Architecture News

SMAR Architecture Studio has won the Urban Confluence competition to envision a new landmark for Silicon Valley. The Breeze of Innovation project is a forest of kinetic rods swaying in the wind creating a mesmerizing visual effect.

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It would seem that the ongoing saga of the James R. Thompson Center, Chicago’s beloved but neglected governmental office building-slash-postmodernist mecca, might be reaching its final act.

Yesterday, Brendan Reilly, alderman of the city’s 42nd ward, announced a proposed rezoning ordinance that could kick the sale of the prized 3-acre site (12,140 m2) at 100 West Randolph Street into high-gear. The cash-strapped State of Illinois has been considering/trying to offload the property as early as 2003.

Inspired by the colors and textures of the surrounding environment, Pritzker Prize winners RCR Architectes have translated the Algarve's landscape into new residences and facilities at the Palmares Ocean Living & Golf Resort. A total of 37 new signature apartments and luxury villas are currently under construction, with completion due dates expected between summer 2021 and 2022.

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Dominique Perrault Architecture, together with Chinese studio Zhubo Design Co, has won the international competition for the new campus of Shenzen's Institute of Design and Innovation. Stretching along a mountain range, the large-scale horizontal structure preserves the views towards the landscape, while creating a strong relationship between the learning spaces and the environment.

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Founder of the Berlin-based firm Kéré Architecture, Francis Kéré, has won the 2021 Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Architecture. Presented by the University of Virginia and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello, the award is one of four honors recognizing achievements in architecture, citizen leaderships, global innovation, and law. The Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medals recognize the exemplary contributions of recipients to the endeavors in which Jefferson excelled and held in high regard.

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For the 17th international architecture exhibition – la biennale di Venezia 2021, Austria is creating a platform of debate around how we envision the architecture of the future. In fact, the Austrian contribution, entitled “Platform Austria”, curated by Peter Mörtenböck and Helge Mooshammer, seeks to articulate the profound changes established by the development of digital platforms in our built environment.

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The Estonian Centre for Architecture is presenting the exhibition “Square! Positively shrinking” curated by Jiří Tintěra, Garri Raagmaa, Kalle Vellevoog, Martin Pedanik, and Paulina Pähn, in the Pavilion of Estonia at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Hosted in the Arsenale complex, the project will “explore the role of high-quality urban space in enhancing the future development of small towns that are in jeopardy of depopulation, […] sparking a debate on the lesser-known facet of urbanization”.

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Architecture and design practice Brooks + Scarpa have designed a new complex for the Ministry of Environment Water and Agriculture (MEWA) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The 1.2 million square foot complex includes seven buildings and a solar system that will generate 75% of the entire energy use of the complex of buildings. The team designed the project as a "tapestry of spaces and landscapes" offering connections through shaded outdoor rooms.

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“Mahalla: Urban Rural Living” is the first participation of the Republic of Uzbekistan at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia. Open to the public from May 22 to November 21, 2021, at Quarta Tesa, Arsenale, the exhibition is curated by Emanuel Christ and Christoph Gantenbein, professors of architecture and design at ETH Zurich, and founding partners of Christ & Gantenbein.

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Landscape and architecture studios Felixx and Orange Architects have designed a new housing development in the heart of IJburg, Amsterdam. Rising atop an artificial island, the project is organized around the surrounding marina to provide family housing. The new residential building will include commercial and social programming, as well as new areas for the public realm.

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Curated by Manijeh Verghese and Madeleine Kessler, co-founders of multi-scalar design practice Unscene Architecture, the British Pavilion exhibition entitled The Garden of Privatised Delights, at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, will be open to the public from the 22^nd of May until the 21^st of November 2021. Commissioned by the British Council, the exhibition “reimagines how to make public space more inclusive, countering the rapid rise of privately-owned public space with an inspiring, alternative vision that urges both sectors to work together to create better-designed spaces for all”.

Powerhouse Company has won the competition to transform the Alo-location and neighborhood in Groningen, a city in the Netherlands. They teamed up with Houben/Van Mierlo, Vector-i and landscape architect DELVA to create the proposal. Dubbed HOLT, the project was developed with MWPO, Nijestee and Nijhuis Bouw. The plan for a new green and healthy neighborhood looks to the future of healthy living in the city.

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Miralles Tagliabue EMBT, directed by Benedetta Tagliabue, has won the international competition to design the Shenzhen Conservatory of Music, one of the city's 10 new era cultural buildings. Characterized by the dialogue generated with its surroundings, the complex integrates music and art in nature with a proposal of organic and sustainable architecture.

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A trans-disciplinary team led by CRA-Carlo Ratti Associati has designed a series of islands for the Helsinki Energy Challenge. Titled Hot Heart, the project is based on an archipelago of heat-storing basins that will also serve as a hub for recreational activities. The “islands” will be home to tropical forests and ecosystems from around the world, bringing additional public space and a new educational attraction to the Finnish capital.

Another year, another successful ArchDaily China Building of the Year Awards! With more than 75,000 votes gathered over the past 20 days, the results of the 2021 edition are in! Once more, the award has proved to be the largest architecture prize centered around people’s opinion. Crowdsourced, the most relevant projects of the year were nominated and selected by our readers.

The 2021 China Building of the Year Awards is brought to you thanks to Dornbracht, renowned for leading designs for architecture, which can be found internationally in bathrooms and kitchens.