Articles by Andreea Cutieru

Michael Sorkin used to regard criticism as “a service profession”, highlighting the field’s ability to shape public opinion and the direction of architecture at large. Intellectually expansive architecture criticism not only evaluates the merits and shortcomings of a project but reveals how buildings are situated in relation to history and theory and how they contribute to current economic, social and environmental dilemmas. The following explores the field of architecture criticism, highlighting some of its key figures while reflecting on how this role has changed with the emergence of digital media.

Momoyo Kaijima and Yoshiharu Tsukamoto of Atelier Bow-Wow and Elizabeth Diller are this year’s Architecture laureates of the Wolf Prize, an annual award highlighting scientists and artists for “their achievements in the interest of mankind”. One of Israel’s most prestigious international awards, the prize’s art categories include painting and sculpting, music and architecture, accompanied by the scientific categories of medicine, agriculture, mathematics, chemistry and physics. The jury commended the three architects’ notable work at the confluence of research, pedagogy and practice, influential for advancing the practice of architecture.

The Architectural League of New York announced the 2022 Emerging Voices, highlighting eight new practices that show “the potential to influence the disciplines of architecture, landscape design, and urbanism.” One of the most prominent accolades in North American architecture, the Emerging Voices program reviews the design and academic accomplishments of individuals and firms based in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, selecting the best work through a juried, invited portfolio competition. This year’s winners showcase a wide range of preoccupations and design approaches that they explore through various mediums, thus illustrating a whole new spectrum of architectural inquiry.

The new biennial event Architekturwoche Basel (AWB) will debut this May as a platform for discussing architecture and urban development through the lens of sustainable construction and the circular economy. The inaugural edition also marks the launch of the first Basel Pavilion, a temporary structure meant to showcase new possibilities for environmentally-friendly building practices. The winning design, “Loggia Basileana”, created by architecture practice isla, is made of reused building components and features a series of modules that form a continuous pedestrian passageway along the train tracks on the Dreispitz site.

Last week, the Serpentine Galleries revealed the design of the 2022 Serpentine pavilion named Black Chapel, curated for the first time by an artist, Theaster Gates. Since its launch in 2000, the Serpentine Pavilion has been providing renowned and emerging architects with a platform for design experimentation, becoming an important display of contemporary architecture. From Francis Kéré’s “symbol of togetherness”, to Junya Ishigami’s “hill of rocks” and BIG’s “unzipped wall”, discover the last five editions of the Serpentine Pavilion.

Construction broke ground on the Wendelstrand residential development that will transform an old quarry outside Gothenburg into an environmentally friendly and socially sustainable neighbourhood. Developed by Next Step Group and designed by Snøhetta and White Arkitekter, together with Tham & Videgård, Andreas Martin-Löf Architects and Liljewall, the project will feature 1000 homes of various typologies and a series of amenities. The first stage of the development debuts with the Snøhetta-designed Lakehouse, a communal building that blends with the landscape.

Urban Radicals is a design collective based in London, founded in 2019 by Era Savvides and Athanasios Varnavas. The practice operates at the intersection of multiple disciplines, exploring public space and the notion of collectivity across a variety of scales, contexts and design expressions. One of Archdaily’s Best New Practices of 2021, Urban Radicals shrinks and grows organically through the projects, dissolving the boundaries between diverse fields of knowledge and circumventing traditional office structure to integrate a multiplicity of perspectives within architecture.

MVRDV founding partner Winy Maas and Theobert van Boven of Van Boven Architecten, two alumni of Gymnasium Beekvliet, are leading the transformation of their former highschool in the Dutch village of Sint-Michielsgestel. In addition to the renovation of the existing building, the design features a flowing, colourful extension accommodating a new auditorium, as well as art and culture facilities providing students with an engaging learning environment. The new structure features a printed façade showcasing artwork by Canadian visual artist Ian Kirkpatrick that provides a record of the school’s 200 years of history while creating a new focal point for the school and region.

Bernard Tschumi‘s HyperTent, a hyperbolic paraboloid structure, is the latest addition to the iconic Parc de la Villette. Prompted by the opening of L’Espace Chapiteaux, a space for contemporary circus performances, the new ticket booth located on the podium of Folie L4, originally a music venue, carefully negotiates its presence within the context. The morphology of the project allows for the two structures to coexist without interfering. At the same time, the materiality of the HyperTent makes for an iconic presence in juxtaposition with the adjacent folie.

San Riemo Residental Building by ARGE Summacumfemmer Büro Juliane Greb is this year’s recipient of the DAM Prize for Architecture, an annual award highlighting outstanding German projects. Selected from 100 buildings nominated by the Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM), the San Riemo Residental Building was commended for an exemplary take on communal living and its spatial flexibility that can accommodate a wide range of dwelling scenarios. The finalist projects include OMA’s Axel Spinger building, Burger Rudacs Architekten’s John Cranko ballet school in Stuttgart and Florian Nagler Architekten’s , Research Buildings Bad Aibling.