As part of a new project by the architecture firm WORC, "Moradores" emerges: a space located just steps from Jardín Zaragoza in Toluca, State of Mexico. Housed within a 342-square-meter residence with nearly a century of history, it is one of the few surviving structures from the evolution of a representative neighborhood in the city's historic center. The studio, directed by Ricardo Martínez and Camila Ureña, describes the space as a “public house” comprising a restaurant, art exhibitions, and a community gathering point.
With the goal of highlighting Chilean women who embody female empowerment, Forbes magazine has compiled a list of the 30 most influential women in the country today. The selection is based on key attributes such as leadership, public inspiration, and an ongoing contribution to shaping a more gender-equitable nation.
Between April 2 and 16, students from Latin America, together with architects, worked on the analysis, design, and construction of public infrastructure for the city of Suchitoto in El Salvador, within the framework of the XIX Latin American Social Workshop (TSL).
Since its first edition held in Barranquilla in 2002, the TSL has annually brought together public and private entities, university students, architects, professors, and members of Latin American civil society to develop practical architectural exercises with a strong community and local focus. This year, the XIX TSL was led by the Latin American Coordinator of Architecture Students (CLEA) and the local organization, the National Association of Architecture Students of El Salvador (ANEA).
The following is the work produced by the workshops led by architects from El Sindicato, Taller Bugambilias, Taller de Tierra, Colectivo Hormiga, ACCIÓN, Laborateca, Sen Sos Hábitat, Alejandro Alcázar, and Coonvite:
https://www.archdaily.com/1136241/discover-the-four-projects-built-at-the-latin-american-social-workshop-el-salvador-2023ArchDaily Team
Stockholm Wood City. Courtesy of Atrium Ljungberg | White Arkitekter
With studies estimating that by 2050 nearly 70% of the global population will live in cities, planning for more sustainable and balanced urban development has become imperative for the coming decades. This discussion invariably hinges on a more assertive choice of construction materials that yield greater urban and environmental benefits. In this context, a material re-emerging as a more sustainable choice for urban infrastructure is wood, particularly when paired with new technological advancements, which is being reintroduced into cityscapes due to its versatile characteristics and its ability to align with the construction of tomorrow.
La construcción del proyecto de desarrollo urbano de madera más grande del mundo comenzará en 2025. Image Cortesía de Atrium Ljungberg | White Arkitekter
Atrium Ljungberg recently unveiled Stockholm Wood City, the world's largest timber urban development project—an effort to showcase Sweden's commitment to sustainability. On the other side of the world, Tallwood Architects' Tamango Project exemplifies the challenges and opportunities of timber construction in Chile and could become Latin America's first 12-story building featuring a prefabricated mass timber structure.
Wulff Castle in Viña del Mar is a renowned landmark, celebrated for its appearance and architectural style inspired by Liechtenstein Castle in Germany. The structure features German and French design elements, along with medieval characteristics—qualities that captivate both locals and the thousands of tourists who visit it.
Every day, governments, financial institutions, and corporations face a critical decision: continue investing in physical assets that emit greenhouse gases and degrade nature, or prioritize developing green solutions that foster a stable, resilient, and equitable economy. As communities bear the brunt of severe climate impacts, the imperative to build a sustainable future becomes increasingly clear.
https://www.archdaily.com/1136129/6-changes-needed-for-the-financial-system-to-help-promote-a-sustainable-futureAnderson Lee
The city of Federación, located in the northeast of the province of Entre Ríos, was structured, like most Argentine cities, around “the classic block-by-block grid layout bequeathed by the Laws of the Indies,” taking shape alongside the development of its various economic roles. The evolution of economic functions and the actions of different social forces gradually shaped a unique organization of urban space, in which distinct “neighborhoods” or urban districts clearly reflected the inequalities of the local socioeconomic structure.
https://www.archdaily.com/1136219/the-origin-of-cities-federacion-in-argentinaMaría Rosa Catullo
The city's urban planning must go hand in hand with nature. Photo: Daniel Costa, via Unsplash
The capacity of trees to naturally cool cities is one of the key benefits of promoting urban planting. In the Federal District, urban afforestation has been studied to guide public policies toward the sustainable use of natural resources. Architecture and Urbanism student Júlia Almeida, from the University Center of Brasília (CEUB), measured the microclimatic influences of vegetation at the residential scale in Brasília, proving the power of greenery to improve quality of life.
São Paulo. Photo by D A V I D S O N L U N A via Unsplash
Many cities around the world face severe housing affordability issues. One of the primary reasons is highly restrictive zoning regulations. Zoning—the rules that dictate what can be built on any given lot—was originally designed to manage urban issues such as congestion, pollution, and shadow impacts.
Over time, however, planners aligned with property owners to tighten these rules. Planners disliked urban density and were more than happy to reduce it. Homeowners realized that stricter codes could preserve their property values and exclude low-income residents and minorities from their neighborhoods.
As part of a project led by Dutch artist Thomas Kole, a website titled "Portrait of Tenochtitlan: A 3D reconstruction of the Mexica capital" has been launched, presenting a variety of images of what Tenochtitlan once was. This reconstruction is based on historical and archaeological sources, as well as the collective knowledge that yields these images today to continue studying our history. The site offers navigation in three languages: Nahuatlahtolli, Spanish, and English, featuring an overlay of contemporary images where users can compare before and after simply by sliding the cursor across the screen. It was created using open-source software: Blender, Gimp, and Darktable.
