The Arabian Peninsula represents one of the world's leading exporters and users of fossil fuels, an economic reality that influences the area's visions for the future and, implicitly, architecture and urban planning's role in these scenarios. A number of emerging offices are however countering these narratives, turning to contextual research to reframe the area's production of architecture. Among these, cultural practice Civil Architecture has become recognized for its provocative works that explore alternative narratives for the identity of the Middle East. While in Bahrain, ArchDaily's Christele Harrouk had the chance to sit down with Ali Karimi, who, together with Hamed Bukhamseen, co-founded Civil Architecture. In the video interview, they discuss the practice of architecture in the Gulf region and the narrative and research-focused approach of the office.
Architecture: The Latest Architecture and News
The World's 25 Tallest Buildings Currently Under Construction
As the global population continues to rise, dense cities face mounting challenges in catering to the needs of billions of people living and working in urban areas. Architects have long explored the skyscraper typology as a solution to these challenges, integrating commercial spaces and public amenities within residential buildings to create all-inclusive experiences for tenants. Over the years, skyscrapers have evolved into multifaceted vertical communities that aim to address the complexities of urban living.
Every year, the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) ranks the tallest buildings worldwide, encompassing completed projects, those under construction, and proposed developments. In this updated 2024 article, ArchDaily presents a list of the 25 tallest buildings currently under construction, along with their expected completion dates. These skyscrapers showcase the latest innovations in architecture, engineering, and urban planning.
From Concrete to Green Canopies: Revitalizing Cities Through Natural Design
The journey toward renaturalizing urban spaces is an ongoing effort that began as early as the 1970s and continues to shape cities worldwide today. From transforming highways into vibrant parks to restoring waterways and integrating nature into urban planning, these projects reflect a shared commitment to sustainability, livability, and resilience. In Portland, the 1978 creation of Tom McCall Waterfront Park set a pioneering example by replacing a highway with green spaces. Decades later, Boston followed with the Rose Kennedy Greenway, reclaiming land from the elevated Central Artery.
Discover the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures through the Lens of Paul Clemence
This Oscars Season, photographer Paul Clemence turned his lens to the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, the most famous institution dedicated to the art and science of movies. Designed and revitalized by Gensler and Renzo Piano Building Workshop, the building is located on the famed 'Miracle Mile' in Los Angeles, opening with expansive views towards Hollywood. This year, the museum opened its rooftop terrace for the Oscars Night at the Museum, a unique event to celebrate the 96th Oscars.
Meanwhile Projects Activating Public Space: Lessons from Pop Brixton and Peckham Levels in London, United Kingdom
A "meanwhile space" refers to the temporary use of an otherwise vacant area—whether it's an empty shop, a disused building, or a site awaiting redevelopment. The concept revolves around making productive use of these spaces during the interim period before a long-term purpose is established. Essentially, it's about what happens in the meantime, turning unused spaces into vibrant, functional places during periods of uncertainty or transition.
Conserving Black Modernism: An Initiative to Preserve African American Architectural Heritage in the United States
The Getty Foundation's Conserving Black Modernism initiative, launched in 2022, represents a pivotal effort to preserve and celebrate the architectural contributions of African American architects in the Modernist movement. This initiative, a partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation's African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, aims to address historical oversight and ensure the legacy of these trailblazing architects is protected for future generations. Over three funding cycles from 2023 to 2025, the program supports conservation planning, professional training, and storytelling to highlight the cultural and architectural significance of these sites.
The Ecological Footprint of Data Centers: The Downpour of a Digital Future
This article is the winning entry of the Epistle Writing Prize 2024, an annual competition dedicated to recognizing outstanding writing on design, architecture, and the environment.
We might be in the age of the digital cloud - however celestial or ethereal it may appear to be - but it is not only incontrovertibly material but also a powerful ecological force. In present times, data centers are mammoth powerhouses of modern information, communication, and technology industries with giant servers that store and process data. While their proliferation is in a sense, a consequence of our consumption patterns, and as the global demand for the digital grows, so does the data center footprint.
