Los Angeles’ rollercoaster campaign to host the Olympics — an effort marked by early defeat and last-second negotiations — reached its conclusion Wednesday when the city was formally awarded the 2028 Summer Games. International Olympic Committee members, by a unanimous show of hands, voted their approval at a session in Lima, Peru, ending an unusual bid competition that resulted in two winners as Paris was simultaneously given the 2024 Games. — Los Angeles Times
Paris and Los Angeles were officially awarded the 2024 and 2028 summer games, respectively. Both cities have previously hosted the summer olympics twice, Paris in 1900 and in 1924, and Los Angeles in 1932 and in 1984. The two cities already have some of the necessary infrastructures to host the... View full entry
The Grade II* listed structure designed by Cedric Price with Frank Newby and Lord Snowdon in 1962, was, and still is a sensational statement. It was the first aviary in Britain that gave visitors a ‘walk-through’ experience, bringing them closer to the birds in their natural habitat. The new design adapts the heritage structure to suit its new inhabitants – a troop of colobus monkeys and parrots – and offers visitors an enhanced experience. — Foster + Partners
Snowdon Aviary. Image: Foster + PartnersFoster + Partners will transform the aviary at the London Zoo, built in 1964 and designed by Cedric Price, Frank Newby and Antony Armstrong-Jones. Norman Foster says “The rebirth of the Snowdon Aviary continues our work with historical structures. It... View full entry
San Francisco is one of the many cities in the U.S. threatened by climate change. Scientific projections predict that sea level rise is likely to push tides upwards with accelerating force in the coming decades and a 2012 study estimated that the average high tide within San Francisco Bay could... View full entry
Archinect's Architecture School Lecture Guide for Fall 2017 Ready or not, it's the start of a new school year. Back for Fall 2017 is Archinect's Get Lectured, an ongoing series where we feature a school's lecture series—and their snazzy posters—for the current term. Check back regularly to... View full entry
Free to ignore building standards for dwellings, student housing isn’t just ruining British cities – it’s damaging student life. As universities start back, we reveal how developers get away with it [...]
Hardly a year goes by without a slab of PBSA featuring on the Carbuncle Cup shortlist for the ugliest UK building. This year it was the turn of a dismal block in Portsmouth, designed by Cooley Architects for Unite, the biggest student housing provider in the country.
— The Guardian
Besides aesthetics, Wainwright also points out issues of affordability, government regulation, and basic building safety: the Portsmouth housing block, as well as other new Unite student accommodations, failed fire safety tests of their cladding systems in July, conducted after the tragic Grenfell... View full entry
The Dutch government selected OMA's proposed masterplan to redevelop the Bijlmerbajes, a former prison complex built in the 1970s in southeast Amsterdam. Located on a 7.5 ha site, the Bijlmerbajes towers have long been a landmark on the outskirts of the... View full entry
Established in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1948, the UIA is recognized as a non-governmental organization by the United Nations. It works on matters of professional and public interest through three permanent commissions and various work programs. It is chartered to unite architects internationally, without regard to nationality, ethnicity, or political viewpoint. — The American Institute of Architects
Thomas Vonier, president of the AIA, was elected President of the UIA (International Union of Architects) during the 2017 World Congress and General Assembly held in Seoul. Vonier will remain AIA President until December. Carl Elefante, will be AIA President for 2018 and William J. Bates for... View full entry
They are in that fertile period — agewise, it typically runs from the mid-40s to mid-50s in architecture — when the profession’s next generation of leadership begins to make its mark. — The New York Times
NADAAA, Atelier TAG, SHoP Architects, Oyler Wu Collaborative: these are among the firms highlighted in this piece in the New York Times, which surveys the architects who are currently primed to "lead" the profession. Los Angeles-based pair and married couple Johnston Marklee, who are heading up... View full entry
The U.S. Pavilion at the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale, titled Dimensions of Citizenship, is further taking shape: the curatorial team — announced just two weeks ago and comprised of Mimi Zeiger, Niall Atkinson, and Ann Lui — today revealed a line-up of the seven pavilion... View full entry
Currently at Columbia University's new Lenfest Center for the Arts, “Living in America: Frank Lloyd Wright, Harlem & Modern Housing” highlights an old question that has befuddled architects and planners throughout mid-20th century America: “How to live together?”. Curated... View full entry
Archinect's Architecture School Lecture Guide for Fall 2017 Ready or not, it's the start of a new school year. Back for Fall 2017 is Archinect's Get Lectured, an ongoing series where we feature a school's lecture series—and their snazzy posters—for the current term. Check back regularly to... View full entry
As the brand-new rendering above shows, the luxury condo tower designed by Jean Nouvel will boast an unusual amenity: floors 2, 4 and 5 of 53W53 will serve as new gallery levels for the Museum of Modern Art when construction is completed. Additionally, according to a fact sheet, "benefactor W... View full entry
The prestigious Alvar Aalto Medal program has announced Chinese architect Zhang Ke as laureate of its 2017 prize. Established in 1967 and presented by the Alvar Aalto Foundation, the Museum of Finnish Architecture, the Architectural Society, the Finnish Association of Architects SAFA... View full entry
KAAN Architecten has won the commission to design the new terminal at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, beating out major competitors OMA, UNStudio, SOM, and MVRDV. In the years ahead, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol will be expanding in order to strengthen the competitive position of Mainport... View full entry
“I’m looking for subtle signifiers of an exuberant bygone optimism,” [Photographer Tag Christof] said. “Whether people realize it or not, the things I photograph are the direct result of a system that defines progress only in economic terms.” Christof...has spent the last five years crisscrossing the country in an effort to document architectural sites vanishing from the landscape. — The Outline
Whether you spent your teenage years moodily occupying the food court or have experienced malls primarily as ruin porn, the architectural significance of these former bustling commercial centers can't be overstated. A kind of high water mark of capitalism, the shuttered and demolished malls... View full entry