This week on Dezeen, a three-year renovation of Frank Lloyd Wright's most famous building, Fallingwater, was completed.

Led by New York-based Architectural Preservation Studio, the extensive renovation addressed water damage and other problems at the house, which was designed in the mid-1930s for retail magnate Edgar J Kaufmann.

We also looked forward to this year's Milan design week, the design world's biggest annual gathering, which takes place later this month.

Ahead of the event, we picked the key installations and exhibitions to see, including The Eames Houses at Triennale Milano (pictured), a mindfulness space by Zaha Hadid Architects and Kelly Wearstler's collection for H&M.

In the US, president Donald Trump was once again back in the news, as he announced plans for a presidential library skyscraper in Miami.

Meanwhile, in Washington DC, construction of the White House extension was halted by a judge, who determined that the project needs congressional approval to continue.

This week also marked the 10th anniversary of the death of Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid. To mark the occasion, Milan named a street after the architect near the Generali Tower, which she designed.

Zaha Hadid Foundation director Aric Chen also picked out 10 of his favourite items from the Hadid archive exclusively for Dezeen.

In stadium news, One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha was unveiled as the final major part of the reconstruction of Christchurch following the 2011 earthquake.

Meanwhile, Danish architecture studio BIG revealed its design for a 50,000-capacity stadium set to be built in Madrid's Macondo Park for Colombian singer Shakira's world tour.

Popular projects on Dezeen this week included a house without windows in Brazil, the V&A East museum in London and a house that "moves with the dunes" in the Netherlands.

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This year's Design Doha biennial, which was set to open later this month, has been postponed until November due to the continued war in the Gulf.

Originally planned to run from April 12 to June 30, the second edition of the design biennial, which was established by Qatar Museums, will now take place from November 5 to December 31.

"After careful consideration, in light of the evolving situation in the region, Qatar Museums and Design Doha have made the decision to postpone the opening of the Design Doha Biennial 2026," said the organisations in a statement.

War in Gulf continues

The decision was made as the region continues to be heavily impacted by the war in Iran, ignited by US-Israeli strikes on the country on February 28.

Iran is continuing to launch retaliatory missile and drone strikes targeting Israeli and US-allied countries and bases across the Middle East, including Qatar, where numerous sites have been targeted. Among them is the Ras Laffan Industrial City, which suffered "significant damage".

Yesterday, the Qatari Ministry of Defence reported that three missiles were targeted at the country, with two intercepted and the third hitting a fuel tanker off the Qatari coast.

Numerous countries are currently advising against travel to the country, including the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), which "advises against all but essential travel to Qatar".

Design Doha "more important than ever"

In its statement, Qatar Museums explained that they hope that the postponement will allow the event to draw attention to designers in the region at a time when this is "more important than ever".

"This postponement will ensure that the biennial can be experienced in the spirit in which it was conceived: as a global celebration of the remarkable talent of the MENASA region," said the organisers.

"We believe the overarching goal of Design Doha – to connect people through dialogue and creativity – is more important than ever. Design Doha continues to be in close contact with its community, and further updates will be shared in due course."

The main photo of Design Doha 2024 is by Julián Velásquez.

Design Doha 2026 takes place from 5 November until 31 December in Doha, Qatar. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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The city of Milan has named a pedestrian street in the city after Zaha Hadid to mark the 10th anniversary of the Iraqi-British architect's death.

Set within the CityLife development, the street – named Via Zaha Hadid – passes near the Generali Tower, a 44-storey skyscraper designed by the architect.

"Naming a street after Zaha Hadid today recognises the value of her work and the impact she has left on Milan," said councillor for culture Tommaso Sacchi at the unveiling of a street sign.

"Ten years after her passing, her contribution remains evident not only in her completed works, but also in the way she influenced contemporary architectural design," Sacchi continued. "Her approach helped redefine the relationship between urban space and people, focusing on the quality of environments and their function in everyday life."

Zaha Hadid, who was one of the world's best-known architects and still the only sole female winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, died from a heart attack on March 31 2016.

The street named in her honour was unveiled 10 years after her death at a ceremony attended by Zaha Hadid Foundation director Aric Chen, engineer Hanif Kara and long-time Zaha Hadid collaborator Davide Giordano, who read a statement on behalf of Zaha Hadid's nieces Rana Hadid and Tala Hadid and her nephew Hussein Hadid.

"Zaha had a long and deep connection with Milan and Italian design, starting even in her childhood in Baghdad, where her father worked in the Gio Ponti-designed Ministry of Development complex," Chen told Dezeen.

"In her own career, from the furniture and product designs she launched to the buildings she designed, Milan loomed large, and to see her honoured in this way is a really wonderful thing."

The street crosses a park within the CityLife development, which was built on the previous site of Milan's trade fair grounds.

Alongside Zaha Hadid's twisted skyscraper, the centre of the development includes skyscrapers such as the 175-metre-tall PwC tower by Daniel Libeskind and the 202-metre-high Allianz Tower by Arata Isozaki.

Italian practice Fabio Novembre Studio also recently completed the Golden Goose Arena as part of the development, which is directly alongside one of the street signs for the new street.

The final major construction on the site will be an entrance building named The Portico by Danish studio BIG, which is currently under construction.

The photography is by Aric Chen, unless stated.

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Irish studio O'Donnell + Tuomey has exclusively revealed the exterior of the V&A East Museum in London ahead of its official public opening later this month.

Set to open on April 18, the distinctive building sits alongside the Allies and Morrison-designed London College of Fashion and directly opposite the Populous-designed Olympic stadium as the latest structure on the Olympic Park.

The angular, pyramidal building is cloaked in a facade made of concrete panels that are covered in lines that evoke the Vs and As of the V&A logo.

As the V&A East Museum was planned as the cultural centrepiece of the wider development, O'Donnell + Tuomey aimed to design a building that had a clear aesthetic and identity.

"It's different from a more everyday building," O'Donnell + Tuomey co-founder John Tuomey told Dezeen. "It has to be a special one – jewel-like, or certainly casket-like as it should look like things are safe in there."

"The museum has a need to have its identity expressed," he continued. "It is not an office block, it's not a school, it has hardly any windows, so what form will you recognise from across the park?"

The museum's multi-faceted facade is described by Tuomey as a "jacket" that protects the museum, but also can be inviting for visitors, with the facades facing the newly created square angled outwards.

"The museum by its nature needs all its contents protected and so the design brief is to create a sheltered space for everything that's in the museum," said Tuomey. "And the second part of the brief is to open the museum out and bring everybody in."

"We wanted to lift the jacket of the building up so that people could be drawn in from the square into the entry space and cafe on the ground floor," he continued.

"So in a way, the way the building stands on the ground on its toes, is very important to this idea."

Tuomey describes the five-storey museum as "a dead simple building" wrapped in the jacket-like facade.

All of the galleries are broadly regular-shaped boxes stacked around its core, with the entrance spaces and staircases placed in the space between the two.

"It's a rationally planned building with this piece of tailored clothing on it and you move in the thickness, and then everything is simple in plan," he explained.

"I got interested in the space in between the jacket and the body – what the Japanese call Ma– that feeling of being inside on the outside," he continued.

"I hope that people feel that when they're here – that they come from the thickness of the being held in the wall [and go] to the adventure of exhibitions, lose yourself in the exhibition and then come back out."

The museum's facade is covered in 479 unique, precast concrete panels that are each around two metres high and stretch to as long as 14 metres.

In keeping with the wider development, the facade is a cast material. However, O'Donnell + Tuomey wanted the building to appear solid, so the studio aimed to make it appear to be stone.

"This is the V&A," said Tuomey. "We want it to be like a solid object. So this is as close to stone sandstone as we could get."

Each of the angled cast-concrete facades was given linear decoration as Tuomey liked the idea of drawing on the exterior of the building.

"It's a design museum – so we thought, why can't we draw the surface?" said Tuomey. "So it started with me just drawing lines. Just sitting down and drawing lines, which was very enjoyable."

According to Tuomey these angular lines were derived from the V&A logo, which he learned was a pretty well-known motif.

"My son is a graphic designer and I rang him and asked if you looked at this V&A logo? – you know, this Pentagram logo?" recalled Tuomey. "And he said, 'Dad, that's like one of the most famous pieces of graphic design."

"So I used all the geometry and tried to transcribe it on the building," he continued.

While many of the facades contain this angled, linear decoration evoking the institution's logo, other facades contain panels where the logo was translated into a relief.

These panels contain a series of V-shaped indents and A-shaped peaks.

Within the museum, the gallery spaces are currently being prepared ahead of the opening later this month with the Why We Make galleries designed by UK studio JA Projects.

The museum is the sister site to the V&A East Storehouse by American studio Diller Scofidio + Renfro, which opened last year.

The photography is by Hufton + Crow.

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This week on Dezeen, we spoke to elusive architect Smiljan Radić about his "surprise" Pritzker Architecture Prize win.

Radić explained how he was surprised by the win and didn't want his work to be seen as a blueprint for "good or bad" architecture.

"There is no message in what I do," he said. "I'm not interested in it becoming a kind of sermon about what is good or bad in architecture."

We also spoke to Australian designer Marc Newson about his 40-year career in an exclusive interview at his retrospective show at Château La Coste in the south of France.

Newson, who designed the most expensive work ever sold at auction by a living designer, talked to Dezeen about quality and affordability. "Anything good is kind of costly," he said.

In other design news, the kits that the trio of host nations will wear at the World Cup later this year were revealed. The US home shirts have bold red stripes, while the jerseys for Mexico pay homage to Aztec sculpture.

We also revealed the England World Cup kits, which Nike described as "unapologetically English".

As Africa experiences a mini-boom in skyscraper construction, we investigated why towers are rising across the continent in countries including Egypt, Ethiopia and Ivory Coast.

We asked – is this spate of construction cause for alarm?

We also reported that multiple construction contracts for work on the Neom mega project in Saudi Arabia had been cancelled.

Steel company Eversendai, Italian contractor Webuild and Hyundai Engineering and Construction all recently announced that their contracts had been terminated.

Popular projects on Dezeen this week included a cork-clad loft extension in London, a timber-lined house in the Netherlands and a home on a Washington island.

Listen to our journalists talk about the key design and architecture stories of the past seven days on our Dezeen Weekly podcast, which this week focused on the AIA's legal action against Donald Trump.

This week on Dezeen

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Toy brand Lego is reportedly set to release a model of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, which will be the largest set ever created.

Set to be launched as part of the company's Architecture series, the news of the upcoming Lego set was leaked by a long-time leaker known as Chief Wiggum, whose predictions have proven true in the past.

According to the leak, the Lego version of Antoni Gaudí's Sagrada Familia cathedral will be made of 12,060 pieces, making it the largest set ever released by the toy company. The current biggest set sold by the brand is the Art World Map, which has 11,695 pieces.

Sagrada Familia set to complete this year

Although no official launch date has been announced, the leak suggests that the set will be released this year. This will align the release with the completion of the Sagrada Familia and with the 100th anniversary of Gaudí's death.

Construction on the Sagrada Familia, designed by Catalan architect Gaudí as the main cathedral in Barcelona, began in 1882.

After 140 years, the cathedral is set to be completed this year.

The huge church is topped with 18 spires, including the 170-metre-high central spire, which makes the building the tallest church in the world – almost 10 metres higher than Ulm Minster in Germany.

Latest set in Lego's Architecture series

The set would be the latest in Lego's Architecture series, which was launched in 2008 with the Sears Tower and the John Hancock Center skyscrapers.

Since then, the toy brand has made models of some of the world's most significant works of architecture, including the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum and Fallingwater by Frank Lloyd Wright, Farnsworth House by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Villa Savoye by Le Corbusier.

Other significant buildings that have been recreated in Lego sets, including the Empire State Building in New York and Paris's Notre-Dame cathedral and Eiffel Tower.

The photo is by Maksim Sokolov.

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Japanese brand Balmuda has created a white-noise-producing alarm clock with a glowing dial to reduce smartphone use at bedtime.

Machined from a block of aluminium, the high-end alarm clock was designed to make falling asleep easier.

"Getting a good night's sleep – it was so easy as a child, but it's so difficult as an adult," explained Balmuda CEO Gen Terao.

"Every day is busy, and we have to think about tomorrow. For the past few years, I've often been playing the sound of rain on my tablet or other devices to help me fall asleep," said Terao.

"However, none of the rain sounds have really satisfied me. And my alarm clock is my cell phone," he continued. "I started to wonder if having these social devices by my bedside might be related to the quality of my sleep."

