Songyang Culture Neighborhood by Liu Jiakun, the 2025 Pritzker Architecture Prize laureate. Image Courtesy of Arch-Exist
This week's news brings together developments in professional recognition, cultural programming, and large-scale urban strategy, reflecting the multiple scales at which architecture shapes contemporary discourse. As the field anticipates the next Pritzker Architecture Prize announcement, conversations around authorship, civic responsibility, and long-term impact unfold alongside the American Institute of Architects' 2026 Honorary Fellowship appointments, situating individual achievement within broader institutional frameworks. At the same time, updates from Riyadh to London foreground the role of architecture in both enabling new cultural platforms and safeguarding post-war heritage. Complementing these narratives, the reassignment of the 2029 Asian Winter Games and progress on expansive public landscapes highlight how cities are aligning infrastructure delivery, environmental resilience, and territorial planning with long-term economic and social agendas.
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King Salman Park, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Image Courtesy of King Salman Park Foundation & Omrania
Construction continues on King Salman Park in Riyadh, a 16.9-square-kilometre public landscape taking shape on the grounds of the city's former airport. Led by Omrania as lead design consultant, in collaboration with Henning Larsen for master planning and urban design, the project reimagines the centrally located site as a large-scale green and cultural district. Conceived as a new civic core for the capital, the park combines ecological restoration, public programming, and mixed-use development. Initial phases are expected to open in late 2026, with substantial completion targeted for 2027, following a phased construction schedule currently underway.
The third edition of the DiriyahContemporary ArtBiennale opened on January 30, 2026, and will remain on view through May 2, 2026, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Organized by the Diriyah Biennale Foundation, the Biennale takes place at JAX District, a former industrial area in Diriyah near the UNESCO World Heritage Site of At-Turaif. Titled "في الحِلّ والترحال" / In Interludes and Transitions, the exhibition is led by Co-Artistic Directors Nora Razian and Sabih Ahmed, while Milan-based architect Sammy Zarka contributed as the Associate Architect and Exhibition Designer. The exhibition scenography is designed by Formafantasma, and the event brings together more than 65 artists from over 37 countries, including more than 25 newly commissioned works.
Once a Najdi settlement defined by mudbrick walls and courtyard houses, Riyadh has undergone one of the most radical urban transformations of the 20th and 21st centuries. The discovery of oil reserves, the consolidation of political power, and the rapid expansion of infrastructure reshaped the city from a regional capital into a sprawling metropolis almost within a single generation. As a result, Riyadh's urban fabric is marked by discontinuities, fragments of vernacular architecture coexist with mid-century institutional modernism, and a rapidly evolving contemporary skyline.
In recent decades, this layered condition has been further intensified by large-scale development strategies and cultural investment programs that position architecture as a tool for redefining national identity. International practices have played a decisive role in shaping key institutions, infrastructures, and landmarks, while local studios increasingly contribute projects that reinterpret climate, materiality, and social space within a contemporary framework.
This week's review focuses on concrete responses to shared urban challenges, including housing affordability, long-term resilience, and the role of cultural and material innovation in shaping cities. The selection spans regulatory measures affecting housing markets in European cities, high-density residential and mixed-income proposals in New York, and major renewal and planning efforts in London, Barcelona, Ulaanbaatar, and Drammen. It also highlights research-driven and built projects in Chicago, Buenos Aires, Las Vegas, and Riyadh that explore circular construction, adaptive reuse, and new models for cultural and public infrastructure. Together, these worldwide projects offer a snapshot of how architecture and urban planning are addressing immediate pressures while laying the groundwork for more resilient and inclusive urban futures across diverse geographic and cultural contexts.
OODA announces the House of Nassr, a new integrated sports complex designed for Al Nassr FC in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Planned as a comprehensive facility supporting both athletic performance and club operations, the project brings together a high-performance training centre, administrative and media spaces, athlete support facilities, and social areas, with a hotel scheduled for a second phase of development. The complex occupies an area of approximately 4,000 square meters. While the overall project remains ongoing, the first phase has been completed in 2025, marking OODA's first realized project in Saudi Arabia.
Liminal Air Space-Time by Shinji Ohmaki, Noor Riyadh 2025. Image Courtesy of Noor Riyadh
Noor Riyadh 2025 brought large-scale light installations to public sites across the Saudi Arabian capital, temporarily transforming transit hubs, historic districts, and significant landmarks into illuminated urban environments. From November 20 to December 6, 2025, Riyadh became a citywide gallery of light, motion, and shifting perception. The festival's fifth edition featured 60 artworks by 59 artists from 24 countries, including more than 35 new commissions, responding to the theme "In the Blink of an Eye." Through light as both medium and concept, the installations reinterpreted the capital's rapidly evolving architectural landscape and reflected how perception shifts in spaces shaped by heritage and ambitious urban development.
