Featuring buildings equipped with meandering balconies and terraces that fan out like leaves, this roundup collects 10 of the most dramatic sculptural balconies published on Dezeen.

Kaktus Towers, Denmark, by BIG

Danish architecture studio BIG's Kaktus Towers comprises two jagged buildings that hold 495 residences and are equipped with angular balconies. The homes are linked by a raised public park sloping between them.

The residencies have rotated floor plates, which provide each home with a view of Copenhagen's Vesterbro district from the balconies.

Find out more about Kaktus Towers ›

Q Residences, The Netherlands, by Studio Gang

Q Residences by US firm Studio Gang includes an eight-storey structure called Qube and a 23-storey structure called Quartz, which are connected by a public plaza.

Protruding concrete fins line Quartz's facade, which gives each of the residencies an angled balcony that appears to "migrate in and out of the facade", the studio said.

Find out more about Q Residences ›

Barangaroo House, Australia, by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners

Barangaroo House has tiered balconies clad in charred timber dowels. The dowels house restaurants that provide views across Sydney's redeveloped Barangaroo South precinct.

The balconies on the upper floors are encircled by raised planters and equipped with operable glazing that connects the balconies to the building's internal spaces.

Find out more about Barangaroo South ›

Apartment complex, France, by Peripheriques Marin+Trottin and Jumeau Architectes

Meandering balconies bordered by metal balustrades characterise this Parisian apartment complex in L'Ile-Saint-Denis.

The complex includes eight storeys with duplex apartments incorporated on the top level. Its wavy balconies create private spaces outside each apartment, whilst maintaining a communal thoroughfare along the length of the building.

Find out more about apartment complex ›

MN15 Ibirapuera, Brazil, by Königsberger Vannucchi Arquitetura

MN15 Ibirapuera is a residential building equipped with irregularly glass-lined balconies that appear slanted from a distance, giving the building a sculptural appearance.

Some of the balconies jut outwards, while others are recessed. Along the corners of the building, the balconies appear to shift in different directions, creating a lively silhouette.

Find out more about MN15 Ibirapuera ›

L'Arbre Blanc tower, France, by Sou Fujimoto

This tower in Montpellier, France, is modelled on the shape of a tree and includes 114 apartments with cantilevering balconies designed to promote outdoor living.

Many of the balconies cantilever to over seven metres. The duplex flats' balconies are also connected by stairs, which aim to encourage residents on different floors to interact.

Find out more about L'Arbre Blanc tower ›

Iqon skyscraper, Ecuador, by BIG

Pixellated box-like balconies define the residential Iqon skyscraper, also designed by BIG, which includes 220 apartments. The balconies are made from concrete and feature plants and trees native to South America.

The 133-metre-high skyscraper is also equipped with commercial and office spaces.

Find out more about Iqon skyscraper ›

Seafront apartment block, Australia, by Koichi Takada Architects

This mixed-use apartment block on Queensland's Gold Coast features undulating balconies equipped with retractable slatted wooden screens that were informed by the structure of a pine cone.

The 1,012-square-metre seafront site includes 15 apartments, two penthouses and a ground floor with a gym, pool and sauna. The curved balconies overlap each other to provide areas of shade to the residencies below.

Find out more about Seafront apartment block ›

Sky Yards Hotel, China, by Domain Architects

Sky Yards Hotel has 48 rooms and features balconies that are designed to focus views upwards, framing the mountainous skyline.

Shanghai-based Domain Architects refers to the balconies as "micro yards" and each has an opening cut out of an exterior wall. These micro yards are deep and were designed to be spacious enough to include gardens and outdoor bathtubs.

Find out more about Sky Yards Hotel ›

Chongqing housing development, China, by Safdie Architects

The 42,740-square-metre Eling Hill development (above and main image) has an interlocking design that gives each of its 126 apartments a harmonious, undulating facade.

The building overlooks the Yangtze River in Chongqing, China, and its balconies are partly shaded by swooping rust-coloured slats.

Find out more about Chongqing housing development ›

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The Sims has been allowing players to act out their architecture and interior design fantasies for more than two decades. Jane Englefield finds out how the makers of the iconic life-simulation video game keep up with shifting trends.

"People laugh when I mention playing The Sims, but it was hugely significant in terms of spatial planning and was a key part of how and why I have ended up in the line of interior design work that I have," interiors stylist and editor Rory Robertson told Dezeen.

"The Sims offered people the opportunity to get a feel for design," he reflected. "You could be as extravagant and outrageous, or as briefed and restricted as you liked."

Created in 2000 by American game designer Will Wright, The Sims is a video game where players make human characters – or "sims" – and build their virtual houses and lives from scratch, catering to their needs and desires.

With four iterations of the main game and dozens of themed expansion packs focusing on topics such as university, parenthood and cottage living, The Sims is one of the best-selling video-game franchises of all time.

"It's really accessible"

Architecture and interior design has been a major part of The Sims experience from the very beginning.

Having previously created the city-building game SimCity in 1989 – which itself has been credited with inspiring a generation of urban planners – Wright was originally motivated to develop The Sims after losing his home in the Oakland firestorm of 1991 in California.

In fact, early designs were for an architecture game, with the shift to focus on people a relatively late addition to the concept, according to one of the game's first art directors, Charles London.

Design remained a core part of the offering, however, and the interface features tools that allows players to instantly build structures and decorate and furnish them from an extensive inventory of items.

"It's really accessible, so I think a lot of people get into it without even realising that they're playing with architecture and playing with space," said video-games expert and historian Holly Nielsen.

"While it was like catnip for design budding minds, it was also just a wonderful opportunity for procrastination and frivolity for people who aren't particularly confident or tuned in to interiors or architecture," echoed Robertson.

Since the original The Sims, a broad set of options has been available for players to suit their tastes and imaginations.

Possibilities have ranged from minimalist bungalows filled with neutral furniture to more outlandish dwellings, such as castles defined by Dalmatian-print wallpaper or hot tubs parked in the middle of multiple living rooms.

"We'll take any source"

The team behind these possibilities described how they ensure that the architecture and interior design options stay feeling fresh and contemporary with each new game in the series.

"Since we're a game about real life, anytime we step outside our door we have inspiration by just looking at what's in our immediate environment," game designer Jessica Croft told Dezeen.

Art director Mike O'Connor added that he and his team scour the real world and the web for up-to-date references.

"We'll take any source," he said. "We're looking for patterns. If we start to see round furniture, or bouclé, or whatever the trend is, [we ask] has it already gone?"

"The internet doesn't scrub old ideas. So you know, it's seeing if there's a trend, is it sticking, does it apply to what we're doing now?"

Furniture and appliances within the game are regularly revised over time to reflect cultural and technological progression in the real world, Croft explained.

"In Sims 2 [released in 2004] I would not be surprised if there was a landline phone – and there definitely isn't a landline phone in my own house, or Sims 4," she said.

"Even things like VR [virtual reality] didn't really exist back in The Sims 2 days, so things like VR consoles, computers – we just added dual-monitor computers, and LEDs are now in most households," she continued.

That in turn sees the team take a surprisingly deep dive into how interiors are changing, O'Connor acknowledged.

"Over the life of this game, you see an evolution," he said. "Electronics are probably the biggest category [of change]. Even just how people use TVs, how they place them, has changed."

The idea, says Croft, is to ensure that The Sims players feel a close connection to the world they are building for their sims.

"The most fun thing for me is being able to allow players to craft stories that are relatable to them," she said. "So, looking for opportunities to make players feel seen."

"An element of freedom and fantasy-building"

But, as Nielsen points out, there is an additional aspect to the game's architecture and design possibilities that is central to its appeal.

"In one sense, it's reflective of society, but in another way, it's aspirational," she said.

"There's an element of freedom and fantasy-building to playing The Sims," she continued. "Homeownership is a thing that a lot of us will not get to do."

As in real life, everything you build or buy in The Sims has a cost.

However, unlike in real life, punching "motherlode" into The Sims cheat-code bar will immediately add a healthy 50,000 simoleons to your sim's bank account, putting that luxury sofa easily within reach.

That possibility remains central to Robertson's nostalgia for playing The Sims as a young would-be interior designer.

"Once you double-clicked The Sims graphic on your Microsoft desktop, a multi-roomed mansion cost nothing to design," he said.

This aspirational element has become an increasingly large part of The Sims' commercial model over the years.

The Sims 4, as an example, is accompanied by 19 purchasable "Stuff Packs" that expand the options of items available to buy, including "Perfect Patio", "Cool Kitchen" and one based on the products of Milan fashion label Moschino.

And the latest of the more extensive expansion packs is For Rent, which allows players to build rental houses where some sims are landlords and others are tenants.

Within the game, landlords encounter various true-to-life issues, including the potential for toxic mould build-up in their properties – although, unlike in the real world, the mould feature can be toggled on and off.

Inclusivity has also become an increasing focus of The Sims, with integral features now including options to choose sims' sexual orientation, for instance.

For Nielsen, that traces back to a significant foundational element of the game's widespread appeal – as well as being one of the reasons it has had such strong interior-design influence.

"It didn't feel like it was aiming for anyone," she explained. "One of the things that people bring up a lot is that it has a very female player base."

"For me, it was a big turning point – it was getting to create the spaces but also play around with the people inside them. It felt like a socially acceptable way to play dollhouses."

The images are courtesy of Electronic Arts.

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A curvy canopy with a rooftop reflecting pool is among the standout features at a Long Island house designed by US studios Steven Harris Architects and Rees Roberts & Partners to embrace its sand-dune setting.

Located on a hilly site in the Hamptons, the project was created for an urban, art-loving couple who wanted a family holiday home that embraced the coastal terrain and was suitable for entertaining.

"The clients, New York executives, desired architecture in the midcentury modern tradition that showcased the dune-filled landscape and created space to enjoy time with friends and family," the team said.

The project was designed by two Manhattan studios that have worked together in the past: architectural studio Steven Harris Architects and the landscape and interiors firm Rees Roberts & Partners.

To help shape the project, the studios took cues from the site's rolling topography and views of the Atlantic Ocean.

The team also turned to the work of Roberto Burle Marx, the late Brazilian landscape architect who often incorporated organic forms into his designs.

The result is a house U-shaped in plan, with both straight and sinuous lines incorporated into the form.

"The form of the house itself was conceived of as a series of cantilevered, rectilinear volumes pivoting about solid brick masses," the team said.

"The orthogonal geometries were then offset against a series of more biomorphic forms at all scales."

For the exterior material palette, the team opted for low-maintenance and durable options that could endure the harsh marine environment, where rust and rot are common problems.

"To that end, pale stucco and Petersen Tegl brick were selected due to their resilience to heat, wind, salt and sand," the team said. "Similarly, all windows were specified to be marine stainless."

The front door is found on the north, set deep within an entry courtyard. One steps into an airy foyer punctuated with a sculptural staircase that is meant to be reminiscent of a shell.

The 12,000-square-foot (1,115-square-metre) home features an unusual floor plan, in that the kitchen, dining area and living room are located on the upper level.

"This contradicts convention, which normally holds that such public spaces be placed on the entry level," the teams said, noting that the elevated position enables views of the water.

"The public areas enjoy a panoramic vista of the ocean over the nearby dune, which would otherwise have blocked the view."

The upper floor also encompasses the primary bedroom, a sleeping and sitting area for children, two offices and a media room.

On the ground level, one finds multiple guest bedrooms, back-of-house spaces and an indoor basketball court.

There also is a gym that opens through a pneumatic door onto a garden with a private shower, enabling users to rinse off in the open air.

The home features a range of interior finishes, such as plaster, stone, walnut and teak.

Furnishings include pieces by Isamu Noguchi, Kelly Wearstler and Louise Liljencrantz, along with many custom pieces by Rees Roberts & Partners.

The extensive artwork includes a mural in the entryway by abstract artist Mig Perkins.

Throughout the home, large stretches of glass provide a connection to the coastal landscape, and roof overhangs create shade without obstructing views.

A range of outdoor spaces include an infinity-edge swimming pool and pavilion covered by a sculptural canopy inspired by the work of both Roberto Burle Marx and Oscar Niemeyer.

Atop the canopy, the team added a reflecting pool.

"The pool deck looks out at a sculptural pavilion with a curved underbelly and reflecting pool on top, reflecting the sky and accentuating the immediacy of the ocean from the home's living room," the team said.

The project also involved landscape enhancements, such as the addition of tall grasses, to help "blend the house with the dunescape".

Other projects in the upscale hamlet of Bridgehampton include a home by Young Projects that is a cluster of wood-clad, gabled volumes and a residence by Roger Ferris + Partners that consist of three distinct volumes wrapped in glass and garapa wood.

The photography is by Eric Petschek and Scott Frances.

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New York architecture studio Arquitectonica has designed a residential skyscraper with undulating fins on its facade and a landscaped terrace garden in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Called The Launiu, the 40-storey skyscraper is located in the Ward Village development in Hawaii's capital Honolulu on the island of Oahu.

According to Arquitectonica, the design for the structure was informed by natural formations and the movement of wind, water and sand in Oahu, the third largest in the chain of islands that makes up the state of Hawaii.

"The natural beauty of O'ahu served as our primary design inspiration for The Launiu," said Arquitectonica founding principal Bernardo Fort-Brescia.

"With the neutral-toned facade and soft rippling exterior created by balconies, we sought to pay homage to the surrounding environment through an interpretative, elemental design that conveys movement, emulating the effects of water, wind or markings in the sand."

"The resulting concept is organic yet contemporary."

Sited near the shoreline of the Pacific Ocean, the structure will consist of a glass-curtain-wall-lined tower set on top of a rectangular podium.

Its podium will also be covered in a glass curtain wall, with white paint-aluminium panels framing each of its sides. The first storey will cantilever out over the ground floor, creating a canopy around the building that will be supported by concrete columns.

The entrance will be marked by a series of sand-coloured aluminium panels undulating in waves up the face of the podium,

The tower of The Launiu will be set back significantly from the edges of the podium. This is to create a large terrace that will be covered in palm trees and amenities for the residents of the 486 condominiums, 90 of which will be in the podium.

The remaining residences will be spread throughout the tower. Its facades will also be covered in white-painted aluminium panels cut to form a wave-like texture up the face of the building.

California studio Odada will bring a minimalist interior design schema to the project, adorning the white-washed spaces with woven furniture and textiles.

Landscape studio Vita, also based in California, will carry out the design of the green terrace and surrounding grounds, weaving paths and lounge areas among the pines and pools of the development.

Ward Village is a planned community developed by Howard Hughes and contains several residential and commercial structures. The development is meant to represent "the next generation of sustainable development and land-use planning on O'ahu," according to the company.

Arquitectonica was founded in 1977 and has carried out several high-profile architecture projects, especially in Miami, where it created the building that houses the University of Miami's architecture school.

Other big-name firms from the mainline have created similar residential projects on the islands, including a 41-storey building by Studio Gang informed by the form of sugarcane.

The renderings are courtesy of Arquitectonica. 

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New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority has installed yellow safety barriers in a subway station to mitigate "intrusions" onto the train tracks.

The bright yellow barriers are part of a safety pilot program monitored by New York City Transit (NYCT), which the organisation will study and scale up if successful.

"It's still in an experimental phase," said MTA CEO Janno Lieber in a statement. "We will be watching carefully to determine if the barriers are effective at deterring track intrusions without interfering with passenger circulation. If they pass the test, we will be ready to deploy widely."

Dispersed periodically along the length of a station, the metal barriers sit directly adjacent to support columns and just before the yellow tactile warning strip that lines a platform edge.

They leave half of the gaps between columns open and block the remaining space to decrease the possibility commuters would fall, be pushed, or enter into the tracks below.

The first batch of barriers was installed in a Uptown Manhattan station at 191 Street, with plans to install the remaining test fleet at a Coney Island station, a station in Downtown Brooklyn, and a fourth location that has yet to be determined.

The program follows a 2022 MTA report that studied reasons behind track intrusions and possible solutions to prevent them, which cites pushing, suicide, intoxication, mental illness, and slipping to be some of the reasons commuters could enter onto tracks.

"Safety in the subway system is something that customers consistently cite as a core driver of their satisfaction and is a top priority for us at New York City Transit,” said NYCT president Richard Davey.

"This pilot program will help us determine the most effective ways to keep subway customers safe and focused on getting to their destination, while also addressing track intrusion."

Another recent citywide initiative in New York included the installation of a new public trashcan designed by Group Projects, while recent safety design includes the installation of nets underneath the Golden Gate Bridge in San Franscisco

The photography is by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority 

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Paris-based Nem Architectes has renovated a villa in Grasse, France, transforming it into a bright pink tourist destination named Domaine de la Rose for beauty company Lancôme.

The villa contains lounge and meeting spaces that can host perfume-making workshops, events and exhibitions, designed as a place where visitors can learn about the Lancôme brand and perfumery. Nem Architectes also added a perfume distillery and warehouse underground.

Surrounded by floral gardens used to make perfume, Domaine de la Rose is located on the Lancôme estate in Grasse, which is known as the world's perfume capital.

"The purpose of this design is to create a functional, practical, and sustainable building that can be both beautiful, contemporary and exemplary while showcasing the brand's luxurious and exceptional heritage and artistry," Nem Architectes told Dezeen.

The studio removed all buildings on the estate except for Domaine de la Rose, which was painted striking pink and reroofed with locally-made pink glazed canal tiles.

The villa is comprised of a pair of two-storey wings connected by a single-storey lobby. The upper levels of both wings open onto the roof of the lobby below, creating a terrace with views of the surrounding hills.

A path cuts through the centre of the building. One side features a circular tunnel entrance to the lobby, while the other entrance is sheltered by the terrace above, propped up by a column that appears like a stack of rocks.

Nem Architectes described its overhaul of the villa as a monolith, with a vibrant pink interior and exterior that stands out against the lush green landscape.

"It is a bold and striking sight, and it gives a tangible and unique form to the Lancôme brand," said Nem Architectes.

