In an exclusive interview with CLAD, one of the architects behind the hotly-anticipated Shanghai Planetarium has revealed new details about the project’s futuristic design. When it is completed in 2018, the 38,000sq m (409,000sq ft) development – a part of the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum in the city’s new Linglang district – will explore the mysteries of space, celebrate the history of Chinese astronomy and reflect the future ambitions

The high-profile development of Panama’s Amador Causeway has taken another step forward, with construction underway on a sweeping 32 acre leisure complex designed like a bird. The Harpy Eagle – the country’s national symbol – is the inspiration for the wing-like structure of the Panama Center for Events and Performing Arts, which will contain a 240,000sq ft (22,000sq m) interior banqueting hall reflecting the rainforest canopies that are the bird’s

The developers of a Californian museum dedicated to Armenian American culture have selected a local architecture firm to oversee the project. Alajajian Marcoosi Architects have unveiled their concept for the 1.7 acre complex in the city of Glendale, which will include an outdoor plaza and peace garden. The proposals show the museum – envisioned as a cultural campus to educate the public on the Armenian American story and cultural diversity

Turkish studio EAA-Emre Arolat Architecture have created a striking new home for some of Turkey's most important art works: a renovated warehouse which has been stripped of its floors and walls. The studio’s design team have stripped an abandoned dockland building so that only the concrete structure remains. This stark 24,000 sq m (258,000sq ft) structural grid will support large overhanging red containers, within which 15,000 art works dating as

The protracted development of Budapest’s museum quarter has taken a surprise twist, with organisers launching a second design competition for the new Museum of Ethnography building. Last year, French studio Vallet de Martinis DIID Architects won a competition to design a new home for the museum – which has a collection of more than 200,000 ethnographic artefacts and 400,000 historical documents. However, a government decision to relocate the planned building

The year ahead promises much excitement in the world of leisure architecture and design. New designs will be unveiled, ongoing projects will take shape and we will have our first look at completed buildings from the likes of Snøhetta, Thomas Heatherwick, Renzo Piano, Bjarke Ingels Group and David Adjaye. To celebrate the New Year, we have compiled a list of 12 projects scheduled for completion in 2016 that we are

Hard Rock International has revealed its plans to build a 372-room music-themed hotel in Berlin adjacent to Checkpoint Charlie and displaying a section of the Berlin Wall. According to project partner the Trockland Development Group, the hotel will form part of a 2.5 acre multi-use project commemorating the history and symbolism of the checkpoint; which was the best known crossing point between East and West Berlin during the Cold War.

The founder of Australia’s (MONA) in Hobart, Tasmania, has unveiled a host of planned leisure projects for the institution; including a 160-room art hotel, a casino and a collaboration with famous artist James Turrell. In a blog post titled Stuff We are Planning to Do, posted on the museum’s website, MONA founder David Walsh revealed several ambitious projects involving individuals from the worlds of art, architecture and design – including

Intricate geometric patterns of insects cover lurid pink walls inside the recently renovated Renwick Gallery in Washington DC, as part of an exhibition exploring the concept of wonder. American artist Jennifer Angus – who is acclaimed for her artistic installations using insects – is behind the work, titled In the Midnight Garden. To complete the piece, she selected 5,000 preserved insects from a variety of brightly-coloured Southeast Asian species and

David Adjaye, Renzo Piano and Snøhetta are among the big names in contention to design the Barack Obama Presidential Center on Chicago’s South Side. The centre is the US President’s legacy project, and will feature a museum preserving and making available papers, records, collections and other historical materials from his presidency. Barack and Michelle Obama will make the final decision on the architect, after receiving the foundation’s recommendation. After receiving

A unique new attraction is set to open in the Turkish city of Antakya by the end of 2016: a museum/hotel hybrid where guests can walk around archaeological ruins dating back more than 2,000 years. In 2010, international design studio Emre Arolat Architecture had been developing a five-star hotel development on the site, located close to St. Pierre Church – an early centre of Christianity and an important pilgrimage site.

A striking, sinuous opera house designed by Beijing studio MAD Architects has opened in the northern Chinese city of Harbin. Located within the wetlands surrounding the Songhua River, the Harbin Opera House has been designed as a response to the region’s untamed wilderness and chilly climate. The building’s smooth white aluminium walls twist and turn as if sculpted by the water and wind, blending into the surrounding environment and transfusing

Rio de Janeiro’s hotly-anticipated Museau do Amanhã (Museum of Tomorrow) – designed by prize-winning Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava – will be officially opened tomorrow (17 December) by the city’s mayor. The contemporary science museum, which has taken five years to build, is located in the city centre’s Porto Maravilha district – the site of the largest urban development project in Brazil. The Museum of Tomorrow will allow the public to

