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.

Stefano Boeri Architetti has designed a new offset multi-family housing complex in Albania. In conjunction with the opening of a new studio in Tirana, Boeri announced the start of construction on the new housing complex near the Albanian Presidential Palace. Designed as overlapped cubes, the project occupies a narrow lot on an important boulevard. The project's facade opens onto a large public space within the urban fabric of Tirana to put the housing complex in direct connection with the city.

“The greenest building is the one that is already built." (Carl Elefante, FAIA)

The world’s urban population will double by 2050, and cities need to come up with sustainable ways to accommodate this mass movement. We often see projects being built as quickly as possible to support growth, however, rapid growth often leads to cities and buildings that lack originality.

A smarter and more sustainable solution is to increase the density of existing centers, as well as to recover existing structures through refurbishment and repurposing. But, turning something old into something new is a challenging process — it requires a bold vision and a rigorous commitment to design.

The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World were regarded among 2nd-century scholars as the finest works of architecture on the planet. Some of these iconic structures, including the Great Pyramid of Giza, still survive to this day, albeit in a ruined state when contrasted with how they would have looked 2000 years ago. 

Danish firm Henning Larsen was one of three finalist teams to design the Shenzhen Bay Headquarters City in China. Selected from 15 participants, the team will collaborate on the 5.5 million m2 district that will become the new center of Shenzhen with the first prize winners, Shenzhen Cube Architecture + Swooding Architects Limited. Made as part of the largest bay economy in the world, the project aims to create the leading innovation center of China.

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The visual presentation of a project, which architects are responsible for, must effectively communicate and analyze the organization of the project's material elements. This essential creative process allows those involved to effectively identify and even modify key aspects and components of the building during all phases of its conception.

Because of the inherent challenges of material selection and other practical issues, the development of what exactly will be built tends to be relegated to the end of the design process. But a true understanding of minor yet invaluable details is among the most interesting and important aspects of the best architectural projects.

In our search for the most outstanding recent examples of construction detail representations, we've collected a series of ten drawings that celebrate different styles and approaches.

*Editor's note: the following article was written by an editor of ArchDaily in Spanish. Some project descriptions mentioned have not yet been translated into English, but we are actively working to make this information available to our global readers. 

Gottfried Böhm is a German architect who was awarded the Pritzker Prize in 1986. His father, Dominikus Böhm and his grandfather Alois Böhm were both architects, as well as three of his sons, among them, Peter Böhm. Few people know that he has two projects erected in Brazil, in Brusque and Blumenau - two cities highly influenced by German culture. Photographer Ronaldo Azambuja shared with us his series of photographs of the mother church Igreja Matriz São Luiz Gonzaga in Brusque. The text was written by Angelina Wittmann, architect, and researcher.

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Videos

New Orleans-based Trahan Architects have wrapped the interior of Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre in steam-bent oak. Working with FARO and fabricators CW Keller, the team was inspired by the style of furniture and design artist Matthias Pliessnig. Led by founder Victor F. “Trey” Trahan and partner Leigh Breslau, the renovation has created a signature piece of cultural architecture for Atlanta.

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Led by Jacques Herzog (born 19 April 1950) and Pierre de Meuron (born 8 May 1950), most descriptions of Herzog & de Meuron projects are almost paradoxical: in one paragraph they will be praised for their dedication to tradition and vernacular forms, in the next for their thoroughly modern innovation. However, in the hands of Herzog & de Meuron this is no paradox, as the internationally renowned architectural duo combine tradition and innovation in such a way that the two elements actually enhance each other.

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French manufacturer Lumicene has unveiled a new minimalist prefab dwelling unit made to connect with nature. Called LumiPod, the curved structure is designed around a 5m diameter window that can slide along rails and open to the outdoors. Made to celebrate connections to nature, the 180 square foot prefab unit includes a bedroom, toilet and shower area. LumiPods are designed to be delivered anywhere in the world.

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Vincent Callebaut Architectures has unveiled images of their tribute to Notre-Dame Cathedral following the fire that badly damaged the historic structure. A transcendent project that forms a symbol of a resilient and ecological future, the project is inspired by biomimicry and a common ethic for a fairer symbiotic relationship between humans and nature.

Amey Kandalgaonkar has unveiled a project which reimagines the traditional Chinese pagoda in a modernist style. The Shanghai-based designer created the fictional reinterpretation as a homage to a building form largely untouched by Modernism, featuring raw brut concrete, minimal ornamentation, and bold geometric moves.

Innovation and technology are often presented as inextricably linked ideas. Yet, when it comes to solving today’s urban problems, technology does not always represent the best way forward.

