Tag: san-diego | ArchDaily

From London to Houston: Four Ongoing Pedestrianisation Initiatives Shaping More Walkable Cities

Antonia Piñeiro — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 05:30:00 +0000

Across Europe and North America, pedestrianisation is increasingly being deployed as a context-specific urban strategy shaped by distinct economic, social, and spatial pressures. As cities continue to reassess the role of streets in the wake of economic shifts, climate pressures, and changing mobility patterns, pedestrianisation is emerging as a tool in current urban transformation efforts. Across London, New York, Houston, and Stockholm, ongoing pedestrian-first projects are testing different pathways toward more resilient and walkable cities, ranging from statutory planning and capital construction to research-driven visioning. London's Oxford Street is advancing through consultation and governance reform to address retail decline; New York's Paseo Park is moving from a temporary pandemic intervention into permanent infrastructure; Houston is accelerating the pedestrianisation of its downtown core in preparation for a global sporting event; and Stockholm's Superline is using design research to rethink the future of an inner-city motorway. These initiatives reveal how pedestrianisation is being actively negotiated, designed, and built today, adapting to local motivations while converging on a shared objective of streets that perform as resilient public spaces rather than traffic conduits.

Fora Collective Housing / Jeff Svitak

Pilar Caballero — Mon, 13 Oct 2025 06:00:00 +0000

On a narrow 7,000-square-foot plot in the North Park neighborhood of San Diego, FORA is an exercise in intelligent density that reimagines collective housing for the present. It is also a tangible example of what urban infill multifamily housing can achieve in the United States, particularly in California, where the housing crisis and homelessness remain urgent issues. Working within the strict framework of local regulations, the project demonstrates how small, underused lots in Southern California can become catalysts for dignified, high-quality housing alternatives.

10 Pavilion Highlights from the London Design Biennale 2025

Antonia Piñeiro — Fri, 27 Jun 2025 05:30:00 +0000

The fifth edition of the London Design Biennale is taking place at Somerset House from 5 to 29 June 2025. The theme of this year's edition is "Surface Reflections," an invitation to explore "the dynamic interplay between internal experience and external influence." The curatorial proposal, set by British artist and designer Samuel Ross, encourages a focus on the underlying layers of the objects, systems, and spaces that shape our daily lives. The Biennale exhibition is a journey through 35 pavilions by countries, institutional design teams, and curators, presenting soundscapes, immersive experiences, and performances, as well as sculptural and evocative objects. To confront contemporary global challenges, topics include identity, memory, innovation, technology, craftsmanship, ecology, and belonging.

Tijuana-San Diego as a Creative Beacon: Exploring the World Design Capital's Growing Influence

Enrique Tovar — Tue, 05 Nov 2024 07:30:00 +0000

Global conferences, events, and exhibitions have profoundly influenced the evolution of architecture and design, serving as catalysts for innovation, new ideas, and pivotal debates. Some gatherings, like the historic Congrès International d'Architecture Moderne, have impacted the field. In contrast, others, such as the Venice Biennale and the World Design Capital (WDC), continue shaping the architectural landscape through periodic editions. Initiated in Turin, Italy, the WDC celebrates a different city every two years as a hub of design reflection and creativity. In the latest edition, the binational region of Tijuana-San Diego made history as the first cross-border WDC, emerging as a creative epicenter with a rich, innovative program that warrants special attention.

World Tourism Day 2024: 30 Architecture City Guides to Celebrate Urban Fabrics from Around the World

Nour Fakharany — Fri, 27 Sep 2024 05:30:00 +0000

Tourism, as an urban and architectural phenomenon, has grown to encompass more than just sightseeing; it engages visitors with the social, cultural, and economic narratives that cities tell through their built environments. In celebration of World Tourism Day 2024, this collection of city guides highlights the role of architecture in shaping the urban tourism experience. Today, cities around the world stand as testaments to human ingenuity, historical preservation, and modern innovation. In fact, each city's versatile architecture offers a window into a city's identity, drawing millions of visitors each year who seek to understand how these spaces shape everyday life and collective memory.

