Riken Yamamoto, born in Beijing in 1945 and raised in Yokohama shortly after World War II, is a Japanese architect celebrated for fostering community through architecture. After founding his practice, Riken Yamamoto & Field Shop, in 1973, he became renowned for works ranging from social housing, such as Hotakubo Housing and Pangyo Housing, to civic projects like the Hiroshima Nishi Fire Station and Saitama Prefectural University, all unified by modular simplicity. Honored in March 2024 as the Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate, he was praised by jury chair Alejandro Aravena for "blurring boundaries between public and private," fostering spontaneous social interaction, and "bringing dignity to everyday life" by enabling community to flourish through thoughtful design. In this interview with Louisiana Channel, the architect reflects on the social role of architecture, emphasizing the inseparable bond between housing and context, and the need to create spaces that foster visible, meaningful relationships.
Architecture News
UIA 2030 Award Launches Its Third Cycle Highlighting Sustainable Development Goals
The International Union of Architects (UIA), in collaboration with UN-Habitat, has announced the launch of the third cycle of the UIA 2030 Award. Introduced in 2021, the biennial international prize highlights the role of architecture in advancing the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with a particular emphasis on SDG11: Sustainable Cities and Communities and the New Urban Agenda. Organized by the UIA's UN 17 SDGs Commission, the award recognizes built projects that combine architecture with measurable contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Structured to coincide with the schedule of the World Urban Forum (WUF), the award will run through five cycles.
Inside the Construction of Niemeyer’s Cristo Rei Cathedral in Belo Horizonte, Seen Through Paul Clemence’s Lens
The Cristo Rei Cathedral is Oscar Niemeyer's design for the cathedral of Belo Horizonte, the capital of the state of Minas Gerais in southeastern Brazil. Conceived between 2005 and 2006, it is one of the late architect's final projects in the country. The design features a domed structure approximately 60 meters in diameter, suspended by two towering elements rising 100 meters high. Niemeyer referred to the project as a "square," consisting of a cathedral with a capacity for 3,000 people and an external altar designed to accommodate up to 20,000 worshippers for mass and public events. Construction began in 2013 and is still ongoing. Earlier this year, photographer Paul Clemence visited the site, documenting the building process and capturing the emergence of Niemeyer's signature curves.
“Architecture and Energy” at DAM Explores the Climate Impact of the Built Environment
The Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM) in Frankfurt has launched its new exhibition Architecture and Energy: Building in the Age of Climate Change on June 14, which will be open to visitors until October 5, 2025. Developed in collaboration with engineer and sustainability advocate Werner Sobek, the exhibition explores the intersections of architecture, energy, and climate, focusing on the environmental impact of the built environment and the role of architecture in mitigating climate change. By framing architecture as both a challenge and an opportunity in the context of the climate crisis, the exhibition seeks to contribute to a broader shift in thinking, one that positions design as a vital component of a sustainable future.
Conserving Black Modernism: The Getty Foundation Adds Five U.S. Landmarks to its 2025 Grant Program
The Getty Foundation's Conserving Black Modernism initiative was launched in 2022 as a grant program to preserve and ensure the legacy of African American architects within the Modernist movement across the United States. In partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation's African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, it supports conservation efforts, training, and educational initiatives to address the historical oversight of significant architectural landmarks and their designers' contribution. For its third funding cycle in 2025, five new buildings will receive critical support, expanding the initiative's reach into new communities with the first projects in Chicago and the Pacific Northwest.
Halfway Through Expo 2025 Osaka: 10 Must-Visit Pavilions
As Expo 2025 Osaka passes the midpoint of its six-month duration on July 13, the international exposition continues to serve as a global platform for architectural experimentation, cultural exchange, and technological innovation. Officially opened on April 13 on the reclaimed island of Yumeshima, the event is organized under the theme "Designing Future Society for Our Lives," and has already welcomed more than 13 million visitors as of late July. Conceived as a space for collaboration across disciplines and borders, the Expo brings together more than 150 national, thematic, and corporate pavilions.
