Italian architecture studio Carlo Ratti Associati has proposed a replacement design for the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore following its collapse in early 2024.

In collaboration with structural engineer Michel Virlogeux and the construction group Webuild, the proposed design will feature primary support pillars "well away from the navigation channel used by large vessels".

The previous Francis Scott Key Bridge (Key Bridge), which stretched across the Patapsco River, collapsed in late March 2024 after one of its piers was struck by a container ship that suffered an electrical blackout.

Carlo Ratti Associati has designed a replacement cable-stayed bridge with a main span of 2,230 feet (700 metres), an increase from the 1,200-foot (365 metre) span of the collapsed Key Bridge, which will place the central supports farther apart than the previous design.

"Opting for a cable-stayed solution enables the piles to be positioned at a safe distance, well away from the navigation channel used by large vessels and hence preventing the risk of a tragedy such as the one of March 26 happening again," said Carlo Ratti Associati founding partner Carlo Ratti.

In contrast to a cable-stayed bridge, the former Key Bridge was a steel arch continuous through truss bridge, an option that while strong, can be expensive and time-consuming to construct.

This means it's more material-efficient and ultimately sustainable, according to the team.

"In terms of sustainability, Baltimore's cable-stayed design is one of the most material-efficient ways to build at the proposed span, minimizing the project's embodied carbon," said the team.

"Moreover, it avoids the need to construct artificial islands to protect the pillars, which would considerably disturb the ecosystem of the Patapsco River," it continued.

Photovoltaic panels would also be installed "across the whole span".

Other updates would include the addition of a new lane on either side, bringing its total width to six lanes as opposed to four to accommodate high traffic and an increase in clearance from 185 feet (56 metres) to 230 feet (70 metres) in adherence to the shipping industry's latest standards.

It would also include integrated "smart features" that build upon Ratti's Good Vibrations research as a professor at MIT – which included capturing vibration data from smartphones placed in vehicles crossing the Golden Gate Bridge.

The replacement will also reconnect Baltimore "socially". It is unconfirmed if the design will be taken up by the city.

"This approach also provides a light-weight solution to reconnect two sides of Baltimore, both socially and economically–what American infrastructure should be striving to do in the 21st century," said Ratti.

According to the New York Times, the incident remains under the process of investigation, while Reuters reported Maryland officials aim for a 2028 completion of a replacement, with proposals requested by the end of May 2024.

Meanwhile, the resulting closure of the Port of Baltimore is causing delays in the global supply chain, with officials hoping to reopen the passage by the end of May.

Elsewhere, a recent report by the Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority criticised parties involved in the construction and design of a bridge that collapsed in Norway in 2022.

The images are by Brick Visual.

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Local architecture practice Dubrovska Studio has created a fitness studio lined with curtains and outfitted with custom furniture made from materials sourced from around Kyiv in the face of wartime shortages.

Located in Kyiv, Stan will host barre and yoga classes for up to 15 people in its main space and includes a reception area and locker area across 1,290 square feet (120 square metres).

"In our situation, when we initiated the project, there was virtually nothing available. We literally pieced the project together from leftovers we found around Kyiv,"  said Dubrovska Studio founder Natalie Dubrovska. 

Visitors first walk into a curtain-lined reception and welcome area, which contains a custom, semi-circle sofa, reception desk and "little tables" made of stone.

The curtains lining the space follow a curved track at the corners in order to soften the space and "smooth" out the interior.

Many furniture pieces were custom-made from locally sourced or reused materials, which the studio says was a "primary concept" for the studio's design – in part due to difficulties faced when ordering abroad during the ongoing Ukraine war.

The tables were crafted from scraps found at a warehouse, while the sofa was upholstered in a neutral, multicoloured fabric from the 1970s.

"The quest for the right fabric turned into a humorous journey, with many Gobelins featuring unappealing cat face illusions," said Dubrovska. "Almost giving up, we lucked out, discovering a fabric from the 1970s that closely mirrored our initial design."

A reception desk sits to one corner, and was made from cast concrete. Rough edges line the top to contrast with the softness of the surrounding curtains, while its smooth base runs into the concrete floor.

A standing mirror sits across from the desk, mounted into a stone to create "magic and special charm" and next to it, a sink and countertop are concealed behind a curtain.

The same white drapes cover large windows along the studio, which sits in front of the welcome area. Ballet barres and mirrors also line the space.

A locker and changing room sits to the other side of the welcome area, with wooden storage created by Dubrovska Studio "in the absence of a minimalistic and soft solution" in contrast to standard metal lockers. 

A bench made of the same light-coloured wood sits in the centre of the space, while a line of showers was clad in small white mosaic tiles as a nod to public restrooms.

According to the studio, there were frequent electricity black outs during construction, but despite the challenges, Stan is a "sanctuary".

"Stan encapsulates the spirit of feminine strength, elegance, and individuality, inviting to embark on a transformative journey within its carefully curated space," said the studio. "It is not just a studio; it is a sanctuary for self-expression and holistic well-being."

Stan studio was founded by professional dancer Mariia Dreihaupt. The word "stan" is the Latin translation of the Ukrainian word "ctah", meaning "physical posture". 

Dubrovska Studio is based in Kyiv and was founded in 2018 by designer Natalie Dubrovska. It focuses on bringing "calmness, harmony and self-connection" to projects. 

Another project recently completed in Ukraine includes a holiday cabin in the Carpathian mountains. Recently architecture and design studios shared how they are coping at the two-year mark of Russia's invasion.

The photography is by Yevhenii Avramenko.

Project credits:

Team:  Natalie Dubrovska, Katerina Bandura, Daria Shmyrko

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Rental platform Airbnb has announced the addition of its Icons program, a category that provides a range of experiences including a stay in the house from Pixar's Up and an overnight stay in the Musee D'Orsay in Paris.

The first 11 Icons experiences include recreations of houses from popular culture, such as the floating house from Pixar's film Up, and visits with celebrities, such as a night out with comic Kevin Hart.

The 11 Icons include a full-scale model of the house from Pixar's Up, which will be suspended by a crane – though not when guests are inside it – to a stay in the clock tower of Paris's Musee D' Orsay.

This was transformed into a bedroom by French designer Mathieu Lehanneur and will be available for the opening of the upcoming summer Olympics.

The experiences will be awarded to guests through a selection process, with approximately eight additional Icon experiences being rolled out throughout the year to join the first batch. Each Icon is free or under $100 (£80).

"Icons take you inside worlds that only existed in your imagination – until now," said Airbnb co-founder Brian Chesky. "As life becomes increasingly digital, we're focused on bringing more magic into the real world. With Icons, we've created the most extraordinary experiences on Earth."

The launch follows the platform's release of recreations of Barbie's Malibu Dreamhouse and Shrek's swampland cottage, as well as previous overnight experiences in an Ikea showroom and the last remaining Blockbuster.

"These experiences captured people's imagination and they allowed people to step into someone else's world," said Chesky. "And at its best, this is what Airbnb does. And what it's always been about."

To create the spaces, the brand employed a variety of strategies. In the case of the Up house, it was built from scratch, while other properties were renovated or outfitted with a particular theme such as the X-Mansion from the X-Men movie series or Prince's Purple Rain house.

"The Up house is one of the most iconic homes in any film ever," said Chesky. "You're gonna be able to stay in Carl and Ellie's home and it will feel like you're stepping inside the movie."

"This is a real house we built from scratch. We had to literally paint every detail in the home to match the exact Pantone colours used in the film, from the roof tiles to the siding," he continued.

For the X-Mansion, the team searched for a home in Upstate New York that looked like an approximation of the house from the movie series and then covered the interior in comic-strip style illustrations by artist Joshua Vides.

According to Airbnb VP of design Teo Connor, it took approximately two weeks for Vides and his team to hand-paint each room.

"Each Icon has a different timeline because they're all so unique, so different," Connor told Dezeen. "[There was] a huge amount of effort to bring these things to life and I think it really shows."

"With these types of things, we're really wanting to immerse you in a world and for it to feel authentic," she continued.

Other Icons include a stay at the Ferrari museum in a custom-made circular bed that is surrounded by various Ferrari models and a visit to Bollywood star Janhvi Kapoor's "childhood oasis" in India.

To visit the various experiences, travellers must submit a written entry through Airbnb during a timed submission period. 4,000 guests will be selected and awarded a "golden ticket" to attend the experiences over the coming year.

The brand also released several updates in order to make booking and organizing group trips easier for travellers, including multiple users being able to message the host and a ranking system when selecting a rental together.

Last year, Airbnb co-founder Brian Chesky warned against designers failing to embrace AI and announced a program that called to designers and creatives to rent out their spaces for supplemental income.

The photography is courtesy of Airbnb.

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American architecture studio SOM has designed a skyscraper in Downtown Miami defined by two expansive terraces and an "exposed structure".

Located in Miami's Brickell neighborhood, 848 Brickell will rise 51 storeys and host office and retail space, as well as a restaurant and fitness centre across 1,267,580 square feet (117, 762 square metres).

Renderings show three volumes divided by two expansive public terraces, one on top of the base of the tower and the other about halfway up, covered by the 23rd floor.

An "exposed structure" wraps around the building's facade, with angled support beams framing the outdoor spaces.

"Continuing SOM's legacy of high-rise innovation and multi-disciplinary design, one of 848 Brickell's defining features is its exposed structure," said the team.

"Angled structural members heroically raise the tower above two distinct 40-foot tall outdoor terraces," it continued.

A series of rectangular glass volumes, each spanning four to five stories, are affixed to either end of the tower and will contain private terraces for tenants on their topmost floor.

The building's base, which is shown clad in metallic panels, will contain a double-height lobby, a restaurant and 7,000 square feet (650 square metres) of retail space.

A fitness centre and conference rooms will be located in an enclosed glass volume on the first public terrace, which will also contain outdoor sports courts, a cafe and landscaping.

A total of 750,000 square feet (69,677 square metres) of office space will be located throughout the building, while a public rooftop sits at the top, protected by a screen structure.

Some passive strategies to create energy efficiency are planned for the design, including louvres along the building's east facade and "high-performance insulating glass" used to clad the building.

Additionally, its outdoor space encourages a "healthy and productive working environment", according to the team.

Co-developed by local firm Key International and Chicago-based Sterling Bay, the project aims to take advantage of a growing market for high-end office space in the city.

"848 Brickell was conceptualized to capture the growing market for high-end office space in Miami with its expressive structure and wellness-focused programming," said the team.

"Designed to reflect the city's culture and environment, the building is informed by the surrounding climate and driven by a vision for an innovative, resilient workplace with best-in-class amenities," it continued.

As of now, there are no set dates for construction of the project.

It joins a number of skyscrapers recently unveiled for the Brickell neighbourhood, including Dolce & Gabbana residences designed in collaboration with New York-based practice Studio Sofield and Mercedes-Benz' first US residential skyscraper by SHoP Architects.

The images are courtesy of SOM.

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Mexican architecture practice HW Studio has created a hillside house outside of Mexico City consisting of a vertical volume that houses circulation and a horizontal volume containing its living spaces.

Located in Morelia, HW Studio created the 4,735 square foot (439 square metres) Casa Shi to strike a balance between the "natural and artificial".

The house is made up of a rectangular, vertical stone-clad volume – containing the main circulation – affixed to a low-lying, horizontal volume with bedrooms, bathrooms, a kitchen and living rooms.

It is located on a hillside site, which overlooks a golf course and natural reserve.

"The stone volume vertically connects the entrance and garages with the rest of the house," said the studio. "Which is nestled within this disruptive white, abstract, and even challenging volume that seeks a visual balance between the natural and artificial."

"In some Eastern cultures, it is believed that to intensely experience any phenomenon, one must place two opposites together; this house could be an exercise in the meeting of these two opposites: the Baroque mountain teeming with vegetation and these two Platonic volumes," it added.

The house is entered below grade, where a long, outdoor staircase leads to the front door. From here, another staircase leads up to the main floor, with an enclosed ancillary space and a small bathroom tucked behind it at the basement level.

The entrance stair leads visitors to a long hall, which divides sleeping areas from the living room, kitchen, and a solitary bedroom tucked against the far side of the house, above the staircase.

A curved wall encloses the kitchen and living spaces.

"This axis or corridor presents an anomaly," said the studio. "A single slightly curved wall that aims to soften the journey and also serves as a tribute to the three women comprising this family."

A dividing wall separates the kitchen from the living area, which is located in a corner. Floor-to-ceiling windows and an Engawa, or veranda, run the perimeter of both spaces to "diffuse light and provoke a smooth transition" between the exterior and interior.

The three bedrooms on the other side of the divide sit in the centre of the house, with corresponding bathrooms and storage units wrapped around each one in an L shape.

An enclosed courtyard sits in front of them.

"The bedrooms or private areas remain secluded, without any windows to the exterior," said the studio. "The necessary illumination is received through a long courtyard, an intimate gathering point for the family, only connecting with the outside through the sky."

The house is clad in stone, which the studio envisions weathering over time to blend with the mountainside environment. The pilings on which it is cantilevered over the edge were covered in earth so as to blend the house with its surroundings further.

"This house seems to sit gently upon the mountain, and the final part of the slab floats lightly above it, supported by pilings covered by the same earth from the excavation, giving the impression that this large white element simply decided to perch there," said the studio.

HW Studio recently completed a house partially buried into a hillside in Morelia and a San Miguel de Allende house with open-air corridors and courtyards.

The photography is by Cesar Béjar.

Project credits:

Lead architect: Rogelio Vallejo Bores
Architect: Oscar Didier Ascencio Castro
Team: Nik Zaret Cervantes Ordaz

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In this lookbook, we've collected eight guest rooms from China to Spain that provide visiting friends and family a space to call their own.

Guest accommodations come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Ranging from a sofa during our younger years to full-blown guesthouses later on, putting up friends and family is made better when we have a place to put them – no matter how small.

The houses and apartments below showcase the myriad ways an extra bedroom can be integrated into an interior, often doubling as an office, storage space or – in the case of a Beijing apartment – a place to enjoy some tea.

Read on below for fresh ideas on how to provide space for visitors.

This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen's archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring brightly-framed windows, tactile and organic living rooms and mezzanines that maximise usable space.

Weeties Factory home, Australia, by Spaceagency

A deep red carpet defines this guest room in a single-family Australian home, which consists of three consolidated apartments that once were part of a heritage-listed cereal factory.

The same red was carried into a curtain – which provides privacy from the living room below – and a corner chair, while built-in shelving sits at the entrance.

Find out more about Weeties Factory home ›

Barcelona apartment, Spain, by Eva Cotman

Guests sleep atop a platform in this Barcelona apartment, which also doubles as a storage area.

Croatian architect Eva Cotman sought to renovate the apartment to provide more open space. To optimize its functionality, she placed a bookshelf staircase in front of the guest bed.

Find out more about Barcelona apartment ›

Canal house, The Netherlands, by i29

To accommodate guests in this renovation of a canal house in Amsterdam, architecture studio i29 inserted a forest-green volume off the kitchen.

The guest suite also contains its own bathroom and access door to a garden, while a built-in bed and shelving provide rest and storage.

Find out more about Canal house ›

Beijing apartment, China, by Rooi

Plywood units were inserted into this 1950s Beijing apartment to organize and provide more space in its tight interior, which was created during an influx of people moving to urban areas when apartments were often compact.

A linear volume inserted along the kitchen and dining room can be used for storage, as a tea-drinking room, or as guest accommodations with a mattress placed on the floor. A bubble in the ceiling also provides a relaxing space for feline roommates.

Find out more about Beijing apartment ›

Rounded Loft, Czech Republic, by AI Architects

An attic in Prague was converted into a two-storey apartment, with living spaces, a kitchen and primary bedrooms located on the first floor and a guest suite located in a mezzanine.

In the mezzanine, a bed sits at the end of a long hall, while a bathroom sits adjacent to the stairs. A terrace in between the two spaces and skylights lining the roof provide a connection to the outdoors.

Find out more about Rounded Loft ›

False Bay Writer's Cabin, USA, by Olson Kundig

This cabin in Washington doubles as a study for its owners, as well as a bedroom for visiting guests when a bed is folded out of the wall.

The space is surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glass, which is protected by doors that fold up and enclose the entire cabin and fold down to create multiple porches.

Find out more about False Bay Writer's Cabin ›

Workhome-Playhome, The Netherlands, by Lagado Architects

The founders of Lagado Architects revamped their own Rotterdam apartment by inserting a bright blue staircase and colourful storage units.

An open loft-style room sits on the second floor. This has minimal furniture so that it can be quickly turned into an exercise room or used as guest accommodations for visitors.

Find out more about Workhome-Playhome ›

Madrid apartment, Spain, by Leticia Saá

A wash area sits outside a guest bedroom in this Madrid apartment to physically and visually separate the space from the remaining house.

The guest area, which sits directly in front of the primary bed, also faces an interior courtyard which separates both sleeping areas from the living room and kitchen.

Find out more about Madrid apartment ›

This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen's archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring brightly-framed windows, tactile and organic living rooms and mezzanines that maximise usable space. 

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Danish furniture brand Fritz Hansen has debuted pieces from its first Skagerak Outdoor furniture collection as a permanent "installation" at Piaule hotel in Upstate New York.

The furniture collection follows Fritz Hansen's purchase of fellow Danish furniture brand Skagerak in 2021 as a growth strategy to produce outdoor furniture and expand across Asia, central Europe and North America.

The Skagerak Outdoor furniture collection includes 43 product series designed in collaboration with architects and designers including outdoor lounge furniture by Bjarke Ingels Group.

Piaule owners Nolan McHugh and Trevor Briggs worked with the brand to distribute pieces throughout the hotel's property, which includes a main lodge with a spa and 24 individual cabins designed by Garrison Architects.

"Fritz Hansen's contemporary wooden collection quietly complements and enhances the modernist retreat through thoughtful placement of furniture to create unexpected spaces for relaxation and appreciation of nature," said the combined team of Piaule and Fritz Hansen.

Pieces such as the minimalist Between Lines Deck Chair designed by Danish furniture designer Stine Weigelt and the subtly curved Selandia tables and chairs by designers Anders and Lars Hegelund were distributed across the lodge's patio.

Wooden benches and chairs from the Plank series by Parisian-born designer Aurélien Barbry were distributed along the property's walking paths, which incorporate a long thin armrest along their back.

