*This article is based on data from www.archdaily.cn. We apologize for any omissions.*

This project is the concept competition for the world’s only WorldSkills Museum. The goal is to renovate and renew an old warehouse on the banks of the Huangpu River, transforming it into a venue dedicated to skills competitions and vocational education for youth, while creating a vibrant urban public space.

Founded in Shanghai in 2001, Lacime Architects has always adhered to the architectural philosophy of "simplifying complexity and returning to the origin," aiming to root its practice locally while creating world-class architecture. Drawing on the design excellence of international practices, the firm prioritizes design innovation and independence. It is committed to utilizing new materials and technologies that reflect contemporary trends, integrating cultural concepts into its architectural works to honor cultural heritage while celebrating the spirit of the times.

This article curates Lacime Architects' portfolio of 2018, showcasing public buildings, demonstration zones, and residential developments through four thematic lenses: civic engagement, Neo-Chinese research, urban renewal, and contemporary living. (The following projects are listed in no particular order.)

Located on the west bank of Xiang Lake in Nanchang, the project sits in a new district whose large-scale block morphology contrasts sharply with the organic, "natural" fabric of the old town. The Fuhe River, flowing south from the Tengwang Pavilion Delta, preserves the city's natural landscape character, turning bridges into a key element of the urban landscape. The project seeks to capture the morphological memory of this contemporary city, anchoring itself to the edge of its cultural context.

Text by Henry Heng Lu

By Henry Heng Lu

The escalating use of air conditioning is pushing urban temperatures to unprecedented heights. In highly populated nations like India, China, Indonesia, Brazil, and Mexico, major urban centers are becoming virtual ovens. At the same time, heat absorbed by buildings is re-released into the environment, driving local temperatures even higher. This outdoor heat, in turn, triggers demand for more air conditioning, creating a vicious cycle that increases both energy consumption and atmospheric carbon emissions.

In response to this feedback loop, UNStudio partnered with Swiss paint specialists Monopol Colours to develop “The Coolest White”—an ultra-durable coating that protects buildings and urban structures from excessive solar radiation, thereby mitigating the urban heat island effect. Darker materials used in urban construction are a primary driver of urban heat accumulation. These materials absorb up to 95% of solar radiation, re-releasing it directly into the atmosphere, whereas standard white surfaces reduce this absorption to 25%. Now, The Coolest White lowers this absorption and emission value to a groundbreaking 12%.

Recently, HASSELL was invited to participate in the master planning and landscape design competition for this site, reimagining it as Hefei Central Park while preserving the memories of its past. Ultimately, HASSELL's proposal was selected as one of the two winning designs. The jury commented: "HASSELL’s proposal features a well-structured urban design framework, and the treatment of the interface between the park and the city is particularly striking. The skeletal road network is highly feasible, and the internal circulation system is thoroughly designed. While the runway is preserved intact, its potential for future adaptation is enhanced. Additionally, the 'Green Ribbon' concept at the intercity transit node is highly distinctive." 

Tracing the development of Chinese civilization reveals a journey that moves from the lower reaches of the Yellow River upstream. Journeying backward from Beijing of the Ming and Qing dynasties, through Luoyang of the Sui and Tang, to Xi'an of the Qin and Han, one eventually reaches Qin'an—the site of an 8,000-year-old prehistoric civilization. Recently, the Qin'an Archives, designed by WEISHE Studio, broke ground in this historic and cultural city, celebrated as the birthplace of the mythological figures Fuxi and Nuwa. The new facility will not only preserve county records and archives but will also serve as a public cultural hub, integrating research, reading, cultural exhibitions, and academic exchange.

* Original Author: Xie Xiaofan, Vice President of the China National Academy of Painting. Xie collaborated with Arata Isozaki to build the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA) Art Museum and has curated a series of large-scale exhibitions. Xie is the author of "Exhibiting the Art Museum" and "Discerning Forms: Walking Between Art and Construction", led the drafting of the state-issued "National Standards for Art Museum Construction," and previously oversaw the construction of the new National Art Museum of China.
*This article is published with the authorization of Xie Xiaofan.

At 23:30 on March 5, upon receiving the first news of Arata Isozaki winning the prize, I immediately sent the following message to Hu Qian: "It would be incredibly badass if Old Iso immediately declined the Pritzker. Tell him my thoughts right away. The Pritzker is about celebrity and fashion; Old Iso is a literati avant-garde." As the person who turned Isozaki’s ideas and drawings into physical architecture, and as someone who has bickered and fought alongside Hu Qian, this was my immediate, gut-reaction response.