"The estate can also be seen as a living and sensorial experience for the visitors and guests," it continued. "Their visual, olfactive and acoustic senses are stimulated throughout the house and the garden, as they would be when using a Lancôme perfume."

Nem Architectes chose to renovate the existing building rather than build a new one for sustainability reasons.

The studio added lavender and rice straw in timber frames to the exterior, which was closed off with rigid wood fibre insulation boards to improve insulation.

"It was decided early on that the building should be rehabilitated as opposed to completely levelled and replaced with a new one," said Nem Architectes.

"This decision is in compliance with Nem Architectes and Lancôme's concern for sustainability, as it saves resources and energy while paying homage to the local architectural heritage."

Nem Architectes was founded in 2008 by Lucie Niney and Thibault Marca.

Other pink buildings that have been featured on Dezeen include a cultural institution in Lima that was renovated to have pink walls and an apartment renovation in Mexico with arched openings.

The photography is by Cyrille Weiner unless stated.

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Spanish practice Estudio Albar has used cork cladding to help this home near Madrid blend in with the scrub-like landscape of a neighbouring national park.

Named Casa Eñe, the home is located half an hour's drive from the Spanish capital and was designed for clients who wanted a home that would have a minimal impact both visually and environmentally.

In order to "unify the plot and the park", Estudio Albar removed a row of hedges classed as a prohibited species that previously separated the two, opening the site up to dramatic views across the landscape.

"At the north boundary of the Casa Eñe plot, beyond the great hedge barrier that had been unmaintained for decades, the natural park was located," said Estudio Albar founder Daniel Lozano.

"Hectares of holm oaks and rockroses, a place where you can cross paths with deer, wild boars, and even wolves just half an hour from Madrid," he told Dezeen. "We couldn't block those views, we had to integrate them into the project."

To allow every space to enjoy these views to the north as well as sunlight from the south, Casa Eñe is organised in a long, narrow plan measuring six by 40 metres and topped by a large rooftop terrace.

Two corridors extend down either side of the home, with living spaces and bathrooms organised in the centre. Sliding doors and curtains allow these areas to be opened up or closed off when greater privacy is required.

On the first floor, Estudio Albar has created an independent "pavilion" containing an office accessed by an external spiral staircase.

The orientation and narrow plan also make Casa Eñe easy to heat and cool, with the south-facing windows helping to warm the home during winter. These are sheltered by vegetation during summer.

While helping the home to blend with its surroundings, the cork cladding also helps to keep it warm thanks to its insulating properties. Cork is a renewable material harvested from the bark of the cork oak tree, which is biodegradable, durable and insulating.

According to Estudio Albar, the home is so well insulated that it meets the Passivhaus standard – a certification given to low-energy buildings with high levels of insulation and airtightness – and requires just three small towel radiators to keep it warm.

Casa Eñe is built from a prefabricated timber frame and finished with white-walled interiors, warmed by pale wooden frames and fittings. The interiors are kept purposefully minimal to focus attention towards the landscape views.

"We believe in simple architecture. We don't like artifices or the superfluous. If something doesn't contribute to the architecture, it should be eliminated," Lozano told Dezeen.

"The elongated shape allows us to create a fluid house. All the communications in the house are taken to the perimeters. Not even when walking around the house did we want to lose sight of the field," he added.

Other homes that have recently made use of cork cladding include a pair of apartment blocks in Belgium by Officeu Architects and a "camouflaged" home in Portugal designed by Inês Brandão Arquitectura.

The photography is by Imagen Subliminal.

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In this week's comments update readers are discussing the announcement of this year's Serpentine Pavilion, designed by Mass Studies founder Minsuk Cho.

Named Archipelagic Void, the 23rd pavilion is set to open in London's Kensington Gardens in June 2024 and will consist of five structures described as "islands", arranged in a star shape around a central void.

"What a mess, I love it"

Commenters weren't all immediately won over by the design. "Not grabbing me", was JZ's initial reaction. Although they did allow for some optimism, writing "hope it ends up a pleasant surprise."

In a comment that was upvoted five times, Ati-st suggested "Serpentine should just cancel the pavilion programme and stop wasting building materials if they aren't committed to doing this properly anymore".

They continued "it's been a long while since they had anything inspiring there".

Souji was much less forgiving, declaring "this is just an eyesore".

However, JB embraced the designs, exclaiming "what a mess, I love it". Meanwhile, John argued that Cho's design was "much better than some in the previous years!"

What do you make of this year's Serpentine Pavilion? Join the discussion ›

"Humans are a horrible species"

Another story that got readers talking this week was about the impact that The Line megacity in Neom could have on birds.

The planned city in Saudi Arabia was highlighted as one of the most pressing conservation issues for 2024, due to the scale of The Line along with its planned mirrored facades, which have been highlighted as posing "a substantial risk to migratory species".

Readers largely shared this concern about the project. "Who knew a giant mirrored wall would have a big effect on wildlife," mocked Hosta.

Commenter J98A was also in disbelief. "Was this not considered before it was signed off? Or at least before the build began?" they asked. "Stupidly obvious."

"The first thing I thought about when I saw this design was the birds," wrote Henry. "Maybe it should be re-rendered to include splatters and bird corpses...or just not built," they suggested.

For JZ, this all led to the simple conclusion that "humans are a horrible species".

Do you agree? Join the discussion ›

"Yes yes yes. At last. This is the holy grail"

Also stirring up interest in the comments section was an interview with former Ferrari-designer Lowie Vermeersch about Komma, a new type of micro vehicle designed to take up less space on roads and use less materials to manufacture.

Some readers were on board with the idea. "With climate change, there could be a huge paradigm shift in personal and public transportation," mused Dik Coates.

Adrian James was impressed by the design, declaring "yes yes yes. At last. This is the holy grail". Colin MacGillivray agreed and dubbed it "the future of urban transport".

However, on the other side of the argument, Marc Sicard wrote "almost as much material as a car for the same functionality as a bike". They concluded, "ridiculous, and no thanks".

Could this be the future of urban transport? Join the discussion ›

Comments Update

Dezeen is the world's most commented architecture and design magazine, receiving thousands of comments each month from readers. Keep up to date on the latest discussions on our comments page and subscribe to our weekly Debate newsletter, where we feature the best reader comments from stories in the last seven days. 

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Asia-based studio Linehouse has refurbished the CentralWorld shopping centre in Bangkok, Thailand, introducing a double-layered facade punctured by arches.

According to Linehouse, the revamped facade and seven floors of retail space depart from typical shopping centres by drawing from the history of the site and creating opportunities for "peace in the chaos".

"The design conceptually explores contradictions between the chaotic and peaceful nature of Bangkok, offering a moment of respite in a dense urban district," the studio told Dezeen.

"Located in an area once abundant in lily pads, we examined the stemming, radiating and circular profile of the lily pads, translating this into a spatial narrative to the exterior and interior condition," it continued.

Linehouse used CentralWorld's existing structure as an underlay for its design. The updated facades are formed of concrete arches applied over the original elevation to frame views of the inside.

"The existing perimeter skin of the facade was treated as black render and a secondary skin in concrete formwork was applied to break the regular rhythm of the column structure," Linehouse explained.

Openings are carved behind several of the external arches to host terraces and add visual porosity to the shopping centre.

"We punctured a series of terraces offering exterior gardens for the food and beverage floors, providing a depth to an otherwise flat elevation and blurring the exterior-interior condition," the studio said.

Internally, a central atrium rises between the retail floors, shifting as it ascends to create a network of overlapping ceiling planes.

To support the shifting planes, Linehouse treated existing structural columns with radiating white fins that branch out to form distinctive canopies.

"Upon entering the interior, one is transported to space full of light and volume, offering a meditative journey away from the intensity of the surrounding streets," the studio said.

"As one ascends the interior atrium, the ceiling plane treatment shifts in materiality, beginning with tectonic green metal grids, evolving to natural and tactile textures, timber trellis and woven cane ceilings."

A food hall occupies the shopping centre's fourth floor and was configured to overlook the neighbouring park from the rounded facade opening.

Understated, neutral materials such as timber and stone line the interior to help create a calm atmosphere.

Linehouse is a Hong Kong and Shanghai-based architecture and interior design studio established in 2013 by Alex Mok and Briar Hickling. The duo won the emerging interior designer of the year category at the 2019 Dezeen Awards.

The studio has also recently designed the interiors for a Hong Kong residence that respond to coastal views and a Shanghai restaurant with arched details informed by the New Wave art movement.

The photography is by Jonathan Leijonhufvud and Depth of Field.

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The latest edition of our weekly Dezeen Agenda newsletter features an apartment block in California constructed like a "real-life Lego-kit". Subscribe to Dezeen Agenda now.

Florida-based manufacturer Renco has completed a Palm Springs apartment complex that was made using Lego-like blocks made of repurposed materials and designed by architecture studio Arquitectonica.

Constructed from a composite blend of glass fibres, resin, and stone, the blocks were designed to be stronger, less energy-intensive and more affordable than conventional materials.

This week's newsletter also featured Ghanaian-Scottish architect Lesley Lokko being named the recipient of this year's RIBA Royal Gold Medal, the reveal of plans and the architect for this year's Serpentine Pavilion and a "first aid kit" for furniture designed by Yalan Dan.

Dezeen Agenda

Dezeen Agenda is a curated newsletter sent every Tuesday containing the most important news highlights from Dezeen. Read the latest edition of Dezeen Agenda or subscribe here.

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Guadalajara-based architect Moises Sánchez has created a stucco-clad, cube-shaped holiday home shaded by a large tree in western Mexico.

The simple, 450-square foot (42-square metre) structure, known as Tonalli House, was completed in 2023 in Jocotepec, Jalisco, minutes from Lake Chapala, the country's largest lake.

"The project arises from the pursuit of a peaceful experience, drawing inspiration from the rhythms and atmospheres of the popular architecture in Mexican villages," Sánchez told Dezeen.

From the outside, the house is a solid white cube, punctuated with strategic openings.

Using local construction systems, materials and labor, the cube is formed with brick walls plastered with a mix of sand and mortar to create two textures — a rough, stone-like base and a smooth monolithic form above.

However, Sánchez prioritised the existing landscape in his description of the project.

"The true protagonist of the project is a large tree and its relationship with the built environment," Sánchez said.

"Its roots create a natural vestibule, serving as the entrance to the volume, the trunk and leaves act as a crowning feature in the views from the interior, while its form and shade simultaneously regulate the microclimate of the surroundings."

Occupants step from the tree-formed vestibule into a double-height foyer and lounge space.

Turning to the right is a kitchen with multi-colored ceramic tiles crafted by artisans from Guadalajara "reminiscent of traditional Mexican kitchens".

Three small lights hang above the peninsula creating an offset spotlight effect in the space, which features unadorned, smooth plaster walls and grey-stone tile flooring.

The bathroom is tucked into a corner off the kitchen.

Across from the entry, lit by a square window, is a staircase that leads up to the sleeping loft, which is open to the lounge below.

"Upon reaching the upper floor, you are greeted by a beam of light penetrating the ceiling, creating a dimly lit atmosphere, at the other end of the loft, a window opens to offer a direct view of the vegetation and the large garden surrounding the villa," Sánchez said.

The limited, neutral material palette – characteristic of the nearby architecture surrounding Lake Chapa – uses light washing along the surfaces and views of the tree outside as the ornamentation.

"Perhaps the most symbolic is the relationship established by the openings in the volume," he said.

"These windows create a link between the interior and exterior, possessing a tactile quality that makes it seem as if both are touching."

In the temperate climate, the villa relies on passive systems for heating and cooling like cross-ventilation through the windows and the skylight that acts as a chimney to expel hot air.

A solar heater provides hot water for the house.

"The success lies in its simplicity; the richness of the project is not the sum of its parts but an exponential multiplication of its virtues," Sánchez said.

"From it, we learned that achieving excellence doesn't necessarily require a tremendous effort but rather finding the right solutions in the right place."

Also in Jalisco, COA Arquitectura constructed an "earth-toned" monolithic house punctuated by blocky forms and triangular cutouts and Tatiana Bilbao built a rammed earth weekend house on the shores of Lake Chapala.

The photography is by Ansatz / Fernando Sanchez.

Project credits:

Architecture: Moisés Sanchez
Ceramics: Lofa Ceramics

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Architect and developer Alloy has released images of its glass-clad Brooklyn skyscraper, which has a "wedding cake-like" shape and will reportedly run on all-electric power.

The residential skyscraper, called 505 State Street after its location in downtown Brooklyn, has already topped out at 482 feet tall (146 metres).

With 44 storeys, the skyscraper is sited on a triangular block where three Brooklyn streets converge. This gives it a wedge-like plan, similar to the iconic Flat Iron Building in Manhattan. The majority of its face is clad in glass and aluminium.

"The site itself is triangular, and weirdly enough, if you draw the Flat Iron floor plan on our site, it's almost identical. The heights are very similar," Alloy design director Ben Meade told Dezeen, noting that the structure is the studio's first "major ground-up skyscraper".

"It's a plan that references old school architecture, a wedding cake-like stack."

On one side, the tower is flat. On the other side, it steps back from the street to maximise views of downtown Manhattan over the East River and to cohere with the street-level brownstone buildings and historic architecture, like the historic Williamsburg Savings Bank tower.

In order to blend into the surrounding architecture as seamlessly as possible, the bottom three floors of the skyscraper were clad in dark textural concrete.

"We wanted to make sure we weren't dropping a spaceship into downtown Brooklyn," said Meade.

"We wanted to be respectful of a landmark that's been there for a long time, while still forming a gateway up from Prospect Park to greater downtown Brooklyn."

Meade said that rather than creating an "imposing" tower, the team wanted to create a "backdrop" for the people of Brooklyn.

The use of aggregate on the lower levels will also help integrate the building into the remainder of the block, which is also being developed by Alloy and will include what it claims will be the first two schools to meet Passive House environmental standards in the city, designed by local studio Architecture Research Office.

An energy-efficient approach was also taken for the skyscraper itself. Alloy claims that when completed, the 441 residences within will be powered completely by electricity.

This will require the installation of electric induction cookware in the kitchens, electrical water heaters, heat-pump dryers and high-quality glass.

The studio also said that it has filed a request to the city for the building to be powered completely by renewable energy sources.

"Alloy is the first developer to pursue such a program following a rule issuance by the New York City Department of Buildings around Local Law 97 confirming developers can comply with the law through off-site solar programs," said the firm.

For the interiors, Alloy worked with local interior design studio INC Architecture and designer Rebecca Robertson to design all of the furniture.

The apartments feature ceilings between nine and 12 feet tall and exposed concrete mixed with oak flooring and detailing.

Currently, the cladding for the structure is almost complete, with only the bulkhead still unfinished, and the tower will be completely finished by 2025.

Historically smaller in vertical scale than neighbouring Manhattan, Brooklyn has seen a flurry of skyscraper development in the past few years, including the SHoP Architects-designed Brooklyn Tower, the borough's first supertall skyscraper, and a skyscraper with an undulating facade by Studio Gang.

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UK studio Fletcher Crane Architects has completed Lowater, a house in Buckinghamshire comprising a group of red-brick forms that draw on the area's traditional architecture.

Lowater is located within a conservation area in the town of Marlow and sits alongside a church overlooking the River Thames.

This led Fletcher Crane Architects to blend forms familiar to the area with more contemporary finishes and interiors in its design.

"The home is located in the greenbelt and a conservation area," project architect Carmine Bassi told Dezeen.

"As such, there was a conscious reference to the cluster of adjacent buildings – a church and a historic home – to ensure a responsible integration into the context," he continued.

"[It] seeks to forge a relationship between the local church and a quality historic property to evolve an architecture of red brick, pitched roof forms and courtyard gardens in a relevant and respectful manner."

Entry to the site is beyond a perforated red-brick wall, where a pergola of timber, steel and zinc shelters a path bisecting the site. This path meets the home in a glazed link section before becoming a narrow pool on the other side.

This glazed entrance space connects the largest volume, which contains a living, dining and kitchen space beneath a skylit study mezzanine, with an adjacent gabled form containing a more private lounge beneath the main bedroom.

The larger form enjoys views across a small pond and the river through a fully-glazed facade shielded by metal louvres, while the opposite end features glazing behind a screen of perforated brickwork.

One end of the main bedroom also looks out to the garden and towards the river, while the other looks onto a cloister-like courtyard, partially wrapped by the covered paths that connect each of the home's distinct forms.

"One side of the house seeks to take in and accentuate fantastic river views whilst to the other, a series of cloistered spaces border a reflecting pool, all set behind a red-brick garden wall," explained Bassi.

"A perforated brick facade characterises the main gable face and creates a quiet theatricality in the way that the glazed walls, lights and life are partly concealed and reflect over the pool," he added.

To the north, a single-storey volume houses guest bedrooms and a garage, fronted by a screen of vertical wooden battens to provide privacy.

Inside Lowater, the more traditional use of red brick is contrasted by the "honest expression" of its steel and timber structure, with the exposed roof bracing bringing an almost industrial feel to the upper levels.

Fletcher Crane Architects was established in 2010 in Kingston upon Thames by Toby Fletcher and Ian Crane.

Previous projects by the studio include a compact brick home on a former garage site in London and a house built on an infill site near London's Hyde Park.

The photography is by Lorenzo Zandri.

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These construction photos capture One Za'abeel, a pair of skyscrapers and a 230-metre-long cantilever, on which Japanese studio Nikken Sekkei is nearing completion in Dubai.

In the construction images revealed by One Za'abeel, the complex is shown near completion with its record-breaking skybridge, named The Link, spanning a six-lane highway.

According to Mace, one of the construction companies working on the project, the steel and glass bridge is the "world's longest cantilever".

It is just 16 metres shorter than the smallest of the two skyscrapers that flank it, which measures 235 metres in height. The tallest of the two buildings extends to 305 metres, making it a supertall skyscraper.

