New images have been released of the completed handball arena for the Rio Olympics and Paralympics, which will be dismantled after the Games so that the materials can be used to build four schools. The temporary 12,000-seat stadium – designed by Brazilian practices Oficina de Arquitetos and Lopes, Santos & Ferreira Gomes in collaboration with London studio AndArchitects – will be used officially for the first time when sport’s biggest

Dramatic new drone footage has been released to showcase the architectural features of Herzog and de Meuron’s hotly-awaited Elbe Philharmonic building in Hamburg, Germany. The shimmering complex will house three concert halls, a Starwood Westin hotel and spa, 45 private apartments and an indoor public plaza when it officially opens on 11 January 2017. To whet appetites for the curtain-raising, a new website has been set up taking viewers on

The rebuilding of a disused ice rink in Schierke, Germany has officially started, with architecture studio GRAFT transforming the site into a multi-use sports arena with a unique roof structure. The Nature Rink, located at the foot of the snow-topped Harz Mountains, is one of the country’s oldest natural ice stadiums. It is being renovated at a cost of more than €7m (US$7.7m, £5.8m) enabling it to host ice sports

Reality television star and socialite Paris Hilton, will open her own eponymous luxury hotel chain, Forbes is reporting. The 35-year-old granddaughter of Hilton Hotels founder Conrad Hilton will open the first locations in Dubai, New York and Las Vegas. Hilton has been working with Century Properties in the Philippines for the past few years, designing its Paris Beach Club for the Azure Urban Resort Residence, and her second Paris Beach

The City of Los Angeles has selected a design team led by local architects Gruen Associates to design 12 miles of the LA River Greenway. Mayor Eric Garcetti and the city’s engineering bureau have commissioned the studio to create new green space and pedestrian and cycle routes from Canoga Park to Elysian Valley, with “a next-generation, L.A.-specific design aesthetic.” The greenway design must also include shade elements, stormwater capture features

Italian collective the Network of Architecture (noa*) have completed their apple-inspired spa and wellness centre for a boutique hotel in Italy’s Passiria Valley. The outer structure of the Applesauna wellness building is totally green, and is experienced as a hill. It evolves into a “mystical and intimate space” as guests move inside to use the sauna, showers and relaxation area. A key element of the design is the cycle of

The village of Woodhall Spa – one of only 22 spa towns in England – is one step closer to seeing its vision of restoring an original spa from the 19th century. Following a well collapse in 1983, the baths fell into a state of disrepair and have since been derelict, leaving the mineral-rich waters unused. Local developer GN Construction has conceived a vision to resurrect the baths and create

The UK should use Brexit as an opportunity to create an immigration policy which stimulates its creative industries, according to Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) director Patrik Schumacher. Talking to CLAD, Schumacher said that leaving the European Union (EU) could facilitate “a more tailored approach” to immigration that gives architects and designers from outside the EU more opportunity to move to the UK. The architect – who said “he didn't like

Bootcamp fitness studio operator TRIB3 has launched a new design concept which will bring mobile gyms to local parks, schools and open spaces across the UK and overseas. The compact gyms are built within a shipping-style container. At the touch of a button, a hydraulic system opens up the gym within ten minutes, revealing a mini studio with treadmills and workout mats. The concept was created by TRIB3 and designed

German architect Wolfgang Frey has made a strong commitment to sustainable practice by creating his own forest as a means of repaying his carbon dioxide debt. The site, located on China’s Xishan mountain, covers 12.4 acres and has been planted with more than 6,000 trees. Frey – who has advised Chinese government ministers and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on issues of sustainability – has several ongoing leisure and housing projects

MVRDV have revealed their design for Paradise City; a 9,800sq m (105,500sq ft) entertainment plaza in Seoul, South Korea. Located close to Incheon Airport, the complex will feature a boutique hotel, food-court, galleries, a spa, retail space and a nightclub. It will open in time for the 2018 Winter Olympic games, and will act as a tourist hotspot for visitors to the city – with a mono-rail link connecting it

Brazilian designer Isay Weinfeld has been tasked with designing the new home for the Four Seasons restaurant in New York, which has just closed its iconic Manhattan home of 56 years. The Four Seasons’ owners are relocating from the Seagram Building after being unable to negotiate an extension to their current lease. They are widely expected to move the restaurant south, to a spot on Park Avenue. After winning a

Starwood Hotels & Resorts has announced it will debut its W Hotels brand in Scotland at the 12-storey ‘ribbon’ building designed by Jestico + Whiles in the heart of Edinburgh. The striking building – which has proven controversial due to its eye-catching steel facade and mooted location in the centre of the historic city – is set to complete in 2020. It will be the centrepiece of the Edinburgh St

