Urbanism & Landscape

At this year's Light + Building, the speakers at our Architonic Live Talks provided otherworldly inspiration, forward-thinking solutions and honest industry appraisals. We round up the illuminated insights you may have missed.

These four multi-purpose buildings and urban developments form relaxed yet lively communities by blending office, retail, hospitality and outdoor spaces with residential.

All work and no play makes cities dull places to be. As well as inspiring joy through play, these four playgrounds set in centres of human interaction encourage communication, creativity and a connection with nature.

These temporary pavilions, installations and public spaces use the speed, strength and structural capacity of bamboo to ensure they’re here for a good time, not a long time.

In this special edition of Team Picks, we showcase the must-see projects and articles you may have missed in 2023. Featuring projects that de-urbanise the city, a treetop walk that urbanises nature and a therapeutic chair to sit back and enjoy it

Bright, transparent living areas, protective balcony glazing that visually dissolves, floating gardens and energy-efficient technologies – how the ‘Stories’ timber hybrid building in Amsterdam is making sustainability history.

The sensitive refurbishment of a former grain testing warehouse on the Spandau shipping canal in Berlin revives the historic charm of the building, opening it up to contemporary use.

Material innovation has become well established as a guiding principle of contemporary design. But in Eindhoven, one tried-and-tested building element in particular received not one, but multiple original modernisations.

By bridging not only commercial and cultural functions, but past and present, these four projects from different corners of the world prove that market halls have lost none of their ancient appeal. Featuring: Studio Metamorphosis, RootStudio,

Leveraging its own long history of expertise in the sphere of public-space design, Swiss specialists BURRI played a major role in putting the architectural heritage of Zurich's central train station back into the spotlight…

Gender inequality in architecture restricts both creativity and talent, as well as human rights. These four female-led architecture practices re-balance the scales with their work, not their gender.

Water, whether river, lake or pool, not only adds playful potential to public-space architecture, it also offers numerous other aesthetic, practical and environmental benefits.

With the role of our cities changing, these green landscaping projects across Europe are bringing the natural world back home.

With no private green space, it’s hard for high-rise apartments to achieve the wellness credentials we’ve come to expect in modern interiors. But a well-designed balcony can be all the garden you need.

Nature brings peace, even when stranded on a desert island. On these small slices of paradise, everyday stresses are just distant memories, but does the idyllic life come at an environmental price?

Once seen as a complex and costly solution, living roofs are now growing in popularity, bringing many environmental benefits to projects big and small.

From playgrounds in Zurich to the Olympic Games in London, public space specialist BURRI has been bringing projects of all sizes to life for over 120 years, also including the stop infrastructure for Switzerland's Limmattalbahn tram route…

In the second installment of the Bette Intelligence Series – three consecutive features sponsored by the German bathroom specialist – UNC Charlotte Dean of Arts + Architecture Brook Muller speaks about the importance of incorporating water into

'Applying international and globally recognised certifications is not enough if there is no "self-certification",' argues the award-winning office's top team.

Taking guidance from the Alpine Convention’s Climate Action Plan on sustainable development, these are the four winning redevelopment projects awarded the Constructive Alps prize.

With many eco-friendly cement alternatives racing through to market, the concrete revolution could be here to stay. These examples highlight the advantages of the age-old, but on-trend, material.

These colourful, sustainable and environmental multi-storey co-living projects make high-rise living friendly again.

This year, the top prizes at Eastman’s Vanceva® World of Color Awards™ go to buildings that may not share many formative qualities upon first glance, but are all alike in their distinguished use of vibrant structural elements.

The dark, unwelcoming atmosphere of a tunnel can make them hard to use as interior spaces, but as these refreshed underground passageways prove, there’s light to be found at the tunnel’s end.

China halts the harmful urban sprawl of its rapidly growing economy by ring-fencing the climate and transforming urban areas into new environmental landscapes.