Simply named The Clock, the product was designed to reduce distractions and "to transform evenings into peaceful moments".

It has the form of a traditional travel alarm clock, but has no hands and an illuminated dial. It can also be programmed to play one of seven types of white noise, which range from rain sounds to the morning streets of Milan.

Terao consulted with Ive's studio LoveFrom to source the components needed to create the clock.

"LoveFrom introduced us to component vendors who have pursued cutting-edge manufacturing technology for decades," he said. "The Clock's components are made by one of those companies. The result is fantastic. Thank you, Jony!"

According to Terao, The Clock has made his bedtimes more peaceful and allowed him to banish his smartphone from the bedroom.

"It's been a few months since the prototype of The Clock arrived at my home," said Terao.

"Two things have changed significantly in my life. First, how I spend my time before going to sleep at night. Every night, I play The Clock's Relax Time in the living room, but with the gentle rain and the sound of crickets chirping, I don't feel like looking at a bright screen. I've started reading books instead," he continued.

"And secondly, I now leave my smartphone in the living room when I go to sleep. It's been decades since I slept in a bedroom without social devices."

Previously, Balmuda collaborated with LoveFrom to create a nautical lantern. Other recent clocks published on Dezeen include seven showcased at last year's Milan design week.

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Berlin studio Kéré Architecture has revealed its design for the Ineza Clinic, which will step up a hillside in rural Burundi within a series of brick pavilions.

Designed for the city of Bubanza, around 30 miles north of Burundi's capital, the health centre will be built from predominantly local materials to reduce the cost of transportation.

Taking advantage of the site's topography, the health facility will consist of 10 buildings arranged on either side of a zigzagging road that progresses up a hill. Kéré Architecture said this arrangement will also facilitate cross ventilation.

At the base of the slope, visitors will arrive at a small entrance pavilion, before coming to a cafe and toilet block.

Halfway up the hill, the larger wards, treatment blocks and outpatient units each tend along the hillside from the main drive.

Finally, at the top of the hill is a trio of housing blocks for visitors, with a lounge topping the site.

According to the studio, which is led by Pritzker Architecture Prize-winner Diébédo Francis Kéré, high fuel costs in the country led to the focus on local material sourcing.

Before designing the facility, the studio visited brick factories, welding workshops and wood-processing plants in the surrounding area to map out local resources.

All of the clinic's buildings will share a similar aesthetic, with locally sourced brick walls broken by perforated sections to allow light and air to enter.

They will be crowned with monopitch roofs wrapped with vertical timber batons, raised on retaining walls of stone sourced from nearby quarries.

"In a place where travelling less than forty kilometres can take up to three hours because of poor road conditions, having a clinic in close proximity is vital for survival," said Kéré Architecture.

"This clinic in Bubanza makes that difference. When you imagine a pregnant woman in the back of an ambulance, trying to reach care over those roads, you begin to understand just how essential nearby access to medical treatment is for the community."

Work on the health facility has already begun, with the first stage of the clinic set to open later this year.

According to the studio, the project was heavily informed by its own Léo Surgical Clinic and Health Centre in Burkina Faso, which was one of 10 of the architect's significant buildings we included in a roundup to mark Kéré winning the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

Elsewhere, Kéré Architecture is also currently designing the Las Vegas Museum of Art and the Biblioteca dos Saberes in Rio de Janeiro, which will also feature facades of perforated brick.

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Architecture studio Büro Ole Scheeren has revealed photos and renders of the Róng Museum of Arts, which is currently under construction in Shenzhen, China.

Designed for Tenova Future – a private venture of Ma Huateng, the founder of technology company Tencent – the museum will focus on the visual culture of the 20th and 21st centuries.

It will be located alongside the Shenzhen Bay Culture Park by MAD, which will be topped by two pavilions designed to resemble stones and near a bullet-shaped skyscraper designed by KPF.

"From the very beginning, we worked closely to define a museum and overall complex that is not only a showcase, but a symbiotic urban and ecological statement with big tech as a central cultural patron," said Büro Ole Scheeren founder Ole Scheeren.

"Around the world, most tech environments are relentlessly self‑focused," he continued.

"Here, the ambition is to chart a different path by investing in public space, cultural venues and education, and to use economic success to underwrite a deeper, more generous engagement with the city and wider society."

Set to be 53 metres high, the 4,500-square-metre cultural landmark comprises five blocks that surround a central, skylight plaza.

Each of the sculptural blocks has similar forms that expand in size as they rise and are interconnected to create a sinuous mass.

The curved facades of the museum will be wrapped in hundreds of hanging, "parametrically-engineered" glass tubes.

According to the studio, these will give the museum a distinctive identity and improve its energy performance by creating shading and helping with ventilation.

"I wanted to give the museum a distinctive and magical appearance that creates a sense of curiosity, especially amongst the younger generation," said Scheeren.

"The whole project was conceived as a cross‑cultural interactive experience, with a very focused exhibition space and programme at its core, but with many more ways to engage with culture and architecture."

Along with 2,300 square metres of gallery space, the museum will contain a major public library, workshops and spaces for lectures, along with shops, cafes and restaurants.

The building will be topped with an extensive roof garden.

The museum, which is set to open in 2027, forms one city block in the wider Houhai Hybrid Campus, also designed by Büro Ole Scheeren.

Each of the four blocks in the development will be connected by bridges, with office space and a hotel occupying the other buildings.

Elsewhere, Büro Ole Scheeren is also designing a skyscraper for Chinese e-commerce company JD.com with facades intended to resemble waterfalls and developing twisting office towers for the global headquarters of Tencent.

The photography is by Zhu Yumeng and the renders are by Buro Ole Scheeren, TMRW, Atchain, Frontop and Bezier.

Project credits:

Architecture: Büro Ole Scheeren
Structural engineer: ECADI, Shenzhen
Facade consultant: RFR, Shanghai
Sustainability consultants: Arup, Hong Kong and MMoser, Hong Kong
Landscape consultant: PLA, Bangkok

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Whether to make sloped sites level, prevent flooding or reduce impact on natural surroundings, houses on stilts are being built around the world. Here are eight of the best contemporary examples.

House in the Delta by MAPA, Argentina

Raised on stilts to protect from periodic flooding on its riverside site near Buenos Aires, House in the Delta was the first Passivhaus-certified home built in Argentina.

Architectural studio MAPA described the home as "an amphibious house – built high above the ground to coexist with the periodic flooding on the banks of the Paraná Mini".

Find out more about House in the Delta ›

Prat House, by ERRE Arquitectos, Chile

Located in Matanzas, Chile, the 128-square-metre Prat House was designed by Raimundo Gutiérrez of ERRE Arquitectos to take advantage of its coastal site.

The entire single-storey seaside house was elevated on steel stilts, with a raised walkway and timber steps providing access.

Find out more about Prat House ›

Yngsjö by Johan Sundberg Arkitektur, Sweden

Constructed using predominantly light-coloured timber to help it blend with its surroundings, Yngsjö was built as a retreat from city life for a Swedish family based in London.

Located close to the shores of the Baltic Sea, the house is designed to sit lightly on the site with over half the structure raised on slender steel pillars.

Find out more about Yngsjö ›

Casa 144º by Jaime Prous Architects and Pineda & Monedero, Spain

Architecture studios Jaime Prous Architects and Pineda & Monedero raised this metal-clad home on metal stilts above a steeply sloping site to the east of Barcelona.

Created for a retired couple who wanted an escape from the city, Casa 144º is lifted off the ground to minimise its impact on the landscape.

Find out more about Casa 144º ›

Residence Chez Léon by Quinzhee Architecture, Canada

Described by its architect as "a contemporary chalet in harmony with its environment", this cedar-clad residence was raised above a sloped site overlooking the St Lawrence River in Québec.

Quinzhee Architecture designed the 129-square-metre ski house to take advantage of its site and surrounding views.

Find out more about Residence Chez Léon ›

Hole with the House Around by ElasticoFarm, Italy

The aptly named Hole with the House Around comprises a series of boxy volumes raised on stilts surrounding a central void.

Architecture studio ElasticoFarm designed the structure as an extension to an existing 1970s house surrounded by trees in an Italian park in Cambiano, a town to the southeast of Turin.

Find out more about Hole with the House Around ›

Villa Grieg, by Saunders Architecture, Norway

Saunders Architecture designed this house overlooking a lake in Norway for the descendants of Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg.

Named Villa Grieg, the house combines a two-bedroom home with a music studio. The sloped music studio sits on the ground floor, with stairs leading up to the raised home that winds around a central void.

Find out more about Villa Grieg ›

Casa Açucena by Tetro Arquitetura, Brazil

The majority of this angular, lily-shaped home was raised on stilts to prevent the unnecessary removal of trees from its site in a lush Brazilian forest.

According to the studio, the black stilts that support the house were placed at "random" to emulate how trees grow in a forest.

Find out more about Casa Açucena ›

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Sports brand Nike has revealed the texturized football kits that the England team will use at this year's World Cup, which include embedded graphic elements.

Designed to embody the England team's heritage, the kits use traditional colours with flags, lions and stars directly engineered into the kits' fabric.

England will the wear the kits at this year's World Cup, which takes place in USA, Mexico and Canada in June and July. The team will debut the away kit in friendly against Uruguay on 27 March and the home kit the week after.

"The men's English National Team 2026 kit collection is a nod to all that is unapologetically English in Football," Nike global apparel design senior director Stuart McArthur told Dezeen.

"The approach when designing the kit was to capitalise on what is a traditionally well-mannered, humble English disposition and showcase its evolution into a federation that is bold and proud on the world's stage," he continued.

"From the fabric iconography to the overarching color story, the collection is made as a celebration of authentic, 'if you know, you know' English Football culture."

The home white shirt will be combined with white shorts and socks to create an all-white kit, which Nike describes as "grounded in the heritage of English football".

For the away kit, Nike created a red shirt – the colour that has been used predominantly since 1998 – with the badge placed in the centre.

The shirt is combined with navy shorts to create a kit described by Nike as a "future classic".

Both kits were woven from Nike's Aero-FIT material, designed to improve the cooling ability of the fabric, which is made from 100 per cent textile waste.

According to Nike this knitting process delivers "twice the airflow of legacy fabrics" and also means that the graphics are embedded in the shirt, not placed on top of the fabric.

"The home kit is rooted in the heritage of English Football – traditional, all-white kits with subtle red accents, while the away kit comes in speed red with a centrally located crest sitting below the metallic gold star," said McArthur.

"The Iconography has been expertly engineered into the fabric using Aero-Fits stitch precise process across both kits uniting the English faithful around the Three Lions."

Both kits will include the text "Happy and Glorious" within the collar, while the gold star – representing England's 1966 World Cup win has been returned to the shirt above the badge.

Other recent football kits on Dezeen include a rain-covered kit for Manchester City designed "as a tribute to the famous Mancunian weather" and a kit designed by Germany-based studio Kéré Architecture.

The photography is courtesy of Nike.

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Italian studio Stefano Boeri Interiors has revamped a semi-circular piazza alongside the Colosseum amphitheatre in Rome, recreating the bases of several of its original columns.

Wrapped around the southern side of the Colosseum, the piazza occupies a site where the previous outer wall of the arena was located before it collapsed in a 14th-century earthquake.

Built in AD 80 as the largest amphitheatre in the ancient world, the arena was wrapped in two arched colonnades that supported the upper seating levels.

Stefano Boeri Interiors, which is led by architects Stefano Boeri and Giorgio Donà, aimed to recall the original Roman structure through the redesign of the space.

The studio returned the ground to its original level and replaced the cobbles with travertine slabs that cover the area, known as the crepidine, which was formerly within the building.

Evenly placed throughout the curved piazza are 44 raised stone benches, each 40 centimetres high, which mark the footprints of the original columns.

Roman numerals were embedded in the floor to mark the entry gate numbers that were originally engraved on the lost arches.

"The archaeological excavation campaign allowed for a new reading of the Flavian Amphitheatre's history," said Donà.

"The crepidine and the repaving of the excavation area, together with portions left exposed, restore the Colosseum's original levels and reconstruct its ancient base," Donà added.

"Through the architectural abstraction of the missing ambulatory supporting pillars, the intervention evokes the system of former access routes to the monument's interior."

At the western end of the piazza, the travertine pavement is broken by what the studio describes as "an archaeological window".

This lower space reveals the archaeological remains of what lies under the piazza.

According to the studio, the piazza was designed "according to principles of reversibility" and, overall, Boeri hopes that the revamp will help visitors better understand the scale of the building.

