The shortlist for a new landmark project in Melbourne has been announced, comprising award-winning global architects such as Bjarke Ingels Group, MVRDV, and OMA. For the “Southbank by Beulah” mixed-use development, the shortlisted architects will engage in a design competition working in collaboration with local Australian firms, each producing a design proposal for Melbourne’s BMW Southbank site.

With an end value in excess of $2 billion, Southbank by Beulah will be the first large-scale private project adhering to the Australian Institute of Architecture guidelines, while the design competition will be chaired by a jury of seven regarded individuals from academic, architectural, property and government sectors.

In partnership with a 3D laser-scanning nonprofit called CyArk, Google Arts & Culture began the Open Heritage Project, a new chapter for historic preservation in the form of virtual reality. By using advanced 3D laser scanning technology, high-res drone photography, and DSLR cameras, CyArk can virtually recreate historic architecture to be more easily explored and restored.

Nearly a year after opening its "Xiamen Bicycle Skyway," DISSING+WEITLING Architecture has won another major infrastructure project in the Chinese city. The winning design, "Xiamen Footpaths," is set to be a 21-kilometer network of paths and bridges creating a large-scale network connecting the surrounding nature and the budding metropolis of Xiamen.

Much like DISSING+WEITLING's "Bicycle Snake" did for bicycles in Copenhagen, the "Xiamen Footpaths" will improve the traveling conditions and city experience for pedestrians in the bustling city of Xiamen.

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The spatial investigation group Forensic Architecture has been nominated for the 2018 Turner Prize. Based at Goldsmiths University in London, the interdisciplinary group of architects, filmmakers, journalists, lawyers, and scientists have devoted their energy to investigating state and corporate violations worldwide.

The nomination represents the second time a team of spatial designers has been recognized by the prize in its three-decade history, following on from 2015 winners Assemble.

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It was an early morning in Chelsea, and men in suits were standing around the street, ushering in guests into a dark, 12,000 square-foot exhibition space at the XI gallery. Inside, the room was lit by a centerpiece installation of the New York City skyline, sprawling upwards towards the ceiling with its reflection. Bjarke Ingels was going to unveil new plans for The XI (‘The Eleventh’), a pair of twisting towers set between 17th and 18th Streets and 10th and 11th Avenue. Es Devlin, a British artist who has stage-designed for Beyoncé and Katy Perry, was tapped by HFZ Capital Group to create three installations to present the project.

In the gallery, Bjarke Ingels's work is seen through a sculptural map of Manhattan constructed within a 30-foot wide concave hemisphere (Egg); a pair of illuminated towers gently rotating upon shimmering water (Dance); and a 360-degree film strip of Ingels and his sketches scrolling across a horseshoe-shaped room (Paper, Stone, Glass, Water).

“Evolution in constant motion,” Es Devlin told reporters as she gestured towards the curves of the dancing towers.

Bjarke laughed. “I’ll bring it down to pragmatism.”

The American Institute of Architects Committee on Architecture for Education has announced the winners of this year’s Education Facility Design Awards. The eight winners and two merit honors were awarded this year’s best educational facilities that not only demonstrate excellence in contemporary architectural design but also further education in innovative ways and serve as an inspirational learning space. This year’s projects are designed for students of all ages, from childhood facilities to higher education buildings.

“Education continues to evolve, and the projects from this year’s Education Facility Design Awards program—presented by the AIA and the Committee on Architecture for Education—represent the state-of-the-art learning environments being developed in today's learning spaces. These projects showcase innovation across the entire learning continuum, displaying how architects are creating cutting-edge spaces that enhance modern pedagogy.”

Read more about the winners below.

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C.F Møller and MT Højgaard have unveiled their vision of a new Railway Quarter in Aarhus, Denmark, transforming the area into a car-free urban district. Covering 1,180,000 square feet (110,000 square meters) of new construction, the area will predominantly contain residential buildings up to six stories high, as well as retail and recreational areas.