Nikken Sekkei is set to officially complete One Za'abeel at the end of this month. Being one of the first visible structures for those travelling from the airport, it is hoped to become a landmark for Dubai.

Inside, The Link contains an infinity pool that runs its entire length. The horizontal structure will also feature a range of restaurants, as well as retail and leisure facilities.

These offerings form part of a wider mixed-use programme for the complex, which will also contain offices, hotels and residences.

According to Nikken Sekkei, One Za'abeel's "iconic design strikes a clear departure from the existing buildings around it".

One Za'abeel has been designed by Nikken Sekkei for developer Ithra Dubai. The lift of the dramatic cantilever over the highway was carried out over the live highway in 2020.

The project is not the first record-breaking building in Dubai. The city is also home to the 828-metre-tall Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building, which was completed in 2010 to a design by architect Adrian Smith while working at architecture studio SOM.

Other habitable buildings with significant cantilevers include the Busan Cinema Center in South Korea, which features a roof with a column-free cantilever of 85 metres, and the observation deck at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, which projects 66.5 metres.

The photography is courtesy of One Za'abeel.

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British practice Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios has been appointed to lead the architectural design for the redevelopment of Liverpool's International Slavery Museum and Maritime Museum.

The redevelopment is a part of the larger Waterfront Transformation Project and was originally supposed to be led by British studio Adjaye Associates.

However, the studio was dropped from the project in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations against its founder David Adjaye.

The architectural design of the £58 million redevelopment will now be led by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios (FCBS).

It will centre on the Dr Martin Luther King Jr building, which will become the new entrance to the International Slavery Museum, and the Hartley Pavilion.

This will be redesigned to have better circulation and "enhanced" commercial facilities, the museum said.

"FCBS are excited and humbled by the invitation to join the NML team and to lead the architectural transformation of these museums," FCBS partner Kossy Nnachetta, who will lead the redevelopment, said.

"We understand that there is huge responsibility to help create a platform to tell this story, long whispered, yet still awaiting the space to fully express itself; and all the potent, deep-seated emotions it can elicit," she added.

"We hope to help create something bold and yet beautiful. The result of 'many hands' working together with the museums and communities in Liverpool."

The exhibition design for the museums will continue to be led by Ralph Appelbaum Associates, which was appointed in 2022 at the same time as Adjaye Associates.

The International Slavery Museum, which is dedicated to the history of enslaved people, the transatlantic slave trade and contemporary slavery, is currently contained within the Maritime Museum but will be expanded into the Dr Martin Luther King Jr building.

Turning this into the new entrance will create "not only improved visitor orientation and an inspiring welcome, but also a stronger sense of purpose and identity for the museum," the museums said.

FCBS' redevelopment will be led by Nnachetta, supported by Geoff Rich and Peter Clegg. The firm completed the original masterplan for National Museums Liverpool, the public body responsible for the museums, in 2019.

"To be bringing two such visionary designers [FCBS and Ralph Appelbaum Associates] with international reputations to the project represents the bold ambition and thinking behind it," National Museums director Laura Pye said.

"We are delighted they're keen to embrace this as a co-production project which we feel will create something truly ground-breaking," she added.

“There has never been a more important time to address the legacies of the transatlantic slavery and the redevelopment of the International Slavery Museum symbolises our, and our region's, commitment to confronting the significant role the city played in British imperialism."

The museum redevelopment was one of a number of projects that Adjaye Associates was dropped or stepped down from following accusations of sexual assault by Adjaye.

"National Museums Liverpool has taken the decision to terminate the contract with Adjaye Associates (AA)," a spokesperson for the museum told Dezeen at the time.

"We would like to thank the AA team who have worked hard to bring the International Slavery Museum and Maritime Museum transformation project to a developed design stage," it added.

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German studio Atelier ST has completed Duplex, a generous family house near Leipzig that was designed to look like two semi-detached properties.

Home to a family of four, the residence spreads across two matching gabled blocks. They sit side by side, although one is positioned further forward than the other.

Atelier ST founders Silvia Schellenberg-Thaut and Sebastian Thaut said the aim was to satisfy the family's requirements for space while also creating a building that looked at home in the small-scale suburban neighbourhood.

"It was clear to us from the beginning that we needed to create a building that fitted into the context in terms of its proportions and silhouette, but also radiated a certain radicalism," explained the couple.

"Only upon entering the building does the complexity reveal itself," they told Dezeen.

The starting point for the design came from a "run-down and mould-infested" house that stood on the site previously. Comprising a main house and an extension, it set a precedent for a double-peak roof.

The arrangement allows the building's interior to be more complex than it appears from the outside, with split-level floors and a range of ceiling heights.

In particular, a setback on the first floor turns the main living room into a grand double-height space.

Atelier ST's clients previously lived in the city, in a converted school auditorium with a barrel-vaulted ceiling. This led to the use of arches and circles for doorways and windows.

The most striking is the main entrance, a circular glazing reveal with timber mullions.

The building structure is primarily built from concrete, which was cast against wooden boards to create a texture that resonates with the neighbouring woodland.

"The site is directly adjacent to a forest of deciduous trees with thick trunks and rough bark," said Schellenberg-Thaut and Thaut.

"Rough-cast concrete, created with boards of different widths and depths, seemed to us a suitable response."

To improve the building's eco-credentials, the architects chose a low-cement concrete that serves as both a load-bearing structure and exterior facade. The foundations are meanwhile built from recycled concrete.

"The building is insulated with an innovative, natural hemp-lime insulation on the inside of the exterior walls," said the pair.

The split-level floors create natural divides between rooms.

On the ground floor, they allow the kitchen to sit slightly slower than the living room. Upstairs, they separate the main bedroom suite from two further bedrooms and a study.

"One of our main goals is to always generate a floor plan that is tailored to the needs of its users like a good suit," added Schellenberg-Thaut and Thaut.

"The idea here was to create generously sized rooms with a connection to nature on the ground floor and secluded, private retreat areas upstairs," they continued.

"We wanted the family to feel at home immediately and, at the same time, like they are on vacation."

Other innovative residential designs in Germany include an aluminium-clad micro home and a "crystal-like" concrete house.

The photography is by Clemens Poloczek.

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California architecture studio AO and developer Matteson Capital have announced plans to change the height of a proposed Oklahoma City supertall skyscraper, which would make it the tallest building in the US if approved.

AO and Matteson Capital announced in a joint statement that they plan to request a variance from Oklahoma City to increase the height of the supertall skyscraper from its original proposed 1,750 feet (533 metres) to 1,907 feet (581 metres).

"Matteson Capital and AO announced today that they will request a variance from the City of Oklahoma City to increase the height for one of the towers in the already entitled development known as The Boardwalk at Bricktown," claimed the team.

"If approved, the height variance will make the structure the tallest building in the United States and currently fifth tallest in the world."

The extra 157 feet (47 metres) proposed for the skyscraper would bring it to 1907 feet tall (581 metres), a homage to the year that Oklahoma was granted statehood. Newly released renderings show a definitive spire rising from the top of the structure.

The Boardwalk at Bricktown is a mixed-used development encompassing three approved 345-foot-tall (105 metre-tall) towers and a fourth supertall skyscraper, with its originally proposed height still pending approval.

If approved, it would unseat the 1,776-foot-tall (541 metres) SOM-designed One World Trade Center in New York as the tallest building in the US and the Western Hemisphere.

100 condominiums and a 350-key Hyatt hotel are planned for Legends Tower, with a top floor that will consist of an observatory, bar and restaurant.

At approximately 5 million square feet, The Boardwalk at Bricktown is a "mixed-use marvel" and will include hotels, condominiums, retail and commercial space and "1,776 residential units ranging from market-rate to affordable workforce and luxury options", according to the team.

Renderings of the development show three geometric buildings clustered closely around the base of a skyscraper which tapers along its height to end in a bisected top.

Other towers currently being built around the US are included in this round-up of eight upcoming skyscrapers in the United States, while Fraser & Partners recently unveiled designs for what may be the world's tallest hybrid timber tower in Perth.

The images are courtesy of AO.

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Design studio HGA has completed a pair of educational facilities, Mills Hall and Gibbons Center, that are among the first "commercially scaled mass-timber buildings" in the state of Maine.

Located near a grove of mature pine trees, the neighbouring buildings are in the southeast corner of the 215-acre (87-hectare) Bowdoin College campus in the city of Brunswick.

While different in size and colour, the buildings have asymmetrical pitched roofs that "play off each other from different vantage points".

Both buildings also have mass timber frames, wooden interior finishes and brick facades.

The materiality was influenced by the region's forests and the existing brick buildings at Bowdoin College, which was established in 1794, "at the dawn of the American republic".

Today, the private college has about 1,900 students from around the world.

The new buildings – officially called Barry Mills Hall and the John and Lile Gibbons Center for Arctic Studies – were designed by American studio HGA, which served as both architect and structural engineer.

The studio collaborated with Consigli Construction Co, which is based in the eastern US.

The larger of the two buildings is Mills Hall, a two-storey academic building that holds the departments of anthropology and digital and computational studies.

Encompassing 30,000 square feet (2,787 square metres), the building is rectangular in plan with a slight bend near the centre. Facades are clad in red brick, which is commonly found on campus.

Mills Hall contains four classrooms and 12 faculty offices, all of which are afforded views, daylight and operable windows for natural ventilation.

Additional areas include a 60-person cinema, an event space for up to 300 people, and various "huddle spaces" to encourage student collaboration.

In contrast to its red-brick neighbour, the Gibbons Center – which is dedicated to arctic research and education – is clad in a rustic, black-brick exterior.

"Gibbons has a more mysterious, introverted quality," said Nat Madison, design principal at HGA.

"The black brick renders the building like a silhouette, while the beacon-like window overlooks the quad, revealing views of the galleries from campus."

The facade treatment was dictated by the interior programme of the three-storey, 16,500-square-foot (1,533-square-metre) facility, which includes offices, classrooms, an archaeology lab and the Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum.

"A robust, high-performance building envelope and rigorous environmental controls allow the museum to protect and display sensitive artifacts," the team said.

Both buildings were constructed using a timber frame system, which HGA estimates has reduced the "building's embodied carbon footprint by approximately 75 per cent when compared to a traditional steel structure".

The buildings are the "first commercially scaled mass-timber buildings" in Maine, the team added.

Other sustainable aspects include an all-electric heating and cooling system, which derives power from a photovoltaic array on campus.

Interior finishes include polished concrete flooring, spruce laminated panels and wood-fibre acoustic ceiling panels.

The surrounding landscape was informed by Arctic topography.

"Excess soil from excavation was used to form mounds, which were sculpted to look like snow drifts," the team said.

Pedestrian pathways are covered in granite pavers that evoke "ice flows", while salvaged marble blocks from a regional quarry were used to create seating.

Moreover, the team planted more than 80 trees to replace felled trees and bolster the white pine grove to the east of the site.

Other recent academic projects include the eco-friendly revamp of a 1920s facility in California by Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects, and the completion of an Arizona science building by Grimshaw and Architekton that evokes rocks and saguaro cacti.

The photography is by Michael Moran.

Project credits:

Architect and structural engineer: HGA
Construction manager: Consigli Construction Co, Inc
MEP, lighting design: HGA
Civil engineering: Sebago Technics
Landscape design: Stimson
Mass timber: South County Post & Beam
Exhibit design: GSM Project
Acoustic and AV design: Acentech

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New York studio CAZA has completed a cast-concrete house in the Philippines, aiming to optimise passive cooling and natural ventilation.

FR House comprises a series of "concrete cubes" that facilitate cross-ventilation and regulate the building's temperature at the warmest times of the day.

According to Carlos Arnaiz, founder of CAZA, this is essential in a climate that is hot and humid year-round.

"Concrete was chosen for its efficiency in combining thermal mass and structural volume, allowing for effective cooling of the house while minimising the space required for the structure," he told Dezeen.

"The concrete absorbs heat during the hot, sunny days, keeping the living areas cool. When the temperature drops, the heat is released into the interiors," added Arnaiz.

FR House is located in Punta Fuego, a seaside town on the west coast of the Philippines' largest island, Luzon. CAZA, which has a satellite studio in nearby Manila, designed it as the home for a couple who had previously lived abroad.

"Upon returning to the Philippines, they wanted to create their own architectural haven for relaxation and entertainment, a personalised slice of paradise inspired by their love for innovative designs," said Arnaiz.

Set into a slope, the 660-square-metre house is laid out over two main storeys with a basement underneath.

On the ground floor, bedrooms and bathrooms are organised into four distinct quadrants. In between runs a connecting corridor, a staircase and a casual lounge.

Also on this level is a swimming pool and courtyard, flanked on the opposite side by a shaded, open-air staircase that provides a second route up to the floor above.

The upper level takes the form of a glazed box, containing a combined living room, kitchen and dining space. This opens out to a balcony with a view of the seafront.

"The clients' brief was for a house that balances reservation and self-expression," said Arnaiz.

"The emphasis was on creating a home that connects with nature, particularly an existing acacia tree on the property. Additionally, the clients sought a residence suitable for hosting large gatherings of friends and family, with a specific requirement for social spaces that offer compelling views of the ocean."

Despite the passive cooling strategies, an air conditioning system is fitted in some parts of the house.

However, thanks to the layout, its use is limited. It is only installed in the inner rooms, leaving the rest of the building naturally ventilated, and it is not required all the time.

"The passive cooling strategies have been highly effective – they led to a remarkable reduction of over 50 per cent in energy usage compared to the norm," Arnaiz claimed.

Rooms on the lower level are more private than those above. Instead of windows, light enters via angular skylights that capture different views of the ocean, sky and garden.

"The skylights serve as both optical and environmental functions, connecting each room to the sky and acting as air valves and heat extraction chimneys," added Arnaiz.

"These elements contribute to cross-ventilation within the house and minimise the need for mechanical cooling."

FR House is one of several projects that CAZA has been working on in the Philippines, including a new building for the Metropolitan Museum of Manila.

The studio's other works in the country include the 100 Walls Church in Cebu City and a proposal for a hospital that serves as a model for rural healthcare.

The photography is by Rory Gardiner.

Project credits

Architect: CAZA
Engineering consultant: RN Ferrer & Associates
Project manager: Argee Militante

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Mass Studies founder Minsuk Cho has been announced as the designer of this year's Serpentine Pavilion and the first visuals of his design revealed.

Named Archipelagic Void, the pavilion is set to open in London's Kensington Gardens in June 2024 and will be Seoul-based Korean architect Cho's first building in the UK.

The 23rd pavilion will consist of five structures, described as "islands", arranged in a star shape around a central, circular void. It was informed by small courtyards named madangs that are found at the centre of historic Korean houses.

According to Cho, who leads Korean studio Mass Studies, the building's design was informed by the site's history and an investigation of the previous 22 pavilions that have been built on the site.

"We began by asking what can be uncovered and added to the Serpentine site, which has already explored over 20 iterations at the centre of the lawn, from a roster of great architects and artists," said Cho.

"To approach this new chapter differently, instead of viewing it as a carte blanche, we embraced the challenge of considering the many existing peripheral elements while exploring the centre as a void."

"It also begins to address the history of the Serpentine Pavilion," he added. "By inverting the centre as a void, we shift our architectural focus away from the built centre of the past, facilitating new possibilities and narratives."

Each of the five structures arranged around the void will be designed to have a separate function. The structure directly facing the Serpentine Gallery building will be designed as an entrance.

Alongside it, the Auditorium will act as a gathering area, there will be a small Library and Tea House, while the largest structure called The Play Tower will have netted walls.

Cho is best known internationally as the co-curator of the Golden Lion-winning Korean pavilion at the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennale.

Other projects designed by Mass Studies include the Republic of Korea Pavilion at Shanghai Expo 2010 and the Songwon Art Centre.

Cho's pavilion follows Lebanese architect Lina Ghotmeh's circular timber pavilion last year and artist Theaster Gates' Black Chapel in 2022.

The prestigious commission has been running since 2000 when the late Zaha Hadid designed the first pavilion. Since then, the pavilions have been built by architects including Frida Escobedo, Bjarke Ingels and Sou Fujimoto.

The renders are by Mass Studies.

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Architecture studio BIG has released images of Not A Hotel Setouchi, a trio of holiday villas it has designed for Sagishima island in Japan.

Organised around courtyards and marked by sweeping tiled roofs, the three rounded structures are being created in collaboration with hospitality brand Not A Hotel.

BIG has visualised each structure nestled into the surrounding woodland, connected to a network of roads that weave through the landscape.

According to BIG's founder Bjarke Ingels, Not A Hotel Setouchi will draw on both Danish and Japanese architecture.

"Traditional Danish modern architecture is, in fact, very informed by traditional Japanese architecture," said Ingels.

"There's been a very fruitful conversation going between Danish and Japanese culture and, of course, with Not a Hotel on Sagishima island, we are very excited to continue this conversation and into the future."

Details about the project are set to be revealed later this year, but the visuals suggest each villa will feature large roof overhangs that shade the interior spaces.

The interiors will be fronted by expansive glass facades and patios that look out towards Seto Inland and the surrounding greenery on Sagishima, which is otherwise known as Sagi Island.

"It almost looks like a traditional Japanese landscape painting in a fully realised form," said Ingels.

Inside, the Not A Hotel Setouchi rooms are shown with textured, monolithic walls, teamed with wooden ceilings and paved flooring.

Among the rooms revealed in the images are a kitchen and dining area, alongside sunken seating areas from which infinity pools will extend.

The images also reveal scenic bedrooms, which look out to the ocean and nearby mountains.

The villas will be complete with a cosy sauna and cobbled courtyards that offer shared seating space organised around a fire pit.

Not A Hotel has also recently collaborated with Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto to design a disc-shaped villa with a swooping green roof on Ishigaki island.

The project is among those to have featured on Dezeen's list of 12 interesting projects to complete in 2024.