In mid-April, world-renowned Swiss architect Mario Botta and filmmaker Loretta Dalpozzo attended the Sino-Swiss Architectural Dialogue at Tsinghua University. Initiated by the Embassy of Switzerland in China and co-organized by the Swiss Consulates General in Shanghai and Chengdu, the event also hosted the premiere of the documentary “Mario Botta: Beyond Space.”

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According to announcements on the UNESCO website, the World Heritage List represents an invaluable legacy of monuments, natural beauty, and cultural treasures belonging to all humanity. The sites inscribed on this list serve as milestones on our planet, symbolizing regional and national awareness of the significance of place and shared wealth, while preserving this collective heritage for future generations.

Founded in the 1970s by Rem Koolhaas, Elia Zenghelis, Madelon Vriesendorp, and Zoe Zenghelis, the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) is one of the world's most renowned practices. While the firm has realized numerous projects and built iconic works across various countries, its work is not limited to architectural design alone. Instead, OMA frequently transcends strict disciplinary boundaries to engage with other areas of practice.

The relationship between the human body and architecture has always been a fundamental element of architectural design and practice, yet it was only in recent history that this connection was formally documented, let alone fully accepted. The question today is: how is the human body interpreted in the contemporary era, and how do these perceptions shape the way we design buildings and spaces? Ergonomics is often viewed as a discipline that highlights the separation between body and object; in reality, however, it not only bridges the two, but also serves as a blueprint designed to maximize and synchronize efficiency between them. At its core, ergonomics is a technical discourse concerning an increasingly mechanized human habitat.

2050年马德里的气候将更像今天摩洛哥马拉喀什的气候，斯德哥尔摩将更像布达佩斯，伦敦更像巴塞罗那，莫斯科更像索菲亚，西雅图更像旧金山，东京更像中国的长沙。

苏黎世联邦理工学院克劳瑟实验室（The Crowther Lab）在科学杂志《公共科学图书馆》（PLoS ONE）上发表了一篇题为《从对相似城市的分析开始理解气候变化》的研究，为世界城市中心的未来描绘了一幅严峻的图景。

The concept of “resilience” is widely applied across many disciplines. In scientific terms, resilience is the capacity of a material or object to recover its shape after undergoing some form of trauma. In other words, it is quite different from resistance, as it fundamentally concerns the ability to adapt and recover. In ecology, resilience refers to an ecosystem's capacity to respond to disturbances, resist damage, and recover quickly. In architecture, however, integrating resilience into design can yield a wide range of solutions. Resilient design is inherently site-specific, making it essential to anticipate potential building use scenarios, and even disasters that could threaten the structure and its occupants. Beyond this, there is a growing focus on using adaptive structures and materials that can continuously learn from and modify themselves in response to the environment. If we already have software and algorithms that learn from their surroundings, why not apply the same approach to the building process?

We have selected 10 adaptive materials and design solutions developed under the concept of architectural and construction resilience—innovations that may one day become mainstream, or perhaps remain temporary experiments.

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Project Background
As a strategic pivot of the national "Belt and Road" Initiative and the core engine for innovative cooperation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Qianhai is set to become a futuristic, world-class bay area city center. On January 17, 2019, the Qianhai Authority officially launched the global call for proposals for the "Qianhai Public Space Design" project, attracting applications from 42 consortia representing over a hundred leading design firms worldwide.

The primary objective of the "Qianhai Public Space Design" project is to establish a unique bay area city center. Grounded in human-centric design, the project aims to enhance public well-being and the region's overall appeal through the creation of a beautiful, inviting network of public spaces.

Over the past 20 years, the role of representation and rendering has shifted dramatically across the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industries. New rendering technologies, techniques, and software, such as Lumion, have driven this evolution. By integrating 3D rendering tools, architects and designers can leverage intuitive, versatile visualization technologies to enhance creativity rather than stifle it.

Among the various measures cities can implement to become more pedestrian-friendly, developing a comprehensive signage system is a highly efficient, straightforward improvement that delivers transformative results—as demonstrated by initiatives like Legible London, New York's WalkNYC, or Rio on Foot in Rio de Janeiro.

July 20, 2019, marked the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. On July 16, 1969, Apollo 11 departed Earth, touching down on the lunar surface four days later. This historic milestone continues to prompt reflection on how technological advancements are making life on other worlds increasingly viable.

Aided by the evolution of 3D printing and fully automated construction technologies, we have compiled 15 architectural projects that demonstrate how life on the Moon and other celestial bodies is no longer a distant fantasy.