With construction of Louvre Abu Dhabi entering its final stages, government officials have said a handover of the building will take place in the middle of 2016 – on schedule for an amended opening date at the end of that year. Work on the iconic structure’s roof was completed in October last year, along with all 9,200sq m (99,000sq ft) of the museum’s galleries, plus the concrete work for the

New York's Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is to celebrate Pritzker Prize-winning Toyo Ito with an exhibition exploring how the Japanese architect has inspired fellow designers following in his footsteps. The exhibition – A Japanese Constellation: Toyo Ito, SANAA, and Beyond – will run from 13 March to 4 July 2016. On display will be a retrospective of recent works by three generations of internationally acclaimed designers who have been

The abandoned east wing of London’s iconic Alexandra Palace entertainment venue is to be restored and reopened to the public for the first time in decades. Three million people visit the palace every year to explore its grounds, enjoy concerts and take part in sporting events. However, it has been many years since the public have been able to access the hidden Victorian theatre and television studio located to the

The latest striking creation from the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) opens to the public today (11 December) in the Dutch city of Rotterdam. Designed as a series of pixelated steel and glass cubes that appear to float skywards, the Timmerhuis is a mixed-use complex housing shops, restaurants, cafes and Rotterdam’s city museum. The building is a merge between a 1950s municipal office block – which now forms the interior

The new branch of Taiwan’s National Palace Museum – one of the most-visited museums in the world – is nearing completion and set to open at the end of December. The National Palace Museum (NPM) Southern Branch, which has been designed by Taiwanese architect Kris Yao of Artech, will focus on Asian art and culture. The new museum is located in the southern county of Chiayi, reflecting wider ongoing efforts

Plans to build the tallest skyscraper in the City of London have been unveiled by Eric Parry Architects, who say it will feature the UK’s highest free public viewing gallery. At a height of 309.6m (1,000ft), Parry’s commercial tower, named 1 Undershaft, will be as tall as its Renzo Piano-designed neighbour The Shard – currently the tallest building in western Europe. It will be located in the heart of the

Film maker Sir Peter Jackson will invest millions of dollars into a blockbuster movie museum and convention centre in his home town of Wellington, New Zealand. The NZ$134m (US$88.7m, €81.7m, £59.1m), three-storey development, which will cover more than 10,000sq m (107,639sq ft) of prime waterfront land, will be built in the heart of Wellington’s central business district, pending city council approval. Also backed by Weta Workshop co-founder, Sir Richard Taylor

Mexico City’s Papalote Children’s Museum has unveiled the winning design for its future home; a forest-inspired building that promotes fun, exploration and discovery. Barcelona-based design studio MX_SI and Mexican firm SPRB were awarded first prize in the competition for the project, which attracted 171 entries from around the world. Construction is expected to begin early next year in Iztapalapa district. The new museum building – which will house an expanded

Seven galleries dedicated to European art and history at London’s Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum will reopen on 9 December following a £12.5m (US$19m, €17m) redesign by architects ZMMA. The entire front wing of the museum has been restored to house more than 1,000 artefacts dating from Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. Storage space has been reclaimed to enlarge the galleries by a third to 1,550sq m (16,700sq

The Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles reopens today (7 December) following a multi-million dollar redevelopment marking its 20th anniversary. The museum closed in October 2014 in readiness for an extensive US$125m (€112m, £80m) transformation both inside and out. The original 1960s building has been painted a bright red and fitted with a ribbon-like stainless steel exterior shell, designed by architects Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates. More than 800 LEDs accentuate

CLAD understands that the award-winning design for China’s new National Maritime Museum, created by Australian practice Cox Rayner Architects, is now likely to be realised in 2017. The project, located in the city of Tianjin, was originally set to open in 2015 but has suffered delays since it was named the Future Project of the Year at the World Architecture Festival (WAF) in 2013. A representative from Cox Rayner told

English Heritage has unveiled a series of six possible designs for a new footbridge at Tintagel Castle, a site long associated with the legend of King Arthur. The 13th century castle, built by Richard the Earl of Cornwall, first became a tourist site in the 19th century. Now mostly ruins, the heritage attraction sits on a jagged rock outcrop currently accessible by a long stair climb. The castle is among

Ontario’s Canada Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa has unveiled plans for a CA$80m (US$60m, €56.5m, £40m) renovation, upgrade and expansion, bringing the facility first opened in 1967 into the modern age. Designed by Canadian architecture firm NORR, the redevelopment masterplan includes five main galleries, temporary exhibition space, an artefacts gallery, maker space and classrooms. The museum’s main galleries will follow the themes of creating and using knowledge, moving and

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has launched an open design competition for a visitor centre at Langley Vale Wood; an ancient forest site in Surrey, England. UK conservation charity the Woodland Trust (WT) has partnered with RIBA to select an “innovative and imaginative” design for the 300sq m (3,200sq ft) structure, which will welcome 180,000 annual visitors to the 640-acre woodland site. “The visitor hub will provide our