Architecture often draws on the history of a place, translating local narratives into contemporary forms, materials, and spatial experiences. Located in the spa town of Bad Orb near Frankfurt, ALEA RESORT HIDEAWAY follows this approach, taking inspiration from the site's history of salt extraction.
Designed by PLAJER + FRANZ studio, the 5,200 m² hospitality project references the geometry of salt crystals through its architectural language while using lighting solutions from OLEV to shape the atmosphere of its interior spaces. In this interview, architect Alexander Plajer discusses the project's relationship to its context, the design process, and the role of lighting.
Kiaura Collection™ designed by Aaron DeJule for KI. Image Courtesy of KI Furniture
For decades, professionals have accepted an uncomfortable reality: hours spent at a desk often result in stiff backs, constant shifting, and creeping mental fatigue. While conventional ergonomic seating has sought to improve comfort through adjustable mechanisms, it has largely continued to assume that effective sitting depends on maintaining a stable posture. Growing understanding of the relationship between movement, physical well-being, and cognitive performance suggests a different approach, one in which motion becomes an integral part of the seating experience rather than something to be minimized.
First Prize Winner: Seeds in Forgotten Soil. Image Courtesy of Buildner
Buildner has announced the results of its Re-Form: New Life for Old Spaces, second edition, an international ideas competition examining the adaptive reuse of small-scale existing buildings. The competition invited architects and designers to propose transformations of used, abandoned, or overlooked structures with an approximate footprint of 250 square meters, located anywhere in the world. With no fixed site or program, participants were encouraged to explore alternatives to demolition and new construction through reuse strategies grounded in contemporary social and environmental concerns.
Most of Europe's future housing already exists, yet renovation continues to happen too slowly to address climate, housing, health and resource challenges at the scale required. Re:Living explores how renovation can move from isolated projects to a scalable approach for transforming existing buildings. At the heart of the initiative is a new research project, The Housing We Need for the Future We Want, which examines how better use of the existing building stock can unlock new opportunities for architects, cities and communities.
Set on the banks of the Sava River in Belgrade, Serbia, the site of a former cement factory became the starting point for the 21st edition of the Saint-Gobain Architecture Student Contest. Organized in cooperation with the World Green Building Council, OneClick LCA, the City of Belgrade, the Academic Yachting Club Belgrade, the Serbia Green Building Council, and the Green & Blue Corridors Association, invited students to imagine a new Sports and Recreation Hub capable of transforming an industrial waterfront into a year-round public destination. More than 200 universities from 34 countries participated in this 21stedition of the Architecture Student Contest.
At Salone del Mobile 2026, MARA presented its latest collection within a fair-stand concept designed by Italian architect and designer Ferruccio Laviani. Conceived as a micro-abstraction of an arena, the installation placed visitors at the center of an ascending spatial composition, where the brand's newest products were displayed across stepped tiers.
The setting was inspired by the idea of the Greek theatre as a place of encounter, exchange, and collective observation. The stand proposed a kind of architectural landscape in which visitors could sit, move through the space, observe the objects from different angles, and engage with the brand in a more direct and experiential way.
Interior designers who find themselves facing project parameters, budget constraints, client demands, and the maintenance of a design aesthetic have a lot to juggle. Tight turnaround schedules put pressure on designers when clients request multiple revisions. A mismatch between drawings and renderings undermines the delivery of a cohesive design plan. In today's competitive, digitally driven architectural field, success follows when designers can provide technical details from concept to construction by leveraging advanced technology and strategic tools within a single modeling software.
Under the theme Common Ground, ICFF 2026 brought together the international design community through a shared focus on craftsmanship and innovation. From May 17–19, 2026, ICFF (International Contemporary Furniture Fair) returned to the Javits Center for a landmark edition that celebrated the global design community during NYCxDESIGN.
From lighting and materials to colors, textures, and forms, every design decision shapes how people perceive, experience, and interact with architecture. In contemporary interiors, these choices are no longer understood as merely aesthetic or functional, influencing comfort, behavior, mood, and even the way users evaluate the quality of a space. Bathroom design, in particular, now creates carefully curated environments with a distinct identity, where every element contributes to the overall spatial experience.
