ODA released images of its 1,185’ mixed-use tower in downtown Seattle. Showcasing a novelty in high-rise design, the project underlines the value and importance of outdoor space. Carving out a void in the middle of the tower, the design creates a shared outdoor amenity space with impressive views to Mt. Rainier.

Grimshaw has just revealed initial concepts of the new 21,000 square-foot arts complex for Santa Monica College (SMC) in Santa Monica, California. Scheduled for completion in 2024, the building is planned as a “factory of creativity”, replacing an existing surface car park and serving as a new western gateway for the college.

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The parking house, entitled Parking House + Konditaget Lüders, has just won the international design award Danish Design Award 2020 in the category of “Liveable Cities”. Designed by JAJA Architects, the intervention refurbished the roof of a parking house into living urban space with sports and play equipment.

David Rockwell and his team at Rockwell Group proposed an open streets initiative, a template for outdoor dining, in order to help bars and restaurants reopen post-pandemic. The design strategies illustrate practical solutions to make everyone feel safe.

Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF) has just received planning consent for Lucan Place in Chelsea, a mixed-use project that provides new homes, nursery, and specialist educational accommodation. The project, a redevelopment of the site of the former Chelsea Police Station, will generate a total of 31 new homes, as well as social and community functions.

Stefano Boeri Architetti has unveiled its recent scheme for Tirana Riverside, in the Albanian capital. Tackling post-COVID 19 needs, the imagined neighbourhood, a first of its kind in Europe, is a technologically-advanced, green and sustainable novelty, designed in agreement with the Government and the City Authorities.

In Belval Luxembourg, ICÔNE, the Foster + Partners-designed office development has broken ground. Tackling the future of workspace, the design generates flexible layouts and addresses the current tendencies for safe working environments.

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Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the world is in isolation and everyone is confined in their own house. In an attempt to analyze and understand how people are dealing with forced isolation in their current living conditions, KAAN Architecten has released an online survey that questions the space we are currently living in and how it influences our mood.

Morris + Company’s affordable rental housing development has just been given planning permission by a virtual committee. Located in Barking and Dagenham, the modern 56 high-quality affordable rental homes are designed for “residents ranging from single occupants to couples and families”.

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A post shared by Christo and Jeanne-Claude (@christojeanneclaude) on May 31, 2020 at 12:08pm PDT

Christo Vladimirov Javacheff, best known as Christo, has passed away at 84 years old of natural causes, in his house, in New York City. The Bulgarian artist, best known for wrapping The Pont Neuf in Paris and the Reichstag in Berlin, has created along the years, with his late wife Jeanne-Claude, large-scale architectural interventions in urban and rural environments.

Conducted by The Citizens’ Brigade to Save LACMA, a recent poll revealed that only 5% approve of the current Peter Zumthor-designed scheme for a new LACMA, 50% Support the renovation of the existing buildings, and 85% favor encyclopedic collection in one location. The public survey also highlighted 3 designs selected out of the shortlisted six proposals of the “LACMA Not LackMA” competition.

3XN has recently won the competition to design the new office building Kvarter 15/ District 15 in Östra Hagastaden, Stockholm. Modern and flexible, the project will be linked to Stockholm's northern city gate, connecting the motorway, the city, and the public park, Hagaparken.

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As the healthcare infrastructure is becoming overwhelmed and hospitals around the world are reaching their capacities, new alternative possibilities are emerging. In response to bed shortage and facility saturation, architects around the world are taking action, in the on-going fight against the coronavirus. Focusing their knowhow to find fast and efficient design solutions that can be implemented anywhere, they are proposing flexible, fast assembled, mobile, and simple structures. With a very tight timetable, some projects are already implemented and in service, while others remain on a conceptual level, waiting to be adopted.

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“A Country without Walls, a Future without Limits” is a proposal for an expo pavilion imagined by 10 DESIGN. Based on the ideas of communication, openness, hospitality, and change, the project puts in place a memorable experience for visitors.

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The Kaira Looro Architecture Competition to support humanitarian projects has released its full list of winning projects for an Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) in Sub-Saharan Africa. The contest, already in its 4^th edition, aims to raise awareness among the international community about emergencies in developing countries, and support humanitarian projects in Africa.

Next year’s Tallinn Architecture Biennale (TAB) has been postponed until 2022. Announced by the Estonian Centre for Architecture, the 6th edition has been adjourned “due to the postponement of the Venice Architecture Biennale as well as the uncertain times that international cultural events are facing because of the coronavirus outbreak”.

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