The idea of covering the railway site in Aarhus has existed for decades, with upcoming infrastructural upgrades to the network calling for tracks be lowered further into the ground, creating the opportunity to occupy the existing overhead site currently dividing several areas of Aarhus.

Bernard Tschumi Architects has been awarded one of the largest university commissions in France, with the design and build of a €283 million ($350 million) state-of-the-art educations and research center at the Université Paris-Sud in Saclay, just south of the French capital. The “METRO Center” will form part of the biology, pharmacy and chemistry wing of the university, comprising six buildings connected by flying bridges, featuring teaching facilities, research labs, offices, restaurants, and logistics areas.

Having won a competition against teams containing Herzog & De Meuron and MVRDV, Bernard Tschumi will work in collaboration with Bouygues Construction, Groupe-6 and Baumschlager Eberle Architekten for the scheme’s realization and operation.

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Miami's Brickell neighborhood has seen a boom of skyscrapers in recent years, dubbing it a “mini-Manhattan." Soon, Miami will really be able to stake this claim with its own version of Daniel Burnham's famous Flatiron Building. Located in the Financial district, the 64 story Brickell Flatiron luxury condominium tower has just reached the halfway mark of construction, with one floor to be constructed per week until completion.

The Chicago Tribune Tower is at the center of a $1 billion development seeking to bring over 700 residential units to the city center. Developers CIM and Golub have unveiled a proposal which would see the redevelopment of the neo-Gothic tower into 163 condominiums, and the construction of a tapering skyscraper only 30 feet shorter than the Willis Tower, Chicago’s tallest building.

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New details have been released of Renzo Piano Building Workshop’s first residential building in the United States; a landmark luxury condominium scheme on Miami’s North Beach. Designed in collaboration with interior architects Rena Dumas Architecture Intérieure (RDAI) and landscape firm West 8, the 66-unit scheme seeks to embrace both the ocean and adjacent 35-acre park, with a fluid design to “blur the line between imagination and craftsmanship.”

The architectural concept behind the scheme, titled “Eighty Seven Park,” was to create a “coastal sanctuary” floating above the lush landscape of North Shore Park. Though simple in form and motif, Piano’s design prioritizes an intricate attention to detail; “the belief in perfecting every element of its design and construction.”

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BART//BRATKE & Matthijs la Roi Architects have released images of their proposed new concert hall in Nuremberg, Germany. The “Nuremberg Konzerthaus” seeks to extend the historically rich heritage of the Meistersingerhalle municipal center, contributing a unique musical experience to the cultural city. The proposed concert hall establishes a dialogue with the Meistersingerhalle, connected in a symbolic “band” podium made of natural stone, recalling the rock formations of nearby quarries.

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3XN and GERNER GERNER PLUS have released details of their competition entry for the design of a new aquarium in Schönbrunn Zoo, Vienna. Developed in collaboration with aquarium specialists ATT, “Poseidon’s Realm” was designed to be “elegant, simple and mysterious, lying across the landscape like a great veil.” The scheme was awarded second place in an international competition for the aquarium’s design, with the winner yet to be announced.

The “Poseidon’s Realm” scheme is defined by a spacious green roof landscape embedded in the zoo’s path network. The aquarium covers a total area of 65,000 square feet (6,000 square meters), divided across four levels, with a large, glazed, wave-shaped entrance enticing visitors to transition between outdoor greenery and a “softly undulating waterworld.”

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Mountain shelters serve as protection for climbers during severe weather conditions. However, a Bulgarian design team discovered that many shelters have been destroyed, putting mountaineers at risk. As the winning proposal for the competition "Architecture of 2050," this innovative building addresses this critical problem through a combination of sustainability, materiality and technology.

It's not uncommon to happen upon works of architecture that resemble everyday objects. Sou Fujimoto even created an entire exhibition of "architecture" made of ashtrays, potato chips and matchboxes. Cheese graters, beehives and bottle openers appear to have been enlarged and given an architectural program (given the resemblance to their smaller counterparts).

Architect Filipe Vasconcelos goes beyond obvious alikeness and explores, through digital collage, the similarity between architectures and objects. He creates scenes in which the works are reimagined in displaced situations, with nothing to do with original context or use.