Lastly, the Rivera Sunbed designed by Danish designer Povl B Eskildsen was placed in front of the pool, doubling as a bench or table when compacted.

The pieces are all made of teak wood and according to the team "without harmful chemicals", allowing for a natural silver-grey patina as they age.

"Perhaps most impactful of all is Piaule's ability to provide guests with new connections to nature, and Fritz Hansen enhances those connections with furniture installations that blend art and function, creating even more spaces for reflection and relaxation," said the team.

The collection will remain a permanent fixture on the Piaule property, which opened in 2021 in New York's Catskill region.

Recently, Danish architecture studio Henning Larsen built a wooden pavilion to mark Fritz Hansen's 150th anniversary at 3 Days of Design and the brand built its first showroom in China in 2021.

The photography is by Sean Davidson.

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US studio Rafael Viñoly Architects has designed four skyscrapers and a series of public spaces in Toronto, which will be the studio's first built project in Canada.

Developed by Madison Group and totalling two million square feet (185,806 square metres) the project will consist of two individual properties holding two skyscrapers each, which will host a mix of residential, retail, and office spaces. Studio founder Rafael Viñoly died last year, and the studio said he played a role in the design before his passing.

"This will be the only Canadian project that the visionary architect Rafael Viñoly contributed to himself, and the firm's first-ever project in Canada," said the team.

"Viñoly was truly a champion of this project to ensure the public space was designed with families and the community in mind, applying his extensive expertise to provide a high-quality pedestrian experience."

Renderings show four stepped towers grouped as couples and distributed along a Toronto block, with tall, open plazas between them.

The pair of towers located at 90-110 Eglinton Avenue will be 58 storeys, connected by a six-storey cubic skybridge at the fifth level, while the neighbouring pair at 150-164 Eglinton Ave will top out at 61 storeys each.

Each tower will be approximately the same height at 776 feet (236 metres) high, according to the team.

90-110 Eglinton Ave will include a projected 1,035 residential units across 1,002,085 square feet (93,097 square metres) and 25,565 square feet (2,375 square metres) of public area, while 150-164 Eglinton Ave will offer 1,329 residential units and 28,850 square feet (2,680 square metres) of open space.

"We are privileged that our first project in Canada should be so transformative and focused on contributing to Toronto's public realm," said Rafael Viñoly Architects partner Román Viñoly.

"Buildings in dense environments are so capital-intensive, unignorable, and enduring that they inevitably impact the lives of every individual in their host communities. Our design ethos is thus rooted in leveraging these enormous commitments of time, capital and passion, to create spaces that inspire and connect people," he said.

Each tower is clad in a red-hued cage-like facade, with glazing in between. The same red carries into the columns at the bases, which enclose double-height lobbies.

The towers will host a majority of residential spaces, but will also include office and ground-level retail.

Public plazas surrounding and between the towers will be outfitted with landscaping by New York studio MPFP Landscape Architecture and will include an amphitheatre and playground.

"We are honoured to bring the late Rafael Viñoly's vision to life, serving as a poignant testament to his enduring legacy," said Madison Group vice president Josh Zagdanski. "Featuring four striking towers, a multitude of amenities, and intricately crafted public spaces, this development is set to redefine urban living in Toronto."

Uruguayan architect Rafael Viñoly, who passed away at age 78 in 2023, is known for numerous buildings around the world including 432 Park Avenue in New York and the Walkie Talkie in London.

Recently, the studio unveiled images of the architect's "last" project located in Uruguay and a vineyard-covered airport in Italy

The images are by Binyan and Madison Group.

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LA-based design studio Do Lab has created a series of fabric "mushrooms" to cover the audience and performers for one of the stages at this year's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

The installation consisted of nine, oversized satellite-shaped sculptures distributed across a field, under which festival-goers could get some shade, rest and dance.

Do Lab, founded by brothers Jesse, Josh and Dede Flemming, has created installations and stages for Coachella since 2004.

"In the early years, we used to do sculptures and make kind of beautiful gardens that got bigger and bigger," said Jesse Flemming in a video about the design. "The last three structures, we started to get away from sculptural elements towards building giant tent-like structures."

"But this year, we're going back to our roots. It's gonna feel like you're dancing in this really trippy forest instead of under a tent," he continued.

Do Lab's 2024 stage installation, under which artists like Billie Eilish and Marc Rebillet performed, consisted of nine fabric "mushroom-like" pods made up of 12 metallic arms with strips of fabric between them.

Some "pods" – the largest spanning 100 feet wide (30 metres), rested on tripod bases, while smaller versions were suspended over the crowd with translucent netting.

The fabric strips, which rippled with the wind, consisted of a rotating pattern alternating between deep magenta, aqua blue and bright orange.

Two to three miles (3-5 kilometres) of fabric were used for each pod, as well as 20 miles (32 kilometres) of thread in total.

"The end result is a 360-degree fully immersive environment complete with lights, lasers, and fog machines hidden within the colourful structures themselves," said the team.

Do Lab also produces its own music festival, Lighting in a Bottle, which will take place in May.

Other installations at this year's Coachella consisted of spikey towers made of plywood strips and 3D-printed bases, a kinetic "settlement" by British artist Morag Myerscough and a monolithic stack of geometric volumes by London-based design studio Nebbia.

The festival has a history of large-scale installations, including giant robots informed by South Asian temples and colourful steel-framed towers by architecture studio Architensions in previous years.

The photography is by Jamal Eid mages are courtesy of Do Lab. 

The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival took place over two weekends from 12 to 14 April and 19 to 21 April in California. For more events, exhibitions and talks in architecture and design visit the Dezeen Events Guide. 

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UK architecture studio Foster + Partners has unveiled its design for a tiered, 62-storey supertall skyscraper on Park Avenue in New York.

Located at 350 Park, the supertall skyscraper will rise approximately 1,600 feet high (487 metres), holding office spaces and a public plaza at ground level.

Renderings show a tiered tower made up of rectangular volumes that increase in height across the tower's width, with the tallest sitting at 62 storeys. A terrace sits on top of each level, while the tower rests on a double-height base supported by pillars.

"The tower will feature floor-to-ceiling glass, landscaped terraces, and a stepped configuration to create an iconic, distinctive skyscraper," said the team.

The public plaza underneath will contain green space, seating areas, art displays and "opportunities for local businesses".

White, stone-clad columns will line the street-level space, and reach upwards between the glass panelling to separate each of the building's rectangular volumes into divided units on the facade.

The building will include a "high-performance building envelope" and use "resilient materials" as sustainable design strategies.

Developed by Ken Griffin, Vornado Realty Trust and Rudin, the 1.8 million square foot (167,225 square metres) project will "energize Midtown Manhattan" according to New York City mayor Eric Adams.

"Home to more than 6,000 jobs, this project will build on our continued efforts to energize Midtown Manhattan as the world's most important business address and an economic engine for working-class New Yorkers," said Adams.

The global investment firm Citadel is set to occupy 850,000 square feet (78,967 square metres) as "anchor" tenants.

The project is part of a wider initiative by Mayor Adams to "imagine Fifth Avenue as a more appealing district for residents, workers, and visitors," said the team.

It is set to begin the city's public review process in early 2025.

It is the newest in the studio's additions to the storied New York City avenue. Foster + Partners is currently working on a JPMorgan Chase headquarters at 270 Park Avenue – which can be seen in the background of renderings of 350 Park – and completed a 47-storey tower at 425 Park Avenue in 2022.

The images are by Foster + Partners. 

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Architecture studio Renzo Piano Building Workshop has unveiled renderings of its concept for a three-storey cultural centre in south Florida, USA.

Located in downtown Boca Raton, The Center for Arts & Innovation will contain public event and education spaces and have a capacity of 6,000 guests.

Plans for the center were announced late last year and the building is one of just two to three new commissions accepted by Renzo Piano annually, according to the studio.

The design phase for the project will continue over the next 18 months, allowing the project "to transcend its impact far beyond South Florida".

"When you're designing a conceptual plan as an architect, you're often designing something that you don't know, yet, exactly what it will be," said Renzo Piano Building Workshop founder Renzo Piano.

"It's about inventing. It's about starting and working and seeing," he continued. "We're at the beginning and so what you see in these early designs – it's not printed in stone. Rather, it's the beginning of what we're inventing and of something really unique."

The building's programming will take place across three storeys, with one section of the building dedicated to a large multi-purpose event and performance space that will "merge seamlessly" with an outdoor piazza.

The remaining space will contain a public lobby, working spaces, a maker space, creator residences, a startup incubator, food services and social areas.

Renderings show a wedge-shaped building wrapped in a glass facade with a large plaza at its centre, protected by sunshades that span its width.

A third floor, clad in an opaque material, sits on top. In some areas, it is affixed to the glass base while in others it is hovering just above it, supported by thin pillars.

This third-floor space will host food and beverage services, along with 100,000 square feet (9,290 square metres) of solar panels to provide electricity and hot water.

A red, rectangular viewing box will be suspended above the third-floor roof, accessed by a staircase, and will be used  as an additional space for events.

"Above the roof, there will be a special 100-person capacity panoramic space, known as the Belvedere, dedicated to both public and special events with 360-degree views of the city, ocean, and beyond," said the team.

Interior renders show a textured ceiling, with floor-to-ceiling glass enclosing a double-height lobby that is outfitted with brightly-coloured furniture and an exposed, skeletal staircase.

Based on the "four societal pillars" of arts, education, business and community, the project aims "to pioneer a new approach to how the world designs, imagines, programs, utilizes and embraces its cultural infrastructure" according to the team.

"Innovation is like beauty – you don't just say someone is beautiful for their exterior, they're also beautiful because of their mind," said Piano.

"The same sentiment will apply to the center. It's not about being a beautiful building; the beauty is in what will be created and invented inside the building."

As of last year, groundbreaking is scheduled for 2025, with a date still to be determined for a finalized design.

The studio recently completed a Toronto justice building to house criminal courtrooms and a museum in Turkey wrapped in a "fish-scale" facade.

The images are by Renzo Piano Building Workshop

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A height variance request for what is set to be the tallest skyscraper in the US located in Oklahoma City has been approved to move forward to the next stage.

The Oklahoma City Planning Commission has granted approval of a height increase request for Legends Tower, a proposed supertall skyscraper.

Architecture studio AO and developer Matteson Capital announced the proposal earlier this year, which sought to increase the original 1,750 feet (533 metres) tower to 1,907 feet (581 metres), unseating the 1,776-foot-tall (541 metres) SOM-designed One World Trade Center in New York.

A final vote is planned for the City Council in June, according to Matteson Capital.

If built, the tower will be the tallest in the US and the fifth tallest in the world.

"On behalf of AO, we are extremely pleased that the Oklahoma City Planning Commission has unanimously approved the requested unlimited height limit and has granted the development team the ability to negotiate on a comprehensive signage program for the Boardwalk at Bricktown," said AO managing partner Rob Budetti.

"This endorsement underscores our confidence in the vision and design of this landmark development, representing Oklahoma City's imminent transformation into a global destination and its bold stride towards the future."

It is part of the wider mixed-use development Boardwalk at Bricktown, which includes three approved 345-foot-tall (105 metre-tall) towers at its base, which house retail spaces.

Full funding at $1.5 billion was also recently secured for the project as of early March, according to the local news outlet The Oklahoman, with developer Scott Matterson estimating site preparation could begin as early as June.

"Upon completion, the Boardwalk at Bricktown will undoubtedly earn the city the recognition it deserves, setting a new standard for urban innovation and architectural excellence," said Budetti.

"We are excited about the positive impact this project will have on shaping the future of Oklahoma City."

Other recent supertall skyscrapers news include unveiled images of a Dolce & Gabbana-branded tower in Miami and the completion of Japan's tallest skyscraper by Pelli Clarke & Partners.

The images are by AO.

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Soaring, spikey plywood towers and a colourful, kinetic "settlement" by artist Morag Myerscough are among the large-scale installations at this year's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California.

The installations form part of the arts program at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, which is hosted at the Empire Polo Club of Indio.

It brings together a mix of global artists, designers and architects each year to create large-scale installations across the festival grounds, which in recent years have included a 60-foot-tall (18 metre) sculpture by LA-based designer Güvenç Özel and a colourful, "urban landscape" by design studio Architensions.

This year, production agency Public Art Company collaborated with Coachella art director Paul Clemente and festival operator Goldenvoice on three installations that "explore the boundaries between reality and imagination" according to the team.

"Our goal is to curate a diverse, multidisciplinary art program that mirrors the eclectic spirit of Coachella itself," said Public Art Company founder Raffi Lehrer.

"The 2024 installations are not only visually stunning but also deeply interactive, offering new ways for our audience to connect with art, with each other, and with the environment around them," added Clemente.

Read on to learn more about this year's installations:

Monarchs: A House in Six Parts by Hannah

Monarchs by Cornell University professors Leslie Lok and Sasa Zivkovic of design studio Hannah features soaring towers of plywood strips atop geometric 3D-printed concrete bases, which visitors can pass underneath and into.

The structures range from 35 to 71 feet (10 to 21 metres) tall and are spaced about 100 feet (30 metres) apart. Clad in gradients of blue and oranges, "vibrant light effects" at night cast the towers in various shades.

"Monarchs: A House in Six Parts playfully explores the possibilities of 3-D printing concrete and digitally fabricating lightweight, structurally efficient wood in new architectural design and construction," said the team.

Babylon by Nebbia

Designers Brando Posocco and Madhav Kidao of London-based design studio Nebbia created the monolithic, geometric Babylon installation from an ongoing interest in "transcendence".

"It's a geometry the duo played with in previous projects – a moment of objects touching, just kissing each other," said the team. "They're interested in transcendence, the idea that a place can take you away, and how architecture relates to performance and can become the generator of it."

Babylon sits on a 60-by-60 foot (18 by 18 metre) footprint and reaches 60 feet (18 metres) in height, with visitors able to pass into its centre. A series of semi-circle and geometric shapes sit on a steel frame and were coated in plant-based acoustic/thermal insulation to create a bumpy texture.

Dancing In The Sky by Morag Myerscough

British artist Morag Myerscough created a colourful and kinetic 125 by 125 foot (38 by 38 metre) "settlement" where festival-goers can pass underneath and around various gateways.

Made up of various, boldly patterned towers that are topped with elements that move with the wind, the installation was created to "emphasize the natural beauty of the sky", as well as to put visitors at ease and make them feel welcome.

"The kinetic elements dance in the sky within the structures, the abstract moving shapes overhead seeming to take their energy from the activity on the ground and the sun above," said the team. "The whole space is vibrant and alive, inspiring guests to explore."

The images are courtesy of Coachella unless otherwise noted.

The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival takes place from 12-14 April and 19-21 April in California. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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New York architecture studio HGX Design has created a linear, glass-fronted home in the Hudson Valley informed by the "individual notes of a music composition".

Located in Germantown, New York, the Hudson Valley Residence spans  7,300 square feet (678 square metres) and is comprised of interconnected rectangular volumes with courtyards inserted between them.

HGX Design created the house to host the owner's visiting family and it now stands as the main dwelling on the 35-acre property, which is dotted with agricultural buildings and another residence.

The structure's horizontal form was informed by the vernacular architecture of the surrounding farmland.

"Comprised of a series of utilitarian, simple form buildings with a repetitive vertical rhythm, the home's elongated footprint is reminiscent of the long, low-lying characteristics of agricultural buildings that dot the surrounding regional landscape," said the studio.

It consists of four rectangular wings that branch off of an entry foyer. Utility spaces, such as a powder room, laundry room and storage, were placed directly adjacent to the entry, while a long hallway leads to the entrances of three guest bedrooms.

On the other side of the entry, the largest of the volumes holds an open-plan kitchen, living and dining area, which connects to a primary bedroom and bathroom.

Floor-to-ceiling windows line the majority of the exterior, with the remainder clad in a vertical cedar siding.

The 13-foot-high panels were used to capture the rising sun from the east at the front of the house and the setting sun at its back, as well as to create shifts in the material palette throughout the day.

"The house meets the sky in a very minimal way, while remaining lightly seated on the ground," said HGX Design founder Hal Goldstein.

"It's a predictable system that flows like a piece of music, with subtle tone-on-tone interactions with the elements that bring the colours and material palette to life throughout the day."

The studio also explained the home defies "the traditional expectations of an open plan" with "no barriers to the visual or physical flow of the home".

"The intimacy of the home's smartly laid out spaces defy the traditional expectations of an open plan, with 11.5-foot ceilings throughout," said the studio. "Separations are defined by sunlight during the day and artificial light at night."

The house's interior palette consists of neutral tones, with walnut flooring running throughout and dark wood panelling and grey tile used in the bathrooms.

A gym and media room are located in the basement, while a pool, pool house and two outdoor areas sit at the entrance and back of the home.

"The land, the views, and the architecture combine in ways that contribute to a very spiritual place," concludes Hal Goldstein. "The overall flow is truly musical, like individual notes of a musical composition, which was the goal of our work from the beginning."

HGX Design is New York City-based studio founded in 2020 by Hal Goldstein with a focus on corporate, commercial and residential projects that "inspire human connection and fulfilment".

Other projects recently completed in the Hudson Valley include a sake brewery infused with elements of local and Japanese architecture and a hotel consisting of Corten steel-clad cabins.

The photography is by Scott Frances unless otherwise noted.

Project credits:

Design/Architecture firm: HGXDESIGN
Managing partner: Hal Goldstein
Creative director: Hal Goldstein
Lead designers/architects: Hal Goldstein/Stefan Kusurelis
Contractors: CofH Builders Inc.
Constructors: Pete Mostaccio
Engineers: DiSalvo Erickson (Structural Engineers), Crawford Associates (Civil Engineers)
Landscape architects: Wagner Hodgson
Lighting consultant: Claude R. Engle Lighting Consultant
Mechanical: Crawford Associates
Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning: Crawford Associates

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Toronto studio Workshop Architecture Inc has created a prefabricated home in Ontario with an exposed structure and blue-painted elements on the interior.

Located in Tiny, the Unfinished House is a 1,400-square-foot (130 square metre) two-bedroom, two-bathroom home with additional flexible spaces that double as accommodations for visitors.

On the interior, the unfinished appearance is a result of budget constraints and a desire to reduce materials to achieve "comfort, durability and low energy use".

