No physical barrier separates Veracruz and Boca del Río; yet, despite being adjacent municipalities, they remain deeply distinct. On one hand lies the historic city of Veracruz, the gateway to the Americas for the Old World; on the other lies Boca del Río, a young city with greater economic influence. The Port of Veracruz serves as a tangible landmark that weaves this contrasting urban tapestry together, extending from north to south with sweeping views of the Gulf of Mexico to connect these two urban centers.
Earthen construction remains highly relevant today, spanning the preservation of architectural heritage, new projects seeking sustainable horizons, and numerous training programs offered by institutes and universities. Yet we cannot overlook one of the major driving forces behind this building material: self-construction. Thanks to its technical advantages and accessibility, communities worldwide have chosen to build their settlements with earth. Consequently, construction becomes a collective exercise where every individual can contribute to shaping a shared future.
In this article, we look at how the NGO Terrachidia works with the community of Mhamid in Morocco to rehabilitate public spaces chosen by local residents. Supported by volunteers, they rescue regional building traditions, successfully preserving and highlighting the local knowledge embedded in places where the pursuit of modernity has led to abandonment, but which remain deeply valued by those who inhabit them.
Campo Baeza asserted that “Light is the most beautiful, richest, and most luxurious material used by architects. The only problem is that it is given to us for free, is within everyone's reach, and is not valued enough” [1]. Today, many architects agree on the importance of lighting when creating architectural spaces, reflecting on its quality, quantity, nuance, and directionality. Despite this, when determining the characteristics of their building enclosures, many choose to work with materials that ensure a high degree of privacy, either by incorporating opaque elements or envelopes that screen views and diffuse contact with public outdoor spaces.
In certain cases where solar conditions permit, modern technological developments allow for the incorporation of translucent enclosure systems that ensure the entry of abundant, controlled natural light throughout the day without sacrificing privacy. These self-supporting treated glass panel systems offer the possibility of generating completely glazed, continuous, homogeneous, unobstructed, and translucent surfaces while simultaneously screening views into the spaces. Below, we present 6 projects located in Argentina that exemplify different ways of working with these systems.
Over the next five years, Bogota will inaugurate a series of public and private projects across the city, from skyscrapers to Felicidad Centers, highlighting those resulting from public architectural design competitions, legally managed by the Colombian Society of Architects. Below, explore the main projects set to open:
Exhibited in a parallel exhibition at the 2018 Venice Biennale, the Tropi-Co-Re Housing project by SUMA Arquitectos reflects on the intersection of urban and architectural design within the low-income residential context of an equatorial/tropical climate, investigating alternative material systems for its construction, such as bamboo truss structures and folded metal plate roofs.
Read on to explore the project in detail, in the words of its designers.
On August 27, 2019, the awards ceremony and academic symposium of the first Bogota Public Space Biennale (BEPBOG) took place. The event was the first of its kind in Latin America and the third worldwide, highlighting the value of public space in the Colombian capital and the importance of recognizing best practices regarding the spaces to which everyone is entitled.
Great architecture continues to decentralize. After presenting the results of the Satipo competition in the Central Jungle a few weeks ago, we are pleased to continue our journey across Peru, this time highlighting a competition in the Central Highlands. Interestingly, both reflect the geographical diversity within the same region of Junín. Huancayo, capital of the department of Junín, is the most important city in the central highlands of Peru, located south of the Mantaro Valley. Recognized for its landscapes, history, and crafts, it is, above all, a major commercial hub. In recent years, it has also been officially recognized as Peru's sixth metropolitan area (the sixth most populous city in the country), a growth reflected in its constantly modernizing urban landscape.
Within the framework of the Interinstitutional Cooperation Agreement signed with the Asociación de Artesanos Sumaq Wuasi, the Colegio de Arquitectos del Perú – Regional Junín (CAP Junín) organized the National Competition for Preliminary Architectural Designs of the Sumaq Wuasi Commercial Building in Huancayo. Currently, the site is occupied by a precarious one-story structure covering the entire lot, which is used for commercial purposes. The goal is to modernize the services, uses, and urban context of the current commercial space through spatial renovation and the design of a new infrastructure that meets the current needs of both users and vendors. This will be developed into a technical dossier for construction during the 2017–2020 administration.
