Spa consultancy and management company Duniye Spas will operate the spa the the upcoming Hurawalhi Resort in the Maldives, an eco-conscious resort set to open 1 November. The 600sq m (6,458sq ft) spa will feature five overwater treatment rooms with outdoor baths and glass floors – designed for clients to watch fish and ocean creatures as they have a treatment, said Renate Hermes, group spa director for Duniye Spas. Treatment

A giant aluminium sphere has been unmasked on the streets of Taipei following the removal of the scaffolding at OMA’s Performing Arts Center for the city. The exteriors of two of the centre’s theatres – the Proscenium Playhouse and Multiform Theatre – can now be seen clearly for the first time. Both venues will seat 800 spectators. An elevated transparent central cube will house the 1,500-capacity Grand Theatre, as well

Destination spa Rancho la Puerta is opening three new Villas Cielo, or ‘Heavenly Villas,’ this October. The private villas – Azul Terra and Verde – are designed with wellness and relaxation in mind, and are designed to be highly customisable. Designed by Nicole Petersen of Petersen Design Management, the villas aim to capture the spirit of Mexico through artisan decor and Mexican-inspired art and custom furniture. Each casita is themed

The first ever London Design Biennale will open to the public on 7 September, with participants from 37 nations using the event to explore the concept of utopia. Brand new work by leading architects, designers, scientists, writers and artists will explore how good design can respond to challenges such as pollution, growing and aging populations and mass migration to create perfect societies. The exhibition will include large-scale kinetic sculptures, immersive

Swedish firm Anders Berensson Architects have been commissioned by the country’s Royal Court to investigate the future of twelve disused pylon towers in one of Stockholm’s national parks, with a view to transforming them into community structures. The result is an innovative proposal to turn at least two of the structures into ‘Power Towers’ – observation points with panoramic views of the Norra Djurgården park. “The towers are constructed to

Adjaye Associates, Diller Scofidio + Renfro and AL_A are among the six architecture practices in the running to illuminate 17 of central London’s bridges with permanent light installations. Les Éclairagistes Associés, Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands, and a team led by Sam Jacob Studio and artist Simon Heijdens are also in contention for the ambitious £20m (US$26.6m, €23.8m) project. Over 340 firms, grouped into 104 teams, entered the competition to breathe new

Studio Gang have been lined up to produce a temporary installation for the National Building Museum's 2017 Summer Block Party, following in the footsteps of Snarkitecture and Bjarke Ingels. The design concept is being kept under wraps for now, but the studio promised it will “engage the spirit of creative experimentation that has defined the success of the Summer Block Party series.” Previous installations include a complex maze, a huge

Taronga Zoo, near Sydney, Australia, has received planning approval for a new science and conservation education centre. The A$30.7m (US$23.5, €20.8, £17.8m) Taronga Institute of Science and Learning (TISL) has been designed by New South Wales architecture firm NBRS. The old learning facility will be replaced by the new three-storey design, which is inspired by patterns in nature and will offer an immersive and interactive experience. NSW Department of Planning

Architects, interior designers and engineers in the construction industry could, and should, use more wool in their buildings rather than relying on synthetic alternatives. That is the view of Charles, Prince of Wales, who is fronting a new campaign to inspire creators from multiple disciplines to embrace the possibilities of a material that “is an excellent insulator even when wet, a natural fire retardant, odour-resistant, and absorbent of both shocks

Architects, interior designers and engineers in the construction industry could, and should, use more wool in their buildings rather than relying on synthetic alternatives. That is the view of Charles, Prince of Wales, who is fronting a new campaign to inspire creators from multiple disciplines to embrace the possibilities of a material that “is an excellent insulator even when wet, a natural fire retardant, odour-resistant, and absorbent of both shocks

Here are some of the most popular stories that appeared on CLAD this week, from a museum inspired by a kiln to a landmark opera house for Dubai. • Hotel brand Wyndham Garden has launched a new global design prototype to help hospitality operators save money, improve efficiency and forge a closer connection to nature. Read here. • The body in charge of organising Tokyo’s Olympic Games has admitted its

Culture, health and movement are the focus at MVRDV’s new community centre in Copenhagen, which encourages adults and children alike to enjoy a better quality of life through physical activity. Slides, fireman's poles, labyrinths, nets and climbing walls provide a means of navigating around the Ku.Be House of Culture and Movement, which is being opened today by Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark. The project, designed in collaboration with ADEPT, is

Joyce Wang Studio have designed an atmospheric new restaurant in Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong, with charred walls and coppery furnishings evoking the head chef’s love of grill cooking. The design team aimed to create “a relaxed and refined space” by modelling their vision around the passions, menu and culinary stylings of chef Nathan Green. Shou Sugi Ban, a traditional charred cedar wood cladding used in Japanese vernacular architecture, has

Starwood Hotels has expanded its Latin American portfolio with the opening of the 119-bedroom W Punta de Mita in Mexico’s Riviera Nayarit. Owned by Fideicomiso Los Veneros, the new hotel is part of the multi-use oceanfront development Los Veneros. Designed by ASET/AOMA in collaboration with Oakland, California-based design firm Mister Important Design and Starwood’s in-house design team, the concept is inspired by the local bohemian surf culture found on Mexico’s

A Japanese fabric manufacturer has teamed up with Kengo Kuma and Associates to demonstrate how carbon fibre curtains can protect buildings from earthquakes. Komatsu Seiren have opened a laboratory in the city of Nomi, Ishikawa Prefecture, to showcase the invention – which is formed of carbon fibre mixed with a high tensile twine-like material. These curtains, or rods, spread across the structure like a curtain and tether it to the

German architect Ole Scheeren has completed one of his highest profile projects since leaving OMA and setting up his own studio: Thailand’s tallest building. MahaNakhon is a 77-storey, 314m (1,030ft) tall ‘pixelated’ skyscraper located in Bangkok’s Central Business District. The dramatic addition to the city’s skyline opened to the public this week with a spectacular light show. The multi-coloured LED display highlighted the three-dimensional ribbon of architectural pixels that coil

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

Australia’s Wave Park Group has proposed bringing one of its URBNSURF parks to Perth as a 4.5 hectare centrepiece for the city’s sports and recreation precinct. The surf park company wants to redevelop a bowls club in the 22 hectare Tompkins Park into a world-class destination that attracts surfers disappointed by the surfing opportunities along the coastline. “Perth is blessed with a number of idyllic beaches, but the surf quality

Spanish tenor Placido Domingo will tonight (31 August) officially open the nautically-themed new Dubai Opera House, with developer Emaar stating the venue will rival the Sydney Opera House for cultural impact. The singer, known as “the King of Opera”, will give the very first performance at the configurable 2,000 seat venue, which will host theatre, concerts, art exhibitions, opera, orchestra, film, sports events and seasonal programmes. Architecture studio Atkins were

Ma Yansong, Bjarke Ingels, Rem Koolhaas and Herzog and de Meuron are all in the running for the annual architecture prize awarded by London’s Design Museum. The ninth edition of the museum’s Beazley Designs of the Year will celebrate the best creations over the past 12 months across six categories: Architecture, Digital, Fashion, Graphics, Product and Transport. Yansong and his studio MAD are nominated for the Harbin Opera House; Ingels

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