Creating a model for rendering does have its own set of rules. To get you up and rendering as quickly as possible, here are SketchUp's top five tips for prepping your SketchUp model for rendering.

Every project begins with a program brief outlining the spaces, areas, and requirements essential to kick off the design process. This essential document guides architects in understanding client needs, allocating space efficiently and ensuring the design meets the project's functional requirements.

However, manually converting this tabular data from a spreadsheet to spatial data in your massing tool is incredibly tedious and time-consuming. Tools such as Snaptrude are designed to help architects iterate faster and make more informed design decisions.

The Spanish city of Barcelona, one of Europe's top tourist destinations, has announced a plan to ban apartment rentals to tourists by November 2028. The move, announced by Mayor Jaume Collboni, aims to alleviate the long-standing housing crisis, lower prices for residents, improve livability, and increase the city’s affordable housing stock. Over the past 10 years, the rise in short-term rentals has driven rents up by 68%, and the cost of buying a house by 38%, contributing significantly to a cost-of-living crisis.

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Evolving theories in urban design seek to reframe how cities are built and experienced. As theory and practice grows more empathetic towards the needs of its diverse stakeholders, queer urban design brings a broad and holistic shift to understanding identity and community in publicly inhabited spaces. The approach challenges traditional - often rigid - methods of city planning by applying principles of queer theory to reflect fluidity and interconnectedness. On occasion of Pride Month 2024, ArchDaily investigates the building blocks of "queer urban design" to influence city planning practices to be more inclusive.

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This June, the Roppongi Museum in Tokyo is hosting an exhibition titled "Miss Dior: Stories of a Miss." Designed by OMA/Shohei Shigematsu, the display presents the 78-year legacy of the renowned Miss Dior perfume, which was launched alongside Dior's revolutionary "The New Look" in 1946. Organized as a journey through seven rooms, the exhibition design features not only the perfume and related memorabilia but also explores the various inspirations and collaborations that have shaped its cultural significance.

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C.F. Møller Architects has just been declared the winner of the urban competition to develop the Luna District in Södertälje, Sweden. Their proposal, “The Sky is Our Roof” outlines the transformation of the Luna District, known as Lunagallerian, representing one of the most extensive urban development projects in Södertälje’s history. Set to be reimagined into several open urban districts, the project was selected out of 35 architectural firms.

More than 224 universities from 29 countries participated in the 19th edition of the Saint-Gobain Architecture Student Contest’s international final. Students from all over the world imagined projects to transform a district of Helsinki in Finland. The winners have just been revealed during an event held by Saint-Gobain in the Finnish capital between June 10th and 12th, 2024.

In the mountain valleys of China’s Fujian Province, thousands of large, rammed earth fortresses lay abandoned. Once used for both defense and collective housing, the tulou typology is an integral part of the region’s cultural heritage, with 46 of them being recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. Despite this, the rural communities surrounding them have struggled to find new roles and purposes for these buildings. Going beyond the need for conservation, architect Xu Tiantian of DnA_Design and Architecture set out to develop and adapt this heritage to reintroduce it into community life. The Fujian Tulou | Adaptive Reuse project recently won the Gold Prize of Holcim Awards 2023 for Asia-Pacific, recognized for creating “an exemplary model for building conservation initiatives.” In a video interview for ArchDaily, Xu Tiantian discusses the principles that underpin this initiative and the potential outcomes of adaptive reuse in rural communities.

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This article was originally published on Common Edge.

Developers often make it sound as though their latest LEED platinum office building will single-handedly reverse climate change. The unfortunate reality is that they could spend a lifetime designing and building all of their work to meet the highest environmental standards, but it wouldn’t fix the problem. The planet will grow hotter, the seas will rise, and storms will intensify. A century of burning fossil fuels has baked global warming into the atmosphere for our lifetime.

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3XN GXN and landscape architect DETBLÅ have won the commissions for the design of a new Centre for Coastal Nature and Sport Fishing in Assens, Denmark. The proposal features a subtle oval structure to showcase local stories of the natural environment. The building aims to enhance public awareness and appreciation of the marine environment, reflecting a growing understanding of the need for better marine stewardship. It will also act as a hub for knowledge exchange about the impact of humans and climate change on the sea.

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

Rather than being divided into Tijuanenses on one side and San Diegans on the other, this particular region stands out as a community whose essence harmonizes with a deep legacy of cross-border collaboration, rather than being seen as cities separated by a line. As the first binational designation in the history of the World Design Capital (WDC) program, the Tijuana-San Diego region shares a common interest in addressing urban, social, and economic issues through design. Thus, via conferences, policy summits, and workshops, the region seeks to enhance the catalyzation of ideas through its designation.

The Architectural League Prize for Young Architects + Designers is an annual portfolio competition for early-career practitioners in North America. Established in 1981, the competition is entered around a yearly theme. This year, the 2024 Young Architects + Designers Committee proposed the theme “Dirty,” prompting designers to “look beyond their presentations of professionalism, respectability, and expertise” and reject the sanitized ways of working.

The original work of the six winners of the 2024 League Prize for Young Architects + Designers is now on view in an online exhibition. The installations created for this occasion showcase the wide variety of responses and interpretations of the overarching theme. The projects presented online and in some instances also locally on-site, challenge traditional architectural practices and offer an immersive introduction to the works of the winners. In addition to the installations, a diverse program of lectures has been scheduled to develop the theme further.

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Studio Gang has just released the design for the new Marlboro Agricultural Education Center in Brooklyn, New York. Reimagining a more equitable and inclusive food system, the design transforms a New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) campus into a hub for multigenerational education, job training, and community leadership in urban agriculture. Operated by the nonprofit organization The Campaign Against Hunger (TCAH), the Center seeks to leverage longstanding efforts across the city to enhance food autonomy and security in underserved neighborhoods.

The notion of well-being goes far beyond the absence of disease. It encompasses physical, emotional, mental, and social aspects, reflecting a state of harmony and balance in all these areas. Pursuing well-being is a continuous process that requires comprehensive attention and care for the body and mind, and contact with nature or self-care rituals can also contribute. Indeed, in today’s fast-paced world, dominated by digital devices and urban life, in which truly disconnecting is very difficult, finding moments of peace and connection with oneself and nature has become increasingly important. Integrating well-being practices into outdoor environments offers an attractive solution, combining the therapeutic benefits of natural settings with cutting-edge wellness technology, providing a holistic refuge that nurtures the body and soul, and inviting individuals to relax and reconnect with the world around them.

Finnish office Sigge Architects has been announced as the winner of the international competition for the design of the Museum of History and the Future in Finland's oldest city, Turku. The proposal, selected out of over 400 entries, creates a permeable structure along the waterfront, acting as a catalyst for the regeneration of the area. The museum aims to showcase the most innovative scientific research through a wide variety of exhibitions, audio-visual installations, and educational spaces. Construction is expected to start in 2027 and be completed by 2029, with a public opening scheduled for 2030.

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