Founded by Ingels in 2005, BIG is an international architecture studio that has offices in Copenhagen, New York, London and Barcelona, as well as Shenzhen, Zurich, Los Angeles and Oslo.

Other recent projects by BIG include a pair of spiky high-rise buildings nearing completion in Copenhagen and a proposal for stepped housing overlooking Aegean Sea.

The visuals is courtesy of BIG and Not A Hotel.

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Dezeen's Pinterest board featuring university buildings has been viewed more than 200,000 times. As students across the southern hemisphere return to school, we've rounded up twelve of the best projects from our Pinterest.

This roundup features distinctive university buildings from across the globe that use a variety of different textures, colours and unusual materials to stand out.

Architecture studios including Woods Bagot and Diller Scofidio + Renfro used materials such as concrete, zinc and weathering-steel cladding to create university facilities with an innovative look.

Scroll down to see seven projects from our university buildings board on Pinterest.

The Deakin Law School, Australia, by Woods Bagot

Woods Bagot was commissioned to design this university building for Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia.

The new campus building is comprised of a zinc-clad volume and a fluted concrete tower. In addition to classrooms, the building features an amphitheatre, study areas, technology bars and individual workspaces.

Find out more about the Deakin Law School ›

The Prior Performing Arts Center, USA, by Diller Scofidio + Renfro

The Prior Performing Arts Center completed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro features an undulating facade of precast concrete and weathering steel panels.

The facility, which measures 8,000 square-foot, has a student centre, classrooms, two theatres and an art gallery.

Find out more about the Prior Performing Arts Center ›

The Interactive Learning Pavilion, USA, by LMN Architects

A series of walkways clad in perforated aluminium connect the two separate volumes that form this university building in Santa Barbara, California, by US studio LMN Architects.

The studio used varying shades of brick to pattern the volumes and incorporated curving walls, bridges, ramps, and terraces to give the appearance of a canyon.

Find out more about the Interactive Learning Pavilion › 

The Geo and Environmental Centre, Germany, by Kaan Architecten

The appearance of a block of stone informed Dutch studio Kaan Architecten's design for the Geo Environmental Centre, designed for the University of Tübingen in Germany.

The geological work which takes place within the building informed its design.

Find out more about the Geo and Environment Centre ›

INES Innovation Center, Chile, by Pezo von Ellrichshausen

The INES Innovation Center, designed by Pezo von Ellrichshausen for the University of Bío-Bío in Concepcion, was constructed using red-pigmented concrete that forms curved walls and circular voids (above and main image).

The Chilean architect's aim was to encourage people to be creative and use their imagination by demonstrating how a simple multi-storey building can become spatially complex.

Find out more about the INES Innovation Center ›

The Diwan, Canada, by AXIA Design Associates and Arriz + Co 

Canadian studios AXIA Design Associates and Arriz + Co worked together to design a pavilion and event space that can be found without the University of Alberta's Botanic Gardens.

The pavilion, which is known as the Diwan, was inspired by traditional Islamic design.

Find out more about the Diwan ›

The Walton Center of Planetary Health, USA, by Grimshaw and Architekton

Natural elements such as rocks and saguaro cacti informed the pleated facade of this building for Arizona State University, designed by architecture studio Grimshaw in collaboration with local studio Architekton.

The 281,000-square-feet facility encloses a variety of research institutes focused on topics such as food, water, energy and climate change.

Find out more about the Walton Center of Planetary Health ›

The Boston University Centre for Computing & Data Science, USA, by KPMB Architects

A series of cantilevered volumes define the Boston University Centre for Computing in Boston, which was designed by Canadian studio KPMB Architects.

The 19-story structure uses a closed-loop geothermal heating system and has solar panels as well as an optimized shading system provided by its louvres.

Find out more about the Boston University Centre for Computing & Data Science ›

The Hisao & Hiroko Taki Plaza, Japan, by Kengo Kuma and Associates

Japanese studio Kengo Kuma and Associates created this student hub for the Tokyo Institute of Technology.

The Hisao & Hiroko Taki Plaza is partially submerged below ground, its presence masked by a sloped roof adorned with wooden bleachers and plants.

Find out more about the Hisao & Hiroko Taki Plaza ›

The Burkina Institute of Technology, Burkina Faso, by Diébédo Francis Kéré

Burkinabe architect Diébédo Francis Kéré's studio built this university located in Burkina Faso, western Africa. Locally sourced clay was used for the walls and screens are made from eucalyptus wood.

The building forms part of Lycée Schorge Secondary School campus in Koudougou, which was also designed by the studio. It spans 2,100 square meters and comprises a sequence of repeated modules that encompass classrooms, lecture halls, and supplementary spaces.

Find out more about the Burkina Institute of Technology ›

The Creative Centre, England, by Tate+Co

London studio Tate+Co constructed the Creative Centre for York St John University in England.

The building has a variety of different timber finishes on its outer walls, including black-painted larch. Inside, it houses teaching spaces for music and computer science.

Find out more about the creative centre ›

The Science and Engineering Complex, USA, by Behnisch Architekten

Behnisch Architekten has designed a massive academic building for Harvard University, which it says showcases the "world's first hydroformed stainless-steel screen".

The 544,000-square-feet complex accommodates people working in robotics, bioengineering, applied physics and mechanical engineering.

Find out more about the Science and Engineering Complex ›

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An elevated box formed of exposed concrete forms the Meditation Chapel in Incheon, South Korea, designed by local studio Atelier Koma and architect Lee Eunsok.

Located near the coast of Gangwha County, the chapel sits at the top of a site that slopes down towards the sea, hugged from behind by dense forest and mountains.

Atelier Koma and Eunsok raised it above ground level on a concrete terrace that is dug into this slope, sheltering an entrance route that leads directly into the elevated worship spaces.

"The simple chapel volume, set in the vast nature, is constructed as a lifted box, signifying a separation from the secular world," explained Eunsok.

"It allows [visitors] to reach the open sky quickly and succinctly, and to stand directly as solitary individuals before the divine," he added.

Alongside the main worship space on the first floor, which is named the Sea Chapel, the building contains two smaller prayer spaces. These are the Closet Chapel and the Sky Chapel, both of which have been given a distinct character.

In the Sea Chapel, pews face an altar that stands in front of a large horizontal window, framing a view out over the ocean and distant mountains.

On the opposite wall, an organ is built into the exposed concrete, while narrow stained-glass windows are set within deep, faceted reveals on the southeast side.

"The 12 funnel-shaped, stained-glass windows serve as metaphors of nature," said Eunsok.

"Unlike the coloured glass of medieval churches that tried to concretely express the contents of the Bible, here, they fill the interior and exterior with the abstract motif of greenery, enabling visitors to continuously perceive nature," he continued.

The second-floor Closet Chapel is a smaller space intended for more private worship and contemplation. It is illuminated by a skylight that projects from the southeastern side of the building.

On the roof is the Sky Chapel, which offers 360-degree views of the surrounding landscape to create a "complete sense of awe". This rooftop space can be accessed independently of the building using an external spiral stair made of metal.

Both inside and out, the exposed concrete of the chapel's structure has been left exposed, as part of a minimalist design approach that is echoed in the blocky wooden furniture.

Other contemporary chapels recently featured on Dezeen include a wedding chapel in China by Syn Architects that is topped by an illuminated "moon" and a minimalist concrete chapel in Mexico by WRKSHP.

The photography is by Lim Juneyoung (Urban Azit) and Kim Yongseong.

Project credits:

Architect: Lee Eunseok and Atelier Koma
Project team: Atelier Koma
Stained Glass Artist: Chung Kyungmi
Orgelbau Meister: Hong Seonghun
Structural engineer: Edun Struc.
Equipment engineer: Jusung Eng.
Mechanical engineer: Jusung Eng.
Electrical engineer: Hangil Eng.
General contractor: Eldream Construction
Client: Sangok Church

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Dutch studio Kaan Architecten has added a visitor centre to the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, with a concrete form that references American memorial architecture.

The only American cemetery on Dutch soil, the Netherlands American Cemetery (NEAC) was dedicated in 1960 across a 26.5-hectare site near Maastricht to commemorate soldiers who died in the second world war.

In 2017, Kaan Architecten was commissioned by the American Battle Monuments Commission to add a visitor centre to the landscaped site, providing a small display space and an auditorium.

To respect the cemetery's existing "monumental ensemble" and reference American memorial architecture, the studio created a concrete and glass form that would "claim its own space while blending into the greater whole".

"The United States has a strong tradition when it comes to memorials," Kaan Architecten co-founder Vincent Panhuysen told Dezeen.

"Just look around in DC – one memorial after another," he continued.

"Many wars and struggles for freedom are commemorated, all designed and built in a very solid manner with the intention of preserving these sacrifices for eternity," added Panhuysen.

"All these monuments are significant constructions, carved in stone and cast in concrete, with the purpose of enduring for many generations. This inspiring concept has set the tone for the design of this building for us," he continued.

Located east of the cemetery's central court of honour, a winding pathway framed by trees gently slopes downwards into a concrete patio at the front of the visitor centre. Here, a row of concrete blocks provides seating.

The ground floor of the centre is wrapped entirely by full-height glazing, which is installed with minimal framing to make it "almost invisible".

Above, a facade of layered, poured concrete surrounds the upper story. Supported by the internal concrete walls, this allows a small light gap to be created between the facade and the roof.

"From a distance, the building appears as nothing more than a floating stone above the grass," said Panhuysen. "The museum within and beneath the hollowed-out stone is hardly visible from the outside, while the landscape and cemetery are ever-present from within."

Inside, the wood-lined auditorium and visitor facilities sit at the centre of the space behind poured concrete walls that mirror the appearance of the exterior.

Curved nooks at each corner of the auditorium aim to "enhance the perception of spaciousness" for the display areas, which tell the personal stories of some of those buried in the cemetery.

Led by Kees Kaan, Panhuysen and Dikkie Scipio, Kaan Architecten has offices in Rotterdam, São Paolo and Paris. The studio previously looked to ideas of monumentality in its extension of the Museum Paleis Het Loo in Apeldoorn.

Other recent projects by the studio include the Loenen Pavilion, which offers space to rest and reflect in another Dutch war cemetery.

The photography is by Simon Menges.

Project credits:

Architect: Kaan Architecten
Landscape designer: Karres + Brands landschapsarchitecten B.V., Hilversum
Structural designer and supervisor: Pieters Bouwtechniek, Delft
Civil designer and supervisor: Smits Rinsma, Zutphen
Mechanical and electrical designer and supervisor: HP Engineers, Gent
Building physics supervisor: DGMR, The Hague
Fire safety engineer: DGMR, The Hague
Acoustics advisor: DGMR, The Hague
Building costs advisor: B3 Bouwadviseurs, Wassenaar
Site coordination supervisor: INEX Architecten, Maastricht
Main contractor: Groep Van Roey, Rijkevorsel
Structural engineer: DeClerk & Partners, Waregem
Structural engineer contractor: C T de Boer, Nieuwegein
Mechanical engineer: Deltha, Diepenbeek
Electrical engineer: Maris, Heusden-Zolder
Civil engineer: Dirix, Elsloo

The post Kaan Architecten adds "monumental" visitor centre to second world war cemetery appeared first on Dezeen.

This week on Dezeen, the Royal Institute of British Architects named Ghanaian-Scottish architect and educator Lesley Lokko the recipient of this year's Royal Gold Medal.

Lokko is the first African woman to receive the prestigious award and, following in the footsteps of architects Zaha Hadid and Yasmeen Lari, became the third woman to win in her own right since the Royal Gold Medal was established in 1848.

In a video produced by the Royal Institute of British Architects, she reflected on her career in architecture and stated, "I very much hope that this medal demonstrates that it's worth it to think differently".

This week we also published a roundup of the 10 regions that will make up the Neom mega-development in northwest Saudi Arabia.

The best-known and largest Neom development is The Line (pictured above), which is set to be a city made up of two 500-metre-tall skyscrapers stretching 170 kilometres long.

The Trends in Evolution & Ecology journal named the controversial project one of this year's 15 most pressing global conservation issues, claiming it to be a substantial risk to migratory species.

Elsewhere in Saudi Arabia, architecture studio Populous unveiled its design for a stadium with seating on three sides and a retractable screen on the other.

Named the Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Stadium, after the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, it will form part of an entertainment district in Qiddiya and is a proposed venue for the 2034 World Cup.

In other architecture news, photographer Rasmus Hjortshøj captured the spiky exterior of the BIG-designed Kaktus Towers as they near completion in Copenhagen.

We also rounded up eight upcoming skyscrapers in the United States that are in various stages of development, including what is set to be the first supertall skyscraper in Miami and an "all-electric" skyscraper in Manhattan.

Meanwhile in London, activist collective BP or not BP? took to Instagram to urge architects not to work on the recently-announced redevelopment masterplan for the British Museum due to funding from oil company BP.

The collective stated that by accepting a £50 million donation, the British Museum is "allowing BP to continue its extraction and harm Global South communities across the world who face the worst impacts of the climate crisis".

In design news, former Ferrari-designer Lowie Vermeersch spoke with Dezeen about his newly created micro vehicle project, Komma, which aims to push traditional vehicles off the road.

Hoping to shape 21st-century urban design by reducing the amount of space needed for vehicles, the Komma car is an electric two-seater vehicle that features car-like seats placed in front of one another for a narrow width.

Projects that turned readers' heads this week included a garden pavilion in London that weaves around a Lebanese cedar tree, a home in Sydney topped with a roof garden and a bamboo-clad house in the Netherlands.

Our latest lookbooks featured kitchens with floor-to-ceiling cabinets that help keep interiors clutter-free and homes with sheds and outbuildings.

This week on Dezeen

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The post This week Lesley Lokko won the 2024 RIBA Royal Gold Medal appeared first on Dezeen.

Ecuadorian architect Juan Alberto Andrade has completed an extension to a multifamily housing complex with rammed earth walls in Guayaquil.

Known as El Retiro, the nine-square metre (97-square foot) addition doubles the common space of a 305-square metre (3,282-square foot) residential complex, protruding into the front setback along the street and blurring the line between the private housing and urban realm.

Following Mexica architect Lucía Martín López's idea of "the growing house," Juan Alberto Andrade utilised a strategy for adapting housing López calls "crystallographic growth": intervening within the limits of the property and following the area and height limits of the neighbourhood.

"Architecture is a response to the continuous need for the reinvention of a habitat," the team told Dezeen. "Housing is an activity, a built process."

Completed in 2022, the simple square addition is composed of a load-bearing, 30-centimetre-thick rammed earth wall – set on top of a limestone rock base – and bahareque masonry, which is a combination of a bamboo frame and clay plaster.

Despite being a different colour than the existing structure, the shape and materiality of the addition works to blend it with the house and the neighbourhood, as does the leafy landscaping along the street.

A lightweight pine roof structure slopes from the existing exterior wall to the edge of the addition and is topped by a green metal roof.

Inside, the resin floor serves as a smooth contrast to the raw wooden ceiling and built-in millwork.

A sliding iron door opens to the compact interior, which houses a social space, library, and storage along the street and steps up to a common workspace within the existing floor plan.

A freestanding metal core was inserted into the centre of the plan, joining the addition to the existing room with a kitchenette and bathroom.

A small planted atrium allows a 25-year-old tree to rise in the centre of the plan and light to filter into the building.

A square wooden window – protected by sliding metal shutters – looks across the street to a community park. The pivoting window frame can be opened and the deep structural wall becomes a secondary desk space.

"El Retiro is a project of extension and attachment from an independent body to a multifamily housing, that serves and transforms preexistence into a productive habitat," the team said.

It was an opportunity to "build specific, viable and productive solutions that attend the progressive growth of housing, and to take advantage of the residual spaces generated by Ecuador's policies".

Maximizing small spaces is a pillar of Andrade's practice. He previously designed a flexible installation for a micro apartment in Quito and converted a 1993 Chevy van into a plywood "house-on-wheels" with María José Váscones.

The photography is by JAG Studio.

Project credits:

Architect: Juan Alberto Andrade
Team: Cuqui Rodríguez, María José Váscones, Melissa Toasa, Victoria Peralta, Duda Rodriguez
Suppliers: Baldosas del Ecuador, Acesco, Megakywi

The post Juan Alberto Andrade adds workspace onto multifamily housing in Ecuador appeared first on Dezeen.

UK architecture studio Foster + Partners has completed an administration building in South Carolina with a winged roof that covers a skybridge. 

Located in Greenville, the Greenville County Administration Building contains offices and is part of a wider redevelopment of the county's central square by RocaPoint Partners.

The building consists of two separate glass volumes conjoined by a winged roof that covers a central walkway and an elevated skybridge connecting the third floor.

"The building will make a significant contribution to Greenville County, acting as a place for local people to meet in serene natural surroundings," said Foster + Partners head of studio Nigel Dancey.

"The overhanging roof converges to create a shaded plaza, with crisp edges that accentuate the building's unique form."

At its centre, the roof protrudes in a pyramidal canopy, which is made of a series of translucent panels framed with brown metal.

Colourful, integrated lighting illuminates the central space at night.

A glass curtain wall envelopes each volume. The team states the glass was used to symbolically erase the boundary between the public and the government.

Inside, offices and "vast" lobby spaces were distributed across the building's four storeys.

Warm-coloured metal was used for accents on the facade, which are a nod to the Greenville County landscape and the brick masonry historically used in the area.

This same warm tone is found in the Corten steel of a veterans memorial that fans out just in front of the building.

The building's interior lobby is a double-height space with lofted walkways that surround glass-enclosed offices. Supporting columns, wrapped in a metallic finish, create distinct visual and physical markers in the space.

The floors, walls and ceiling were finished in a bright white, contrasted by the dark framing of the glass curtain wall and black furniture in the lobby.

The building faces a public space which will eventually be populated with cafes, restaurants and a fountain, according to the team.

At its back, a long staircase runs down a slope to meet the surrounding sidewalk.

