In recent years, much attention has been given to timber constructions. Being a sustainable and renewable material, which captures a huge amount of carbon during its growth, the innovations related to this material have allowed for increasingly higher constructions. However, when we talk about wood we approach an immense variety of species, with different strengths, nuances, potentials, limitations and recommended uses. While there are extremely hard and heavy woods, with strengths comparable to concrete, there are other soft and soft woods that are suitable for other purposes.
As is obvious to anyone with even a passing interest in demographics, cities are becoming denser—much denser. Rural life continues its steady emptying-out as urban life accelerates its explosive filling-in. The tilt has been apparent at least since the middle of the last century when the French geographer Jean Gottmann invented the word “megalopolis” to describe the continuous urbanization from Boston to Washington, D.C., then containing one-fifth of the United States’ population. But nowhere has the shift from countryside to city been more dramatic than in present-day Asia.
Kiev, Ukraine / Statue of Berehynia on the top of Independence Monument on the Maidan Nezalezhnosti. Image via Shutterstock
On the 24th of February 2022, Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine. Set to become Europe’s largest refugee crisis and armed conflict in this century, so far, this war has mobilized people across the world in order to exert pressure on authorities and put a stop to the armed hostilities. Individuals, as well as institutions in the architectural field, have taken part in these acts of solidarity, issuing statements, condemning actions, and even halting their work in Russia. From the UIA to MVRDV to Russian Institutions such as Strelka, the architecture world is denouncing the acts of violence and supporting an immediate cease of fire.
Although the term may seem recent, the concept of biophilia has been used for decades in architecture and design. The guiding principle is quite simple: connect people inside with nature to promote their well-being and quality of life. With all the ongoing design trends that have consolidated as a result, the demand has focused on organic materials that emulate outdoor environments. Among all the options, wood is one of the most popular materials to bring nature indoors, not only because of its functionality, but also due to its multiple physiological and psychological benefits.
Setting the stage for Rotterdam Architecture Month this upcoming June, MVRDV have designed a temporary rooftop platform on the Het Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam. The 600-square-meter event space titled The Podium will be elevated 29 meters and covered with a striking pink color, making it visible to all pedestrians on ground level. The installation will open to the public on June 1st, coinciding with the inauguration of the Rotterdam Architecture Month Festival, and will continue to be used for events until August 17th.
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced the shortlisted projects for the 2022 RIBA London architecture awards. The list of 68 buildings includes projects ranging from individual houses to schools and office towers in the city centre, showcasing the best architectural interventions in London over the past two years. All designs will be assessed by a regional jury, and the winning projects will be announced later this spring. Subsequently, Regional Award winners will be considered for the RIBA National Award.
Architecture may have its roots in sheltering humans from the elements, but that is not to say that architecture is for humans alone. Around the world, there are numerous examples of buildings and shelters designed by architects for other species. Some of these can be whimsical, such as the Dogchitecture exhibit by 10 Mexican architecture firms back in 2013, or the series of BowWow Haus kennels designed by over 80 architects back in 2017, including Zaha Hadid Architects. But others are designed for a more direct impact.
As revolutionary as the construction sector may seem nowadays, it currently accounts for nearly 40% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, 11% of which are a result of manufacturing building materials such as steel, cement, and glass. Fast forward a couple of years later, after a life-changing global pandemic and indisputable evidences of climate change, CO2 emissions are still on a rise, reaching a historical maximum in 2020 according to the 2020 Global Status Report for Buildings and Construction. Although a lot of progress has been made through technological advancements, design strategies and concepts, and construction processes, there is still a long way to go to reduce carbon emissions to a minimum or almost zero in the development of built environments.
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Courtesy of Design Center Baden-Württemberg
Last year, the International Design Award Baden-Württemberg celebrated its 30th anniversary. For this year's prize, designers and brands are invited to apply until March 18 with designs that are either ready for production or have been on the market for less than two years.
By 2025, Dubai plans for a fourth of its buildings to be printed in 3D construction methods, demonstrating the potential of a fast-growing technology capable of redefining and pushing the limits of traditional architecture. As the technique emerges as a viable solution in the construction, engineering, and architecture areas, its popularity is quickly increasing. In fact, just between 2021 and 2028, the global 3D construction market is expected to grow by 91%, according to a July 2021 report by Grand View Research. Why this rapid growth? Besides being a faster alternative and having lower construction costs, it can also provide affordable housing solutions and allow countless design possibilities, among many other benefits. Thus, as architects must adapt to a new technological era, where speed and efficiency have become key factors in design and execution processes, the rise of 3D printing shows enormous promise. It could even help reshape construction as we know it.
We are all experienced and we have all done it! I am referring to one's reaction to less than good lighting of course. Think about it.
We have all experienced architectural spaces wherein something about the lighting is not quite right. It could be any of the following issues, to name a few: appearance, color quality, controllability, emphasis or lack thereof, flicker, harshness of shadows, lack of shadows, illumination levels on horizontal and/or vertical surfaces, luminaire placement, proportions, and/or scale. Any of these issues can be perceived as bad lighting.