Small Bars and Restaurants: 14 Projects Less than 50 m2 in Latin America
When designing spaces with reduced dimensions, adopting an efficient configuration and distribution is crucial for the user experience and the smooth development of activities and tasks to be carried out. In the case of bars and restaurants, numerous architecture and interior design professionals strive daily to meet the needs of clients, employees, and employers, considering everything from necessary installations and technologies to services, atmospheres, and furniture suitable for the type of gastronomy to be consumed.
Maximized Density: How Co-Living Spaces Do More with Less
Rising populations and soaring real estate prices pose significant challenged to urban housing. In a desperate hunt for affordable living options, communal co-living spaces have emerged as a creative solution, offering quality living conditions through clever space optimization strategies. By implementing innovative design techniques, these shared living communities maximize every square foot to create functional spaces within compact footprints.
The Most Liveable Cities in the World in 2024: Discover Top Quality of Life Locations Globally
The pursuit of an ideal city has long been a topic of debate among architects and urban planners. In addition to aesthetic identity and cultural heritage, the quality of life in every city represents perhaps the most important marker in this pursuit. This year, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), a sister company of The Economist, has released its Global Liveability Index 2024, highlighting the cities that excel in this ongoing quest. For the third consecutive year, Vienna ranked as the most liveable city in the world. European cities Copenhagen, Zurich, and Geneva also rank high, attributed to their smaller populations, which contribute to lower crime rates and less congestion. In comparison with the 2023 ranking, the numbers for North American and Australian cities have been dragged down by the ongoing housing crisis.
The assessment ranks 173 cities from around the world. Each city is scored based on 30 qualitative and quantitative factors evaluating 5 categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. The scores are based on external data points, in-house analysts, and in-city contributors. The category of stability has registered the biggest decline, as protests and armed conflicts increased in incidence. At the bottom of the cist, the city of Damascus, Syria, continues to be ranked as the least liveable city in the survey, followed by Tripoli, Libya, reflecting severe instability.
Yoshio Taniguchi, Architect Behind MoMA Redesign, Passes Away at 87
Yoshio Taniguchi, the renowned architect behind the redesign of New York's Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and other celebrated cultural landmarks, has passed away, at the age of 87 due to pneumonia. Known for his minimalist designs that emphasize clarity and simplicity, Taniguchi's work includes the MoMA expansion completed in 2004, the Heisei Chishinkan Wing of the Kyoto National Museum, and the Toyota Municipal Museum of Art. His projects are characterized by a deep respect for space and proportion, allowing the art within to take center stage.
Reimagining Models for Living Together: 4 Projects Showcasing Cooperative Architecture
The International Day of Cooperatives, celebrated on the first Saturday of July each year, is an opportunity to raise awareness and celebrate the cooperative movement. Celebrated on this day by the United Nations since 1992, the cooperative movement is a social and economic movement empowering individuals and communities by creating enterprises that are collectively owned and democratically controlled by members. This year's theme is "Cooperatives: Partners for Accelerated Sustainable Development." Underscoring the critical role cooperatives play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, it also emphasizes the unique typology of cooperatives in exploring new ways of living together. With a belief in community growth, cooperatives believe in communal development, prioritizing people and supporting them to improve collective well-being.
From Design Movements to Materials: Reflecting on Architectural Exhibitions in 2024
Reflecting on 2024, numerous architectural exhibitions have opened worldwide, addressing various themes, exhibition formats, and featured architects. Architectural design and architecture practice influence our daily lives in subtle and often unnoticed ways, where the end-users embrace built environments as they are. This reaction may arise from a combination of factors, such as a sense of powerlessness to enact significant change after a building is constructed or the experience of growing up in environments over which individuals had little or no agency in shaping. For these reasons, architectural exhibitions serve an essential purpose, offering society a chance to pause, reflect, and critically examine the myriad issues that surface during designing and building. These issues are often overlooked or need to be acknowledged, as practitioners may prioritize delivering projects within strict timelines over exploring more profound reflections.
