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The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced two major changes that will help it restructure and rebound following recent economic losses. The institute will shed staff and sell its surplus property as it looks to redevelop its 66 Portland Place headquarters according to reports... View full entry
A friendly fiberglass feline icon is being used as a catalyst for change in one London neighborhood, thanks to the incredible creativity and vision of one local firm. Image courtesy Ståle Eriksen/Tsuruta Architects Tsuruta Architects, recent winner of the RIBA London Small Project... View full entry
The shortlist has been announced for the 2021 RIBA Stirling Prize, awarded each year to the UK’s best new building. Six buildings will be in contention for the award, which is now in its 25th edition. Among the projects vying for the award are a mosque in Cambridge, a bridge on the south coast... View full entry
OMA’s mixed-use development for London’s Greenwich Peninsula has been granted planning consent from the Royal Borough of Greenwich’s Planning Committee. The master plan, called Morden Wharf, will sit on a 2.4-hectare site adjacent to the O2 Arena. Image by Pixelflakes, Courtesy of OMA... View full entry
As part of a concert series meant to promote the group’s first album release in 40 years, legendary Swedish pop group ABBA is pairing with one British architecture firm for a new 3,000-capacity concert venue nestled into a space originally designed for the 2012 Olympic games. The band... View full entry
Owners of London's Grenfell Tower are expected to announce later this month that the tower will be demolished due to safety concerns. This decision comes more than four years following the fire that claimed the lives of 72 people. UK housing secretary, Robert Jenrick, has been notified... View full entry
The deputy leader of a London council responsible for the ballooning costs of the Marble Arch Mound has resigned. Melvyn Caplan stepped down immediately after total costs nearly doubled to £6m, up from a forecast of £3.3m. Ticketholders were offered refunds for the artificial viewing platform which temporarily closed within two days of opening on 26 July. — BBC News
The Westminster City Council, the park’s operator, has said that a review to “understand what went wrong and ensure it never happens again,” is underway. The MVRDV-designed attraction is now free to visit for the month of August after its plants and grass began to die. In a... View full entry
He [Kahn] was enthusiastic about welcoming “another world-class venue to the capital, to confirm London’s position as a music powerhouse” when the sphere was announced in 2018; yet the following year, his planning officers’ first report concluded that it did not comply with his own London Plan. He is in a bind. Will he side with the Labour borough and listen to the locals, or back his development corporation in the hope of using this brash bauble to buff the capital’s post-Brexit brand? — The Guardian
The Guardian critic Oliver Wainwright explores the sordid dealings behind the gigantic $1.8 billion orb he describes as "the apogee of 360-degree advertising, the ultimate building-as-sign […] the stuff of Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown’s neon-soaked dreams." The MSG Sphere... View full entry
MVRDV’s latest project is closing after just two days following a torrent of public backlash against the $3 million artificial earthen mound in Westminster, London. The Marble Arch Mound opened earlier this week after an abbreviated construction period which began in early May. Commentators... View full entry
David Adjaye’s proposed UK Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Westminster, London is going forward after gaining approval from the Minister of State for Housing Christopher Pincher this week. The memorial has drawn a considerable amount of backlash in the Commonwealth since being... View full entry
The Times is reporting that Thomas Heatherwick has met with members of the British government as recently as March in what could be discussions surrounding a future memorial to COVID-19 victims in the UK. Heatherwick has done a number of high-profile commissions in London, the city of his birth... View full entry
Photos for the new One Park Drive development in London’s Canary Wharf neighborhood have been released this week by Herzog & de Meuron. The project represents the Swiss firm’s second major development in the city following the cancellation of a planned football stadium last year and the... View full entry
London’s National Gallery has announced the architect for its upcoming renovation that’s part of a bicentennial celebration planned for the museum in 2024. Selldorf Architects will be in charge of the renovation tied to a planned competition called the NG200 Project. Selldorff beat out... View full entry
The Tate Modern will turn into a mass walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre this Friday night, offering first and second Pfizer jabs to anyone over 18.
The iconic venue will be hosting the pop-up vaccine site in its Turbine Hall, offering Londoners exclusive access to galleries for the night and a unique setting to get protected against Covid.
— City A.M.
Vaccination rates in London have fallen recently. All four Tate galleries have been fully reopened since May following a 14-month partial closure that reduced overall visitorship by 80%. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced the reopening of the country on July 19th despite pushback from some... View full entry
Bridge specialists, Knight Architects, have received substantial public approval for their South Dock Bridge, a new pedestrian bridge in London’s Docklands. Once completed, it is expected to become one of the busiest pedestrian bridges in London. Designed by Knight Architects, Arcadis, and... View full entry
