Kengo Kuma's latest creation – the Odunpazari Modern Museum in Eskisehir, Turkey – has opened, with the architect striving to create a sense of intimacy and warmth through its wood-clad buildings. The inspiration for Kuma's design, which is based on a cluster of boxes clad with stacked, interlocking timber beams, comes from the history of the location, which used to be a centre for timber trading. The word odunpazari means

Austrian artist Klaus Littmann has transformed the Wörthersee Stadion in Klagenfurt, Austria, into a forest as part of an art installation looking to change people's perception of nature. The 32,000-capacity stadium, home of SK Austria Klagenfurt football club, has been fitted with a mini-forest of 300 trees what is set to become Austria’s largest public art installation. Overseen by Enea Landscape Architecture, the “For Forest: the unending attraction of nature"

Designs have been released for the latest edition of the Ice Hotel in Jukkasjärvi, northern Sweden, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. The competition saw 126 applications received from artist teams across 34 different countries and 15 were chosen to create designs for the hotel, which will open on 13 December. In addition, three teams received a special invitation to create the new main and ceremony hall, as well

Construction work has begun on a £53m sports facility at the University of Portsmouth in the UK. Designed by FaulknerBrowns Architects, the building will set new standards for sustainability for a sports building and is on target to be the first of this type in the UK to be BREEAM rated ‘Outstanding’. The building’s spaces provide opportunities to exploit natural light and ventilation, while top lighting of the sports hall

The transformation project designed to turn Paisley Museum, in Renfrewshire, Scotland, into a world-class tourist destination is moving forward, with the first images of the redesign produced by architects AL_A being released. The town of Paisley is best known for the pattern of the same name – an ornamental textile design using a teardrop-shaped motif with a curved upper end. Renfrewshire Council is planning to invest a total of £100m

Fitness wear and apparel supplier Gymshark has opened its first Gymshark Lifting Club (GSLC), combining a studio and fitness centre with an innovation hub, focusing on employee wellbeing and brand innovation. Working in partnership with design and build company Oktra, the company has transformed a 55,000sq ft former warehouse facility into a complex featuring a large, 20,000sq ft health club and studio space – designed to be "the best in

Australia’s first Ritz-Carlton, in Perth, is set to open this November with immersive experiences conceptualised around the history, culture and natural beauty found in the region. The hotel’s spa has been created with the guidance of international spa and wellness consultants GOCO Hospitality, Clad in 10,000 pieces of Kimberly sandstone on both the exterior and the lobby, the Ritz-Carlton Perth will feature 205 bedrooms including 18 suites. The Ritz-Carlton Spa

Construction work has begun on Pixel, a new residential-led, mixed-use project in Abu Dhabi's new Maker's District. Designed by MVRDV, the development aims to provide residents with a lifestyle based around outdoor living and community spirit – an innovative approach in the Emirates, as it deviates from the prevalent typology of disconnected towers. The 85,000sq m (915,000sq ft) development features 525 apartments, shops, offices, and amenities situated around a lively

Merlin Entertainments, the world's second-biggest visitor attraction operator after Disney, has revealed plans for the largest new addition at its Legoland California resort since the park launched in 1999. The new Lego Movie World area is set to open in 2020 and will be based on the popular Warner Bros movie franchise. The area is being designed by Merlin Magic Making, Merlin's in-house design team, in partnership with Warner Bros

German wellness operator Lanserhof has opened its first UK location at the historic Arts Club in London. The six-storey luxury health and wellness club – situated on Dover Market Street in Mayfair – has a focus on personalised services and houses a wide range of gym spaces equipped by Technogym, exercise and studio rooms and a full-service spa featuring treatment rooms and a cryotherapy chamber. Designed by Ingenhoven Architects, the

A competition to find alternative designs to replace the destroyed Notre Dame Cathedral roof has attracted a number of innovative "solutions" – including a rooftop waterway over the medieval cathedral. The People’s Notre Dame Cathedral Design Competition was launched in defiance of the French senate’s plans to restore the roof exactly as it was before the devastating fire earlier this year. Set up by book publisher GoArchitect, the campaign invited

Plans have been approved for a 19,000-seat, multi-use indoor arena in Belmont Park on Long Island, New York. The US£1.3bn venue is set to become the new home of National Hockey League (NHL) franchise New York Islanders. As well as the indoor arena, the project includes a 350,000sq ft entertainment complex and a 250-bedroom hotel. The plans were approved by the Empire State Development Board – the New York state

Entertainment venues need to undergo technological and design upgrades to prepare them for the experience-seeking consumer of 2040, according to research by Euromonitor International. Commerce 2040 - Revolutionary Tech Will Boost Consumer Engagement outlines a vision for how consumers might live, work, shop and play in 20 years' time, exploring how technology could change the different consumer worlds of entertainment venues, home and retail. Consumers are already moving towards demanding

