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In the last few weeks, a number of reactionary architectural commentators have come out of the woodwork to denounce what they see as the currently negative direction of contemporary architecture. They claim that architecture needs to be “rebuilt” or that it is “imploding.” From their indications, architecture is on life-support, taking its last breath. The critique they offer is that contemporary architecture has become (or always was?) insensitive to users, to site conditions, to history—hardly a novel view. Every few years, this kind of frontal assault on the value of contemporary architecture is launched, but the criticisms this time seem especially shallow and misplaced. Surveying the contemporary global architecture scene, I actually feel that we’re in a surprisingly healthy place, if you look beyond the obvious showpieces. We’ve escaped from the overt dogmas of the past, we’ve renewed our focus on issues of the environment and social agency, we’re more concerned than ever with tectonics and how to build with quality. But the perennial critics of contemporary architecture appear not to have examined that deeply, nor that thoughtfully either. And unfortunately the various rebuttals to their critiques, ostensibly in support of modern and experimental architecture, have been ham-handed and poorly argued.

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Because, for all the inspirational works across the world, we would be lost without the photographers dedicated to sharing this inspiration with us. Here we present to you the 50 most influential architectural photographs of the year.

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Architect Magazine has unveiled the 2018 edition of the “Architect 50,” their list of the 50 best architecture firms in the United States. This year saw more entrants than ever before, with 160 completed submissions calculated along three categories: business, sustainability, and design.

Topping the list this year was WRNS Studio, followed by Brooks + Scarpa, and William Rawn Associates. Below, we have republished the full list, along with links to their ArchDaily archive of work. Visit the official website here for more information on the methodology, details, and 2019 submission notes.