On November 23, Mexican artist Pedro Reyes presented projects from his architectural and design practice for the first time. The exhibition features chairs, tables, bedroom furniture, tiles, and small-scale architectural models that showcase a distinct architectural language that has evolved in recent years.
It is already happening: the Internet of Things allows many devices to be digitally integrated into automated systems to be managed directly from our smartphones. If a user speaks to their phone and says, for example, the word "cleaning," home automation could raise the blinds, turn on the lights, and activate a robot vacuum. Amazon, with Alexa, and Google, with Google Home, are some of the virtual assistants that enable this integration; users simply download the application, link the devices, and give the command to their phone, which then activates the functions required to complete a specific task or create a scene.
Offering warmth and a modern yet artisanal aesthetic, wood is always an excellent choice when selecting wall coverings for interior spaces or manufacturing furniture. However, how do you choose the right cladding for a specific project?
We have compiled a selection of coverings with different aesthetics, formats, and installation systems, identifying their characteristics and differences to help you choose the right material. Slats or panels? Melamine, Trupán, or Radiata Pine? A natural look or colored pigments? Compare eight different options below.
Current status of the Barón Pier. Image via Pxhere. Licensed under CC0 Public Domain
In January, more than 10,000 citizens in Chile voted to select the first, second, and third places of the Paseo del Mar ideas competition in Valparaíso, a new public space at the Barón Pier that will transform the coastal city's waterfront. "This area was the engine of the country's railway industry during a significant part of the 19th and 20th centuries. Today, however, these grounds lack the vitality of yesteryear and have been abandoned over time," the competition guidelines state.
Ahead of the Bicentennial of Peru's Independence, the Ministry of Culture, the Municipality of Lima, and Grupo Centenario launched an international architecture and landscaping competition for the design of a metropolitan park surrounding the Pachacamac Sanctuary in Lima. The call sought ideas to create a new public space featuring cultural programming and public services, aimed at protecting the sanctuary and connecting it more closely to surrounding communities. The brief proposed a circuit connecting the area's most important cultural projects: the National Museum, the Pachacamac Sanctuary Site Museum, and the Urpi Wachaq wetland restoration initiative. Discover all the winning projects below.
1° Premio - Sala legado. Image Cortesía de Arq. Walter Casola
On August 28, the results of the International Ideas Competition for the design and renovation of the existing Mini-Stadium and International Pavilion at Tecnópolis were announced. Organized by the Central Society of Architects(SCA) and the Association of Architects of the Province of Buenos Aires (CAPBA), and sponsored by the Argentine Federation of Architect Entities (FADEA), this second of six international competitions launched in recent months for Expo 2023 addressed the intervention of the two buildings and their connecting foyer.
As part of the activities for Design Week, which took place from February 4 to 10 in Stockholm, architects Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu were the guests of honor at this edition of Scandinavia's most important design fair. Neri&Hu Design and Research Office created an exhibition addressing and highlighting social issues unique to China. The Unfolding Village is the name of the installation representing the traditional Chinese village, which is disappearing at an alarming rate. The installation utilizes six kilometers of sawn pine timber and 150 square meters of laminated pine boards. The timber, stained black, is sourced from Swedish forests.
Through a sculptural intervention, nationally award-winning artist Romina Castiñeira reinvents the sculpture courtyard of the Caraffa Museum in Córdoba, Argentina, offering a new sensory experience that addresses the spatial condition of inside and outside.
Contemporary educational architecture has moved away from replicating closed buildings that resemble prisons or hospitals more than environments designed to foster the academic development of younger generations. Whether a university, high school, elementary school, or preschool, educational infrastructure must encourage free and creative thinking, moving past the obsolete notion that students should be trained like soldiers who cannot question authority. This is where the architecture of these spaces plays a leading role, serving as the setting where students spend a significant portion of their lives.
