Wars, decolonization, economic crises, civil movements, and industrial-technological revolutions: the 20th century was a period of radical and far-reaching transformations. These upheavals reshaped societies and redefined how people expressed their evolving aspirations, with architecture leading the way. Machines and industrialization promised technological progress and modernization, advocating for a clean break from the ornamented, historically rooted styles of the past while embracing a vision focused on functionality, efficiency, and innovation. This shift, embodied by modernism, introduced new concepts, methods, and material uses—all shaped through experimentation.
https://www.archdaily.com/1026242/formal-and-material-experimentation-key-lessons-from-modernist-architecture-pioneersEnrique Tovar
In this interview with Louisiana Channel, Mexican architect Gabriela Carrillo introduces us to the challenges that drive her work, particularly the projects carried out as a member of Colectivo C733, in which she currently participates alongside Carlos Facio, José Amozurrutia, Eric Valdez, and Israel Espin. Through an exploration of her definition of architecture, she offers reflections on the design of public spaces, the relationship between architecture and land art, and the role of the preexisting in the transformation of space. She defends architecture as a "powerful tool" for fostering connections between people and their environment, defining her practice as optimistic.
Sankt Lukas Hospice & Lukashuset. Image Courtesy of BIG
Bjarke Ingels Group has just won the competition to design the new Sankt Lukas Hospice and Lukashuset, an 8,500 m² palliative care center envisioned as a village surrounded by nature. Rooted in the history of the Sankt Lukas Foundation, which dates back to the 1930s, the project will expand Denmark's palliative care facilities, tripling current capacity to accommodate around 2,100 patients annually.
Social fragmentation and economic divides have fractured the fabric of urban environments. In this context, ecovillages emerge as influential remedies to societal and ecological crises, microcosms where sustainable living, social cohesion, and economic resilience drive urban growth. Rooted in environmental stewardship and circular systems, ecovillages offer a scalable model to inspire the development of regenerative urban neighborhoods across the world. Traditional urban and suburban development has led to sprawl and social isolation which have had detrimental effects on community cohesion and the environment. Alongside this phenomenon, cities have become inhumane, characterized by anonymity, unaffordable housing, traffic congestion, and pollution. The lack of access to nature solidifies these issues, leaving many urban dwellers disconnected from elements that promote well-being and a sense of belonging.
The registration period for MICROHOME 2025 Competition is coming to a close. The competition offers a 100,000 EUR prize fund to celebrate cutting-edge, sustainable solutions for compact housing. Sponsored by Kingspan, this global competition invites architects, designers, and creative thinkers to redefine the concept of small-scale living.
Visit the competition page to register before the deadline on 13 February 2025.
In October 2025, the Fernando Romero Foundation will officially open the doors of La Cuadra San Cristóbal, one of the late projects of Mexican architect and Pritzker Prize winnerLuis Barragán. The goal is to transform the architectural complex into a cultural campus open to the public, with a curatorial program focused on exploring the dynamic interaction between architecture and art.
The project, known as Cuadra San Cristóbal, was built between 1966 and 1968 and includes a house, a stables building, and auxiliary facilities such as the Fuente de los Amantes (Fountain of the Lovers). The complex showcases characteristic elements of Barragán's Latin American modernism, including his use of color and the integration of shadows, textures, and sounds into the experience of space.
Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), in collaboration with ALB-Architect, has unveiled the design for the Opera & Ballet Theatre of Kosovo, a new cultural venue set to reshape Prishtina's performing arts landscape. As the first operahouse in the Republic of Kosovo, the theatre will serve as a home for the country's Philharmonic, Ballet, and Opera, marking a significant step in the development of Kosovo's artistic institutions. The project includes multiple performance halls and a public plaza, reinforcing its role as a cultural hub within the capital.
Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize (MCHAP) has announced the five finalist projects for the 2025 Americas Prize, highlighting projects from Argentina, Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The announcement was made by MCHAP Director Dirk Denison and this year's Jury Chair Maurice Cox. The biennial award established in 2013 by the Illinois Institute of Technology's College of Architecture, recognizes exceptional architectural achievements across North, Central, and South America. Considering projects completed between June 2022 and December 2023, it aims to highlight those projects that significantly contribute to their communities and elevate professional standards.