"Designing the space in front of the Colosseum's southern facade was an extraordinary experience, carried out in close collaboration with the management and technical staff of the Archaeological Park," he said.

"Following our collaboration on the new entrance to the Domus Aurea, the redesign of the colosseum's southern piazza has finally restored the perception of the monument's original scale and pavement level, while offering the public the opportunity to approach its walls and imagine the rhythm and sequence of the ambulatory areas and arches that have been lost."

The photography is by Simona Murrone.

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Architecture studio AECOM has unveiled designs for a subterranean visitor screening centre as part of US president Donald Trump's revamp of the White House in Washington DC.

Recently submitted by the White House to the National Capital Planning Commission, the proposed permanent security screening facility would be built under Sherman Park – a small park to the southwest of the White House.

Designed by AECOM, the 33,000-square-foot (3,065-square-metre) facility would be almost entirely underground. It would be connected to a single-storey, above-ground structure built alongside East Executive Avenue.

Visitors to the White House would enter the facility via a ramp on the south of the park, before progressing through security checks underground.

A tunnel leading to escalators would connect the underground facility to the above-ground building, with visitors emerging within the White House's security perimeter.

The above-ground building will be designed "based upon existing security booth vocabulary used throughout the campus". It will be wrapped in columns, with limestone cladding and a sloped metal roof.

The two structures would replace temporary tents and trailers that have been used by the US Secret Service for visitor screening since 2005.

According to the planning documents, the General William Tecumseh Sherman Monument, which dominates the park, will remain in place and any trees damaged will be replaced.

"Most of the proposed structure is intentionally positioned below grade within the park's west quadrant to reduce visual impact and to avoid infrastructure conflicts in the southeast corner of the park," said the project summary.

"Landscape restoration, including new tree plantings, will be provided within all impacted zones to reinstate and enhance the park's character."

The White House intends to have the proposed screening centre operational by July 2028, with construction planned to begin later this year.

The proposals are set to be discussed by the National Capital Planning Commission at a meeting on 2 April.

Architecture studio AECOM is also part of the team designing the extension to the White House, which is set to replace the East Wing and is visible in the renders of the screening facility.

We recently took a look at all the changes taking place in Washington DC as Trump aims to redesign the city in his image.

The images are courtesy of National Capital Planning Commission / AECOM.

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This week on Dezeen, Chilean architect Smiljan Radić was named as this year's Pritzker Architecture Prize laureate.

Radić, who was recognised for his buildings that are "immediately recognizable, yet conceptually evasive", is the 55th winner of the award.

Following the announcement we looked at eight of his most significant buildings, including the 2014 Serpentine Pavilion and his House for the Poem of the Right Angle.

AI was in the news this week, with a study from Anthropic finding that lots of the work done by architects could be done twice as quickly using large language models.

It was also announced that Google will be building an AI tool for the UK government to help speed up planning decisions.

In design news, Jony Ive's studio LoveFrom and UK studio Benchmark created a rostrum for the Christie's auction house that replaces one designed by Thomas Chippendale in 1776.

In other furniture news, Kelly Wearstler unveiled her first-ever piano, which features "sensual and unexpected" curves.

In Mexico, photos of a skyscraper, which is set to become the tallest building in Latin America, were revealed.

The Torre Rise supertall skyscraper in Monterrey will be 484 metres tall when it completes, making it the second-tallest building in the Western hemisphere, second only to the One World Trade Center in New York.

Popular projects on Dezeen this week included a concrete house in Slovenia, a minimalist house in Japan and a Norwegian holiday home.

Listen to our journalists talk about the key design and architecture stories of the past seven days on our Dezeen Weekly podcast, which this week focused on a competition to design a new world wonder.

This week on Dezeen

This week on Dezeen is our regular roundup of the week's top news stories. Subscribe to our newsletters to be sure you don't miss anything.

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Jony Ive's studio LoveFrom has collaborated with UK studio Benchmark to create a rostrum for Christie's that replaces one designed by Thomas Chippendale.

The rostrum, which was unveiled last week, will replace Chippendale-designed podiums in all of Christie's auction houses around the world.

LoveFrom founder Ive aimed to create a rostrum that was informed by the auction house's history and described following in the steps of Chippendale, who remains one of the world's best known furniture makers, as "rather intimidating".

"As a team, we have a robust research discipline," he said. "I often think our understanding of the future and our approach to design is absolutely based on how well we understand the past."

"The original Thomas Chippendale design is masterful and remains rather intimidating," he continued.

Chippendale's original rostrum was first used when the auction house opened in 1776. It was destroyed in 1941 by bombing during world war two, with reproductions used by the auction house since.

Because of the nature of the rostrum as the raised platform used by the auctioneer, it is often the most visible symbol of the auction house.

"The purpose of the rostrum is to literally and figuratively elevate the auctioneer, providing a stage for their authority and expertise that proudly carries the Christie's mark," said Ive.

Given that auctions are now watched by many on live streams, as well as in the room, Ive aimed at creating a podium that could be seen from all directions.

The rounded rostrum was made by UK studio Benchmark from 200-year-old oak, which was sourced from the same forest used to restore the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris.

"It's a beautiful thing that you can take a modest material – such as oak – and that with the expertise of the design and craftspeople involved, value is added in the process," said Ive. "I find that magical."

"We were struck by Benchmark's biological understanding of trees and the ethical sourcing of the timber we used, as well as the machining and creating of prototypes and the finished product," he continued.

Throughout the rostrum, Ive was keen to ensure that attention was paid to all the details, including how the podium would be used by auctioneers and the elements not seen by the public.

The stairs were designed to deploy silently using a touch mechanism, while particular attention was paid to the stainless steel latch to ensure it did not jar as the only non-timber element.

"So much design fails at the junction, at the composite of materials with such different properties," said Ive.

"The way two different materials connect can often feel uncomfortable. We had to work hard for some of the very visible elements – such as the latch on the door – not to be conspicuous, which is not the same as hiding it," he continued.

"For it to appear obvious and inevitable. And that sense of inevitability is really hard to create."

According to Ive, this focus on the details that may not be seen aligns with the principles pushed by Steve Jobs when he worked at Apple.

"Steve Jobs spoke about the great cabinet makers caring enough to finish the back of a drawer," said Ive. "Caring about the unseen is a defining characteristic of our work."

Ive founded LoveFrom in 2019, after nearly 30 years at Apple, where he designed many of the brand's leading products, including the iPhone. Recent projects by LoveFrom include creating the interiors of Ferrari's first electric car and a nautical lantern for Japanese manufacturer Balmuda.

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This week on Dezeen, the UK Court of Appeal ruled in favour of Patrik Schumacher in a legal battle with the Zaha Hadid Foundation over the use of the late Zaha Hadid's name.

The Court of Appeal overruled a High Court judgement from 2024, which had required Zaha Hadid Architects to retain Hadid's name and continue paying a licensing fee for its use.

The ruling allows the agreement to be broken and opens the door for Schumacher to change the name of the studio or to renegotiate the contract.

In the US, Donald Trump's plans to build a ballroom at the White House reached the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), with the review receiving over 32,000 public comments. The majority were "in opposition to the project".

The huge number of comments, described as a "large amount of public input" by the NCPC, led the organisation to announce that it was going to delay its vote on the East Wing Modernisation proposal.

We also rounded up the many ways that Donald Trump is using architecture to reshape Washington DC.

In technology news, Apple launched its first-ever budget MacBook, which will be half the price of its current cheapest laptop.

In an exclusive interview with Dezeen, the company's vice president of industrial design Molly Anderson explained how, even though the MacBook Neo is affordable, quality was maintained.

"It's undeniably a MacBook, we're certainly not making any compromises on the design and that's really important," Anderson told Dezeen.

Following the news last week that the Pritzker Architecture Prize is set to be delayed, architecture critic Edwin Heathcote pondered on the award's relevance in 2026.

"The prize matters very much less today than it did 25 years ago," he wrote. "Its historic affirmation of the lone male genius now looks stale, icky even."

As conflict continued in the Middle East, several buildings of architectural significance were damaged, with the Burj Al Arab skyscraper in Dubai damaged by Iranian strikes.

In Tehran, UNESCO reported that the World Heritage-listed Golestan Palace was damaged following a nearby US-Israeli airstrike.

Popular projects on Dezeen this week included a portable stadium kit, an underground house in northern China and a rural Indian home built using "only what was necessary".

Listen to our journalists talk about the key design and architecture stories of the past seven days on our Dezeen Weekly podcast, which this week focused on the future of the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

This week on Dezeen

This week on Dezeen is our regular roundup of the week's top news stories. Subscribe to our newsletters to be sure you don't miss anything.

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The affordable MacBook Neo was designed without reducing the quality of materials or processes says Apple's vice president of industrial design Molly Anderson in this exclusive interview.

As the head of the Apple's industrial design team answering directly to CEO Tim Cook, Anderson oversaw the design of the MacBook Neo, which was unveiled earlier this week.

"It's undeniably a MacBook"

Although the MacBook Neo is an inexpensive laptop, Apple aimed to create a high-quality product that aligned with the core qualities of the existing MacBooks.

"It's undeniably a MacBook, we're certainly not making any compromises on the design and that's really important," Anderson told Dezeen.

"Absolutely central to the work that we did was asking how do you distill the essence of a Mac? And I think that comes through in the materiality and the quality of it."

Described by Apple as its "most affordable laptop ever", the MacBook Neo is set to go on sale for around half the price of the MacBookAir, which is currently Apple's cheapest laptop. It will cost $599 in the US and £599 in the UK.

Anderson explained that her team set out with the aim of creating what would be many people's first laptop.

Introducing people to Mac with a low-cost product was "a little daunting" as the laptop needed to make a good first impression and maintain the quality of the more premium designs in the range.

"The goal was to make a beautiful product that could reach many more people," she said.

"And what we quickly realised is that it essentially means designing, for many people, their first experience of a Mac."

"We're not using cheaper materials"

Anderson explained that with its design they did not want to take a reductive approach and reduce cost by either stripping away core functions or reducing the quality of materials.

"People's assumption about the way that you make something that's affordable is often – you use an older technology, maybe use a cheaper material or find a way to cut a corner somewhere," she said.

"But for us it was important for it to be quintessentially a MacBook. It wasn't just a redesign, it was starting from the beginning, and we're not using cheaper materials, it's incredible aluminium."

According to Anderson, it was vital that the MacBook Neo was clearly part of the MacBook family and a key part of this was having an aluminium case.

"Part of the family, but with its own personality"

But, she also wanted the laptop to be distinguished from the MacBook Air and Pro, with its own visual identity that aligned with its position as an entry-level computer, but was still aspirational.

"We really wanted it to embody what we think are the essential characteristics of the Mac," she said.

"It's certainly a MacBook, but there's some important differences," she continued. "It was important to make it feel part of the family, but with its own personality."

As it may be many people's first laptop, it was important that the MacBook Neo had a "friendly" feel, said Anderson. This was partly achieved through its more rounded form and, of course, the through the use of colour.

"It needed to be approachable, especially if it's the first time you're using a MacBook," she said.

"So it's got to feel friendly and it has to be joyful – we always think using a Mac is joyful and the colours add to that," she continued.

The laptop is available in silver as well as three colours – a dark blue, pale pink and citrus yellow. These colours are matched on the computer's keyboards, feet and logo.

"We felt like the right thing to do was to add colour and it's the most colourful MacBook," said Anderson.

"But we knew that to have such a strong use of colour, it would have to carry through to everything – the keycaps, feet and also it's in the first time we've used an anodized aluminium logo, which is surprisingly complicated, but it's one of those problems we like to solve."

Half the aluminium of other MacBooks

While Apple was determined to maintain the quality of the low-cost laptop, the design team still had to find ways to reduce the cost of the product.

One key way was through how the body of the MacBook Neo was produced.

Like the MacBook Air and Pro, the body is made from aluminium. However unlike the bodies of the other MacBooks where an extrusion – where material is forced through a shape to create a consistent cross-sectional profile – is cut away to form the unibody, the Neo's body was made using a combination of manufacturing processes.

"We started with an extrusion, we flatten and then form it with heat and pressure to get as close as possible to the shape of the final product,"  explained Anderson.

"Then we fine machine to create the profile. So we're really reducing a huge amount of the machining cycle time that's involved."

According to Anderson this reduced cost as it reduced the overall manufacturing time and halved the amount of material used.

"The goal is for us to use less material overall, and to use to reduce the amount of processing of that material," she said.

