Tag: interventions | ArchDaily

Dreaming in the Ruins: How a Sleeping Ritual in Logroño Proposes a New Civic Architecture

Olivia Poston — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 07:30:00 +0000

Cities are increasingly designed to mitigate risk, and by doing so, need to collect data on climate, infrastructure, biodiversity, and social fragmentation so that the language of resilience becomes a fixture of planning. Yet the underlying conditions that produce polarization, civic disengagement, and ecological breakdown often remain unquestioned. The tools that dominate urban practice tend to address only one register of human experience, while the emotional and imaginative dimensions of transformation are not treated as reliable solutions.

Leisure Architecture: 13 Projects Shaping Togetherness Across Generations

Daniela Andino — Mon, 19 Jan 2026 05:00:00 +0000

Leisure spaces are often where different generations cross paths. Without formal programs or assigned roles, they allow people to move, pause, and remain together, each engaging space in their own way. In a built environment increasingly shaped by specialization and separation, these shared spatial grounds have become less common, giving leisure-oriented architecture a renewed relevance.

A Material That Records Time: 10 Contemporary Projects Featuring Corten Steel

Camilla Ghisleni — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 07:30:00 +0000

To recover, revitalize, convert—these actions have become increasingly present in contemporary cities, where architecture takes on the role of stitching together the overlapping layers of time that make up the urban fabric. Faced with this task, architects have explored a range of design strategies. Among them, one material in particular has stood out for how frequently—and effectively—it appears in interventions on historic buildings and contexts: corten steel. With its rusted surface, rich in texture and tone, it seems to offer a compelling answer to the challenging question of how to insert the new into the old. But what makes this material so recurrent in these situations? Is it simply its durability and versatility, or is there something deeper in its visual and symbolic presence?

Urban Revitalization Through Motion: 9 Public Swings That Invite Play

Camilla Ghisleni — Wed, 11 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +0000

In the productivity-driven dynamics of contemporary cities, playful interventions in public spaces offer an innovative way to reclaim urban environments. These interventions encourage new ways of thinking and acting, temporarily breaking the monotony of everyday life and redefining the concept of play. Once confined to childhood and separate from daily activities, play has begun to intertwine with routine paths, becoming an integral part of urban life even outside traditional leisure times. In this way, reintroducing the swing—the most iconic children's toy—becomes particularly significant. As a symbol of childhood, pleasure, and joy, the swing contrasts sharply with the rigid appropriations of most public spaces, inviting a more relaxed and playful engagement with the urban environment. On June 11th, the UN International Day of Play reminds us of the benefits of incorporating diverse activities into urban spaces, for both children and adults, fostering community, creativity, and well-being.

Patterns and Motifs Made With Ceramic Blocks

Helena Tourinho — Fri, 19 Jan 2024 05:00:00 +0000

A considerable part of architectural innovation involves the use of materials. Technical development and new formal languages utilize them to "announce" the "next" architectural era. Of course, materials are essential for construction and significant for the consolidation of languages. Glass, steel, concrete, or brick convey messages about buildings. However, like any language, the meaning of words can vary according to the prevailing social organization; there is a dispute over the meaning of certain expressions, or there is pressure for the abolition—or at least the dissociation—of certain senses associated with some words. It would not be any different in architecture.

Integrating Heritage and Innovation: 7 Architectural Installations at Dubai Design Week 2023

Maria-Cristina Florian — Mon, 13 Nov 2023 05:30:00 +0000

Happening between November 7 and 12, Dubai Design Week 2023 brought together over 500 designers, architects, and creative practitioners to explore the relationship between traditional practices and emerging technologies in an effort to create more environmental sustainability and design-led social impact solutions. As one of the most important cultural events in the Middle East, the festival brings forward a wide offering of installations, artworks, and immersive experiences, all exploring important topics of eco-friendly design.

Practical Principles for Places Recovering From Disinvestment

Steve Mouzon — Fri, 12 Aug 2022 03:30:00 +0000

This article was originally published on Common Edge.

Less Waste or More Value: 8 Architecturally Relevant Interventions at the 2021 Dutch Design Week

Christele Harrouk — Wed, 20 Oct 2021 07:30:00 +0000

Under the theme of 'The Greater Number', the Dutch Design Week (DDW) returns with a physical edition from the 16 until the 24th of October 2021 in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. The largest design event in Northern Europe has decided for its comeback to tackle the notion of less consumption, less production, and less waste. Knowing that this is not always possible, the design happening also calls for more sustainable products with more value.

Adaptive Reuse: 4 Projects Giving New Life to Architectural Heritage

Susanna Moreira — Tue, 14 Jan 2020 04:00:00 +0000

The passage of time will alter, erode, and in most cases, degrade any architectural structure. Whether this be the result of climate, adaptation, misuse, or even war, all buildings are subject to the same life cycles of steady, or extreme, decline. In recent decades, “adaptive reuse” has gained significant traction as a means of breathing new life into an old structure, offering an often complex challenge for designers, architects, and indeed everyday users, who walk a fine line between a respectful restoration of history, and significant adaption for modern needs.

Restauradores Building / Saraiva + Associados

Pilar Caballero — Sat, 04 Jan 2020 09:00:00 +0000

The refurbishment of the building in Restauradores Square, built at the end of the 19^th century, sought to respect the structural features of this period. The building has 22 independent apartments and is mixed use, combining housing on the upper levels (1st to 6th floor) and services on the lower ground floor and in the basement. Prior to the refurbishment, the apartments, although licensed for residential use, were mainly used for office space and services, similar to what is still the case nowadays for the majority of the older buildings in the downtown of the city, where this one is located.

House in Arada / Nelson Resende

Pilar Caballero — Sat, 17 Aug 2019 13:00:00 +0000

The project is located in the street of the New Road, in Arada, a street with adjacent constructions relatively consolidated, in a central link between the chapel of Nossa Sra. Do Desterro and Parish Church of Arada.

10 Interventions on Historic Buildings

Begoña Uribe — Sun, 16 Jul 2017 12:00:00 +0000

The concept of heritage is often associated with something that has had value in its past and, for that reason, deserves to be preserved. In the case of architecture, we want our built environment to tell our history and to remain untouched in time, often without considering the real use and meaning of the building in the present. We ask ourselves: Does a building still have value if its use is obsolete?

Despite the fascination that we have with ruins, sometimes conversion or rehabilitation is a better, more contemporary alternative to conservation. By doing so, it is possible to introduce new innovative materials, which, rather than take away from the original structure, can actually add even more value to architectural works. It is also possible to convert spaces that were originally designed to accommodate certain functions into spaces that admit new uses relevant to the present.

To conserve a building without updating it or rethinking its functions can lead to wear and tear, freezing it in time and preventing it from adapting to an ever-changing society.

To illustrate this theme, we searched our archives and selected someof the best architectural interventions in historic buildings. Check them out below.