Global Design Agenda's Sustainability Design Week speakers stress the need to design and build sustainable cities for survival.

Craig Robertson of AHMM explains the opposing factors of modern architecture: 'Different stakeholders have different ideas of what a good building is.' Watch the video to hear what else he has to say…

Oliver Schaper of Gensler, one of the largest architecture firms in the world and currently in partnership with UN-Habitat, discusses the circular construction model. Watch the video to learn more…

Green space can be hard to find in modern overgrown cities. These bridges knit together natural areas hidden in urban centres, and connect urbanites with the natural landscapes outside them.

The design process revealed! Find out how a local architect and a creative hotelier, together with bathroom-fittings experts HEWI, fashioned a destination that's a shining example of how it's done.

Christina Seilern of Studio Seilern Architects discusses giving outdoor public spaces multiple characters: 'People will use it the way they want to.' Watch the video to learn more…

These waterside vacation properties bring the tranquillity of their natural surroundings right up to the back doorstep, for a relaxing, outdoor atmosphere that can be enjoyed from the comfort of home.

By surrounding users with the comforting permanence of the ground, these six projects from across the world create intimate sunken living spaces that hold us in a supportive embrace.

With natural lighting, surfaces and adaptable physics, 3D visualisation uses realism, real-time rendering and VR technology to help clients see plans for real in a virtual world.

Public squares remain a symbol of our human need to communally congregate but have also evolved into multifunctional hubs that are more than just places for people to gather.

As part of the world’s biggest online network for creatives, DAAily jobs helps talented professionals find their dream job, and world-famous firms find fresh minds.

Daan Roosegaarde of Studio Roosegaarde discusses connecting with our environment by removing design: ‘I realised we have this amazing light performance in the sky – the stars – but we don’t see them anymore.’ Watch the video to learn

The practice of biophilic design – using plants and green space to improve health and wellbeing – is an important tool, but can it solve the environmental crisis too?

Balconies provide residents with great views while literally and figuratively looking down on the neighbours, but they also offer numerous other advantages.

As the online marketplace takes a stranglehold on bricks and mortar retail, these are the destination super retail structures tempting consumers back to market.

If innovative architecture and design can expand our quality of life, even in smaller living spaces, what else can it do for us? Here are nine examples that show what’s possible.

With our increasingly 24-hour lifestyles, exterior environments with the right type and level of light are a growing necessity in home, commercial and public spaces.

Thomas Spranger of Max Dudler discusses how a project’s architectural language is inspired by its environment: ‘From the very start, we think in terms of materials.’

Mark Fenwick of Fenwick Iribarren discusses the legacy of the firm’s moveable Stadium 974 in Doha for the World Cup 2022, ‘It’s this idea to basically get rid of white elephants.’ Watch the video to learn more…

This eclectic list of Architonic's most-clicked new hotels, restaurants, bars, and public spaces of 2021 prove design-lovers interest in travel hasn't waned over the past year.

When it comes to built-in kitchen appliances, German firm Gaggenau has always set the highest of standards – and in the case of Sir David Adjaye’s 130 William tower in Manhattan, quite literally, too.

With topics ranging from community building through cultural perception to architects as business developers, the Heinze ArchitekTOUR’s ‘Out of the Box’ series identifies new approaches and new role models for how we will live tomorrow.

To advance visionary concepts, the right people need to be in the room, so Heinze has invited emerging talents as well as established industry experts to join the ArchitekTOUR supporting programme.

From 19 April to 14 May, the industry will come together virtually for the Heinze ArchitekTOUR – a digital space for exploring ideas about how we will live and work in the future.

With its advanced disabled access, modular format and digital functionality, Swiss firm BURRI’s smart HSI® ONE bus shelter is just what architects and urban planners have been waiting for.

Parks have always provided urban dwellers with a respite from city stress, but now, as we begin to emerge from extended periods of lockdown, the puristic pleasure they offer becomes more inviting than ever.