The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) has appointed Willmott Dixon to construct a new members’ centre adjacent to the iconic Wimbledon Championship complex. The £70m facility, located on Somerset Road, will include 12 new tennis courts (six indoor and six outdoor), new club house facilities, an enhanced arrivals experience for competitors at The Championships and upgraded Centre Court chiller plant. There will also be a single-storey underground car park

Dale Vince, chair of UK soccer team, Forest Green Rovers, has resubmitted a planning application for a new 5,000-capacity stadium development dubbed the "greenest football venue in the world". Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the main stadium would be built almost entirely out of wood, making it the first of its kind in the world. The stadium would be the centrepiece of the £100m Eco Park development – a 100-acre

High-end fitness giant Equinox has ventured into the hotel market with the opening of its first property in New York City, US. Located at the 72-storey skyscraper 35 Hudson Yards, the 212-bedroom hotel will focus on wellness. Facilities include a 60,000sq ft (5,574 sq m) Equinox-branded health club, a 27,000sq ft (2,500sq m) luxury spa and indoor and outdoor pools. There will also be a healthy-eating restaurant called Electric Lemon,

The owners of NBA team LA Clippers have revealed detailed plans for a US$1bn indoor arena, to be built in the Inglewood district in Los Angeles, California. Designed by a team including AECOM, Anderson Barker Architects, the City Design Studio of Los Angeles and Hood Studios, the development will include a "fan-focused" NBA arena for the Clippers, team basketball and business operations headquarters and a first-of-its-kind training centre tailored specifically

Details have been revealed for a brick and steel construction which will make the new Everton Football Club stadium appear "as though it has risen from the dock". US architect Dan Meis has unveiled his much-anticipated plans for the £500m venue in Liverpool, UK, which will be built at the semi-derelict Bramley Dock and is estimated to deliver a £1bn boost to the city’s economy. Meis' concepts show a brick,

Proposals for a new £10m (US$12.48m, €11.21m) ReefLIVE aquarium in Belfast's Titanic Quarter are to be put forward for approval, with hopes that the attraction will draw more than 300,000 visitors per year. Designed by Ethos Design and Architecture, and with planning by consultants Turley, the aquarium would be situated opposite the Titanic Hotel on Queen's Road, which is a short distance from the Titanic Belfast museum. ReefLIVE, a UK

Corporate Fitness Works (CFW) has launched a fitness club design division, responding to demand from commercial real estate owners and developers wanting to include a fitness element in their projects. US-based CFW has carved out a market in developing and managing health clubs and programmes for corporations, such as New York Life and Volkswagen. The new division, called CFW Design, will cater for the increased demand from developers wanting to

A new €6m (US$6.7m, £5.4m) community sports centre is being built in the Hauts-de-Bry in the commune of Bry-sur-Marne on the eastern suburbs of Paris. The centre – designed by Atelier Ferret Architectures – will provide 3,200sq m of space for a number of indoor sports, with facilities including a large, multi-use sports hall, a table tennis area and a large climbing wall. It will be able to host regional

Architects Wilkinson Eyre are to create a new visitor attraction in the form of a massive biome complex, near Reykjavik. The Aldin Biomes have just received planning permission and when complete, will showcase a tropical environment and local food production methods, as well as a range of wellness offerings, including barfus walks and yoga. The 48,000sq ft structures, designed for client Spor í sandinn, have been conceived as a major

The Global Wellness Summit (GWS) team has announced that designer Bill Bensley will deliver a keynote speech on hospitality design and sustainability at this year's summit in Hong Kong (15-17 October). Bensley's keynote will challenge delegates to rethink how hotels and resorts are designed and built, by posing questions he believes that the conscientious traveller of the future will be asking, such as: Does this hotel respect its environment? Does

FaulkerBrowns Architects and LDA Design have unveiled designs for a new ice rink and urban park in east London. Featuring an Olympic-size, twin-rink ice centre, the £30m project is being driven by client, the Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, which wants the new complex to replace the ageing Lee Valley Ice Centre. The existing, 34-year-old ice centre attracts around 279,000 visits a year, but the venue is reaching the end

After five months of construction and an investment of CHF 45m (€40m), the completely renovated Grand Hotel Quellenhof in Switzerland has opened its doors. For 150 years, the Quellenhof has served as the flagship of Europe’s wellbeing & medical health resort in Bad Ragaz. Swiss interior designer Claudio Carbone has been responsible for the redesign and the development of a new concept which is centered around the hotel’s history and

Speaking in the new edition of CLADmag, designer André Fu reveals how he found inspiration for his designs for the new St. Regis hotel. “I was born in Hong Kong and so designing the hotel made me question exactly what my home town means to me,” he explained. “I wanted to go deeper than the stereotypical concept of lanterns, junks and temples and tap into my own memories of the

The Museum of London has revealed the designs for its new home in West Smithfield, with the development scheme laying out a 24-hour cultural hub in the heart of the British capital. Described as one of the largest cultural projects in Europe, the design process has been led by Stanton Williams and Asif Kahn, with Julian Harrap Architects also involved. Celebrating the existing architecture of the Westfield site, which is