Commissioned by Diriyah Company, HKS Architects have revealed the design for a new multisport arena in Diriyah. Envisioned as a catalyst for the local culture and the entertainment sector, the 20,000-seat venue will be located in the center of The City of Earth, a 76,000-square-meter development aligned with Saudi Vision 2030, aimed at becoming one of the most attractive venues for tourism in the Middle East.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is now home to the world’s first 3D-printed mosque, spanning an area of 5,600 sqm. Located within the Al-Jawhara suburb of Jeddah, the mosque stands as a tribute to the late equestrian Abdulaziz Abdullah Sharbatly. The project by Forsan Real Estate utilizes cutting-edge 3D printing technology from Guanli.
Zaha Hadid Architects have unveiled a large-scale project for the redevelopment of the Al Khuwair waterfront in downtown Muscat, the capital of Oman. The $1.3bn project covers an area of 3.3 million square meters. It aims to revitalize the area through sustainability-led design principles to accommodate the expected population growth, which is expected to almost double by 2040. The plans are developed in collaboration with Buro Happold to incorporate and transform the existing buildings on site, introduce coastal and climate resilience measures, and create an efficient transit-oriented infrastructure.
Pioneering advanced construction and large-scale 3D Printing, ICON was selected as ArchDaily’s Best New Practices of 2021 due to its boundary-breaking technology that is advancing capability in the built environment. The Texas-based startup has just unveiled various toolkits and products to modernize construction processes further. Dubbed “Domus Ex Machina,” the event showcased a range of innovations, such as an AI Architect created for home design and construction, a digital library containing over 60 pre-designed home plans, a new eco-friendly building material, and a robotic printed facilitating multi-story construction. Together, these developments aim to offer a quicker, more environmentally friendly way to build high-quality, affordable housing globally.
Last week, Japanese architect and social advocate Riken Yamamoto was announced as the 2024 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate, becoming the 9th Japanese architect honored with the profession’s most prestigious award. Throughout the 45-year history of the Pritzker Prize, Japan stands out as the nation with the highest number of laureates. While geography is not a criterion in the selection of the laureates, Japanese architecture consistently impresses with its interplay of light and shadow, the careful composition of spaces, soft transitions between interior and exterior, and attention to detail and materiality. An ingrained culture of building also celebrates diverse designs and encourages global dialogue and the exchange of ideas and best practices. Read on to rediscover the 9 Japanese Pritzker laureates and glimpse into their body of work.
Foster + Partners has just unveiled the designs for the Xicen Science & Technology Center at the heart of the Yangtze River Delta Region in Shanghai, China. The project is strategically located along the Shanghai – Huzhou development axis, ensuring connectivity to the city center through high-speed rail links. Drawing inspiration from the timeless allure of the surrounding water towns, the center blends new and existing waterways to create a community featuring residential, commercial, and recreational spaces.
Dia Art Foundation announced a major landscape project to reimagine the land at Dia Beacon, New York. Commissioned landscape architect Sara Zewde of Studio Zewde aims to go beyond the simple arrangement of attractive plants and integrate ideas of ecology, culture, and people into the design. Taking over the museum’s 32-acre campus, the project will create an expanded outdoor park, free to access for visitors and locals alike, complete with native meadows, sculptural landforms, and winding pathways. The project, which has been recently extended to also include the museum’s eight back acres, is expected to open to the public in 2025.
Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) has just begun renovating the iconic Schuylkill Tower in Monaco. Originally built in 1963, the tower currently stands tall as Monaco’s first-ever high-rise. ZHA conducted a feasibility study evaluating its development prospects and the scope of necessary renovations. This led to ZHA’s collaboration with local firm Square Architecte to revitalize and expand the iconic structure, set to be completed in May 2027.