"It's really this kind of special equation of having the right alloy, designing the right product and developing the shape to be able to process it so it feels exactly like the MacBook with the quality of a MacBook."

Although the new process greatly reduced costs, Anderson explained that this does not mean that it will necessarily be used for future versions of the MacBook Air or Pro.

"Every system we design is unique, this is another tool in our toolbox."

Apple's most sustainable laptop

According to Apple, the MacBook Neo is also its most sustainable laptop ever. Overall it was made from 60 per cent recycled materials and the aluminium is 90 per cent reused.

Anderson explained that compromising on the environmental credentials of the laptop was not an option even though it was lower cost product.

"Whenever there's a constraint, people think about removing things and one thing that is often removed are the expensive materials that might be more sustainable," she said.

"We have a very ambitious goal for 2030 to be carbon neutral across our global footprint, so there is not a way that we can do that."

Anderson, who studied at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, joined Apple in 2014 after previously working at mobile phone company Nokia and design studios Barber Osgerby and Map Project Office.

Other recent releases from Apple include the "impossibly thin" iPhone Air and expandable "extra pocket" for iPhones.

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Technology brand Apple has launched the MacBook Neo, which it describes as its "most affordable laptop ever".

Set to go on sale next week, MacBook Neo will cost $599 in the US and £599 in the UK making it almost half the cost of the MacBook Air – previously the cheapest MacBook.

"We're incredibly excited to introduce MacBook Neo, which delivers the magic of the Mac at a breakthrough price," said Apple senior vice president of hardware engineering John Ternus.

"Built from the ground up to be more affordable for even more people, MacBook Neo is a laptop only Apple could create."

Apple aimed to ensure that, although the MacBook Neo is a low-cost laptop, it still feels and works like a MacBook.

Like the other laptops in the range, it has an aluminium case and uses the same keyboard as the MacBook Air and Pro. It has a 13-inch Liquid Retina screen and runs on the A18 Pro processor, which powers the iPhone 16 Pro.

The laptop weighs 1.23 kilograms (2.7 pounds) – the same as a 13-inch MacBook Air – and according to Apple, lasts for up to 16 hours on a single charge.

Along with being Apple's "most affordable" laptop, it was also billed as "the most colourful MacBook yet".

It will be available in four colours. Along with classic silver, the laptop comes in dark blue, rose pink and a citrus yellow.

For each of the coloured versions, the keyboard is colour-matched along with the Apple logo on the top of the case.

"Bringing a fun touch of personality and style to everyday computing, MacBook Neo comes in a spectrum of four gorgeous colours: blush, indigo, silver, and citrus," said Ternus.

"These colours extend to the Magic Keyboard in lighter shades and new wallpapers, creating a cohesive design aesthetic and making MacBook Neo the most colourful MacBook yet."

Last year, Apple and Issey Miyake created an expandable "extra pocket" for iPhones, while in Paris, the technology company showcased five designers in its inaugural Designers of Tomorrow exhibition.

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Architecture studio Zeller & Moye has added a series of concrete insertions to a colonial building in Mérida, Mexico, to create the Hotel Sevilla.

Zeller & Moye first saw the colonial villa while it was an abandoned ruin and aimed to ensure that this essence was retained when designing the modern hotel.

"Eight years ago when visiting the existing casona in the heart of Mérida for the first time we fell in love with the charm of the ruinous building – its patios taken over by nature, eroded wall finishes and disintegrated marble floors," said Zeller & Moye co-founder Ingrid Moye.

"We wanted to maintain the inherent beauty of the decay as much as possible whilst carefully restoring the listed monument for a new use as a unique hotel," she told Dezeen.

The studio renovated the existing buildings that surround a pair of adjoined courtyards and added a series insertions designed to be distinct from the original building.

"We looked into combining the ruinous character with luxury and comfort as it can be found in traditional colonial houses and haciendas of Yucatán," explained Moye.

"In order to be able to add contemporary interventions, we came up with the concept of a 'palimpsest', in which past and present layers of construction across different eras not only coexist side by side but start to juxtapose to one rich entity," she continued.

"All new architectural interventions are made from contemporary materials such as concrete and brass, in strong contrast to the historical architecture."

The studio arranged 21 bedrooms in the existing structure, the majority of which open directly onto the courtyard spaces.

The main collonaded courtyard contains an outdoor restaurant, while in the smaller courtyard, the studio designed a distinctive pool that is divided in half by a wall with a doorway-like opening cut from it.

A spa, which contains a circular cold-plunge pool designed to evoke a cave and a sweat room, connects both courtyards.

"The back part of the property is what traditionally was known as the caballerizas, an area for horses and storage," explained Moye.

"We felt the patio surrounded by rooms made from arched stone-masonry would make a perfect place for guests to find a retreat from the tropical sub-humid weather."

"The central open pool amidst dense greenery forms a refreshing oasis within the hotel," she continued.

"As a new addition, the pool area is made of one continuous concrete surface that drapes across the patio garden forming paths, basins, platforms, and stairs."

On the upper floor, a large balcony with wicker seating overlooks the central courtyard.

While the hotel looks inward to the central courtyards, Zeller & Moye turned the street-facing rooms into a series of self-contained shops.

Overall, Zeller & Moye hope that they have created a space for "refreshment and relaxation" that also shows how buildings evolve.

"We are interested in how buildings evolve over time," said Moye. "A building does not remain static, it is an organism exposed to layers of time and use."

"We wanted to create experiences based on all natural elements: sky, earth, fire, the flow of air, endemic vegetation, and water," she continued.

"The latter is present throughout the hotel in the form of pools and espejos de agua that create a climate of refreshment and relaxation."

Based in Berlin and Mexico City, Zeller & Moye is led by architects Moye and Christoph Zeller. Recent projects by the studio include an earthquake-resistant housing block in Mexico City and a wooden house in a German forest.

The photography is by Fernando Marroquín.

Project credits:

Architect: Zeller & Moye / Ingrid Moye, Christoph Zeller (principals), Harrison Cole Nesbitt, Luca Genualdo, Nina Meyer, Alex Pineda, Sarah Righi (team)
Client: Grupo Habita
Local architect: Carlos Cuevas, Yucateka Studio
Structural & mechanical engineering: CM Ingeniería, Lighting: Luca Salas
Contractor: Vigilante de la Construcción

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Zaha Hadid Architects principal Patrik Schumacher has won a legal battle with the Zaha Hadid Foundation over the use of the late Zaha Hadid's name.

Last week, the Court of Appeal overruled a High Court judgement from 2024 over a licensing agreement that required the architecture studio to retain Hadid's name and pay a fee to use it.

Justice Colin Birss ruled that the licensing agreement, which requires Zaha Hadid Architects to pay the foundation six per cent of its revenue each year, could be ended as it could not have been intended to be in place indefinitely.

Agreement includes "a power to terminate on reasonable notice"

Until now, the studio was locked into the agreement. The ruling opens the door for Schumacher to change the name of the studio or to renegotiate the contract.

"As a matter of principle and logic, and absent any other factors, it necessarily follows from a conclusion that the true construction of the parties' intentions is that an agreement is to be of indefinite duration as opposed to perpetual, that a power to terminate on reasonable notice forms part of those intentions," the ruling stated.

In his ruling, Birss stated that potential issues with a building designed by Hadid or changes in architectural style, which would make the brand a negative, meant that the contract could not have been intended to be in place forever.

"Many things might happen or emerge over the decades or centuries following the date of the agreement which might be so detrimental to the brand as to make it seriously disadvantageous to the company to be obliged to continue to promote the marks, for example if an iconic Zaha Hadid building was beset with structural problems," he said.

"Further, architectural styles change with changes in technology and taste," he continued.

"Can it sensibly be said that the parties intended the company to be bound to associate itself with and to promote Dame Zaha's architectural identity in 100 years time?"

Zaha Hadid Architects plans "constructive discussions with the foundation"

Hadid signed the agreement in 2013 and following her death in 2016, the licensing revenue was given to the Zaha Hadid Foundation. According to the judgement this has resulted in £21.4 million in fees between 2018 and 2024.

Zaha Hadid Architects told Dezeen that it would now begin a discussion with the Zaha Hadid Foundation about renegotiating the terms of the licensing agreement.

"Following a long-standing review of the trademark licence with the Zaha Hadid Foundation, the Court of Appeal has confirmed Zaha Hadid Architects' position that the outdated 2013 licence agreement could be ended on reasonable notice," said a spokesperson.

"The practice will now engage in constructive discussions with the foundation about an updated licence."

Decision latest in series of legal battles

The decision reverses the initial High Court judgement, which ruled that Zaha Hadid Architects could not be released from the licensing agreement.

At the time, the judge ruling in favour of the Zaha Hadid Foundation determined that the agreement was not restricting the studio's ability to be competitive.

"The company's economic activity has not been sterilised," wrote judge Adam Johnson. "In fact, it has achieved considerable financial success in the period since the licence agreement was entered into."

The case is the latest legal battle involving the studio and foundation. Following Hadid's death, there was a four-year-long dispute over her estate, which was settled in a court hearing in 2020.

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Milan-based Studio di Architettura De Carlo Gualla has created the Stella di Pila cable car station with panoramic views of the Italian Alps.

Surrounded by mountains at a height of 2,723 metres, the cable car station, which tops the Aosta-Pila-Couis Gondola, was designed to be a landmark within the Alpine landscape of the Aosta Valley region.

"The project explores how a cable car station can become a spatial experience rather than a purely technical object," Studio di Architettura De Carlo Gualla co-founder Andrea Gualla told Dezeen.

"Large infrastructure inevitably alters the landscape," he continued. "Our ambition was to avoid a purely functional intervention and instead create a structure capable of generating identity and spatial meaning – something that feels intentional within its environment rather than anonymous or imposed."

The cable car station has a distinct, jagged form that was informed by the shape of the edelweiss Alpine flower.

Its points were arranged to create views from the cable car station to the surrounding peaks, which include Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn.

"The geometry emerged from thinking about orientation and views," explained Gualla.

"Inspired by the edelweiss and the logic of a compass rose, each 'petal' is aligned with a specific peak."

"The building opens toward Gran Paradiso, Grande Rousse, the Rutor Glacier, Mont Blanc and Grand Combin – among the tallest and most iconic mountains in the Alps," he continued.

"A cantilevered petal extends outward as a viewing platform, projecting into the void and framing a direct view toward the Matterhorn."

The cable car station and public toilets occupies two of the building's seven, pointed petals, while the rest of the building contains a panoramic restaurant and bar.

The kitchen was placed at the centre of the building surrounded by the curved bar, snack bar and self service counters.

Seating extends from this central food service area into the pointed petals, which have ceilings that rise to take advantage of the mountain views.

All the walls are fully glazed a balcony surrounding the space contains outdoor seating. A mezzanine level above the kitchen contains additional indoor seating.

While having creating a distinct, recognisable form was a key consideration for Studio di Architettura De Carlo Gualla, the studio also had to create long-lasting building that would function within the mountainous conditions.

"At 2,750 metres, climate and logistics are not constraints to work around, but forces that actively shape the architecture," said Gualla.

"The challenge was to create something robust enough to withstand extreme conditions while retaining clarity, precision and visual lightness."

According to the architecture studio, sustainability was "embedded throughout the project", which uses grey water and rainwater recovery.

"In this context, sustainability is inseparable from longevity," said Gualla. "The replacement of obsolete lift systems improves efficiency while supporting a more continuous, year-round use of the site."

Other architecturally interesting lift buildings in the alps include a station with an angular timber viewing tower designed by Snøhetta and a station perched on top of Mount Gütsch by Studio Seilern Architects.

The photography is by Andrea Martiradonna.

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This week on Dezeen, the Pritzker Architecture Prize announced that this year's award would be delayed following director Tom Pritzker being named in the Epstein files.

Speaking to the New York Times, a spokesperson for the organisation said that this year's announcement, which would typically happen next week, would be delayed.

The news follows Tom Pritzker's decision to resign as executive chairman of the Hyatt Hotels Corporation, but remain as the prize foundation's director, after emails revealed his correspondence with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.

This week we spoke to the designer of the Orion spacecraft, which is set to take four people on the first crewed mission to the moon in more than 50 years.

"On Artemis II, for a minute, those four astronauts will be the humans that have been the farthest from the surface of Earth in the history of mankind, and they'll be flying in our baby," Sean ODell told Dezeen.

We also looked at how, despite four years of war, a flurry of small but striking interiors are popping up in Ukraine. 