In order to meet the ambitious design goals and exacting standards of its prestige project in Dubai, architectural firm KPF turned to ORAMA MINIMAL FRAMES, with its extraordinary, innovative aluminium-frame solutions.

'I'm in favour of privatising public space,' says Patrik Schumacher of Zaha Hadid Architects. Watch now for more insight and commentary!

PUBLIC SPACE DESIGN WEEK: David Chipperfield’s landmark new Kunsthaus extension in Zurich has an equally imposing new public artwork, created by Swiss contemporary artist Pipilotti Rist. Find out how BURRI public elements, together with numerous

'People are the best insurance against anything bad you might associate with a public space,' explains Jason Long of OMA. Watch now for more insight and commentary!

'Public elements need to be incorporated into the concept and the budget from the start,' argues Gideon Maasland, director at MVRDV. Watch now for more insight and commentary!

'The spaces between buildings are more important to a city than the buildings themselves,' argues Neill McClements, partner at Grimshaw Architects. Watch now for more insight and commentary!

PUBLIC SPACE DESIGN WEEK: Real-world case studies you need to know for the spaces that glue us together.

Watch Grimshaw Architects, MVRDV, OMA and Zaha Hadid Architects!

PUBLIC SPACE DESIGN WEEK: Creating a pedestrian-friendly utopia through the design of 15-minute cities.

Lighting design not only shapes interior spaces, it can also be deployed to lend form and narrative to external, architectural landscapes.

Ulrike Brandi, founder of the eponymous lighting-design consultancy, discusses the relation between light and architecture – and where she sees it heading.

Landscape artists ENEA have been celebrating the beauty of nature for over 25 years, bringing their holistic approach to bear on green spaces not only in their native Switzerland, but all around the world.

With his dramatic aerial images, photographer Johnny Miller brings into sharp focus the invisible lines which divide some urban communities – lines that are sometimes harder to recognise at ground level. Text by Romullo Baratto | Translated by

Linea Light Group presents an entire dedicated line, contained in a single brand: i-LèD Industrial

URBAN RIGGER®'s floating residential buildings were designed in cooperation with the Danish architectural firm Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) to alleviate the housing shortage in the city and provide accommodation for over 70 students.

In an increasingly urbanised world, the issue of how to create green spaces in any meaningful way is a pressing one for planners and architects. The renaissance of the roof garden might be one answer.

Where architecture meets nature, the terrace is the perfect creative ground for some outdoor action. Bring your drink.

Whether it’s extra elbow room or a place to rub shoulders you’re looking for, new architect-designed public spaces give city dwellers a chance to choose their own adventure.

A round-up of recent waterfront projects offering locals and visitors sites for leisure and lively social interaction prove water really is one of the elixirs of life.

Urban greening projects are breathing new life into global cities by opening up public access to previously underused civic spaces.

Long the poster boy for industrial collapse and urban decay, Detroit is back on its feet, using design as one of the main drivers of its new self-imagining.

Architects of urban projects are increasingly in thrall to water, believing it benefits them in a number of ways — from the aesthetic to the psychological. In one sense, when reflected in water, buildings look larger and more imposing. Yet

Increased urban congestion. Climate change and sustainability. Urban regeneration. The reasons for the burgeoning movement in highly considered, integrated green spaces in towns and cities around the globe are as manifold as the forms they take.

Small works of architecture – from Canada, US and Mexico, to Norway, Chile and Sicily – are appearing across the planet on the basis of new design practices and attitudes. Journalist Valentina Ciuffi explores.

It could be argued that the pinnacle of urban landscape architecture was reached in seventeenth century France and the French formal gardens or in Britain's philantrophic Victorian public parks in the ninenteenth century. Contemporary urban

When Manhattan's High Line – a disused section of freight railtrack turned magical stretch of urban park – opened in 2009, New Yorkers took to the sky. But the innovative conversion of the former train corridor by James Corner Field Operations