It will act as a link between surrounding green spaces in Greenville's central square, which includes the linear Falls Park.

Foster + Partners recently revealed designs for a mixed-use development with fluted colonnades for Miami Beach and topped out the new JPMorgan headquarters in New York City.

The photography is by Brandon Stengel

The post Foster + Partners tops South Carolina county building with "crisp edges" appeared first on Dezeen.

New York architect Dong-Ping Wong, who came up with the idea for a floating, cross-shaped swimming pool proposed for New York City, claims that he has been "frozen out" of the project.

Wong made the claim in a post on Instagram, which addressed the recent news that the + Pool project has been granted $16 million to advance.

In the post, Wong also expressed concern that his original civic vision for the project had been lost, claiming that "the ideals that grounded the project slowly gave way to interests that prioritized money, exposing the project to the levers of gentrification".

Wong, now director of New York-based practice Food Architects, led the design of + Pool under defunct studio Family along with PlayLab Inc co-founders Archie Lee Coates IV and Jeff Franklin and architect Oana Stănescu when it "was launched as a lark" in 2010.

The floating pool, which will reportedly filter up to 1,000,000 gallons of river water a day without the use of chemicals, was designed to float in the waterways of New York City to provide publicly accessible swimming.

"The goal wasn't to just build a pool"

"When I started + Pool, the goal wasn't to just build a pool," said Wong in his post. "The goal was to see if it was possible to make big civic changes to the city from the ground up for places that often get overlooked."

Since the project's launch, it has faced a series of starts and stops, as both its now-patented technology and design faced approval from municipal, commercial and environmental organizations.

In 2015, the 501c3 non-profit Friends of + Pool was formed to be the organising body of the project.

"When we decided to start a non-profit in 2015, it was based on the ideal that a non-profit would protect the project from private interest and ensure it remained a project for everyone," Wong said in his post.

"I was never invited back to a board meeting"

Since 2022, Wong claims that he began to be "frozen" out of the project after he raised internal concerns about what he describes as the "long-standing lack of diversity of the + Pool board".

"These issues were repeatedly dismissed, I was frozen out of the project," he wrote on Instagram.

"I wrote to the board in 2021 that we should establish a clear position on race and discrimination as an organization," Wong told Dezeen.

"About a year later, I joined a board meeting and listened as the board discussed a DEI statement that they were preparing. In the statement, the only actionable item was to take an annual survey of the number of people of colour involved in the project," he continued.

"I asked whether there was more being done and they said no. After that board meeting, which was in April 2022, I was never invited back to a board meeting, design or engineering meeting, gala or fundraising event or any internal discussions."

Record on accessibility "speaks for itself" says + Pool

Friends of + Pool disputes Wong's account.

In response to Wong's Instagram post, the non-profit told Dezeen that Wong had decided not to be involved in the progression of the organisation but rather to centre his work on the architecture of  + Pool. The organisation also claimed that Wong continues to be invited to all events and activities.

"+ Pool's record on swim education and swim accessibility for communities of colour speaks for itself," managing director of Friends of + Pool Kara Meyer told Dezeen.

"Friends of + Pool has made DEI a major priority in its policies and programs, which is why it was a centrepiece of both the Governor and the Mayor's announcements at the Jan 5 press conference."

None of the project's founders sit on the board, according to the non-profit, although it said that they continue to have a voice in making recommendations.

The other co-founders told Dezeen that they felt the project was still aligned with its original intent.

"We are proud of how the non-profit is fulfilling our original vision," co-founders Coates IV, Franklin and Stănescu told Dezeen in a joint statement.

"In fact, it's gone beyond what any of us imagined. This should be a moment of collective celebration and is when the work truly begins."

Funding approval "bittersweet"

A location for + Pool has also been disputed. In 2021, ​​New York's Economic Development Corporation confirmed a provisional site for the project north of the Manhattan Bridge, although Friends of + Pool told Dezeen that a final site has yet to be chosen by the government.

The provisional location sits between Wong's residence and the Food Architects office in New York City's Chinatown neighbourhood. While + Pool was "never originally intended to come to Chinatown" according to the designer, its proposed location further cemented a personal connection to the project for Wong.

"I'm Chinese-American, and we've had the office in Chinatown for seven or eight years, depending on where you count the borders of Chinatown," he told Dezeen.

"I felt like I could speak to and about the project and its relationship to underserved communities in a way that was much more personal and specific than I could before it was located here."

Wong called the recent $16 million of funds approved for the project "bittersweet" on Instagram.

"With + Pool closer to reality, I worry about how the leadership will treat the neighbourhood's long-standing communities – the majority of whom are people of colour and lower income," he wrote.

"I'm concerned about what concession to access might be made in the service of commercial interest and about what agreements with predatory developers might be taking place without my knowledge."

Friends of + Pool recently announced the $16 million will be used to create a 2,000-square-foot (185 square metres) version of + Pool to be built for testing come summer 2024, with plans to open it to swimmers in 2025. Original versions of the project held that the modular pool could reach up to 9,000 square feet (836 square metres).

According to the team, it will also serve as a pilot project for + Pool's design and technology to be used throughout New York state.

The images are courtesy Friends of + Pool.

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French-Brazilian architecture studio Triptyque has completed an 85-metre-tall residential tower in São Paulo that offers its occupants indoor-outdoor living.

The 24-storey building is part of the Onze22 development, which includes a smaller adjacent structure. In the residential tower, balconies wrap the building on three sides, allowing apartments to extend outdoors.

Triptyque aimed to offer "total fluidity between exterior and interior", a quality that is not typical in high-rise homes.

It did this by combining floor-to-ceiling glazing with concrete floorplates that project out from the building volume.

This means apartments can be completely opened up on at least one side, allowing living spaces to merge with covered balconies that range from widths of seven to 22 metres.

The balconies are interspersed with sv vertical semi-opaque shading screens and some of these balconies integrate planting along the edges.

"Each point on the balcony invites you to observe São Paulo, providing endless views and, at the corners, the possibility of letting your gaze go in different directions," said Triptyque co-founder Gui Sibaud.

Onze22 is the fourth project that the Paris- and São Paulo-based studio has designed for Brazilian housing developer Idea!Zarvos.

Known for its innovative approach, the developer often works with well-known architects. Previous schemes include the 360º Building designed by Isay Weinfeld and Ourânia designed by Studio MK27.

This project is located in Vila Madalena, an affluent, bohemian neighbourhood in the west of São Paulo.

It provides 243 homes, with 88 studio apartments in the smaller of the two blocks and a mix of one- and two-bedroom apartments in the 85-metre tower.

The entire building has a sense of visual lightness, thanks to the slender concrete floorplates. These are supported by concrete columns that extend through the structure from top to bottom, becoming pilotis where they meet the ground.

"Pilotis allow for a smooth and diffused transition between the public – the street – and the private," added Triptyque co-founder Olivier Raffaëlli.

The two blocks are linked by a four-storey podium, although the scale of the smaller block is largely hidden due to it being partially sunken into the sloping ground.

A landscape scheme by garden designer Rodrigo Oliveira surrounds the base of the building in tropical greenery.

The aim was for it to "emerge from a green belt as if it were a dominant living tree", according to Triptyque.

Triptyque is responsible for many buildings in São Paulo, with other notable examples including the Red Bull Station cultural centre and the Leitão 653 creative studios.

Other recent additions to the São Paulo skyline include the Platina 220 skyscraper, which recently became the Brazilian city's tallest building, and the MN15 Ibirapuera residential tower.

The photography is by Maíra Acayaba and Edu Castello.

Project credits

Client: Idea!Zarvos
Architecture: Triptyque Architecture
Project team: Gui Sibaud, Olivier Raffaëlli, Carol Bueno, Greg Bousquet, João Vieira, Renata Cupini, Julio Prieto, Larissa Higa, Victor Hertel, Marina Olivi, Natália Shiroma
Landscaping: Rodrigo Oliveira

The post Triptyque wraps Onze22 high-rise in Brazil with large balconies appeared first on Dezeen.

Clay-plaster walls, exposed brickwork and tile floors aim to evoke a feeling of a traditional Moroccan home at this London house, overhauled by local studios Merrett Houmøller Architects and All & Nxthing.

Merrett Houmøller Architects and interior designer All & Nxthing renovated and extended the Victorian home for clients who have travelled extensively to Morocco and the Mediterranean.

While the original proportions of the terraced home are largely maintained, the rear has been extended with a double-height, skylit kitchen and dining room with an angular ceiling.

Drawing on the internal courtyards commonly found in riads – traditional Moroccan houses – the dining space is overlooked by the first-floor staircase landing.

"Our clients have travelled extensively in Morocco and the Mediterranean generally, and were inspired in many ways by the architecture and climate there," said Merrett Houmøller Architects co-founder Robert Houmøller.

"Our brief was to create tall, light-filled spaces, with Moroccan riads being a big influence on the overall form," he told Dezeen.

A continuous brick-paved floor steps down from the original home into the extension, continuing into a garden with a small pool and concrete terrace.

This design is intended to blur the boundary between inside and outside while providing texture underfoot.

Continuing this theme of texture, the angled walls and ceiling of the dining area are lined with clay plaster, while the main kitchen counter is backed by exposed brickwork as a "reminder of the original fabric of the building".

The staircase has been updated with oak cladding and a steel balustrade.

"The interior materiality was also influenced by Mediterranean precedents," All & Nxthing creative director Steve Nash told Dezeen.

"Natural earth-based materials such as the handmade brick floor, clay-plaster walls, band-sawn timber joinery and patinated copper were used," he added.

At the opposite end of the home to the extension, a formal living room sits alongside a lounge space with a fireplace and an area for home working.

This has been given more minimal finishes with angled elements that reference the extension's geometry.

"We wanted to mirror the boldness of the architecture within the interior designs," Nash told Dezeen.

"We created subtle angles, such as each kitchen handle having tapered ends to match the angle of the walls, and the classic living room alcove joinery having angled base cabinets," he added.

On the first floor, the main bedroom occupies the front of the home alongside a large bathroom, while an attic extension above contains an ensuite guest bedroom and another study space.

Merrett Houmøller Architects was founded in 2014 by architects Peter Merrett and Houmøller, and All & Nxthing was established in 2015 by Nash.

Previous projects by Merrett Houmøller Architects include the renovation of an apartment with an exposed concrete structure, and a mobile kitchen created as a base for the Refugees and Befriending Project run by the British Red Cross in London.

The photography is by Helen Leech.

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Double-height balconies and outdoor teaching spaces enliven the facades of The British School in Tokyo, which architecture practice Heatherwick Studio has completed in Japan.

The school is located in the south of Azabudai Hills, a mixed-use district designed by Heatherwick Studio, which is made up of various timber buildings defined by curving roofs and greenery.

Heatherwick Studio's and Japanese developer Mori Building Company's ambition for the school was to be visually distinct yet complementary to these neighbouring structures.

"The client wanted the school to have a different but complementary character to the rest of the Azabudai Hills scheme," the studio told Dezeen.

"As such, it nestles within the pavilion and landscape scheme we've created, overlooking the central garden plaza to the north," it continued.

"The client also wanted it to have a strong individual presence on the street that didn't feel commercial or business-like. They wanted it to feel friendly and approachable, like a school!"

According to Heatherwick Studio, the presence of the school within the district references the impact of Stanton Williams' placement of the arts college Central Saint Martins in the heart of King's Cross in London.

"We felt that – as seen with Central Saint Martins at the centre of the King's Cross development – having a school can be a key anchor to a project, bringing life and activity to the scheme from different angles," the studio explained.

To achieve its distinct identity, the studio animated the building's facades with a mix of outdoor play spaces and double-height balconies.

Curved brick details and fluted columns were also designed visually soften the blocky form of the building, which was dictated by the given site's boundaries and the client's programme requirements.

"The plot boundary and programme were already fixed, which resulted in an, approximately, 100-metre-long building of seven storeys," the studio explained.

"Because of the block-like form, we worked hard to adjust its character for its three main elevations, using the required outdoor learning spaces and playgrounds to bring variety to the building's appearance."

The balconies can be seen along the eastern facade, arranged in a cascading formation and overlooking a garden at the centre of Azabudai Hills. Meanwhile, the stepped columns can be found all around the building.

"The stepped columns both push through and blend open to create fluting ceilings under the main outdoor terraces, drawing the eye up along its elevations," the studio explained.

Inside, The British School in Tokyo has 40 classrooms, alongside music rooms, libraries, a laboratory and a roof garden with a vegetable patch.

Each year group also has a common area, which opens onto the adjoining outdoor spaces. They can also be connected to the classrooms through sliding timber screens.

A range of sports facilities, including an indoor hall, gymnasium and swimming pool, alongside two outdoor pitches, complete the building.

Elsewhere in the district, Heatherwick Studio has created residential buildings, retail and restaurant spaces, two temples, art galleries and offices, which collectively replaced more than 200 existing structures on the site.

The British School in Tokyo's brickwork and columns are intended as a reference to the facade of the old Azabu Post Office that previously occupied a neighbouring plot.

Heatherwick Studio is a London architecture and design studio founded by British designer Thomas Heatherwick in 1994.

Its other recent architectural projects include proposals for a public library in Columbia and an exhibition hall in Shanghai.

The photography is by Raquel Diniz and the video is courtesy of Heatherwick Studio.

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Architecture studio Populous has revealed its design for the Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Stadium in Qiddiya, Saudi Arabia, which is a proposed 2034 World Cup venue.

Named after Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, the stadium in the Qiddiya entertainment district will have a retractable roof and pitch.

One side of the stadium will be a large, retractable LED wall, which will be used to broadcast live events, films and laser shows. When retracted, it will reveal an opening that allows the pitch's three-sided seating to overlook the 200-metre-high Tuwaiq cliff that the stadium is perched upon.

"It is set to be the world's first fully integrated venue with a combined retractable roof, pitch and LED wall – an architectural innovation offering unparalleled versatility and allowing the space to transform into different event modes in a matter of hours," said Populous.

Digital screens will cover the exterior of the geometric venue, which appears to rise out of the cliffside in a series of staggered blocks.

Surrounding the stadium will be towers of sports and entertainment spaces connected by an internal street, also covered by LED screens, that will direct visitors to openings with cliff-edge views.

"The stadium exterior is formed by a collection of modular cubes that act as an extension of the Tuwaiq cliff, framed by portals that glimpse into the future of the city," said Populous senior principal Rhys Courtney.

"The cubes and portals spill down the cliff to create a massive digital canvas that interacts with users at different scales – from street-level vistas to the three-sided seating bowl experience, to citywide views – transcending the stadium typology."

The stadium forms part of Saudi Arabia's bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup, with Populous designing the 45,000-seat stadium to FIFA requirements.

It will become the home ground of Saudi Arabis's pro league football clubs Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr, but the stadium is set to host a range of events in sports, entertainment and culture, including boxing, esports, concerts and theatre performances.

"The Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Stadium represents a quantum leap in stadium design and a new generation of digitally-enabled innovation," said Populous managing director Chris Lee.

"The level of embedded technology will enable both incredible gaming and entertainment experiences and a new way for fans to watch and enjoy football itself."

The Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Stadium will be the focal point of a wider entertainment and esports district for Qiddiya designed by Populous, which is also set to include a neon-lit esports arena.

With construction underway to the west of Riyadh, Qiddiya is one of 14  "giga-projects" planned to boost tourism in Saudi Arabia and is 100 per cent owned by the Public Investment Fund.

As well as the Populous-designed stadium and esports area, the entertainment megaproject will contain concert halls, a race track, a Jack Nicklaus-branded golf course and a Six Flags theme park with the world's longest, tallest and fastest rollercoaster.

Populous designed the stadium to be well integrated into Qiddiya city and connected to other venues in the gaming and esports district through park-and-ride facilities and drop-off zones. Hotel, shopping and dining areas will be built close by.

Low-energy, climate-controlled facilities will ensure comfortable temperatures year-round, including a lake built under the stadium that reuses captured rainwater to pre-cool the air conditioning system.

Other designs by Populous include the redevelopment of Manchester City's Etihad Stadium to add a hotel and museum and the Geodis Park stadium in Nashville, which the studio claims is the US's largest purpose-built soccer stadium.

The images and video are courtesy of Populous.

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Architecture studio Hassell has designed the conceptual Lunar Habitat Master Plan, a scalable system of inflatable pods that could be partly constructed from moon materials and 3D-printed on site.

Designed for the European Space Agency's Discovery program, the settlement would be designed to house 144 people and comprise residential spaces as well as sports arenas, restaurants and large greenhouses.

Hassell described the Lunar Habitat Master Plan as "the next step in the creation of the first permanent human settlement on the moon".

"Access to space is getting cheaper every year, so over the next two decades space travel will evolve hugely," Hassell's global head of design Xavier de Kestelier said.

"The moon is an extremely hostile place to live. With no atmosphere, humans need novel infrastructure to access water and oxygen whilst being subjected to high degrees of radiation," he added.

"We need to start planning for how larger communities can not just survive, but also thrive and live on the moon."

Hassell's moon base would be built from modular components that would include inflatable pods covered in 3D-printed lunar soil to shield their inhabitants from lethal levels of radiation.

"Shipping anything to the moon will always be costly, so we therefore decided to create the habitats out of inflatable modules which would be light and compact," De Kestelier said.

"Inflatable habitats on the moon might sound like science fiction, but these types of inflatable membranes are already being tested on the International Space Station."

It would be constructed using hexagon-shaped interlocking building blocks, a design that was informed by tetrapods, which are used in wave-dissipating structures to enforce seawalls and prevent erosion.

Satellite panels would be brought from Earth and installed at even intervals.

Hassell added that the fact that the moon base masterplan is scalable means it's also more sustainable.

"Hassell's scalable habitat system considers innovative interlocking mechanisms that allow for greater flexibility when building, so that the embodied energy contained in the hexapods can be reconfigured to reflect the size of future settlements – providing a flexible and sustainable solution," the studio said.