In the heart of the southern Ecuadorian Andes, near the city of Cuenca—a UNESCO World Cultural Capital—PPAG Architects is building the Stiehle German School, having won the invited competition.
The Universidad de Monterrey in Mexico inaugurated its new gateway to the campus: the Estoa building, presenting a new face to the landscape on the western side of the city. The Estoa building is part of UDEM's Infrastructure Master Plan, which aims to create a pedestrian-friendly campus and a green lung for the western part of the city. Located on the west side of the campus, the building features approximately 90,000 square meters of construction, housing student and community spaces, UDEM's public-facing offices, and continuing education facilities.
Tezontle Ludens is the name of the winning project of the Arquine Competition No. 21 | Mextrópoli Pavilion 2019, which opened on Friday, March 8, in Mexico City's Alameda Central alongside a series of pavilions designed to activate public space. The pavilion, built by Factor Eficiencia and designed by Suma Estudio (Roberto Aguilar, Diego García, Fernando Franco, Diego Aguilar, and Jalil Miguel), was described by the jury as "a simple, well-narrated playful experience, materialized in a lightweight space and a commitment to subtlety. The project communicates with that same clarity, without discursive excess or unnecessary justification."
A few days ago, we asked our Instagram followers, "What does public space mean to you?" These reflections are intrinsic to architectural discourse and come into play across various project types, particularly those involving the planning of shared spaces in cities.
Keeping up with the software used in architecture is not only a massive task but a necessary one to showcase the diverse skill set of anyone involved in design and construction. With today's wide range of available programs, which of these could be the "best"?
Fortunately, TechRadar, the tech-focused online publication, gives us a clue with its announcement of the best architecture software of 2019. While this list may rank the software from "best to worst," it is important to remember that each program is designed to serve a different purpose, not necessarily to perform better than the others.
https://www.archdaily.com/1120128/the-best-architecture-software-of-2019ArchDaily Team
During the first half of this year, the XXI Chile Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism invited students, architects, firms, institutions, publishers, and collectives to participate in one of the most important architectural events in Chile and Latin America, which this year will focus on proposals geared toward the "everyday" public.
The core of Castilian modern architecture, and indeed of the 20th century, emerged from the work of Rafael Aburto [1913-2014] and his contemporaries—this forgotten generation. An interwar generation whose trenches were fought not only on the battlefield, but also within architecture. This cohort of architects had to confront both the ravages of the Spanish Civil War and a sterile traditionalism, surrounded by professionals who had read, known, and seen almost nothing. Tradition—specifically, Spanish tradition—was what sustained everything. Unsurprisingly, the Civil War itself dealt a generational setback to the profession, impacting not only Aburto's peers but also those to come.
The generational divide was defined solely by the experience of having fought in the war. Oíza was eighteen when it broke out; Sota, Cabrero, Coderch, and Aburto were called to battle, mostly fighting on the Nationalist side. Once the war ended, Spain was unrecognizable compared to its pre-war self, and architectural thought was no exception. Returning to the profession in the 1940s, architects faced an outdated, practically useless tradition, alongside a precarious modernism devoid of depth or knowledge. This is why figures like Aburto broke through—these postwar architects who took on the role of pioneers, or at least demonstrated their determination to break free from academic constraints and embrace their own modernism.
Founded in 2013 and based in Mexico City, David Pompa is a studio made up of designers, engineers, and makers established in Mexico and Austria. David Pompa grew up in both countries and studied product design in London. Over time, the studio has shown a strong interest in traditional materials and techniques. Since its founding, it has remained committed to Mexican culture, which is reflected in the creation of aesthetic and accessible design objects.
In November of this year, the latest edition of the Minsk International Biennale of Young Architects was held in Belarus. The event featured the Leonardo Awards, which recognize completed projects from around the world across six categories: urban planning, public buildings, multi-family housing, single-family homes, landscaping, and interior design.