"The house looks raw and unvarnished," said Workshop Architecture Inc. "The name Unfinished House refers to an aesthetic attitude, an approach to material reduction, and budget restraint that leaves parts of the design incomplete."

The house accommodates two couples, one in an in-law suite with a private entrance, bathroom and kitchenette that can be closed off from the remaining space with a cobalt blue sliding door.

A screened-in porch and mezzanine were designed to be converted into bedrooms for visiting friends and family.

The main entrance leads into a small mudroom, with the primary bedroom, a bathroom and a laundry room on either side. Two staircases surrounding the space lead down into the main living space and up to the mezzanine.

The living space is long and linear, with a light blue kitchen integrated into a far wall and the living space across from it, with the porch at the end.

The sliding door leads into the in-law suite's kitchenette and bathroom, which were clad in white and blue tile with the same blue cabinetry and grout.

Upstairs, the mezzanine contains a home office and den that can be used as extra sleeping space, while utilities such as the interior heat pump were tucked along the back wall.

Webnet wire rope was use as a railing or protective wall, to maximise light and ventilation throughout the space.

It is a nautical reference, as the studio was informed by the vernacular architecture of rural Ontario for the house's design, materiality, and colour selection, which includes a mixture of seasonal and permanent beach houses and farms.

Workshop Architecture optimised the house to lower its greenhouse gas use by 90 per cent, according to the studio.

The walls were prefabricated off-site and insulation was incorporated outboard, or on the opposite side of the vapour barrier as most homes, which meant the interior wall structure could be left uncovered, eliminating the need for interior cladding.

"As the insulation is outboard," said the studio. "The douglas fir plywood and pine wood framing is left exposed on the interior for visual interest and for small storage shelves, inspired by William Turnbull Jr's Hine House at Sea Ranch."

Triple-glazed pine and aluminium-clad windows were set deeply into the walls to create sills that can double as seating, desks, and counters.

"Unlike many contemporary projects, there is a purposeful restraint in glazing," said the studio. "This is a suburban-scaled site, but with the careful window placement, there is a feeling of being alone in a forest."

The windows were also placed to create cross ventilation, with smaller square windows on the sides of the house facing neighbours to increase privacy.

The studio also limited concrete use by eliminating a basement, choosing instead to lay the house on a shallow foundation and concrete slab, which was then left exposed on the interior to avoid the use of additional flooring.

The underside of the roof deck, wood framing, exterior framing and white sheathing were also left exposed.

"Where multiple two-by-six studs form a column an arte povera (poor art) attitude is at play – no upgrading to solid wood, glulams, or wrapping the dimension lumber," said the studio.

The house runs on a heat pump, LED lights, and an energy recovery ventilator for moisture management and "very little electricity", with no gas connection.

Solar power infrastructure for hot water and electricity was incorporated into the house for later build-out, "when the owner's budget allows".

Ceiling fans were also installed in the bedrooms, living room and porch to move hot air down in the winter and help mitigate heat and humidity in the summer.

"During a major heat wave in 2023, the house stayed under 20 degrees with no air-conditioning," said the studio.

The studio is using the prefabricated panels piloted during the project on a 16-unit affordable housing project in Toronto.

Workshop Architecture Inc is a Toronto-based architecture studio founded in 2010 by David Coluss and Helena Grdadolnik with a focus on sustainable and equitable residential projects.

Other recent residences built in Ontario include a cedar-clad holiday home tucked into a hill by Studio AC and a Toronto home with a pixilated brick facade by Partisans.

The photography is by Scott Norsworthy

Project credits:

Design team: David Colussi, Helena Grdadolnik, Nina Hitzler
Structural engineer: Konsolidated Structural
Mechanical and electrical engineer: CK Engineering
Passive House Certifier: Peel Passive House
Prefabrication: Simple Life Homes
Contractors: Evolve Builders Group, Muskoka River Fine Homes

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Tokyo-based Jun Mitsui & Associates has converted an abandoned grocery store into a sake brewery in Upstate New York in partnership with US studio Pelli Clarke & Partners.

Located in Hyde Park of New York's Hudson Valley, the 55,00 square foot (5,110 square metre), complex will host spaces for rice washing, drying, steaming and fermentation for Dassai Blue Brewery, the New York location of the Dassai sake brand.

"Dassai Brewery is designed to harmonize beauty and functionality," said Pelli Clarke & Partners partner Fred Clarke. "Visitors are invited to observe the brewing process in an environment that blends modern and traditional aesthetics as well as the built and natural world."

The site contains three buildings – the brewery, housed in the shell of a former Stop & Shop grocery store, a small rice polishing building and a wastewater treatment facility.

Jun Mitsui & Associates and Pelli Clarke & Partners sought to marry elements of Japanese architecture with small-scale manufacturing and its location in upstate New York.

"Because the site is located in the Hudson River basin and is under extremely strict scenery controls, we paid great attention to maintaining harmony with the historic atmosphere of the surrounding streetscape," said Jun Mitsui & Associates.

"Partly because the client was a Japanese brewer who mainly makes sake, we also incorporated 'Japanese-ness' into the design."

The main brewery building is rectangular, with wide-tin-covered eaves wrapped around its entrance that create a covered walkway along its length.

According to the team, it was informed by the Engawa, an element of Japanese architecture that resembles a veranda or porch that runs along the perimeter of a structure.

"The main building has a porch space with long eaves that links with canopy-style roof design, which serves to accent the exterior," said Jun Mitsui & Associates.

"We have created a Japanese-style porch design that not only continues the interior space for tasting drinks, etc. and the landscape as an intermediate area, but also gently welcomes visiting guests."

Floor-to-ceiling windows line the front of the building, which leads into a tasting room for visitors.

The building's brewing facilities are located at its centre and are available to view during tours through several picture windows.

The production layout takes advantage of two pre-existing loading docks, moving in a "counterclockwise flow".

"The brewery seamlessly fits into the building's footprint with production following a counterclockwise flow from two loading docks," said Pelli Clarke & Partners.

"Polished rice moves from the northeast facility building, progressing through production steps, culminating at the southeast corner for bottling and shipping, utilizing the pre-existing loading dock."

The rice polishing building sits across a parking lot and landscape designed by Reed-Hilderbrand, which incorporates private seating nooks and Cherry trees informed by traditional Japanese gardens.

The building is smaller in stature and is lined with Yakisugi charred cedar cladding with a gabled roof and two overhangs that mirror the eaves of the main brewery building.

Here, the fatty outer layer of the grains of rice are stripped away using automatic grinding machines, leaving behind a starch interior that will be converted into sugar during the remaining brewery process.

The remains from the process are taken to the brewery building through a loading dock located on the side of the building.

Other elements of the brewing process include long, wooden tables housed in a hot room that are used to create Koji, or moulded rice, which is then blended with other ingredients to create a yeast starter for the remaining process.

The brewery currently uses Yamada Nishiki rice imported from Japan for its sake, although it currently is working with Isbell Farms in Arkansas to produce the specific species in order to reduce the carbon footprint of its sourcing.

The project is part of an initiative of the Culinary Institute of America to "further the education and awareness of sake within the United States," according to the team.

"We hope that this facility will become part of the broadcast of Japanese culture into other countries and will grow up together with the local American culture," said Jun Mitsui & Associates.

Pelli Clarke & Partners has worked extensively in Japan and recently completed Japan's tallest skyscraper.

The photography is courtesy of Pelli Clarke & Partners

Project credits: 

Design architect: Jun Mitsui & Associates
Architect of record: Pelli Clarke & Partners
Architect project team: Jun Mitsui, Fred Clarke, David Coon, Mark McDonnell, Masa Ninomiya, Ileana Dumitriu
MEP engineering: Fitzmeyer & Tocci
Structural engineering: Gibble Norden Champion Brown
Landscape architecture: Reed-Hilderbrand
Civil engineering: Chazen Labella

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UK architecture studio Foster + Partners and local studio Ponce de León Arquitectos have broken ground on its first project in Uruguay, an apartment building wrapped around a multi-storey glass courtyard.

Located in the upscale Carrasco neighbourhood of Montevideo along the beachside avenue Rambla Tomas Berreta, The Edge will contain eight apartments, with a pool, gym, sauna and shared garden located on the lower levels. The project is being carried out in collaboration with Ponce de León Arquitectos.

The building's facade will consist of private terraces that stretch along its 197-foot (60-metre) length. Floor-to-ceiling glass windows and doors enclose each floor and end in curved corners.

White concrete will be used to clad the outside – a nod to the "pale tones" of the beaches of Carrasco.

In the lobby of the four-storey structure, a circular courtyard is lined with clear glass and features a tree.

"The cast glass courtyard is at the heart of the design, bringing daylight and greenery directly into the building and creating a unique experience for the residents," said Foster + Partners partner Juan Frigerio. "Its sculptural quality underlines the project's contemporary elegance."

In the upper levels, the courtyard slices through apartments located at the centre of the building, with other apartments flanking them on either side. Here the open-air courtyard will be completely enclosed by semi-opaque glass to provide light as well as privacy.

In these apartments, the courtyard insertion will form a slim passageway framed by a built-in bookcase that leads to the living areas. More built-in bookcases will line the base of the glass insertion.

"The building's split-core allows for a natural separation to the apartment entrances, which are located on either side of the leafy central space with private access to the floors above," said the team.

Each apartment contains access to a terrace, while private rooftop gardens line the top level, with these outdoor areas providing cross-ventilation.

The building's shared garden is located on the other side of the courtyard, which steps down into a subterranean level containing a pool and gym.

"We are delighted to see the practice's first project in Uruguay coming to fruition," said Foster + Partners head of studio David Summerfield. "Our design seeks to offer the highest quality living experience, by perfectly balancing views, light, and green space."

Elsewhere, the studio recently revealed images of a twisting, garden-covered building in Hollywood and completed an Apple Store buried below ground in Shanghai.

The images are courtesy Foster + Partners

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London design practice EcoLogicStudio has created a collection of everyday objects using algae, including a desktop air purifier that outputs material used to create furniture and accessories, to be shown at Milan Design Week.

The PhotoSynthetica collection is anchored by the AIReactor, a desktop "photobioreactor" that uses algae to purify the air. The biowaste from the process is then used to create biopolymers integrated into 3D-printed objects, such as the stool and ring that complete the collection.

The collection grows upon the research project EcoLogicStudio's PhotoSynthetica launched in 2018, which includes a massive tree sculpture created using biomass, or waste material, harvested from microalgae.

"There are several motives behind the creation of this collection," the studio told Dezeen."First and foremost to support the scaling up of the PhotoSynthetica technology, thus allowing its deployment in urban areas with high levels of air pollution, offering immediate benefits to densely populated areas where air quality is a significant concern."

"By harnessing the natural air-purifying properties of algae, the technology effectively removes pollutants such as carbon dioxide and particulate matter from the atmosphere, thereby reducing air pollution levels."

The AIRreactor, standing at 3 feet (1 metre) tall, was created using a birch plywood frame that can be recycled or composted, according to the team. It supports a glass "photobioreactor" at its centre, which contains 10 litres of a bright green liquid containing micro-algae cultures.

Air is introduced to the liquid by a "reactor" at the bottom, which constantly stirs the mixture to emulate natural marine waves and currents.

The algae then filter carbon dioxide and pollutants from the air and convert it into biomass and oxygen through photosynthesis, the waste of which was collected to create the accompanying stool and ring.

"In addition to capturing pollutants, the microalgae cultivated in AIReactor can be harvested and utilized to produce biopolymers for 3D printing products," said the studio.

"After harvesting, the algae biomass can be dried and then undergo further processing to produce biopolymers, which are natural polymers derived from renewable plant-based sources."

The stool, which features a ribbed, amorphous body, was created in collaboration with the Synthetic Landscape Lab at Innsbruck University, and is composed of up to 30 per cent of the biopolymer created from the AIRreactor, according to the studio.

A PLA/PHB compostable polymer was used for the remaining material composition.

Its material makeup allows the objects to be flexible and "creates the possibility for near infinite customisation of the product".

The Bio-digital ring is similarly made up of 30 per cent of algal biomass, with a base of polylactic acid. It is composed of layers of 3D-printed polymers to create a topographical, bumpy mass.

"In the uniqueness of this object we can recognize one of the most significant aspects of contemporary technological evolution: its inevitable convergence with the world of living nature," said EcoLogicStudio founder Claudia Pasquero.

All three objects were created to illustrate the circularity possible when using biobased objects and materials, as well as to introduce a "mass customization" of design technology into everyday objects.

"We want to accelerate the mass customization of the design technology to suit different environments, including residential areas, commercial districts, industrial zones, and public spaces" said the studio.

"Catering to diverse needs and requirements, thus introducing circular economies of biomaterials."

EcoLogicStudio also used algae to purify air inside an enclosed playground and created a DIY algae growing kit during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The PhotoSynthetica collection is set to debut at Milan Design Week, along with a bright orange, sculptural toilet by designer Samuel Ross for Kohler.

The images are by Pepe Fotografia

The PhotoSynthetica collection will be on view from 15 to 21 April as part of Isola Design Festival 2024 during Milan Design Week. See Dezeen Events Guide for more architecture and design events around the world.

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Fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana has released renderings of a supertall skyscraper in Miami, created in collaboration with New York architecture practice Studio Sofield, which will be its first branded residences.

Located in the Brickell neighbourhood of downtown Miami, the 90-storey tower will reach 1,049 feet high (320 metres), the same height as the city's in-progress first supertall skyscraper, the Waldorf Astoria Miami.

Named 888 Brickell, the skyscraper will host 259 "Dolce & Gabbana-designed" residences, restaurants and bars, and amenities such as a pool deck, event space, and fitness and spa centre.

Renderings show a slim tower on a rectangular base wrapped in double-height windows. Open-air amenity areas are located both on top of the base and on the building's roof, which dons a bronze, rectangular cap.

The facade, designed by Studio Sofield, was created to invoke "quintessential modernist skyscrapers and Milanese mid-century design and fashion" according to the team.

Ivory travertine and matte black steel beams will be used on the exterior, with gold and bronze highlights interspersed throughout.

Dolce & Gabbana collaborated with Milan-based studio M2Atelier on the interiors for the project, with renderings picturing dark, moody public spaces outfitted with metallic highlights and animal-print furniture.

"The designs epitomise the fashion house's commitment to sourcing 'fatto a mano' (handmade) and well-considered materials in a perfect meeting of Italianate and Miami glamour and grace" said the team.

"The signature hues of Dolce & Gabbana – black, gold, and red – are expertly interwoven into the interior design, culminating in a
luxurious and cohesive ambience."

A double-height lobby will be clad in black marble, with a grand staircase in the corner leading to private check-in areas and lounges.

Another double-height event space will host a DJ booth and seating, while the building's bars and restaurants will feature  "a harmonious blend of sumptuous textures, including black and white marbles, cast glass, velvet and polished nickel."

Renderings of the residences show spaces clad in white marble, surrounded by floor-to-ceiling windows and punctuated by bronze accents and a curving staircase.

"Introducing a first-of-its-kind design feat, Dolce & Gabbana's Grand Residences seamlessly transition into multiple individual rooms and suites which can be utilized simultaneously by owners and hotel guests without compromising privacy and featuring private entries for each," said the team.

The project is expected to be completed in 2028.

It is being developed by JDS Development Group, which is also the developer on a SHoP Architects-designed Mercedes Benz residential tower nearby, while Bentley-branded residences on Miami's oceanfront were also recently unveiled.

They join a number of skyscrapers completed and in-progress in the city in recent years, including the Aston Martin residences by architects Bodas Miani Anger, the upcoming 70-story Okan Tower by local architecture firm Behar Font & Partners, and the 75-story Baccarat Residences by Arquitectonica.

Images are courtesy Dolce & Gabbana and JDS Development Group by Recent Spaces unless otherwise noted. 

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A mobile pavilion made of bamboo and a board game dedicated to education around the urban planning process were among the projects highlighted from a design and architecture symposium held in Bogotá.

Helmed by Copenhagen philanthropic organisation Re:Arc Institute, the symposium gathered several global design and architecture studios to present projects aligned with the "Andean concept of 'buen vivir'", which the team said relates to a "symbiotic" relationship between nature and humanity.

Headed by a team including Space10 founder Carla C Hjort, designer Nicolay Boyadjiev and researcher Alice Grandoit-Šutka of the publication Deem Journal, the institute seeks to support community and environmental-driven design and architecture projects through a variety of funding initiatives.

Held in Bogotá's Museo Del Chico in March, Re:Arc's third symposium featured presentations from design studios and initiatives such as São Paulo-based Arquitetura Na Periferia, which seeks to educate women in construction techniques and Argentina-based Region Austral, a studio centred around community-based urban planning.

The international projects presented incorporated environmental stewardship, as well as community, with a particular focus on creating designs in collaboration with indigenous or local populations across the various countries represented.

Read on for six projects presented at the symposium.

Veanve Intercultural Center, Colombia, by Mano Cambiada and APLO

Located in the Chocó region of Colombia, which is home to several Indigenous tribes, the Veanve Intercultural Center will act as a gathering space for the town of Nuquí and the broader community, including an annual festival that celebrates the migration of birds and whales that pass by Colombia's pacific coast.

Activist Josefina Klinger of Mano Cambiada and architect Pedro Aparicio Llorente of Colombia studio APLO are leading the project, which will include a telecommunications tower, a fire pit for gathering, music and recording studio, kitchens, gardens and housing. It is currently seeking funding.

Along with the Festival de la Migración, it aims to bring pride to the local indigenous communities which traditionally have been considered underserved by Colombia at large.

El bicho (The Critter), Colombia, by Arquitectura Expandida, Distreestyle and Golpe de Barrio

The bamboo El Bicho – or The Critter – was made in collaboration between Colombia architecture studio Arquitectura Expandida, activists Distreestyle and hip-hop group Golpe de Barrio as "a platform, a space for arranged or spontaneous meetings on the street or waiting for the weather to clear up".

Triangular in form and placed on wheels, the structure was installed in the outlying Bosa neighbourhood of Bogotá, which is populated with social housing. The project called attention to the lack of not-for-profit public gathering spaces.

"El Bicho was built with the philosophy of strengthening the daily rap meetings that young people organize every week in this space," said the team. "Thus, beyond its operational function, El Bicho is a manifesto for a collective and self-managed right to the city that questions the verticality of urban powers."