The Ukrainian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale Presents a Parallel Between Vernacular and Emergency Architecture
The Ukrainian pavilion at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia explores the intersection of traditional building methods and improvised construction during wartime crises. Under the title "DAKH (ДАХ): Vernacular Hardcore", the exhibition refers to the concept of the roof ("dakh" in Ukrainian) as a primary shelter in architecture, examining the roofs of an "architecture without architects" both in the country's constructive tradition and in the contemporary reality of aerial vigilance over its national territory. Curated by Bögdana Kosmina, Michał Murawski, and Kateryna Rusetska, the Ukrainian display consists of a six-element exhibition at the Arsenale's Sale d'Armi and an accompanying nomadic program titled Planetary Hardcore.
Europe 40under40 Reveals the 2024–2025 Selection of Young Architects and Designers
The 2024–2025 edition of the Europe 40under40 Awards has announced its selected architects and designers, recognizing emerging professionals under the age of 40 working across Europe. Organized by The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies and The Chicago Athenaeum, the program highlights a range of built and conceptual work that reflects contemporary approaches to architecture and design. This year's selection brings together young architects and designers from Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkiye, offering a wide-ranging perspective on Europe's contemporary architectural discourse.
The selection was made by a jury composed of Melike Altınışık, Hans-Petter Bjørnådal, Eleni-Stefania Kalapoda, and Adrian Yap, who evaluated submissions from a range of scales and typologies. The winning projects will be presented in the exhibition "40 Young European Architects with New Visions," opening on December 5th, 2025, at The European Centre, Contemporary Space Athens. A special yearbook publication by Metropolitan Arts Press will also document the selected works, making them accessible to international audiences. Submissions are now open for the 2025–2026 edition, with a deadline of December 15, 2025.
"Nature is an Incredible Teacher": Jenny Sabin on the Fusion of the Digital, Biological and Physical in Louisiana Channel Interview
Jenny E. Sabin is an American architect, designer, and educator known for her work at the intersection of architecture, computation, and biomaterials. She integrates digital fabrication, responsive materials, and bio-inspired design into her architectural practice and runs an experimental architecture studio, Jenny Sabin Studio, based in Ithaca, NY. In this interview with Louisiana Channel, she shares her personal journey from artist to scientist, explains how biological and material systems can be applied at an architectural scale, and discusses her teaching and research roles at Cornell University. She elaborates on her interest in bringing people together through new strategies for responsive and adaptive architecture. In her view, the connections between the digital, the physical, and the biological define a paradigm shift in the evolution of architecture, converging with other realms of physical experience to create a more interconnected future.
MVRDV Transforms Former Cement Factory on Shanghai’s West Bund
MVRDV has completed the GATE M West Bund Dream Center, a major adaptive reuse project that transforms a former cement factory into a dynamic cultural and leisure district in Shanghai. Located along the city's Huangpu River, the development contributes to the growing series of West Bund cultural initiatives and offers a wide array of public amenities, from food and retail spaces to climbing facilities, event venues, and riverside relaxation areas. Once the site of Asia's largest cement factory, the area underwent a significant shift following the 2010 Shanghai Expo, which prompted the relocation of industrial activities and the revitalization of the riverbanks.
Angola Introduces Large-Scale Concrete 3D-Printing to Address Housing Crisis
According to the World Bank, the Angola National Urbanization and Housing Program (PNUH), launched in 2008, aimed to build one million new housing units. However, by 2024, it had delivered only approximately 220,000. Power2Build, an Angolan construction startup, estimates the current housing deficit in Angola at around three million homes, with the situation particularly critical in Luanda, one of the fastest-growing cities on the African continent. With an entirely Angolan multidisciplinary team, Power2Build aims to contribute to reducing this deficit through the use of automated 3D concrete printing technology. Implemented on-site with large-scale construction printers from Danish company COBOD, the system is expected to accelerate construction timelines and improve building quality. Large-scale cement-based 3D printing eliminates the need for traditional molds by precisely placing or solidifying specific volumes of material in sequential layers using computer-controlled positioning. The process involves three key stages: data preparation, material preparation, and printing.
Foster + Partners Reveals Central Crossing Mixed-Use Development in Hong Kong
Foster + Partners has unveiled designs for Central Crossing, a new mixed-use development in the heart of Hong Kong's Central district. Located at 118 Wellington Street and bordered by Graham, Gage, and Cochrane Streets, the project is a joint venture between Wing Tai Properties Limited and CSI Properties Limited. Positioned within a triangle formed by the historic landmarks Tai Kwun, PMQ, and Central Market, the site offers a rare opportunity to build within one of the city's most vibrant and historically layered neighborhoods. Central Crossing continues Foster + Partners' ongoing engagement with historical contexts, following earlier interventions such as the Carré d'Art in Nîmes and the extension to the Royal Academy in London. The project seeks to balance sensitivity to its urban fabric with an architectural presence, contributing to the evolving identity of Central.
