The Brisbane Transit Centre – often cited as the Australian city’s ugliest building – is to be demolished to make way for a metro station and leisure district, dominated by an entertainment area from architects Populous. The project was confirmed in last week’s Queensland State Budget 2018-9, with deputy premier and treasurer Jackie Trad pledging that “the western gateway to the city will be totally transformed.” When complete, the new

Environmental artist Christo has completed his latest mammoth temporary structure: a 20m stack of barrels floating in Hyde Park’s Serpentine Lake. The London Mastaba, Christo’s first outdoor public work in the UK, is formed of 7,506 horizontally stacked barrels on a floating platform. Together they rise up to create a flat-roofed shape with sloping sides that first originated thousands of years ago in Mesopotamia. Construction began in April by JK

Ground has broken on a new museum in Winnipeg that will be the largest single gallery space in the world devoted to Inuit art, culture, and history. Designed by Michael Maltzan Architecture, the 400,000sq ft (37,000sq m) Inuit Art Centre (IAC) is an addition to the existing Winnipeg Art Gallery, created by Canadian architect Gustavo Da Roza and opened in 1971. The new additions will be connected to the main

The star attraction at Disney and Center Parcs’ new Villages Nature development outside Paris has been completed. The practice of French architect Jacques Ferrier have completed the 9,000sqm (96,875sq ft) AquaLagoon, which houses one of the largest indoor waterparks in Europe. The tiered pyramid structure contains wave pools, water slides and an active river alongside an open-air geothermal lagoon. Other attractions include an interactive farm, hanging gardens and adventure play

Frozen, Tangled and Peter Pan are coming to Disney's Tokyo theme park, after the operator announced a multi-billion dollar agreement with the Oriental Land Company for the largest expansion in the history of DisneySea. Expected to open in 2022, the development, which has been budgeted at ¥250bn (US$2.26bn, €1.95bn, £1.7bn), will see an eighth port comprising three themed areas opened, as well as a new luxury hotel. The port, says

Japanese multimedia art collective teamLab will open a unique Digital Art Museum on Thursday (21 June), permanently showcasing all of their dynamic interactive installations for the first time. The studio have partnered with the Mori Building Company to build the 10,000sq m (107,600sq ft) attraction, called ‘Borderless’, which will exhibit more than 50 interactive artworks across five zones. There are no divisions between the pieces, which extend beyond their rooms,

Copenhagen-based design studio Kvorning Design and Communication have created a new installation for Norway's Alta Museum, with the permanent exhibition examining a collection of rock art dating back to the Neolithic era. Located in Alta, Finnmark, the World Heritage Rock Art Centre – also known as the Alta Museum – sits within one of five areas of rock art, which was inscribed on Unesco's World Heritage List in 1985. The

Cirque du Soleil, the world renowned acrobatic circus, is increasing its presence in the attractions industry by launching its own brand of family entertainment centre (FEC). Parent company Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group revealed that the iconic performance troupe inspired the design and concept of the FEC, which will offer immersive, creative and active experiences for young children and their families. Called Creactive, it will now be rolled out to

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced that Studio McLeod and Ekkist have won the competition to design a new visitor centre for Sevenoaks Wildlife Reserve in Kent – a flagship visitor centre for the attraction. The pair were selected ahead of alternative submissions from ArkleBoyce Architects, Ben Adams Architects and Bilska de Beaupuy. “They are committed to bringing our vision to life with a building that engages

Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects have won the international design competition for the Chengdu Natural History Museum in Chengdu, China. The studio’s design, created in collaboration with the China Southwest Architectural Design and Research Institute (CSWADI), swayed the jury panel. It was selected ahead of submissions from Zaha Hadid Architects, Sutherland Hussey Harris, Nihon Sekkei, Valode & Pistre and FUKSAS. Located in the eastern part of the city, the 62,700sq m

Anticipation is rising ahead of a 12 July launch date for a brand new James Bond visitor attraction nestled snugly inside a mountain peak in Sölden, Austria. The state-of-the-art facility, called 007 ELEMENTS, promises to immerse visitors in an environment that will make them feel like secret agents themselves. Described as a cinematic installation, the new attraction will be housed in a purpose built structure designed by local architect Johann

One of Europe’s largest and most dramatic skateparks has been built in Luxembourg, in the shadow of a UNESCO World Heritage site. The multi-level park has been built beneath the stony Fortifications of Vauban in the Peitruss Valley, which separates Luxembourg's Old and New Towns. French studio Constructo Skatepark Architecture, based in Marseille, worked with members of the local skateboarding community to create a facility suitable for their needs and

He's created everything from hotel and restaurant interiors to Olympic torches and outdoor gym equipment. Now, multitasking French designer Philippe Starck has his most otherworldly commission yet: the interior of a luxurious space station for tourists. Space exploration company Axiom Space has announced it is launching its first space tourism programme in 2020, which will take its high-paying guests on expeditions to the International Space Station (ISS). Starck was asked