"Designers have definitely become bolder and more interesting," said interior designer Dmytro Bonesko. "Perhaps this is because, in conditions of war and prolonged stress, everyone realises that their life is limited."

In an opinion piece for Dezeen, Owen Hopkins argued that despite the starchitect era coming to an end, architecture still needs powerful individuals.

"In the rush to draw a line under the age of the starchitect, we're at risk of losing more than we think," he wrote.

In India, architecture studios BDP, Cox Architecture and Collage Design revealed a trio of sports venues that will be built alongside the world's largest stadium in Ahmedabad, India.

Built near the 132,000-seat Narendra Modi Stadium, the complex will include a tennis venue, aquatics centre and indoor arena.

Popular projects the week included an Indian university based on stepped wells designed by Sanjay Puri Architects, a resort built into a Greek cliff edge and a "quietly magical" Toronto cafe.

Listen to our journalists talk about the key design and architecture stories of the past seven days on our Dezeen Weekly podcast, which this week focused on the controversial redevelopment of the White House's East Wing.

This week on Dezeen

This week on Dezeen is our regular roundup of the week's top news stories. Subscribe to our newsletters to be sure you don't miss anything.</em

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Architecture studio Archohm has unveiled The Shuttle badminton academy in Bhubaneswar, India, which was designed to look like a shuttlecock.

Located near Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, the venue was designed to draw attention to both the city and wider state of Odisha's focus on badminton.

Archohm designed the badminton centre with a bowl-shape form that resembles the cork head of a shuttlecock, while at night a series of lights evoke the feathers.

"The project aims to position the state of Odisha on the international badminton map to nurture world-class shuttlers," said Archohm principal architect Sourabh Gupta.

"The Shuttle, with its form, literally becomes the ideal representation of the vision of the city, of the state being the badminton capital," he told Dezeen.

"The idea was that the court shines every night like a beacon of hope, in the shape of a shuttle, with these rays on the rooftop when the public uses that space."

The academy was designed around a large, open hall that contains eight badminton courts overlooked by stepped seating.

Described as a "black box" by the architect, this space was raised onto the third floor, with the rest of the academy's facilities contained alongside it and in the base of the bowl and lit by skylights.

According to Archohm, this arrangement, along with the regions heavy rainfall, partly determined the rounded form of the building.

"The spherical outer shell has both practical and symbolic considerations," said Gupta.

"Not only does it offer structural resilience against the annual onslaught of cyclonic winds in Bhubaneswar but it also stands as a beacon of strength and resilience for the national academy," he continued.

"Badminton needs a black box where control of air, light and humidity is fundamental," Gupta said. "Completely opposite to that are the other quarters that need indirect light in this very warm and cyclone-prone city."

On the ground floor, the bowl-shaped form was wrapped in a double-height, glazed wall.

This space contains a publicly accessible cafe and sports shop, while the rooftop features a viewpoint for visitors to see across the city.

Overall, Gupta described the badminton centre as "mesmerising, fun and something that the city can never forget".

"The building is a visual spectacle that celebrates the academy's presence, a gesture marking Odisha's emergence as a prominent sports destination," he said.

"The icing on the cake is the rooftop. It is a massive – larger than a football field – open space on top of the roof with a shaded walkway to the city, something unforgettable."

Delhi-based Archohm has previously designed a wedge-shaped museum in Lucknow, northern India, dedicated to independence activist Jayaprakash Narayan and a crafts hub influenced by traditional Indian architecture.

The photography is by Noughts and Crosses.

Project credits:

Design: Archohm
Client: Dalmia Cement
Principal architect: Sourabh Gupta
Design team: Suboor Khan, Prachi Saxena, Yashvir Singh, Priyansh Seth, Vineet Rao, Rachna Sharma
Interior design: Archohm
Interior design team: Swapnil Sharma, Hari Mohan, Sebanti Sarkar, Sahil Sachdeva
Electrical: Archohm
Electrical team: Amit Das, Deepak Kumar, Rajveer Singh, Angrej Singh
Visual communication designers: Archohm
Visual communication designers: Akanksha Thapa, Syed Imran Hussain Rizvi, Nandini Goel, Bhavya Jain

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This year's Pritzker Architecture Prize announcement is set to be delayed following the foundation's director, Tom Pritzker, being named in the Epstein files.

A spokesperson for the organisation told the New York Times that this year's announcement, which typically happens in the first week of March, would be delayed.

The news follows Tom Pritzker resigning from his role as executive chairman of the Hyatt Hotels Corporation, after it was revealed he continued correspondence with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein after his conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008.

Following this conviction, Epstein was registered as a sex offender.

In a statement released alongside his resignation, Tom Pritzker said he had "exercised terrible judgment in maintaining contact with [Epstein]".

Tom Pritzker remains vice president of the Pritzker Foundation and president of the Hyatt Foundation, which established the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

Prize awarded "free from external influence"

A statement from the Pritzker Architecture Prize aimed to defend the award, which is widely considered the highest honour in architecture, and its independence.

"The jury, composed of internationally respected professionals from a range of disciplines, has always and will continue to conduct its work confidentially and free from external influence," said the statement issued to the New York Times.

The Pritzker Architecture Prize was established by Tom Pritzker's father, Jay Pritzker, in 1979, with Philip Johnson being named the first winner.

Previous winners of the award include some of architecture's best-known names – Zaha Hadid, Frank Gehry, Richard Rogers, Norman Foster, Rem Koolhaas, Álvaro Siza and Tadao Ando.

Last year, the prize was won by Chinese architect Liu Jiakun.

Tom Pritzker is mentioned over a thousand times in the latest release of Epstein's emails, which were made public on 30 January.

The files reveal numerous conversations between Tom Pritzker and Epstein, including arrangements to meet. The financier was invited to the awards ceremony numerous times.

The photo is courtesy of the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

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RIBA president Chris Williamson explains how he's trying to make an impact despite limited power in this exclusive interview.

It's only been six months since Williamson became president of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) but he has already generated multiple headlines, first for renouncing his architect title and then for his proposal for The Loop.

While he was still president elect, he was in the news over his defence of his studio's work on Neom, the controversial giga-project in Saudi Arabia.

"I try not to do anything half-hearted," he told Dezeen. "It looks as though I'm acting alone as some sort of renegade, but I'm actually not."

"I think people do appreciate that I'm trying to do the right thing and I'm doing it to try and show what an architect can do."

"From time to time you need to be bold"

After initially being concerned he may not be able to make an impact in his presidency, Williamson got the idea to give up his architect title after presenting a group of students with their Part 3 certificates.

"For the first two or three months, I was going home thinking, 'two years is going to fly by and I'm not really making any difference'," he said.

"I was giving out 300 certificates to Part 3 students and having to explain to their parents that you can't call yourself an architect unless you pay the subscription fee to ARB [the Architects Registration Board] and it just seemed to be bonkers," he continued.

"And I just thought, this is something I can do something about."

To Williamson's surprise, when he suggested the idea of terminating his registration with ARB, and therefore no longer being able to use the title of architect, the RIBA was very supportive.

"To be honest, I was expecting everybody here at the RIBA to say, 'No, you can't do that, don't rock the boat, that's not the way we do things.' But surprisingly, they said, 'Yes, that's an interesting idea,'" he recalled.

"And before I knew it, they'd written a press release and there was no way I could back down, even if I wanted to."

Although resigning from the architects' register could be considered a stunt, Williamson believes that it has actually made a difference.

According to Williamson, the move has started a debate and pushed forward discussions between ARB and the RIBA about the regulation of architecture.

"From time to time, you need to be bold, and I'm in the position where I can do something about it," he said.

"It has brought people to the negotiating table and really started a debate about how are we going to do this, about particular functions that an architect does that need to be regulated."

While Williamson's decision to give up the title of architect has been widely praised, his proposal to link five countries with a high-speed railway line was less warmly received.

"When it comes to the resigning from ARB, 95 per cent of people have been really supportive, and I've had some really emotional, really moving emails saying this is the best thing a president's ever done," he said.

"I would say when it comes to The Loop, it's 50/50," he continued. "As always in social media, there's been people that have been pretty vindictive, and you just have to have a thick skin about that."

"Our lack of ambition is just astonishing"

Williamson said he proposed The Loop to demonstrate how architects can be ambitious.

The Loop would connect the English cities of Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool, with Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland, Bangor in Wales, Dublin in Ireland and Belfast in Northern Ireland, with a high speed railway raised on stone viaducts.

"In the mid-19th century, we built 13,000 miles of railways in about 20 or 30 years and this proposal is for 1,000 kilometres," he explained. "And we can't even consider it, so our lack of ambition at the moment is just astonishing."

"I've been involved in infrastructure for 40 years," he continued. "I've seen what it can do, both on the Jubilee line helping to regenerate the East End and more recently the Elizabeth line, and also abroad as well."

Williamson explained how he was looking at some of the huge projects planned in other countries, including Saudi Arabia, and was impressed by their ambition.

"I've got so much criticism for working in Saudi Arabia, but those countries now are doing the things that we used to do, and I just wanted to try and harness the level of enthusiasm that engineers have for doing infrastructure works," he said.

"All the architects that I admire – Cedric Price, Archigram and Will Alsop – they all had ideas and not all of them were practical, but some of them got somewhere," he continued.

"And when Steve Jobs wanted to invent the iPhone he didn't know how it was going to work, but he knew what he wanted to do. So it's that sort of thing that I was trying to get at with The Loop."

Asked if British people's enthusiasm for high-speed rail had been dented by the troubled HS2 project, Williamson argued that setbacks shouldn't entirely dampen enthusiasm for ambitious projects.

"Just because you get something wrong doesn't mean to say everything you're going to do is wrong," he said.

"Look at what we did do – the Channel Tunnel, that was a great success. Even [Isambard Kingdom] Brunel went bust a couple of times, and a lot of the railway companies went bust, but it didn't stop them from doing amazing things."

"I don't have any power whatsoever as the president"

Williamson acknowledges that RIBA presidents have often found it tough to make meaningful change. Presidents only hold the position for two years, and the position is largely ceremonial.

"Change is very difficult to enact in two years, so yeah, you have to hope that you're part of the change, rather than the change itself," he said. "But I am quite an impatient person."

Effecting change requires working constructively with permanent senior members of staff at the RIBA who control the membership body's budgets, he added.

"There is a bit of a dilemma that the president is only here for two years, and the executive is here for a lot longer, so I have to work with them, but that's something that I'm used to," said Williamson.

"I have to convince them that these are the right things to do, otherwise nothing would get done," he continued. "I don't have any power whatsoever as the president, I don't have a budget, the only people with any power to get anything done is the executive."

Overall, Williamson hopes that he will be able to inspire young architects during his presidency.

"What I want to do, if I was totally honest, is pick my olives in Spain, but I feel like I'm not ready to retire yet, and there's so much I want to do to try and give young architects the same encouragement that I had when I was starting out," he said.

Williamson is the co-founder of UK studio Weston Williamson + Partners. He became president on the 1 September 2025, succeeding Muyiwa Oki.

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This week Sou Fujimoto's design for a residential project was revealed as the latest development on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi. Here we take a look at the museums anchoring the cultural district.

After being planned for decades, the Saadiyat Island cultural district has developed quickly in recent years.

Four out of five cultural anchors are now complete, with the final major cultural building on the island – Guggenheim Abu Dhabi – set to open this year.

Surrounding these museums will be numerous residential buildings, including the development designed by Fujimoto and the Mandarin Oriental Residences by Danish studio BIG.

Here are Saadiyat Island's five cultural anchors:

Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, by Frank Gehry, under construction

Set to open later this year, the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi will be the late Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry's last major building.

Located on a tip of the island surrounded by water on two sides, the long-awaited museum is formed of vast clashing geometric forms, which will contain galleries of varying heights and styles.

Find out more about Guggenheim Abu Dhabi ›

Zayed National Museum by Foster + Partners, 2025

The centrepiece of the cultural development, the soaring Zayed National Museum is named after UAE founder Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and dedicated to the history, culture and landscape of the Emirates.

Modelled on the wings of a falcon, the museum designed by UK studio Foster + Partners was topped with five giant steel towers, described as "thermal chimneys".

Find out more about Zayed National Museum ›

National History Museum by Mecanoo, 2025

Set on a coastal site, the sprawling Natural History Museum is contained within a series of white-concrete forms designed by Dutch studio Mecanoo to resemble rock formations.

Designed for Abu Dhabi's Department of Culture and Tourism, the blocky exterior is wrapped in ridged panels of ultra-high performance concrete to ensure "durability in the desert climate".

