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As one of Mexico's most internationally renowned tourist destinations, Cancun is a city founded just 50 years ago. Since then, it has woven a unique narrative, both in its urban layout and in the culture and heritage that residents actively seek to elevate to foster a shared historical consciousness. While primarily known for its massive resort complexes and nightlife, Cancun is much more than that. Several emerging practices, such as Warm Architects and TAFF Arquitectos, are constantly striving to promote a regional architecture that responds to the unique ways of living in this tourism-driven area.

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Due to its climate and territorial characteristics, Ecuador possesses an immense diversity of bamboos: it has 6 genera and 42 identified species, of which 11 are endemic. Among them, Guadua angustifolia cane is considered the most important species in terms of abundance and physical and mechanical properties. The indigenous term guadua was used by the native communities of Ecuador and Colombia to designate this species of "native bamboo," which was later renamed "Guadua angustifolia"—meaning "narrow leaf"—and taxonomically belongs to the Poaceae family and the Bambusoideae subfamily. The use of this material is so ancient that, according to the book *Nuevas técnicas de construcción en bambú* (1978), remains have been found in buildings in Ecuador estimated to be 9,500 years old.

Bookshelves are one of the elements present in almost every interior space, whether in homes, retail, offices, or even pavilions. Yemail Arquitectura, a Bogotá-based firm, shares its exploration of this element, which plays a key role in the spatial configurations of its multi-use projects.

Moving forward also means looking back. Fulfilling the mission of creating safe and inclusive bathrooms that meet the needs of a diverse range of people of different ages, genders, religions, and abilities requires a broad perspective. To understand how we arrived at the current "stalemate" regarding the debate over the design of these spaces, we must consider that bathrooms were and are designed within a particular social and historical context.

Cities offer opportunity, diversity, and economies of scale, which ultimately attract more residents and retroactively drive their growth. Despite decades of predictions foretelling the demise of cities due to the telephone, the internet, videoconferencing, or virtual reality, cities and face-to-face interactions continue to grow. Large urban areas continue to draw more and more people. Driven by more than just tourism, the travel industry has also grown year after year, demonstrating how much people want to be physically present where things are happening—whether for meetings, events, concerts, or simply to gather with friends and family.

Why stay in the city?

For many urban dwellers, the answer is obvious: “It’s hard to find a job in a smaller town. Plus, there’s not even a movie theater, restaurant options are limited, and the schools aren’t that great.”

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The Guadalajara region in Mexico is home to one of the country's most prominent cities, ranking as one of the most populous urban areas alongside Mexico City, Tijuana, the State of Mexico, and Monterrey. However, the exponential growth experienced by cities in the 20th century resulted in an urban sprawl that expanded far beyond traditional geographic boundaries. The capital of the state of Jalisco was no exception, ultimately leading to the definition of the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area, which integrates the key municipalities surrounding the capital.

Still largely overlooked by the international media, Angola's contemporary architectural production faces, much like many of its African neighbors, social and economic realities that do not favor its dissemination. When the typical challenges of architecture are compounded by others stemming from an intense process of neocolonialism, taking good ideas off the drawing board and actually building them becomes a formidable task. Stretching the relationship between the physical and the digital, the Angolan collective Banga turns to virtual space to bring to life projects that blend architecture, sensory experiences, and art.

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Historically, bamboo has been used as a raw material in low-resource traditional construction, serving as a substitute for other woods to build structures, enclosures, and even furniture. Today, owing to its numerous advantages related to durability, strength, versatility, and low environmental impact, it has earned the moniker "vegetable steel" and gained a privileged position within the construction industry. The ongoing search for new materials for sustainable development has generated new construction fusions that bring contemporary materials and techniques into play with traditional elements, merging and enhancing the qualities of local materials in each region.

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The state of Querétaro is located in the north-central region of Mexico, bordered by the states of San Luis Potosí, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Estado de México, and Michoacán. Covering an area of 11,684 km², it is one of the most expansive regions in the country. Its capital is Santiago de Querétaro, which is also the state's most populous city. Among its most popular Pueblos Mágicos (Magical Towns) are Bernal, Tequisquiapan, Jalpan de Serra, Cadereyta de Montes, San Joaquín, and Amealco de Bonfil. Additionally, the state boasts four UNESCO World Heritage sites and one entry on the Intangible Cultural Heritage list: the Historic Monuments Zone of Santiago de Querétaro, the Franciscan Missions of the Sierra Gorda, the Otomí Chapels, and the living traditions of the Otomí-Chichimeca culture, respectively.

Colombia has an immense territory with some of the greatest biodiversity in the world thanks to its privileged geography, and human presence spans the majority of this territory, regardless of how far it is from urban centers. Below, Sebastian Contreras of Estación Espacial Arquitectos presents the experience and both the human and architectural challenges of building a Maloca with and for the Ticuna community deep in the Colombian Amazon.