Kaun hai Master? Kya hai Plan?, Delhi, by Social Design Collaborative

Delhi-based design studio Social Design Collaborative created a boardgame to help spread understanding and awareness of the public planning process for communities that are "typically left out of planning processes" in the wake of Delhi creating a new master plan, which happens every twenty years.

"It became important for us to demystify the urban plan because it's such a technocratic piece of document," explained Social Design Collab founder Swati Janu. "It was a 500-page document, which even for an architect or a planner takes us days and days to understand. So how can a resident understand what's in it for them?"

Along with several other organisations, the team held workshops across the Indian capital, where the toolkit was used to discuss proposed changes. As a result, 30,000 objections were filed in person as opposed to an average of 5,000 online, according to the studio.

Pooling Xolox, Mexico, by Taller Capital

Pooling Xolox will be a water basin that acts as a community space and a collection area for water run-off created from the construction of a cancelled Mexico City airport.

It is planned for the town of San Lucas Xolox, where water runoff from construction-created divets in the land have led to the flooding of infrastructure for the locals.

Instead of rerouting the water beyond the town's limit, Taller Capital hopes to divert and collect the water into a basin created by the earth, which also acts as community space where excess water might be used for agricultural purposes. 

Water Intelligence Hub, Mexico, by Office of Urban Resilience (ORU)

Located on the outskirts of the city of Oaxaca in San Felipe del Agua, the Water Intelligence Hub by Mexico-based studio Office of Urban Resilience (ORU) will be a nature centre focused on enhancing awareness and environmental stewardship of water.

The project is part of a wider initiative in collaboration with the local government and the Inter-American Development Bank that seeks to integrate the urban development of Oaxaca with the surrounding natural environment in the hopes of improving quality of life and mitigating climate change.

ORU is working on the design with a community of 120 families who collectively own the land where the Water Intelligence Hub will be located. The plan is to integrate educational programming, hiking, bird-watching, and cooking classes. ORU plans to break ground on the project in late 2024.

Kibera Productive Public Spaces, Kenya, by Kounkuey Design Initiative (KDI)

Kenyan design non-profit Kounkuey Design Initiative (KDI) has created several community-oriented insertions in the informal settlement of Kibera in a series of ongoing projects it calls Kibera Public Space Project (KPSP)

These projects include the insertion of pedestrian bridges over central rivers that run through the community, refurbished walkways, and laundry facilities.

Started in 2006, the KPSP projects centre around flood mitigation. KDI and residents continue to collect flood data and share risk information to the community, as well as the government, to communicate the extent and complexity to which the flooding affects Kibera.

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Local architect Julio Sanchez Arimayn has converted an industrial warehouse building into creative studios interspersed throughout two stories and punctuated by mezzanines in Buenos Aires.

Called Espinosa Estudios, the 900-square-metre building contains seven studio spaces, cooking areas, a porch, restrooms and a cafe to host creative programming.

"It was a warehouse, with a series of buildings inside," said Arimayn's team. "A house upfront converted into offices, a chorizo house in the centre, a large industrial mezzanine – a concrete structure without much meaning. It was a great sum of moments and patched needs, all under a large tin roof."

On the ground level, Arimayn placed studio spaces of increasing size along one side of the building, creating an internal "street" that runs alongside them.

The building's entrance lies at the beginning of the ground-level hallway, while a cafe was placed directly to its side. Bathrooms and kitchens are located at the centre of both floors and surround a staircase.

"All the workspaces are linked to this street, allowing and encouraging interaction, the possibility of crossover, collaboration," said the team.

This hallway runs the interior length of the building and is semi-covered by second-floor openings, mezzanines and a tile-floor porch located at the centre of the building.

The largest of the ground-level spaces sits at the end of the building and is double-height, exposed to the building's curving roof.

In the same space, a white insertion creates a gallery or stage space, further denoted by curved corners that hit the otherwise concrete floor.

On the first floor, the creative spaces are much larger and connect to the building's open-air porch, or "lung".

"A porch on the first floor generates a common outdoor space and functions as the lung of the project," said the team.

The interior is lined with translucent polycarbonate panels, and has double-height spaces and openings so that it receives natural light from the large, glazed openings in the domed roof.

Some openings and gaps throughout the first floor connect directly to the outdoors.

Arimayn used concrete, galvanized steel and white-washed walls to make up the majority of the interior, while textural details were interspersed throughout.

"[The materials] were selected to create the large surfaces we needed without the need for external suppliers, but rather could be manufactured on-site," said Arimayn. "This is how we were able to lower construction costs considerably."

Other material details include a small wall section covered in fluted concrete, white-washed brick, French doors, and one studio topped with lighting scattered along metal strips.

"The construction of Espinosa was a process of experimentation, of tests in the place, of material search," said the team. "There is a balance between the old-existing-murario, and the new: lightweight – industrialized space closures and dividers."

Espinosa Estudios will be used for private studios and co-working, as well as public gallery shows and other events.

"In Espinosa, there is an air of simplicity, rationality and truth of materials. There is no ornament. It's like a blank sheet for things to happen," said the team.

Julia Sanchez Arimayn is a Buenos-Aires-based architect who studied and worked at the University of Buenos Aires. After twenty years of experience working in the construction industry, he has since opened an eponymous studio. Espinosa Estudios is his first project.

Other recently completed projects around Buenos Aires include a 1980s home conversion lined with second-floor ribbon windows by Daniel Canda and a small bookstore lined with textured concrete walls.

The photography is by Fernando Schapochnik.

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Italian automaker Lamborghini has unveiled a rebrand featuring a flat, simplified logo as part of a broader "transformation process" aimed at sustainability and decarbonization.

The logo has the same set-up – a bull placed at the centre of a shield, but the detailing has been pared down into a silhouette, while a broader, thinner typeface was introduced.

"The new logo is redefined by a broader Lamborghini typeface than its predecessor and by colors that are minimal yet bold," said the company.

"The restyling is driven by a new strategy that involves adapting the brand's visual expressions to better reflect the 'brave', 'unexpected' and 'authentic' values of its mission."

The logo, which will be applied to future car models, will be displayed in the classic gold and black, but also feature more pared-down black and white schemas.

Along with a "new set of icons", the bull will be used across the company's digital platforms, separated for the first time from its shield.

"The iconic bull in the center of the logo has undergone a major change," said the company. "For the first time, it will exist individually on the company's digital touchpoints, separated from the classic shield to lend it even greater prominence."

A new typeface was also created as part of the rebrand which echoes "the unmistakable lines and angularity of the cars" and will be used across communications.

Images of the typeface show a lean, tall san-serif font with hooked curves.

The new logo and typeface will be used on all the company's official channels, according to the brand and is the first rebrand the company has undertaken in two decades.

It is part of a larger shift towards sustainability and decarbonisation, according to the company, summarized in its Direzione Cor Tauri plan.

The initiative, launched in 2021, outlines a plan to build the first fully electrified Lamborghini model by the "second half of the decade", with hybrid models created along the way.

According to the company, the original logo can be traced back to founder Ferruccio Lamborghini's penchant for bullfighting. The Miura bull, known for its aggressiveness, has been featured on the logo since the company's founding in the 1960s.

The rebrand joins several car companies shifting towards a flat, simplified logo in recent years, including Volvo in 2021 and Audi in 2022.

The images are courtesy Lamborghini.

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New York architecture studio Diller Scofidio + Renfro has unveiled images of a grey, sculptural expansion to The Broad museum in Los Angeles, which the studio created nearly a decade ago.

Located adjacent to The Broad, the 55,000-square-foot (5,109 square metres) expansion will contain additional art galleries, storage, performance space and two open-air courtyards.

Designs show a rectangular building elevated above a plaza. Curved-edge windows are pushed into its facade with the edges of the glazed openings appearing to pull the exterior of the building inwards. The studio said the expansion will complement the existing structure while retaining distinct characteristics.

"I think of the new building as a companion to the existing Broad," said Diller Scofidio + Renfro partner Elizabeth Diller. "The pair shares DNA, but each has its own distinct character and purpose in constant dialogue with its counterpart."

The form was derived from the "veil" and "vault" concept of the original museum, which consists of a honeycomb "veil" that folds over an organic, large grey "vault" that makes up the interior.

"The exterior of the expansion echoes the surface appearance of the vault – as if this core had been exposed and 'unveiled' – symbolically expressing The Broad's commitment to access while playfully inverting the visual vocabulary of the current building," said the team.

The expansion will host galleries on the first, second and third floors and second-floor storage racks that will house additional artworks, which visitors will be able to move through.

It also will pay homage to the circulation of the first structure, in which transitional areas were given special care, according to the team.

"The original Broad was conceived as an unfolding experience starting in the lobby, traveling up the escalator piercing the vault, landing in the third-floor gallery immersed in the collection, then snaking down through collection storage on the way back to the street," said Diller.

"The challenge of adding more space to the building was to retain this intuitive circulation and logic while introducing a set of completely new experiences for the visitor."

An interior rendering shows a large, white cube gallery with track lighting, wooden flooring and contemporary artwork, with a curved window towards one corner.

An outdoor plaza located underneath and around the expansion will connect the museum to a local metro station.

The project will break ground in 2025 while the Broad remains open. Expected completion is set for 2028, "before Los Angeles hosts the 2028 Summer Olympics" notes the team.

When The Broad opened in 2015, writer Mimi Zeiger called it an "elegant exercise in mundanity". In 2022, Elizabeth Diller said The Broad was designed to feel "extremely welcoming" in a Dezeen-produced video series dedicated to concrete buildings.

Diller Scofidio + Renfro recently completed a performing arts centre on a Massachusetts campus and had its first single-family residential project in the Hamptons photographed years after its completion.

The images are by Plomp

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Brooklyn architecture studio Peterson Rich Office has adapted an early-1900s Detroit church into The Shepherd arts centre, inserting contemporary art galleries into its nave and transept.

Peterson Rich Office's (PRO) conversion of the original Romanesque-style Good Shepherd Church was based on a desire to keep the "integrity" of its structure intact while creating a performance space, library and two white cube galleries throughout the interior. It is part of the Little Village redevelopment project in the city's East Village.

"PRO's adaptive reuse of the church focused on keeping the integrity of the original architecture intact, while strategically inserting elements into the space to both introduce new programming and to allow for new ways to experience the historic building," said the studio.

The studio removed the "ritual elements of the congregation" from the church's centre and inserted a square gallery unit topped with a mezzanine along the church's nave, which visitors pass through as they enter.

Tucked just in front of this first gallery space, PRO created a brown-painted steel spiral staircase, which leads up to the mezzanine that will host additional programming.

"A new arched-shaped rounded steel staircase rises in front of one of the original stained glass windows," said the studio.

"The stair is clearly contemporary in its materials, construction, and detailing, but has a formal resonance with the existing arches throughout the building."

On the interior of the gallery, an oculus rises through the ceiling to look up at the church's barrel-vaulted ceiling.

This gallery creates a direct view from the church's entrance to the remaining central altar, which was left open for performances and larger installations.

On one arm of the structure's cross, a space was created for the Little Village Arts Library, a branch of the Black Art Library. It houses monographs, exhibition catalogues, children's books and research materials centred around Black artists and movements.

These materials were housed in a long storage unit in front of the church's original wooden confessionals, which PRO repurposed into audio listening booths.

The studio also inserted bookshelves into the confessionals to provide additional space for materials.

Wooden chairs and tables were placed in the area for visitors to use.

Across the East Village Arts Library, in the opposite transept, PRO inserted an additional gallery unit that mirrors the cube form of the gallery placed in the nave. An oculus was also placed at its centre.

Notches were removed from the corners of both galleries that face the church's columns as "a playful gesture toward the existing architecture" said the studio.

PRO also paid homage to the original palette of the church by wrapping the top of galleries in the same brown metal used for the stairs.

"A band of metal wraps around the top of the galleries, continuing the datum line of the surrounding ornate cornicing, similar in material and tone but still reading as something different," said the studio.

Both galleries were finished in a textured plaster.

Warm-toned lighting was integrated throughout the larger church to highlight architectural features, while a cool, even light was used for the interior of the galleries.

The church's exterior was kept largely unchanged, save for the introduction of a "thin, illuminated metal shroud" spanning a central arch as a subtle nod to its new use.

The conversion is part of the wider Little Village development spearheaded by the art institution Library Street Collective, which will encompass several cultural buildings and outdoor areas.

The Shepherd is located on a corner of 3.75 acre (1.5 hectre) Little Village site and will act as an "anchor" for the wider development.

The Shepherd will open in May 2024 along with other projects including the Lantern, a building with spaces for non-profits, artist studios and shops designed by OMA and a permanent sculpture garden dedicated to artist Charles McGee.

The Little Village project also includes a Tony Hawk and McArthur Binion-designed public skatepark, a bed and breakfast designed by local studio Rossetti, culinary arts spaces and a restaurant housed in converted homes by local studio Undecorated and a bar housed in a former garage.

Other projects recently completed in Detroit include a colourful school housed in a former Catholic college and a historic garage converted into a black-box theatre.

Photography is by Jason Keen courtesy of the Library Street Collective

Architect: Peterson Rich Office
PRO project team: Nathan Rich, Miriam Peterson, Amber Farrow, Alex Bodkin, Ben Hochberg, Varoon Kelekar, Martin Carillo, Peik Shelton
General contractor: CIR Group
Local architect: Ark-Tec LLC
Structural engineer: Silman
MEP engineer: Salas O’Brien
Lighting consultant: Andy Watson
Business development consultant: Above The Fold

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Local architecture studio Hewitt has unveiled the 33-storey-high Skyglass residential block in downtown Seattle, which was informed by an offset stack of magazines.

Called Skyglass, the 335-foot-high (102 metre) tower is located just east of the Space Needle, which was recently renovated by Olson Kundig Architects, and contains apartments with shops on its lower floors.

The 33-storey-high building consists of a glazed tower with four facades of angled planes that rises from a rectangular base clad in brick.

The tower's distinctive, offset facades were created in the pursuit of "enhancing the residential experience" and were ultimately created after Hewitt senior principal Julia Nagele and principal Sean Ludviksen spotted an offset stack of brochures.

"I looked at the profile and stopped seeing a lot of floorplates twisting but just saw a basic shift," said Nagele.

"I wanted to study what it would mean to shift a tower plate and what would be the value of that," she explained. "In that giving the occupants a lot more than what you might get in a more conventional design."

The interior floors are defined by the tilted glass facades, which angle upwards or down depending on the unit.

"All the floors are identical," explained Nagele. "This is not an accordion. They just shift along a diagonal trajectory so nothing changes but its position relative to the columns."

According to the studio, the design created interior spaces similar to an attic or an apartment in a mansard roof.

"On one corner of the building, the units are being more compressed and on the opposite corner, they're expanding and then vice versa as it shifts up through the floor plates," said Nagele.

Its form also creates views of the surrounding natural landscape of Seattle, which she describes as an important influence.

"We wanted to respond to these bigger broader ideas of an ever-changing maritime climate," she said. "We wanted the tower to continually change as the sun came out and the clouds came in and there's these pockets of blue sky and dark clouds."

While the tower has a contemporary appearance, the studio designed the base building to have a smaller scale and more traditional appearance.

"It has a base of the building that relates to the pedestrian, the street and the block in this smaller scale, immediate context," said Nagele. "And then there's the tower that relates to this larger scale, yet also natural context."

The tower's ground level will contain a lobby, a small public retail area and first-floor apartments with public and private outdoor areas surrounding the building.

Hewitt clad the base in "earthy, familiar materials" like brick, wood, and board-formed concrete as an homage to both the site's history and the use of brick in the surrounding South Lake Union neighbourhood.

Greetings such as "hey" and "hello" were also embedded into the concrete to indicate more public versus private entrances.

The studio incorporated several points of access to the building for residents, including an alleyway entrance at the back of the building as a way to "reclaim urban space" and a higher percentage of bike parking than car to encourage connection to the surrounding bike lines.

Mechanical elements were encased in a two-level block on top of the building.

"We have the base of the building, which is a rational block of a building that responds to the human scale," said Nagele. "We have the top of the building that is more of a background element. And then the tower is the thing that enhances the building."

"It's not enough to simply make space," continued Nagele. "We have to add poetry to the spaces that we make and we have to make spaces where people truly want to be. And we're very excited about Skyglass because we think it moves in that direction."

Other projects recently completed in downtown Seattle include a metal-wrapped university building by Miller Hull and a pediatric clinic by NBBJ.

The photography is by Lara Swimmer / Esto unless stated otherwise.

Project credits:

Client: Gemdale
Architect: Hewitt
General contractor: Venture
Structural engineer: KPFF
Landscape architect: Hewitt Landscape Architects
Energy and Sustainability: Rushing

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Providing homes for people with disabilities and formerly houseless LGBTQ+ youth, our next Social Housing Revival case study set out to prove that low-cost housing in the US can look as good as upscale apartments.

Located in West Hollywood, the La Brea Affordable Housing complex, designed by architects Patrick Tighe and John Mutlow, is a five-storey, 50,000 square foot (4,650 square metre) mixed-use building completed in 2014 for the non-profit West Hollywood Community Housing Corporation.

Tenants of its 32 residential units include people living with disabilities, young LGBTQ+ people with experience of homelessness and those living with AIDS and HIV.

Distinctive oversized ribbons wrap around a corner of the building's facade, which is also punctuated by aquamarine-clad balconies. A landscaped courtyard and seating area forms the heart of the complex.

"The design is actually quite simple," Los Angeles architect Mutlow told Dezeen.

"There were three items," he explained. "One was a design that fits into context, one was respecting environmental issues, and one was social."

Sited on La Brea Avenue, a prominent north-south artery in a diverse part of the city known for its multicultural shops and restaurants, the building's adventurous facade was informed by surrounding 1930s art deco buildings.

"If you go up and down La Brea, you'll find some absolutely wonderful art deco buildings," said Mutlow.

"We were trying to fit into that environment – a preservation environment which you respect and love, rather than fitting into a slightly more mundane environment."

Both the client and designers also sought to create housing that appeared to be market-rate, and beyond that, a building that could be recognised as a "positive" addition to the community.

"The housing needs to look like it's market-rate housing," Mutlow said. "It doesn't need to be identifiable as something other than what would fit into a normal environment."

"We wanted to give the building an identity as being a positive attribution to the context for a long period of time," he added. "Then there's no kind of sense of 'oh, we have to walk by this project quickly because it's an affordable housing project'."