Mexican architect Frida Escobedo's Serpentine Pavilion will open in Kensington Gardens, London on Friday (15 June). Escobedo’s courtyard-based design harnesses a “subtle interplay of light, water and geometry” and is inspired in part by the domestic architecture of Mexico, the Prime Meridian line at London’s Royal Observatory in Greenwich, and British materials and history. The pavilion features a black steel frame, with stacks of cement roof tiles making up the

A former tuberculosis sanatorium designed by the iconic Finnish architect Alvar Aalto has gone up for sale. The clean-lined Paimio Sanatorium, completed in 1933 in a large woodland site 30 km (18 miles) east of Turku, Finland, brought Aalto international recognition and put Finland on the international map of modern architecture. The Functionalist building has been nominated to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site and attracts thousands of Aalto enthusiasts

Kengo Kuma and Associates, in collaboration with OODA, have won a competition to redevelop an abandoned industrial slaughterhouse in Porto into a public complex featuring a museum, library and performance spaces. The Matadouro building was once an important urban landmark. However, it was closed and abandoned almost 20 years ago and has gradually become disconnected from the city as new buildings – including a speedway and a stadium for FC

London mayor Sadiq Khan has set out a £1.1bn vision for East Bank at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park – a brand new masterplan for the former ‘Olympicopolis’ cultural scheme. The waterfront site has been redesigned by architects Allies and Morrison, O’Donnell + Tuomey, and Camps Felip Arquitecturia, following detailed public consultation. Envisioned as “a new powerhouse of culture, education, innovation and growth,” the project was first planned to secure the

St Louis' Gateway Arch has undergone a redevelopment, with architecture studio Cooper Robertson expanding and renovating the museum beneath the record-holding structure. Sitting in the shadow of the Eero Saarinen-designed arch – the tallest structure of its kind in the world – a total of 4,200sq m (45,000sq ft) of new museum area has been added to the west of Saarinen’s underground original, which has itself been renovated and reconfigured

London practice Baharash Architecture have designed three self-sustaining biodome attractions for the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which are being developed to promote the country’s booming ecotourism market. Located in the eastern part of the UAE, in the Al Hajar Mountains, the project will provide facilities for a wildlife conservation centre, a restaurant, educational workshops and an adventure-based wilderness retreat – all housed within the three giant domes. The structures will

A design team led by US studio Diller Scofidio + Renfro and Australian architects Woods Bagot has won the international design competition for the Adelaide Contemporary art museum. Intended to revitalise the site of the former Royal Adelaide Hospital (oRAH), the attraction will be a sister museum to the Art Gallery of South Australia, combining exhibition, research and education spaces with a public sculpture park and community meeting place. It

The city of Melbourne is aiming to secure itself as Australia's culture capital, with the development of the country's largest contemporary art gallery and its tallest building. To be built next door to the National Gallery of Victoria as part of a new arts precinct, the NGV Contemporary site would be developed at a cost of AU$151m (US$115mm, €98.5m, £86m), replacing the former Carlton & United Brewery. Victoria State will

The headquarters of Santander are to be transformed into a public space and art gallery following the move of the Spanish banking giant to new offices. Coming as part of an initiative to bring much of the bank’s vast art collection – currently held in Madrid – to Santander itself, Santander will move its operation to the nearby Banesto building, freeing up its former home for public use. British architect

Architecture firm Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners have completed a distillery and visitor experience for whisky producer The Macallan, embedded into the landscape of Scotland’s Easter Elchies Estate. The £140m (US$187m, €160m) project, which took three and a half years to build and opened on 2 June, features an undulating, meadow-covered roof described by the Macallan as “one of the most complicated timber structures in the world” Comprising 1,800 single

Herzog and de Meuron have completed their latest cultural project: a museum and arts complex spread inside a walled compound of heritage justice buildings on Hong Kong Island. A dramatic light show marked the opening of the Tai Kwun Centre for Heritage and Arts on 25 May, with 150 guests in attendance, including the administrative region’s chief executive Carrie Lam. Over twelve years, the Swiss architects have carefully restored 16

Architects Woods Bagot are transforming an abandoned sugar factory in Zhuhai, China, into a cultural, tourism and leisure park that celebrates the city’s industrial heritage and welcomes visitors with a sweet tooth. The Hongqi Zhen Sugar Factory was opened in the 1960s and became a key pillar of Southern China’s sugar plantation and processing industry. However, the industry eventually fell into a decline and the complex closed its doors in

French architect Elizabeth de Portzamparc has revealed to CLADglobal how she wanted to “glorify 21 centuries of architectural history” with her Roman museum in the French city of Nîmes, which opens today (2 June) in the shadow of a real-life Roman amphitheatre next door. The Musée de la Romanité de Nîmes has been designed as a striking, fluid building that forms a contemporary counterpoint to the neighbouring Arena of Nîmes.

Fifa's World Football Museum is opening a temporary exhibition in Moscow, Russia, through the course of this year's World Cup. To be hosted at the Hyundai Motorstudio in the Russian capital, the major exhibition – called The History Makers – will open on 9 June, five days ahead of the football tournament's kick off. The exhibition runs until 20 July, five days after the tournament's conclusion. As part of The