The winning project will be announced on May 5 during a symposium at the Illinois Institute of Technology. The winning authors will receive the MCHAP Award, a chair at IIT's College of Architecture, and a $50,000 research and publication grant.
Architecture competitions have long been a means for nations to shape their identity, cultural landscapes, and built environment. They provide a platform for international architects to contribute to national projects, often reflecting broader ambitions of modernization and global recognition. In 1976, Bahrain launched potentially the first major architectural competition—a call for designs for a National Cultural Centre, bringing some of the world's leading architects into the Gulf's emerging architectural discourse. Though the winning design by Timo Penttilä was never built, the competition remains a key moment in Bahrain's history, illustrating the challenges of translating external visions into local realities.
The Latin American territory encompasses a vast diversity of climates, atmospheres, and temperatures across its entire expanse. Amid forested landscapes, jungles, or coastal settings, many architects choose to design cabins immersed in natural surroundings, seeking to foster a deeper connection with nature by distancing themselves from the city. While experimenting with different materials and local techniques enhances a stronger bond with the site's traditions and creates a distinct architectural identity for each region, the integration of technological innovations and new construction materials can offer greater resilience to climate change, improve short- and long-term maintenance, optimize construction timelines, and address other key considerations.
In recent years, working from home has become increasingly common, creating a need for domestic spaces that accommodate both professional and personal life. This is especially true for artists, where the integration of living and working spaces is essential. Often, these spaces must also serve as areas for exhibiting artistic production, such as paintings, sculptures, ceramics, and more.
This fusion of work and living environments has influenced architectural and interior design trends, prioritizing flexibility, multifunctionality, and aesthetics that foster both creativity and comfort. Open-plan layouts, modular furniture, and adaptable lighting solutions are now key elements in designs that support the seamless coexistence of work and personal life.
Disciplines such as architecture, interior design, product design, and fashion rely on awards to celebrate innovation, set industry benchmarks, and inspire excellence. Beyond mere recognition, these accolades validate creative achievements, strengthen reputations, and expand the visibility of ideas that challenge conventions. They also foster interdisciplinary collaboration, encourage professional growth, and highlight the transformative impact of design on everyday life.
Among the world's most prestigious design competitions, the A' Design Awards & Competition is now open for submissions—an opportunity for designers, architects, and creative professionals to showcase their work on a global stage. Winning this award brings unparalleled benefits, including international exhibitions, media exposure, and a coveted place in the World Design Rankings. Past winners have had their work showcased in global exhibitions, featured in renowned publications, and presented at industry events, connecting them with influential leaders and expanding their reach in the competitive design market.
Wrexham Stadium Kop Stand - Facade. Image Courtesy of Populous
The term "Kop," traditionally referring to the summit of a hill or peak, reflects the origins of passionate fan gatherings in football stadiums. In the UK, a "Kop Stand" specifically designates a typically single-tiered stand situated at the goal end of a stadium, renowned for housing the loudest and most dedicated supporters of a football club. Sports and entertainment-focused architecture office Populous has just released the design of the new Kop Stand for Wrexham AFC's stadium. The proposal pays homage to Wrexham's architectural character by incorporating a brick façade pattern that mirrors the city's traditional building styles.
Salone Satellite 2024. Image Courtesy of Salone del Mobile
The 2025 edition of Salone del Mobile.Milano has just announced its opening dates and events program. The 63rd edition is set to take place from April 8 to 13 at Fiera Milano, Rho. This year's event will bring together over 2,000 exhibitors from 37 countries, reinforcing its role as a strategic platform for the design industry. The fair will highlight industrial manufacturing, sustainable innovation, and emotional intelligence as key themes, aiming to shape the future of design.
In the early 20th century, tuberculosis presented a significant public health challenge across Europe, prompting the construction of specialized facilities for patient recovery. The Paimio Sanatorium in Finland stands as a groundbreaking example of architecture's potential to promote healing. Designed by Alvar Aalto between 1929 and 1933, the sanatorium combined innovative design principles with a deep understanding of human needs, setting new benchmarks for healthcare architecture.
Alvar Aalto, a leading figure in modernist architecture, envisioned the Paimio Sanatorium as more than a functional response to a medical crisis. He crafted a space where architecture became an instrument of care, integrating natural light, ventilation, and harmonious forms to support physical and emotional well-being. This project marked a turning point in Aalto's career, showcasing his ability to blend modernist ideals with a profound sensitivity to context and human experience.