In 2024, museums, galleries, and curators responded to the evolving challenges within the built environment with various approaches. Some exhibitions questioned the ethics of building materials and the practices behind supply chains, drawing attention to the broader implications of material choices. Others focused on documenting architectural movements worldwide, emphasizing their cultural and historical significance and the urgent need to preserve and adapt rather than replace them with entirely new builds. These efforts highlight the role of exhibitions in raising awareness about pressing issues while fostering a more critical dialogue about the architectural discipline.
Estudio Rare: An Architecture of Experimentation Through Art
Selected as one of ArchDaily's Best New Practices 2024, Estudio Rare defines itself as an interdisciplinary experimental space. Based in Córdoba, Argentina, its three founding partners, Agustín Willnecker, Iván Ferrero, and Mateo Unamuno, met while studying at the Faculty of Architecture of the National University of Córdoba. With a young but notable trajectory, the Rare team offers a free and dynamic perspective on design, architecture, and construction. Their works, regardless of scale or commission, demonstrate a close relationship with art, reflecting the diverse interests and personal backgrounds of each team member and their collaborators.
AI and the Built Environment: Bridging Technology, Design, and Cultural Identity
Artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping the architectural landscape, offering tools that enhance creativity, streamline workflows, and redefine design processes. From assisting in urban planning to conceptualizing homes and creating visualizations, AI is unlocking new possibilities for architects, designers, and even non-professionals. Yet, as AI-generated outputs become more prevalent, concerns emerge regarding the possibility of generating generic-looking designs or the disappearance of traditional design skills. These challenges lead us to critically examine how AI complements human creativity and the ethical implications surrounding authorship, originality, and intellectual property rights in this rapidly evolving digital era.
Lehrer Architects Unveils Gower Mausoleum at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles, United States
Architects Lehrer Architects LA and Arquitectura y Diseño have just unveiled the first phase of the Gower Mausoleum at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles, United States. This innovative vertical structure, rising 100 feet, is set to provide eternal resting spaces for over 50,000 individuals, while also serving as a cultural and spiritual landmark in the heart of Hollywood.
Interfaith Spaces: Architectural Responses to Religious Diversity
In an increasingly diverse world, the emergence of multi-faith spaces represents a significant shift in architectural design, reflecting the evolving religious landscape of contemporary society. These spaces, which began to be formally established in the 1950s in public buildings like airports and hospitals, serve as microcosms of social transformation and peaceful coexistence. They allow various traditions to harmoniously share environments, embodying principles of inclusivity, flexibility, and adaptability.
As communities grow more multicultural and increasingly diverse, these spaces serve as physical manifestations of religious inclusion, encouraging the acceptance of religious and ethnic minorities within multicultural landscapes. Their proliferation reflects a growing need for inclusive environments that cater to diverse spiritual needs while promoting interfaith understanding. However, designing and implementing these spaces presents complex challenges, often sparking debates about representation, neutrality, and the very nature of sacred space. These discussions underscore the delicate balance architects must strike in creating spaces that are both universally welcoming and spiritually meaningful.
A Compact Yet Fundamental Survey of the Modern Movement: In Conversation with Kenneth Frampton
If there is one book every architecture student must have on their shelf, it must be an architectural history. There is no more comprehensive yet compact alternative than Kenneth Frampton's Modern Architecture: A Critical History, originally published in 1980 by Thames & Hudson. Its much-expanded latest fifth 734-page, 813-illustration edition came out in 2020. In 2023, I discussed the book at length with the author in a video interview, now available on YouTube.
Regarding one compact yet fundamental survey of the evolution of the Modern movement, Modern Architecture: A Critical History is unquestionably the most authoritative, complete, and in-depth chronicle. The most valuable addition to the new book is the introduction of new chapters focusing on regions such as Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Australia, China, India, and Sri Lanka, among others. These chapters shed light on many before-overlooked practices that operated outside of traditional centers of power, namely Western Europe, the United States, and Japan.
