The Official Association of Architects of Madrid has awarded the 2018 COAM First Prize ‘ex aequo’ to the renovation of Sala Equis, designed by architects Lorenzo and Luis Gil (Plantea Estudio), to Espacio SOLO by Juan Herreros and Jens Richter, and to the book Oiza by Javier Vellés.

Regarding Sala Equis, the jury highlighted that the renovation of the former Duque de Alba cinema “equips the available space with contemporary uses, materials, and furniture, balanced with the memory of the existing structure,” and emphasized that it “encompasses the traditional movie theater alongside other activities surrounding this main function.”

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Navigating streets and avenues to get from one place to another is part of the daily routine for anyone living in a major city. Most of the time, it is something done almost automatically, without realizing that behind every street, square, and corner, there is a story.

Recife, the capital of Pernambuco, is one of these places, rich in historic buildings and locations celebrated by great poets and writers.

In 2016, Ecuadorian firm Al Borde designed Germany's pavilion at Habitat III, the UN's global conference on housing and sustainable urban development. The project was designed so that, once the event concluded, the materials could be reused for a social initiative. This concept caught the attention of the Mexican housing institution Infonavit, which invited Al Borde to repeat the exercise with its own pavilion.

This led to the creation of the Comedor de Guadurnal (Ecuador), a social project for one of the coastal communities severely affected by the 7.8-magnitude earthquake in 2016. "We asked our network who was working with an organized community that could benefit from a community facility project," the designers explain regarding the origin of their partnership with Taller General, a firm that had been working with the Guadurnal community and the Escuela 6 de Mayo on their reconstruction process.

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On January 13, 1943, New Yorkers—and, indeed, architects worldwide—were introduced to Brazilian architecture. Brazil builds : architecture new and old, 1652-1942 was an exhibition organized by MoMA (the Museum of Modern Art) showcasing the architecture produced in Brazil, not only at that moment but since the mid-17th century.

As part of The New York Times' documentary series "En los ojos de México" –where six filmmakers present a perspective on their country– Santiago Arau and Diego Rabasa present "Ciudad Herida" (Wounded City), a chronicle of the 2017 earthquake in central Mexico. Through drone footage, the film captures the strength and resilience shown during a moment of crisis.

The year 2018 marks the centennial of artist Athos Bulcão. In celebration of the life and work of one of Brazil's most influential 20th-century painters, sculptors, and muralists, the National Institute of Historic and Artistic Heritage (Iphan) has launched an updated version of the inventory of his work.

Titled Inventário da Obra de Athos Bulcão em Brasília (Inventory of the Work of Athos Bulcão in Brasília), the book builds upon an initial study conducted by the institute between 2008 and 2009 and published in 2010. That first edition documented 261 works, revealing the sensitivity, versatility, and richness of the artist's creative universe. Officially launched on July 30, the new edition spans over 200 pages, featuring a conceptually expanded and revised content alongside a playful and inventive graphic design.

The school courtyard is commonly identified as the place where recess takes place. Who hasn't rushed out to the courtyard, where simply being there—observing and being observed—was enough, with plenty of space to let loose through interaction and play? It might seem obvious that a courtyard is a shared space, but this is not always the case; often, they lack the necessary conditions to be fully enjoyed by everyone. And what if the courtyard is also the link between the school and the community?

The integration of art and architecture to build a crucial public space at the Paz Soldán roundabout—one of the most iconic and highly trafficked areas in Lima's San Isidro district—was one of the major challenges presented by the Municipality of San Isidro and Grupo Centenario when they launched the Paz Soldán Plaza National Competition. The competition is part of the "2021: Bicentennial Projects" initiative, directed by Gary Leggett.

Among its primary objectives, the competition seeks the transformation of the primarily vehicular roundabout into a freely accessible pedestrian plaza. Additionally, it proposes the spatial integration of the new Paz Soldán Plaza with the monumental area of El Olivar forest, not only establishing this new area as a gateway to the park but also making it a benchmark for other areas of the city. Meanwhile, the anticipated public art proposal offers a reflection on the role of art in public space. It is also worth noting the broad vision of the roundabout as an urban complex, extending beyond the specific area of intervention.