The lunar base was designed to be built near the edge of the Shackleton Crater at the South Lunar Pole, as the crater has the potential to hold frozen water.

The Lunar Habitat Master Plan could be used by national agencies such as NASA, ESA and Jaxa, as well as by commercial space companies, and was unveiled on stage today at the ESA's Space Research and Technology Centre in the Netherlands.

It follows another concept for inflatable moon buildings, the Moon Village by architect studio SOM. Danish studio BIG has also planned to create 3D-printed moon buildings for its Project Olympus with 3D-printed building company ICON.

Images are courtesy of Imigo unless otherwise stated.

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Architecture studios in Central Europe have been chronically overlooked, claims Chybik + Kristof co-founder Ondřej Chybík in this interview.

Chybík, who says his own studio is the largest in the Czech Republic, is on a mission to put architecture from his home country – as well as Slovakia, Poland and Hungary – firmly on the global design map.

"No-one can name anybody" from Central European architecture scene

"If I go somewhere and I talk about Czech architecture or Central European architecture, almost no-one can name anybody," he told Dezeen.

"I think there is a huge opportunity to show off a bit," he added. "I'd like to work on that for the next decade – not just to promote our studio, but to explain what our generation is about to the general public all around the world."

To that end, Chybik + Kristof will next month open an office in London, sharing a space with local studio Haptic.

That is partly because Chybik + Kristof has become a big fish in a small pond at home, he explains, but also to raise the international profile of its peer group.

"The true motivation was to offer the opinion of our generation to other territories – our right to be a voice in the contemporary architecture discussion," Chybík said.

In an attempt to contribute to that discussion, Chybik + Kristof is accompanying the opening of its London outpost with the launch of its inaugural monograph, titled Crafting Character.

The book spotlights in detail 14 of the studio's projects, organised around eight themes that it considers important to contemporary architecture including adaptive reuse, affordability and materiality.

"The profession is changing"

Chybík explained that the book's central concept picks up on the changing nature of the architecture profession in a world where the built environment is beset with issues, chiefly sustainability and affordability.

"We believe that buildings should have a certain character, but not in one direction," he said.

"Previous generations of architects were very proud of their very strong formal style. I think that's not the case today, because the profession is changing from making design into solving problems – the architectural form should represent the quality of the solution."

As a result, he argues, the idea of studios maintaining a trademark house style that they apply to all projects is losing relevance.

"Each project is different, and I believe that there's no common architectural language for such diverse topics – that's very fundamental."

"I think we should still care about the beauty, about proportions, about materiality, and those classical aspects of architecture," he added.

"But on the other hand, or on top of it, we should also be aware that there are other issues we have to take into consideration."

"We were competing against each other"

Chybík traces his own interest in architecture back to childhood memories of visiting the Faculty of Architecture at Brno University of Technology, where his father was a professor.

"I saw the corridors full of sketches and models, and architecture students smoking in the corridors with long hair, and it impressed me a lot," he recalled. "Since then I knew that I wanted to be an architect."

Later studying architecture at Brno himself, he was successful in landing several student competitions – working up a healthy rivalry with classmate Michal Kristof.

"We were not working together, we were competing against each other," explained Chybík. "It motivated me a lot, because there was some young Slovak guy doing the same competitions as me, and we got a certain monopoly in student competitions within the country."

In 2010, soon after graduating, the pair were talking in a Venice bar during the architecture biennale in the early hours of the morning when they decided to open a studio together.

Having been established later that year, Chybik + Kristof now employs 60 people, including, Chybík claims, more architects than any other Czech firm.

But Chybík says Chybik + Kristof is just one of a number of architecture studios in the region doing noteworthy work.

"Particularly in my country, there's something very interesting happening, because we are not the unicorns," he said.

"We are maybe the largest, but there's lots of like 30-40 people architecture studios – I can count like 10, maybe, 15 this size," he added. "It's becoming a hotspot of contemporary architecture, in my opinion."

Unique historical perspectives

In the Czech Republic, Chybík namechecks Mjölk Architekti, Bod Architekti and OVA, as well as the Center for Architecture and Metropolitan Planning in Prague.

Then there is Gut Gut, Plural and Sadovsky & Architects in Slovakia and Hungary's Archikon and Paradigma Ariadné.

A wave of Czech architecture studios were founded during the 1990s as the country underwent rapid transformation following the fall of the Iron Curtain, appointing themselves the moniker "the Golden Eagles".

Though this generation of architects rose to prominence within the Czech Republic, a language barrier meant they struggled to promote their work abroad, according to Chybík.

"So I'm very happy that my generation is able to communicate and is also willing to present their projects internationally," he said.

"If I open Dezeen today, I can see lots of Czech architecture firms publishing their projects, and many of them are my age."

Now, the region's unusual recent history – from communism to the capitalism of the 1990s – in combination with a significant need for new infrastructure, means Chybík believes it is fertile ground for new modes of architectural exploration.

He points, for instance, to Chybik + Kristof's transformation of a brutalist bus station (pictured top) constructed in the 1980s under communism but already in a dilapidated state due to a lack of investment by its private owner, as well as its project to build an ice-hockey arena in Jihlava.

"There are always tools to achieve a positive perception among users"

Meanwhile, he cites the studio's Lahofer Winery as the very epitome of Chybik + Kristof's "crafting character" concept.

Completed in 2020, it features an undulating roof bearing a publicly accessible amphitheatre that was not part of the brief.

"The amphitheatre is a magnificent tool, not just for the promotion of the brand of the winery, but to bring people together and to let them enjoy a cultural event every Saturday in the middle of vineyards," said Chybík.

"Even though the winery has this very contemporary architectural language and I was afraid about if the community will take it or not, they're always telling me that they experience lots of great moments in this particular place, it's great," he added.

"There are always tools to achieve such a positive perception [among] the users of architecture."

This type of approach, Chybík argues, is key to making the building industry more sustainable – though he resists using that term himself.

"The average age of a commercial building in Europe is around 40 years, and that's something that is extremely unsustainable," he said.

"I think one of the major [reasons] why we demolish those buildings is that they are lacking a character, and they are not flexible enough for future transformation."

"Our mission is to create buildings people like and will maintain," he added.

"I don't want to say sustainable – I hate this word, it's overused. I don't want to be another architect talking about sustainability. Every building we design should be designed in this way."

The photography is by Alex shoots buildings unless otherwise stated.

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Global architecture studio SOM has designed a terminal for the Kempegowda International Airport in Bangalore, India, that draws on the city's heritage and landscape.

Designed by SOM as a "terminal in a garden", the plant-filled project, created in collaboration with Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla (AJSK), and Grant Associates, aims to propose a calming alternative to the bustle of a typical international airport.

"Terminal 2 (T2) inverts every expectation of how an airport can look and feel," design principal Peter Lefkovits told Dezeen.

"With a focus on rich, sensory experiences rooted in nature, we created a calming oasis within the bustle of an international airport."

The 255,000-square-metre terminal is fronted by a transit hub that will serve as a key connection point between the existing Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) and Bangalore city, while also accommodating outdoor retail, event and entertainment space.

Inside, the studio adorned the terminal's engineered bamboo structure with hanging plants and greenery, creating bright and airy interiors lit by roof openings.

"Inspired by the 'garden city' heritage of Bengaluru, India, the client originally proposed a simple, yet captivating idea: to design a 'terminal in a garden'," Lefkovits explained.

Visitors navigate the terminal through a sequence of spaces connected by bridges and pathways, interspersed by water features and stepped gardens.

The "forest belt", a 90-metre-wide landscaped stretch, provides distinction between the main block – housing check-in and security – and the terminal's gates.

Complementing the terminal's bamboo structure, bespoke furnishings clad with locally sourced granite, red bricks and traditionally woven rattan were used throughout the interior.

"The idea was to radically reimagine the travel experience by connecting passengers to nature along each step of their journey," Lefkovits said.

According to the studio, the implementation of sustainable strategies enables the terminal to run solely on renewable energy.

"[The terminal] also implements sophisticated, holistic sustainable design strategies," Lefkovits explained.

"Some of these strategies include extensive solar sharing and intelligent building systems, as well as the use of renewable materials."

The terminal increases the airport's annual capacity by 25 million passengers, with the structural system also designed to enable future alterations as needed.

Other projects recently completed by SOM include the restoration of New York's historic Lever House and a block-long timber bridge connected to Manhattan's High Line.

The photography is by Studio Recall.

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From the JPMorgan Chase headquarters in New York designed by UK architecture studio Foster + Partners to be "all-electric" to Miami's first supertall skyscraper, we round up eight skyscrapers coming to the United States.

In various stages of development, the projects below are underway, with Jahn Studio's 1000 M in Chicago and SOM's Two Manhattan West already at full height in their respective cities.

Some, like the Wilson Tower in Austin, have faced various construction delays, though the Texan city holds more spaces on this list than skyscraper-studded New York City.

Read on for eight upcoming projects in cities across the US.

1000 M, Chicago, by Helmut Jahn

Located in the Historic Michigan Avenue District of Chicago, 1000 M is a 73-storey skyscraper spanning 788 feet (240 metres), that consists of an angular base topped with a curved edge tower.

Originally, the tower was planned to reach 832 feet (254 metres) tall, but restrictions in the area caused the developers to reduce the height. The tower's topped out in late summer 2023.

Find out more about 1000 M ›

Two Manhattan West, Manhattan, by SOM

Two Manhattan West is one of a pair of towers supported by "mega columns" at their bases.

It is part of the Manhattan West development, which covers more than seven million square feet combined (650,321 square metres), with a masterplan by SOM that includes residential, retail, hotel and office spaces just north of New York's High Line.

After nine years of development, the project will be completed in early 2024.

Find out more about Two Manhattan West ›

Sixth and Guadalupe, Austin, by Gensler 

Joining several skyscrapers under construction in Austin, Gensler's Sixth and Guadalupe will reach 875 feet (267 metres) high and consist of two industrial glass and steel volumes atop a podium.

It will host residential and office programs, as well as the city's highest sky pool deck.

Wilson Tower, Austin, by HKS

The Wilson Tower by HKS was set to be the tallest building in Texas at 80 storeys before its height was halved after an unsuccessful review in January 2023.

Now spanning 45 storeys, a new iteration of the design maintains the brise soleil wrapped facade, while the team plans to adjust the ground floor programming.

Find out more about Wilson Tower ›

JPMorgan Chase headquarters, Manhattan, by Foster + Partners 

Topped out in November 2023, the new JPMorgan Chase headquarters by Foster + Partners will be New York's "largest all-electric tower", according to the architecture studio.

Located at 270 Park Avenue, it has 60 storeys and reaches 1,388 feet (423 metres) high, with a stilted base raised 80 feet (27 metres) off the ground.

Find out more about JPMorgan Chase headquarters ›

Waterline, Austin, by KPF

Estimated to be completed in 2026, the 1,022-foot-tall (312 metres) mixed-used Waterline tower is set to be the tallest in the state of Texas, unseating the JPMorgan Chase Tower in Houston.

Located along Waller Creek, the building will consist of 74 storeys distributed across three distinct volumes and separated by open-air spaces supported by surrounding columns.

Find out more about Waterline ›

The Waldorf Astoria Miami, Miami, by Sieger Suarez Architects and Carlos Ott

Set to be Miami's first supertall skyscraper, according to developer PMG, the Waldorf Astoria Miami will contain 100 storeys and reach 1,049 feet (319.7 metres) high.

Located in Downtown Miami, it consists of nine offset cubes intended to emphasise the structure's suspension and height, which will host the five-star Waldorf Astoria hotel as well as private residences.

Find out more about the Waldorf Astoria Miami ›

Tower 36, Miami, by KPF

Unanimously approved as of October 2023, Tower 36 located in Miami's Design District will be 635 feet (193 metres) tall and will be the tallest office building in the district, according to KPF.

The building will consist of a tapered tower atop a rectangular base, with terraces on all office floors that are detailed with light bronze soffit accents.

Header rendering is of JPMorgan Headquarters courtesy of DBOX for Foster + Partners.

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Local studio MacDonald Architects has designed the safety nets recently installed on each side of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to prevent people from jumping from its sides.

Designed by MacDonald Architects on behalf of Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District (GGBHT) – the state district that manages the bridge, the deterrent nets were completed on earlier this month.

According to the GGBHT, the nets were installed on 95 per cent of the 87-year-old bridge, with some sections currently under construction having vertical fences installed.

The marine-grade stainless steel nets were installed 20 feet (six metres) below the sidewalk and stretch 20 feet out from the bridge, suspended at intervals by red-painted steel arms that match the colour of the bridge.

"The net is a proven design"

They run through the whole 1.7-mile length (2.7 kilometre) of the bridge and were installed to prevent people from taking their own lives by jumping from the bridge.

They are meant to catch people who jump from the bridge, allowing the on-site security to retrieve the individuals from the net.

According to GGBHT, there have been an average of 30 confirmed suicides every year on the bridge for the past 20 years.

"The purpose of the net is to reduce the number of deaths associated with individuals jumping off the Bridge," said GGBHT in a statement.

"The net is a proven design that deters people from jumping, serves as a symbol of care and hope to despondent individuals, and, if necessary, offers people a second chance."

Work began on the project in 2017, and the GGBHT reported the net to be "already working as intended", saying that less than half of the average number of people died on the bridge in 2023.

"There have also been several instances where people have jumped into the net, and we, along with partner agencies, have successfully rescued many of them," added GGBHT.

The nets come after years of advocacy from local groups including the Bridge Rail Foundation, which comprises people in the community with personal connections to the issue.

"The prices are astronomical"

MacDonald Architects has been the main design consultant on the bridge since the 1980s, implementing transit retrofits like bike rails and improving the structure's seismic rating over the years.

The studio's principal Donald MacDonald spent years researching various suicide prevention barriers in order to submit recommendations to the local government on possible design solutions.

According to a report by the Guardian, the net was approved more than a decade ago but has faced numerous challenges including local complaints due to the historic nature of the bridge and construction delays, some stemming from a lawsuit launched by contractors.

MacDonald told Dezeen that the biggest challenges in the design were the variety of inputs from local interests, the impact of wind on the bridge when new aspects were installed along with the high costs of the project.

For the Golden Gate Bridge, the design called for modifications to the travellers – platforms installed under the bridge for maintenance.

"The prices are astronomical," said MacDonald. According to GGBHT, $224 million (£130 million) was spent on the installation.

The changes to the bridge also underwent a historical evaluation, according to MacDonald, who has installed a variety of deterrent systems from fences to nets on bridges in the United States and Canada.

"It had to comply with the national guidelines," he told Dezeen. "When I did it, there wasn't a lot of data available on bridges. So I had to work out a whole system evaluating the bridge in a historical format."

Other newer structures have become locations for suicide, sparking controversy from local communities.

These include the Heatherwick Studio-designed Vessell in New York City, a sculptural vertical walkway that was forced to close in 2021 after multiple suicides followed its 2019 opening, even after a "buddy system" was put in place by its owners.

The photography is courtesy of Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District.

International helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org. In the USA, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 800-273-8255, while in the UK the Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123.

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British studio Tikari Works has completed an outbuilding for a south London residence that is framed by a latticed timber roof structure and configured to weave around a Lebanese cedar tree.

Tikari Works crafted the project, named A Room Around a Tree, to have a minimal impact on the woodland setting while accommodating a versatile internal space and adjoining terrace for the client's family.

"The core concept of the design is to celebrate the mature cedar tree that is the focal point of the garden whilst creating a flexible space for our client's growing family," Tikari Works director Ty Tikari told Dezeen.

"The timber beams are extra deep and stained black to create a meditative internal atmosphere and bring the verdant greens of the garden to the foreground," he continued.

Intending to create a dialogue with the landscape, the edge of the building was wrapped around surrounding tree branches and partially bounded by transparent structural glazing.

"The curved form of the project allows the building to engage with the language of the garden as the building edge weaves between the natural features on the site," Tikari explained.

"Internally, this creates a sense of compression and expansion that is used to organise the building functions without the need for physical boundaries."

According to the studio, A Room Around a Tree was built using light-handed construction techniques to safeguard the vegetation, including a low-impact "floating" ring beam and mini-pile foundation system.

"The primary driver for the layout of the project was to ensure that the building maintained a minimum distance of two metres to all trees on the site, ensuring that the health of the trees would be undisturbed," Tikari explained.

"This restriction combined with the program and movement around the site helped to create the parti of the project, which in turn informed the structural strategy for touching the ground lightly."

Internally, the studio integrated custom joinery, including an oak kitchenette, cast-concrete sink and mobile storage unit to encourage future flexibility.

"The everyday aspects of the pavilion – the kitchen, bathroom and storage units – are placed within sculptural forms, enriching their prosaic nature with a more soulful quality," Tikari said.

"Readily available, off-the-shelf materials, such as corrugated cladding, blockwork and stained timber helped keep the project on budget, whilst the bespoke detailing of these materials enrich their tactile nature and express our joy in making."

London-based Tikari Works was established in 2015 by Nicola and Ty Tikari.

The studio has previously completed a block of apartments in Peckham covered in rust-red tiles and a partially subterranean timber-screened home in south London previously occupied by a garage.

The photography is by Dan Glasser.

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In this video produced by the Royal British Institute of Architects, Ghanaian-Scottish architect and educator Lesley Lokko reflects on her career and Royal Gold Medal win, which was announced today.

"There's been a lot of talk about how what I do isn't architecture," reflected Lokko.

"It was always very clear to me that there was a difference between the profession of architecture and the discipline of architecture. I think in the last 10 years, we're beginning to see those two things come slightly closer together," she continued.

"I very much hope that this medal demonstrates that it's worth it to think differently. It's worth it to go off-piste or to go off the beaten track."

Lokko is the first African woman to receive the prestigious Royal Gold Medal from the Royal British Institute of Architects (RIBA) since it was established in 1848.