Last week, Japanese architect and social advocate, Riken Yamamoto, was selected as the 2024 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate, the 53rd honoree of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, and the ninth architect from Japan to receive this recognition. With a body of built works that spans five decades, ranging from private residences to large-scale housing complexes, educational institutions, and civic spaces, scattered around Japan, China, South Korea, and Switzerland, Yamamoto's architecture is focused on building community and blurring the boundaries between the public and private spheres. In a series of videos produced by the Pritzker Prize, the architect goes back to the fundamentals and discusses the threshold system, transparency, community, and the landscape.
MVRDV has just begun construction on the LXK Office and Residential Campus in Berlin. Situated in Friedrichshain, near Berlin Ostbahnhof, the development spans approximately 61,200 sqm and boasts city center views from its green rooftops and terraces. Designed as two buildings, a horizontal band encircles the middle of either structure, serving as a distinctive landmark in Berlin.
Brooklyn-based firm SO-IL has revealed the design for a new campus art museum at Williams College in Massachusetts, created to become a primary teaching resource for the institution renowned for its art history program. Since its inauguration in 1926, the Williams College Museum of Art has gathered an expansive collection of over 15,000 works. Through the design of SO-IL, the museum will be able to move into its first freestanding purpose-built home. In May 2024, the museum will present an exhibition on SO-IL’s design.
BIG and HNTB have just won the competition to design an Athletics ballpark in Las Vegas. Situated along the iconic Las Vegas Strip, the ballpark for the Athletics Major League Baseball team promises to uphold the values of the “Entertainment Capital of the World.” Nestled between Tropicana Avenue and Reno Avenue on Las Vegas Boulevard, the ballpark boasts 33,000 seats in an open-air stadium sprawling across nine acres.
Last Monday I got on a Berlin to Doha flight, a usual route given how Qatar has positioned itself as an effective hub connecting east and west. But this time Doha was not the connection, it was the destination.
A series of recent projects showcase the direction that the emirate is building towards, based on its heritage and the richness of its desert and coast, while focusing on culture and education, aiming for a sustainable development model. Again, its status as a hub facilitates global events such as the 2022 FIFA World Cup or the 2023 Doha Horticultural Expo. All of this has led to a growing number of remarkable architectural projects in the country that I was eager to explore, from the National Museum of Qatar by Jean Nouvel, the Museum of Islamic Art by I.M. Pei, the Qatar National Library by OMA, its Metro network by UN Studio or the Msheireb Downtown District by Allies and Morrison, AECOM and Arup, a compact walkable district that set an example for urban development in the region.
Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R) with a team led by Charles Renfro has broken ground on Rice University's New Arts Building named the Susan and Fayez Sarofim Hall. The new building envisioned as a gateway to the university's campus will incorporate exhibition areas, labs, studios, shops, faculty offices, and other facilities. To create adaptability over time, the structure uses an expandable prefabricated system, thus incorporating interdisciplinarity and experimentation within the design. The building located in Houston, Texas, is expected to open in the fall of 2025.
MVRDV has just released a new design study exploring how co-living can help shape the future of housing. Created in collaboration with developer HUB and sustainable investor Bridges Fund Management, the study introduces a comprehensive study exploring diverse typologies, aiming to revolutionize communal living and vibrant neighborhoods. It addresses modern housing needs, including flexibility, sustainability, and community, while tackling climate crisis and affordability issues. The endeavor offers tailored solutions for various co-living projects, catering to many demographics and lifestyles.
Internationally recognized architect, writer, and professor Antoine Predock passed away in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on March 2, 2024, at the age of 87. Throughout his career, Predock developed a unique style, working outside of urban centers and seeking to find a connection between the landscapes and the human experience of space. In addition to serving as a long-term faculty member at the University of New Mexico, he is also the architect behind some well-known projects, including the Nelson Fine Arts Center, the Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College, and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
“Reinventing Cities,” C40’s renowned global design competition, has just announced its fourth edition. The competition’s main goal is to “transform underutilized sites or buildings into beacons of sustainability and resilience and act as a showcase for future zero-carbon urban developments.” This year, 15 cities have stepped up the challenge, inviting professionals from various disciplines to reimagine underutilized urban sites and design transformations prioritizing sustainability and inclusivity.