That is important in a city like LA where, despite a huge need for more affordable housing, it has historically been difficult to get such projects delivered.

Rather than simply seeking to blend in, Mutlow and Tighe enabled the building to stand out by partially wrapping it in distinctive white ribbons.

One reason for this was to create a visual marker for drivers as they travel along La Brea, another was to mark the building's entrance and lobby, which sits directly underneath the ribbons, and a third was a subtle nod to the red ribbon associated with HIV and AIDS awareness.

"We wanted to have a relationship with HIV," said Mutlow. "But not what would be known as a 'ribbon environment'. It's a subtle relationship."

A fourth reason for the ribbons was to partially enclose a series of balconies and the building's main circulation, the access to which is located in the small ground-floor lobby.

While the lobby appears to be enclosed by glass from the street, the space is in fact open-air, with the exterior bands visible from the inside. Parking space and the non-profit Aids Project Los Angeles is also located on the ground floor.

Like the interior courtyard and private balconies attached to each apartment, the open-air space is intended to create a connectedness with the outdoors, as well as between residents.

"In southern California you can have this inside-outside relationship," said Mutlow.

"What we want to do is reduce isolation for people that have a disability, to encourage them to not be in their unit but to come out to social space."

The interior courtyard, which features curvaceous planting beds and seating, is oriented on a north-south axis, exposing it to more sun in the winter and more shading in the summer.

Each private balcony is located along the building's front and back facades, while windows placed in the kitchens look out over the interior space.

The arrangement provides not only cross-ventilation but a visual connection to the street and courtyard, which Mutlow believes is an important factor in designing housing as it leads to tenants feeling at home in a space and ultimately, caring for it.

"When you shut your front door, you don't shut off the courtyard," he said. "You don't shut off the 'social'. You can, because you have a drape, but you have a certain choice in terms of how much social interaction you actually want."

"It's trying to give some choice to the occupants. It's all part and parcel of this sense of the residents feeling this is their home – not just a rental project that someone else's providing for them. It's their place."

Accessible elements were incorporated into each unit, ranging from doorbells that ring with light and sound, push-button doors and rangehood operations placed on the front of the stove so those in wheelchairs don't have to reach their hands across burners.

Additionally, 75 per cent of the unit's electricity, as well as hot water, comes from solar panels on the roof, cutting utility costs for tenants.

Mutlow, who has specialised in affordable senior and housing design for 30 years, says that over time he's seen more funds dedicated to affordable housing projects in Los Angeles, although this has shifted from federal to local sources.

"When I first started, the majority of the funds came from the federal government," he said. "Now, a much larger chunk of the funds come from the state, but also from the counties in the cities."

"Affordable housing has a source of funds now at a local level, more than it ever had before."

He also pointed to a rise in hotels and office buildings being converted into affordable housing across the country, similar to the city of Chicago's recent plan to adapt abandoned buildings into affordable housing, as evidence of changing approaches to delivery.

Ultimately, however, Mutlow is doubtful about whether LA's homelessness problem can be solved in the near future.

"When people say they're going solve the housing problem, I back off and take a break," he said.

"I'm not sure if it's ever going to be solvable because it's not just housing that is the issue, it's also support services and employment, and the jobs aren't necessarily there."

"In other words, the influx is equaling the ability of the county, the city or non-profits to produce affordable housing. It's kind of a never-ending roundtable."

The photography is by Art Gray unless otherwise stated.

Social Housing Revival

This article is part of Dezeen's Social Housing Revival series exploring the new wave of quality social housing being built around the world, and asking whether a return to social house-building at scale can help solve affordability issues and homelessness in our major cities.

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The Obama Foundation and US architecture studio Moody Nolan have released images of an athletic facility to be built on the Obama Presidential Center campus in Chicago.

Called Home Court, the building will host a regulation-size NBA basketball court, sports facilities and community spaces and serve as a wellness and gathering hub.

Located on the southwest corner of the in-progress, 19.3-acre (7.8 hectare) Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park, the athletics centre will be the first space to open on the campus.

"The Home Court will support the Center's mission as a forum for community, connection, and civic engagement with a focus on promoting well-being – inspiring hope and improving lives for generations to come," said Moody Nolan director of Chicago operations Renauld Deandre Mitchell.

"The process of architectural design embodies these values, for it is an act of hope – the outcome of which endures as a conversation between what is seen and how it is experienced."

Moody Nolan designed the 45,000-square-foot (4,180 square metres) facility to reflect two "personal passions" of former US President Barack Obama.

"The Home Court design is inspired by two of President Obama's personal passions – basketball and building community – with a sleek metal and glass panel exterior patterned to be a metaphor for a basketball net and community connection," said the team.

Renderings show a rectangular, winged building where each side dips to meet at the centre. On either end, the facades are glazed, with a two-tiered terrace at the front and a double-height space clad in a curtain wall at the back.

Wedges of textured metal fold over the building's exterior.

The facility's basketball court will be located at the back, with the expansive curtain wall looking out over the neighbouring lagoon and Lake Michigan.

The court will be lined with a second-floor mezzanine.

Visitors will enter the building through a double-height lobby and other programming will include training spaces, exercise equipment, and community spaces.

Interior renderings show a variety of rooms marked with a grey and black palette and lined with light wood panelling throughout.

The Obama Foundation is working with local chapters of institutions such as the YMCA and Girls in the Game to inform the interior programming, with participants requesting spaces for physical fitness activities, team sports and career development with after-school and weekend accessibility.

Sustainable design strategies include geothermal heating and cooling, according to the team and an array of solar panels are pictured on the roof.

"Designing the Home Court for the Obama Foundation is not just about creating a building," said Moody Nolan founder Curt Moody. "This project represents an opportunity to contribute to the narrative of progress and unity that defines our nation's history."

Moody Nolan will work with builders Elevate Design Builders and AECOM Hunt on the building, which is expected to open in late 2025.

It is part of the larger Obama Presidential Center campus designed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects with Interactive Design Architects (IDEA).

Currently under construction with an opening date set for 2026, the campus will include a monolithic stone-clad museum, the Obama Presidential Library and a public forum building with an L-shaped footprint.

Greenspaces and other work, such as a recently announced sculpture by artist Maya Lin, will infill the exterior spaces.

The designs for the campus were revealed in 2017 after Obama invited New York studios Diller Scofidio + Renfro, SHoP Architects and Scandinavian firm Snøhetta to pitch for the project.

At the time of the project's presentation to the Chicago City Council in 2018,  Cultural Landscape Foundation president Charles A Birnbaum discussed the repercussions of the campus being built on top of a Fredrick Law Olmsted-designed park.

A most recent construction update notes that the "crews continue to make steady progress on the concrete structure of the Museum Building" and both the forum and library are in progress.

The images are courtesy of the Obama Foundation

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Mexico City-based fashion brand 101% has released a collection of clothing including pants, a cargo vest and a jumpsuit all printed with a motif of the facade of the Seagram Building by architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

Called the Seagram Collection, it encompasses unisex track pants, a hoodie, a jumpsuit, a t-shirt and a vest made from recycled polyester materials. The collection features a print of the German-American architect's iconic 1955 New York building.

"The Seagram building has been a reference of a new architectural style since its creation," said the 101% team.

"A Miesian building is recognisable for its principle of a 'less is more approach', where the functionality of a building's structural elements is visible externally – a direction which relates closely to the design principles of 101%."

Each piece in the collection is made from 77 per cent recycled polyester, 17 per cent nylon and 6 per cent elastane, which is created from waste according to the team, including plastic bottles and 'textile-to-textile' materials.

Excluding a t-shirt, which is printed with a graphic collage of the building, each piece is covered in a motif of the Seagram's Building facade, appearing as a print of slim yellow and black horizontal bands.

The collection features straight silhouettes and a looser fit, designed to be unisex.

The hoodie is has a high neckline and extra-long, loose sleeves elasticated at the wrist, while the collection's trousers are straight-legged with "racer side-cuts".

The jumpsuit and vest also contain a high neck and both have been interspersed with pockets of varying sizes, including a wide cargo pocket placed on the leg and "invisible" pockets on the front of the vest.

According to the brand, the materials used are UV protective, waterproof, quick dry and anti-bacterial and were used to accommodate the "urban lifestyle".

"Your clothes need to give you the same comfort and functionality as the roof over your head," said the team.

Previously, 101% has covered clothing in a variety of floor plans and motifs of well-known buildings, such as the Centre Pompidou by Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers and the 56 Leonard by Herzog & de Meuron.

Mexico City-based 101% was founded in 2021 by designer Jessica Maxey and architect Fernando Romero of architecture studio FR-EE. The brand specialises in activewear designed for the urban environment.

Other architecture-informed fashion includes a pair of sneakers by Kith and New Balance that incorporate colours from American architect Frank Lloyd Wright's colour palettes.

Architects themselves have gotten involved with fashion design, such as Louis Vuitton handbags designed by Frank Gehry, informed by Gehry's buildings, and earlier this year MAD Architects founder Ma Yansong designed sneakers and handbags for a Fendi menswear collection.

The photography is by Jessica Maxey

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UK architecture practice Heatherwick Studio has unveiled designs for its first building in South America, a university in Bogotá with colourful, undulating columns informed by indigenous weaving practices.

Located in Bogotá, along the city's Calle 72 thoroughfare, the seven-storey building will be part of the Universidad Ean and will host the school of sustainable design and workshops.

Renderings show a facade made up of a series of colourful, undulating columns that travel that height of the building.

Garden terraces are placed intermediately along the columns, which rise to meet the building's various floors. Colourful, geometric columns can also be seen along the sides of the building.

Each of the building's storeys features glazed facades with wooden framing.

"The design pays homage to the local craft traditions including Werregue basketry, a form of weaving unique to Colombia's Wounaan indigenous community," said the studio in a statement.

Werregue basketry is characterized by similar oval silhouettes and is most commonly made of natural palm fibre and coloured with vegetable dyes.

The studio also said it is working to develop "innovative facade materials" to accommodate the "high levels of sunlight" at Bogotá's altitude, which sits at 8,660 feet (2,640 metres) above sea level.

The project will also incorporate a public space in front of the building.

"The building will serve as a new centre for the campus," said the team."Complementing the existing heritage structures on the site, and providing a rare new public space in the city."

"Creativity is intrinsic to the city of Bogotá," added Heatherwick Studio partner Eliot Postma.

"You see it everywhere. We want students to feel proud of their campus before they even enter the building, arriving through a public square that offers passers-by a welcoming communal oasis amidst the hard urban surroundings."

Renderings show a plaza populated with circular seating that mirrors the forms of the facade, as well as a central lightwell that connects to a subterranean level.

The landscaping will comprise species from Bogotá's "cloud forest" – the natural parks surrounding the city, the second most biodiverse in the world.

The project is expected to break ground in 2025.

Recently, Heatherwick Studio completed a development in Japan topped with hilltop roofs and announced plans to convert the BT Tower in London into an "extraordinary" hotel.

The images are by Nod. 

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A warped metal extension, a bright-yellow entrance and a barn converted into a play house feature in this roundup of barn and farm conversions in the Northeast of the United States.

Ranging from Maine to Pennsylvania, the Northeast region of the United States features a bounty of farmland architecture with a vernacular reflecting its European roots.

Rooted in English, Dutch and German colonial styles, there are some variations, but the farmhouses, barns, and other structures in the region are characterised by clapboard or stone siding, small windows due to the scarcity of glass and steeply pitched roofs in the face of heavy snowfall.

Many architecture studios have been commissioned to restore, expand and update the ageing structures, keeping the original forms intact while adding novel materials and pops of colour as well as contemporary weather-proofing.

The eight farmland properties below have each received a contemporary upgrade with designers preserving or paying homage to the structures' origins, the oldest of which dates back to the late 1700s.

Read on for the full list.

Gallatin Passive House, New York, North River Architecture

North River Architecture created the Gallatin Passive House as an extension to an 18th-century farm in upstate New York, restoring and repurposing an on-site barn as a play space for the owner's children.

"The site design links the new house to a fully restored 18th-century Dutch barn, now repurposed for multi-use events, work, storage and most importantly, a weather-proof recreation area for the owner's three children," said North River Architecture.

Find out more about Gallatin Passive House ›

North Salem Farm House, New York, Worrell Yeung

Worrell Yeung updated this historic farmland property in New York by gutting and expanding an original dairy barn on the property and converting it into an L-shaped main house.

The designers also added a free-standing garage, studio, and spa shed each topped with a gabled roof as an homage to the vernacular architecture in the area.

Find out more about North Salem Farm House ›

Floating Farmhouse, New York, Tom Givone

Self-taught designer Tom Givone renovated this dilapidated farmhouse in upstate New York, adding a glass curtain wall in the kitchen and dining area, concrete floors and exposing the original wood beams.

"After a design and renovation process spanning four years, the 1820s manor home is now a study in contrasts: fully restored to its period grandeur while featuring purely modernist elements, including a curtain wall of skyscraper glass in the kitchen, and polished concrete and steel finishes," said Givone.

Find out more about Floating Farmhouse ›

Cork Haven, New York, Nate Dalesio

Architect Nate Dalesio updated this 1930s New York house for himself and his young family by reusing the existing foundation but replacing most of the visible structure.

Dalesio replaced aged timber framing, and floorboards, adding a tin roof and wooden plank siding with a host of contemporary materials, including cladding the exterior in corkboard to help insulate the building.

Find out more about Cork Haven ›

Twisted Farmhouse, Pennsylvania, Tom Givone

Tom Givone added a warped metal-clad addition to an 1850s Pennsylvania farmhouse, which was designed to appear to "point" across the street to an adjacent home where the owner grew up.

"I imagined this family bond as a physical force, like a gravitational field between the two homes, acting on the addition and 'pulling' it towards the original farmhouse across the street," said Givone.

Find out more about Twisted Farmhouse ›

Maine Farmhouse, Maine, Kaplan Thompson Architects

Kaplan Thompson Architects linked a traditional Maine farmhouse to a modern extension using a bright yellow volume, which serves as a new entrance.

An "energetic, sculptural" new living and sleeping wing was added to the main farmhouse, with a roof that wings outwards in contrast to its more formal gable roof.

Find out more about Maine Farmhouse ›

Connecticut Farmhouse, Connecticut, Hendricks Churchill

For this residence in Connecticut, the client desired a traditional home with contemporary features.

Hendricks Churchill partially demolished the originally low-lying bungalow on the site, leaving only the ground-floor framing and foundation, on which it built a "modern farmhouse" complete with a covered porch and gabled roof.

Find out more about Connecticut Farmhouse ›

Modern Barns, Massachusetts, Aamodt Plumb Architects

Aamodt Plumb Architects renovated a series of barns on this Massachusetts site, which were previously converted into single-family residences in the 1950s and updated again in the 1980s by visual artists Douglas Fitch and Ross Miller.

Among other contemporary updates, Aamodt Plumb Architects revealed the "simple forms" of the three original barns, added a new glass-enclosed entrance and affixed a cedar screen to the facade of the main building.

Find out more about Modern Barns ›

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UK Architecture studio Foster + Partners has unveiled renderings of an office tower to be built in Hollywood with a series of spiralling terraces wrapped around its exterior.

Located on a two-acre lot on Sunset Boulevard, the 22-storey building will host creative offices across 525,000 square feet (48, 770 square metres).

Renderings depict a circular tower with jutting floorplates clad in white, and each level wrapped in a glass curtain wall.

A series of terraces, covered in plants, dip into the building's facade as they ascend in a spiral pattern, giving the impression of green walls wrapped around the structure.

The terraces will have enough room for multiple seating areas that lead into interior work spaces through doors in floor-to-ceiling glass walls.

"This is a true reflection of the workplace of the future, nurturing community, wellbeing and collaboration with green social terraces spiralling through the building that will encourage and enliven the city's incredible creative industries," said Foster + Partners founder Norman Foster.

The terraces will also offer natural light and ventilation to create a "healthy and highly productive" working environment, according to Foster + Partners senior partner Patrick Campbell.

"Cascading gardens for outdoor working, natural light and ventilation create a healthy and highly productive working environment on Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard," he said.

Its circular form will be deployed to offer 360-degree views of surrounding downtown Los Angeles while creating a distinctive landmark.

"Embodying Hollywood's spirit of creativity and innovation, the building's spiralling form responds to the 360-degree views, creating a new destination for Los Angeles," said design team lead Nigel Dancey.

The ground level of the building was designed to "engage the street" and will contain an "expansive" LED video screen, restaurants, community gathering spaces, a theatre and a gallery.

On the top floor, a restaurant will be located underneath a fanned pavilion.

The project is "meant to capture the interest of Hollywood's top content creators", according to the team.

They are part of a proposal submitted to the city by the building's developer, The Star LLC. If approved, the project will break ground in 2026 according to the team. Completion is expected in 2029.

Additionally, Foster + Partners recently revealed designs for a revamped Midtown Bus Terminal in New York and are working on a master plan for a smart city in Sierra Leone led by actor Idris Elba.

The images are by Foster + Partners

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Copenhagen studio NORD Architects has designed its first project in the United States, a memory care centre in Pennsylvania for elderly patients aimed at creating a welcoming environment to enhance knowledge and care around the disease.

Called the Marlin and Doris Thomas Memory Center, the project will encompass a 150,700-square-foot (14,000 square metre) assisted-care campus that will host 140 residential units, as well as community spaces for both the residents and the public.

Located in Lancaster at Willow Valley Communities, the project will be NORD Architects' first project in the Americas.  The studio will draw on experiences in designing care centres abroad, such as its Alzheimer's Village project in France.

"The design of the new centre is based on principles of flexibility, variation, and inclusion," said NORD Architects.

"It is designed to be a good home for residents, an inspiring workplace for caregivers and a welcoming centre for the surrounding community."

Renderings show multiple L-shaped, gable roof buildings arranged in clusters, with abundant landscaping placed throughout the campus.

A pergola, greenhouse and other auxiliary seating are also interspersed throughout the grounds.

A central building, which will host visitors and the public, consists of three volumes overlayed by a large, flat, wood-panelled pavilion punctuated by a series of skylights.

Lobby seating and public programming, such as a small market, are pictured on either side of the space.

Additionally, according to the team, a "brain cafe" on the campus will host volunteers, as well as neurologists, neuropsychologists and other research personnel on campus to further study the disease.