Find out more about National History Museum ›

TeamLab Phenomena by TeamLab Architects, 2025

The third of a trio of cultural buildings completed on the island in 2025, TeamLab Phenomena is located directly alongside the National History Museum on the coast of Saadiyat Island.

Created as a permanent venue for Japanese art collective TeamLab's immersive artworks, the almost windowless building has a sinuous form made from white, glass fibre-reinforced concrete.

Find out more about TeamLab Phenomena ›

Louvre Abu Dhabi by Jean Nouvel, 2017

The first of the cultural anchors completed on Saadiyat Island, Louvre Abu Dhabi – the first Musée du Louvre outpost outside of France – has been open since 2017.

Almost entirely surrounded by water and topped with a 180-metre-diameter dome, the art museum contains 6,400 square metres of gallery space along with a 270-seat auditorium, restaurant, shop and cafe.

Find out more about Louvre Abu Dhabi ›

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Sportswear brand Nike has created an air-filled jacket that can be inflated and deflated, which is being worn by Team USA at this year's Olympics. Here, Nike chief design officer Martin Lotti explains why it's not a gimmick.

Showcased in an installation created in a series of railway arches in Milan during the Olympics this week, the Air Milano Jacket brings Nike's Air technology to a coat.

"We were looking at air as an underfoot performance technology that delivers upon cushioning – and we have done it for 50 years, but I would say, even in footwear, we're just scratching the surface," Nike chief design officer Martin Lotti told Dezeen.

"But then we started asking ourselves, as air is such an amazing ingredient – you can't even see it, that's the irony of it from a design perspective, to work with a medium that you can't even see, it's so intangible – it can have so many different benefits."

The jacket can be inflated or deflated by the wearer to regulate their temperature without taking off or adding layers.

Deflated, the Air Milano Jacket acts as a windbreaker, while when fully inflated, it is as warm as a mid-weight puffer jacket.

It is inflated with a small, battery-powered fan in around 20 seconds using a valve on the front of the jacket, and can be gradually deflated by pressing the same valve.

According to Lotti, the jacket solves a problem that many runners face, which is regulating temperature as they warm up during a run.

"In the morning, it's cold, and you run and get warm," he explained. "What do you do? You take off the jacket, you put it around your waist – it's so custom, we do it automatically without solving the actual problem."

"[Now] you can actually do it within one garment and adjust it on the fly within 20 seconds?" he continued. "So that's what I love about it. It's not a gimmick, because it actually solves a problem that athletes have every single time [they run]."

Given that the filling is air, the jacket is very light and also does not lose its insulation qualities if it gets wet.

"Air can deliver upon cushioning, can deliver upon cooling, and it turns out it's a very good insulator; hence, it solves a problem that athletes have every single time they go on a run," said Lotti.

"It's adaptable, it happens to be also super light, and because it's air, there's not anything like down, so it doesn't wet out. With a down puffer, when it rains, it gets wet, and then you lose all of the heat capacity," he continued.

"And then the weight-to-warmth ratio is incredible too – so that's another key benefit of it."

The jacket is a continuation of Nike's integration of air within its products that began in the late 1970s with the launch of the Nike Tailwind, which had encapsulated gas bags within its sole.

This continued with Nike making the air pockets visible with the hugely popular Nike Air Max series that began in the late 1980s.

Lotti acknowledges that it has taken a long time to translate that thinking from footwear to garments and explained that it was the creation of a material to contain the air that was "the breakthrough".

"We dabbled with it in apparel 20 years ago with an ACG jacket with air, but we didn't have a material that was suitable," he explained.

"That jacket had an airbag within a jacket, whereas now the airbag is the jacket. What took us so long was actually finding a fabric that contains the air, or can contain the air, but is supple," he continued.

"It sounds so simple to do, but it's incredibly hard. Then we discovered this two-layer membrane that actually can do that – that was the breakthrough. So yes, it took us a long time, and now I can't wait to explore it more."

According to Lotti, not having a filling has also allowed Nike to rethink the look of a puffer jacket as the structure is no longer constrained.

"I would say, from a design perspective, it also allows us to go to new places because with a puffer you're usually trying to contain feathers and they look a certain way," he said.

"But now all of a sudden, it's unconstrained."

A special version of the jacket was created for the Team USA at this year's Olympics, and the athletes will be wearing them during the medal ceremonies.

This customised version has several Olympic-specific details, including a flag, a patch on the arm, USA written on the back and an Olympic logo on the chest.

"I do believe a good design solves problems for our athletes," said Lotti. "It also has to evoke emotion."

"So, for example, on the Milano jacket, if you look at the inside of the jacket and you look at the graphics, it's the Garden of Gods, a mountain range in Colorado where the US team is based," he continued.

"There's an eagle there, and if you look really close at the feathers of the eagle, it does a victory sign – so there are so many little hidden things within it."

The jacket was created as part of the recently relaunched All Conditions Gear brand and uses the ACG logo rather than the Nike Swoosh. As part of the brand's relaunch, Nike created a branded train named the All Conditions Express.

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Sportswear brand Nike has created an all-orange, heavily branded train at the Milano-Cortino Winter Olympics to mark the relaunch of All Conditions Gear.

Nike repurposed an Italian commuter train to transport people from central Milan to the Italian alps to showcase the values of the reintroduced All Conditions Gear (ACG) brand.

"With the outdoors in particular, it's so serious, everything is like top-of-mountain, so we purposely wanted to come in with an attitude that solves problems at the highest level, but has even more attitude," Nike chief design officer Martin Lotti told Dezeen.

"The fun, the playful, but the reverentness of the outdoors, and then this obviously being more innovation driven, and I think it's really the balance of all of them."

Designed by Nike's in-house team, the All Conditions Express was heavily branded with ACG's signature bright orange colours and triangular logo.

Inside, the interior spaces and almost every perceivable item, from phones to Jenga sets and megaphones to coffee pots, were branded in bright orange and featured the ACG logo.

The train was designed to be a base station for athletes, with each carriage repurposed into a different purpose for an outdoors trip.

Several passenger carriages were fitted with custom-designed seating compartments, with burnt-orange upholstery and headrests complete with ACG logos.

Near the front of the train, a cafe informed by "classic alpine refuges" with a pair of high tables was designed as the social hub.

It contains a metal booth serving coffee along with a souvenir shop with branded t-shirts, postcards, patches, stickers, bags and snacks.

At the rear of the train was a recovery space with various seating options, including a large, multi-person daybed, hanging chairs and upholstered swivel chairs complete with sightseeing binoculars.

The seats were arranged around a log-burning stove and storage units filled with various ACG-branded goods.

Other carriages include an equipment storage room, complete with a miniature, model railway version of the All Conditions Express.

With the relaunch, Nike focused very heavily on the ACG branding, with the triangular logo featured hundreds of times within the train and no Nike Swooshes in sight.

"This is for the outdoors, and it has a distinct look and feel and can have its own attitude and dimensions as well," explained Lotti.

"It is a very pure logo and it was established in 1988 – there's so much love for it," he continued.

"It's really in the spirit of solving problems for the outdoors, and having a specific mark with that signifies a different vibe and attitude towards solving problems."

Nike recently released its first neuroscience-based footwear, which was "designed from the brain down" and transformed a Victorian public bathhouse in London into a skatepark in collaboration with Palace Skateboards.

The photography is courtesy of Nike, unless stated.

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UK studio Denizen Works has exclusively revealed its first house in Japan, which features an almost entirely blank street-facing facade.

Named House in Onomichi, the charred-timber-clad house was designed to take advantage of its coastal site in southwest Japan, which overlooks the sea and nearby islands.

"The core concept for the project was to use the building to create a private sanctuary overlooking the sea and the Setonai islands beyond," Denizen Works founder Murray Kerr told Dezeen.

House in Onomichi was designed to create a sense of privacy for the clients, who moved back to Japan from London for a calmer life, and references the arrangement of traditional Japanese homes.

A two-storey block contains the one-bedroom home, while a single-storey studio that extends from it was placed to partially enclose a small garden.

The connected structures are both accessed from a covered entrance walkway and unified by vertical, burnt-timber Yakisugi cladding.

"The house is split between two traditional forms, that of the Omoya – main house – and the Hanare – annexe – which in this case represents the split between work and home," explained project lead Yuto Fujii.

"It was designed to create privacy and enhance the sense of enclosure."

To add to this sense of privacy and create an air of mystery, the home's street-facing facade has no windows, broken only by the covered entrance.

"Placing the entrance in an entirely blank facade gives the house an enigmatic quality, ensuring the private setting remains private to the owners of the house and those lucky enough to be invited over the threshold," said Kerr.

Within the house, the bedroom and bathroom are on the ground floor, while the entire upper level contains an open-plan kitchen and dining room.

This space was designed to take advantage of the sea views, with windows arranged at different heights to ensure sightlines when sitting on the floor or using western seating.

The building is Denizen Works's first house in Japan and it was created in collaboration with Hiroshima-based Takearchitects, which took the lead on many of the construction details.

It combines the studio's own broad knowledge with traditional Japanese forms and craft.

"One needs to be careful trying to reinterpret traditional forms, but the development of the idea stemmed from a desire to create a functional studio on the ground floor that forms an interpretation of the traditional doma," said Kerr.

"Beyond that, we played with the cross-pollination of our clients, fusing east and west habits with windows that respond to whether you might be sitting on the floor, on a sofa or at a table."

According to Kerr, the studios utilised the proportions seen in typical British dwellings while employing Japanese construction methods.

"We approached the spatial arrangement using dimensions and proportions typically seen in our dwelling designs in the UK, whilst embracing the Japanese traditional timber frame construction where the structural grid is based on the tatami size modules," said Fujii.

"This has created an atmosphere of both difference and familiarity in what seems at first to be very simple architecture."

According to Kerr, the house has already become accepted by the local community as "a popular neighbour" and continues the studio's own thread of intriguing houses, which includes a contemporary castle-like dwelling in Scotland.

"The house reflects our ongoing development of projects that try and push a sense of experience beyond that of the realms of a typical house," he said.

"The sculptural form of the house, its elemental nature and the lack of openings on the street help create a feeling of personal privacy reflecting our clients' aspirations," he continued.

"This simple approach, combined with our embrace of local construction techniques, has resulted in a house that, like all community-minded denizens, has become naturalised in its habitat."

Founded in 2011 by Kerr, Denizen Works is an architecture studio with offices in London and Glasgow.

Other recently completed projects by the studio include the Floating Genesis church, which is crowned by a pop-up roof, and a house on the Scottish island of Tiree with a gable-shaped glass wall.

The photography is by Yano Toshiyuki.

Project credits:

Architect: Denizen Works
Local architect: Takearchitects
Structural engineer: Satoshi Horie
Contractor: Daiwa Kensetsu

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RIBA president Chris Williamson has proposed linking nine northern cities in Britain and Ireland with The Loop – a raised high-speed railway informed by Neom's megacity The Line.

Described by Williamson as a manifesto to "inspire" and "provoke", The Loop would connect the English cities of Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool, with Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland, Bangor in Wales, Dublin in Ireland and Belfast in Northern Ireland.

According to Williamson, who is the co-founder of UK studio WW+P, connecting the nine cities would create a northern powerhouse with a population of around 10 million that is "comparable with other major global cities".

Williamson was inspired by the ambition of The Line, a 170-kilometre-long megacity planned in Saudi Arabia, in his design for the scheme, which he estimates will cost £130 billion to construct.

"Maybe I have been too influenced by the scale, the vision and the ambition of Neom The Line in Saudi Arabia, having worked on the high-speed stations running alongside the one hundred and seventy kilometre long city for the last few years," Williamson said.

"But we in the British Isles should be equally ambitious about our future," he continued. "At present, the government seems to expect each city to compete for the same investment funding, when we need to encourage connectivity and collaboration."

The concept for The Loop was developed in collaboration with UK engineering studio Elliott Wood and would see high-speed tracks raised on an elevated stone viaduct.

According to the proposal, the viaduct arches would be made from pre-tensioned stone beams to create "a vernacular that sits comfortably within the landscape".

Trains would travel on the viaduct at speeds of up to 300 miles per hour, meaning that all the cities would be within 90 minutes of each other.

"Travel from Edinburgh to Manchester would take less time than crossing Los Angeles," said the proposal. "It would allow people to live in Newcastle and work in Glasgow."

Along with the raised viaducts, The Loop would cross the Irish Sea twice, requiring either tunnelling or bridges.

