Architecture: The Latest Architecture and News

Architecture is, above all, a material reality. The materials that surround us are the result of a chain of constructive, economic, aesthetic and, in more contemporary examples, environmental considerations. Decisions are shaped by available technology, manageable technique, time-related expectations and regulatory frameworks. To face the pressures on our built environment, those multidimensional conditions must change through what we call innovation: the tangible creation of new products and strategies with problem-solving capabilities. Matter is the general term for physical substance that has mass and takes up space. When matter is given a specific type, form, or useful application, it becomes material. Material transformation therefore requires going beyond recycling and reuse: combining existing matter to create new materials that open up new possibilities for construction. The research presented below suggests that demonizing existing materials is unnecessary as long as this capacity for innovation exists.

Every large dam divides as much as it connects, and the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is no exception. A monumental feat of architecture and engineering, the mega-dam has brought everyone together, for better or worse, to interrogate who gets to declare sovereignty over the riches of the river, be it water or momentum, and to challenge colonial-era Nile treaties.

Inaugurated in September 2025, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, or GERD, is a grand concrete structure on the Blue Nile in western Ethiopia within the Benishangul-Gumuz region, just 30 kilometers upstream along the river and east of the border with Sudan. It is built as a major source of hydroelectric power, being consistently ranked in the top 3-30 globally, and symbolizes Ethiopia's national sovereignty, rise to exponential economic development, and technological self-determination. So, why has it become the center of a protracted dispute over regional water security and international law between Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt?

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A team led by Politecnica Building for Humans, with Park Associati and AMDL CIRCLE as architectural co-leads and Studio Mattioli responsible for geology and archaeology, has won the competition for a new cultural hub in Ceto, Italy. The project will transform the former Società Filati Niggeler & Kupfer textile mill into a facility comprising exhibition spaces, research facilities, an auditorium, and visitor services. Located in Valle Camonica, an area known for its prehistoric rock engravings, the proposal approaches the site through the relationship between industrial heritage, archaeology, and the surrounding landscape.

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The LOCO Alliance architectural competition in Tbilisi, Georgia, was organized to transform a 73,600 m² brownfield site, the former Soviet-era Tbilisi Electric Locomotive Manufacturing Plant in the "Temka" residential area, into a new green neighborhood and cultural destination called Loco Park. On October 18, 2026, LOCO Alliance officially announced Stefano Boeri Architetti's design as the selected project for the site's transformation, with the official masterplan images unveiled on October 23. The selected masterplan is designed to integrate the industrial heritage of the factory with contemporary architecture, dense green public spaces and community recreation hubs. The site is already hosting large-scale cultural events, organized in parallel with the formal masterplan competition.

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In 1972, Robert Venturi, Denise Scott Brown, and Steven Izenour published Learning from Las Vegas, challenging architects to reconsider the underappreciated, largely dismissed commercial landscape in the United States. Their storied distinction between the "duck," a building whose form communicates its meaning, and the "decorated shed," an ordinary structure whose identity is conveyed through signs and symbols, questioned a widely accepted modernist assumption that architectural expression should emerge from form and function. By examining billboards, neon lights, casinos, and the commercial strips of Las Vegas, the authors argued that architecture should study the visual languages of American consumer culture.

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Scaffolding is perhaps one of architecture's most familiar temporary structures. It accompanies buildings through construction, maintenance, and renovation, only to disappear once its work is complete. Yet its apparent impermanence conceals a different kind of longevity. Scaffolding systems are designed to be assembled, dismantled, transported, and reused, with standardized components robust enough to withstand repeated handling and changing site conditions. Their temporary character lies less in the material itself than in the duration of each assembly.

This logic is not unfamiliar in furniture design. Dieter Rams's 606 Universal Shelving System, designed for Vitsœ in 1960, established a modular approach in which shelves, cabinets, and other components could be rearranged, expanded, or transported as circumstances changed. Similarly, IKEA's modular storage systems popularized and demonstrated how furniture can be understood as a collection of interchangeable parts rather than a singular, finished object. Although different in material and intended lifespan, these systems share an important principle: longevity can be achieved through adaptability rather than permanence of arrangement.

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As cities struggle to provide adequate and affordable housing, examining built examples of collective housing can help inform decisions about what to build and how. These projects offer opportunities to assess solutions, understand their limitations, and consider what might be applied elsewhere. In Paris, two recent examples combine apartments of different sizes with access to gardens, courtyards, and other outdoor spaces, working with structures already in place.

CHYBÍK + KRIŠTOF has opened Building the Existing City, an exhibition at Aedes Architecture Forum in Berlin that transforms the gallery into a working architecture studio. Running from October 23 to December 3, 2026, the exhibition centres on four architectural and urban design proposals for sites or urban situations in Berlin, selected through an open call. Over six weeks, visitors can follow the practice's research, discussions, and design work as the proposals develop, gaining insight into the processes through which architectural interventions are conceived in response to local conditions.

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Videos

Delft-based practice Mecanoo has just released images of the renovation project for the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The first images of the project were released in 2020, when the practice unveiled a proposal for a new wing as part of a larger renovation of the existing Museum Garden and a general reorganization of the layout to clarify circulation and connections throughout the complex. The comprehensive project includes a new building, the restoration and interior design of the existing premises, and a landscape project. The site, which has been closed since 2019 due to fire risk, water issues, overdue maintenance, and the presence of substantial amounts of asbestos, is a national monument expected to meet the updated standards and logistical requirements of an art institution of its kind.

