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

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

Six months on from his death, a tribute to music legend Prince will come in the form of a museum at his Paisley Park home and recording complex in Chanhassen, Minneapolis. First announced after the death of the musician in April, the tribute museum has been given an official opening date of 6 October. First opened in 1988, the studio was designed by California-based architecture firm BOTO Design and was

The Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, is one step closer to a US$49m (€43.4m, £37.2m) facility expansion after the city’s Design Review Board approved the project unanimously. Now moving on to its construction document phase, the project will enter a new round of city review and approvals ahead of a proposed groundbreaking later this year. Plans originally envisioned a US$200m (€177m, £151.6m) expansion, but were abandoned following the death

A new museum and memorial in Montgomery, Alabama has been designed by MASS Design Group and the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) to confront America’s history of slavery. The Memorial to Peace and Justice, which is scheduled to open in 2017, is planned as a space of remembrance “that embraces truth and inspires reflection and change.” It will be the country’s first national memorial to victims of lynching. In a joint

A new US$8m (€7.1m, £6.1m) science centre telling the story of the Colorado Plateau and encouraging exploration of the wider area – which is home to the Grand Canyon – has opened its doors to the public in Utah. Located in the city of Monticello, the 16,200sq ft (1,500sq m) Canyon Country Discovery Center looks at the Four Corners region – the quadripoint in the Southwest US where the states

A museum celebrating the successes of Jim Clark is on the cards after plans were unveiled by the Scottish Borders Council to celebrate the life of the two-time Formula One world champion. To be financed in-part by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) pending approval, the £1.65m (US$2.2m, €1.9m) project would see the existing Jim Clark Room in Duns expanded and redeveloped to allow a selection of cars and trophies to

Two architecture studios hope to show how remote heritage sites can be served by ‘satellite’ visitor centres through their own design for a tourist hub which celebrates an uninhabited Scottish archipelago from a location on a nearby island. Scottish studio Dualchas Architects and Norway’s Reiulf Ramstad Architects, who are working in the UK for the first time, have unveiled their masterplan for the St Kilda Visitor Centre. They propose the

Construction has begun on a 200,000sq ft (18,600sq m) entertainment complex devoted to Elvis Presley, located across the street from his famous Graceland Mansion in Memphis. The project is the most significant expansion in the history of Graceland, which has been open to the public as a museum since 1982. Called Elvis: Past, Present & Future, the US$45m (€40m, £34.3m) complex will explore Elvis’ personal interests and activities throughout his

A pop-up preview of James Corner Field Operations’ Miami Underline will open on Tuesday (23 August) to showcase how the landscape architects plan to transform the land beneath the city’s MetroRail into a 10 mile linear park. The pop-up will take place at the Underline’s ‘Brickell Backyard’ fitness area, located at the north end of the Miami River, at 10.30am EDT. Event-goers – who are being encouraged to come to

Architects Höweler + Yoon have proposed an interactive ‘Living Lab’ for the Dubai 2020 Expo, which would creatively explore human empathy. The Empathy Pavilion, designed like a giant elevated cave, would house a 300-person capacity exhibition gallery on the ground floor, several workshop spaces on the second floor and a black box theatre on the top floor. The architects have partnered with the MIT Media Lab’s Opera of the Future

The largest and highest observation wheel in the world is taking shape on Dubai’s Bluewaters Island, with the structure’s hub and spindle safely placed on top of its 126m (413ft) high legs. Two of the world’s largest cranes have assembled the key components of the wheel, which will be called Ain Dubai. The current weight of the structure is 1,805 tonnes – equivalent to four Airbus A380 aircraft. The hub

More than a decade on from its conception, the National Museum of Oman has opened its doors to the public, showcasing the cultural heritage of the sultanate from prehistoric times to the modern day. The 13,700sq m (148,000sq ft) development in Muscat includes 4,000sq m (43,000sq ft) of space allocated for 14 exhibition halls, each covering different part of the history of Oman, with an additional 376sq m (4,000sq ft)

British designer Thomas Heatherwick has launched an impassioned defence of his Garden Bridge project in London, arguing that the project has been used as a political football by “people with an agenda” and those “who love to sneer.” The scheme – a 367m (1,200ft) planted River Thames crossing linking South Bank and Temple – has attracted controversy and negative headlines over the allegedly opaque procurement process and the public funding

