Articles

We are living in an era of active interiors where shifting perimeters, flexible set ups and agile activities are truly testing the limits of design; workspaces are hybrid, retail installations are ever-evolving and cultural spaces are multi-dimensional. Amidst changing scenarios, lighting is key to shaping interior spaces with just the right amount of mood, drama or practical spotlighting. To meet the demands of these cutting-edge interiors, lighting today must provide a solid framework that can embrace both changing dynamics and high quality consistency ​​– offering flexibility, precision control and a timeless aesthetic.

Rising to the challenge is Reggiani's new lighting system ‘Outline’, designed for adaptability with minimalism, modularity and customisation. The system features an ultra-slim track available in linear and curved segments, ready to be tailored into endless freeform or geometric configurations. To this base, a choice of projectors, pendants and linear LED lighting fixtures can be added, so designers can model the experience and intensity of light with absolute control across spaces – from showrooms and warehouses to hospitality and retail.

Much has happened since countries met in Paris in 2015 and established an agreement to combat climate change. To date, more than 196 countries have ratified or otherwise joined the Paris Climate Agreement, representing more than 96% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Alongside this, 57 countries—including the United States, Japan, Canada, Germany, and Mexico—have also developed long-term plans to decarbonize their economies.

One of the most important factors when designing is the specific climate of the site. This can be a difficulty when dealing with extreme climates and it is necessary to use insulating materials that adapt to the changing conditions. However, when talking about Mexico and its particular climate this works in the architects' favor allowing them to create microclimates and spaces that blur the transition of what turns out to be indoors and outdoors.

The first image that comes to mind when we think of an office is a place with a table and chair. But it was not always the case. In the Middle Ages, monasteries were the main places for study and knowledge, with private rooms designed to help monks concentrate when researching. However, records state that such spaces were uncomfortable since scholars remained standing most of the time.

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In 1906, a major earthquake struck San Francisco, California. The initial shock damaged buildings throughout the region. Yet the worst was still to come, as fires broke out in collapsed buildings, in some cases sparked by ruptured gas lines.

Over the next four days, a conflagration swept through more than half of the city, consuming over 4.7 square miles of the downtown area, destroying 28,188 buildings, killing more than 3,000 people according to the official count, and leaving between 227,000 and 300,000 people homeless (out of a total population of 410,000).

When monitoring the outcomes of a newly built plaza in Porto Alegre, one data point stood out: after playing children, the main users of the space were women caring for them. Set in a vulnerable area of the city, this situation highlights an activity often ignored by urban planning: caregiving.

The monitoring project in Loteamento Santa Terezinha aimed to assess the profile of the users, their perception of the space and its amenities (recently upgraded by several organizations), and the surrounding school routes. Conducted by WRI Brasil in partnership with the Volkswagen Group Foundation, the study showed that children represent 89% of the plaza's users, and that adult women frequent the plaza 4.5 times more than men—usually accompanying the children. 

The traditional architecture of the past can sometimes seem a long way from the modern, open-plan environments we enjoy today. But while some seemingly bygone upper-class room typologies like parlors, drawing rooms, and smoking rooms still exist by other names – dens, snugs, and man caves, to name a few – other architectural intricacies are more rarely replicated.

Back staircases, sculleries, and drying rooms, for example, were at one stage imperative for properties of a certain size and status to function. But just like a woolen jumper accidentally washed on the wrong setting, technology has reduced the size of laundry workspaces over the past century. Small homes like Under the Barao’s Sky Apartment in Sao Paolo, Brazil, for example, are now able to replace separate laundry rooms and pantries with all-in-one kitchen-diners that integrated small washing/drying appliances into an open kitchen layout, leaving more room for living.

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Subscriptions are quickly becoming an integral part of everyday life. For example, streaming platforms have completely replaced the need to own video cassettes, while ride-sharing services partially cover the need to own a private car. Subscriptions have been largely understood as digital services, but a new trend suggests that the same concept could be transferred to physical objects in the near future. Instead of owning a fridge, a washing machine, or even light bulbs, one could acquire a subscription to ensure the freshness of produce, clean clothes, and a well-lit home.

The concept is known as the “subscription-based economy,” a variant of the “circular economy” notion. It postulates that instead of owning some of the objects used every day, one could subscribe to a service to gain access to the same benefits, but without the need to own, maintain or dispose of the object in question. Consumers no longer buy products; they buy access to services. Sometimes, it would mean simply leasing the object instead of purchasing it, but the model goes one step further. It inscribes a shift of responsibility and mentality. Because consumers no longer own the objects, the responsibility to reuse and recycle falls to the producers, who are now in charge of the entire life cycle of the objects they create.

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Some buildings have stood the test of time. After centuries or even millennia, they remain structurally sound, revered as living testaments to history and human innovation. Some are still in use today, many lifetimes after their original designers passed away.

These buildings, whether by design or accident, were built to last—a concept that is increasingly relevant today. Building construction and operations account for a concerning share of carbon dioxide emissions. The embodied carbon resulting from building material production and construction makes up about 11% of all global carbon emissions. According to a new book on long-life buildings, designing structures to stand much longer—and to survive the various twists and turns that come with an extended lifespan—is a new imperative for architects.

