Diller Scofidio + Renfro have been selected to create a 250 hectare eco-tourism hub for Haikou Bay in China’s Hainan province. The studio finished ahead of nine fellow firms, including Foster + Partners and UN Studio, in an international competition for the ambitious project – which is being bankrolled by Chinese developer HNA Group. Called South Sea Pearl Artificial Island, the crescent-shaped area of land is connected to the mainland

Beijing architects Studio Pei-Zhu have developed a reputation for their sculptural leisure buildings across China, and they have just started work on another: a museum for, and inspired, by pottery. The Jingdezhen Historical Museum of Imperial Kiln will be located in China’s ‘porcelain capital’ in Jiangxi province. The building – surrounded by clusters of china workshops dating back to the Ming and Qing dynasties – is designed in the vault-like

Manica Architecture have revisited their stadium design for National Football League (NFL) franchise Oakland Raiders, with the proposed location shifting from California to Nevada. The studio originally designed the 65,000 capacity stadium to be a joint home for the Raiders and fellow NFL side the San Diego Chargers as part of a joint bid which would have seen them both relocate to Los Angeles. That move was rejected by the

Architecture studio Weston Williamson + Partners have triumphed in an international design competition to create a Science City for Egypt. The Bibliotheca Alexandrina – a major library and cultural centre – organised the single phase, open contest to receive conceptual designs for a 125,000sq m (1.35m sq ft) complex designed to promote scientific knowledge to the public. Malaysian studio Ngiom Partnership came second with Zaha Hadid Architects finishing third. The

China’s Wanda Group has taken the next step on its mission to become an unrivalled tourism entity; signing an agreement to build “the world's first culture, tourism, sports and commerce super complex.” The group has pledged to invest CN¥63bn (US$9.4bn, €8.4bn, £7.2bn) to construct Jinan Wanda Culture, Sports and Tourism City – it’s 13th mega-development in the country. Unlike its previous Wanda Cities, the new project in Jinan, Shandong province

The body in charge of organising Tokyo’s Olympic Games has admitted its decision to cancel Zaha Hadid Architects’ (ZHA) National Olympic Stadium design in favour of a cheaper alternative has already cost it ¥68.6bn (US$650.6m, €582.4m, £497m) in compensation payouts. According to media reports in the country, the Japan Sports Council (JSC) announced it has already earmarked the sum – ¥600m US$5.8m, €5.2m, £4.4m) higher than the amount estimated by

Hotel brand Wyndham Garden has launched a new global design prototype that it believes can help hospitality operators save money, improve efficiency and forge a closer connection to nature. Nine prototypical hotels, designed for business travellers, are already under development in Texas, Indiana and West Virginia. The design – developed with hospitality design firm Krause+Sawyer – is inspired by gardens, using natural materials, abundant daylight and flora and fauna to

Here are some of the most popular stories that appeared on CLAD this week, from the world's tallest Ferris wheel to a high-profile planning application hampered by bats. Monday • The world's tallest observation wheel is taking shape on Dubai’s Bluewaters Island. Read here. • Architects Höweler + Yoon have proposed an interactive ‘Living Lab’ for the Dubai 2020 Expo to explore human empathy. Read here. • A pop-up preview

The US$4.2bn (€3.7, £3.2bn) Wynn Palace has opened in Cotai, Macau, with a 4,497sq m (48,403sq ft) room spa – one of Macau’s largest. Designed by TAL Studio and inspired by the royal residences of China’s most fabled dynasties, the 22-treatment-room spa is designed to honour the grandeur of the imperial court. Guests arrive at the Grand Court, where a solid brass Foucault pendulum is suspended in the air, its

The giant Baha Mar resort complex slated for the Bahamas will resume construction in September, following a new agreement with the Bahamian government and the Export-Import Bank of China. Bahamas Prime Minister Perry G. Christie said the US$3.5bn mega-resort – which is to include a Baha Mar Casino & Hotel, Rosewood at Baha Mar, Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar and SLS LUX at Baha Mar – will be completed and

Chelsea Football Club’s plans to build one of the largest stadiums in England have hit a stumbling block – the local population of endangered bats. The club submitted its plans for the £500m (US$660m, €584m) project to London’s Hammersmith and Fulham council last year, but have been asked to provide more evidence of how they will protect the nearby grade I-listed Brompton cemetery and its population of the nocturnal mammals.