In contemporary architecture, hotel design is no longer defined solely by luxury and accommodation. Instead, it is becoming a platform to explore questions of identity, ecology, and cultural meaning. Beyond providing rooms and amenities, hotels today aim to create immersive experiences that connect travelers to local traditions, landscapes, and communities. In this curated selection of unbuilt hospitality projects, submitted by the ArchDaily community, speculative and competition-winning proposals offer a glimpse into the future of hospitality, where sustainability and storytelling are as central as comfort and style.
The Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) General Assembly in Paris has officially approved the Registration Dossier for Expo 2030 Riyadh, formally confirming Saudi Arabiaas the host of the upcoming World Expo. With this milestone, the next phase of preparations will begin, including the official invitation of participating countries through diplomatic channels. Coinciding with the approval, the initial masterplan for the Expo site designed by LAVA, the Laboratory for Visionary Architecture, has been unveiled. Scheduled to take place from October 1, 2030, to March 31, 2031, the event will be held on a site in Riyadh, designed to accommodate more than 40 million visits and host over 195 participating nations.
Barcelona-based architecture studio Bofill Taller de Arquitectura was commissioned to design the Royal Arts Complex (RAC) by the Royal Commission for Riyadh City in 2019. Currently under construction, the 320,000-square-meter building complex comprises thirteen structures, each contributing to the promotion of artistic expression. The project is located within King Salman Park, a 13.3-square-kilometer park being developed on the site of Riyadh's former airport. The broader development includes mixed-use projects to transform the area into a major recreational district. The overall masterplan also features a stadium by Populous, planned for the FIFA 2034 World Cup.
For centuries, the heart of the Arabian Peninsula was a land of vast deserts and settlements shaped by their environment. This relationship with the landscape, materiality, and knowledge of the place has not only endured but now translates into a landscape gaining recognition on the global creative scene. From projects that emerge with a profound sensitivity to context to global exhibitionsand awards that drive its evolution, the region is consolidating its architectural language—rooted in its history while oriented toward new explorations. Far from halting, this momentum continues to chart the path for its development, establishing the region as a platform in contemporary architectural discourse.
https://www.archdaily.com/1028115/insights-from-saudi-arabias-architecture-and-design-commission-and-the-designathon-initiativeEnrique Tovar
A previous exploration of cultural landmarks in the Middle East designed by international architects highlighted recurring themes such as architecture as an extension of the landscape, climate-responsive design, and abstraction of traditional forms. These projects often introduced high-tech environmental solutions, used monumental forms to reinterpret local identity, or positioned themselves as landmarks within the broader urban or desert landscape. While these approaches have defined many of the region's most recognizable cultural institutions, they represent just one side of the architectural discourse. An equally significant yet distinct trajectory emerges from local architects, who work within existing structures, historical contexts, and lived environments to create institutions that feel deeply embedded in their surroundings. This approach prioritizes continuity, transformation, and accessibility, ensuring that architecture remains an evolving part of the cultural fabric rather than a self-contained object.
In recent years, the Gulf region has emerged as a global center for cultural and architectural development, commissioning internationally acclaimed architects to design its most high-profile museums and institutions. These projects, ranging from Louvre Abu Dhabi by Jean Nouvel to Museum of Islamic Art in Doha by I. M. Pei, are often designed by foreign architects, yet they aim to embed themselves within their context through strategies that reference the region's landscape, climate, and architectural traditions. This raises a fundamental question: What defines local architecture in the 21st century?
Saudi Arabia has just announced its participation in the 19th International Architecture Exhibition-La Biennale di Venezia with the National Pavilion presenting The Um Slaim School: An Architecture of Connection. Designed by Syn Architects, the Riyadh-based practice, and curated by Beatrice Leanza, the pavilion offers an exploration of contemporary urban conditions in Saudi Arabia through spatial practice and alternative architectural pedagogy. Syn Architects was selected as one of ArchDaily's Best New Practices of 2024, recognized for its engagement with local architectural heritage and contemporary spatial practices.
The Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC) has confirmed that the Orange Line of the Riyadh Metro, also known as the Al Madinah Al Munawwarah Axis, began operations on Sunday, January 5, 2025. Spanning 41 kilometers, the Orange Line runs east to west, connecting Jeddah Road in the west to the Second Eastern Ring Road near Khashm Al Aan in the east in Saudi Arabia. This newly operational line is a key component of the city's metro system, designed to enhance urban mobility and connectivity.
Aramco Stadium / Populous (Al Khobar). Image Courtesy of FIFA / Saudi Arabia 2024 Bid
Saudi Arabia was officially announced as the 2034 FIFA World Cup host. The country plans to build 11 new stadiums and refurbish four of its existing venues. The proposed host cities include Riyadh, Jeddah, Al Khobar, Abha, and the yet-unbuilt Neom, a 170-kilometer-long linear city proposed to be built on the Red Sea coast. Additionally, the plan involves 134 training sites across the country, with 73 newly built facilities.
Released on December 11, 2024, the announcement came as no surprise, given that only one bid was submitted for each of the 2030 and 2034 World Cup tournaments. Spain, Portugal, and Morocco have been confirmed as joint hosts for the 2030 event, while Saudi Arabia has been chosen to host the 2034 edition.