Innovation instead should come from a thorough understanding of the city’s functions and processes, including its municipal government and other local organizations. Technology can help, yes, but cannot be used as a panacea.

As users of ArchDaily demonstrate certain affinities and greater interest in particular subjects, these topics emerge as trends. In recent years, the architecture and construction industry have incorporated digitalization into their processes. This has led to a considerable increase in the search for keywords related to "innovation" and "new technologies" within the infrastructure area.

Below, we've provided trends that relate to an emerging concept in the construction industry: "Constructech", how to take advantage of new technologies to optimize processes.

WSJ. Magazine recently visited the studio of Frank Gehry to explore his life, work and his plans for the future. As one of the world's most famous architects, Gehry and his work are intrinsically linked to Los Angeles. Today, he chooses from many proposals for the projects he wants to take on. Gehry discusses his early love for Los Angeles architecture and wood-framed housing, as well as his insecurities and some of his most famous projects.

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Jonathan Ben David of the Israel Institute of Technology has created a thesis project titled “Terra Nullius” which dwells on the identities and conceptual restraints dividing people in the Middle East. Suggesting alternative concepts, frames of mind, and mediums for which different social groups can gather upon, the thesis takes place off the coast of Jaffa, once an epicenter of Palestinian urbanism, where a new state is formed as an act of protest by Jews and Palestinians longing for co-existence.

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In partnership with MINI Clubman, we have launched our second edition of ArchDaily's 2019 Refurbishment in Architecture Awards. This award highlights the best refurbishment projects from around the world.

Alongside MINI, we believe that the recovery and refurbishment of existing structures is one of the most sustainable ways to develop architecture. From reviving abandoned factories to urban renovations and even remodeling centuries-old homes, refurbishment projects demonstrate the flexibility of our existing cities and the many scales at which past buildings can be repurposed.

Similar to our Building of the Year Award, we entrust our readers with the responsibility of rewarding the best refurbishment projects in architecture—the designs that have had an impact on our profession. By voting, you are part of an impartial and distributed network of professionals who act as a jury to choose the most relevant works of the last eight years. Over the next 3 weeks, the collective intelligence of our audience will filter more than 600 projects to select 3 winners representing the best of architecture refurbishment published on ArchDaily.

eVolo Magazine has announced the winners of its 2019 Skyscraper Competition. Now in its 14th year, the annual award was established to recognize “visionary ideas for building [high-rise] projects that through [the] novel use of technology, materials, programs, aesthetics, and spatial organizations, challenge the way we understand vertical architecture and its relationship with the natural and built environments.”

Modular coatings for facades and enclosures typically deliver fast and efficient solutions. However, many times they lack richness and character since they are repeated infinitely, without relating to the architectural design and its different functions and requirements.

These aluminum foam panels are manufactured through an air injection process in molten aluminum, which contains a fine dispersion of ceramic particulate. These ceramic particles stabilize the air bubbles, and create aluminum foam panels which provide an interesting level of detail and variability, generating unique facades with different levels of texture, transparency, brightness, and opacity. These ultralight panels can be used as flat architectural sheets, are 100% recyclable and available in standard sized formats up to 3.66 meters long (custom longer panels also available). 

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British architectural photographer Peter M. Cook has documented the city of Tokyo and its evolution for more than twenty years. Following the development of the city and its buildings with a large-format camera, Cook's first book of photographs have been published by Hatje Cantz Verlag with 100 shots. The monochromatic, large-format photographs reveal a story of one of the world's most iconic cities.

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It’s a tale as old as time. The architect slaves away night after night designing the most beautiful architecture. The people are raving, excited to see what new and impressive building will go up this time. The render looks amazing!

Italian architect Gaetano Boccia has been researching drawings and architectural representation for the past two years. The Pdda (piccoli disegni di architettura) project was born with the intention of sharing Boccia's thoughts, which he has always cataloged and kept in notebooks.

Referring to no particular buildings, these drawings are part of an inspirational process that takes place in the architect's daily context and complex surroundings of Naples and Italian culture.

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Videos

Before social media took over, buildings were published on magazines, edited and refined according to their architects’ preferences. Nowadays, magazines are left on the sidelines for a much more influential platform, one that is not totally controlled by the architects. Digital communication has changed the way people view and interact with architecture, providing architects with new insights on how to design their structures.

PLANE—SITE, a global production agency involved in the world of urban, cultural, and social spaces, have put together a short video that examines the impact of social media on architecture firms. Building Images provides insights from OMA/AMO and UNStudio, two firms with different approaches to social media, who explain how social platforms have helped them see their projects in unprecedented ways.