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Modular: The Latest Architecture and News

MVRDV’s “Market Cube” Reimagines the Urban Market as a Flexible Vertical Hub in Zhubei, Taiwan

Dutch architecture firm MVRDV has won the competition to design a new multifunctional market and food hall in Zhubei, Taiwan. Developed in collaboration with local firm EKUO, the project, referred to as the "Market Cube" or "River Bank 1," aims to redefine the traditional market building through a vertically layered, highly adaptable structure. Positioned along the Touqian River at a prominent gateway between Zhubei and neighboring Hsinchu, the building is set to become a major civic destination.

MVRDV’s “Market Cube” Reimagines the Urban Market as a Flexible Vertical Hub in Zhubei, Taiwan - Image 1 of 4MVRDV’s “Market Cube” Reimagines the Urban Market as a Flexible Vertical Hub in Zhubei, Taiwan - Image 2 of 4MVRDV’s “Market Cube” Reimagines the Urban Market as a Flexible Vertical Hub in Zhubei, Taiwan - Image 3 of 4MVRDV’s “Market Cube” Reimagines the Urban Market as a Flexible Vertical Hub in Zhubei, Taiwan - Image 4 of 4MVRDV’s “Market Cube” Reimagines the Urban Market as a Flexible Vertical Hub in Zhubei, Taiwan - More Images+ 1

EAST Architecture Studio Wins Inaugural AlMusalla Prize for Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 in Saudi Arabia

The Diriyah Biennale Foundation has announced Lebanon-based EAST Architecture Studio, in collaboration with artist Rayyane Tabet and engineering firm AKT II, as the winners of the inaugural AlMusalla Prize, a significant new architectural competition launched as part of the Islamic Arts Biennale. Their winning design, a modular structure inspired by regional weaving traditions, uses sustainable materials derived from local date palm waste, including palm fronds and fibers. After the four-month Biennale, the Musalla will be dismantled and reassembled at a new location.

EAST Architecture Studio Wins Inaugural AlMusalla Prize for Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 in Saudi Arabia - Image 1 of 4EAST Architecture Studio Wins Inaugural AlMusalla Prize for Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 in Saudi Arabia - Image 2 of 4EAST Architecture Studio Wins Inaugural AlMusalla Prize for Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 in Saudi Arabia - Image 3 of 4EAST Architecture Studio Wins Inaugural AlMusalla Prize for Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 in Saudi Arabia - Image 4 of 4EAST Architecture Studio Wins Inaugural AlMusalla Prize for Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 in Saudi Arabia - More Images+ 1

A New Level of Functional Privacy in Airports: The Rise of Lounges and Work Cabins

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According to Norman Foster, "as an architect you design for the present, with an awareness of the past." In this sense, present-day architecture, interiors, and furniture have undergone a radical evolution in recent years, driven by a paradigm shift in the conception of space and our interaction with it. This contemporary approach has steered us towards less constrained, more collaborative, and multi-purpose spaces, which can also provide privacy and functionality. In addition, they must serve as temporary workspaces in specific contexts, adapting to the dynamism of contemporary needs and activities.

From this new approach, architects and designers are reshaping interior environments to accommodate new behaviors, facilitating the discovery of renewed ergonomics in human activities. Today, architectural thinking is merging to create spaces that enable conducting our lives in motion, a trend particularly evident in dynamic environments such as airports, encompassing intimate and social moments with people on the move. Consequently, a new kind of furniture has re-emerged, becoming commonplace in airport settings and other shared spaces: the booth.

How Can Modular Design Be Used to Revolutionize Housing Architecture?

Housing is a diverse architectural typology whose configuration is determined not only by those who design it but also by the use of those who live in it. Therefore, homes are fundamentally adaptable structures that evolve in line with their time and users, undergoing constant changes manifested in the ways of living. The house conceived today will not be the same as the one built tomorrow, so it becomes necessary to maintain a critical and profound approach to the role it plays in the built environment.

In this sense, modular architecture has consistently presented itself as a dynamic design strategy that has revolutionized housing, developing versatile solutions for sustainable spaces and construction practices. Thus, modular housing has been fertile ground for exploring and deepening ways of inhabiting space and addressing human needs. From the prefabricated catalog houses of the 19th century to the post-World War II housing boom, its evolution reflects both past proposals and the exploration of new concepts for the future.