Architecture News

Skene Catling de la Peña and Factum Foundation are transforming Alvar Aalto’s iconic wood chip Silo into a research Centre promoting architectural preservation and re-use. The AALTOSIILO, a cathedral-like concrete structure “will become a point of focus for digitizing and communicating the importance of the industrial architecture of the north and – in turn - the impact industry has had on the environment”.

The City of Chicago has selected Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and TnS Studio to create an incubator for small businesses and entrepreneurs in the city’s Englewood neighborhood. Called Englewood Connect, the project is part of Mayor Lightfoot’s INVEST South/West initiative, and it aims to foster local commerce and greater connectivity, as well as create new, flexible public spaces.

Lina Bo Bardi, one of the most important architects of Brazilian architecture, was selected as the recipient of the Special Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement in memoriam of the Venice Biennale 2021 (also known as the Biennale Architettura 2021), which will open to the public on Saturday, May 22nd, 2021.

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Every year in March, the QS World University Rankings reveal the top universities to study each profession, covering 51 different subjects. Grading schools based on academic reputation, employer reputation, and research impact, the annual QS- Quacquarelli Symonds has unveiled that for the second year in a row, in the 2021 Architecture/ Built Environment division, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is still in the first position.

The Museum of Modern Art has launched Reconstructions: Architecture and Blackness in America, the fourth installment of the Issues in Contemporary Architecture series. Investigating the intersections of architecture, Blackness and anti–Black racism in the American context, the exhibition and accompanying publication examine contemporary architecture in the context of how systemic racism has fostered violent histories of discrimination and injustice in the United States.

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Ancestral, but overshadowed by other technologies that have emerged over time, the rammed-earth walls are again gaining prominence in Brazil for being a low-impact, sustainable and economical solution. Known in Portuguese as taipa, it is a rudimentary construction system that compresses the earth into wooden boxes until it reaches an ideal density that allows a resistant and long-lasting structure.

Last year, as the pandemic kept many housebound, artist and architectural historian Esther Choi found herself fielding a lot of requests from BIPOC students and young professionals looking for advice. She noticed several of the same concerns cropping up, specifically those having to do with the stresses of studying or working in environments that were overwhelmingly white. So, as one will do these days, Choi took to social media, where she announced virtual information sessions in which she would talk about her professional experience in an attempt to help others. The success of these initial, informal get-togethers led Choi to plan a series of events where BIPOC design students and young professionals could pick the brains of established BIPOC architects, designers, and writers about their careers and ways to navigate often unsupportive fields. The conversations would be casual, frank, and encouraging. Choi named the initiative Office Hours.

The Hyatt Foundation has revealed the announcement date of the Pritzker Prize 2021 Winner(s). The most relevant recognition in architecture will be announced on Tuesday, March 16th, 10:00 am EDT.

Foster + Partners is designing Hotel 12, on the Ummahat AlShaykh Island in Saudi Arabia. Developed by the Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC), the project is one of two hotels on the island, the first being planned by Kengo Kuma.

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What kind of cities do we want to live in? What do we believe is important for a good life? And what makes a good home for all of us? SPACE10 with gestalten have teamed up to gather insights from world-renowned experts to explore a better urban future for humanity. Compiled in a book entitled The Ideal City, the findings draw five core principles: The city of tomorrow should be resourceful, accessible, shared, safe, and desirable.

Taking a holistic and multidisciplinary approach to rethinking how we could design, plan, build and share our cities going forward, the publication unfolds projects from 53 different cities in 30 different countries. Discover in this article, excerpts from the book, with the foreword by Bjarke Ingels and the last word by Xiye Bastida.

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Foster + Partners has shared a new design for a hotel in Saudi Arabia set within sand dunes. Dubbed Southern Dunes, the project is part of The Red Sea Project tourist development. The hotel will include 40 villas that are constructed from timber and arranged to take advantage of surrounding views. Designed as part of the first phase of The Red Sea Project, it aims to be part of the world's "most ambitious" tourism development.

Design Base Architects have shared new details of Waimarino Luxury Lodge, a development on the shores of Lake Wakatipu in Queenstown, New Zealand. The high-end accommodation aspires to create a sustainable destination and an eco-conscious property that connects with nature through villas topped with living roofs. Waimarino – Maori for Still Waters – aims to be a modern, minimalist luxury that reimagines traditional hunting style lodges dotted across New Zealand.

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Foster + Partners is leading massive refurbishment works on a historic building in Madrid. The renovation project that will put in place an office building for Acciona, seeks to revitalize an abandoned old industrial building built in 1905, generating over 10,000 square-meters of new spaces.

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Kengo Kuma & Associates has designed a series of luxury villas for a new tourism development in Saudi Arabia. The project was commissioned by The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC) as part of The Red Sea Project. Featuring seven typologies, the design will include villas built on land and overwater. The project aims to set new standards in sustainable development as a global tourism destination.

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The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced the selection of nimtim architects with artist Katie Schwab for the Becontree Estate’s public realm commission. Looking to redesign 12 neglected and underused corner plots across the estate, the project reimagines these areas as new civic squares in East London.

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