Examining the houses that architects designed for themselves can provide insight into their design process, priorities, and philosophy. While often reduced in scale, these personal residences offer a peek into the architects' mindsets and the way in which they translate their ideas into lived spaces without having client-imposed restrictions on the end result. The structures also reflect their creators' personal values, lifestyles, and aesthetic preferences.
These projects are often experiments and testing grounds for their own design principles, pushing the boundaries of architectural expression. From Ray and Charles Eames, who ended up spending their lives in an experimental house created for prefabrication, to Frank Gehry, who used his Santa Monica Dutch colonial house to test out the ideas of deconstructivism that would later come to define his career, these projects represent showcase a different face of the design process of world-renowned architects.
For almost four decades, ABB, the Swedish-Swiss multinational leader in electrical engineering, has been at the cutting edge of innovation and expertise. A standout initiative in their portfolio is the Frozen Music video series,a video series showcasing exceptional architectural projects and the architects who create them.As Katrin Förster, Global Key Account Manager at ABB, explains, 'When producing an episode for Frozen Music, I always begin by sending a bespoke questionnaire to the architect.'For Episode #24, a conversation with Mustafa Chehabeddine, Design Director at KPF, helped shape the narrative, emphasizing the formal and functional qualities of Ziraat Bank's new headquarters in Istanbul.
The OBEL Award is an international prize for architectural practice, presented annually by the Henrik Frode Obel Foundation. The jury, composed of representatives from firms such as Snøhetta and MVRDV, alongside professionals from other disciplines, selects a theme to guide the choice of winners for each edition. The goal is to steer proposals toward solutions that foster dialogue and generate knowledge on emerging issues, aiming to promote architecture in service of social and ecological development worldwide. For its seventh edition, the 2025 call focus is Ready Made, targeting projects that place reuse and repurposing at the core of architecture for the common good.
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced that Japanese architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, founders of the practice SANAA, will receive the 2025 Royal Gold Medal for architecture. Awarded on behalf of His Majesty the King, the medal is one of the highest honors in the field, recognizing what RIBA describes as SANAA's contribution to shaping contemporary architecture through simplicity, light, and refined design.
The concept of "sponge cities" has gained prominence since it was introduced by Chinese landscape architect Kongjian Yu, founder of Turenscape, and was officially adopted as a national policy in China in 2013 to combat urban flooding. This approach prioritizes nature-based infrastructure such as wetlands, rain gardens, and permeable pavements, creating landscapes with porous soil where native plants can thrive with minimal maintenance. When it rains, these systems absorb and slow down water flow, reducing flood risks. In contrast, traditional concrete- and pipe-based drainage solutions, though widely used, are costly, rigid, and require frequent maintenance, sometimes even making cities more vulnerable to flooding due to blockages and overflows.
The site of Expo 2020 Dubai is scheduled to undergo a major transformation, developed by UNStudio in collaboration with several other firms. The master plan aims to reimagine the location of the first World Expo held in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia into a new urban center, integrating the structures of the original Expo with new developments to create a cohesive and engaging new district. The development, part of Dubai's 2040 Urban Master Plan, leverages approximately 80% of the existing infrastructure and buildings from Expo 2020, minimizing waste and maximizing the value of previous investments.
Cotter & Naessens Architects have been selected to represent Ireland at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia in 2025. Their project, Assembly, will explore architecture's role in shaping spaces for gathering, discussion, and democratic exchange. The selection was made through an open call by Culture Ireland, in partnership with the Arts Council, and was announced in April by Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport, and Media, Catherine Martin T.D.
We invite you to participate in the ArchDaily 2025 Building of the Year Awards. We ask you to recognize and reward the projects that you feel are creating the largest impact in the built environment, that ArchDaily has published on our projects database in 2024. By nominating and voting, you form part of an interdependent, impartial, distributed network of jurors and peers that has consistently helped us celebrate architecture of every scale, purpose, and condition, from countries large and small, and architects of all descriptions. Over the coming weeks, your votes will result in 4000 projects being filtered down to just 15 – representing the best in each project category on ArchDaily.
