Architect, researcher, and editor based in Istanbul with a master’s degree in Alternative Architectural Practices. Pursuing a second bachelor’s degree in Sociology to further explore the evolving relationship between cities and their inhabitants.
The Sharjah Architecture Triennial (SAT) presents A Journey into Architecture Archives: Baghdad, Damascus, Tunis, curated by George Arbid, on view from May 2 to July 12, 2026, at Al Qasimiyah School. Developed as part of SAT's long-term research program, the project continues the institution's commitment to documenting and safeguarding architectural archives across the Arab world. Bringing together archival materials, physical models, and newly commissioned films, the exhibition examines how architectural histories are constructed, preserved, and revisited over time.
The 2026 edition of the Sony World Photography Awardshas announced its overall winners, recognizing contributions across the Professional, Open, Student, and Youth competitions. Now in its 19th year, the program continues to position itself as a key platform for both emerging and established practitioners, drawing over 430,000 submissions from more than 200 countries and territories. The program recognizes work across ten Professional categories, including Architecture & Design, alongside parallel Open, Student, and Youth competitions, and is accompanied by an annual exhibition at Somerset House in London.
As major cultural events, institutional transformations, and new architectural commissions unfold across different geographies, this week's discourse highlights how architecture operates at the intersection of public life, creativity, and long-term adaptation. With Milan Design Week 2026 foregrounding process, experimentation, and citywide participation, the projects and initiatives emerging this week point to a broader shift toward openness, accessibility, and experiential engagement across disciplines and urban contexts. Ongoing investments in cultural infrastructure, from new museums to large-scale renovations and competition-winning proposals, further underscore how institutions continue to recalibrate their spatial and social roles in response to evolving environmental, technological, and cultural demands.
Qapital Tower Ecuador. Image Courtesy of Kengo Kuma and Associates(KKAA)
Kengo Kuma & Associates has unveiled plans for Qapital, a 32-story mixed-use tower set to rise in Quito, Ecuador, in collaboration with local developer Uribe Schwarzkopf. Scheduled for completion in 2029, the project marks Japanese architectKengo Kuma's first work in the country, extending the studio's international portfolio into the South American context. Located opposite La Carolina Park in Quito's central business district, the 125.8-meter tower introduces a vertically organized program that brings together residential, commercial, and shared amenities.
Entrance to Palazzo Citterio, indicative render. Image Courtesy of ACDF and Bethan Laura Wood Studio
From April 20 to 26, Milan Design Week 2026 returns as a citywide platform where design operates as both a cultural practice and a form of exploration. Framed by the Fuorisalone theme "Be the Project," this year's edition shifts the focus from outcome to process, positioning design as a dynamic, human-centered act shaped by intuition, responsibility, and transformation. Installations and exhibitions across the city foreground making as an open-ended condition, one that embraces error, temporality, and experimentation as integral to creative production. Within this context, design becomes a space of exchange between disciplines, materials, and intelligences, reflecting broader conversations around sustainability, emerging technologies, and the evolving relationship between the physical and the digital.
The Getty Centerhas announced a comprehensive modernization program marking its most significant transformation since its opening in 1997. Located within the Santa Monica Mountains and overlooking Los Angeles, the campus will temporarily close to the public from March 15, 2027, through spring 2028 to accommodate the planned works. The initiative focuses on enhancing visitor experience, improving accessibility, and advancing energy resilience, while supporting the long-term stewardship of the institution. Before the closure begins, the Getty Center will continue its program of exhibitions and events through early 2027.
Photographer Paul Clemence documented the International Gateway Centre (IGC) in West Kowloon, a mixed-use development by Zaha Hadid Architects in Hong Kong, as it approaches completion. The photo series captures the project at a stage where its overall massing, facade systems, and spatial organization are largely realized, while final works continue across public and interior areas. Clemence's close-range views highlight the vertical shading pleats, the curvature of the glazed envelope, and the transitions between structural and environmental elements, underscoring how the building's formal language is resolved through construction.
