It has been a month since the deadly space heater-induced apartment fire at the Twins Parks housing complex claimed the lives of 17 people and displaced more than 200 families from a largely Gambian immigrant community in the South Bronx. The incident has turned into a bellwether for the state of... View full entry
In a rainy region of western Scotland, an architectural masterpiece has been given a new lease of life. Built in 1904, the Hill House is regarded as one of the most iconic residential homes to be designed by the famous architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh. After over a century, however, the... View full entry
Freeski big air opened its Olympic competition Monday at the world’s first permanent, city-based big air facility, a repurposed steel mill on the west side of Beijing that’s made a stunning backdrop for one of the Games’ newest sports. — The Associated Press
The venue is the one-time home of a steel production facility that was shuttered ahead of the 2008 games to create a generally greener picture of the country to Western news outlets. Its former grounds have been transformed into a greenery-laced headquarters for the games’ Organizing Committee... View full entry
The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC), an organization responsible for investing $10 billion in clean energy projects on behalf of the Australian government, is seeking to substantially cut construction-related emissions with a new $214 million program to encourage the use of mass timber in... View full entry
Years prior to his departure from his home country, Ai famously consulted on the design of the venue hosting Friday night's opening ceremony: The Beijing National Stadium, or "Bird's Nest."
But the artist distanced himself from the project and criticized China's hosting of the Olympics ahead of the opening ceremony, believing it to be a propaganda tool at odds with what he felt were the oppressive realities of life in the country.
— CNN
Ai Weiwei originally conceived of the stadium as an inspirational structure that carried a message to China and the rest of the world about the potential for democracy within his home country, but the still-in-exile artist now says that the symbolic uses of the building are being warped into an... View full entry
Two of the last features from 2021 included; Niall Patrick Walsh’s reporting on the (hype vs) reality of a 3D Printed House and Katherine Guimapang’s spotlight on the University of Calgary's new-ish Doctor of Design (DDes) program. For the former, Niall looked into a collaboration between... View full entry
Montreal’s Thomas Balaban Architecte (TBA) has returned to a core area of its practice with a new private residence for an art-collecting Quebecois family called the Berri House. Challenged to “squeeze as much home as possible” out of a 112-year-old 130-square-meter (1,400-square-foot)... View full entry
A new Indigenous cultural precinct where repatriated ancestral remains will be cared for, and where Indigenous Australia’s history will be unfurled through a large but little-known collection, is set to become a reality in four years on the shore of Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra. — The Art Newspaper
Australian prime minister Scott Morrison and the minister for Indigenous Australians Ken Wyatt made the joint announcement on January 4th. The precinct, named Ngurra, which means home, will receive $228 million from the federal government for its construction. A national architecture competition... View full entry
The latest high-profile architectural addition to the Fort Lauderdale skyline is moving forward this week as the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has announced its approval of SOM's design concept for a new 252,000-square-foot federal courthouse. The development will target LEED Gold and... View full entry
The art ecosystem of Australia’s South Coast region got a significant boost over the weekend after the official unveiling of the new Bundanon Art Museum and Bridge for Creative Learning designed by Kerstin Thompson Architects. The Melbourne-based firm worked with landscape architects Wraight... View full entry
It was beautiful. It was a wreck. It blistered on the rocky hillside: a perfect dome, gray weathered concrete and granite connected by a bridge to an eroded staircase. The day was warm and bright, the interiors were crumbling and stuffy. Some rooms contained odd bits of dusty ’60s Italian modern furniture, bright-green glazed tiles and faded taupe cushions. An Italian paperback copy of Patricia Cornwell’s “Cause of Death” was left on a kitchen countertop. — New York Times Style Magazine
The death of Monica Vitti on 2 February 2022 has brought up many stories of "the Queen of Italian cinema" whose relationship with Michaelangelo Antonioni gave birth to a dome house known as La Cupola by Italian architect Dante Bini's company Binishell. In this five years old... View full entry
A proposed Downtown high-rise with a design inspired by California's redwood trees has taken a key step forward, following the publication of a Sustainable Communities Environmental Assessment for the project. — Urbanize Los Angeles
Designed by Koichi Takada Architects, with MVE + Partners serving as architect of record, and RIOS as landscape architect, the 40-story tower located at the southwest corner of 11th and Hill streets in the South Park neighborhood will replace a two-story warehouse. The glass and steel building... View full entry
The “Black History Is LA History” map includes the Calvary Baptist Church of Pacoima, which was founded in 1955 by civil rights activists Rev. Hillery T. and Rosa L. Broadus, who moved from Arkansas to the San Fernando Valley. The two were involved in the local fair housing movement and helped organize the NAACP’s San Fernando Valley chapter. — Spectrum News Los Angeles
The map, launched by Los Angeles Controller Ron Galperin, highlights key infrastructure like the Paul Revere Williams-designed Theme Building at LAX as well as cultural landmarks like Watts Towers Arts Center and the restored Crenshaw Wall. The focus on sites that are publicly-owned and... View full entry
MVRDV founding partner Winy Maas and Theobert van Boven of Van Boven Architecten are leading the transformation of their old high school Gymnasium Beekvliet in the Dutch village of Sint-Michielsgestel. The main element of this design by the two alumni is a colorful, flowing addition... View full entry
The eyes of the world will soon turn to the new Populous-designed National Speed Skating Oval as the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics prepare to kick off in Beijing. As the only new permanent venue at this year’s games, the 'Ice Ribbon' takes its place in line with the National... View full entry