She is also the third woman to win it in her own right – rather than as part of a team – following in the footsteps of architects Zaha Hadid and Yasmeen Lari.

In the RIBA film, the organisation's president Muyiwa Oki said Lokko was selected as the 2024 recipient for her "groundbreaking work as an educator, curator and as an author".

He is among several interviewees who also feature in the video, with others including architect Lanre Gbolade, Lokko's Royal Gold Medal nominator.

"In professor Lokko, with her progressive teaching methods to both present and future practitioners, as well as transformative and influential leadership capabilities spanning well over 30 years and counting, we truly do have a once-in-a-generation agent of change," said Gbolade.

Lokko is best known as the founder of the African Futures Institute (AFI), a school of architecture in Accra, and for her written work including the White Papers Black Marks essays.

More recently, she was the curator of the 18th International Architecture Biennale in Venice, which explored decarbonisation and decolonisation through the lens of Africa.

She will be formally presented with the 2024 Royal Gold Medal on 2 May 2024.

The video is courtesy of RIBA.

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The impact that The Line megacity in Neom could have on birds has been named among the most pressing conservation issues for 2024.

Planned for nine million people, the planned city in Saudi Arabia was highlighted in the Trends in Evolution & Ecology journal as one of 15 key issues of concern for global biodiversity conservation in 2024.

"It is likely to pose a substantial risk"

In the piece, titled "A horizon scan of global biological conservation issues for 2024", the journal pointed to the scale of The Line along with its planned mirrored facades as a risk to migratory bird species.

"Although marketed as being sustainable, its dimensions (500 metres high, 200 metres wide, and 170 kilometres long), design (including mirrored facades and, potentially, roof-top wind turbines), and east–west orientation at the head of the Red Sea mean it is likely to pose a substantial risk to migratory species, particularly passerine birds."

Set to be built in Saudi Arabia as part of the controversial Neom development, The Line will stretch 170 kilometres across the northwest of the country.

It is planned as a pair of parallel skyscrapers, each 500 metres high, which will sit 200 metres apart and have mirrored facades. Reflective surfaces are understood to be one of the biggest causes of bird deaths each year.

"The magnitude of The Line may pose a novel threat"

The piece highlighted that the location of The Line in a "bottleneck" for migrating birds is also a cause for concern.

"Collisions with buildings kill an estimated 365-988 million birds annually in the USA alone, and 16-42 million in Canada," stated the journal.

"The magnitude of The Line may pose a novel threat to the eastern populations of the estimated 2.1 billion migratory birds of more than 100 species that migrate from Europe to Africa in autumn each year, for which this area forms a bottleneck with downstream ecological consequences."

As few details are known about the design, and "no environmental impact assessment has yet been published", the journal suggested that there were opportunities to lessen the impacts.

"Higher collision risks are associated with lit windows and with larger expanses of continuous glass," it said. "This would suggest that there may be some opportunities for mitigating impacts."

"Designated nature corridors" set to be built into The Line

In an interview with Dezeen, Neom's executive director for urban planning Tarek Qaddumi explained that The Line's facades will be treated to reduce collisions and incorporate "nature corridors" that align with migratory bird paths.

"These exact migration paths and patterns are being mapped by a dedicated team of scientists over the next few years," he said.

"Birds that fly at different heights will also have their designated nature corridors that are designed in combination with the right glass treatment," he explained.

Among the glass treatments that Qaddumi expects to be used in the project are ceramic frits, which are among the most common ways to make buildings more bird-friendly.

Awareness of bird collisions has increased in architecture in recent years. In 2021, NYC Audubon volunteer Melissa Breyer hit headlines when she collected the corpses of over 200 birds that had flown into buildings at the World Trade Center.

In the US, city officials have been introducing more stringent guidelines to prevent bird collisions with their buildings, while the UK is lagging behind. In 2022, Dezeen found that none of the UK's biggest cities have policies in place to protect birds from deadly strikes.

The Line forms part of Neom, which is one of the world's largest and most controversial projects. It will contain 10 regions – all of which have now been announced.

Neom has been criticised on human rights grounds, including by human rights organisation ALQST which reported that three men were sentenced to death after being "forcibly evicted" from its site.

Last year experts from the UN Human Rights Council expressed "alarm" over the imminent executions. Saudi Arabia responded to the UN by denying abuses had taken place.

The renders are courtesy of Neom.

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Climate fatalism stands in the way of a sustainable future but designers and architects are in an ideal position to overcome it, writes Katie Treggiden.

The mainstream media is finally waking up to the realities of climate change. As wildfires, floods and storms wreak havoc across the world, journalists and activists far braver than me are speaking truth to power to make sure we all know just how serious this thing is. And that is vital and right and proper.

However, fear doesn't motivate action. The biggest obstacle for the environmental movement is no longer climate-change deniers – the evidence is incontrovertible to all but conspiracy theorists. It is those who are fully on board with the fact that humans are the root cause of some very real problems, but just don't believe that we have what it takes to solve them. Our biggest climate challenge is no longer denial, but despair.

Fear doesn't motivate action

To spark meaningful change, we need hope. We need to believe not only that a better world is possible, but that we each have the power to help bring it about.

I'm not talking about blind faith or passive optimism. I'm talking about active hope. I'm talking about waking up every morning and making a choice to believe that we can solve this wicked problem, and then choosing to act accordingly. And in today's climate – political, economic and social as well as environmental – hope is an act of defiance.

So, how can architects and designers inspire defiant hope?

The Berkana Institute's "two loops" model of systems change proposes multiple roles that people and institutions can play in the transition from a declining system to an emerging one. As the dominant system begins its decline, "stabilisers" keep what is required in place until something better is ready, while "hospice workers" support the process of decline, minimising harm to those still within it.

In turn, the emergent system gathers pace as "pioneers" come up with new ideas, products and systems and they are joined together into networks by "connectors". Together, they form supportive "communities of practice" that enable them to grow their influence and, eventually, rise up to replace the old system.

In the transition from the declining linear take-make-waste economy to an emerging regenerative and circular economy, we might cast architects and designers in the role of "pioneers" – problem-solvers who can create pragmatic ways to move society towards a better world.

And that is valid; if architecture and design solve problems, then surely they should contribute genuine, impactful, and replicable solutions to arguably the biggest problem ever to have faced humanity.

In today's climate – political, economic and social as well as environmental – hope is an act of defiance

However, I believe they can also play another part. On the emerging-system loop, there is a role for "illuminators": people who paint a picture of what a better world might look like.

You see, there is no point in the model where the two loops touch, no simple juncture where people can step off one system and onto the next – they must take a leap of faith. Illuminators are the people who can give them the courage to do that.

One of the questions I get asked most often when I speak at conferences about craft and design in the transition to a circular economy is: "Okay, but how does it scale?"

Firstly, I would contend that scalability is what got us into this mess, and what we need instead are locally replicable solutions, but increasingly I am questioning whether everything we propose as an industry even needs to do that. Perhaps part of our role is simply to inspire hope – defiant, stubborn, active hope.

Kyloe Design's kelp chair, showcased recently as part of Green Grads at the London Design Festival, may never make it into production and it's highly unlikely that it will drive the wholesale replacement of leather across the furniture industry. But it does showcase the potential of this incredibly renewable, climate-positive, underutilised material, while provoking the curiosity to learn more.

From responsible material sourcing and advocating for worker welfare to using smartphone components anyone can switch out, Fairphone is offering real-world solutions. But its founder, Bas Van Abel, was realistic about what he could achieve directly, so launched the company with the stated aim of motivating the rest of the industry.

There is little doubt that his efforts have had a hand in both the incoming EU legislation that will require smartphone batteries to be "easily replaceable" and the recent launch of a repairable Nokia phone.

Part of our role is simply to inspire hope – defiant, stubborn, active hope

Zaha Hadid Architects principal Patrik Schumacher might have criticised the "lack of architecture" at last year's Venice Architecture Biennale, but what if contributions such as the German pavilion (pictured), which he described as nothing more than "piles of construction material", are exactly what we need to inspire alternative ways of working? Entitled Open for Maintenance, the exhibition was billed as "an action framework for a new building culture" and collated materials recovered from previous installations to be used for repairing and upgrading buildings and public spaces all over Venice.

One of my favourite quotes about hope is from the author Arundhati Roy, who says: "Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing." The question I would like to pose is: how can we, as an industry, help everyone to hear the sound of her breath?

Katie Treggiden is the founder and director of Making Design Circular, a membership community and online-learning platform for sustainable designers and makers, and the author of Broken: Mending and Repair in a Throwaway World (Ludion, 2023).

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Heatherwick Studio's Building Soulfulness exhibition and the inaugural edition of the Guangzhou Design Triennial are among the Chinese architecture and design events featured in Dezeen Events Guide this month.

Also in the guide are the Seventy Years Leading Italian Design Trends exhibition by Compasso d'Oro, Pradasphere II and Beauty Changes: 100 Years of Italian Fashion and Costume.

Compasso d'Oro Award: Seventy Years Leading Italian Design Trends
9 November 2023 to 24 February 2024, Shanghai

Seventy Years Leading Italian Design Trends is award organisation Compasso d'Oro's first public exhibition in China, displaying over 100 winning pieces.

Celebrating its 70th anniversary, Compasso d'Oro showcases projects from 1954 to the present day across seven design themes, including Craft and Industry, The Power of Communication, Invention and Creation.

Designed by Aldo Cibic and Joseph Dejardin, the exhibition takes place at Bund 18 Jiushi Art Gallery and aims to explore how craft, technology and culture interact with one another in the process of design.

Beauty Changes: 100 Years of Italian Fashion and Costume
17 November 2023 to 29 February 2024, Shanghai

The Beauty Changes: 100 Years of Italian Fashion and Costume exhibition presents Italian fashion and costume designs spanning from 1900 works to contemporary pieces, which demonstrate the country's evolution of fashion, women and cultural identity.

Over 100 fashion items are on display at the 170-year-old historical No. 1 Waitanyuan, as well as sketches and videos highlighting fashion, opera and film.

Highlights include classic designs from 20 leading international fashion designers, such as Maria Monaci Gallenga, Emilio Schuberth, Roberto Capucci, Sorelle Fontana, Emilio Pucci, Giorgio Armani and Valentino Garavani.

Pradasphere II
7 December 2023 to 21 January 2024, Shanghai

Pradaphere II is a retrospective exhibition by fashion house Prada. Drawn from its archive, the showcase spotlights the brand's engagements across architecture, art, culture and sport in recent decades.

This free exhibition is curated by the brand's co-creative directors Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons, and includes more than 400 physical and digital artefacts that document its history and culture since its beginning in 1913.

The exhibition is on show at the Start Museum, located in the historical building of the Nanpu Railway Station, which was renovated by French architect Jean Nouvel and opened in 2022.

Guangzhou Design Triennial
16 January to 31 May 2024, Guangzhou

The first edition of Guangzhou Design Triennial launches in January 2024, located at the Guangdong Museum of Art.

The event – which follows the theme The Warm-beings – invites interdisciplinary designers, architects, scholars and cultural practitioners to re-think politics and ethics through design to address global challenges.

Curated by researcher Naiyi Wang, the triennial aims to be an international platform for creative exchange between the local Greater Bay area and the contemporary design community.

Heatherwick Studio: Building Soulfulness
17 January to 14 March 2024, Shanghai

British architecture practice Heatherwick Studio opens its Building Soulfulness exhibition at the Bund Finance Centre in Shangai, after having previously taken place in Japan and South Korea.

Curated by Mami Kataoka of the Mori Art Museum, the Shanghai exhibition features models of the studio's completed buildings and collaborative projects across the globe, such as a full-scale model of Airo car and spun chairs. A dedicated section introducing West Bund Orbit, the studio's newest project in Shanghai, is also on display.

Dezeen's China editor Christina Yao joined the practice's founder Thomas Heatherwick on 16 January at the opening forum to discuss cross-boundary synergies between architectural design and urban planning, as well as sustainable urban development under the theme of Polyphony of the City.

About Dezeen Events Guide

Dezeen Events Guide is our guide to the best architecture and design events taking place across the world each year. The guide is updated weekly and includes virtual events, conferences, trade fairs, major exhibitions and design weeks.

Inclusion in the guide is free for basic listings, with events selected at Dezeen's discretion. Organisers can get standard, enhanced or featured listings for their events, including images, additional text and links, by paying a modest fee.

In addition, events can ensure inclusion by partnering with Dezeen. For more details on inclusion in Dezeen Events Guide and media partnerships with Dezeen, email eventsguide@dezeen.com.

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A private roof terrace enclosed by greenery features in Hidden Garden House, a Sydney home reconfigured by Australian studio Sam Crawford Architects.

Situated within a conservation zone, the home has been updated by Sam Crawford Architects to brighten its dark interior and transform it into an urban "sanctuary".

Alterations to the 198-square-metre home's interior are first seen in its entrance, where a stair with open treads and a white-steel balustrade replaces a solid timber structure that previously restricted light from a skylight above.

Down from the entry hall is a spacious ground-floor kitchen and dining area, which is illuminated by 4.5-metre-high glass openings that lead out to a landscaped patio. The patio is paved with limestone tiles that extend out from the interior.

"By extending the ground floor finishes through the full-width doors into the rear yard, the garden and high-level green trellises at the rear of the site form the fourth wall to the rear wing," studio director Sam Crawford told Dezeen.

"They create a sense of enclosure that draws the occupant's eye up to the expanse of the sky rather than surrounding suburbia."

A concrete ceiling in Hidden Garden House's kitchen curves upwards to help draw in the winter sun and provide summer shading, while operable clerestory windows allow natural ventilation.

Above, this curved ceiling forms a sloped roof terrace filled with plants, which is situated off the main bedroom on the upper floor.

An ensuite bathroom, also lined with limestone floor tiles, has expansive openings offering a scenic yet private bathing experience enabled by angled timber screens and the terrace's greenery.

"The rolling green roof serves as a visual barrier to the surrounding suburb, whilst allowing the occupants to occupy their private garden oasis," added Crawford.

Hidden Garden House's consistent material palette of bright white walls and wooden furniture ties its living spaces together, while decorative square tiles line both the kitchen and bathrooms.

Curved details, such as the patio's shape and the kitchen island and splashback, also feature throughout.

Other alterations that were made to improve Hidden Garden House's layout include the relocation of entrances to the ground floor laundry room and bathroom.

Elsewhere, Sam Crawford Architects has also created a restaurant topped with an oversized steel roof and a bridge modelled on the curving shape of eels.

The photography is by Tom Ferguson.

Project credits:

Architect: Sam Crawford Architects
Builder: Toki
Structural engineer: Cantilever Engineers
Civil & hydraulic engineer: Partridge
Acoustic engineer: Acoustic Logic
Heritage consultant: Damian O’Toole Town Planning
Quantity Surveyor: QS Plus
Landscape design: Gabrielle Pelletier, SCA
Roof garden supplier: Fytogreen Australia

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Ghanaian-Scottish architect and educator Lesley Lokko has been named the recipient of this year's Royal Gold Medal by the Royal Institute of British Architects, making her the first African woman to win the award.

Lokko, who is also an author and curator, is the third woman to receive the prestigious accolade in her own right – rather than as part of a team – since it was established in 1848. The others are architects Zaha Hadid and Yasmeen Lari.

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) said Lokko has been selected for "relentlessly pursuing inclusivity and equity in the field".

"A fierce champion of equity and inclusion in all aspects of life, Lesley Lokko's progressive approach to architecture education offers hope for the future – a profession that welcomes those from all walks of life, considers the needs of our environment, and acknowledges a broad range of cultures and perspectives," said RIBA president Muyiwa Oki.

"A visionary agent of change, Lesley has dedicated her life to championing these values, not only through academic endeavours, but through her work as an author and curator," he continued.

"She remains a humble revolutionary force, with her ambition and optimism etching an indelible mark on the global architectural stage."

Lokko is best known as the founder of African Futures Institute (AFI), an independent school of architecture in Accra, Ghana, which exists to reimagine "Africa as the crucible of the future".

More recently, she has made waves as the curator of the 18th International Architecture Biennale in Venice. She was the first person of African descent to curate the event.

Lokko described her RIBA Royal Gold Medal win as "such a surprise" and "a testament to the people and organisations I have worked with that share my goals".

"This was never on the cards," she reflected.

"I'm delighted to be considered alongside some of the great past winners of the Royal Gold Medal. Although this is a personal award, this isn't merely a personal triumph, this is a testament to the people and organisations I have worked with that share my goals," Lokko continued.

"I came into architecture seeking certainties, looking for answers. Instead, I found questions and possibilities, far richer, more curious, and more empathetic ways to interpret and shape the world. Architecture gave me language, in all its forms – visual, written, built, performed – and that language, in turn, has given me such hope."

Lokko has a PhD in Architecture from the University of London and is the author of essay collection White Papers Black Marks, as well as 13 novels including Sundowners.

Over the last two decades, she has taught architecture to students around the world. She founded the Graduate School of Architecture at the University of Johannesburg and served as dean of The Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture at The City College of New York.

Her edition of the Venice Architecture Biennale was named The Laboratory of the Future and explored the themes of decarbonisation and decolonisation through the lens of Africa. In an exclusive interview with Dezeen before the event, she said Africa is a "powerful place from which to examine the issues that will dominate the next century".

The 2024 Royal Gold Medal will be formally presented to Lokko in London on 2 May 2024. It follows several other awards given to Lokko, including an OBE in 2023 for her services to architecture and education and the RIBA Annie Spink Award in 2020 for her "outstanding contribution to architectural education".

This year's selection committee was chaired by president Oki and consisted of 2023 Royal Gold Medal winner Lari, RSHP senior partner Ivan Harbour, London School of Architecture's head Neal Shasore and Walters & Cohen partner Cindy Walters.

Other women to have won the RIBA Royal Gold Medal include Ray Eames, Patricia Hopkins, Sheila O'Donnell, Shelley McNamara and Yvonne Farrell.

