pacific University's board of trustees. But Thayer (the band's new Ace Frehley) is hosting the Pacific University Legends Golf Classic, which is happening July 29-30 at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club.

Now you're wondering why this is getting a mention -- I'm obviously not stalking Tommy Thayer, or if I am, I'm really bad at it. It's because Gerding Edlen and Mahlum Architects are two of the big sponsors. KISS and Portland's built environment (oddly) don't get together all that often, so I'm makin' a note.

Sketched out

Delayed reaction: Brian Libby had a review in the O of Brad Clopefil's show at PDX Contemporary Art, which will be up until June 27 if you want to see the real deal.

Reviewing a review sounds like something only a journalist would even think of doing. So I'm not going to.

But I will say -- I think the incubation and ultimate execution of architecture is artistically compelling. Especially the idea of chronicling different manifestations of a project as it goes along. SERA today presented its design for the new downtown Courtyard by Mariott, which will be back before the design commission on July 12 (there'll be a story in Monday's DJC). Part of the presentation was a series of considered-and-rejected designs, as well as sketches from a very, very basic design point for the building patterning to a fully grown (and almost approved) design.

And seeing it was like...like seeing what would have happened had Van Gogh said "The hell with sunflowers. I'm a begonia man." Awesome. People are naturally curious about the maybes and the mights and the could-haves, and architecture is one of the few fields where the almosts can really be part of the end art.

Please, call me Doug

The Doug Fir and the Jupiter Hotel -- and architect Jeff Kovel -- get a nod in Toronto's Globe and Mail. The story says the lower Burnside hotspot is a place Paul Bunyan and Andy Warhol could have teamed on. It also calls the drinkin' and eatin' side of the space the Douglas Fir Lounge.

Why so formal, Globe and Mail?

Walk like a duck

L.A. and Portland don't have a whole lot in common -- if the two cities were people, there'd be a LOT of awkward silence at cocktail parties -- but efforts by a couple local developers could put a Portland feel on downtown Los Angeles streets.

The South Group's (the Williams & Dame and Gerding Edlen collaboration) creation of wider, walker-savvy sidewalks for its projects are exactly what L.A. planners have in mind in their quest for a strollable city, Los Angeles Downtown News is reporting.

Pedestrian-friendly sidewalks aren't just a Portland thing. Lovin' the automobile isn't just a L.A. thing. But every single Portland project I've heard discussed -- in design commission meetings, among architects, in studios -- has put the pedestrian experience far above the auto experience. You can't talk about building in this city without talking about what it'll do for the level at which people live. And it's very cool to see that L.A.'s starting to do the same. And that Portland developers have their mitts in it.