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The Urban Space Intervention Competition was created to establish a tradition of developing innovative ideas on contemporary themes through temporary installations in the city of Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Mexico, as part of the Provincia Festival in April 2018.

The initiative aims to offer local residents, domestic visitors, and foreign tourists opportunities for new experiences and ways of viewing and reflecting on their daily surroundings. It also challenges designers to move beyond purely formal and aesthetic concerns, prompting them to address urban social realities and consider how the city itself can help achieve the program's objectives.

After receiving more than 70 submissions from various Argentine universities and cities, our editorial team selected 10 of them, focusing on projects that demonstrated critical thinking regarding contemporary issues, formal execution, and representation. The selection not only highlights projects that delivered the best possible architecture through simple design tailored to their context, program, and users, but also those showing significant attention to human scale, mediation, transition, and new ways of approaching urban architecture.

Discover our 10 highlighted projects below.

THE NEIGHBORHOOD AS A CULTURAL CENTER: Alejandro Asens - Victoria Carbonin - Juan Cardozo Sánchez - Italo Parietti

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Most of us share childhood memories of drawing little houses—a triangular roof, a door, a window, and a tree beside it. What sets architects apart from the general public, however, is that we continue to make these drawings long after we grow up. Naturally, our skills usually mature along the way. Just as our residential architecture becomes more complex and refined, our representation of trees must also evolve (that broccoli-like scribble is unlikely to impress clients or professors). While trees are rarely the focal point of a drawing, they play a crucial role in architectural composition, establishing scale, casting shadows, and representing specific landscape designs.

On Wednesday, November 21, the winners of the XXI Pan-American Architecture Biennial of Quito (BAQ2018) were announced in Ecuador.

Divided into six participation categories, the juries selected a series of projects and publications that stand out as meaningful contributions to their respective fields, offering relevant lessons for our discipline. The following are the winners in Category A (Architectural Design), Category B (Urban Design and Landscape Architecture), Category C (Social Habitat and Development), and Category D (Architectural Rehabilitation).

CODHAB has released the results of another one of its competitions. This edition sought design proposals for an Escola Classe (EC) elementary school located in the Crixá Neighborhood development in the Federal District. The facility aims to provide public educational services, as the first phase of the social housing project is already under construction.

The objective of the competition was to select the most suitable proposal to contract the responsible technical team, who will sign an agreement with the organizing entity to develop the Complete Detailed Design (Architectural Design and Complementary Projects). See the results of the competition below:

Alô, alô, W/Brasil… Alô, alô, W/Brasil… / Jacarezinho! Avião! Jacarezinho! Avião! / Cuidado com o disco voador / Tira essa escada daí / Essa escada é pra ficar aqui fora / Eu vou chamar o síndico / Tim Maia! Tim Maia! Tim Maia! Tim Maia!

Upon entering one of these modern gated communities, designed with the latest urban planning engineering, one experiences a calming sense of having finally found order and security. We quickly realize that this is a way of life in which precariousness, risk, and uncertainty have seemingly been abolished. The space is homogeneous, governed by specific stylistic rules. Inside, locations are well-distributed, and positions are comfortably occupied. Security forces feel genuinely present, albeit private. The streets are well-paved and signposted, despite a slight excess of signs dictating directions and rules of use. The houses display their inevitable front lawns, without fences. Everything else is functional, managed, and clean. The image of this island of serenity captures the illusions of the average Brazilian consumer dream: a region insulated from the rest of the world, where one can freely cultivate a sense of community among equals. It offers a return to nature, a worry-free life, abundant in leisure and the company of peers—a shared destiny manifesting in countless variations: vertical, horizontal, residential, commercial, private, and even public.

The city of Rio de Janeiro preserves an important and representative legacy of leading names in modern architecture. Affonso Eduardo Reidy is one of them. Born in Paris, France, he was brought to Rio at a very young age, growing up amidst the modernity and *bossa* of the "Marvelous City." Graduating from the National School of Fine Arts in Rio de Janeiro in 1930, he was a member of the group led by Alfred Agache for Rio's urban remodeling and was part of the team of young architects who designed the Ministry of Education and Health building under Le Corbusier's consultancy. Le Corbusier was one of his primary influences, alongside Oscar Niemeyer, the most prominent figure of the so-called Escola Carioca.

Given the architect's prominence in Rio's and, above all, Brazilian modern architecture, we have selected a few of his widely recognized works alongside some less frequently cited projects. We hope this guide to five of the architect's projects sparks interest among residents and visitors alike—or even those who have never been to Rio—encouraging everyone to experience Reidy's work firsthand. Discover them below!

The Housing Development Company of the Federal District (CODHAB-DF) recently launched Accreditation Call No. 001/2018 which aims to accredit companies to provide temporary home renovation and minor repair services in areas of social interest. Registration must be completed online at www.codhab.df.gov.br/credenciamento/01-2018 by 6:00 PM on March 26.

"This semester you can do whatever you want; the only condition is that the final project must be built at full scale." This is how the seventh-level studio taught by the award-winning firm Al Borde begins at the Universidad Tecnológica Indoamérica (UTI) in Ambato, Ecuador.

More than 60 built projects have emerged from this studio, including Nido del Quilico, a project developed in 2016 by Darío Cárdenas, Jonathan Proaño, and Daniel Sandoval. The following text is adapted from a post-studio interview conducted by the Al Borde team with Darío Cárdenas.

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A wealth of culture and exceptional natural beauty make Paraty and Ilha Grande in Angra dos Reis a unique destination. This is the premise supporting the nomination of Brazil's first mixed site for World Heritage status. Experts from the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), advisory bodies to UNESCO, visited Brazil from September 10 to 16 to evaluate the site for global recognition. 

This article was originally published on September 20, 2019.