At the last Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism, the interdisciplinary team from Medellín ARQUIURBANO together with the multidisciplinary team from Bucaramanga TABUÚ, presented their proposal Transformation of Collective Spaces: “Public Space, the Skin of Democracy." In this proposal, they showcase the collaborative and co-creative process behind both the Revitalization of Rionegro's Historic Center and the reactivation and recovery of public spaces in Bucaramanga.

In a year marked by physical distancing, social media took on an even greater dimension in the ways we connect and stay informed. Our Instagram has expanded its reach, bringing our audience the best of what we publish on our website: projects, articles, interviews, and news from the architectural world, inspiring new ideas and tools for a better future.

Residential projects can serve as testing grounds for experimenting with form, materials, construction techniques, and spatial configurations. One such feature is the double-height ceiling—spaces where the clear height between floor and ceiling is roughly twice that of a standard ceiling (typically between 2.50 and 2.70 meters). The generous volumes created under these conditions are ideal for maximizing natural light and ventilation, while also establishing more dynamic vertical connections.

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In Latin America, the concept of emergency architecture refers to spaces that serve as temporary shelter in the face of adverse circumstances, such as earthquakes, floods, and migration. Various countries, including Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Uruguay, and Panama, have faced events that required redefining emergency housing according to each nation's specific needs.

Upon graduating from architecture school, we earn a degree that academically certifies that we possess the professional skills to call ourselves architects. This means we can design spaces and, more importantly, build them—raising from bare ground an intervention that will endure over time and, most importantly, creating livable spaces. 

"A hideous project for the future Tourist Information Center, to be located in front of the Palácio dos Despachos, a true 'modernist' terror." These harsh words from social columnist Anna Marina Siqueira in the Belo Horizonte newspaper Diário da Tarde in 1985 referred to the new building constructed on Praça da Liberdade, then the political epicenter of Minas Gerais. It was inaugurated as the Tancredo Neves Tourist Support Center and, for many years, housed the Professor Djalma Guimarães Mineralogy Museum. In April 2017, it reopened after a restoration, becoming the Visitor Information Center of the Circuito Liberdade and the Hub Minas Digital. While its location outside the Rio-São Paulo axis might make these official names unfamiliar to some, its popular moniker makes it instantly recognizable: it is known as the Rainha da Sucata (Queen of Scrap Metal), and has even been called the ugliest building in Brazil.

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Located in the central region of South America, Paraguay features a wide variety of geographical conditions, with diverse landscapes and resources. Generally speaking, the territory is characterized by high humidity and warm temperatures that prevail throughout the year, with hot, rainy summers and mild winters. Under these conditions, cooling interior spaces becomes highly important, and passive ventilation systems are particularly prioritized during the early design stages.

Choosing high-performance BIM software is key to developing efficient projects by automating tasks unrelated to core design, such as documentation, calculations, and other tedious processes. This reduces the time spent on these critical details, minimizing errors that lead to project delays or cost overruns.

Lilly Reich (Berlin, 1885–1957) was a pioneering and highly talented woman who has finally emerged as an autonomous figure in the history of modern architecture. Recent research has shed new light on Reich's contributions during the interwar period in the fields of interior architecture, exhibition design, and furniture design, driven by her use of new materials and technologies.

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Bridges and walkways are horizontal circulation elements that establish physical connections between the interior or exterior spaces of a project, articulating their layout and, in some cases, bridging existing level changes. These suspended structures enhance visual connections between different levels and, through more dynamic pathways, enable the creation of intentional framing sequences.

Videos

Over the last few weeks, the editorial team at ArchDaily Brasil has conducted a series of interviews with various Brazilian architects and firms to understand their respective work and creative processes, as well as their use of specific materials, construction techniques, and the unique aspects of developing key projects within their portfolios. In light of the quarantine resulting from the coronavirus pandemic, we have gathered these recent interviews so you can make the most of your days at home. See them below:

Videos

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Chuchín is that endearing figure whom you always remember despite the passage of time, whether you are a student, architect, professor, staff member, or fellow worker. Felipe de Jesús Cortés Guevara—or Chuchín, as he is commonly known—seems to go nowhere else; he is always watching over what he considers his second home, the UNAM School of Architecture.

In the early hours of January 11, 1967, a polar air mass swept into the country, bringing snow to Mexico City and blanketing the entire capital under a soft, pristine white layer. One day, more than 50 years ago, our urban sprawl woke up covered in white. It was not smog, nor the pollution of an unrelenting beltway; it was pure snow. The last time it snowed in Mexico City was January 11, 1967. That day, schools closed, people went outside to build snowmen and throw snowballs, and emergency services were overwhelmed by the beautiful catastrophe of so much snow.