International non-profit organization World Habitat, in partnership with UN-Habitat, has announced the World Habitat Awards 2024. The prizes strive to highlight projects that demonstrate novel and transformative approaches to housing that incorporate principles of climate change adaptation and community-driven solutions. This year, 8 projects have been selected, out of which 2 projects were recognized with the Gold World Habitat Award.
Lithuania's architectural narrative is a mosaic of diverse influences and styles, representing its historical evolution, cultural heritage, and resilience through changing times. Despite a focus on traditional craftsmanship, functional minimalism, and sustainable materials, the country's design language has been profoundly influenced by its geopolitical position and historical events, resulting in a blend of styles from different periods. A key factor that cuts across all expressions, however, is Lithuanian architecture's seamless connection with its natural surroundings.
India recently overtook its sub-continental neighbor, China, to become the most populous country in the world with a demography of over 1.4286 billion people. As data from the United Nations also estimates an annual population growth rate of 0.7%, the country’s built environment is set to interact with a new discourse of demography and present its own perspective on how to build for billions. It is set to engage with new challenges of infrastructure, transportation, and adequate housing, which on the surface will force cities to constantly expand as a response to these dynamic needs. However, a critical look at the population distribution within the country reveals that the majority of Indians still live in rural areas as it caters to 65% of the population despite increasing rural-urban migration. This suggests a nudge in a different direction. One where the design and development of the rural areas take precedence over the cities. One that explores architecture in rural areas, its relationship with the cities, and its future as a primary framework to house the exploding population.
A border city can be classified as an urban agglomeration close to the boundary of two countries, states, or regions. Nowadays, as our cities are rapidly expanding and our transportation modes continually upgrading, the boundary between cities and rural areas has been constantly pushed and redefined.
Valentino Gareri Atelier have joined forces with technology and wellness consultant Steve Lastro of 6Sides and global wellness real estate innovators Delos to create Sunflower Village, a humanistic and sociological approach to residential technology & community living. The proposed residential village includes 19 homes arranged in a sunflower composition that 'follows the sun'.
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Titled "Trouble in Paradise", the Polish pavilion at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, will explore the countryside and observe how rural areas are an important element of building sustainable human environments, given the crises the world is surrounded with today. Curated by PROLOG +1 along with an international group of architects and artists, the national pavilion will be on physical display at the Giardini di Venezia, and online from May 22nd to November 21st, 2021.
“Mahalla: Urban Rural Living” is the first participation of the Republic of Uzbekistan at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia. Open to the public from May 22 to November 21, 2021, at Quarta Tesa, Arsenale, the exhibition is curated by Emanuel Christ and Christoph Gantenbein, professors of architecture and design at ETH Zurich, and founding partners of Christ & Gantenbein.
MVRDV has revealed the first images of Chengdu Sky Valley, the firm’s competition entry for the Future Science and Technology City in Southwest China. Fusing technology with nature, urban with rural, and modernity with tradition, the proposal introduces “a liveable city into the Linpan Landscape”. Located in one of China’s emerging cities, the project balances the competing needs of the area, through a computational workflow developed by in-house tech taskforce MVRDV NEXT.
Colombian artist and architect Santiago Pradilla captured my interest through his many passionate pursuits—he has dedicated as much of his life to traveling to and working within small, rural communities and as he has to producing architecture that tells the rich history of Colombian cities.
We discussed the relationship between academia, auto-construction, and rural living as well as the exploration of other artistic disciplines. We even breached the topic of the importance of heritage and projections about the direction of Colombian architecture.
Cities around the world are facing new questions of urban flight. As the COVID-19 pandemic spread, it exacerbated a range of living conditions and housing crises, from telecommuting and construction to global economies. As Fast Company reports, almost 40% of those living in cities have considered moving out since the pandemic started. With the possibility of the pandemic stretching on for years, more urbanites are considering the move to rural areas and small towns.
Traditional Mexican housing is being transformed by a number of factors, namely the urbanization of rural areas, the disruption of public information, the loss of the environmental consciousness, and housing policies that downplay the importance of traditional means of construction in favor of more industrial methods -- the likes of which generate false aspirations that redefine the concept of a dignified living space.
This is driving the loss of both tangible and intangible national heritage, namely the architectural values developed by the native peoples of the country over the centuries. In other words, it's not only the architectural heritage at risk of disappearing but also the centuries of knowledge built from everyday living spaces and their relationship with the territory that they inhabit.
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.jpg?1618821715 "© Patrycja Wojtas")
.jpg?1618821737 "© Patrycja Wojtas")
.jpg?1618821691 "© Michał Sierakowski")
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