The architecture of Latin America and Spain is testament to the rich and diverse cultures, traditions, needs, and solutions that define these territories. With more than 700 projects built in Spanish-speaking countries published on ArchDaily en Español, the time has come to explore, debate, and choose your favorites for the Obra del Año 2026 award.
The desert is a landscape in constant transformation. Shaped by the wind, its dunes, ridges, and fissures emerge and fade in an ever-shifting expanse, as if the scenery itself were alive. It is a land of stark contrasts, where the scorching heat of the day gives way to the crisp coolness of the night, revealing nature in its most primal form. In such a dynamic and untamed environment, how can architecture not only integrate but also respect and engage with its surroundings? This is the challenge faced by hotels built within Latin America’s vast desert landscapes.
How many stories are hidden behind every line and every wall? Each project serves a purpose, and its creation leaves a lasting impression on the environment it inhabits. ArchDaily's AD Narratives series seeks to uncover the fascinating—and often unexpected—stories that breathe life into selected projects. Through in-depth research, the series delves into the unique details of the design and construction processes, exploring the cultural, social, and political contexts that have shaped each work.
Santa Cruz de la Sierra is located on the eastern plains of Bolivia, on the banks of the Pirai River. Being the most populous city in the country, it reveals an extreme social and cultural complexity surrounded by extensive pampas and plains. Additionally, it represents one of the most developed cities in Bolivia, with a high municipal indicator of sustainable development. Delving into the importance of community architecture, popular appropriation, the character of urbanity, and other concepts, this article explores the history behind the Summit of the Americas Monument through a series of narratives, documentations, drawings, and images captured by Pino Musi.
In the highlands of the Central Andes, one finds the "bofedales." Known by some as 'high Andean wetlands,' bofedales are ecosystems and landscapes crucial for water regulation and storage in the Andes. Moreover, they are natural infrastructures that constitute a material and immaterial heritage to address contemporary climate crises and to sustain local Andean communities, which have nurtured them for generations.
Being one of the first construction methods developed by humans, earth has proven its resilience and durability over time. While construction techniques have evolved and been updated over the years, there is still a long way to explore where the understanding of climate, geographic location, sustainability, structural requirements, and other factors determine its degree of application.
Not only is L35 Architects currently renovating Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Spain, it has also designed a new stadium in the capital of Bolivia. Selected through an international competition organized in 2021 by Club Bolivar and its partner City Football Group, construction is about to begin and completion is expected in 2025.
Rivers have long been considered as Earth’s arteries, serving as the essence of urban communities as human settlements developed their shelters and crop beds around them. Centuries later, riverside architecture remained vital as these areas expanded beyond residential typologies, and harnessed dynamic mixed-use developments and public functions. As valuable as they may seem though, these landscapes come with the risk of unexpected floods, increased water levels, or complete droughts, which has forced architects to design built environments that are able to respond to these abrupt changes. So how were these settlements built in the past, and how has today’s urban densification and technological advancements influence the way they are built?
The media outbreak for architect Elisabetta Andreoli and artist Ligia D'Andrea’s book "Andean Architecture of Bolivia", which focuses on the work of Freddy Mamani - ex-bricklayer turned engineer and constructor- has become the excuse to talk about everything else related to the highland country of Bolivia.
Soon you will be able to satisfy your wanderlust free from altitude sickness; on Wednesday October 4th, the Architecture Film Festival Rotterdam will see the world premiere of the documentary Cholet: The Work of Freddy Mamani. From director Isaac Niemand comes the story of Bolivia's unlikely architectural phenomenon, and one of ArchDaily’s 2015 leaders in architectural design and conceptualization.
