This guide covers a workflow that moves from project parameters to generated floor plans, 3D perspective views, exterior design exploration, and site context visualization, using AI tools in place of preliminary CAD and rendering work.

Since the 15th century, the territory of Misiones, Argentina, has witnessed the constant passage and local overlap of a vast number of highly diverse cultures. Indigenous Guaraní, Spanish conquistadors, Jesuit missions, Paulist bandeirantes, people from the Republic of Entre Ríos and later the Province of Corrientes, Paraguayans, Brazilians, and, finally, a sweeping influx of European immigrants fleeing the world wars make up some of the layers of its immeasurable cultural fabric.  

On the path toward poverty reduction, economic growth, and environmental sustainability, both water and sanitation measures play a fundamental role, demonstrating the importance of access to a resource like water in people's lives. To mark World Water Day, celebrated every March 22, we present the Palacio de Aguas Corrientes (Water Company Palace) in Buenos Aires—one of the greatest creations of the 19th-century European foundry industry outside Europe, combining art and engineering in a unique Argentine work declared a National Historic Monument in 1989.

In Peru, communal kitchens (ollas comunes) are self-managed neighborhood initiatives located in vulnerable areas. Driven by the food and educational insecurity triggered by the pandemic, these spaces have assumed a vital role in child development, transforming themselves into neighborhood schools. Within this context, "DIT: Building a Space for Children" emerged—a project selected for the XII Ibero-American Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism. Through this initiative, architects Gian Franco Pedreschi, Sergio Iván Puch, and Jhordano Zabanick, together with the community of the AA.HH. Horacio Zevallos, intervened in the public space adjacent to a communal kitchen in the Rímac district, improving the residents' quality of life.

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The National Architecture Award of Chile is presented by the Colegio de Arquitectos (Architects Association) to recognize "a lifetime dedicated to the service of architecture," according to the organization. First awarded in 1969, the inaugural recipient was Juan Martínez, architect of landmark projects such as the Law School at the University of Chile and the Votive Temple of Maipú.

The growing focus on sustainable architecture drives architects to explore alternative sustainable construction materials that can be implemented in new buildings. The research “Totora as a Thermal Insulation Material: Properties and Potential” was published by architect Leyda Aza Medina as a master's thesis in 2016 and won the ADUS 2021 academic practice award. The study offers a sustainable alternative, utilizing the renewable resource of totora reeds to develop thermal insulation for buildings in the Peruvian highlands.

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Following the 60th anniversary of the iconic Casa en Jean Mermoz—a precursor to the ideas of Ciudad Abierta in Ritoque—Igor Fracalossi, PhD, proposed a reconstruction of its wooden formwork system. He knows the building well; since 2012, he has dedicated his research to studying "the most complex residential project in Chile to date.”

While walking through the exhibition of the reconstruction in the gardens and galleries of the Centro Cultural Las Condes in 2022, he explains in detail the innovative and unique construction aspects of this demolished work. The house was originally designed by Fabio Cruz Prieto, architect and founding master of the School of Architecture and Design at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso.

Many of us agree with Roman Mars of 99% Invisible when he says that "we tend to not notice well-designed things"—yet many also agree that design is often perceived as being for only a select few. Consequently, we must ask ourselves what is truly democratic when it comes to design, and from there, help define and contribute our vision toward a more just society.

From the perspective of design and architecture, we can approach the democratization of design from various angles—from incorporating design into everyday needs to designing inclusively. At the core of it all lies the search for solutions that improve accessibility and livability in our daily lives.

The construction industry is one of the largest producers of pollutants and waste globally in its daily operations. To put this into perspective, in the mid-1990s in Great Britain, construction processes generated nearly 10 million tons of post-industrial waste. Approximately a decade ago, over 3.5 billion new bricks were used annually, while around 2.5 billion were demolished; of that total, only about 140 million were reused, with the rest sent to landfills.

When addressing the recycling process of construction materials, several obstacles stand in the way of achieving a comprehensive and effective outcome. First, careless demolition can make the process highly complex, as materials destined for different recycling streams are often mixed together. Furthermore, not all materials can be recycled or processed efficiently, as many still require costly or overly complex processes. However, the construction industry—a major contributor to waste production and greenhouse gas emissions—has also developed multiple new technologies to improve its practices. This is where the WOOL2LOOP project comes in, aiming to resolve one of the greatest challenges in applying a circular approach to construction and demolition waste.

Born in Quito in 1947, Guadalupe Ibarra settled in Cuenca during her adolescence due to her father's military career. It was there that she decided to study architecture, enrolling at the University of Cuenca in 1963. An outstanding student, Ibarra earned her degree in 1970, becoming the first Ecuadorian woman to graduate as an architect in the country. 

Gathering spaces in rural areas play an important role in improving the quality of life for local communities. In April 2022, Fundación Mi Parque launched the book “Rural Public Spaces: Community, Architecture, and Landscape” as both a contribution and a guide for a design discipline that seeks to highlight and address the need for meeting spaces in rural environments. The book is the culmination of five years of fieldwork, during which 37 community spaces were built, benefiting more than 26,000 residents in the Choapa Province of Chile's Coquimbo Region.

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“Mercado Retablo” is the winning proposal of the II Semilla Competition organized by MURU, presenting a new design for the Playa Grau Municipal Market, located in the city of Ayacucho. Architects Santiago Nieto Valladares and Lucía Uribe Osores explain how “the market proposes quality public spaces that establish it as a gathering place, moving beyond a mere site for transit and commerce to host and foster social interaction.”