Flying Panels: How Concrete Panels Changed the World is the latest exhibition at ArkDes. Designed by Swedish studio Note Design Studio, it is co-curated by Pedro Ignacio Alonso and Hugo Palmarola, creators of the Monolith Controversies exhibition, which won the Silver Lion at the 14th Venice Architecture Biennale in 2014.

The exhibition brings together an array of models and material culture—such as posters, paintings, films, toys, cartoons, and opera sets—reflecting how concrete panels influenced culture to build a new society.

On December 20, 2019, the opening press conference for the eighth **Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture (Shenzhen)** (hereinafter "UABB") was held at the **Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning (MOCAPE)**, marking the official launch of this year's biennale.

Under the theme of "**Urban Interactions**," this year's UABB is chief-curated by architect and director of the MIT Senseable City Lab **Carlo Ratti**, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering **Meng Jianmin**, and renowned curator and art critic **Fabio Cavallucci**. The South China-Turin Joint Lab (Politecnico di Torino and South China University of Technology) serves as the academic curator. The exhibition **opens on December 21, 2019, at the main venues—the Shenzhen Futian High-Speed Railway Station and the Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning—and will officially open to the public on December 22**. In addition, **nine sub-venues** across various districts of Shenzhen will interface with the main venues, establishing an organic network of interaction throughout the city.

The exhibition comprises two main sections, "**Eyes of the City**" and "**Ascending City**," each exploring the evolving relationship between urban space and technological innovation from distinct perspectives. **The main venues showcase over 140 works, bringing together more than 280 exhibitors from 24 countries and regions**. These include renowned international and domestic architects, artists, and institutions such as MVRDV, Liam Young, Stefano Boeri, Sou Fujimoto, Thomas Heatherwick, Ryoji Ikeda, Wang Shu, Yung Ho Chang, Dominique Perrault, Philip F. Yuan, Liu Cixin, and Academicians Cui Kai and Wang Jianguo.

In 2019, ArchDaily published more than 5,000 architectural projects, including hundreds of residential designs. Based on their popularity, we have curated 56 residential projects that stand out for their innovation, technical execution, and design ingenuity. Located across the globe—in cities, countryside, mountains, and coastal areas—they employ a wide range of structural systems and materials, from traditional masonry to cutting-edge prefabricated systems. Most of these designs share a common thread: fostering a powerful dialogue between the home and nature, whether by directly engaging with the surrounding landscape or bringing greenery into dense urban environments. The collection is divided into two sections: Collective Housing, represented by apartment buildings, and Single-Family Homes, represented by private villas and residential renovations.

On December 20, 2019, the opening press conference for the 8th Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture (Shenzhen) (UABB) was held at the Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning (MOCAPE), marking the official launch of this year’s exhibition.

The theme of this year's UABB is "Urban Interactions." It is chief-curated by architect and director of the MIT Senseable City Lab Carlo Ratti, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering Meng Jianmin, and renowned curator and art critic Fabio Cavallucci. The South China-Torino Collaboration Lab (Politecnico di Torino and South China University of Technology) serves as the academic curator. The exhibition opened on December 21, 2019, at the main venues—Shenzhen Futian High-Speed Railway Station and the Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning (MOCAPE)—and officially opened to the public on December 22. Concurrently, nine sub-venues across various districts of Shenzhen will collaborate with the main venues, forming an organic interactive network throughout the city.

The exhibition features two main sections, "Eyes of the City" and "Ascending City," which explore the evolving relationship between urban space and technological innovation from distinct perspectives. The main venues showcase over 140 works, bringing together more than 280 participants from 24 countries and regions, including MVRDV, Liam Young, Stefano Boeri, Sou Fujimoto, Thomas Heatherwick, Ryoji Ikeda, as well as renowned domestic and international architects, artists, and institutions such as Wang Shu, Yung Ho Chang, Dominique Perrault, Philip F. Yuan, Liu Cixin, Academician Cui Kai, and Academician Wang Jianguo.

Around 80% of the Brazilian population lives on what was once forest and is not even aware of it. In Brazil, history has been—and continues to be—forged by opposing the city to the forest, within a civilizational matrix fundamentally based on the devastation of native ecologies and their replacement by monocultures and invasive species. In just a few centuries, we have transformed a megadiverse forest continent into sterile environments through urban standardization, bleak architecture, and unsustainable landscaping, imposed as a design project. We live on former forests but resist thinking of cities as forest ruins. [1]

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