The structure will utilise a timber structure, and a mix of timber and clay plaster in white and a soft red for the cladding.

These materials were chosen to create "a sense of home", but also to help with wayfinding.

"Wayfinding is an essential part of designing for memory care," said the studio. "Simple methods such as changing facade colours to give each section a unique identity can help the residents remember where to go."

Other accommodations for residents will include a private item placed at the front of their door for recognition, as well as interior layouts that increase independence.

Wooden balconies are also pictured on several units.

The project anticipates a rapid increase in the number of elderly patients worldwide.

According to the studio, globally, the number of people over 65 years old is expected to double from 761 million in 2021 to 1.6 billion in 2050, with cases of dementia expected to rise from 70 million in 2025 to approximately 150 million in 2050.

"The future of architecture and design for people with dementia must be adaptable – to allow for various and changing abilities of the resident that should be supported as much as possible to lower the speed of progression in the condition," said the studio.

The Memory Center is expected to break ground in the spring of 2024, with completion slated for 2025.

Other recent projects related to dementia care include a ring-shaped facility in Iceland by Loop Architects and a book with tips and tricks on how to "hack" IKEA furniture to better serve those living with the disease.

The images are courtesy NORD Architects

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Local studio Lissoni Architecture has expanded the Design Holding flagship in New York City, creating an entirely new floor outfitted with light displays and curving metallic installations.

Lissoni Architecture, the US branch of Italian studio Lissoni & Partners, created an entirely new second floor and redesigned a portion of the first floor for the Design Holding showroom, which displays furniture and lighting brands including B&B Italia, Flos, Louis Poulsen, Maxalto, Arclinea and Azucena.

Lighting and design elements from the brands were distributed across the second-floor space, spread out amongst vertical stone-clad panels, transparent, metal showcases, and curving chrome benches and walls.

Each area of the floor was dedicated to a specific brand and the interior architecture was tailored to each brand's identity, according to the studio.

"We wanted to share the melting pot attitude of New York City where everyone and everything can blend together holistically so we went to the essence of the iconic brands," said Lissoni Architecture founder Piero Lissoni.

"[We highlighted] their DNA and proposed a common ground that could host and enhance the design codes of each identity."

For lighting brand Flos, the studio created a series of display cases backed by a transparent mesh. A magnetized, geometric Bilboquet light by designer Philippe Malouin is on display, as well as the Almendra chandelier affixed with almond-shaped flakes by Patricia Urquiola.

A testing room for clients was also created for the brand, which consists of a curved, metal wall that meets a series of angled panels that act as an entrance for the room.

Another corner of the floor was dedicated to the display of the Skynest chandelier by Marcel Wanders, which resembles an inverted basket interlaced with cords of light.

Displays for Flos and Louis Poulsen consist of inserted panels and curving planting beds that are populated with a number of lighting fixtures from both brands.

Dark, metal cladding used in the Flos displays contrasts the off-white and beiges used throughout the Louis Poulsen space, but both flank a B&B Italia lounge that sits at the centre of the floor, which features a bright-red chair from the Up series by Gaetano Pesce.

A B&B Italia wardrobe was also created for the showroom, which sits next to an Arclinea kitchen display.

A black ash finish was used to clad a large cabinet unit, which sits behind a Thea island topped with a quartz waterfall countertop.

Lighting by Louis Poulsen, including the Patera Oval pendant by designer Øivind Slaatt, was tucked into the furthest corner of the space, with pieces distributed amongst wooden tables and a low-lying display unit.

On the first floor, a new space dedicated to Maxalto is accessible through a separate entrance, with pieces such as the brand's Arbiter sofa system positioned against walls clad in black.

Design Holding, a global retailer founded in 2018, recently added furniture brand Audo Copenhagen to its portfolio after an agreement with Denmark-based company Designers Company.

Piero Lissoni announced the founding of the US branch of his studio last year, saying that the US has become more "open-minded" in terms of architecture.

The photography is courtesy Design Holding.

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California architecture studio Marmol Radziner has completed a black-clad, "modernist" skyscraper in downtown Los Angeles, which is now the tallest residential structure in California, according to the studio.

The Beaudry is a 695-foot-tall (212 metres) luxury residential skyscraper with 64 storeys. It contains 785 residential units, a large outdoor third-floor terrace and 5,500 square feet (510 square metres) of commercial space.

It consists of a narrow tower extending almost uniformly from the ground, with a base that includes an attached parking structure entry. Its entrance program is set back from the street, with a void at ground level supported by massive columns.

The columned base is reminiscent of mid-century American skyscrapers.

"Our design is inspired by a modernist tradition. It is a simple expression of the building's program, materiality, and structure," said Marmol Radziner managing partner Leo Marmol.

The studio incorporated the balconies to embrace the city's mild climate, and to create a sense of texture on the facade, which is covered mostly in glass curtain wall, through which the dark-steel frame of the building can be seen.

"The building embraces the city's temperate climate through balconies, operable windows, and large outdoor spaces," said the studio.

"The balconies create a visual texture of horizontal bands interlaced within a vertically oriented glazed facade."

Dark cladding and glazing were used to cover the exterior to contrast two neighbouring office towers, which flank a plaza between all three.

"The building is integrated with the adjacent streetscape and existing retail plaza, with an emphasis on its connection to the neighborhood and pedestrians," said design partner Ron Radziner.

"Together with the two existing office towers that flank the retail plaza, the new tower transforms the plaza into an outdoor room available to the neighbourhood residents."

For the building's interiors, the studio also looked to mid-century influences.

Wood panelling clads the wall and ceiling of the double-height lobby, which also includes floor-to-ceiling glazing and darkly-clad columns.

Marmol Radziner is a California-based design-build studio founded in 1989 by Leo Marmol and Ron Radziner.

The studio usually works in smaller-scale residential typologies. The Beaudry is its first skyscraper, and it says it is an elaboration on its usual style at a larger scale.

"Conceptually, the building itself is a vertical expression of the horizontal modernist aesthetic that Marmol Radziner is so well known for," said Marmol Radziner interiors studio director Erika Montes.

"Classic mid-century modernist materials like travertine, walnut, and bronze give the space a dramatic, earthy feel, seamlessly connecting the exterior to the interior."

Marmol Radziner made "many of the furnishings" in-house and also incorporated pieces from local artists and craftsmen, with hand-knotted rugs by Christopher Farr and artwork curated by Cirrus Gallery throughout.

The landscape design "speaks to the outdoor lifestyle of Southern California", with the third-floor terrace modelled after a park.

The Beaudry sits down the street from three abandoned skyscrapers recently covered in graffiti, which sparked conversation around development in downtown Los Angeles.

Other projects in the area include a pair of skyscrapers designed by Frank Gehry and an in-progress expansion of the Colburn School, also designed by Gehry.

The images are by Jason O'Rear unless otherwise noted.

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Vancouver studio Laura Killam Architecture has created a beachside cabin in British Columbia with a slanted roof that responds to the site's climate.

The Writer's Retreat cabin acts as an auxiliary space for a writer seeking a small space for creative sessions, separate from a main cabin on the site that hosts a multigenerational family.

"The existing cabin too cumbersome to occupy alone in the shoulder seasons, the writer wanted the Retreat to serve as a cozy, turnkey refuge for intensive solo creative sessions far away from the distractions of urban life," said Laura Killam Architecture (LKA).

The 650-square-foot (60-square metre) cabin is organised into two offset volumes that are connected by an interior passageway while a tilted, cedar-shingled roof covers the structure.

The roof, which rises dramatically towards the back of the space and bows towards the east-facing facade, nods to the gabled roof of the existing cabin on the property.

Its tilted profile also protects the cabin from incoming storms that hit its front, while opening the back towards afternoon light.

The studio created a spacious L-shaped deck that wraps around the facade of the cabin and acts as an entryway, overlooking the ocean.

A porch and outdoor shower were placed in the back two corners of the structure, located in the interstitial space created by the offset plan.

The front volume or "bar" contains the interior's public areas, which include a seating and dining area and kitchen oriented to respond to the climate.

"The front bar contains the writing and social space that is contiguous with a large deck, partially covered for storm watching and respite from the noon sun and stepping subtly down with the landscape," said the studio.

The seating area is tucked into a corner in front of sliding glass doors. Windows wrap around the space and a low-lying bookshelf separates it from the open-plan kitchen and dining area.

A wood-burning fireplace was placed along one side.

The kitchen sits across from the seating area, enclosed by a half wall that creates a hallway leading to the back volume.

Windows line the front wall of the kitchen.

An entryway tucked behind the space leads to the cabin's only bedroom and bathroom, which sit opposite each other.

The small bedroom is surrounded by windows and a glass door that leads out onto a covered porch.

The bathroom contains a bathtub and double vanity, which were topped with a dark soapstone. Skylights were placed in between the rafters that sit above them and a large picture window sits next to the bathtub.

The structure is made largely of wood. A grey-stained cedar board and batten siding was used for the exterior, while the interior walls were clad in clear western red cedar.

Both the window trimming and floors were made of Douglas Fir and cedar millwork was used throughout to create storage.

Laura Killam Architecture is an architecture studio located in Vancouver and founded in 2017 by principal Laura Killam that specializes in custom residential projects in remote locations.

Elsewhere in British Columbia Omer Arbel used fabric formwork to create sculptural concrete pillars for a residential project and BattersbyHowat created a geometric mountain cabin.

The photography is by Andrew Latreille.

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Architecture studio Rafael Viñoly Architects has unveiled designs for a terraced residential building in Uruguay, which is the last project designed by the studio's founder.

Located outside of Montevideo on a beachfront site, the Médano El Pinar apartment complex will be comprised of approximately 120 luxury, multi-family residences of one to five bedrooms. It is the last project designed by architect Rafael Viñoly, who died last year.

"The last project designed by renowned architect Rafael Viñoly, Médano El Pinar is an innovative, ultra-sustainable, luxury, multi-family residential development," said the studio.

"The building's long, low-slung, and sinewy shape integrates it with the organic landscape of its pristine setting to minimize its visual impact on the neighbourhood and make it completely invisible from the public beach."

Situated behind sand dunes, renderings show an undulating building with a terraced facade that mirrors the curves of its beachfront site.

Residences will be distributed along its 1,394-foot (425-metre) length and contain glazed facades that will open onto terraces.

"Generously proportioned interiors open to large elevated private gardens with panoramic views, creating a sense of 'conscious luxury'," said the studio.

The building will be constructed from a locally sourced mass timber structure, according to the studio, with aims to be "the first nearly Zero-Energy Building".

Other sustainable strategies integrated into its design will include the use of solar panels, rainwater capture, a green roof and cross ventilation.

Interior renderings show double-height living spaces with wood beams distributed throughout and capped by a wood-slated ceiling.

A wall of floor-to-ceiling windows and sliding glass doors open onto the accompanying terrace, which hosts a small pool or garden and additional seating areas.

A large pool sitting in front of the building is also pictured, with ground-level entrances to the building tucked along its length.

Uruguayan architect Viñoly, who died aged 78, designed numerous buildings around the world including 432 Park Avenue in New York and the Walkie Talkie in London.

Architects and critics including Norman Foster and Michael Kimmelman paid tribute to Viñoly after his passing, and his son Román Viñoly, discussed his legacy in an interview with Dezeen.

Other recent projects in Montevideo include a stacked housing block designed by MVRDV and a prefabricated multi-storey car park by MAPA.

The images are courtesy of Rafael Viñoly Architects.

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Gallery NC Diseño has renovated a townhouse in Bogotá, commissioning 10 Colombian designers to redesign its bedrooms, kitchen and other spaces in different styles for an inaugural exhibition.

NC Diseño features five floors, two of which contain previously uninhabited apartments renovated over three months for the opening Design House Colombia exhibit. It is located down the street from sister institution NC Arte studio in Bogotá.

For the exhibition, curator Mónica Barreneche commissioned 10 local designers and studios to select a room within the apartments to furnish with collectible design pieces, prompting each studio to design a space informed by personal experience.

"For the first edition of Design House Colombia, the ten participating design studios were invited to delve into the typological significance that represents the space in which each one intervened," said Barreneche.

The brief was for the designers to connect personal experiences with the different spaces in the home.

"As a result, each of them left an emotional imprint of what it means to connect with space," said Barreneche.

NC Diseño director Estefania Neme also added locally created art pieces to each space.

Architect Martín Mendoza outfitted an office in chocolate-coloured wooden cladding by Woodbox Colombia and steel bookshelves by Guarida, illuminating the space with lighting by Alta Estudio and La Nuit as an homage to his father's studio.

"When I observe a studio, my mind immediately goes to the memory of my father's studio. That space, for me, embodies the authentic meaning of intimacy and privacy. It's a completely personal refuge," said the designer.

Mendoza filled the space with furniture of leather, steel and wood. A metallic-legged daybed topped with a woven leather cushion by his studio MM & Co was centred, while a steel desk by designer Daniela Duarte sat in a corner.

Artwork by Julian Burgoss and charred-wood figures in the shape of books as well as stools by designer Camilo Andres Rodriguez Márquez complete the space.

Architect Julián Molina of Refugio Arquitectura outfitted a kitchen for the project, which will be the one permanent space in NC Diseño.

The designer centred a large wood-and-steel island and placed an illuminated yellow shelving unit by design studio Octubre just above it.

The floor was clad in a custom black-and-white tile pattern by artist Ramon Laserna, which creates an optical illusion.

Medellín-based designer David Del Valle created a minimal living room informed by his warm, plant-filled city, taking advantage of the views from the three arched windows in the room.

Two scooped metal armchairs, placed at the centre of the room face the terrace and an amoeba-shaped bronze table was placed in between them.

The El Secreto table was designed exclusively for the exhibit to pay homage to a Colombian national park.

"This table represents Colombia's best-kept anthropological and territorial treasure; Chibiriquete National Natural Park. From its natural form to all the meaning it holds, this table narrates the mystique of this natural gem," said Del Valle.

Upstairs, a room curated by Neme brought together a number of designers for a nursery.

A rug created by Cosí and NC Diseño and informed by tatami mats consists of off-white patches sewn together with a colourful crocheted web.

A crib by artists Colectivo Mangle was made of wooden slats that fan out from connection points on either end with geometric, yellow chairs by Jimena Londoño y José David del Portillo placed beside it.

A giant teddy bear wrapped and emerging from Ikea's popular Stockholm rug by artist Ivan Castiblanco was placed on the wall.

"When children are surrounded by a friendly, creative, imaginative and happy environment, their behaviour is undoubtedly different, and they learn to take care of their environment and value themselves," said Neme.

Jotaele Arquitectura created an "infinite" dining room, which included original wood panelling and chairs by Jaime Gutiérrez Lega upholstered in wool, and Cruz de la Pava played on the idea of a "man cave" where lights dim when visitors sit in a central armchair.

Finally, Moblar created a therapist's office, including a daybed and steel bookcases with curved profiles by the studio.

Other spaces throughout the exhibition include a bedroom cast in an all-grey hue, including the floors, by Camila Buitrago Estudio and Granada Gárces Aquitectos; a room filled with interchangeable totems and concentric chandeliers by Basalto Studio; and terraces by designers Pedro Bermudez, Terreno Paisajismo and Menguante.

Similarly, designers in Mexico City outfitted a whole house with custom interiors and furniture for Design Week Mexico.

Elsewhere in Bogotá, Lorenzo Botero and Martín Mendoza created a brick-lined restaurant and Alsar Atelier and Oscar Zamora created a translucent fog catcher.

The photography is by Monica Barreneche

Design House Colombia is on show from November to 16 March in Bogotá. For more events, exhibitions and talks in architecture and design visit the Dezeen Events Guide. 

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Architecture studio SO-IL has unveiled designs for the Williams College Museum of Art in the Berkshires, which will be topped with a tent-like cross-laminated timber roof.

Set to be built in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, The Williams College Museum of Art will contain galleries, art storage, classrooms and an auditorium for liberal arts college Williams College.

Renderings show a low-lying building topped with a tent-like roof that echoes the hills behind it. It is punctuated by glazed openings dispersed along its facade.

"The new museum's design stems from a holistic integration of art, architecture, community, and nature, reimagining the traditionally insular art museum into a porous, reciprocal conversation with the outside world," said SO-IL.

The 78,000-square-foot (7,246 square metre) building will consist of six separate volumes centred around a courtyard. The undulating cross-laminated timber roof will be laid atop these volumes, unifying them below.

Its undulating shape was informed by the surrounding hilly terrain. It will extend outwards from the building's core to create overhangs.

"Shingled metal peaks and curves harmonize with the surrounding hills, cresting against the skyline before dipping low to open into the central courtyard," said the studio.

"A generous overhang creates a porch space at the perimeter, extending programming outdoors while providing year-round protection from the elements."

The building's auditorium, galleries, cafes, classrooms and storage will be dispersed among the separate volumes.

Interior renderings show public areas clad in light green masonry, with the wooden ceiling stretching generously over the spaces. Clerestory windows and small gaps run along the ceiling's edge to let in light and floor-to-ceiling glazing punctuates the perimeter.

Both the building's structure and roof will be built from mass timber.

"Engineered via an experimental technique in warped cross-laminated timber, the roof will be the first of its kind in North America," said the studio.

The studio designed the building to achieve Living Building Challenge 4.0 and Core Green Building Certification by providing shade and temperature regulation as well as being part of a rainwater retention system. It is aiming to use 30 per cent of the standard energy of museums of the same size.

The building is expected to open in 2027.

SO-IL recently completed a renovation of a glass factory in France and unveiled plans for a Brooklyn high rise wrapped in a metal skin.

The images are by Jeudi Wang, courtesy SO–IL and the Williams College Museum of Art

Project credits:

Design architect: SO–IL
Executive architect: PDR
Landscape architect: Reed Hilderbrand
Structural engineer: Fast + Epp
MEP engineer: Buro Happold
Sustainability consultant: Thornton Thomasetti
Lighting designer: FMS
Civil engineer: Fuss & O'Neill
Code consultant: Code Red
AV / Acoustics: HMBA
Envelope consultant: SGH
Storage consultant: Schwartz Silver
Renderings: Jeudi Wang
Construction manager: Consigli
Owner’s project manager: Skanska
Timber design assist partner: Nordic Structures
Roofing design assist partner: Zahner
Curtain wall design assist partner: Roschmann
SO–IL project team: Florian Idenburg, Jing Liu, Kevin Lamyuktseung, Jonathan Molloy, Andrea, Fos, Dohyun Lee, Marlena Fauer

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The city of Chicago has announced plans to convert a collection of empty office buildings in the city's downtown into mixed-used and residential towers.