How does bathroom design influence users' feelings? What interventions or technical innovations can transform the end-user experience?
Building roofs are advancing through a multidimensional optimization process that encompasses technological innovations, new materials, energy-saving performance, and faster construction methods. From green roofs and rainwater harvesting systems to solar panels, contemporary architects are working to balance aesthetics, performance, durability, and environmental impact in their projects. Roof renovation not only extends the service life of buildings but also reflects an environmental commitment by improving efficiency and sustainability.
The kitchen has evolved from a functional space into a shared environment and the heart of many households. Serving as the setting for daily rituals in countless families—and even collective practices in urban life—food brings people together, making the design of spaces that respond to these needs essential to everyday living. Beyond the various kitchen layouts, aesthetics, and configurations, the integration of appliances and equipment plays a key role supporting storage, preservation, and daily use that cooking demands. From innovative technologies to advanced materials, these elements shape contemporary kitchen spaces that bring together customs and cultures from diverse backgrounds.
Over the past decade, the definition of a performing arts venue has shifted. No longer singular-purpose destinations, today's cultural facilities are expected to operate as flexible, revenue-generating, community-centered ecosystems. This evolution has challenged architects, operators, and owners to rethink not just how venues are designed, but how they function over time.
Buildner has announced the results of its Museum of Emotions Competition Edition 7. The Museum of Emotions is an annual international design competition that tasks participants to explore the extent to which architecture can be used as a tool to evoke emotion.
The brief calls for the design of a conceptual museum with two exhibition halls: one designed to induce negative emotions; the other designed to induce positive emotions. Participants are free to choose any site of their liking, real or imaginary, as well as choose the scale of the project. The meaning of 'positive' and 'negative' is up for interpretation: What two emotions might a designer consider contrasting? How might an architect conceive spaces which elicit fear, anger, anxiety, love or happiness?
What makes a home resilient? Extreme weather events are becoming increasingly frequent around the world. From power outages, hurricanes, and earthquakes to wildfires, floods, and droughts, the world is experiencing a process of transformation and adaptation that requires collaboration among diverse disciplines. The role of architecture in the built environment reflects an opportunity to rethink how homes perform under changing environmental conditions—not only by anticipating the unexpected. Designing for resilience means thinking holistically, considering material choices, energy systems, landscaping, and construction details that anticipate disruption and help homes recover quickly. It involves creating architecture that evolves with the environment, is worth preserving, and endures for years and generations.
Architectural schools usually leave lasting marks on their students, shaping their style and critical inquiry long after formal education has ended. For example, SCI-Arc, founded in 1972 and based in downtown Los Angeles, is an institution recognized for its culture of experimentation, critical investigation, and creative independence, building a reputation based on the idea that architecture should be understood as a field open to dialogue with art, technology, design, and contemporary culture. The diversity of trajectories of its alumni demonstrates how this environment can generate distinct professional approaches, but united by the same willingness to explore new possibilities.
As the technical requirements of building envelopes have evolved, fire performance has become a key criterion in the design of ventilated facades. Given this situation, analyses no longer focus solely on the individual reaction of materials, but also on the joint response of the entire building envelope under possible scenarios of external fire propagation.
In an industry defined by engineering tolerances and performance certainty, interior finishing still relies on a process that introduces variability into every project. Even experienced applicators often depend on judgement-based mixing—estimating water ratios and adjusting by feel until the material appears workable. While skill reduces variability, it does not eliminate it. The result is inherent inconsistency that transfers directly onto the finished surface.
Buildner has announced the results of its competition, the Concrete Pavilion. Part of Buildner's Material Studies series, the competition invited architects and designers to explore the architectural potential of concrete through the design of an experimental pavilion. Participants were challenged to reconsider the material beyond its conventional use, investigating its spatial, structural, and sensory possibilities.
