Before looking ahead at some of the most exciting projects and exhibitions of 2017 we thought we’d take a moment to reflect on some of the CLAD stories that particularly caught the imagination of our readers 2016. Our brief – to cover all aspects of leisure architecture, design, investment and development, from sport to spa, hospitality to museums and urban regeneration to health and fitness – were mirrored in the

We wrap up our CLAD review of 2016 with a look at some of the most significant new cultural buildings that have opened this year. We have compiled a separate list for museums – of which there have been many spectacular examples in the last 12 months – so this one focuses on other typologies, from concert halls to theatres and arts centres. No such list can ever be truly

Over the last twelve months, some stunning spas and wellness facilities have been unveiled around the world. Here are some of the projects – including both independent spas and those integrated into larger resorts – that have particularly caught CLAD's eye in 2016. No such list can ever be truly comprehensive of course, especially when the design standard is increasingly so high, so please let us know your own favourite contenders

From a running track where you can race against your own avatar, to a swimming pool designed following the principle of feng shui, 2016 has been a diverse and thought-provoking year the design of health clubs, swimming pools and fitness facilities. Here, we continue our CLAD review of the year by re-visiting some of the most interesting of these buildings that have opened in the last twelve months. CLAD Review

As we continue our CLAD review of 2016, our attention turns to the world of sports design. It has been another groundbreaking year for the sector, and we have highlighted just some of the innovative and architecturally-significant sporting facilities that have opened this year around the world. Sustainability is a key trend, with temporary architecture, re-use projects and LEED-standard designs included in the list. CLAD's Review of 2016: The best

2016 has been a breakthrough year for leisure architecture, with buildings celebrated by some of the world's most prestigious architecture awards, including the World Architecture Festival Building of the Year, the Stirling Prize, the Aga Khan Awards and the inaugural RIBA International Prize. A host of incredible leisure buildings have been completed this year, including remarkable projects from the likes of Herzog and de Meuron, David Adjaye, Bjarke Ingels, Santiago

The 2016 World Architecture Festival (WAF) has started today with architects and designers from around the world descending on Berlin to debate issues facing the industry and to celebrate the world’s best recently completed and future architectural projects. Held in the Arena Berlin, the three-day event (16-18 November) is the only global festival that combines conferences, networking and awards - with the WAF Building of the Year to be announced

Developers of shopping malls and large retail centres can no longer ignore leisure, the director of the International Retail Real Estate Market (MAPIC) has told CLAD. Nathalie Depetro said that “the growth of digital e-commerce has pushed the need to make the physical shopping experience more amazing than ever before to remain relevant.” MAPIC 2016, which takes place from 16 to 18 November in Cannes, is one of the world's

The winners of The Structural Awards 2016 were announced on 11 November during a ceremony held at The Brewery in London, with several leisure projects celebrated for their design and engineering excellence. The Grandview Heights Aquatic Centre in Surrey, Canada was honoured with The Supreme Award for Structural Engineering Excellence – one of the highest accolades in world engineering – for featuring the world’s most slender, long span timber catenary

This year’s World Architecture Day will be used by the industry to promote the role of good design in “ensuring a better future for all people.” The International Union of Architects (UIA), which represents the world’s 1.3 million architects, has announced that the 3 October milestone will have the theme ‘Design a Better World.’ The association has called on architecture organisations around the globe to use the day to highlight

A new London exhibition is set to explore communal bathing culture through the work of contemporary architects and designers. The immersive show – called Soak, Steam, Dream and organised as part of the 2016 London Design Festival – uses photography, film and archive objects to showcase international bathhouse projects by designers as varied as Peter Zumthor, Kengo Kuma and H3T architekti. Each project has been chosen for its role in

A host of leisure projects have made the shortlist for the 2016 New London Award, which celebrates the UK capital’s most innovative and inspiring new schemes. Organised by New London Architecture (NLA), which promotes the city’s built environment, 136 projects have been nominated across 15 categories, including ones for public spaces, cultural projects and hotels. High profile leisure projects in this year’s awards include Shaftesbury Theatre by Bennetts Associates, the

The international jury of the 15th Venice architecture Biennale has awarded the Golden Lion award for Best National Participation to Spain, for its pavilion Unfinished. The Spanish exhibition was one of 65 national pavilions at this year’s Biennale. Each engaged with festival curator Alejandro Aravena’s chosen theme Reporting From the Front to show examples of problems facing the built environment in their countries and some suggested solutions to these challenges.

