Architecture and design news:
arts & culture
Snøhetta fight for sustainability with solar-powered installation at Singapore light festival
by Kim Megson | 04 Mar 2016
Norwegian architects Snøhetta have today (4 March) launched a solar-powered light installation in Singapore to promote energy efficiency and environmental sustainability. The structure – called Lampshade – is a simple bamboo volume covered with photovoltaic (solar power) cells. It is is filled with intense light during the evenings using solar energy collected during the day. The installation is being displayed at i Light Marina Bay, Asia’s leading sustainable light art
Jean Nouvel's Geneva museum expansion rejected by public vote, opening door for new proposals
by Kim Megson | 04 Mar 2016
Jean Nouvel’s long-running bid to renovate and expand Geneva’s Museum of Art and History has received what appears to be a fatal blow after his plans were narrowly rejected in a public vote. Despite receiving planning approval and funding, the 131m CHF (US$129m, €120m, £93.4m) project to refresh Marc Camoletti’s 1910 neoclassical landmark faced a local referendum after criticism from campaigners. According to Swiss reports, 54 per cent of voters
Shakespeare theatre on Chicago's Navy Pier to undergo US$35m expansion
by Tom Anstey | 03 Mar 2016
The Chicago Shakespeare Theater is expanding its footprint on the city’s iconic Navy Pier, with US$35m (€32.2m, £24.9m) being used to develop a flexible third stage capable of being adapted based on the performance. With audience capacity ranging from 150 to 850 in an enclosed space beneath the domed Skyline Stage area, the theatre, known as The Yard at Shakespeare, will have the capability to project images onto the underside
Four Seasons Restaurant in New York wins inaugural design icon award from James Beard Foundation
by Kim Megson | 02 Mar 2016
The James Beard Foundation – which celebrates America's culinary heritage – has launched a ‘Design Icon Restaurant Award’, with the inaugural winner announced today (2 March) as the Four Seasons Restaurant in New York. The special award has been established to recognise restaurants in the US “that serve as national standard bearers of outstanding design and design innovation.” In order to qualify, a restaurant’s design must have remained unchanged for
Wanda Group to make multi-billion investment in Europa City
by Tom Anstey | 02 Mar 2016
The Wanda Group is to announce a multi-billion dollar investment into the currently under-development Europa City on the outskirts of Paris. The €3.1bn (US$3.5bn, £2.4bn) project – one of the largest ongoing leisure developments on the planet – is reportedly gaining investment from Wanda, China’s largest private property developer, and its owner Wang Jianlin. According to Variety, sources close to Wanda have said the company would confirm its role in
Design Museum Dharavi opens with two exhibitions in Mumbai slum
by Kim Megson | 29 Feb 2016
Design Museum Dharavi - a portable museum in one of the world’s largest slums – has opened in Mumbai, India with exhibitions on terracotta pottery and cricket. Spanish artist Jorge Mañes Rubio and art critic Amanda Pinatih have launched the project for an initial two month run to host workshops, exhibitions and cultural events showcasing the skills of local artists and designers in Dharavi – home to more than 1m
Shell-shaped Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology nears completion in Lisbon
by Kim Megson | 26 Feb 2016
The new Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology (MAAT), designed by British architecture firm AL_A, is entering the final phases of construction along Lisbon’s waterfront. Designed as a new landmark for the city and Portugal, the museum will cross the disciplines of art, architecture and technology with a cultural programme masterminded by Pedro Gadanho, the former curator of architecture and design exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art in New
Beach art competition: Winter Station winners go on display in Toronto
by Kim Megson | 25 Feb 2016
Citizens in Toronto, Canada have taken to the city’s wind-swept beaches to enjoy the 2016 Winter Stations art festival, which features seven creative architectural installations built around existing lifeguard stations. A special competition was held last year to choose the winning designs for the festival, with the only stipulation being that the structures had to be in some way interactive and able to inspire Torontonians to brace the chilly winter
Haunting and beautiful: Europe's first underwater museum set to open in Lanzarote
by Kim Megson | 25 Feb 2016