Courtesy of Menilmonde via screenshot from 2°C New York City video
Following an extensive report on the impacts of climate change last year, the second installment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United Nation's body for assessing the science related to climate change, addresses the current and anticipated impacts of climate change on ecosystems, biodiversity, and human communities across the globe, along with action plans on how the natural world and human societies could adapt to these changes before reaching an "irreversible" state.
The floor is one of the largest areas of coverage of an environment, and therefore, its choice goes through several criteria related to both aesthetic and visual identity issues, as well as technical issues of resistance and maintenance. It is common to use different floors for areas with different uses and often this transition is not marked by walls or doors. Next, we will bring you tips on how to make this transition harmoniously when there is no physical boundary between the floors.
El Sindicato was born in 2014, when Xavier Duque, Maria Reinoso and Nicolás Viteri joined forces against the boss-employee way of working. They stop working for other people. They do their own thing. What they like the most inside and outside the profession. They affirm that it is not, and they do not want it to be, an architecture office, but a life project.
According to a Harris Poll/Lego survey that questioned children across the United States, UK, and China, nearly one-third of children aged eight to 12 want to be a “YouTuber” when they grow up. That’s three times as many children who said that they wanted to be astronauts just a decade ago. The implications of how this generation of future influencers and content creators has a significant impact on the architecture and design profession begs the question- are we on the cusp of experiencing the rise of architecture influencers?
Courtesy of UN-Habitat and Global Utmaning/ Edited by ArchDaily
The built environment destined for everyone is still, to this day, not envisioned by everyone. Last year on Women’s day, we stated that “the battle for equality is far from over”. Highlighting continuously women architects and gender-related topics, this year, ArchDaily is turning the tables and seeking guidance from our audience. We highly value our reader's opinions, and now more than ever, we are seeking your input, to reach more realms and shed light on unfamiliar female figures to the international scene.
In your opinion, who are the female architects missing from our platform? Help us put the spotlight on women implicated in the built environment and nominate major female characters from across the globe, so that we can adjust the narratives, feature their work, and share knowledge and tools for a more inclusive world. These women can belong to any part of history: from young upcoming forces to established individuals or firms to figurines that were part of architecture's history. They can also have diverse professional backgrounds, from architects, planners, designers, to builders and decision-makers, all profiles involved in shaping the environment that surrounds us are eligible.
The early 20th century saw the birth of Modernist architecture. It brought with it a central architectural movement that in turn birthed off-shoots of its own. A figure often seen as the defining face of this movement is Le Corbusier, whose 1923 treatise Toward an Architecturewas influential to his Modernist contemporaries – a manifesto including the phrase “a house is a machine for living in” where good architecture would have to be intrinsically linked to function and the demands of industry.
A new place for design - State of Address (SOFA) - is a world-first design community on the blockchain, shifting how design and architecture is made, owned and collected.
Founded by four Melbourne entrepreneurs - Chris Stribley, Domenic Cerantonio, AJ Batra and Anmol Sekhon - SOFA uses non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to turn products of architecture and design into tokenized and investable assets that are unique, scarce, and transferable. All of which provide a plethora of digital and physical utility and have the potential to be on-sold for longer term gain.
As OMA New York / Jason Long's Greenpoint Landing residential towers near completion, new renders have been released that showcase the amenities, interior spaces, and landscape of the project. Developed by Brookfield Properties and Park Tower Group, the Eagle + West Towers feature 745 units of mixed-income housing, 8,600 sq. ft. of retail space, along with recreational amenities such as a pool, lounge, gym, workshops, and test kitchen.
Farshid Moussavi (photograph: Anne Purkiss) and Mona Hatoum (credit: The Japan Art Association / The Sankei Shimbun / Mizuho Miyazaki). Image Courtesy of Architectural Review
Farshid Moussavi and Mona Hatoum have been named this year's recipients of the Jane Drew and Ada Louise Huxtable Prizes, two awards celebrating women's contribution to the architecture profession and the broader architectural culture. The 2022 Jane Drew Prize commends Farshid Moussavi for her achievements as architect, educator and writer, while artist Mona Hatoum, whose works take on an architectural scale, was awarded the Ada Louise Huxtable Prize in recognition of her significant contribution to architecture.
Over the last couple of years, terraces have become an important part of urban life, acting as a refuge, a space for enjoyment and gathering, for contemplation or as an outdoor workspace. As a result of periods of confinement around the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, these outdoor spaces where people can exercise, connect with nature, study or work, have become particularly popular with those living in large cities.
Scandinavian interiors and products have had an affinity with design excellence for the better part of a century. Although the local landscape is one of doubtless natural beauty, it remains frustratingly covered in darkness for a large portion of the year.
Amsterdam is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. Its origins lie in the 12th century when fishermen living along the banks of the River Amstel built a bridge across the waterway near the IJ, then a large saltwater inlet. Most of the city’s territory is below sea level and therefore it lies on land that has been reclaimed from the water.
Amsterdam is all about practical urban planning, amazing cycling infrastructure, tulip-lined canal bridges, and old merchant houses that tilt at impossible angles. I visited Amsterdam again last year and discovered some new places.
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