The three finalists and two honorable mentions have already been announced. Out of 160 registered teams, 60 submitted entries. The jury comprised architects Óscar Borasino, Sharif Kahatt, and Michelle Llona, along with art specialists Max Hernández Calvo and Natalia Majluf. The process was advised by specialists including Juan Carlos Dextre, on mobility and traffic impact, and Patricia Dias, on heritage. Finally, the selection of the winner will include a double-weighted vote from the San Isidro Neighborhood Boards.

Electric scooters, used in major cities around the world as an urban mobility alternative, have been available to São Paulo residents on the capital's bike lanes since the beginning of this month. On August 11 and 12, two mobility startups presented their service options for the vehicles.

The Bardi Institute has just inaugurated its "Summer Pavilion," a structure built at the foot of the Glass House by Lina Bo Bardi, which will host a schedule of concerts, exhibitions, lectures, and other events. Built amidst the vegetation and featuring an organic shape that evokes Lina's work, the pavilion both blends in and stands out in its context. All proceeds raised during these activities will go toward the maintenance and cultural programming of the Bardi Institute / Glass House in 2019.

Read the project description by Sol Camacho below.

The website Enterreno is building the first “collaborative time machine” using historical images, allowing thousands of people to travel through time via their mobile devices from anywhere in the country or the world. The platform features over 45,000 photographs revealing what Chile was like in both the distant and recent past, shared by everyday people from their family archives and other sources.

The Venice Architecture Biennale has released the list of participants for this year's main exhibition, FREESPACE. Among the 71 selected architects, offices, and collectives, three Brazilians are featured on the list: Carla Juaçaba, GrupoSP and Paulo Mendes da Rocha, recipient of the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement in the 2016 edition.

Curated by Irish duo Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, partners at Grafton Architects, this year's theme seeks to reveal "diversity, specificity, and continuity in architecture." According to Paolo Baratta, president of La Biennale di Venezia, FREESPACE aims to promote "desire" in architecture.

A "common, everyday, and collective" space is the goal set by the curatorial team of the upcoming 2019 Chilean Architecture and Urbanism Biennial. This was announced during the official launch last Thursday, November 8, at the headquarters of the Architects Association of Chile (Colegio de Arquitectos) in Santiago.

The first edition of the Biennial to be held in Santiago since 2013—the last two editions took place in Valparaíso—will be located in the traditional Franklin neighborhood of the Santiago commune, a historic sector of the capital currently undergoing urban transformation driven by real estate pressure, commercial reconversion, and historic preservation.

By the end of 2018, at least five cities in Germany could test a model approach to combating pollution. The trial will discourage private vehicle use while offering free public transit—a solution currently adopted in only a few places.

Bonn, Essen, Herrenberg, Reutlingen, and Mannheim are the German cities included in the proposal drafted by the federal government. “We are considering making public transport free of charge to reduce the number of private cars,” German ministers stated in a letter sent to the European Commission. “Fighting air pollution effectively without unnecessary delays is of the highest priority for Germany,” the document adds. 

On June 14, the second and final day of the 5th International Congress of Architecture and Society took place at the Baluarte Congress Center and Auditorium of Navarre in Pamplona, Spain. The day's sessions focused on topics as diverse as urban development, the political ecology of cities, mobility, and the future of our cities.

Architects Farshid Moussavi and Belinda Tato opened the day's first session, focusing their reflections on the importance of public spaces in cities as “generators of citizenship.” Both experts also highlighted the role of people in shaping cities.

At ArchDaily en Español, we understand the importance of staying in constant contact with architecture students, who will be responsible for designing and building the cities of the future. For this reason, we periodically open a call for applications to join our editorial team through our internship program.

If you currently live in Chile, this could be your opportunity to contribute local content to the world's most visited architecture platform, which inspires and informs hundreds of thousands of architects worldwide. If you are interested, keep reading below. 

A few days ago, we welcomed @archdailyco to Instagram. ArchDaily Colombia's dedicated account on the platform serves as a new showcase for local architecture. To mark this milestone, we invited our readers to share their best photos of Colombian architecture using the hashtag #ArchDailyCo.