A public park in Denmark, a Chinese arts centre, a three-storey pedestrian bridge in Iran and a library in Spain are among the leisure projects nominated for the 2016 Aga Khan Award for Architecture. The prize awards projects “from slum upgrading to high rise green buildings – that not only exhibit architectural excellence but also improve the overall quality of life.” Since its establishment in 1977, more than 110 projects

The winners of the James Beard Foundation’s Outstanding Restaurant Design Awards were announced at a ceremony on Monday evening (2 May) in Chicago. Design studios Renzo Piano Building Workshop, Demian Repucci Design and Land and Sea Dept were judged to have created the best restaurant designs or renovations in North America in the past three years. The first two practices tied for first place in the category for restaurants with

Beijing-based innovators MAD Architects have designed a flowing, translucent installation for the 2016 Milan Design Week in the famous courtyard of the city’s university. The sculptural piece, called Invisible Border, forms a rippling canopy descending across the Cortile d’Onore courtyard from a loggia to the ground, establishing a shelter for people to gather, socialise and contemplate their surroundings. “Architects usually create borders by defining spaces – what is inside and

International architecture studio AW2 have won the Asia Hotel Design of the Year award for their work on Phum Baitang resort in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The Paris-based firm won the top prize at the Asia Hotel Design Awards, which were held today (10 March) at The South Beach hotel in Singapore, with over 400 industry figures from the region in attendance. Phum Baitang – which was also named the Resort

Danish studio Henning Larsen Architects have been commissioned to create a special cultural pavilion in Rio de Janeiro to celebrate the 2016 Olympic Games. The public pavilion will be located on the world-famous Ipanema Beach with the statue of Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado Mountain providing a dramatic backdrop. The 300sq m (3,200sq ft) installation is intended to provide a destination for cultural exchange between Denmark and Brazil for the

The World Architecture Festival (WAF) is now accepting entries for the 2016 WAF Awards, which will take place in Berlin in November. The prestigious competition is divided into 30 project categories for completed architectural projects, future projects and landscape projects. Leisure architects can enter their designs for cultural buildings, hotels, sports facilities and leisure-led developments. The deadline for entries is 19 May and the shortlist will be decided in June

The first images have been revealed of the Serpentine Gallery’s 2016 pavilion programme, featuring four summer houses by international architects and a centrepiece created by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG). BIG’s hotly-anticipated pavilion – the studio’s first UK structure – has been described as an “unzipped wall”. The structure – formed by a series of box-like fibreglass frames stacked in a brick-wall pattern – will host a Harrods-run cafe and events

The Oberoi Group is opening three hotels in 2016 in Morocco, India and United Arab Emirates. Located 30 minutes from Dubai’s airport, The Oberoi, Al Zorah will be a luxury eco-destination nestled within 247 acres of forest, with a long beachfront, lagoons and mangroves. The hotel – designed by Italian architects Lissoni Associati – will include an ultra-modern layout with 113 villas, suites and penthouses. The spa at Al Zorah

Danish architect Bjarke Ingels and his studio BIG have been chosen to design the 2016 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion within London’s Kensington Gardens. The studio now have six months to develop and complete their design before it goes on display as the centrepiece of this year's Serpentine Galleries summer pavilion exhibition. For the first time, the galleries have also announced an expansion to the annual four-month event, with four other architects

The largest stadium built for France's forthcoming UEFA Euro 2016 football championship has been completed in the city of Lyon. The 59,186-capacity Parc Olympique Lyonnais – known during construction as the Grand Stade de Lyon or Stade des Lumières – was designed by global sports architects Populous and French group AIA Associés. The opening was celebrated with a league match between Olympique Lyonnais and Troyes in the French Ligue 1,

Rio 2016 organisers have unveiled the 16,000-capacity basketball venue for the Games which forms part of the city’s US$195m (£136.3m, €179.3m) AECOM-designed Olympic Training Centre (OTC). Carioca Arena 1, the largest venue in the Barra Olympic Park, will also hold the wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby during the Paralympics, as well as tests for the powerlifting and wrestling later this month. The stadium consists of 5,000 permanent and 11,000 contemporary

Alejandro Aravena of Chile has been selected as the 2016 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate. The Pritzker Prize – widely regarded as architecture's highest accolade – honours a living architect or architects “whose built work demonstrates a combination of talent, vision, and commitment, and who has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built environment.” Since 2001, Aravena has been executive director of the Santiago-based studio Elemental. The firm,

The world of architecture will hold its collective breath at 10am Eastern Standard Time on Wednesday 13 January, as the 2016 winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize is announced. The prize – widely regarded as architecture's highest accolade – honours a living architect or architects “whose built work demonstrates a combination of talent, vision, and commitment, and who has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built environment.”

The year ahead promises much excitement in the world of leisure architecture and design. New designs will be unveiled, ongoing projects will take shape and we will have our first look at completed buildings from the likes of Snøhetta, Thomas Heatherwick, Renzo Piano, Bjarke Ingels Group and David Adjaye. To celebrate the New Year, we have compiled a list of 12 projects scheduled for completion in 2016 that we are