Lanzarote’s Museo Atlantico, Europe’s first underwater art museum, is preparing to open 12 metres below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean. Divers, snorkelers and visitors in glass-bottomed boats will be able to view crowds of motionless human figures sculpted by British artist Jason deCaires Taylor and carefully fixed to the ocean bed. Schools of fish weave through motionless figures, fixed in time, taking selfies, using tablets and phones and striding
Fairytale folk museum by Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter opens in Norway
by Kim Megson | 25 Feb 2016
Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter have completed a new home for the Romsdal Folk Museum in Molde, Norway which looks like a pine-clad castle from the pages of a Scandinavian fairytale. The 3,500sq m (36,600sq ft) museum building – which exhibits an extensive collection of Norwegian cultural artefacts and hosts concerts, workshops and lectures – has been officially opened by Norwegian prime minister Erna Solberg. Molde is known for its ethereal pine
First look: Bjarke Ingels' intriguing design for 2016 Serpentine Pavilion
by Kim Megson | 24 Feb 2016
The first images have been revealed of the Serpentine Gallery’s 2016 pavilion programme, featuring four summer houses by international architects and a centrepiece created by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG). BIG’s hotly-anticipated pavilion – the studio’s first UK structure – has been described as an “unzipped wall”. The structure – formed by a series of box-like fibreglass frames stacked in a brick-wall pattern – will host a Harrods-run cafe and events
Mateusz Tanski's competition-winning Polish sports centre will resemble a scattered pile of rocks
by Kim Megson | 24 Feb 2016
Warsaw architecture studio Mateusz Tanski & Associates have won a design competition in Poland to build a stadium, sports and culture complex nestled in a quarry in the city of Jaworzno. The design is inspired by the rich geological landscape of the region. The complex will be formed of a 1,000-capacity athletics stadium designed to resemble a rock and six free-standing buildings evoking scattered boulders. The shape of the structures
Gwyneth Paltrow and architects Gensler collaborating on private arts club for LA's Sunset Strip
by Kim Megson | 23 Feb 2016
Renderings have been released for a private Los Angeles arts club on Sunset Boulevard reportedly being developed by Gwyneth Paltrow. According to several media outlets in Hollywood, the Oscar-winning actor and lifestyle coach is backing the project with her business partner Gary Landesberg. The facility, which is being developed on the site of erotic boutique Hustler, will be an extension of The Arts Club in London – where Paltrow is
Winnipeg Art Gallery adds 8,000 artefacts to collection as CA$60m Inuit Art Centre plans advance
by Tom Anstey | 22 Feb 2016
More than 8,000 artefacts of Inuit origin will soon go on display at the Winnipeg Art Gallery in Canada as part of a CA$60m (US$43.7m, €39.4m, £30.5m) project to create an Inuit Art Centre. With more than 13,000 pieces, including 7,400 sculptures, 4,000 prints, 1,800 drawings and hundreds of artefacts, The Winnipeg Art Gallery’s Inuit collection is the largest in the world and represents half of its overall collection. The
James Goldstein gifting US$40m Big Lebowski house to Los Angeles County Museum of Art
by Tom Anstey | 19 Feb 2016
The owner of a US$40m (€36m, £28m) luxury house, famous for its role in 1998 comedy The Big Lebowski, is to donate the property to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) with the intention of turning it into a museum and example of creativity within architecture. James Goldstein, who owns the Sheats Goldstein residence in the Hollywood hills, has pledged the building to LACMA, along with its gardens,
Damien Hirst has designed his own restaurant at Newport Street Gallery
by Kim Megson | 18 Feb 2016
A medical-themed restaurant designed by Damien Hirst will open at London’s Newport Street Gallery next week (23 February). Hirst has collaborated with chef and restaurateur Mark Hix to open Pharmacy 2, which will serve British and European dishes to visitors at the Vauxhall gallery – which was designed by architects Caruso St John and opened in October 2015 to house Hirst’s personal art collection. The restaurant features Hirst’s own artistic
Studio Gang complete illuminated Chicago theatre
by Kim Megson | 18 Feb 2016
Architecture and urbanism collective Studio Gang have completed a performing arts centre in Glencoe, Chicago, which is designed as a new cultural landmark for the city. Built for the Writers Theatre group, which produces inventive interpretations of classic plays, the theatre features an elevated glass box lobby which glows in the dark at night to beckon people in. The theatre is spread across a village-like cluster of distinct volumes around