Architecture in Focus: 16 Global Events between September and December 2024

Maria-Cristina Florian — Thu, 19 Sep 2024 07:30:00 +0000

As the architectural landscape continues to evolve in response to pressing global challenges, events such as biennales, design weeks, and fairs play an instrumental role in shaping the profession's future. These gatherings facilitate the exchange of innovative ideas, the exploration of sustainable practices, and the fostering of collaboration among architects, designers, and urban planners. They serve not only as platforms for showcasing cutting-edge designs but also as forums for critical dialogue about the built environment's impact on society and the planet.

Torrey View Buildings / Flad Architects

Hadir Al Koshta — Tue, 30 Jul 2024 16:00:00 +0000

Offering exceptional views of the Pacific Ocean and its surrounding natural landscape from every point on the site, Breakthrough Properties’ Torrey View Development works in tandem with its environment to express its own character while echoing the site’s layered geologic formations in its coffered façade. The steeply graded window panels establish its dynamic, tessellated signature envelope. Seeking to create flexible, daylight-infused interior floor plates that maximize energy efficiency, digital tools were employed to assist in massing, placement, and façade development. The interiors promote occupant wellness by providing natural daylight and views without compromising building performance.

From Borderlines to Blurred Boundaries: San Diego-Tijuana as the World Design Capital 2024

Enrique Tovar — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 04:00:00 +0000

When drawing, lines are fundamental elements of composition. They delineate space, outline structures, and define boundaries. When it comes to maps and borders, the line acquires a particular meaning, as this "simple" graphic expression marks a powerful division between regions, setting the beginning or the end of a territory. This line has a profound meaning at the limit between Mexico and the United States, where it constantly blurs and questions the border. In these places, multiculturalism is a daily occurrence, with a continuous negotiation of boundaries present in all aspects of life. The dynamic of these borders involves design and the generation of a complex network of interactions and collaborations.

Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego / Selldorf Architects

Andreas Luco — Fri, 24 May 2024 10:00:00 +0000

The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) in La Jolla traces its origins to philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps. Her last home, a modern oceanfront dwelling completed in 1916 by Irving Gill, served as the Museum’s first location. Since opening in 1941, the Museum has undergone several architecturally distinct expansions; Mosher & Drew completed a series of expansions in 1950, 1960, and again in the late 1970s; and Venturi Scott Brown & Associates completed a renovation of MCASD’s La Jolla location in 1996. However, as the Museum’s art collection continued to expand, the building’s galleries became inadequate to display its holdings. In 2014 Selldorf Architects was tasked with developing new architecture that would expand and enhance spaces for art and the public. The new design includes the renovation of 28,000 square feet of existing spaces, as well as the addition of 46,400 square feet of new spaces to MCASD, effectively doubling the Museum’s existing square footage. Selldorf Architects’ new plan provides significantly more gallery space for the collection, creates a more welcoming and clear entry, and gives greater coherence to the site enhancing the Museum’s connection to its spectacular coastal setting.

Tijuana City Guide: 9 Projects to Explore in the 2024 World Design Capital

Enrique Tovar — Thu, 02 May 2024 04:00:00 +0000

The U.S.-Mexico border is a region of vast historical, cultural, and economic significance, where cities of fundamental importance to North America have emerged. Tijuana—located in northeastern Mexico—, is one of these cities. Since its earliest beginnings in the 18th century, it has experienced exponential urban growth, closely linked to its northern neighbor, San Diego. Understanding Tijuana in its entirety is only possible by mentioning this connection. For this reason, along with San Diego, it was selected as the World Design Capital 2024, celebrating the interaction and cultural exchange between the two cities.

Point Loma Nazarene University Prescott Chapel / Carrier Johnson + Culture

Anna Dumitru — Sun, 14 Apr 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Set above the Sunset Cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Point Loma Nazarene University’s campus is governed by the overriding security of Christ’s love. The university desired a new chapel to replace the existing one, anchor their campus entrance to the north, and provide a serene space for spiritual reflection and connection. They sought a building that physically embodies eleven key principles:

Point Loma Nazarene University Science Complex / Carrier Johnson + Culture

Pilar Caballero — Sat, 02 Mar 2024 13:00:00 +0000

Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU) is a 3,500-student university in San Diego, California located on a lush coastal campus with landmarks predating the 1800s in the theosophist vernacular. PLNU life is grounded in a strong sense of faith guided by the tenets of personal salvation, a life of service, and the Bible’s primacy. PLNU is also known for its acclaimed science programs and successful medical school placements. Its existing Rohr Science building was 52 years old and the needs of the Chemistry, Biology, Physical, Math, and Computer Science Departments had grown beyond the capacities of that facility.