Architectural styles derive their uniqueness by demonstrating the construction techniques, political movements, and social changes that make up the zeitgeist of a place in a particular moment of time. Whether it was the rebirth of art and culture with Renaissance architecture, or the steel skyscrapers that emerged in the post-war movement, each stylistic change tells us something different about the transitions of architectural history. But what if architecture rejected a critical regionalist approach, and buildings took on the characteristics of another place? These seven images made for Expedia by NeoMam and Thisisrender provide a glimpse into what some of our favorite architectural icons would look like if they were built in a different style.

The shortlisted schemes for the RIBA Competition to design the new Innovative Nature and Wellbeing Center, located in Sevenoaks Wildlife Reserve, are now on display to the public. The competition launched last October by Kent Wildlife Trust, in partnership with The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), as an open design competition "seeking worldwide architects and teams to put forward designs that promote learning, wellbeing, curiosity and nature" for a new visitor center at Sevenoaks.

Studio Gang has released details of their first project in Los Angeles, a 26-story mixed-use tower designed in collaboration with local development partner Creative Space and European lifestyle brand MOB. The scheme places an emphasis on community spaces, with a curved form creating dynamic public plazas at street level, forming a link between Chinatown, the recently-opened LA State Historic Park, Union Station, and El Pueblo.

Located on 643 North Spring Street, the scheme will provide 300 apartments ranging from studios to three-bedroom units, and a 149-room hotel operated by MOB. Emphasizing the importance of community space and interaction, the residents and hotel guests will share a rooftop amenity deck with landscaped terraces on the second and third floor, as well as a gym, coworking spaces, rentable offices, pop-up stores, a rooftop swimming pool and bar, and space for outdoor cooking.

From Barcelona to Bejing, Marc Goodwin is capturing architectural workspaces around the world. Goodwin’s latest endeavor: Dubai. Scroll down to get a glimpse of where architects like the ones at RMJM and EDGE work in the “City of Gold.”

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Murphy Burnham & Buttrick Architects (MBB) has recently revealed its competition-winning design for the final phase of Garitage Park, a 41-acre complex in a growing district of Sofia, Bulgaria. The extensive mixed-use development by Garitage Investment Management, among several other major multinational companies developing nearby, will provide residences, a school, office, commercial, retail and event spaces to a large international population of residents.

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Architect Elizabeth Diller of firm Diller Scofidio + Renfro has once again been named one of TIME’s most influential people in 2018. TIME Magazine’s annual ‘Time 100’ List recognizes the achievement of artists, leaders, activists, entrepreneurs, and athletes who are exemplary in their fields. Diller has been named to the category of “Titans,” along with Roger Federer, Oprah Winfrey, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Kevin Durant. This is Diller’s second time on the list but the first time being honored as a "Titan."

Other honorees this year include Shinzo Abe, Justin Trudeau, Xi Jinping and Jimmy Kimmel. 

Studio Gang has released details of their proposed condominium tower in Downtown Brooklyn, New York City. “11 Hoyt” has been designed with an emphasis on nature and community-building, responding to a lack of comfortable outdoor space in Brooklyn through the creation of an “outdoor-indoor environment."

The Studio Gang scheme, designed in collaboration with Hill West Architects, reclaims a former parking garage site in a rapidly-densifying area, where the population has increased by 40% in twenty years. 11 Hoyt is set to transform the site into an elevated green podium anchored by a 770,000-square-foot (71,000-square-meter) residential tower featuring a “scalloped” façade.

New images have been released of Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners’ 3 World Trade Center in Manhattan, in advance of its June 2018 opening. The 1,080-foot-high (330-meter-high) building will be the fifth-tallest in New York City, and will feature the tallest private outdoor terrace in Lower Manhattan.

The scheme forms part of a larger development of the World Trade Center site, including SOM’s One World Trade Center, BIG’s 2 World Trade Center, and a Transportation Hub by Santiago Calatrava.

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