With a commitment to zero-carbon, urban resilient projects, Reinventing Cities has engaged over 3,500 businesses worldwide with 40 projects currently under development globally. This year’s competition is characterized by its ambitious environmental and social objectives; with participating cities spanning continents, including Almere, Bilbao, Bologna, Brussels, Glasgow, Milan, New York, Palermo, Renca, Rome, San Antonio, San Francisco, São Paulo, Seattle, and Venice.
Winter Stations, now in its 10th year, has unveiled the winning designs selected from a pool of hundreds of submissions worldwide. Following an international design competition launched in November 2023, designers, artists, and architects contributed with bold proposals to reimagine the lifeguard stations along Toronto’s east-end beaches for the winter. Launched by RAW Design, Ferris + Associates, and Curio in 2014, the event aims to gather an international design and art community to join in this playful exercise of rethinking public spaces through bold temporary interventions. The winning designs were realized with the support of Anex Works, a Toronto-based fabrication group, and will be on display until the end of March.
For its 10th anniversary edition, the chosen theme for this year is “Resonance,” hoping to challenge designers to reflect on the artistic legacy and enduring impact of the Winter Stations and to embark on a journey of reinvention and reimagination. The projects were invited to recreate and reinvent installations from previous Winer Stations editions, offering moments of contemplation and remembrance. The event also continues the tradition of the Lifeguard Sands, inviting designers to incorporate them into their designs without structurally altering the stands in any manner.
GRAFT Architects has just won the competition to design the new Carl Bechstein Music Campus. Located centrally in Berlin, the Carl Bechstein Foundation’s main goal with the campus is to create a cultural hub entirely devoted to piano music. Serving as a focal point for the Bechstein Brand, established in 1853 and known for its variety of Bechstein pianos, this campus will serve as a focal point and a new headquarters for the foundation.
The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto will undergo an architectural transformation designed by Hariri Pontarini Architects. As one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada, the architects have transformed its ground floor and the Bloor Street entrance, introducing an interior plaza “pulsing with activity and artistic expression.” Dubbed OpenROM, this multifaceted endeavor aims to “open the museum up even more to the public,” revolutionizing the museum experience and making it more accessible for the 1.4 million annual visitors of the cultural institution.
As part of our yearly tradition, we have asked our readers who should win the 2024 Pritzker Prize, the most esteemed accolade in the realm of architecture.
Established by Jay Pritzker and administered by the Hyatt Foundation in the United States, the Pritzker Prize honors living architects, irrespective of nationality, whose architectural contributions "have produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity through the art of architecture."
The Joslyn Art Museum in Nebraska announced that the restoration and expiation works led by Snøhetta and Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture (APMA) are nearing completion, as the transformed institution is scheduled to reopen on September 10, 2024. The new 42,000-square-foot Rhonda & Howard Hawks Pavilion, designed by Snøhetta and APMA will add new gallery spaces to Nebraska’s largest art museum, becoming the centerpiece of the large-scale project for reimagining the visitor experience.
Oman has just announced plans for a $2.4 billion mixed-use project, the new Omani Mountain Destination on Jabal al Akhdar. Masterplanned by AtkinsRéalis, the scheme aims to attract sustainable development opportunities, hoping to "operate as Net Zero Carbon and striving to use 100% renewable energy." The project is in alignment with Oman Vision 2040, seeking a developed, diversified, and sustainable economy;, featuring residences, hotels, and a health village.
UNStudio, in collaboration with local partner HYP Architects, has won the competition for the design of the Kyklos building in Luxembourg. The project is part of Beval, a large-scale redevelopment initiative aiming to transform a former industrial site into an urban center complete with a university and technological center, in addition to residential, office, and retail spaces. When designing the Kyklos building, which will occupy a central position in the district's main square, the architects set out to find solutions to create the smallest carbon footprint for both operational and embedded metrics.