San Diego City Guide: 12 Projects to Explore in the 2024 World Design Capital

Maria-Cristina Florian — Thu, 15 Feb 2024 07:30:00 +0000

Nestled along the coast of Southern California, San Diego has emerged as a vibrant hub for architectural innovation, shaped by the confluence of different cultures, from its early Spanish colonial heritage to the cutting-edge modernist masterpieces that define its urban fabric. For this reason, the city was chosen as one half of the World Design Capital 2024, alongside its cross-border counterpart, Tijuana, celebrating the intercultural collaborations and influences of the two cities.

12 Architecture Events to Pay Attention to in 2024

Maria-Cristina Florian — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 08:30:00 +0000

Spanning continents and cultures, architecture-focused events serve as platforms for the gathering of diverse groups of professionals to share innovations and embark on dialogues regarding some of the most pressing matters faced by our profession. Embodying the spirit of collaboration, highlighting local cultures and practices, and fostering open debates, this year’s list of events covers a diverse range of biennales, forums, city-wide celebrations, international fairs, and awards.

What are the Spatial Possibilities for Enclosures Within the Highway Interchange?

Paul Yakubu — Fri, 19 May 2023 07:30:00 +0000

Highway interchanges have evolved from important infrastructures that help distribute traffic to unique landmarks that define cities. As multiple road networks embrace and form distinctive sculptures, these road intersections range from singular bridge connections and roundabouts to numerous, layered and multi-layered interchanges. They twist, turn, loop, and wrap around sparse land, vegetation, or existing structures in a bid to transfer travelers from one roadway to another. However, they also create a moment of enclosure, forming partially bounded areas and a sense of space. These spaces could be viewed as liminal and transitional, with no fixed typology able to be hosted. But that blurring character calls for ideas of urban intervention to disrupt the notion of what these spaces can be. They can be readapted from car-dominant sculptures into more human-friendly places and re-integrated as extended schemes of the city's architecture.

San Diego and Tijuana Chosen as the 2024 World Design Capital

Nour Fakharany — Tue, 21 Feb 2023 06:30:00 +0000

The World Design Capital, a city project dedicated to promoting the design profession around the world, showcases a new capital every two years. The initiative recognizes cities for their constructive use of design to drive social, cultural, and environmental change and improve the overall quality of life. This week, San Diego and Tijuana have been named the World Design Capital of 2024, due to their human-centric design strategies and their cross-border collaboration. In previous editions, the World Design Organization had selected Valencia and Mexico City as design capitals of the world.

A Tropical Resort in Indonesia and a Countryside Villa in Birmingham: 9 Unbuilt Interiors Submitted by the ArchDaily Community

Maria-Cristina Florian — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 05:30:00 +0000

Architects play an important role in creating healthy, functional and aesthetically pleasing environments. Interior design represents a natural continuation of the same prerogative, and its importance has been accentuated in recent years, from the lockdown forcing many people to remain indoors for extended periods of time, to the rise of remote work. The task of the interior designer is not decorating spaces, but planning for an effective use of space, understanding the needs of the user and highlighting the intrinsic qualities of a space. Acoustics, lighting, material properties and proportions all play a role in achieving a coherent and enjoyable interior space.

1974 Leonard Veitzer La Jolla Remodel / DNA Design Group

Bianca Valentina Roșescu — Sat, 10 Sep 2022 15:00:00 +0000

In 2019 Danish Architect Jesper Pedersen* was approached by clients from the UK with the task of remodeling their summer home in the hills of La Jolla, CA. The clients purchased a 7,000-square-foot estate in the Muirlands, one of the oldest neighborhoods in La Jolla. The land on which the house sits is part of Harold Muir's original 257 acres of Soledad Mountain purchased in 1920.