Articles by Ankitha Gattupalli

Architecture has the power to emotionally engage with its occupants. Tactfully crafted spatial moments extend architecture into experience design – a growing need in the experience economy. Through sensorial and intellectual stimulation, spaces can deeply connect with their occupants to result in memorable instances. The orchestration of an experience requires not only an understanding of spatial principles but also how the service of the space is designed.

Cities are inseparable from fast-paced lifestyles. Rising rents and “not-that-small” apartments characterize urban environments, perpetuating the chase for “bigger, faster, and more”. As economies develop and human needs grow, buildings are erected at alarming rates to rush toward progress. The risks of urban living are gradually being exposed, raising questions about more intentionally-driven actions. One way to return to slower lifestyles is by returning to slow architecture. 

Architecture has been criticized for being a primary elitist indulgence. Most architectural projects are funded by the wealthy and seen as a means of bringing beauty into the surrounding environment. Architecture, however, is a double-sided coin with functionality balancing out aesthetics. With the ability to strategize radical solutions, architects equally find themselves at the forefront of solving complex issues. The context of South-East Asia offers a demanding challenge with various social problems, giving architects a chance to save the world with humanitarian design.

The year 2022 saw a rise in conversation around health and well-being. Two years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the architecture industry is more informed about healthy building practices and equipped to drive forward impactful solutions. World Architecture Day 2022 was themed around “Architecture for well-being”, paralleling the designation of 2022 as the UIA Year of Design for Health in buildings and cities. As we wind up the year, ArchDaily explores “healthy spaces” as a trend along with insights that will last well into the future.

Cities evolve over countless years, each moment of change building up to larger societal and architectural shifts. Metropolises across the world are constantly subject to social, political, economic, or environmental forces that alter their fundamental identity – a character that is meant to be dynamic. As cities develop in size and impact, advancements in the understanding of cities and urbanism grow more complex. 

Cities evolve over countless years, each moment of change building up to larger societal and architectural shifts. Metropolises across the world are constantly subject to social, political, economic, or environmental forces that alter their fundamental identity – a character that is meant to be dynamic. As cities develop in size and impact, advancements in the understanding of cities and urbanism grow more complex. 

Cities evolve over countless years, each moment of change building up to larger societal and architectural shifts. Metropolises across the world are constantly subject to social, political, economic, or environmental forces that alter their fundamental identity – a character that is meant to be dynamic. As cities develop in size and impact, advancements in the understanding of cities and urbanism grow more complex. 

Walking through the streets of Mumbai, India, is an experience unmatched anywhere else. The energy of India’s largest and most populous city is palpable through the people, their activities, and most importantly, the built environment. The city’s dynamic culture is evidently expressed through the structures that dot its landscape.

A heavily cited fact within the architecture industry is that the built environment accounts for 40% of global carbon emissions. The concerning statistic puts immense responsibility on construction professionals. The idea of sustainability in architecture urgently emerged as a way of bandaging environmental damage. A wide range of sustainability practices aims no higher than making buildings “less bad”, serving as inadequate measures for current and future architecture. The problem with sustainable architecture is that it stops with ‘sustaining’.

Archaeological endeavors aimed at exploring the civilizations of the past have revealed a commonality across the world. A form of architecture developed independently on every continent. Evidence shows that Neolithic communities used fertile soils and alluvial clay to construct humble abodes, creating humankind’s first durable and solid building material. Earth architecture was born at a very early age in human history. The techniques soon suffered a gradual decline as lifestyles changed, cities grew, and industrialized materials flourished. Does earth architecture have a place in the 21st-century world?