Works by TAKK and ecoLogicStudio on Display at the Second Edition of the Solar Biennale at Lausanne's Mudac Museum
Soleil·s, the second edition of the Solar Biennale, is currently open at mudac, the Museum of Contemporary Design and Applied Arts in Lausanne, Switzerland. Following the first edition hosted at Het Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam in 2022, this exhibition explores how design can drive the adoption of solar innovations toward a sun-powered future. The event is initiated by The Solar Movement, founded by designers Marjan van Aubel and Pauline van Dongen, an initiative dedicated to making solar energy the default power source by combining design, technology, and advocacy. This year's exhibition is curated by mudac and offers an immersive experience featuring new and existing projects by TAKK, ecoLogicStudio, Olafur Elíasson, and Andreas Gursky.
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Populous Designs Redevelopment Master Plan for Lisbon’s Estádio da Luz
Populous has unveiled the design for a new master plan for the Estádio da Luz in Lisbon, in collaboration with Lisbon-based architecture firm Saraiva + Associados. Commissioned by S.L. Benfica, the project aims to upgrade the stadium and introduce new mixed-use and public facilities within the surrounding precinct. Populous describes the project as part of a wider trend in stadium-led urban development, referencing parallels with venues like Wembley Stadium and the Etihad Campus. According to the firm, the design responds to the stadium's existing context while supporting future expansion and new forms of public engagement. Completion is expected in alignment with upcoming international sporting events, including the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
"Artisans of the Reiwa Era" Documentary Showcases Traditional Japanese Wood Construction and Craftsmanship
Rinshunkaku is a notable example of early Edo-period residential architecture. Originally built in the Wakayama Prefecture by the Kishu Tokugawa family, the villa was relocated to Sankeien, a traditional Japanese garden in the city of Yokohama, during the Taisho era (1912-1926). The garden was created in the early 20th century by businessman and art patron Sankei Hara and features a number of historic buildings relocated from Kyoto, Kamakura, and other areas of Japan. Rinshunkaku, one of the garden's gems, is a prime example of traditional Japanese architecture and wood construction. Its historical value motivated a large-scale restoration project in 2019, documented in the film Artisans of the Reiwa Era (Reiwa no Shokunin-tachi), filmed and edited by Katsumasa Tanaka and Hiroshi Fujiki. The documentary offers a close, detailed view of Japanese craftsmanship and wood expertise, highlighting rare traditional techniques and paying tribute to the artisans who preserve them.
DAM Explores the Challenge of New Urban Neighborhoods in Germany with “Building Cities Today?”
The Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM) in Frankfurt has opened a new exhibition titled Building Cities Today?, examining the complexities of developing new urban neighborhoods in Germany. Running from June 28 to November 2, 2025, the exhibition brings together nine projects that reflect diverse approaches to new urban planning, with a focus on sustainability, social integration, and long-term adaptability. Referencing the legacy of the "Neues Frankfurt" housing program of the 1920s, the exhibition opens with the Römerstadt estate, one of Germany's early experiments in functional and standardized housing. From there, it transitions to eight urban developments from the 1990s to the 2020s, presenting case studies that include HafenCity in Hamburg, Bahnstadt in Heidelberg, Neckarbogen in Heilbronn, City of Wood in Bad Aibling, and Messestadt Riem in Munich.
The Mexican Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale Explores the Ecological Potential of Ancestral Agricultural Systems
Titled "Chinampa Veneta", the Mexican exhibition for the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia seeks to promote reflection on how we inhabit, cultivate, and design the world we share. In the face of the global ecological crisis, the project draws attention to chinampas, an ancient Mesoamerican agricultural system with more than four thousand years of history. This ancestral knowledge, interweaving landscape, infrastructure, and technique, is reimagined in the context of the Biennale, activating a living environment within the city of Venice. The Mexican Pavilion consists of two "enactments," one located in the Arsenale and the other built on water.