The initiative, called LaSalle Street Reimagined, would convert nearly 2.3 million square feet (213,676 square metres) of vacant office buildings into residences and retail in the centre of Chicago, an area known as The Loop.

The plan incentivises developers to make the conversions and locally owned businesses through grants to inhabit vacant storefronts, building lobbies and former banking floors – while incorporating housing into the towers above.

Revitalising "monoculture of offices"

According to the city, at least 30 per cent of each proposed residential conversion will be dedicated to affordable housing – approximately 600 homes. The city defines affordable housing as residences affordable to "residents earning an average 60 per cent of the area median income".

"Based on multiple studies and reports, LaSalle's future can be maximized on behalf of the entire city by revitalising its monoculture of offices with a mix of new uses and public amenities that extend beyond the typical 9-to-5 workday," said the city.

The city said that it is providing "assistance" to developers who undertake these projects under the initiative and that "almost $1 billion in total investments" are being put towards the redevelopment.

Five of these adaptive reuse projects have already been put forward by collection developers and accepted by the city, with an announcement planned for this summer over which ones will move forward.

The prospective costs of each conversion, which include retrofitting office floors for use as apartments, range from $50 million to $300 million.

Along with affordable housing, the city has highlighted innovation, public realm enhancements, neighbor-oriented amenities, and historic building sustainability as focuses.

LaSalle Street Remimanged was initiated by Mayor Lori Lightfoot in 2022 before the plan was stalled when current Mayor Brandon Johnson took office.

It was recently pushed forward an in effort to mitigate growing vacancy rates in the city's downtown Loop district, in light of the 2020 pandemic.

According to Bloomberg News, it joins several investments in the area, including granting more than $1 million to downtown restaurants.

Nearby, developer Prime/Capri Interests LLC, which is one of the investors in the LaSalle Street Reimagined project, is converting the historic James R Thompson Center building into a Google office.

Affordable housing has become a focus around the globe as housing prices continue to climb. Recently, Dezeen launched a series examining the future of social housing in a variety of contexts – read more here.

Elsewhere in Chicago, construction has commenced on a 72-storey SOM skyscraper and a Helmut Jahn skyscraper recently topped out.

The image is by mindfrieze/Flickr.

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Award-winning architect Antoine Predock, known for his work rooted in the style and philosophies of the American Southwest, has passed away at the age of 87.

Predock, along with his eponymous studio, was known for projects such as the La Luz housing complex in Albuquerque and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg.

His designs were influenced by a connection to the body as well as earthen materials and, in particular, New Mexico.

His apartment complex La Luz, built in 1967, gained attention for its sensitivity to its desert site. The project incorporated localised materials, massing and forms to pay homage to New Mexico's native pueblos buildings and villages.

Completed in 2014, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg embodied a similar connection to its site, although its "glass cloud" affixed to a stone base integrated the philosophy to a new scale.

The architect was born and raised in Missouri before attending the University of New Mexico, where he studied architecture.

Under mentor and professor Don Schlegel he was encouraged to further pursue his studies, later attending Columbia University and the American Academy in Rome.

He established his first studio, Antoine Predock Architect PC, in Albuquerque in 1967 and founded offices in California and Taipei, creating over 100 buildings and projects that spanned the globe.

Predock was the recipient of several awards, including the AIA Gold Medal in 2006 and the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007.

He was also a fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, the Design Futures Council and more.

"Architect and mythmaker, at once Daedalus the craftsman and Minotaur in his labyrinth, Predock wove the facts of building into labyrinths of experience," wrote architecture professor and historian Christopher Mead in an essay remembering Predock.

"He brought together earth and sky, mountains and rivers, prairie plains and desert mesas, ancient cultures and modern technologies, into manmade landscapes that ground us in a place and locate us in the world."

Predock was also an avid motorcyclist, skiier and diver.

"Architecture is a fascinating journey toward the unexpected," Predock wrote in a statement. "It is a ride, a physical ride and an intellectual ride."

The photos are courtesy of Antoine Predock Architect PC.

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A geometric residential skyscraper located on the perimeter of Central Park by architecture studio Snøhetta has topped out in New York, with the studio releasing new renderings of the project.

Developed by Extell Development Company, 50 West 66th Street rises 775 feet (236 metres) and was designed to reference the geological formations in Central Park.

Designs for the skyscraper show a slim skyscraper placed on top of a lime stone-clad base, punctuated by slim vertical windows. Much of the cladding on the base has already been completed.

A public space and terrace will be "chiselled" into the side of the tower where the base meets the glass-clad tower element.

"The design is achieved through a series of sculptural excavations, evocative of the chiselled stone of Manhattan's geologic legacy," said Snøhetta when the designs were first released in 2017.

"As the building rises, its bulk is carved away, splitting the tower volume into two."

Similar slices have been taken out of the top of the tower and its corners, which have been clad in a bronze metal, while a column of terraces runs down one side of the building.

It will host 127 residential units, while the 16th-floor amenity space and terrace will contain a pool, seating areas, and green space.

"Situated at the heart of the neighbourhood's cultural core, steps from Lincoln Center to the west and Central Park to the east, the building will join the neighbourhood," said Snøhetta.

"Sensitively responding to its context and referencing the area’s architectural character with a natural palette of refined materials."

Construction on the project began in 2018, and completion is expected in 2026.

Recently, SHoP Architects completed the super-skinny Steinway Tower and ODA broke ground on a "fractal" skyscraper, both of which surround Central Park.

The images are by Recent Spaces. 

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In this lookbook, we've collected eight homes from Vietnam to the USA that are kept ventilated and illuminated by central courtyards.

Courtyards have been used in ancient and contemporary architecture as a tool to trap and funnel breezes and natural light into the core of a building.

Most often, they are completely open to the elements and can extend upwards through multiple levels of a building, with some surrounded by balconies, loggias, or walkways.

Vegetation and water features placed at the centre of courtyards also help to cool the surrounding air, while seating or lounge areas provide a place to take it all in.

One or more courtyards were dispersed along the footprints of the eight homes below, for interiors that are relaxing, open and bright.

This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen's archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring tranquil interiors with oversized windows, enclosed staircases and metallic furnishings.

House for Young Families, Vietnam, H-H Studio

Designed in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, this house in Vietnam features green spaces throughout its entirety so its owners could be connected to nature while working remotely.

Its interior was organised around three courtyard gardens that were dispersed along a linear plan, while the structure extends upwards around them in a series of stacked white volumes.

Find out more about House for Young Families ›

Quarry House, Australia, Winwood McKenzie

Australian studio Winwood McKenzie renovated the Quarry House by inserting a garden and internal courtyard through its narrow site, which split the residence into three distinct portions.

The house's newly built living, dining and kitchen border the courtyard on one side, while a multi-purpose room and study sits across the way.

Find out more about Quarry House ›

Casa Ederlezi, Mexico, Práctica Arquitectura

Práctica Arquitectura divided this narrow concrete infill house in Mexico into two distinct portions centred around a courtyard.

Hallways and staircases were oriented around the perimeter of the double-height space in plan and a living space and second floor bedrooms were placed on either side.

Find out more about Casa Ederlezi ›

Santa Monica Modern, USA, Walker Warner Architects

This L-shaped home in California encloses a spacious courtyard that features multiple seating areas, a ping-pong table, plantings and a concrete fire pit.

Walker Warner Architects designed the courtyard to be suitable for entertaining, as well as to take advantage of the southern California climate.

Find out more about Santa Monica Modern ›

Portugal house, Portugal, Bak Gordon Arquitectos 

Bak Gordon Aquitectos split this Portgual home into two portions by inserting a courtyard at its centre and populated the area with an interior garden, which is surrounded by windows and openings.

"The small functional patio allows for natural light and cross ventilation as well as a permanent natural garden presence," said Bak Gordon Arquitectos architect Nuno Tavares da Costa.

Find out more about Portugal house ›

Casa Vedia, Argentina, BHY Arquitectos

Two courtyards were inserted into the corners of Casa Vedia in Argentina, which the studio explained were employed to optimise interior spaces.

Each courtyard is double-height, with plantings tucked along its perimeter. Additionally, two terraces were placed on top of the structure's roof that sits in between them.

Find out more about Casa Vedia ›

Casa VO and Casa WO, Mexico, Ludwig Godefroy 

Located in Puerto Escondido, Casa VO and Casa Wo are a series of houses organised underneath two large, circular concrete openings that fan upwards from a central meeting point.

An entryway and garden sit under one such opening, while the remaining living spaces are tucked underneath the opposite across two levels.

Find out more about Casa VO and Casa WO ›

Tile House, Vietnam, Bloom Architects

Bloom Architects designed this home in Vietnam to stay cool despite the hot climate by creating a sloping, tiled roof that traps wind and pushes it into the interior of the house.

"[In the] sunny season, tiles surrounding the house prevent it from being radiated [with] heat. Combined with natural ventilation, the house is always cool," architect Dinh Anh Tuan told Dezeen.

Find out more about Tile House ›

This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen's archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring tranquil interiors with oversized windows, enclosed staircases and metallic furnishings.

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Local architecture studio Bench Architecture has topped a Brooklyn brewery with a pizzeria and bar outfitted in a "colourfully tactile palette" including a wall of aqua-blue tile.

In East Williamsburg, Lala's Brooklyn Apizza shop is located above the Grimm Artisanal Ales brewery – a converted automobile shop that opened in 2018 and was also designed by Brooklyn-based Bench Architecture.

The second-floor pizzeria consists of a large open space flanked on either side by a pizza kitchen and terracotta-clad bar, while a series of bi-fold doors lead out onto a rooftop terrace.

"A colourfully tactile palette was used to frame two poles of the space," the studio said.

The space sits on top of a converted autobody shop

At one end of the interior space, a pizza oven is surrounded by light green Portuguese tile, while a white mosaic tile was used to clad the oven itself.  A bar counter topped with moonstone and wrapped in corrugated wood frames the oven, with a small service window lined with the same moonstone placed to the side.

Across the space, a service bar was wrapped in fluted terracotta tiles and topped with a dark grey Mexican Cantera stone counter.

A wall of aqua-blue concrete tile sits behind the bar, extending along the space and outside onto the terrace.

Magenta-pink curtains line the back wall and a wood-slatted ceiling connects these two bars, which the studio refers to as "nodes". The two countertops were designed to have contrasting materiality.

"These 'rough' and 'polished' nodes are unified by a curved wood-slat ceiling and magenta curtain which accent primary surfaces as well as soften the acoustics of the space," said the studio.

An angled mirror was placed above the curtain and spans its width to visually connect the interior space to the terrace, according to the studio.

Outside, the terrace is flanked on both sides by walls of light pink and blue tile, with a Cantera stone floor covering the entirety of the space.

Simple wooden picnic tables populate both the interior dining area and outdoor space, with shelving and a rack of firewood dispersed around them.

Bench Architecture expanded upon similar themes it used for the brewery and taproom on the ground floor below, which opened in 2018.

Similar red-hued curtains line the space and a corrugated metal-clad bar was placed along the building's front windows to provide space for brewery production.

A series of pendants hang from the ceiling, which marks an original mezzanine design for the space.

"A grid of hanging pendant lights create a 'ceiling' to the space, which outlines the extent of the original mezzanine design for the room, which was superseded by the rooftop extension," said the studio.

Bench Architecture is a Brooklyn-based architecture studio founded by David Bench in 2020 that specializes in residential, retail and event spaces.

Other interior projects recently completed in the Williamsburg area include a residential loft that doubles as a performance space and a Kith store featuring a brick silo at its centre.

The photography is by Nicholas Venezia

Project credits:

Architecture and interiors: Bench Architecture
Construction manager: Bench Architecture
MEP: ABS Engineering
Structural: Becker

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German car brand Mercedes-Benz has unveiled its first branded skyscraper in North America created in collaboration with SHoP Architects and informed by a philosophy of "sensual purity".

Mercedes-Benz Places is a planned 67-storey, mixed-used skyscraper under construction in the Brickell neighbourhood of Miami.

Developed by JDS Development Group (JDS), the building was designed collaboratively between New York studio SHoP Architects and the Mercedes-Benz design team.

At 2.5 million square feet (232,257 square metres) it will be one of the largest projects currently under construction in Florida, according to the project team.

The development will also include a "reimagining" of Miami's Southside Park by American landscape studio Field Operations, which sits nearby.

Renderings of the building show multiple rectangular volumes stacked in alternating, perpendicular directions. Curved-corner balconies line each floor of the building's exterior, with larger terraces tucked between spaces created by the structure's arrangement.

A residential portion will host 791 Merecedes-Benz-branded residences, ranging from studios to 3-bedroom condominiums.

The remaining square footage will have 200,000 square feet (18,580 square metres) of office space, health and fitness facilities, a hotel, retail space and 130,000 square feet (12,077 square metres) of amenities.

The shape of the tower was informed by the Mercedes-Benz design philosophy of "sensual purity", which it described as a "symbiosis of intelligence and emotion".

"Our distinctive style is Sensual Purity," said Mercedes-Benz chief design officer Gordan Wagener.

"This philosophy, based on the duality of emotion and intelligence, consists of a hot and a cool pole."

He said that the influence of the technical work of German design group Bauhaus still resonates with the firm's building design, informing the "cool" pole.

"The emotional side of Sensual Purity is characterised by free-flowing, elliptical lines and shapes inspired by nature," added the team.

According to the team, the tower's multiple balconies were designed to "capture the light in a wide variety of ways".

A "technical silver" will be the building's dominating colour, with black-and-white details informed by classic Mercedes-Benz colours. A large Merecedes-Benz logo will be affixed to the building's entrance.

The development will include a refurbishment of Brickell's Southside Park, which sits at the base of the tower.

"In addition to changing the residential landscape, Mercedes-Benz Places in Miami will transform the Brickell neighbourhood," said the team.

"Key to this will be reimagining Southside Park as an urban oasis. With its canopy of trees and native vegetation, such as mango trees and shortleaf figs, the project aims to create a healthy living space."

According to the team, foundation work has broken ground and occupancy is planned to start in 2027.

"As JDS Development Group and Mercedes-Benz work together, Mercedes-Benz Places in Miami will emerge as a symbol of excellence, innovation, and a timeless presence in Miami," said the team. 

The project marks the fourth collaboration created by JDS and SHoP Architects, with others including the recently completed Brooklyn Tower and two "dancing" copper-clad towers in New York.

Merecedes-Benz recently unveiled its first branded skyscraper in Dubai, while car brand Bentley also shared its designs for oceanfront residences located in Miami, which will feature a car elevator that takes vehicles directly up to individual apartments.

The images are courtesy of the JDS Development Group by the Boundary. 

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American artist James Turrell has created an illuminated skylight and seating chamber at a New York City private school, which allows viewers to have "a unique and personal experience of the sky".

The Leading Skyspace, located at Friends Seminary school, consists of a small room lined with wooden seating where viewers look out through a ceiling aperture surrounded by colour-changing LED lights.

It is one of 85 such works – called Skyspaces – distributed across the globe, including in the mountains of Colorado.

"Turrell’s Skyspaces are specifically proportioned chambers where viewers have a unique and personal experience of the sky through a knife-edged aperture in the roof," said Turrell's team.

The project consists of a 9 by 22 by 24 foot (3 by 6 by 7 metre) room with an angled ceiling topped with a square aperture. A metal gable roof atop the aperture slides open to expose it to the elements.

Wooden benches and panelled backing surround the perimeter of the space, while a strip of LED lighting illuminates the walls and ceilings, casting the space in a rotation of colours.

The aperture remains closed during the day and is opened at sunset, with the lighting design programmed to shift depending on the time of day.

"During the day, the aperture will be closed, and an immersive light show will be displayed, providing an artful extension of the campus," said the team.

"During sunset, the aperture will be opened, and the space will be exposed to the unobstructed sky, with a curated internal light sequence that complements the nuances of those times."

The project builds upon Turrell's work, which focuses on how humans perceive light and colour. The Skyspace installations typically combine natural and artificial light to create spaces that are "one part meditative and another confounding".

Turrell has created a number of Skyspaces on school campuses such as at Pomona College, and also created one for a Quaker meeting house in Philadelphia.

The artist recently celebrated his 80th birthday by designing a whiskey decanter informed by Egyptian art.

The photography is by John Galayda unless otherwise noted.

Project credits:

Architect of record: Kliment Halsband Architects — A Perkins Eastman Studio

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A trio of incomplete skyscrapers in downtown Los Angeles have been covered with graffiti, sparking debate about the development, which has been abandoned since 2019.

Graffiti artists began covering the Oceanwide Plaza development with tags in late January, scaling the buildings' unfinished exteriors to mark them with spray-painted names and phrases in a variety of colourful designs.

The incomplete development, which is located adjacent to an entertainment complex most notable for hosting the Grammys and sporting events, consists of three mixed-used skyscrapers set atop a large podium.

Original renders of the project show three towers clustered together towards the back the podium that's topped with green spaces and outdoor terraces. Two towers were planned to reach 40 stories, while the third tower would be 49 storeys.

The graffiti has sparked debate about the abandoned development, with comments categorising it as both "art" and "vandalism".

"We are disturbed by the images of the vandalism of Oceanwide Plaza," said the Central City Association of Los Angeles organisation in a statement. "This is a representation of the very real neglect that downtown Los Angeles has gone through over the past decade."

"We urge the City to take steps to address this blighted property before it becomes a further nuisance," it continued.

Meanwhile, the People's City Council of Los Angeles collective called it "a perfect depiction" of the current state of the city.

"It's a perfect depiction of Los Angeles – political corruption, real estate, 'crime' + LAPD, the people making beautiful art," it said in a statement on X.

"The graffiti is beautiful. Seize the towers," it continued.

According to the Los Angeles Times, construction of the towers was halted in 2019 due to a lack of funds from Oceanwide Holdings.

Construction on the project began in 2015, but after the developer defaulted on a loan it was stalled, with the development sitting unfinished in the centre of Los Angeles.