Previously, architect Alan Dunlop suggested connecting Northern Ireland and Scotland with a plan backed by DUP politicians and supported by Boris Johnson. Engineers have also suggested connecting Holyhead in Wales with Dublin with a combined bridge-and-tunnel crossing.

The Loop proposal is extremely ambitious and would be the third high-speed railway line in the UK, if built.

The first line opened in 2003 connecting London with the Channel Tunnel, with the second line, known as HS2, is currently under construction between London and Birmingham. This line was originally planned to extend to Manchester and Leeds, but these phases were cancelled in 2021 and 2023 respectively.

The visuals are courtesy of Chris Williamson.

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The city of Almaty in Kazakhstan has been announced as the new host of the 2029 Asian Winter Games, replacing the Trojena ski resort in Neom, Saudi Arabia.

At a ceremony in Milan yesterday, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) officially announced that Almaty would host the event in 2029.

The 10th edition of the Asian Winter Games was originally planned to be hosted in Saudi Arabia at the Trojena ski resort, which is under construction as part of the Neom mega project.

However, after widespread reports of construction delays, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee jointly announced that the Neom games would be postponed for an unspecified period of time last month.

Host City Contract signed

Now an alternative host for the event has been found.

"The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) today held the signing ceremony of the Host City Contract for the 10th Asian Winter Games, scheduled to be staged in Almaty, Republic of Kazakhstan, in 2029," said a statement from the Olympic Council of Asia.

"The Host City Contract was signed between the Olympic Council of Asia and the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as part of the completion of the institutional procedures approved for hosting the continental event."

Trojena was originally announced as the host of the 2029 Asian Winter Games in 2022 with Neom chief executive Nadhmi al-Nasr saying the event would take place "in the heart of the desert".

Trojena ski resort delayed

Masterplanned by German architecture studio LAVA, the Trojena resort is currently under construction in the mountainous Tabuk region in the northwest of the country. If built, it will be arranged around a giant artificial lake and contain buildings designed by UNStudio, Zaha Hadid Architects, and Aedas.

The project was planned to be completed this year, but has reportedly faced construction delays with a completion date now unclear.

Trojena is part of the Neom mega project, which will also reportedly consist of a 170-kilometre-long city called The Line. It is the most high-profile of 14 gigaprojects being developed in Saudi Arabia as part of the Saudi Vision 2030 plan to shift the country's economy away from a reliance on oil.

The development has been criticised widely on human rights and sustainability grounds, and last year, Dezeen asked if it was time for architecture studios to walk away from the project in the face of mounting pressure from campaigners.

Neom is undertaking a broad review and is reportedly "considering significantly cutting its workforce".

The main image shows the Trojena ski resort.

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UK studios Hugh Broughton Architects and NORR have exclusively revealed the aerodynamic Antarctic Discovery Building, which is topped with a unique snow deflector.

Created in collaboration with engineering consultants Ramboll, Turner & Townsend and Sweco, the multipurpose structure was designed "to perform in one of the harshest environments on Earth", according to Hugh Broughton Architects.

Antarctic Discovery Building is the centrepiece of Rothera Research Station on Adelaide Island, which is the base for British research in Antarctica and acts as the capital of the British Antarctic Territory.

The 4,500-square-metre, sky-blue building is topped with a control tower for the base's airstrip and replaces nine separate buildings at the research centre.

"The aim was to bring together almost all of the station's key operational functions under one roof," Hugh Broughton Architects founder Hugh Broughton told Dezeen.

"At Rothera, operations include both a gravel runway and a wharf that receives the Sir David Attenborough research and logistics vessel, so the control tower plays a critical role in coordinating air and marine activity," he continued.

"From seated positions, operators have clear 360-degree views to the new wharf and along the full length of the runway and associated aircraft approach paths."

The ground floor of the two-storey structure contains the main plant for generating power and heat, along with the base's main store area. On the upper floor, there are operational offices, a gym, a music room, an arts and crafts space, a sauna and even a climbing wall.

Significantly, the building contains a double-height vehicle workshop and exhibition preparation area that requires ground-level access. While many Antarctic buildings are raised on stilts to deal with snow drift, Hugh Broughton Architects needed to develop a different strategy to ensure level access.

Placed directly in the path of the prevailing wind, the form of the building encourages wind to flow over it, while a deflector runs the full length of the roof, directing the wind to blow snow away from the building's south facade.

"One of the most significant design challenges in Antarctica is managing snow drift," explained Broughton.

"Snow that accumulates against a building can freeze, causing serious damage to facade materials. While many Antarctic buildings are elevated to allow wind to scour snow from beneath them, the Discovery Building is ground-based," he continued.

According to Broughton, the wind deflector was positioned to direct snow away from the south side as "a ground-based building with a pitched roof creates a risk of snow building up along the leeward facade, where wind speed drops".

"Acting a little like an aerofoil on a Formula One car, it accelerates the wind as it travels down the facade, maintaining sufficient speed to scour snow away from the building and push it further out into the landscape," he explained.

To deal with the cold, the building is wrapped in highly insulated blue composite panels, broken only by bands of triple-glazed windows. This, along with photovoltaics arranged on the north-facing facade, helped the building to become the first BREEAM-certified project in Antarctica.

"Sustainability is critical in Antarctica because everything required to operate a station has to be transported from elsewhere, involving enormous energy cost, carbon emissions and logistical effort," said Broughton.

"One of the most effective sustainability strategies to reduce carbon emissions is multi-functionality – bringing many activities into a single building dramatically reduces the need to move people, equipment and supplies across the site," he continued.

"Careful zoning also improves efficiency by minimising travel distances within the building. Orientation and the wind deflector reduce the energy required to manage snow, while the high-performance thermal envelope reduces heat loss. The combined heat and power system further improves efficiency by making full use of energy that would otherwise be wasted."

Hugh Broughton Architects has designed several buildings in Antarctica, including the mobile Halley VI Antarctic Research Station, and it is currently working on an extension to the Australian Antarctic research base.

Broughton believes there has been a significant shift in Antarctic architecture design thinking, since they first started working in the region 2o years ago.

"Across the polar regions, there has been a clear shift in thinking – we see more multifunctional buildings that use space more efficiently, with improved ratios of usable floor area to external envelope, making them more energy-efficient and sustainable," Broughton said.

"Buildings now respond much more strongly to their environmental context, particularly through aerodynamic form and careful orientation to both wind and sun. At the same time, there has been a far greater emphasis on the wellbeing of the people who live and work inside these buildings," he continued.

"The Discovery Building reflects this broader trajectory in Antarctic architecture: towards buildings that are more energy-efficient, more responsive to their environment and more attuned to human needs. In that sense, it sets a benchmark for the next generation of large, multifunctional Antarctic buildings."

The main photo is by Matt Hughes.

Project credits: 

Architect: Hugh Broughton Architects
Client: British Antarctic Survey (BAS)
Technical advisers & developed design: Ramboll, NORR, Turner & Townsend
Main contractor: BAM
Delivery consultant: Sweco
Delivery architect: Hugh Broughton Architects

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Following the unveiling of the Discovery Building today, we look at eight architectural highlights from Antarctica over the past 20 years.

By far the world's least developed continent, Antarctica has very few buildings.

Two simple huts built in 1899 were the first structures to be constructed on the continent, but as exploration has continued, research bases have grown in complexity and scale with the Discovery Building designed by Hugh Broughton Architects being the latest addition.

"Antarctica is unique in that it is the only continent where you can see both the very first building ever constructed and some of the most advanced buildings in the world," Hugh Broughton Architects founder Hugh Broughton told Dezeen.

"Borchgrevink's Hut, built between 1898 and 1900 at Cape Adare, consisted of two small timber structures measuring just 5.5 by 6.5 metres, barely insulated and extremely rudimentary," he continued.

"By contrast, contemporary Antarctic buildings like the Discovery Building are large, highly insulated, airtight and aerodynamic. In many ways, they would not look out of place in a temperate climate, yet they are designed to perform in one of the harshest environments on Earth."

The harsh climatic conditions, along with geographic separation from major settlements, mean that Antarctic architecture has to be extremely efficient. However, Broughton doesn't believe that this has overly constrained the architecture built on continent.

"Once all the climatic, environmental, operational and logistic factors that influence the design of a building in Antarctica have been considered, one might presume that there is no room left for creativity, but this could not be further from the truth," he said.

"Design in Antarctica is truly innovative and there have been many new stations and buildings completed in recent years which have won awards from across the world, and which demonstrate that they have the X Factor – designs which rise above the ordinary to help make people's lives more enjoyable."

Broughton also described architecture in Antarctica as "embassies on the ice", which he believes are key in supporting scientists deliver cutting edge research.

"These buildings respond to their context with imaginative solutions developed from first principles, which reduce maintenance burden, emphasise health, safety and well-being and provide an inclusive, exciting, and inspiring place to live and work," added Broughton.

"They are the vehicle to support groundbreaking scientific research which will help us to understand and then combat climate change and they act as 'embassies on the ice' for the nations that sponsor them."

Read on for eight examples of innovative Antarctic architecture:

Scott Amundsen Base by Ferraro Choi (2008)

The base furthest south in Antarctica, and therefore the world, is the Scott Amundsen Base, located near the South Pole.

Built to accommodate 150 people from the US's National Science Foundation, the building is elevated on 36 hydraulic jack columns. This means that the whole structure can be raised over time so that it doesn't get buried in snow.

Princess Elisabeth Station by Philippe Samyn and Partners, International Polar Foundation and Prefalux (2009)

Described as the "first-ever zero-emission station" in Antarctica, the Princess Elisabeth Station is perched on stilts on an exposed, granite ridge in Queen Maud Land.

The building, which has a stainless steel finish and aerodynamic shape, was designed by Belgian studio Philippe Samyn and Partners in collaboration with the International Polar Foundation and Prefalux, to be compact to reduce material and energy use.

Its main base has a mass timber frame visible throughout the interiors, giving the research facility a different feel from the majority of other bases on the continent. Below this structure is a more typical, regular-shaped building, used as a garage for vehicles and various other activities.

The base runs entirely on renewable energy with solar panels placed on all its facades, while nine wind turbines are installed along the ridgeline.

Bharati Research Station by Bof Architekten (2012)

Bof Architekten designed the space-age-looking Bharati Research Station, part of which is raised six metres above the ground on distinctive V-shaped columns, as India's third research facility in Antarctica.

As an innovative solution to building on the hard-to-reach continent, the main structure of the base is made from the 134 shipping containers used to transport other building materials to the site. This shipping-container structure was wrapped in a highly insulated and aerodynamically formed skin to reduce snow drifting.

Shipping containers along the edges of the two-storey base contain single bedrooms for 47 researchers, while the communal areas were placed in the centre of the building.

Halley VI Antarctic Research Station by Hugh Broughton Architects (2013)

Described as "the world's first mobile research facility", the Halley VI Antarctic Research Station on the floating Brunt Ice Shelf was designed by Hugh Broughton Architects for the British Antarctic Survey (BAS).

The distinctive structure consists of eight interlinking modules raised on hydraulically elevated feet to stay above the snow.

Jang Bogo Station by Space Group (2014)

Located on Terra Nova Bay, the Jang Bogo Station was designed by Space Group for the South Korean Antarctic research mission.

The base's main 4000-square-metre building has an aerodynamic triple-arm form raised on stilts. Two of the wings contain living quarters, with the third containing scientific laboratories and a large dining space illuminated by a series of diamond-shaped windows in the connecting central space.

Juan Carlos 1 Spanish Antarctic Base by Hugh Broughton Architects (2018)

Set on Livingstone Island, the current Juan Carlos 1 Spanish Antarctic Base was designed by Hugh Broughton Architects to replace an ageing facility on the site.

The redesigned base comprises a three-pointed habitat module for up to 20 people, along with a separate science module and several additional units for services and storage.

All of the structures are raised on legs and clad in bright red, fibre-reinforced plastic panels to give a unified appearance.

Comandante Ferraz Research Station by Estúdio 41 (2020)

Designed by Curitiba-based Estúdio 41 as the Brazilian Navy's scientific base on King George Island, the Comandante Ferraz Research Station consists of a pair of teal-hued, linear modules raised on stilts.

Both blocks are terminated with fully glazed walls, while every room in the block has a window to ensure views and natural light. The research station contains 17 laboratories, accommodation for 64 scientists, along with shared living areas, a gym and a library.