Film City Tower: Architecture competition launched for Bollywood landmark building as Mumbai takes on LA
by Kim Megson | 15 Feb 2016
Designs are being sought for a large-scale cultural landmark celebrating the Indian film industry in Mumbai. Competition organiser Archasm is embarking on a mission to “put Bollywood on the global map” by organising a design contest for a “vertical Film City tower” which will emulate Los Angeles’ film industry neighbourhood and the iconic Hollywood sign. “The film industry in Mumbai is scattered and too low profile to match the cult
Stunning digital installations encourage creativity, play and immersion at Silicon Valley art show
by Kim Megson | 15 Feb 2016
Japanese digital art collective teamLab have partnered with Silicon Valley gallery Pace Art + Technology to create a large-scale interactive art exhibition described as a “digital playground for all ages”. The exhibition, called Living Digital Space and Future Parks, features 20 innovative art pieces spread across several rooms and 20,000sq ft (1,850sq m) in the Californian gallery. The show encourages participants to embrace their curiosity by interacting directly with the
Herzog & de Meuron complete €47m renovation of historic Unterlinden Museum in France
by Kim Megson | 12 Feb 2016
After three years of work, the Unterlinden Museum in Colmar, France has re-opened to the public, with a new subterranean gallery space created by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron. The museum – which exhibits historic works of art from the likes of Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso – has almost doubled its interior space by linking the museum with an adjacent complex of historical buildings, including a 13th century
Why not spend a night in Van Gogh's bedroom?
by Kim Megson | 12 Feb 2016
The Art Institute of Chicago is giving visitors to the US city the chance to step directly into the world of Vincent Van Gogh. To celebrate an upcoming exhibition on the Dutch post-impressionist, the institute has recreated a human-scale model of Van Gogh’s bedroom from his famous French ‘Yellow House’, and is renting it to guests via room listing website Airbnb. Van Gogh was so taken by his room –
MAD Architects are building a floating art museum in China
by Kim Megson | 12 Feb 2016
Pingtan Art Museum, a spectacular floating cultural island designed by Beijing-based innovators MAD Architects, has entered the construction phase in China’s Fujian province. Pingtan is the largest island in the region and has been designated by the government as a primary location for cultural and tourism development. The museum has been in development since 2011 and will be the cultural centrepiece of the zone. It will float in waters just
Bjarke Ingels will design 2016 Serpentine Gallery pavilion
by Kim Megson | 10 Feb 2016
Danish architect Bjarke Ingels and his studio BIG have been chosen to design the 2016 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion within London’s Kensington Gardens. The studio now have six months to develop and complete their design before it goes on display as the centrepiece of this year's Serpentine Galleries summer pavilion exhibition. For the first time, the galleries have also announced an expansion to the annual four-month event, with four other architects
National Arts Centre in Ottawa begins million-dollar makeover
by Kim Megson | 10 Feb 2016
A groundbreaking ceremony has been held to mark the beginning of “an architectural rejuvenation” for Canada’s National Arts Centre (NAC) in Ottawa. Toronto studio Diamond Schmitt Architects have designed a CAD$110m (US$79.3m, €40.4m, £54m) extension to the Brutalist 1960s structure, adding a new North Atrium and entrance made from glass and a marquee tower which will display live performances from the main stage on a huge screen. According to the
Ennead Architects complete cantilevered Westmoreland Art Museum expansion
by Kim Megson | 10 Feb 2016
The architects behind the US$20m (€17.7m, £13.8m) renovation of the Westmoreland Museum of American Art in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, have claimed their work has launched “a new era” for the institution. New York studio Ennead Architects have used a simple palette of materials and textures – including precast concrete, zinc, brick and glass – to unify the 13,500sq ft (1,250sq m) expansion with the existing neo-Georgian structure. A new eastern brick
Re-discovered Shakespeare Theatre to provide cultural heart of £750m London mixed-use scheme
by Kim Megson | 09 Feb 2016
The Elizabethan theatre where William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and Henry V were performed for the first time is at the centre of a new £750m (US$1bn, €968.7m) mixed-use destination for London. The historic remains of The Curtain Theatre, which dates back to 1577, were discovered buried three metres beneath a disused Victorian goods yard earmarked for development in 2011. The Curtain was home to Shakespeare’s Theatre Company and the
