Articles by Dima Stouhi

Although the design diversity of private homes often relies on how each project responds to the topography, context, and material availability, the most significant factor of residential architecture is users and what they require in terms of spatial needs and preferences. This user-centric approach has long been practiced, Mies van der Rohe once explained that “the architect must get to know the people who will live in the planned house. From their needs, the rest inevitably follows”.

El Garaje by Nomos has been announced as the winner of the 2021 AR House Awards 2021. Selected from a shortlist of 15 global practices, the jury praised the project for how it “rethinks the housing typology as an element to reactivate underused spaces in cities and transform rigid and obsolete infrastructure into lively solutions”. House Hamburgö by Manthey Kula and House in Kanazawa by Shota Nakanishi Architects also received highly commended recognition, along with honorable mentions to Beaconsfield house by Simon Pendal Architect, Weekend House by AREA (Architecture Research Athens), and Hlöðuberg artist studio by Studio Bua.

Following years of federal review, the National Capital Planning Commission has finally approved Hiroshi Sugimoto’s Sculpture Garden renovation proposal. Sugimoto’s redesign, which was proposed in Spring of 2019, transforms the Hirshhorn Museum into an accessible and inviting structure welcoming more than 30 million annual visitors. The design features flexible venues to welcome large-scale sculptures and time-based performances, and includes work on long-overdue repairs in the infrastructure.

Bjarke Ingels Group has unveiled its design of Oslo Science City, a new innovation district in Norway’s capital that aims to create a physical framework for Norway’s innovation environment of estimated 150,000 scientists, students, entrepreneurs, and contribute to the country’s transition to renewable energy. The district aims to be a net zero emission area that operates on renewable energy and circular economic principles, as well as zero emission solutions during development and operation.

Zaha Hadid Architects have presented “NFTism“, a virtual art gallery at Art Basel Miami that explores architecture and social interaction in the metaverse. The gallery features spatial designs created by ZHA that focus on user experience, social interaction, and “dramaturgical” compositions, combined with MMO (massively multiplayer online game) and interaction technological services.

KCAP Architects and Planners have unveiled the ZIL-South masterplan, a new residential district in Moscow built on the basis of a 15-minute city. The masterplan will be built on the largest brownfield area of the former ZIL industrial zone, and will feature more than 100 hectares of commercial and residential landmarks, public spaces, parks, landscapes, and interconnect routes alongside the Moskva River, all inspired by the area’s pre-industrial past.

As far as history goes back, art and architecture have always been interrelated disciplines. From the elaboration of the Baroque movement, to the geometric framework of modernism, architects found inspiration from stylistic approaches, techniques, and concepts of historic art movements, and translated them into large-scale habitable structures. In this article, we explore how 5 art movements paved the way for modern day architecture, looking into how architects borrowed from their characteristics and approaches to design to create their very own architectural compositions.

The Mies van der Rohe foundation presents “Never Demolish” a temporary intervention by curators Ilka and Andreas Ruby that explores the “Transformation of 530 dwellings in the Grand Parc Bordeaux” project by the Pritzker laureates Lacaton & Vassal architects, Frédéric Druot Architecture, and Christophe Hutin Architecture. Running until December 16th, the pavilion is transformed into a domestic space that allows visitors to “deepen the debate on housing and the rehabilitation model of the large-scale blocks of the 60s and 70s”.

Provencher_Roy’s new downtown hub for HEC Montréal has neared completion and is set to open in 2022. The business school’s new center for entrepreneurship and research aims to strengthen the ties between the school and the city’s business community, as well as promote innovative solutions through collaborative programs for students and professionals. The facility will feature theoretical and professional development courses, as well as interdisciplinary and collaborative spaces that tackle new fields in the industry like Artificial Intelligence.

Carles Enrich Studio has been announced as the winner of the 2020 AR Emerging Architecture awards. Selected from a shortlist of 16 practices, the jury recognized the work of the Barcelona-based practice as one that “reconnects history with the future and understands heritage as infrastructure: something dynamic and appropriated rather than museumified”. Khadka + Eriksson Furunes was also awarded with the Peter Davey Prize, and Taller Capital has received an honorable mention.