Famed Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama will be the subject of a touring exhibition, with the 87-year-old artist's “infinity mirror” installations set to travel the US in 2017 through 2018. Debuting on 23 February 2017 at the Smithsonian Institution’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors will then travel to a number of notable museums across the US including the Seattle Art Museum, the Broad in Los Angeles, Toronto’s

Indian architecture practice Design Forum International have designed a 380m long elevated walkway in Kolkata to regenerate one of the city’s busiest neighbourhoods and bring leisure to the skies. The Skywalk has been proposed by the city government to separate pedestrians and road traffic around Dakshineshwar Temple, one of the city’s most visited places of worship. As well as improving ease of movement and safety by creating a new link

Plans to open New York’s largest Ferris wheel have been delayed, with project leader and CEO Rich Marin, saying the 630ft (192m) high attraction will now open in April 2018. Originally scheduled for early next year before being pushed back to mid- and then late 2017, the US$580m (€514.8m, £447.1m) wheel has been delayed thanks to a “complicated engineering process”. "If someone says, 'You're a year behind,' It's hard for

Middle Eastern developer Nakheel and Spanish hospitality giant RIU Hotels & Resorts have officially kickstarted development on an 800-room resort and waterpark at Dubai’s artificial Deira Islands. Planning advisory firm Dar Al Handasah have been appointed to oversee the design, engineering and construction of the AED900m (US$268m, €219m, £190.3m) project. Nakheel and RIU signed a joint venture agreement in Palma, Mallorca, in February this year to develop an affordable family

The Hettema Group (THG) recently introduced the first in a series of pop-up installations to Los Angeles’ Union Station, with various events to run at the station through the summer months. The interactive media installation, Union Station 360º, ran from 15 July to 24 July and was the first in a series of free art events and concerts aiming to transform the transit hub into a public destination. The experience

Thematic entertainment design and construction firm Sanderson Group have been named as masterplanners for a US$5bn (€4.47bn, £3.87bn) development in Bali, Indonesia, dubbed a “new wonder” by its founders. Margarana Dream City – which covers 2.5sq km (0.95sq m) – follows a theme of “innergy”, with a pyramid-like tower at the heart of the development “drawing the positive 'chi' into a green city”. The mixed-use development offers a variety of

New Zealand practice Studio Pacific Architecture have developed alternative designs for a planned film museum in Wellington backed by Lord of the Rings director Sir Peter Jackson. The Movie Museum and Wellington Convention Center, which will cover more than 10,000sq m (107,639sq ft) of prime waterfront land in the city’s central business district, will house memorabilia from the sets of Jackson’s movies and the creations of the acclaimed Weta Workshop.

One of the world’s most iconic cultural landmarks is set to be comprehensively revamped “and upgraded for the 21st Century”. The government of New South Wales, Australia has revealed working designs to update the Sydney Opera House as part of a AUS$202m scheme. The changes – which are the biggest in the building’s 43 year history – include an overhaul of the Concert Hall’s acoustics, accessibility, stage and backstage areas.

As Dubai prepares to go head-to-head with Orlando for the title of attractions capital of the world, the city’s multi-billion dollar Dubai Parks and Resorts development has announced that it will officially open to the public on 31 October. The unique destination, which features three major theme parks and will later gain a fourth under the Six Flags umbrella, will be at the heart of what has been dubbed ‘Orlando

The first renderings of Montreal’s planned new biodome have been released by architecture studio KANVA. The dome, which has been part of the city’s natural science museum Space for Life since 1992, is being extensively revamped as part of Montreal’s 375th birthday celebrations. KANVA won an international competition for the project in 2014 after creating a concept design to “rethink the relationship between mankind and nature” and bolster the museum’s

The Happy Valley theme park in Shanghai, China has opened a multimedia tower which transforms at night into the centrepiece of a dramatic 18 minute light show. The 32m (105ft) high tower – described by developer OCT Shanghai as “a symbol of modernity and an icon of contemporary culture” – is located in a tranquil central lake, where it leans skywards at an angle. When evening falls the tower is

Waterpark supplier Polin will handle development of Russia’s largest indoor waterpark, with the planned all-season facility in Tyumen designed to handle a sub-zero Siberian winter. The waterpark will include large translucent domes overhead to allow sunlight in while keeping the -16.7ºC (1.94ºF) temperatures out. Within the domes, palm trees will decorate the landscape, while a number of Polin slides will offer thrill-seekers a number of experiences within the 10,000sq m