Norman Foster, Nicholas Grimshaw, Frank Gehry and Frank Lloyd Wright are also among the previous winners.

Read the full jury citation below:

Professor Lesley Lokko is an educator, author, and curator. A luminary architect and renaissance figure who has etched an indelible mark on the global stage. For over two decades Lokko has been rightly recognised for her groundbreaking contributions to architectural education, dialogue, and discourse from a Global South perspective – relentlessly pursuing inclusivity and equity in the field. Not only is Lokko the first African woman to receive this honour, but she also now takes her place among architecture's defining figures.

One of her crowning achievements is the Architectural Futures Institute (AFI) nestled in Accra, Ghana – an architectural education centre, that reimagines Africa as a crucible of the future, where novel urban forms are collaboratively conceived. The AFI stands as a beacon, acknowledging the contributions of women from the African diaspora. It extends an invitation to embrace opportunities and exalts courageous and creative voices.

A guiding force for creativity, Lokko's curatorial prowess shone brilliantly in her recent stewardship of the Venice Biennale 2023, a groundbreaking event that united African and Africa-related architectural expressions for the first time. It was a platform where emerging and established African architects and designers converged to create ‘The Laboratory of the Future', a six-part exhibition igniting the discourse on decarbonisation and decolonization. Under Lokko's curatorship Nigerian artist, designer, architect and master builder, Demas Nwoko was the first Black person to be awarded the prestigious Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the International Venice Biennale.

Her pivotal role on the board of the pioneering New Architecture Writers program in London, dedicated to supporting "professionals of colour who are under-represented across design, journalism and curation", underscores her commitment to diversity. Remarkably, Lokko's seminal work White Papers Black Marks was published over two decades ago in 2000. In 2020, she was awarded the RIBA Annie Spink Award for Excellence in Architectural Education for her impactful leadership, passion and an unwavering commitment to architectural education and research, in particular her lectures and published works focusing on the subjects of race, identity and architecture.

While Lokko's impact extends beyond architecture, this honour acknowledges her prodigious contributions to the architectural domain. Her work champions diverse approaches to practice, and pushes the boundaries of what architecture is, and what it can achieve.

She ardently advocates for individuals from all walks of life to partake in the tapestry of architecture; and her interpretation of architecture as culture, an art form that fosters public dialogue centred on ideas and content rather than only function, democratises architecture, making it accessible to all.

Lokko's work is a clarion call for equitable representation in policies, planning, and design that shape our living spaces. Her pedagogical footprint spans diverse cultural landscapes, from the United States and the United Kingdom to South Africa and Ghana.

This medal honours Lokko's resounding voice. It is a testament to her unwavering commitment to advancing architectural education and redressing imbalances by amplifying the voices of underrepresented people in shaping our built environment.

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French studio Vallet de Martinis Architectes has created an assisted living complex for the Joffre-Dupuytren Hospital beside a forest in the suburbs of Paris.

Located at the edge of the hospital's campus, the site sits between the Rue de l'Erminage, a main entrance to the town of Draveil and the Sénart Forest, of which Vallet de Martinis Architectes wanted the housing to act as a "direct extension".

"The aim here is to succeed in dialoguing with the surrounding nature, which is very much present, and when possible, to preserve a direct link with the neighbourhood as well as a certain tranquillity for future residents and users when necessary," project architect Erwan Ménard told Dezeen.

"Since our first sketches, the emphasis has always been on the functionality of the project and the link with the direct environment of the forest," he continued.

Characterised by a palette of pale brickwork, the housing comprises a pair of two-storey blocks, each organised around its own courtyard. An additional green space is inserted in between.

Drawing on the layout of a typical house, Vallet de Martinis Architectes designed the building with open communal spaces on the ground floor and more private living units above. This is reflected externally by a glazed base and a solid brick upper storey with deep window reveals.

"The contrast between the materials used on the two levels of the project creates a material effect that separates the volume on the upper floor from that on the ground floor, and also provides an interesting quality of filtered light," explained Ménard.

The ground floor is slightly set back, creating an overhang above that shelters a path around the building. This path leads from the main entrance facing the road to a communal garden and petanque court beneath wooden pergolas at the rear.

Walls of glazing around the communal spaces open out onto the central courtyards, which each have unique landscape designs. One contains vegetables and herbs for residents to use, while the other has wildflowers and trees.

"The patios are special areas of the project, within the building itself," said Ménard.

"One is home to a garden of scents and herbs, with a few vegetable garden tables, while the other is a little 'wilder', featuring a landscape of undergrowth, birch trees, ferns and a natural fountain, as if to evoke the atmosphere of the forest," Ménard added.

A corridor and offices on the first floor wrap the courtyards and provide everyone with access to light and views, while deep-set, metal-framed windows in the bedrooms provide residents with more private views out across the forest.

Internally, the pale palette of the exterior has been continued with white walls and wood-framed doors and windows, with Vallet de Martinis Architectes using an approach of "sobriety and moderation" to allow the landscape to come to the fore.

Other assisted living projects recently featured on Dezeen include a complex in Germany that integrates housing for the elderly with the wider community and the Butterfly House designed as future-proof accommodation for an elderly woman and a live-in carer.

The photography is by Charly Broyez.

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Activist collective BP or not BP? has called on architects not to work on the British Museum's recently announced redevelopment masterplan as it will be funded by oil company BP.

In an Instagram post on Friday, the organisation, which seeks to end oil sponsorship of culture, said: "Architects: we invite you to pledge not to work with the British Museum until their new partnership with BP is dropped."

"The British Museum recently accepted the biggest single corporate donation to the arts in the UK," it added.

"£50 million from oil giant BP, over the next ten years to 'help deliver the museum's redevelopment masterplan'. This donation, amidst an escalating climate crisis, has also been described as 'one of the biggest, most brazen greenwashing sponsorship deals the sector has ever seen.'"

 

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BP or not BP? urged architects to not apply for the job in an Instagram post

In December, the British Museum announced plans for an architectural competition to redevelop around 7,500 square metres of gallery space at its central London location, with applications set to open in spring.

This would be supported by the decade-long partnership with BP.

"A new multi-year partnership with BP will support the future transformation of the museum by contributing £50 million over 10 years," the museum said.

"The partnership will also help deliver on plans to maintain public access for generations to come. The museum is very grateful for BP's support at this early stage of the masterplan."

"Architects can't in good faith work with The British Museum"

However, BP or not BP?, said that working on the redevelopment would go against guidance from climate network Architects Declare on how to approach projects.

"Guidance from @architectsdeclare_uk encourages firms to approach projects by evaluating their contributions to mitigating climate breakdown," it stated.

"This redevelopment will do the opposite: allowing BP to continue its extraction and harm Global South communities across the world who face the worst impacts of the climate crisis."

"Architects can't in good faith work with The British Museum until this deal is dropped. Join us and tell the museum to #dropBP!" the organisation added.

Architects Declare also stated that it believed it would be consistent with its declaration for architects to turn down the job.

"UK Architects Declare is committed to moving the design of our built environment towards fully regenerative solutions to the planetary emergency," the organisation told Dezeen.

"As such, the AD Steering Group do believe it would be consistent with our Declaration's point 5 for architects to turn down this opportunity because of BP's sponsorship: 'Evaluate all new projects against the aspiration to contribute positively to mitigating climate breakdown, and encourage our clients to adopt this approach'."

"A number of companies have publicly declared they will not work on fossil fuel infrastructure and most of the big cultural institutions have now broken links with fossil fuel sponsorship," it added.

"It is particularly important that when some organisations show such leadership, they are supported by the broader industry."

British Museum "squarely on the wrong side of history"

BP or not BP? told Dezeen that it believes there are other sponsorship alternatives for the British Museum and that letting BP use its well-known London building for events "continues a neocolonial legacy of extractivism".

"Just as there are alternatives to fossil fuels, there are also alternatives to taking dirty sponsorship money from fossil fuel producers like BP," BP or not BP? member Francesca Willow said.

"The British Museum's decision to keep backing one of the architects of the climate crisis – for a further 10 years – has put the museum squarely on the wrong side of history," she continued.

"For years, BP has used the iconic museum building as the backdrop for lobbying politicians and burnishing its brand, continuing a neocolonial legacy of extractivism and oppression," she added. "Architects should refuse to play any part in BP's planet-wrecking agenda."

Museum disappointed by call for boycott

In response, the museum said that the campaign was "disappointing" as the redevelopment was aimed at creating a net-zero estate.

"The British Museum is in urgent need of renovation and the masterplan will be one of the most significant cultural redevelopments ever undertaken and private funding is essential," a spokesperson for the British Museum told Dezeen.

"It's disappointing campaign groups are calling for a boycott when we've said we will be looking at design proposals with a particular focus on sustainable and environmental expertise, working with us responsibly to create a net-zero estate," it added.

"We look forward to seeing submissions that aim to restore the highly significant and celebrated listed buildings on the site."

The architectural competition would look to introduce "contemporary architecture and innovative gallery displays" to the museum's "Western Range", which contains collections from Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome.

Architects Declare has previously condemned architecture studios for refusing to stop designing airports.

The issue of sustainability in architecture was also highlighted by the climate action group Architects Climate Action Network in 2022, when it claimed that the Royal British Institute for Architects' Stirling Prize shortlist "promotes architecture that pollutes the planet".

The image is by Shutterstock.

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Architecture studio 10 Design has unveiled its design for Huafa Snow World in Shenzhen, which will include an indoor ski resort that the studio claims will be "the largest of its kind in the world".

Slated to open in 2025, the development will include a hotel, shopping mall, office space, and an indoor ski slope with an undulating shape that rises over the other functions.

"Anchored by an 80,000 square-meter indoor ski resort, the largest of its kind in the world, Huafa Snow World boasts a rich mix of retail, entertainment, commercial, hospitality, civic and cultural components, creating a vibrant destination," said 10 Design.

According to the studio, the development will have an "urban green axis" stretching the site from north to south, providing public space with a connection to nature.

Located in the city's growing technology hub, Qianhai Bay, 10 Design wants the development to be a place where people and businesses can connect.

The site will be divided into three main clusters – an entertainment area on the western side, a culture and civic area that is integrated with the green axis, and a retail area designed to connect with the neighbouring buildings.

"Situated in a key location, conveniently linked to the airport and an intercity transportation hub, the new development provides locals with a place to gather while easily attracting and connecting discerning business and leisure travellers from across the globe," 10 Design said.

"Our vision for the project is to deliver a fully immersive experience, servicing not only tourists but also the local residents."

"The planning and design for this cultural epicentre reimagines retail development as a multi-faceted community experience, inviting discovery and encouraging guests to explore," the studio continued.

Huafa Snow World will include the Huafa Snow Centre, which will overlook the nearby riverfront and combine ski facilities with retail spaces and a hotel.

10 Design designed the snow centre as a series of interconnected boxes, aiming to encourage a sense of exploration between the different functions.

Rising over the boxy forms will be an undulating structure containing an 83-metre-tall and 441-metre-long ski slope, which will be topped with solar panels to offset the energy required for the ski centre and commercial buildings, according to the studio.

A hotel connected to the snow centre will contain a ballroom with panoramic views of the ski slope.

To create a snowy theme in the design, ceramic boards and aluminium panels will be added to the facades, intending to mimic glaciers and ice crystals.

10 Design claims the environmental impact of Huafa Snow World will be minimised with rainwater harvesting that will irrigate the landscape, and a wetland reserve designed to prevent urban waterlogging.

"Seamlessly blending innovative design, cutting-edge technology, and sensation-rich experiences, Huafa Snow World is slated to become the leading attraction in the region, supporting growth and celebrating nature," said the studio.

Founded in 2010, 10 Design is an architecture and masterplanning studio with offices in Hong Kong, Edinburgh, Dubai, Miami, London, Shenzhen, Singapore, and San Francisco.

The studio recently revealed its second design for Saudi mega-development Neom, the Norlana yachting town in the Gulf of Aqaba, which followed a luxury resort with two jagged skyscrapers unveiled in November last year.

The images are by 10 Design.

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In this week's comments update, readers are discussing a compact infill home in Dublin with red brickwork and perforated metal panels, completed by Irish architecture studio Gró Works.

Located on Dublin's southern perimeter, the home was designed to reflect both the nearby Victorian redbrick terraces and the more "utilitarian" quality of the backstreet it overlooks.

"This won't be utilitarian enough for the functionalists" 

Several commenters were won over by the industrial feel of the design. D Bannon called the project "a striking structure and a beautifully designed home".

"Beautiful project, congratulations to all involved," echoed Gary Tynan. Commenter Tony M was also a fan of the project, writing "I like this building, in particular, the visible roof beams".

However, JB warned that "this won't be utilitarian enough for the functionalists". They continued: "this architect will have their modernist ticket revoked if they don't smarten up and strip back".

Meanwhile, for JZ, there was too much going on: "so many moves in a small project. I appreciate each one separately but all added up, I think they reached a tipping point".

Can you see yourself living in this Dublin home? Join the discussion ›

"Is there a Londis? I don't see a Londis. Where will I get milk?" 

One story causing a stir in the comments section this week was mega-project Neom's reveal of Aquellum, an "ultra-luxury upside-down skyscraper" inside a mountain, designed by architecture studios LAVA and Name Architecture.

Dezeen commenters were quick to see the "dystopian" themes of the latest Neom project. "All these Neom renders are going to be a great source of material for the next Black Mirror series," wrote Gytis Bickus.

Zea Newland agreed, replying "wouldn't it be hilarious to find out that Neom was actually a viral campaign to promote a dystopian science-fiction movie," while Scott Chegg branded it "the stupidest one yet", adding "Neom is just a meme".

Muckers270 had other concerns, asking "is there a Londis? I don't see a Londis. Where will I get milk?"

On the other side of the argument, MA Milián felt the design had been heavily critiqued out of spite. "All the negative and terrible, harsh criticism is mostly from Americans who are jealous," they wrote in a comment that was downvoted five times.

What do you think of Aquellum? Join the discussion ›

"Looks like a stack of children's blocks" 

Also providing plenty of fodder for commenters this week was a skyscraper made up of 13 staggered cube volumes designed by Portuguese studio OODA for the Hora Vertikale residential development in Tirana.

Some commenters were unsure. "I like each block individually," wrote Leo. "Stacking them seems less convincing," they added.

"Another Jenga-inspired building," wrote John Lakeman, while Souji wondered "why the need to create the feeling of uneasiness? Cool for concept art or a video game, not for an actual city".

But despite this, the project had its fair share of admirers as well as detractors, with commenter Frank branding it "very interesting work".

Rob Rohena was full of praise, writing "I love this, very whimsical and unpretentious – looks like a stack of children's blocks". What's more, they felt it was "a nice departure from the overly gaudy luxury Manhattan skyscrapers or bland glass box office buildings".

Does the OODA design work for you? Join the discussion ›

Comments Update

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The post "So many moves in a small project" says commenter appeared first on Dezeen.

Photographer Rasmus Hjortshøj has captured a pair of spiky high-rise buildings by Danish studio BIG as they near completion in Copenhagen.

Named Kaktus Towers, the pair of jagged buildings comprise 495 residences and are linked by a raised public park that slopes between them.

According to BIG, while the towers themselves are open and inhabited, the communal facilities and public park will reach completion late this spring.

The Kaktus Towers are among the upcoming buildings featured in Dezeen's roundup of 12 interesting architecture projects scheduled to reach completion in 2024.

Their distinctive look is achieved through the rotation of their floorplates, which provides each home with a unique view of the Danish capital's Vesterbro district. Their corners are also opened up as balconies.

BIG has designed the tallest of the two towers to reach 80 metres and, together, they encompass 26,100 square metres.

Hjortshøj's photos capture the completed exterior of the Kaktus Towers for the first time, with the planting on the elevated park and balconies still to be added.

The images also offer a glimpse inside one of the Kaktus Tower apartments, which is lined with exposed concrete and wooden joinery including floor-to-ceiling kitchen cabinetry.

BIG has said each residence has "custom-designed interiors" along with their private angular balconies.

A circular walkway that wraps around the central circulation core can also be seen in the photos.

Alongside the elevated public park, the Kaktus Towers' upcoming communal areas will include an outdoor kitchen, a cafe and fitness areas.

At the base of the towers will be a public plaza that links to an existing train station adjacent to the site.

BIG is an architecture studio that was founded by Bjarke Ingels in 2005. It has studios in Copenhagen, New York, London and Barcelona.

Elsewhere, BIG is also scheduled to complete its new Copenhagen headquarters in 2024, as well as the stone-clad One High Line skyscrapers in New York.

The post Spiky Kaktus Towers by BIG nearing completion in Copenhagen appeared first on Dezeen.

The latest edition of our weekly Dezeen Agenda newsletter features a staggered skyscraper in Tirana, Albania, designed by Portuguese studio OODA. Subscribe to Dezeen Agenda now.

OODA has designed a skyscraper comprised of 13 staggered cube volumes for the Hora Vertikale residential development in Tirana.

The 140-metre-tall building, which is scheduled for completion in 2024, will consist of apartments stacked over a park with public amenities.

This week's newsletter also featured the "world's first wireless transparent OLED TV designed by LG, NEOM's plans for an "upside-down" skyscraper and a concrete holiday home with a rotated terrace by Croxatta and Opazo Architects.

Dezeen Agenda

Dezeen Agenda is a curated newsletter sent every Tuesday containing the most important news highlights from Dezeen. Read the latest edition of Dezeen Agenda or subscribe here.

You can also subscribe to our other newsletters; Dezeen Debate is sent every Thursday and features the hottest reader comments and most-debated stories, Dezeen Daily is our daily bulletin that contains every story published in the preceding 24 hours and Dezeen In Depth is sent on the last Friday of every month and delves deeper into the major stories shaping architecture and design. 

The post Dezeen Agenda features staggered skyscraper in Albania by OODA appeared first on Dezeen.