Interior designers Studio Proof have revamped Amsterdam’s famous Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky to evoke the atmosphere and stylistic flourishes of the 1920s. The hotel, which was established by enterprising tailor Wilhelm Krasnapolsky in 1855, is one of the city’s oldest and has become a landmark in Dam Square. It is now part of the NH Collection’s portfolio of five star hotels across Europe. Studio Proof were tasked with refreshing the hotel’s

PortAventura has revealed the official opening date for its Ferrari Land attraction, with the theme park addition coming to the Spanish resort on 7 April 2017. The 60,000sq m (646,000sq ft) Ferrari Land will be centred around its vertical accelerator rollercoaster, which will become the tallest in Europe at 112m (367.5ft), exceeding PortAventura’s own Shambhala for the impressive record. The ride’s structure was completed earlier this year, with trains added

Construction on future World Cup venue the Qatar Foundation Stadium is expected to begin soon, with a contractor reportedly now attached to the project. According to Arabian Business, Cyprus-based engineering firm Joannou & Paraskevaides (J&P) has been awarded the contract to build the 40,000-capacity venue, which will host games at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The stadium has been designed by Fenwick Iribarren Architects, who have taken inspiration

Unesco has included a new addition to its World Heritage list for 2016, adding 17 sites across three continents, to recognise the work of Swiss architect Le Corbusier. Of the 21 new additions to Unesco’s list of more than 1,000, The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement is perhaps the most unique as it covers seven countries – Argentina, Belgium, France, Germany, India, Japan

The transformation of Governors Island in New York into a landscaped tourist destination is complete, with ten acres of new public realm by Dutch architects West 8 opening today (19 July). The studio have created four hills, rising high above the island to offer a 360-degree panoramic experience of the city’s harbour. Formerly a military base located a short ferry ride from Manhattan and Brooklyn, the site is now an

Architecture firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) have unveiled a long-term masterplan to develop a vast new urban district in Philadelphia. The scheme, which is centred around the city’s 30th Street Station precinct, envisions 40 new acres of open space and 18 million square feet of new development, including an entirely new mixed-use neighbourhood. Over the next three decades and beyond, city planners want the station to become a new

Two international architecture competitions have been launched to design a pair of major arts facilities for one of the biggest districts in the Chinese city of Shenzhen. The district government of Bao’an has fired the starting gun on the contests to create both a Public Culture and Arts Center and a new library and concert hall. The former is a new build project which will house a museum, art gallery

The main contractor has been appointed for the construction of Urban Sports Park (USP) – a multi-level indoor skating complex in Folkestone, UK designed by Guy Holloway Architects. The developer of the project, Shepway Sports Trust, has commissioned Westridge Construction to carry out the main work on the building, which received approval from the district council in February. Preparations will take place soon for construction to begin, with a target

Championship football club Queens Park Rangers (QPR) has won planning permission to build a £175m (US$231.4m, €209.2m) mixed-use development on the site it has identified for a new stadium. The football club and Genesis Housing Association have received the green-light from the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) to establish 605 new homes – 40 per cent of which are being described as affordable – and leisure amenities

Developers hoping to build a mixed-use complex near London’s Paddington Station have revealed Renzo Piano’s latest vision for the project. A previous tower proposal nicknamed ‘the Paddington Pole’ drew a barrage of criticism from some quarters about its height, and the plan was abandoned in January. However, Piano was retained by the Sellers Property Group (SPG) and Great Western Developments to comprehensively rethink the design. The result is the Paddington

Four Seasons is opening a resort on the remote island of Desroches in the Seychelles as well as a new luxury hotel in the heart of Tokyo’s bustling Otemachi business district. The Four Seasons Resort Seychelles at Desroches Island is the only resort on the island of Desroches, and is an existing property that will undergo extensive renovations before opening as a Four Seasons in 2017. Featuring 40 beach suites

One of Copenhagen’s most popular parks will be filled with sunken pools and water-purifying plants to ease the risk and impact of flooding and to create a public space with a difference. Architecture studio SLA have won the ‘Cloudburst and Culture’ competition to design the DKK140m (US$21m, €18.8m, £15.6m) project for Hans Tavsens Park in the Nørrebro neighbourhood. Once complete, the park’s basins will cover over 85,000sq m (915,000sq ft)

Plans to build “the world’s first underground park” in New York have taken a major step forward with the city’s Economic Development Corporation (NYEDC) approving the project. The US$60m (€53.6m, £44.8m) Lowline scheme, designed by James Ramsey of Raad Studio, will see the transformation of an abandoned underground trolley terminal in Manhattan's Lower East Side into a community-oriented public and cultural space. Solar technology will directly deliver sunlight underground, lighting