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In architecture, the word "pavilion" can describe an endless variety of structures. It might be defined as a principle and a typology, a freestanding structure, a temporary intervention, a gathering place in the city, or a space for experimentation. This last quality is what unites the six unbuilt projects featured here, all designed and submitted by ArchDaily readers. Here, the definition lies in their sculptural qualities and formal exploration, while their permanence and location vary according to each structure's purpose. The proposals also demonstrate another quality inherent to the pavilion: the intention to symbolically represent a stance. Their exploration of form and material thus also reflects a search for a sense of boundary, wonder, or a shared future.

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The 31st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31) will take place in Antalya, Türkiye, from November 9 to 20, under a joint governance model where Türkiye hosts the summit and presidency, while Australia leads the formal negotiations. The conference will bring together national delegations, government representatives, scientists, businesses, and civil society to discuss international climate action, including emissions reduction, adaptation to climate impacts, and climate finance. As countries continue to face the challenges of extreme weather, resource consumption, and the transition to lower-carbon economies, this year's programme includes dedicated discussions on zero waste, energy and transport, and resilient cities. In preparation for the event, SP Architects is adapting the former EXPO 2016 grounds in Antalya to accommodate the conference, with plans for the site to remain in use after it concludes.

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An international cultural venue was inaugurated this week after a decade-long construction process. Snøhetta's Shanghai Grand Opera House opened to the public on October 17, 2026, on the banks of the Huangpu River in Shanghai, China. Against a backdrop of declining cultural investment in several countries around the world, the project offers a new platform for the development of the arts. This week's coverage also included reports on classical and modern heritage, plans for international biennials and the recognition of two projects for their new approaches to architecture. On our radar this week, we feature an upcoming exhibition on Italian sculptor Costantino Nivola, updates on the 1901 Project in Chicago and a new gateway pavilion at the Goois Nature Reserve in the Netherlands.

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Brick and wood can establish a dialogue between architectural permanence and the textures of coastal environments. In Höllviken, on the southern coast of Sweden, Seaside House by Koistinen Hellborg Architects explores how materiality, light, and spatial organization can shape a home in relationship with its natural surroundings. Located among sandy terrain, heathland, moss, and pine trees, and within walking distance of the sea, the house responds to a landscape defined by subtle color variations, seasonal changes, and a strong connection to the outdoors.

In Uruguay, small-scale residential projects increasingly occupy rural and coastal landscapes, from the hills of Villa Serrana to the maritime forests along the Atlantic coast. Building in these areas often requires structural materials that balance durability, thermal efficiency, and transport feasibility. In these environments, projects rely heavily on materials such as engineered timber framing, steel structural members, exterior wood cladding, or offsite fabrication. These design choices not only help to reduce the weight of raw materials that must be transported over unpaved access roads, but also make construction more feasible in remote locations. The context of the projects in this collection also seems to have played a limiting role regarding floor areas, which were kept at 60 m² or less to reduce structural material requirements and the impact on the terrain.

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"Antarctica is known through narratives," states Victoria Nuviala Antelo during the lecture on Inhabiting the Extreme: An Architectural Biography of Antarctica, presented at the Buenos Aires International Architecture Biennial. Indeed, throughout architectural history, numerous stories, experiences, ways of inhabiting, and building practices have often been excluded from official narratives. Buried beneath thick layers of ice, the history of Antarctic architecture tells a story of impermanence. The ice surrounding the continent expands and contracts each year, doubling its surface area, while the species that inhabit it migrate and return according to their life cycles. Ice covers structures as katabatic winds erase the traces of more than 200 years of human presence. Explorations, settlements, architectural interventions, and ways of inhabiting remain concealed within one of the most extreme landscapes on the planet.

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From November 17 to 19, 2026, interihotel MAD26 will bring together architects, interior designers, hospitality operators, and specialized brands at IFEMA Madrid. Organized by AMBIT Living Spaces Cluster, the event is expected to welcome more than 14,000 professionals, 350 exhibiting brands, and over 200 international speakers. Under the theme Creative Rebellion, it will combine talks, workshops, five specialized forums, and full-scale experimental spaces to explore new approaches to hotel and restaurant design.

The Bienal Iberoamericana de Arquitectura y Urbanismo (Ibero-American Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism), known as BIAU for its Spanish name, is an international event promoted by the Government of Spain through its Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda (MIVAU) since 1998. Held every two years in a different location across Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula, it recognizes, awards, and disseminates high-quality works that reflect the diversity of Ibero-American architecture and urbanism. Following its thirteenth edition, "CLIMAS: Acciones para el buen vivir" (CLIMATES: Actions for Good Living), held in Lima, Peru, in 2024, the XIV BIAU will take place in Brasília from November 3 to 6, 2026, under the theme "Cuidar la Vida" (Caring for Life). This edition structures its reflection around four themes: water, vegetation, housing, and communities, exploring the relationship between architecture and the environmental, social, and cultural conditions that sustain life.

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When London's main drainage was completed north of the Thames in 1868, the Metropolitan Board of Works marked the occasion with a banquet held inside a sewage pumping station. Abbey Mills had been built over the previous three years by the engineer Joseph Bazalgette, working with the architect Charles Driver, laid out on a cruciform plan with eight beam engines, two on each arm. Its style has been read as Byzantine, Italian Medieval, Russian, Ruskinian Gothic and Moorish, and its twin ventilation chimneys, richly ornamented, rose more than sixty meters. The builder called it an elegant structure in a swamp and thought it might pass for a mosque or a temple.

Almost everything else Bazalgette built was buried, and the exception did not last the century. Steam gave way to electric motors at Abbey Mills in 1933, and the chimneys, redundant since then, were demolished in 1941 out of fear that a bomb strike would topple them onto the station. Sanitary engineering consolidated around criteria that could be measured, among them throughput, discharge quality and hydraulic gradient, and appearance registered in none of them. Treatment moved outward to floodplains, estuaries and municipal edges where land was cheap, and gravity did useful work.

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