'As great as the Burj Khalifa': Santiago Calatrava wins contract for futuristic Dubai tower
by Kim Megson | 08 Feb 2016
Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava has beaten competition from five unnamed international rivals to design a landmark cultural tower in Dubai. The ruler of the emirate, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, approved Calatrava’s futuristic design, which he hailed as an "architectural wonder that will be as great as Burj Khalifa and Eiffel Tower." According to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), the sheikh – who is also vice president of the
Groundbreaking ceremony held for Foster + Partners' Norton Museum of Art in Florida
by Kim Megson | 08 Feb 2016
A groundbreaking ceremony has been held for the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach, Florida. British architects Foster + Partners are expanding the existing Art Deco-inspired museum – which opened in 1941 – adding 12,000sq ft (1,100sq m) in gallery space and creating a new entrance to regain the symmetry of the building’s original east-west axial arrangement. Three new double-height pavilions made of white stone will house a
Reimagined Helsinki City Museum sets May opening date
by Tom Anstey | 05 Feb 2016
Helsinki City Museum in Finland has announced an opening date of May 2016, following an €11m (US$12.3m, £8.4m) 18-month refurbishment of its premises, the most extensive transformation in the museum’s 105-year history. Moving from its current home within Helsinki’s historical district to a new location in Senate Square, the museum will be made up of a group of five historical buildings surrounding three inner courtyards, opening up spaces never previously
David Chipperfield and Sou Fujimoto among the winners in design competition to 'prefigure the Paris of tomorrow'
by Kim Megson | 04 Feb 2016
A major international architecture competition for the urban regeneration of Paris has concluded, with 22 design teams selected to develop their innovative visions for the future of the French capital. The project, called reinventer.paris, launched in November 2014 with an invitation for architects, designers, investors, companies, collectives and artists to “prefigure what the Paris of tomorrow might be” for “an urban experiment on an unparalleled scale.” Over 800 proposals were
company profile
Try cladmag for free!
Sign up with CLAD to receive our regular ezine, instant news alerts, free digital subscriptions to CLADweek, CLADmag and CLADbook and to request a free sample of the next issue of CLADmag.
sign up
Catalogue Gallery
Click on a catalogue to view it online
To advertise in our catalogue gallery: call +44(0)1462 431385
features
"Culture is the beating heart of this project"
Designed to restore neglected land and renew the identity of Iraq’s capital city, Baghdad Sustainable Forests promises a new way of living surrounded by nature. Gensler’s Ian Mulcahay tells us why he thinks the project could become a model for the repair and enhancement of urban centres
Designed to restore neglected land and renew the identity of Iraq’s capital city, Baghdad Sustainable Forests promises a new way of living surrounded by nature. Gensler’s Ian Mulcahay tells us why he thinks the project could become a model for the repair and enhancement of urban centres
cladkit product news
LivinGlobe can install ultra short throw projections or premium LED panels, as well as the surround sound system and video server
Founded more than 10 years ago, LivinGlobe was one of the first companies in the immersive wellness space with its ...
Lucas Zito’s practice specialises in the design of lights through 3D printing
A collection of lighting from Paris-based designer Lucas Zito aims to reframe the idea of 3D printed objects as cheap ...
cladkit product news
Studiotamat has teamed up with Ariana de Luca to create the Balera range
The new Balera Collection sees design studio Studiotamat team up with ceramic artist Arianna De Luca and lighting designer Ninefifty ...
The system uses heat-treated lime wood cladding, available in either a dark or light tone
Sauna specialist Effe (formerly Effegibi) has introduced its new sauna and hammam collection, Baluar, designed by architect and designer Patricia ...
cladkit product news
The new club aims to connect children with nature
Bespoke play environment design and manufacturer TouchWood Play has announced that it is responsible for the creation of a new Kids’ ...
In the world of wellness, the age-old tradition of sauna bathing is synonymous with relaxation, detoxification and rejuvenation. But, a ...