At first glance, the outlook—both global and national—is not very encouraging; indeed, it seems as though the world is spinning out of control¹… simply turning on the news or checking social media brings us face-to-face daily with complex issues such as corruption, war, and violence. The truth is that the evidence is clear: among global afflictions, the consequences of natural disasters top the list. In this context, how society behaves as a whole in response to emergencies is well worth analyzing²…  this raises the question: how does the collective human consciousness respond when its survival is put to the test? Is it possible to find qualities like solidarity in this day and age? Let us examine two perspectives on this issue from globally renowned authors.

In the 57th meeting of the open course Arquitetura Paulistana, taught by architect Marco Artigas, students visited the Teatro Brasileiro de Comédia, designed by the firm Urdi Arquitetura. Begun in 2013, the project covers over 3,000 square meters of built area and involved collaboration with lighting, audiovisual, acoustic, and structural engineering professionals.

On Friday, August 10, the community of Licantén, Chile, gave its final approval to a new project by Chilean architect Sebastián Irarrázaval. The Licantén Theater, built primarily of laminated timber, will span 2,500 square meters and require an estimated investment of approximately 3 billion Chilean pesos (USD 4.47 million).

The Licantén Theater is developed under the Cultural Donations Act, resulting from a public-private partnership involving the Fundación la Fuente —the organization behind the Arauco Cultural Center and the Constitución Public Library—, the forestry company Arauco, and the Municipality of Licantén. Following community approval, the next step is "to apply for regional funds to finance its construction," Irarrázaval explained in an interview with ArchDaily.

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Estudio Lamela has unveiled the design for the Torre del Río project in Málaga, Spain. The residential complex comprises three 21-story towers featuring apartments where the living rooms and master bedrooms enjoy direct views of the Mediterranean Sea.

“The project pays meticulous attention to the layout of public open spaces surrounding the towers, connecting them to the buildings' communal areas through different volumes,” the firm explains.

When developing an architectural project, regardless of scale or program, architects face a series of decisions regarding the construction method to adopt, considering various aspects—structural, economic, available labor, aesthetics, among others—in pursuit of the best solution.

To address the many questions that arise during design development regarding the choice of structural systems, we have prepared a practical guide to the main types of cast-in-place and precast concrete slabs that designers should know, highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each.

Learn more below:

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The news spread quickly that Wednesday afternoon. Chilean architect Eduardo Castillo, a partner of Smiljan Radic, was in critical condition following a car accident earlier that day in Santiago. The local architectural community barely had time to react before his unexpected passing at the age of 45 was confirmed the following morning, Thursday, October 5, 2017.

During the recent XIX Architecture Biennial of Chile, we spoke with Spanish architect José Luis Vallejo, co-founder of Ecosistema Urbano. The Columbia GSAPP academic reflected on addressing the problems of the contemporary city through new horizontal citizen participation tools that can offer solutions tailored to the dynamic, constantly changing reality of our urban environments.

Vallejo is critical of the education and current role of architecture schools in addressing the real-world problems of cities and society. "Our academic training was highly disciplinary; interestingly, 20 years later, in a society that has changed radically, it remains exactly the same environment in which architects are still being educated," he comments.

Over his thirty-nine-year career, Chilean architect and landscape architect Juan Grimm has distinguished himself by creating over 1,000 hectares of gardens and parks across Argentina, Peru, Uruguay, and Chile.

In partnership with publisher Hatje Cantz, Ediciones Puro Chile has compiled his South American works in the monograph "Juan Grimm." This art book offers insight into the development of his creations through interviews, essays, and an extensive inventory of his works, design processes, projects, and sources of inspiration.

Part of the Eixão Sul, in downtown Brasília, collapsed this morning. Two of the three northbound lanes gave way and plummeted near the Galeria dos Estados, about one kilometer from the Plano Piloto bus station.

According to a report by the news outlet G1, the collapse buried two cars reportedly parked under the overpass, as well as tables from a restaurant. While the Civil Defense reported no casualties so far, there is still a risk that other parts of the concrete slab could collapse.

Cities are shapeless, changing realities that expand unpredictably, driven by socio-urban and socio-economic trends. But can we anticipate these growth trends? Here is a tool that allows users to analyze road networks and calculate the percentage of streets oriented in any given direction relative to the north. 

“Close your eyes and walk through the School of Architecture. Explore it, listen to the sounds, feel the textures, and try to mentally reconstruct the space.” I walked several yards blindfolded, and I still remember how my hearing sharpened, picking up the murmur of the people around me.

Although I knew the building's layout like my own home, I must confess those were perhaps the longest and most unsettling steps I have ever taken.

The Embraer Institute, in partnership with GRU Airport – São Paulo International Airport, unveiled the art installation “The First Breath” (“O primeiro sopro”) earlier this month. The piece celebrates both the 50th anniversary of the twin-engine Bandeirante aircraft's maiden flight and the creation of Embraer itself, which will mark five decades of existence in 2019.

Designed by Carmela Rocha and Marko Brajovic, who are responsible for the exhibition design of major showcases in Brazil and abroad, the piece will be on display until February in the Terminal 3 check-in area. Approximately 100,000 people pass through the space daily.

Arquitetura Soteropolitana is an open course of on-site architectural experiences led by the projects' designers, exploring the architectural production of the last 20 years in Salvador, Bahia. Organized by architectural photographer Manuel Sá, the course invites architects from the Bahian capital to discuss some of the city's most iconic and significant works built over the past two decades.

In its third edition in Chile, Casa FOA invites architects and designers from the world of decoration and interior design to create innovative spaces for the home. On this occasion, we have compiled spaces with a common focus: the kitchen and the bar. Although both spaces are conceived for functional, everyday use, in these examples they combine different functions to bring people together.

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