More recently, Los Angeles City Council passed a motion to have the buildings cleaned and secured after the project's China-based developer Oceanwide Holdings was given the ability to act with no response.

Now, graffiti artists are regularly breaking into the building to create layers of artwork on the building’s facade, concreted most heavily on what appears to be unfinished terraces.

Base jumpers have also begun using the building, with a video of a person paragliding from the towers going viral on February 12th.

The City of Los Angeles has struggled to contact Oceanwide Holdings, which has meant the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has largely been tasked with securing the building.

This has put a strain on the police force’s resources, according to NBC News. In mid-February, the LAPD was "monitoring the towers 24 hours a day", after making 18 arrests since the beginning of the month.

"Our people remain at the site as the City mobilizes resources to remove the graffiti and fortify the location," said LAPD chief of police Michel Moore in a post on X. "All of this in an effort to avoid a tragic fall or other calamity. This isn’t art. It’s a crime."

The most recent motion to clean and further secure the buildings includes allocating 3.8 million dollars to hire private security and the installation of a roughly 10-foot metal wall surrounding the buildings' perimeters.

According to LA Weekly, the city will continue to take "further action" should Oceanwide Holdings continue to neglect the buildings.

Other projects and news surrounding graffiti include advertising agency BETC converting a graffiti-covered warehouse in Paris into an office building while French artist Mathieu Tremblin translated graffiti tags into typography as part of his Tag Clouds project.

The photography is by Kelvin Cheng

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In this roundup, we collect 10 recently completed skyscrapers that have changed New York City's skyline over the past two years.

New York City has seen several skyscrapers spring up in recent years, from the bronze-and-copper Brooklyn Tower by SHoP Architects in Downtown Brooklyn to Two Manhattan West, the final tower of a sprawling mixed-use development in Midtown Manhattan.

Completed in 2022 and onwards, these recent projects have shifted the city's skyline, while several other skyscrapers are currently under construction, are near completion and or have just recently been announced throughout the boroughs.

The 10 skyscrapers below include office towers, luxury condominiums and retail spaces, with some considered supertall skyscrapers, reaching up 984 feet (300 metres) or taller.

Read on for the complete list:

Olympia Dumbo, Brooklyn, by Hill West Architects

Completed by Hill West Architects in early 2024, Olympia Dumbo contains luxury apartments and a host of amenity spaces across 33 storeys.

Its wedge-shaped upper volume was created to resemble a sail, while the lower podium was informed by the neighbouring Brooklyn Bridge and the historic buildings of the surrounding Dumbo neighbourhood.

Find out more about Olympia Dumbo ›

Two Manhattan West, Manhattan, by SOM

The completion of the 935 feet (285 metres) high Two Manhattan West office tower in early 2024 marked the finalisation of the mixed-use Manhattan West development in New York City, which in total spans seven-million-square-feet (650,321 square metres) in Midtown Manhattan.

Two Manhattan West mirrors neighbouring office tower One Manhattan West, with both skyscrapers featuring curved corners, a glazed facade, subtly shifting volumes and expansive lobbies.

Find out more about Two Manhattan West ›

Brooklyn Tower, Brooklyn, by SHoP Architects

Completed in 2023, the supertall Brooklyn Tower skyscraper by SHoP Architects is the tallest in Brooklyn at 93 storeys and 1,066 feet (325 metres) tall.

With its height and dark cladding, it's been compared to sinister architecture in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings film trilogy, while SHoP Architects principals called it "the Empire of State Building of Brooklyn" in a 2022 interview with Dezeen.

Find out more about Brooklyn Tower ›

The Spiral, Manhattan, by BIG

BIG completed supertall skyscraper The Spiral, located along the High Line in Manhattan, in late October 2023.

At 1,031 feet (314 metres) high, it features a slender line of terraces that wrap around its exterior in a spiral pattern, which the studio said was informed by a ziggurat.

Find out more about The Spiral ›

Eagle + West, Brooklyn, by OMA

OMA created a pair of skyscrapers along the waterfront in Brooklyn's Greenpoint neighbourhood that consist of a series of stacked volumes.

Part of the larger Greenpoint Landing development, the towers' rectangular volumes increase and decrease in size as they ascend on either tower and both are clad in precast concrete.

Find out more about Eagle + West ›

Steinway Tower, Manhattan, by SHoP Architects

Towering over Billionaire's Row in New York City, 111 West 57th Street, or Steinway Tower, is the world's skinniest supertall skyscraper and the second-tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.

Accommodating a total of 60 residences, it reaches 1,428 feet (435 metres) into the sky and consists of a series of layered volumes that taper at the peak.

Find out more about Steinway Tower ›

611 West, Manhattan, by Álvaro Siza 

Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza's first building in the US, 611 West is a 450 feet (137 metre) tall residential tower located on the Upper West Side.

Clad entirely in Perla Bianca limestone, the slim tower sits on an equally slim base, with Siza likening the form to that of a giraffe.

Find out more about 611 West ›

50 Hudson Yards, Manhattan, by Foster + Partners

Foster + Partners completed 50 Hudson Yards, a supertall office skyscraper that consists of 78 storeys, in 2022.

Located in the Hudson Yards development, the tower features a grid of white stone strips on its facade and houses offices for tech company Meta and investment firm BlackRock.

Find out more about 50 Hudson Yards ›

11 Hoyt, Brooklyn, by Studio Gang

Studio Gang completed the scalloped 11 Hoyt residential tower in downtown Brooklyn in 2022. At 57 storeys, it reaches up 620 feet (189 metres).

The tower's undulating facade is the result of interior spaces bending outwards periodically, providing additional space for inhabitants.

Find out more about 11 Hoyt ›

425 Park Avenue, Manhattan, by Foster + Partners 

The "first full-block office building" to be built on Park Avenue in over 50 years, 425 Park Avenue was completed by Foster + Partners  in 2022.

The 47-storey tower has an external structure that allows a column-free interior, most notable in its triple-height lobby.

Find out more about 425 Park Avenue ›

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Google has opened a building serving its North American operations in New York City that is housed in a 1930s rail terminal restored and adapted by architecture studios CookFox Architects and Gensler.

Developed by Oxford Properties, the 232-foot-tall (70 metres), 12-storey office building houses Google's North American headquarters for global business organisation and is located on the west side of Manhattan, just north of the Tribeca neighbourhood.

Design architects on the project CookFox Architects adapted a 1930s railway terminal called St John's Terminal, which served as an end-point to the rail line that is now the High Line, to create the office building. The studio added nine floors on top of the restored original three floors.

CookFox Architects also sliced away part of the old terminal south of Houston Street, which runs parallel to the new entrance, exposing the building's structure.

"We cut the historic structure south of Houston Street, removing a dark tunnel and restoring the pedestrian connection between the Hudson Square neighbourhood and the westside waterfront," said CookFox Architects. "This strategic slicing exposes the rail beds and reveals the terminal's history to the public."

The building's original rail beds were left exposed on the facade and then covered in plantings, creating a linear overhang at its entrance.

"The rail beds within St. John's Terminal revealed in the cut facade as if in a section drawing, now feature a landscape that visually connects pedestrians and occupants to nature while enhancing the newly opened streetscape," said CookFox Architects.

International architecture studio Gensler led the project's interior architecture. The studio organised the interior around "neighbourhoods", orienting the design around the functioning of team units within the organisation.

"St John's Terminal is designed to support the needs of Google's teams passively and actively and to help Googlers do their best work faster and more efficiently," Gensler principal Carlos M. Martínez Flórez told Dezeen.

"Clustered work zones peppered with amenities, relaxation spaces, and circulation, pre-planned to quickly accommodate changes to the support spaces, will give individual teams a sense of ownership over their neighbourhoods so Googlers can live authentically throughout their entire work day while they collaborate shoulder-to-shoulder."

The building will accommodate a workforce of over 3,000 "Googlers", with an interior organised into 60 "neighbourhoods" that will act as central spaces for teams of roughly 20-50 workers, eliminating assigned desks in favour of flexible seating areas.

Other spaces include work lounges on every floor, cafes, terraces, micro-kitchens and event spaces such as theatres. Outside, 1.5 acres surrounding the building have been planted with native New York plant species.

The building has LEED v4 Platinum Certification for its core and shell development and is pursuing LEED v4 Platinum Certification for interiors, according to the team.

Its adaption is "projected to save approximately 78,400 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emission" as compared to a new structural build, according to the team.

Other sustainable design strategies incorporated into its design include solar panels, rainwater retention and the use of wood reclaimed from the Coney Island boardwalk after Hurricane Sandy.

Google announced the purchase of the St. John's Terminal building in December 2018, pledging to double its New York workforce over the next ten years.

"Over 14,000 Googlers now call New York home, which is up from 7,000 employees in 2018 when we first announced our involvement with the project," said Google in a statement.

"We've not only kept our pledge to double our New York workforce over the decade that followed that announcement, but we've done it in half the time."

At the building's opening, New York Governor Kathy Hochul remarked on the development.

"You're going to take a property that for decades people just ignored or went past and never saw a future in. But you did. That's the genius of Google. Seeing possibilities where others are not able." said Hochul.

The headquarters is part of the company's master plan for the surrounding site, which will encompass two other structures currently under construction at 315 Hudson Street and 345 Hudson Street.

It joins a number of recently completed projects on New York's West Side, including BIG's twisting One High Line buildings and Field Operations' Gansevoort Peninsula park.

The photography is courtesy of Google

Project credits:

Core and shell
Design architect: CookFox Architects, D.P.C
Site developer: Oxford Properties
Architect of record: Adamson Associates, P.C.
Civil engineer: Phillip Habib & Associates
General contractor: Turner Construction
Landscape designer: Future Green Studio Corp.
Lighting designer: Lumen Architecture, PLLC

Interior
Lead interior architect and designer: Gensler
General contractor: Structure Tone— Turner, a Joint Venture
Landscape design: Future Green Design Corp.
Landscape architect of record: Langan Engineering and Environmental Services, Inc.
Lighting designers: Castelli Design, Fisher Marantz Stone Inc., Lightswitch, Lighting Workshop Inc. L'Observatoire International, Inc.

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Cardboard furniture by Max Lamb and an oversized screen in the shape of "a curled up woman" by artist Saelia Aparicio are among the works displayed at a Gallery Fumi exhibition that coincides with the Frieze LA art fair.

The Fumi LA exhibition, on show at Sized Studio, marks the first major US show by the London-based Gallery Fumi and includes an assortment of collectable furniture made of cardboard, resin, wood and metal from a group of international designers and artists.

"Blending the beautiful with the provocative, the refined with the quirky, Fumi's inaugural presentation spotlights a fresh collection of standout pieces," said the gallery in a statement.

Following his recent collection of furniture pieces made from cardboard boxes, British designer Lamb built  upon the work with the collection Box 2, which included additional tables, chairs, and a vessel made of the material.

The Box 2 pieces were wrapped in a spotted skin of discarded scraps of cardboard, sourced from cardboard tubes, delivery boxes, and various projects from Lamb's studio.

The designer crushed and layered the material with homemade glue to achieve "a structural integrity like that of rock or wood" to create each piece.

Lamb also displayed pink and blue tufted armchairs, hand-dyed wool rugs, a curved-edge sofa made of glulam wood, and chairs made of expanded polystyrene insulation and wood coated with gold leaf.

Spanish artist Aparicio created plywood stools cut and painted brightly to resemble bodies in various folded positions, including the orange and red-painted Esfinge Absorta, "a powerful, monumental screen in the shape of a curled-up woman that exudes both physical presence and fragility".

Stoneware and porcelain lighting and vessels by US designer Jeremy Anderson are on display, which were adorned with tear-drop-shaped jewellery accents and a hand-painted black and white motif.

Other lighting includes the spindly glass chandelier and lamp by the German designer Jochen Holz, with similar, twisting branches reflected in the design of a copper chandelier by British studio James Plumb.

Italian-studio 6 AM Glassworks displayed stools made of black Murano glass that feature distinct stacked layers and geometric bodies, while British designer Allan Collins made amorphous seating covered in Pirarucu fish leather.

Other pieces include a table made of antique wood and pastel-coloured resin by Chinese designer Jie Wu and bronze seating from studio Voukenas Pertides moulded into organic forms.

Other designers showing work were British designer Leora Honeyman, Italian artist Francesco Perini, British artist Rowan Mersh, Dutch designer Eelko Moorer, Finnish designers Tuomas Markunpoika and Kustaa Saksi, German designer Johannes Nagel, Japanese designer Shinta Nakajima, design studio Glithero, German designers Jochen Holz and Lukas Wegwerth, US designer Casey McCafferty, British designers Sam Orlando Miller and Alex Hull and studio Study O Portable.

Gallery Fumi recently marked its 15th anniversary with a design exhibition in London informed by biology, featuring some of the pieces displayed at this year's Frieze LA instalment.

The photography is by Stephane Aboudaram/We Are Contents, courtesy of Gallery Fumi

Fumi LA is on show at Sized Studio in Los Angeles from 2 February to 9 March 2024. For more exhibitions, events and talks in architecture and design, visit Dezeen Events Guide.

The post Gallery Fumi combines "refined with the quirky" for US debut exhibition in Los Angeles appeared first on Dezeen.

Designers Michael and Martellus Bennett are brothers who both used to play in the NFL, but in this interview they reveal that their creative approaches are vastly different.

The pair enjoyed successful, decade-long careers as football players in the National Football League (NFL), each with a Super Bowl win under his belt.

But after retirement from the sport in 2018 and 2020 respectively, Martellus Bennett and Michael Bennett both decided to take up design.

Martellus Bennett now practices from his studios The Imagination Agency and TOMONOSHi! i+d LaB in Houston, while Michael Bennett's Studio Kër is based in Hawaii.

The younger brother but the first to enter design, Martellus Bennett is relaxed about his famous sporting days continuing to follow him in his practice.

"When people try to say you're a football player, to them you're always a football player because they have to find you in that space," he told Dezeen.

"It's not my job to change their mind of how they see me."

He had already been animating, writing and making music with alternative hip-hop group Moonshine Kids on the side during his football career – so says the transition into full-time creative work happened quickly.

"I've never not made things," he said. "Football was like my plan B."

Michael Bennett traces his and his brother's creative instincts back to visits to see their grandfather in Louisiana during childhood summers.

"We'd go to Louisiana every summer, and we didn't realise we were creating," said Michael Bennett. "We were building and taking things apart, putting things together, watching my grandpa weld."

"You don't realize that's a part of your DNA and how that impacts your life as an adult," he reflected.

Differently to his brother, Michael Bennett's journey into design began with political activism – most notably his 2017 memoir Things That Make White People Uncomfortable.

His explorations of the history of racial injustice in America led Michael Bennett to become increasingly interested in the design of spaces.

"I was always working in this 2D realm of politics and I just really wanted to move into space," he said.

"You start looking at Booker T Washington and the things that he was doing when thinking about space and that kind of led down the path of 'let's try interior design school'."

Michael Bennett's design work continues to speak to themes of race, identity and politics.

For example, he recently debuted the sculptural furniture collection We Gotta Get Back to the Crib in collaboration with the late designer Imhotep Blot, featuring pieces made using wood, stone, and fibreglass, plus lamps shrouded in goat skin.

Displayed at Rebuild Foundation in Chicago, the collection examined "the identity and experiences of African Americans and the diaspora, in parallel to themes of intersectionality and the complex living conditions of Black people in America today", according to a statement.

A homage to Bennett and Blot's shared Senegalese and Haitian roots, as well as their upbringings in the US South, the pieces were designed in "joyous opposition to the dominance of Western domestic typologies".

"I think this idea of moving into space as political activism is an important thing because then it becomes about designing the things that we want to exist in the world," said Michael Bennett.

"Design is truly resistance because when you're designing something, it becomes a system," he added. "It becomes a living repository – we create things that become relics, and those relics can be references and then the people behind us will create better things."

In contrast, Martellus Bennett resists overt political and racial categorisation in his work, instead taking an approach that prioritises playfulness.

"Anytime I think about design, I avoid the resistance," he said. "My activism goes to the right to play and the right to be creative and the right to empower everyone's imagination."

"Being Black and creative, you get forced to use your art as part of the resistance," he added. "I rebelled against that."

"At this stage of my life, my ultimate goal is to make the world a more playful place," said Martellus Bennett. "As we play together, we humanize each other."

Martellus Bennett's work spans furniture design, music, children's-book writing and animation, including working with Disney on an upcoming animated version of his book series Hey A J and collaborating with GT Bicycles on a model outfitted with his colourful hand illustrations (pictured top).

He also recently displayed the exhibition KOKORO at the Reeves Art + Design gallery in Houston, combining audio, sculpture and illustration to tell the story of a young girl navigating the "crises and rebirth" of her neighbourhood.

The brothers' design differences extend to their own perceptions of their work and practice.

Martellus Bennett is keen to avoid labels of any kind.

"I don't limit myself, because once you define something, it has to be that," he said.

Michael Bennett, on the other hand, is more relaxed about applying a name to his approach.

"I like to think of myself as a spatial designer," he said. "Whether it's creating forms or installations or creating architecture, it’'s really dealing with and diving into space."

He is increasingly expanding into architecture, studying the discipline at the University of Hawaii and displaying a pavilion made of cross-laminated timber (CLT) at last year's NYCxDesign.

Not everything about the Bennett brothers' design philosophies is different, however. For both, storytelling is firmly at the heart.

"The Eurocentric way of thinking about design is looking at something and saying, 'form leads to function' or 'function leads to form'," said Michael Bennett.

"For me, it's about narrative. There’s something that needs to exist because I need to tell the story."

For Martellus Bennett, the urge to encourage imagination and playfulness is also fundamentally about telling stories.

"Adults project their ideologies onto children," he said. "And children spend the rest of their lives trying to break through the ideologies that were projected onto them."

"So if we're going to write these stories, let's enhance the child and not enhance ideologies, and give them the tools and the opportunity to become who they want to become."

The brothers are open to collaborating in future – although for now, are content to continue developing their individual narratives further.

"I thought it was important for Michael to come out and establish his own language," said Martellus Bennett.

"The only way to understand your own language is to speak it as often as possible. And the more you understand it, the more you can apply it to different conversations."

"We're really trying to dive into our own philosophies and become strong in our narrative," added his brother. "So that when we do create, you can see the merge with the language."

The photography is courtesy of Michael Bennett and Martellus Bennett unless otherwise stated.

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