Today, we present six of the best photos, along with ArchDaily Colombia's featured project of the week on our Instagram account. This inaugural selection spans Bogotá and Medellín, contrasting concrete and brick, while showcasing both bird's-eye cityscapes and architectural details captured by our followers.

Remember to tag your future photos of Colombian architecture on Instagram with the hashtag #ArchDailyCo for a chance to be featured in our next roundup.

Opening its doors alongside the Infinito Vão exhibition, “Two Houses by Paulo Mendes da Rocha” will be on display until February 10, 2019, at the House Gallery. Curated by Nuno Sampaio, “Two Houses” offers the opportunity to visit two unique projects from the collection of architect Paulo Mendes da Rocha, which, in line with the transatlantic focus of this program, are located in Portugal and Brazil.

Ever since we announced the results of the competition for the “New Biobío Regional Theater,” an initiative led by the Regional Government and the Architecture Area of the Council of Culture and the Arts, we had been eagerly looking forward to seeing the winning proposal finally built.

Arch Days CDMX emerged as an initiative of Design Week Mexico to create a cutting-edge platform dedicated to architecture based in Mexico City while seeking to expand to other territories. The goal of this project is to blend disciplines related to architectural design, such as urbanism and engineering, across a broad spectrum of application fields including housing, public space, mobility and transport, heritage preservation, neighborhood revitalization, community activation, and urban infrastructure, all based on a comprehensive, sustainable, and socially responsible design vision. Arch Days CDMX will celebrate its first edition from October 10 to 14, alongside Design Week Mexico 2018.

On March 8 and 9, 2018, Barcelona hosted the European BIM Summit, an annual international congress on Building Information Modeling (BIM). The event focused on promoting best practices in BIM use, sharing methodologies, and fostering international alignment.

During the summit, Ana Rojo, Director General of Production and Engineering at Ineco, announced that public building construction projects in Spain must use BIM methodology by the end of 2018. Ineco is part of the European Public Administration Group and has been commissioned to draft the Manual of Common Practices for BIM implementation. Along with the es.BIM commission, the organization is responsible for implementing this methodology across all processes carried out by Spain's Ministry of Development.

The IABsp Awards, one of the most anticipated and competitive honors in Brazilian architecture, revealed yesterday, December 7, the 2018 winners across 14 categories. Over the years, since its first edition in 1968, the IABsp awards have established themselves as an important platform for critique, recognition, and dissemination of national architecture and urbanism, promoting the exchange of ideas and new solutions among Brazilian architects.

In addition to the category awards, the Rino Levi Prize was awarded for lifetime achievement. This year, the honor went to Rosa Kliass for her lifetime body of work in landscape architecture.

Discover the winners in each category below:

Have you ever wondered what an ITO is or what they do? Broadly speaking, the Technical Works Inspector (ITO) is the professional responsible for overseeing quality and correct execution in a construction project, as well as managing its document and financial control. As a result, this is a crucial field for the successful completion of a project, and one in which many architects can build a career. Yet, it is often an overlooked professional field with limited available information. For this reason, we outline its functions below and examine how current market demands have pushed the role toward a more comprehensive approach, as seen in the case of the firm Cero3.

On October 13, the 2018 Archmarathon Awards concluded their fifth edition in Milan. Held at the impressive Palazzo Mezzanotte from October 11 to 13, 2018, the event featured 55 architecture and interior design projects across 16 categories, submitted by 55 studios from 23 countries and four continents. Selected by a prestigious international jury, the 55 firms were invited to present their projects to a large audience of architects, developers, and designers from around the world.

During the ceremony, the winners of each of the 16 categories and two overall winners—one for architecture and one for interior design—were announced. The selection was made by a main jury chaired by Luca Molinari, Gary Chang, Lesley Lokko, and Mexican architect Rozana Montiel, along with a guest jury comprising Massimiliano Cecconi, Cherubino Gambardella, and Evgeniya Murinets. Read on to discover the final winners in both categories.