In a continued effort to deliver tools, inspiration, and knowledge for readers, 2019 saw ArchDaily editors and contributors engage in a wealth of conversations with distinguished individuals from all corners of the design world. Whether this be a discussion with Carlo Ratti and Winy Maas on artificial intelligence or a conversation with Mario Botta on Modernism, these interviews convey the remarkable variety of talent, ideas, and paradigms through which one can engage with architecture and design.

Architecture may have its roots in sheltering humans from the elements, but that is not to say that architecture is for humans alone. Around the world, there are numerous examples of buildings and shelters designed by architects for other species. Some of these can be whimsical, such as the Dogchitecture exhibit by 10 Mexican architecture firms back in 2013, or the series of BowWow Haus kennels designed by over 80 architects back in 2017, including Zaha Hadid Architects. But others are designed for a more direct impact.

From equine pavilions to bear sanctuaries, cricket shelters to cat cafes, architects have in recent times been employed to create spaces that cater for the needs of animals of all sizes and – temperaments. Take a look at 12 examples below.

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The advent of steel in architecture at the beginning of the 20th century is considered as one of the most innovative construction developments in history, allowing architects to create structures with heights, flexibility, and freedom never seen before. Henry Bessemer invented the most successful steel-making process in 1855, but it was not until 1890 that the process was refined enough for construction. The first steel constructions on both sides of the Atlantic, the Rand McNally Building in Chicago and Forth Bridge in Edinburgh, were record-breaking structures of their time.

In 1979, the Pontchartrain Park golf course was renamed the Joseph M. Bartholomew, Sr. Municipal Golf Course by the City of New Orleans. While perhaps not the ‘catchiest’ of title changes, the event was a posthumous chapter in the legacy of one of the most celebrated golf course architects of his time. Joseph Bartholomew (1888-1971) began life as an African-American in racially-segregated Louisiana only 23 years after the end of the American Civil War; fought in large part over the legality of African American slavery. But his life, chronicled in the latest New York Times’ Overlooked series, would see him reach the pinnacles of golf course architecture, and design nationally-celebrated landscapes that Bartholomew, because of his race, was himself not allowed to play on.

As the world of construction becomes more automated, driven by economy, speed, and bureaucracy, architect and professor Marc Leschelier has created an exhibition at the Architektur Im Magazin Vienna, Austria, which inverts this trend. Titled “Cold Cream” the exhibition creates a secluded space, dissociated from the world, where the practice of construction is reduced to the struggle between soft and hard matters as well as spontaneous rises. The exhibition is therefore not an act of architecture, but rather approaching a form of pre-architecture.

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As people adopt more control over the rituals behind their deaths, cremation has become an increasingly popular option across the world. This, in turn, has led to the considered design of spaces that respond to the deep emotions surrounding cremation, life and death, and stillness. Increasingly, architects are contending with the question of what role does architecture play in these rituals?

With growing awareness of the impact of fossil fuels on the natural environment and their common usage in buildings, architects are increasingly required to specify and accommodate alternative energy sources in their design approaches. Included in this portfolio of progressive energy sources is biomass, a scalable system that combines the usage of raw, sustainable materials with a lower resulting emission of CO2. As a method often heralded as the most transferable alternative to gas and coal, we answer a simple question: what is biomass energy?

The Chinese megacity of Shenzhen bares all the hallmarks of a surging modern metropolis. Busy (and loud) five-lane motorways weave through islands of glittering glass skyscrapers, rising from podiums filled with designer shops, fronting vast squares and plazas, activated by screen-savvy young professionals fueling the city’s booming tech economy. Such a scene is truly remarkable considering that before 1980, Shenzhen was nothing more than a provincial fishing town of 60,000 people. Today, that figure has risen to 13 million.

This poses the question of how the urban environment accommodated such a rapid population explosion in such a short time. The answer lies in the city’s “Urban Villages,” remarkable manifestations of Shenzhen’s past and present, though likely not of its future.

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The Netherlands is the world’s second-biggest exporter of agricultural products. This is remarkable when one considers that the only country which tops the Netherlands, the United States, is 237 times bigger in land area. Nevertheless, the Netherlands exported almost $100 billion in agricultural goods in 2017 alone, as well as $10 billion in agriculture-related products. The secret to the Netherlands’ success lies in the use of architectural innovation to reimagine what an agricultural landscape can look like.

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Photoshop is one of the most universal, enduring, and valuable programs in the designer’s taskbar. The go-to tool for students and architects for image-based editing, collages, and rendering, the popularity of Photoshop has given rise to countless online tutorials, tips, and resources. As we demonstrated over a year ago with our extensive library of 100 Photoshop textures, there is great value for designers in having a single, collated, one-stop service for quickly accessing the multitude of free resources available online.