Since the second half of the twentieth century, Brazil has become globally recognized for urban insecurity. Since then, the problem has intensified, with extraordinarily high homicide rates—comparable, in many cases, to countries at war. In 2018, 17 Brazilian cities ranked among the 50 most dangerous cities in the world.
In light of recent developments surrounding COVID-19, the Mexico City government, in conjunction with the Mexico City Reconstruction Commission, announced that the reconstruction plan addressing the September 19, 2017 earthquakes will not be suspended. Instead, health and social distancing measures will be implemented to allow support and construction processes to continue.
La Parleta is a project by the Ecuadorian architecture and construction collective EseColectivo, which gathers "highly valuable reflections, anecdotes, and experiences surrounding the profession." Below, we share some of their thoughts alongside their fourth episode, "Post-Apocalyptic Architecture."
Nicolas Norero presents a new season of his podcast, continuing his conversations on identity, memory, and ways of life. In this edition, the featured guests are Dust Architects, Salvador Macías, Luis Callejas, Grupo Talca, Germán del Sol, and Enrique Walker.
While brick is one of the preferred construction methods within the architectural culture of several Latin American countries, Uruguay's unique history with this material has been deeply shaped by the contributions of the renowned engineer Eladio Dieste. His work pushed brick to its ultimate lightness, creating curved surfaces through a pioneering technology he termed reinforced ceramics. In doing so, Dieste offered the country—and the world—a new perspective on the structural possibilities of brick, strengthening its role in local identity and inspiring further exploration and design with the material.
The state of New Mexico is located in the western region of the United States, bordering Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas (in the US) and Chihuahua (in Mexico). It has the highest percentage of Spanish-speaking population in the United States. As part of Aridoamerica, its landscape is predominantly shaped by cacti and desert species.
Centered on the theme “Integrated Housing, Sustainable Communities,” the 2020 CAP Steel Design Competition for Students has recognized projects that promote the understanding of steel as a material, research into its vast potential, its technologies, and its multiple uses and applications in construction, developed within an appropriate architectural and structural framework.
Out of 26 preliminary projects submitted by 15 different universities, first place went to a team of students from Universidad Andrés Bello (Santiago), while second place went to students from Universidad Católica de Chile, and third place to students from Universidad Austral.
The following article proposes rethinking architecture as a subject rather than an object. Carlos Medellín delves into the topic, arguing from both experimental and academic perspectives how people-centered architecture acts as an agent of change.
Observing the reality of our built environment allows us to recognize that certain identities are not represented by existing models and scales. Unsurprisingly, these voices have been conspicuously absent from the planning and construction processes of cities and their architecture. Their desires, ways of being, and modes of inhabiting the world have been excluded and rendered invisible. This prompts us to rethink: Which voices are legitimized in urban debates, and for whom is the city designed?
As part of an initiative led by the Mexican architecture firm REVOLUTION Arquitectura and the Mexican Red Cross, the Temporary Housing Pavilion for Healthcare Workers was developed to protect and shelter healthcare sector workers in Mexico.
The winners of the Allen Bus Terminal Preliminary Project Competition (TOA) have been announced. This regional call was promoted by the Municipality of the City of Allen (General Roca, Río Negro, Argentina), organized by Section 2 and Section 4 of the Colegio de Arquitectos de la Provincia de Río Negro (CARN), and sponsored by the Argentine Federation of Architects' Associations (FADEA). The competition invited architects to submit proposals for a new passenger transport terminal, boosting architectural creativity and intervening at an urban scale.
The winners of the Ideas Competition for the Casa de la Cultura, Former Governorate of the Department of Santa Cruz have been announced. Promoted and organized by the Municipality of Santa Cruz, the initiative invited Chilean students and architects to develop architectural proposals to convert the old Santa Cruz governorate building into the future Casa de la Cultura, highlighting the value of the property, which is considered of high heritage significance as the city's last remaining early 20th-century architectural vestige.
Architect Gabriela de Matos, creator of the Arquitetas Negras project, was named Architect of the Year by the Rio de Janeiro Department of the Institute of Architects of Brazil (IAB-RJ). Alongside her, IAB-RJ also honored the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz) during an online event held this week to announce the winners of the 58th Annual Awards and the 37th Architect of Tomorrow Award.
Dedicated to exploring the intersection of race, gender, architecture, and the city, Gabriela highlighted in her speech the importance of recognizing that "although the field of architecture and urbanism is still elitist and racist, it is precisely the training of architects and urban planners who view architecture as a social tool that can help bridge the gaps and inequalities in our society."
Within residential spaces, architects choose to give more or less prominence to certain areas of the program, depending on client preferences. While some prefer to prioritize more intimate spaces, others lean toward social areas—with the kitchen being a primary example.