The Grand Velas Los Cabos is set to open in Mexico in late 2016, with a two-level, 35,000sq ft (3,252sq m) spa that will include a guided water journey. Architect Ricardo Elias, principal of Elias and Elias Architects in Guadalajara, has designed the hotel with traditional Mexican architectural details, and also worked on the interior design, along with Ernesto Vela and interior designer Melin Castro. The spa will include 16

Six months on from his death, a tribute to music legend Prince will come in the form of a museum at his Paisley Park home and recording complex in Chanhassen, Minneapolis. First announced after the death of the musician in April, the tribute museum has been given an official opening date of 6 October. First opened in 1988, the studio was designed by California-based architecture firm BOTO Design and was

The Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, is one step closer to a US$49m (€43.4m, £37.2m) facility expansion after the city’s Design Review Board approved the project unanimously. Now moving on to its construction document phase, the project will enter a new round of city review and approvals ahead of a proposed groundbreaking later this year. Plans originally envisioned a US$200m (€177m, £151.6m) expansion, but were abandoned following the death

Hospitality group Taj Safaris has opened its first lodge outside of India; a traditionally designed retreat within a national park once used as a hunting ground by Nepal’s royal family. Leopards, rhinos and Bengal tigers roam the UNESCO World Heritage listed Chitwan National Park located near the city of Bharatpur. The thick grasslands, meandering water bodies and abundant wildlife – including 68 species of mammal and 550 native bird species

The annual Build Earth Live ideas competition – which challenges teams to create a design in just 48 hours – will return in September with entrants tasked to imagine a Hyperloop network for the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Dubai’s Future Foundation and Road & Transport Authority will provide government sponsorship for the competition, which will call on designers, architects and engineers to plan the station terminuses for a Hyperloop route

A new museum and memorial in Montgomery, Alabama has been designed by MASS Design Group and the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) to confront America’s history of slavery. The Memorial to Peace and Justice, which is scheduled to open in 2017, is planned as a space of remembrance “that embraces truth and inspires reflection and change.” It will be the country’s first national memorial to victims of lynching. In a joint

Ground has been broken on the US$250m (£188.7m, €222m) stadium being built for future Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise Los Angeles FC. The Gensler-designed arena – which will seat up to 22,000 spectators – is expected to be completed in time for the 2018 MLS season, when the team will join. According to Los Angeles FC, the stadium will “bring more than US$350m (£264.3m, €310.7m) in private investment" to the

Exhibition designers Casson Mann have designed a colourful story-filled restaurant for five-star London hotel One Aldwych. The restaurant, called Eneko, opens on 1 September in the hotel’s former basement. Museum interior specialists Casson Mann were selected to work on the project, their first restaurant design, because of their storytelling expertise. The brief called for the design to tconvey the story of its Michelin starred chef, Eneko Atxa, and his Basque

One day in the not-too distant future, glass windows may be a thing of the past. Researchers in the US have revealed a surprising window material that could be stronger, more energy-efficient and have less glare – transparent wood. Engineers at the A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland have demonstrated through a study how wood could one day provide shatterproof, thermally-insulated alternative to glass for

Hotel, train and river-cruise operator Belmond will launch “Ireland’s first luxury rail experience” on 30 August, with 10 sleeper carriages designed by James Park Associates to evoke Dublin’s Georgian architecture. The Belmond Grand Hibernian – which can carry up to 40 passengers in 20 en-suite cabins - will transport guests on three-day journeys across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, stopping in Dublin, Belfast and Cork. Belmond purchased the

A new US$8m (€7.1m, £6.1m) science centre telling the story of the Colorado Plateau and encouraging exploration of the wider area – which is home to the Grand Canyon – has opened its doors to the public in Utah. Located in the city of Monticello, the 16,200sq ft (1,500sq m) Canyon Country Discovery Center looks at the Four Corners region – the quadripoint in the Southwest US where the states

A museum celebrating the successes of Jim Clark is on the cards after plans were unveiled by the Scottish Borders Council to celebrate the life of the two-time Formula One world champion. To be financed in-part by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) pending approval, the £1.65m (US$2.2m, €1.9m) project would see the existing Jim Clark Room in Duns expanded and redeveloped to allow a selection of cars and trophies to

Two architecture studios hope to show how remote heritage sites can be served by ‘satellite’ visitor centres through their own design for a tourist hub which celebrates an uninhabited Scottish archipelago from a location on a nearby island. Scottish studio Dualchas Architects and Norway’s Reiulf Ramstad Architects, who are working in the UK for the first time, have unveiled their masterplan for the St Kilda Visitor Centre. They propose the

The 1,400sq m (15,069sq ft) Resense Spa at Kempinski Hotel Summerland Beirut in Lebanon is set to open on 5 September with a visually impressive circular building in the resort garden. The standalone day resort spa, which is spread over two floors, will house one double spa suite, six single treatment rooms and two scrub rooms, as well as separate male and female relaxation lounges and a spa cafe. “This

Work is nearing completion on a new Four Seasons hotel sat in an 800 year old garden in Japan’s ancient imperial capital Kyoto. The Four Seasons Kyoto, which will open on 15 October 2016, has been designed by architecture studio Kume Sekkei and interior design firm Hirsch Bedner Associates to reflect a “contemporary evolution of traditional Japanese style”. Inspired by traditional design elements and motifs, the guest rooms will feature

Architecture studio Hassell have unveiled their design to revamp the Geelong Performing Arts Centre; one of the leading cultural venues outside of Australia’s main cities. The studio – fresh from winning a competition to design the Western Australian Museum in Perth – have been commissioned by the Victoria state government to oversee a major upgrade of the 35-year-old building’s facade and interior facilities. The result is a contemporary exterior with