The Time Portal, designed by Longhi Architects, is an architectural project commissioned by the company "Los Portales" to create an identity landmark in the plaza of a modern residential development in the city of Juliaca, Peru.
The project merges fundamental characteristics of Inca culture and landscape design with elements of contemporary globalization, represented by the recognizable QR code icon.
Paola Jirón is the newly appointed president of Chile's new National Council for Territorial Development (CNDT), a recently established entity that merges the National Council for Urban Development (CNDU) and the National Council for Rural Development (CNDR). She takes on the challenge of promoting planning that accounts for the specific characteristics of each region, while facilitating dialogue to develop solutions for pressing spatial issues, such as the growing population in informal settlements, urban development in disaster-prone areas, and the increasing subdivision of rural land.
For five days, we ventured into the Turbio River of Barquisimeto, its valley, and its banks to experience fieldwork that culminated in the construction of landscape interventions. We were 70 students and 30 professors, guests, and collaborators, taking part in a Summer School organized by Dislocal alongside the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the Universidad Central de Venezuela and its Extramural Teaching Unit in the city of Barquisimeto.
While high expectations build up during the development of an architectural project—which often represents the realization of a professional dream or a new home for a family—and even though, despite careful planning, countless unforeseen issues and headaches can arise during construction, after weathering endless estimates, schedules, and delays, once construction is complete and the property is occupied, it usually feels as though the journey has finally come to an end.
However, even with the work seemingly finished and a sense of accomplishment, architects and clients will likely still need to align on certain points or address issues that crop up along the way. In light of this, what are the architect's responsibilities once the owners occupy the property?
Twenty-one years after the passage of the federal City Statute (Estatuto da Cidade)—which regulated the “Urban Policy” chapter of the Brazilian Constitution, leading to the formulation of several master plans for 21st-century cities with more than 20,000 inhabitants and, now, the opportunity to revise many of them—it seems timely to tune our radars to a highly relevant topic for all cities, and one we have consistently struggled to address: our sidewalks!
I am referring to various aspects of their use and purpose, their regulatory mechanisms, their maintenance, and their design... Let us look at them.
To meet daily needs and ensure domestic routines function smoothly, the interior and exterior spaces of a home require certain fixtures and furniture—no matter how minimal or essential they may be. In many cases, selecting and designing the furniture that will complement the architectural project is relegated to a post-construction phase and, typically, left to the clients themselves.
However, for some architects, furniture design is considered an integral part of the project. Capitalizing on the plasticity and malleability of certain materials, they choose to integrate interior furniture directly with the architecture. In their designs, benches, shelves, and countertops merge with the spatial language, unfolding sculpturally to extend the surfaces of floors, walls, and partitions.
Mexico City-based firm LOCUS, in collaboration with Studio Météores and Philippe Rahm Architectes, has been awarded fourth place in the single-stage international competition for the renovation of the National Museum of Carthage for its project titled "Byrsa, Topographies of an Act of Reparation." The Ministry of Cultural Affairs of the Republic of Tunisia announced the results of the competition, which was organized by the UIA, the OAT, UNESCO, Expertise France, and Patrimonie 3000.
The BIM (Building Information Modeling) methodology is revolutionizing the construction sector, and with it, the role of the BIM Manager. This professional is responsible for managing the building process using BIM, from initial sketches to project completion.
A BIM Manager's career path can vary based on education, experience, and professional goals. However, in general, BIM Managers tend to follow a similar career trajectory.
The word "deck" originated in the English language to refer to a ship's deck. Today, the term is used to describe outdoor surfaces made of wooden planks that may or may not surround pools, hot tubs, and soaking tubs. These design options can be highly diverse—so much so that a new approach has emerged in the market as a growing trend: the wet deck.
https://www.archdaily.com/1136255/wet-decks-innovating-pool-architectureArchDaily Team
The municipality of Rio do Antônio, located about 700 kilometers from the capital of the state of Bahia, still retains remnants from the era of slavery in Brazil. This period left deep marks that remain visible in the town's daily reality, including its architecture.
This year will be pivotal for climate action. The growing impacts of climate change — from floods and droughts to hurricanes and heatwaves — are causing profound damage to human lives and economies around the world, especially in vulnerable developing countries with few resources to protect themselves.
Currently, climate actions are not even close to what is needed to keep global warming below the 1.5°C threshold and avoid the worst of these impacts — countries must significantly accelerate their efforts to get on track. The latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns that actions taken this decade will have impacts "for thousands of years."
https://www.archdaily.com/1136314/what-is-the-paris-agreements-global-stocktake-and-how-it-can-drive-action-in-countriesJamal Srouji, Felipe Borja Diaz e Deirdre Cogan
As part of an initiative by Tec de Monterrey, this year's first prize for the 215th Traditional Sorteo Tec features a residential project designed by Mexican architect Cristina Grappin. With this home, the university raffle of Tecnológico de Monterrey furthers its support for the Líderes del Mañana (Leaders of Tomorrow) program, an initiative aimed at driving change, social mobility, and the development of outstanding young scholars.