Since the first civilizations, nature has been a fundamental pillar to serve humanity as a natural habitat, offering shelter, food, and medicine. In modern times, industrial and technological revolutions have taken over the landscape, reshaping the way humans interact with nature. However, today and due to the events that we have experienced as a society, it is necessary to focus on creating cities and spaces that integrate nature into everyday life.

Architects have always considered the positive influence of natural light on the health and mood of a building's occupants, but measuring its actual benefits was a challenge for a long time. However, the past few decades have seen significant progress in this area, with research such as the comprehensive study conducted by the Heschong Mahone Group, which analyzed more than 21,000 student tests in three school districts in California, Washington, and Colorado. The results showed that students in classrooms with more natural light had a 20% faster learning progress in math tests and 26% on reading tests, compared to students in classrooms with less natural light. Many other studies reinforce that including natural light in spaces has immense long-term benefits for societies, especially during a child's valuable formative years, who spend about 90% of their time indoors and about 200 days a year in classrooms.

Cemeteries are among the architectural programs with the greatest symbolic value. They suggest rituals, rigor and solemnity while offering some comfort or hospitality, if not for those who bid farewell to their loved ones, at least to "guarantee" a dignified afterlife for those who have passed away. The San Cataldo Cemetery, designed by Aldo Rossi and Gianni Braghieri, fulfills the first part of the previous statement. Partly because the project was not entirely built, austerity and empty spaces predominate. But when considering the proposed project, perhaps the aridity would remain, and the harshness would be felt more forcefully. Composed of buildings with almost abstract, pure shapes, without noble details or cladding, the cemetery project is a good example of Aldo Rossi's production at the time of its conception, around 1970.

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Richard Kelly illuminated some of the twentieth century’s most iconic buildings: the Glass House, Seagram Building and Kimbell Art Museum, to name a few. His design strategy was surprisingly simple but extremely successful.

Lighting for architecture has been and still often is dominated by an engineering viewpoint, resigned to determining sufficient illuminance levels for a safe and efficient working environment. With a background in stage lighting, Kelly introduced a scenographic perspective for architectural lighting. His point of view might look self-evident to today’s architectural community, but it was revolutionary for his time and has strongly influenced modern architecture.

The skyline of Cluj-Napoca, a city located in the Transylvania region of Romania, is defined by a mosaic of historical and modern buildings, giving the city a unique and diverse appearance. Among the visible landmarks, the Firefighters' Tower, or "Turnul Pompierilor" in Romanian, stands out for its mixture of styles, from Medieval stonework to Baroque detailing and contemporary interventions. Despite it being a relatively small monument, with a ground floor area of just under 50 square meters, the tower holds layers of history narrating the evolution of its neighborhood and city, from its beginnings during Medieval times until the present day. Left derelict in recent years, a new intervention by Vlad Sebastian Rusu B.I.A and Octav Silviu Olănescu B.I.A. aims to restore the tower's position as a repository of local history and an attractive space for residents and visitors alike. This article explores the story behind the Firefighters' Tower both narratively and visually, through the lens of Cosmin Dragomir.

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Studies reveal that we spend roughly 90% of our time indoors, and even when we do venture outside, we often remain tethered to technology, with a speaker in our ear, smartphone in our hand, or both. To address this, architects and designers have been pursuing innovative methods for incorporating nature into our living spaces. After already embracing green walls, seamless indoor-outdoor living areas, and strategic natural lighting, it looks like exploring the world of sound is next.

Enter plant music, the latest trend propelled by a device called PlantWave, that’s taking social media by storm. This unique device, developed by Data Garden, invites us to experience nature in a whole new way, with just a single tap.

Some authors claim that the term kitsch has German origins and arose in artistic vocabulary around 1860 from the verb kitschen/verkitschen (to cheat, to sell something instead of something else). Others, such as Guimaraens & Cavalcanti (1979), affirm that the term comes from the English language, from the word sketch. In the second half of the 19th century, when American tourists wanted to buy a work of art at a cheap price, they asked for a sketch.

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Since Yuri Gagarin's iconic pioneering flight in 1961, only 565 human beings have had the privilege of traveling into space. This extreme venture requires a high degree of devotion, extraordinary physical and intellectual preparation, and huge investments. Space exploration has the potential to benefit humanity in many ways, especially regarding the development of new technologies and the generation of scientific knowledge. Many of these technologies are already available to the public, such as GPS, water filters, or highly resistant fabrics. But while we often imagine astronauts floating in space and observing the Earth from a unique vantage point, many of them face the difficulty of sleeping and resting in space due to the lack of natural light. It is this issue that motivated a group of young Danish architects to develop a solution to improve the daily lives of astronauts in space, but also of many people on planet Earth who suffer from the same problem.

Fueled by pressing issues such as the climate crisis, population density and rapid urbanization, the built environment has become increasingly complex. Architecture and design professionals are faced with a challenging, yet fundamental task: to translate society’s ever-evolving needs into tangible and future-oriented solutions. In pursuit of this goal, they must embrace the countless tools, materials and technologies emerging every day in the construction field –from AI to virtual reality software and smart home systems. After all, to remain at the forefront in an industry where change is the norm, the ability to adapt and evolve is crucial for success.