London's National Gallery has announced Kengo Kuma & Associates, in collaboration with BDP and MICA, as the winners of the international competition to design a new wing for the institution. Launched in September 2025, the competition attracted 65 submissions from international practices, from which six teams were shortlisted to develop proposals. The selection marks a key milestone in the institution's long-term development strategy, Project Domani, positioning the new addition as a central component in the reconfiguration of its architectural and curatorial framework. Conceived as the most significant transformation of the museum since its establishment in 1824, the project aims to expand both spatial capacity and curatorial scope, enabling the presentation of a continuous narrative of Western painting within a single setting.
From April 21 to 26, the 64th edition of Salone del Mobile.Milano returns to Rho Fiera Milano, bringing together over 1,900 exhibitors across more than 169,000 square meters of sold-out exhibition space. Yet beyond its scale, the 2026 edition signals a more structural shift through collaborations with figures such as Rem Koolhaas and David Gianotten (OMA) and Formafantasma, the Salone continues to reposition itself as an evolving cultural infrastructure rather than a conventional trade fair. This year introduces new curatorial and strategic layers, most notably the preview phase of Salone Contract and the debut of Salone Raritas, alongside immersive installations and exhibitions, while the Salone's footprint across Milan grows further through city-wide interventions during Milan Design Week.
Observed annually on April 7, World Health Organization's World Health Day draws attention to global health priorities while situating them within broader environmental and societal contexts. Established following the first World Health Assembly in 1948 and observed since 1950, the day has evolved into a platform for addressing the shifting conditions that shape health, from local systems of care to planetary-scale challenges. The 2026 edition, held under the theme "Together for health. Stand with science," calls for renewed engagement with scientific knowledge as a basis for collective action. The year-long campaign emphasizes collaboration in protecting the health of people, animals, plants, and the planet, foregrounding the One Health approach as a framework for understanding their interdependence.
Fallingwater, the iconic residence designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, has reopened to the public following the completion of a three-year preservation project. The reopening coincides with the building's 90th anniversary and the start of its 63rd tour season, marking a key moment in the ongoing conservation of one of the most widely recognized works of modern architecture. The intervention, led by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, focused on addressing structural and environmental challenges while maintaining the integrity of Wright's original design.
Japanese architectKengo Kuma and his studio Kengo Kuma & Associates (KKAA) have unveiled Earth | Tree, a site-specific installation at Copenhagen Contemporary, developed in collaboration with Danish wood manufacturer Dinesen. Opened on March 28, 2026, as part of the institution's CCreate programme, the project occupies a former industrial hall, introducing a spatial intervention defined by timber, brick, and light. Led by partner Yuki Ikeguchi, with team members Asger T. Taarnberg, Nicolas Guichard, and Yasemin Shiner, the installation marks KKAA's first exhibition in Scandinavia and situates the studio's material-oriented practice within an exhibition format.
As architectural discourse continues to expand across cultural, educational, and civic domains, this week's developments highlight how the discipline operates simultaneously through legacy, knowledge production, and large-scale public engagement. From reflections on influential figures and their enduring impact to evolving academic landscapes and new forms of cultural infrastructure, architecture is positioned as both a repository of ideas and an active agent in shaping contemporary identities. At the same time, projects spanning entertainment, museums, and waterfront developments point to a growing emphasis on hybrid programs and experiential environments, where architecture mediates between culture, public life, and global audiences.
Throughout 2025 and early 2026, numerous museum projects were announced, advanced, or broke ground across multiple regions, with completion timelines largely extending from 2026 to 2030. Located across Asia, Europe, North America, and Central Asia, these developments reflect ongoing shifts in the role of cultural institutions within contemporary cities. Increasingly, museums are conceived not only as exhibition venues but as public-facing environments that accommodate education, research, and civic engagement. This expanded programmatic scope is often accompanied by architectural strategies that respond to urban conditions, spatial continuity, and the integration of cultural infrastructure into broader city-making processes.
Aerial view of the Port Vell area where Liceu Mar is set to be built. Image Courtesy of Gran Teatre del Liceu and Port de Barcelona
The city of Barcelona has announced the five finalist teams selected to advance in the international competition for Liceu Mar, a new cultural venue planned for the Port Vell waterfront. Promoted by the Gran Teatre del Liceu in collaboration with the Port of Barcelona, the project is conceived as a second venue for the historic institution, expanding its artistic and civic role while strengthening its international presence. Bringing together a group of internationally recognized and locally rooted practices, the shortlist underscores the project's global relevance, with the winning proposal expected to be announced in autumn 2026.