Although the pragmatic function of a kitchen is to serve as a space for preparing food, there are few homes where it does not also double as a gathering place. Even in traditional dwellings like the Mapuche *ruka*, a central hearth is used both for cooking and for heating, conceptually evoking the same welcoming atmosphere as integrated urban kitchens. Today, fire is managed through stoves—with a strong modern shift toward induction cooktops for their safety and precise temperature control. Nevertheless, the core domestic principle remains the same, and contemporary architecture has allowed the kitchen to once again integrate seamlessly with daily activities and social zones.
Barranquilla is renowned for its colorful carnival, while its architectural identity is defined by the El Prado neighborhood and the works of master architect Roberto Acosta Madiedo. We have compiled a selection of outstanding modernist works in the city, including houses, residential developments, religious buildings, and public spaces.
The pursuit of security in architecture is closely linked to creating sheltered interiors that allow us to carry out our daily activities comfortably and without unforeseen disruptions. However, the challenges involved in protecting people and property have shifted dramatically in recent years. Today, we seek to feel safe wherever we are, and in an increasingly open and transparent architecture, the building envelope material becomes more and more critical, particularly in its glazed areas.
What parameters should be considered when choosing safety glass? We spoke with technical experts from Cristales Dialum, who have developed solutions with different resistance levels for single- and double-glazed units.
Following the decision of a jury comprising leading figures in national architecture, combined with the public vote, the winners of the 2020 Best Brick Architecture Award were announced. The award aims to recognize outstanding national architecture projects featuring exposed brick, highlighting the architectural value of a material central to Chilean identity.
We have all heard the term BIM in the field of architecture and construction. But have you ever wondered why its adoption has grown so rapidly in recent years? Building Information Modeling (BIM) has streamlined the work of various professionals in the architecture and construction industries. It not only facilitates the design process but also simplifies the overall analysis of the building, thereby minimizing errors.
Through BIM methodology, teams can work collaboratively, maximizing the efficiency of project management and administration for both small and large-scale projects. This allows architects and engineers to work with parametric models and drawings, known as 3D smart objects.
In this article, I share the analysis and decision-making process we led at Königsberger Vannucchi Arquitetura when starting our BIM transformation in 2017. We conducted six investment studies between 2013 and 2017 before the plan finally became an active initiative. It was September 2017, and we had just embarked on what would be the most important, transformative, and risky investment of the KV2020 strategic cycle: adopting BIM as the office standard across 100% of our projects, throughout 100% of their lifecycles.
Located in southern Mexico, bordering the state of Tabasco and sharing a border with Guatemala, the state of Chiapas is one of the most significant regions for Mesoamerican cultures like the Olmec, Maya, and Chiapanec. Consequently, some of the area's most important tourist attractions are the archaeological zones of Yaxchilán, Palenque, Chinkultic, Toniná, and Bonampak, which are crucial for understanding the construction, structural, and social processes that shaped this territory.
The National Social Distancing Campaign (Jornada de Sana Distancia) in Mexico began on March 23, 2020. However, a couple of weeks earlier, even despite the Federal Government's recommendation to continue activities as normal, social media was already filled with people choosing to replicate the European model and self-isolate. Immediately, some architecture practices decided to close their physical offices and transition to a remote work model, while others took several weeks longer. Yet, this period of social and physical (spatial) distancing is experienced differently in every household. In the months since this pandemic unfolded, it has laid bare not only the inequality in basic needs within dense urban areas but also the fragility of the social order itself. Whether at a macro or micro scale, all these experiences occur within and are influenced by the built environment, making architecture both judge and jury in this equation.
Proyecto Taller is a documentary series that aims to debate, reflect on, and examine architectural teaching and learning methods, seeking to define their points of contact and overlap with professional practice. Within this ambiguity between making and teaching how to make architecture, many architects have managed to integrate their careers as designers with their work as educators in academic environments, where they teach students how to design.
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Similar in nature to silos and granaries, the barn is an essential building typology within agricultural storage processes. Their designs are typically simple and functional. Serving specifically as facilities to store large volumes of raw materials, they are characterized by high ceilings, wide spans, and relative flexibility. These structures protect agricultural products—such as cereals, fruits, grains, straw, and hay—from the sun, rain, moisture, and pests.
FRAM arquitectos is an Argentine architecture firm founded in 2011 in the city of Buenos Aires. With a body of work focused on small- and medium-scale single-family homes designed and built in both Buenos Aires and the province of Río Negro, they have explored the complexities of domestic living, engaged in material research of various kinds, and tackled challenging commissions with minimal dimensions and tight budgets. Alongside this, they have actively participated in consecutive provincial and national competitions, seeking to expand their design scope and deepen their study of larger-scale programs.
_-_Art_Gray.jpg?1593480840 "Central New Mexico Community College Westside 1 Building / Gould Evans + Design Plus. Image © Art Gray")
.jpg?1593480863 "Abiquiu House / Anderson Anderson Architecture. Image Cortesía de Anderson Anderson Architecture")
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