Architecture News

Undoubtedly, the social distancing and self-isolation we were forced to endure during the COVID19 pandemic dramatically changed the role of social media. In order to keep connected, informed and entertained, we were drawn to social platforms in an unprecedented way. For that reason, companies also found that different social media channels are the best way to keep in touch with their customers and even build better connections with them. They were also able to understand the mood of their brand better thanks to the deeper interactions social networks can offer.

Artificial intelligence, machine learning and generative design have begun to shape architecture as we know it. As systems and tools to reimagine the built environment, they present diverse opportunities to rethink traditional workflows. Designers also fear they may inversely affect practice, limiting the services of the architect. Looking to building technologies, new companies are creating software and projects to explore the future of design.

Stefano Boeri Architetti combined the concept of "Vertical Forest" and "Farm of agricultural industry" in its newly-unveiled urban vertical farm titled "Urban Vertical Farm of Brightfood". The project explored a new way of urban production in metropolitan areas by combining greenery, food production, and visual aesthetics in a 110,000 square-meter structure. In addition to its ecological features, the new urban agricultural complex offers commercial and office spaces in the vibrant city of Shanghai.

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London’s Design District, the new purpose-built creative hub at the heart of the Greenwich Peninsula, opened its doors to the public and is set on becoming a prominent destination for the city’s creative community. Comprising 16 buildings designed by a collective of eight renowned architectural studios and with landscaping by Schulze+Grassov, the project aims to gather startups, artists and entrepreneurs across many industries, generating a vibrant new neighbourhood.

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Autex Acoustics’ intelligent, sustainable solutions not only integrate into different architectural contexts, they also contribute to greater well-being and performance in working environments.

Time magazine has released the World’s Greatest Places Of 2021, selecting 100 destinations from around the globe. With revitalized riverfronts, affordable artistic incubators, and superlative city-states, the list is a tribute to the built and natural environment that found a way “to adapt, build and innovate”, amidst the challenges of the past year.

Encompassing the world’s longest pedestrian suspension bridge, London’s Design District, new repurposed spaces in Helsinki, Historic gems in South Korea, and Hanoi’s renewed life in the old quarter, the World’s Greatest Places Of 2021 has a considerable selection of architectural destinations.

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The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has revealed the six shortlisted buildings contending for this year's RIBA Stirling Prize. Celebrating its 25th year, the award is given to the United Kingdom's best new building. The selected buildings demonstrate "the innovation and ambition that lies at the heart of exceptional architecture", varying from a city mosque in Cambridge to a remote bridge in Cornwall and a vibrant gathering space in Kingston.

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The Chicago Architecture Center and the Chicago Architectural Club have announced the three winning designs for the 2021 Chicago Prize Competition, which called for innovative adaptive reuse proposals that would grant a new life to the iconic Illinois Thompson Center. The winning proposals designed by Perkins&Will, Eastman Lee Architects, and Solomon Cordwell Buenz represent alternative visions for the future of the Postmodernist landmark.

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When it comes to creating timeless furniture, there's a lot to learn from modern classics like the String furniture system.

Nestled in the Arctic landscape of Greenland's UNESCO-protected wilderness, Dorte Mandrup Arkitekter has completed the Ilulissat Icefjord Centre, a research and visitor center that highlights the effects of climate change. The structure blends into the surrounding landscape, offering visitors a unique panorama of the Icefjord, while observing the detrimental consequences that climate change has on the environment.

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KCAP revealed an updated design for the Sewoon Grounds project in Seoul, a redevelopment plan to transform the district into a sustainable mixed-use area. The winning design of an international competition in 2017, intended to regenerate the 'Sewoon District 4' area of the city, the project aims to enhance the urban fabric while also integrating the existing built heritage and urban industry. KCAP's proposal generates a multi-layered scheme that builds on the successive layers of architecture and culture accumulated in time.

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Bavarian wood furniture expert Zeitraum’s Curtain table marks a departure from classic table archetypes, while also embracing the company’s trademark commitment to sustainability.

“Moving Masses” is the slogan of this year's World Bicycle Forum, which will take place for the first time in Argentina. This annual international event, held in different cities around the world, is aimed at all citizens with a central objective: to promote sustainable mobility. Through its theme, the proposal aims to represent the movement of masses, people, the river, bicycles, ideas, and energy. But how can we make our cities more inclusive and equitable? What infrastructure can be implemented to foster sustainable mobility?

September 10 marked the closing of the sixth edition of the Pamplona International Architecture Congress: “The City We Want.” Over three days, 16 speakers from various disciplines shared their expertise to reflect on the global challenges facing the future of cities, addressing dimensions such as ecology, sustainable mobility, social equity, health and well-being, and the humanization of public spaces.

One of the opening keynotes on the first day was delivered by 2021 Pritzker Prize laureate Anne Lacaton of the firm Lacaton&Vassal. Her presentation emphasized housing as the core of social well-being and urban policy, and she advocated for the right to open space within the home. “Housing must be the pillar of any urban policy,” she asserted.

The Pritzker Architecture Prize released a special ceremony video honouring the 2021 laureates Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal. Previously held in person, each time at a different architecturally significant venue around the world, this year’s ceremony is the second pre-filmed event in the history of the Prize, following the one in 2020. The ceremony features filmed remarks from various speakers, among which are several jury members, Jury Chair Alejandro Aravena, the 2020 Prize recipients Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell, as well as this year’s Laureates themselves. The video also pays tribute to the achievements of Lacaton and Vassal through footage of their built work.

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Work has just begun on the late Christo's unfulfilled intervention for the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. The first images by architectural photographer Jad Sylla highlight the wrapping up of the famous monument with 25,000 square meters of recyclable polypropylene fabric in silvery blue, and with 3,000 meters of red rope. Scheduled for September 18 until October 3, 2021, the temporary artwork ‘l’Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped’ will only remain on display for 16 days.

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Spanish architect and engineer Santiago Calatrava is rebuilding World Trade Center’s St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine in New York City. The church, which was destroyed during the 9/11 attacks, began its reconstruction process in 2015, and is finally reaching completion in 2022. The new structure's design is inspired by a mosaic of Istanbul's Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, formerly the Church of Hagia Sophia, which was one of the fundamental factors in defining the original architecture of the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church.

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Henning Larsen has revealed the design for Landehof, a new office building activating an underused plot along a railway in the city of Augsburg in Germany. As part of a masterplan meant to develop the area around the city's central train station, the contemporary addition to the complex and textured urban fabric unfolds on a long and narrow plot adjacent to the railway tracks. The design takes cues from the surrounding historical architectural styles, serving as a gateway to the city centre.

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