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The bookstore and publishing house Arcadia Mediática, alongside the architecture, design, and construction magazine Arkinka, began 2022 with the launch of their first joint editorial project, “Ideas de Hábitat. Arquitectura en Perú 2010-2020”. Through built projects of varying scales and territories represented by more than four generations of architects, the book aims to showcase the finest works of contemporary architecture in Peru over the last decade.

In November 2022, the Network of Latin American Architecture Biennials REDBAAL will mark its first ten fruitful years, celebrating this milestone by launching the Fourth Edition of the Oscar Niemeyer Award for Latin American Architecture, the prestigious ON-04 Prize. This August, the jury's decision was announced, revealing the top three winners and recognizing the work of architects from Brazil and Mexico.

The first woman to receive an architecture degree in Argentina was Filandia Pizzul in 1928 from the University of Buenos Aires, more than 50 years after the program was first established. Starting in 1874, the architecture program operated independently of the Department of Sciences, where these studies had been housed since 1865. She was a pioneer in several fields, also becoming the first woman to complete courses at the Civil Aviation Directorate in 1928, earning pilot's license No. 181.

The results of the XIV Yucatan Architecture Biennial have been announced. A total of 17 accolades were awarded, including 1 gold medal, 6 silver medals, and 10 honorable mentions across 15 different categories. The jury comprised architects Edgar Herrera, Manuel Herrera, Felipe Leal, and Carlos Rodríguez. Read on to discover the winners.

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Recently, Tec de Monterrey unveiled “Skyspace: Espíritu de Luz,” an installation designed by American artist James Turrell that now joins DistritoTec in Monterrey, Mexico, as a cultural destination that enhances spatial quality through innovation. Arising from the “Light & Space” art movement, this piece was designed as an observatory to generate a unique visual experience through a sequence of lights every 12 hours, at dawn and dusk. It also serves as a tribute to the life and legacy of Don Eugenio Garza Sada and Eugenio Garza Lagüera.

Paint is synonymous with color, even when it is white. It is the simplest way to restore and correct imperfections on any surface, whether interior or exterior. Without detracting from this significant aesthetic benefit, paint also possesses composition-based properties that turn an attractive, well-finished project into a healthy building—one with a lower environmental impact throughout its life cycle.

What do we mean by heritage? This is one of the main questions raised by Alejandro Orellana, director of Relatos de Barrios—a Chilean project that seeks to reclaim the heritage and historical value of housing complexes, highlighting the community dimension behind the lives of their residents.

A documentary and a book are the results of their experience with the “CCU Worker Housing” in La Serena, later renamed the “Rengifo Housing Complex.” Designed in 1957 by architect Carlos Feuereisen Polanco and built in 1958 by Negochea and Vergara, it represents a characteristic housing typology of the city.

This article by Maya Orzechowska was originally published under the title "Five Principles for a Vulnerable and Intimate Architecture: Drawing Alternative Boundaries and Openings to the Home and the Self" in the 31st issue of Dearq journal on September 1, 2021 (DOI: https://doi.org/10.18389/dearq31.2021.04).

This article investigates how the boundaries and openings of the home are not separate from one another; rather, they play an active role in the politics of bodily and social health. For an increasing number of people, both the idea of the home and the reality of housing fail on a daily basis; therefore, this article seeks alternatives to the narrative of the home, of a utopian internal intimacy that endorses withdrawal, and of a non-responsible relationship toward the public realm. It suggests that the result is dystopian, concealing and exacerbating vulnerability and its resistance to change. In contrast, a vulnerable and intimate architecture focuses on the vulnerable body, drawing the uncanny, repressed, and emotional into the home.

We present it below as part of a joint collaboration to contribute to the dissemination of research, analysis, and opinion produced by the national and international academic community on architecture, urban issues, and related fields.

Exacerbated by the pandemic, the housing crisis has become a global phenomenon. Rising prices, lack of access, and poor housing policies have resulted in greater scarcity and precarious conditions. Chile is no exception. Indeed, according to the latest reports issued by the Chilean Chamber of Construction (CChC), there are “more than 700,000 families experiencing overcrowding and irreparable housing, in addition to 81,000 families living in informal settlements.”

Set in the heart of one of the world's most arid deserts, the Nasca aqueducts form a hydraulic system that, for nearly two thousand years, has demonstrated advanced geological and hydrological knowledge. This system allows water to be sourced for both human consumption and agriculture, creating fertile oases in the desert. The Nasca Aqueducts represent a unique hydraulic system in the Americas, owing to their distinct design, construction technique, location, and function. They serve as an exceptional testament to the capacity of ancient societies to overcome adverse conditions, offering solutions that could be applied to the climate challenges of our time.

How do we experience cities? What moves us? What do we remember about them? Monuments? Museums? Are we merely tourists, or do we live the city as an experience? Art is part of the urban fabric—a way to create new paths, lifestyles, and reference points that lead us to identify the unique spaces and moments experienced within it. Art is not confined to museums; it is in the streets, on the walls, and on the buildings that shape the city. Public space dialogues with artistic expression, engaging people, neighborhoods, cities, and an interconnected world to create new modes of community within a culture that is attentive to and understands our contexts and ecosystems. 

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Although the construction industry has spent years making strides in new fields such as biomaterials, nanotechnology, and 3D printing, it simultaneously remains one of the slowest to adopt new technology. Many of these innovations never progress past the experimental stage. How can this situation be reversed?