Antarctic Discovery Building by Hugh Broughton Architects (2026)

The most recent piece of Antarctic architecture, this large two-storey building is the main operations base for the British Antarctic Survey at the Rothera Research Station, which acts as the capital of the British Antarctic Territory.

Inside the 4,500-square-metre building is the base's main plant for generating power, alongside a store, offices, a gym, a music room, an arts and crafts space, a sauna and vehicle repair workshops. It is topped with a control tower for the base's airstrip.

A unique snow deflector on the building's roof uses the region's strong wind to blow snow away from the building.

The main photo is by the International Polar Foundation.

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Employees from Danish architecture studio BIG along with Unite union members have held a protest in London to demonstrate proposed layoffs at the firm.

Taking place earlier today outside the Broadgate offices of BIG, the group of 40 gathered to protest the redundancy process currently taking place at the studio.

According to the Unite union, 72 of the studio's 160-strong workforce are at risk of redundancy following the loss of a major project.

The demonstration aimed to encourage BIG to offer improved redundancy terms and meet with union officials to explore other options to redundancy.

Protestors joined in chants aimed at studio founder Bjarke Ingels and referencing the reported £7 million in dividends the company's shareholders received.

Chants included "Bjarke Ingels shame on you" and "Seven million Bjarke has stowed, give your workers what they're owed".

Speaking at the protest, a representative for Unite claimed that over 80 employees at BIG had joined Section of Architectural Workers – the architectural workers branch of the Unite union. However, he claimed that BIG had declined to meet representatives from the union.

"We couldn't reach out to every employee who's joined the union because it's been over 80," said the representative.

"This is one of the first architectural workplaces in the country to reach this kind of union density and yet the employer has repeatedly refused to meet with us and repeatedly refused to engage with what their employees want to talk about."

The representative also suggested that the option of BIG offering to relocate employees to other offices in Europe had not been discussed.

"This company is hiring, mass hiring at other offices within Europe, and yet they are trying to push through over 70 redundancies and the shortest possible timeline," he said.

Ahead of the protest the managing director of BIG's London firm, Henriette Helstrup, confirmed to Dezeen that the studio had lost a major project and was in the process of carrying out redundancies "in full accordance with UK guidelines and due process".

"It is correct that a major project in our London Studio has been terminated end of November last year due to circumstances beyond our control," Helstrup told Dezeen.

"The project employed roughly half the office and we immediately informed our entire team of the project termination. Our leadership team is engaging directly with those affected in a thoughtful and constructive manner, in full accordance with UK guidelines and due process."

BIG was founded by Danish architect Bjarke Ingels in Copenhagen in 2005. Today it has studios around the world, including in New York, Barcelona and London.

It is not the only major architecture firm to come under fire in recent weeks due to employee dismissals. Snøhetta was recently accused of laying off pro-union employees at its New York office.

The photography is by Tom Ravenscroft.

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Today, we are launching the Dezeen Exclusives section to showcase projects never published before online.

Since Dezeen was founded, we have aimed to bring our readers the most interesting design, architecture and interiors stories first.

To continue this we are launching an exclusives section, which will show our readers the best projects before they see them anywhere else.

Every week, we will publish exclusive design, architecture and interiors projects on the site and collect them on a dedicated exclusives page.

Each of these projects will not have been published on any major websites before, meaning our readers will be seeing these projects for the first time.

We will showcase these stories by featuring them on Instagram and within a dedicated newsletter.

We encourage all our readers to submit their projects to be seen first on Dezeen using our new submission email – exclusives@dezeen.com.

The photo shows Sky House by Klas Hyllén Architecture, which was published exclusively today. The photo is by Dave Watts.

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This week on Dezeen, we revealed that Irish architect Niall McLaughlin has been named the recipient of the 2026 Royal Gold Medal for architecture awarded by the Royal Institute of British Architects.

McLaughlin, who is the founder of Niall McLaughlin Architects, was recognised by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) "for the resounding impact he has had on the profession".

In an interview with Dezeen, McLaughlin said that a focus on creating meaningful architecture united all of his projects.

"I think people want buildings to be meaningful," he told Dezeen. "Okay, I know that sounds almost trite, but it's true that people want to feel that a building is something that helps them to communicate meaning to each other."

This week also saw the postponement of the 2029 Asian Winter Games, which were scheduled to be held at the unbuilt Trojena ski resort in Neom, Saudi Arabia.

"The Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee and the Olympic Council of Asia have agreed on an updated framework for future hosting of the Asian Winter Games, confirming the postponement of the 2029 edition to a later date to be announced in due course," said the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee in a statement.

In the US, numerous well-known architecture studios, including Zaha Hadid Architects and Grimshaw, responded to president Donald Trump's call for a redesign of Washington Dulles Airport.

A proposal submitted by Bermello Ajamil & Partners and Zaha Hadid Architects included renders of a terminal building with the name Donald J Trump Terminal attached.

Ahead of next month's Winter Olympics in Italy, architecture studio David Chipperfield Architects and engineering studio Arup revealed photos of the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena.

Italian architect Carlo Ratti also unveiled a "mobile relay cauldron" that will accompany the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic touches at events ahead of the games.

We also spoke to the creators of buzzy gay ice hockey romance Heated Rivalry, who explained how they struggled to find an appropriate cottage to feature in the show.

"We had a hard time finding that spot," said production designer Aidan Leroux. "It would be a daily thing like: have you found the cottage yet? And we'd be like: nope."

"Glenn Carter, the location guy, would show us stuff, and it was just not quite right," he remembered. "But we knew it was important, and Jacob was willing to just keep looking and not settle."

Popular projects this week included a pair of giant brick shoes created by Crocs and Lego, a tiny moveable cabin in Byron Bay and the renovation of the lower observation deck of the iconic CN Tower in Downtown Toronto.

This week on Dezeen

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Dubai studio Dabbagh Architects has renovated the mud-brick Sultan Fort and extended the Al Ain Museum in Abu Dhabi, incorporating archaeological remains discovered during construction.

Dedicated to the history and archaeology of the area, the museum is located alongside the UNESCO-listed Al Ain Oasis in the town of Al Ain.

Dabbagh Architects aimed to balance the two historic structures – an early 20th century fort and UAE's first museum, built in the 1960s – with a contemporary building to create "a vessel for memory".

"The core concept was to position architecture as a vessel for memory," Dabbagh Architects founder Sumaya Dabbagh told Dezeen.

"Rather than imposing elements on the site, the project was conceived as a careful weaving of archaeology, historic structures, and contemporary architecture," she continued. "The museum is designed to showcase over 8,000 years of history, allowing the site itself to lead the narrative."

"Here, tangible form becomes a framework through which the intangible – memory, identity, and place – are experienced, ensuring continuity between past, present, and future."

Dabbagh Architects renovated the large brick fort and its round corner towers, as well as the original single-storey museum building.

Alongside these historic structures, the studio added a modern extension that, along with the two existing buildings, forms an entrance plaza. The extension is formed from a series of interconnected blocks connected by small courtyards.

"Designing within such a historically significant site meant listening closely to the archaeology, the landscape, and the cultural memory embedded within it," explained Dabbagh.

"We engaged closely with archaeologists, conservators, and heritage specialists, allowing the site's multiple historical layers to guide the architectural response. Rather than treating these conditions as constraints alone, we embraced them as opportunities to shape a museum that safeguards heritage while revealing its continuity across time."

During construction work on the museum, a tomb and a series of irrigation systems and wells were discovered on the site. This led to design alterations that allow these archaeological remains to be showcased.

Several of the larger gallery spaces are arranged around these uncovered archaeological remains, which are preserved where they were found.

"Honouring the historic and archaeological elements was always central to our design approach," explained Dabbagh. "The new building was carefully positioned and scaled to frame, rather than dominate, the site's existing structures and excavations."

"The architecture is woven around the archaeology, allowing it to remain visible, accessible, and central to the visitor experience," she continued.

These archaeology-focused galleries were finished in chiselled limestone to evoke the neighbouring fort and distinguish them from the museum's other spaces.

Alongside these earthy-colour spaces are a series of more traditional white-box galleries as well as a cafe, shop, research library, conservation laboratories and offices. All these areas were finished in bright white render.

Overall, Dabbagh hopes that visitors to the museum leave with a "sense of connection to the site".

"The museum is designed to foster reflection, understanding, and belonging, allowing visitors to experience heritage as a living continuum," she said.

"Ultimately, we hope the architecture brings a deeper appreciation of the UAE's rich history and a renewed sense of pride in its cultural identity."

Dabbagh Architects was founded in 2008 by Dabbagh, who was a judge for the Dezeen Awards 2024. The studio previously designed a calligraphy-covered mosque in Dubai.

The photography is by Gary O'Leary.

Project credits:

Architect: Dabbagh Architects
Principal: Sumaya Dabbagh
Design lead: Hala Nahas
Design team: Hana Younes, William Java, Tala Al Shukairy
Site supervision team:  Mamdouh el Fallal, Sherif Touma, Faustino Alimodian,
Myrto Tsitsinaki, Burak Dolu (Conservation)
Engineering: Buro Happold
Landscape architects: WAHO Landscape Architects
Conservation architects: SeARCCH
Lighting consultants: Nulty
Cost consultants: Matthews Southwest

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Irish architect Niall McLaughlin, who was announced as the recipient of the 2026 RIBA Royal Gold Medal today, explains his focus on creating meaningful architecture in this interview.

Reflecting on winning the prestigious RIBA Royal Gold Medal, McLaughlin explained that he believes the award is an acknowledgement of architects' growing rejection of flashy architecture.

"It seems to me that architects are interested in a quieter, more purposeful understanding of architecture that is based on the way that buildings are made, the care in which they're put together and the work we're doing for communities around learning, around faith, around care and housing," he told Dezeen.

"It's that core vocation of the architect that they're looking to recognise, I would hope."

McLaughlin, who was called a "pivotal figure in contemporary architecture" by RIBA, has created numerous buildings over a 35-year career, including the New Library at Magdalene College (top), Cambridge, which won the Stirling Prize in 2022.

Other notable projects by the studio include the Bishop Edward King Chapel in Oxford, Darbishire Place in London and Sultan Nazrin Shah Centre in Oxford, which were on the Stirling Prize shortlist in 2013, 2015 and 2018, respectively.

Described by RIBA as "marked by a deliberate modesty", the body of work created by McLaughlin's eponymous studio varies widely in scale, function, material and aesthetic.

For McLaughlin, a focus on creating meaningful architecture is the thread that ties all of his projects together.

"I think people want buildings to be meaningful," he said. "Okay, I know that sounds almost trite, but it's true that people want to feel that a building is something that helps them to communicate meaning to each other."

"So whether in a religious group, or whether you're in a university setting, or whether you're in a Maggie's centre dealing with a diagnosis, you want to feel that you can come in and there'll be a community of people there – and that together, you can constitute some way of dealing with the world, day to day, in terms of meaning," he continued.

"And I think architecture has a big role to play in that."

"We're certainly not a practice that is shy of being explicit"

The Irish architect, who established Niall McLaughlin Architects in London in 1990, explained that his studio aims to create buildings that connect to people.

"We're certainly not a practice that is shy of being explicit about that [being meaningful]," he said.

"We're happy to talk to people about the meanings that they want to communicate through built form and to find processes to do that, that have integrity and make them feel as though they're being supported," he continued.

"In the digital world everything can seem very fragmented, but there's a strong desire for communities to come together and to hold themselves together as a group and to see each other in public space – I think that role of architecture is really significant."

Although McLaughlin places a strong emphasis on meaning, he believes that many architects struggle to communicate the nature of their buildings to both clients, users and the general public.

"It's partly through our training, we can be too inside the discipline and things that seem evident to us are not so evident to our clients," he explained. "Every kind of education has its own sort of secret codes and ways of talking and ways of explaining things to each other, which become a kind of internal dialogue."

"One of the challenges of my generation, in the past 40 years, has been to persuade the British public that buildings are worthwhile and meaningful, because there's a scepticism about the value of architecture, and to some extent, it's had to prove itself," he continued.

"To me, the first thing is about speaking in a language that people understand about buildings. A good architect can't simply depend on signalling virtue to their peers."

"Your ability to invent doesn't come from the innocence of your own mind"

For McLaughlin, the key to creating meaningful architecture is building a strong relationship with his clients to fully understand their needs.

"Your originality, your ability to invent, doesn't come from the innocence of your own mind," he said.

"It comes from encountering people who don't see the world that you see. And they're asking why would we do it that way? Why is it like that? And that's actually the pleasure of it."

He recalls being given the brief for the Alzheimer's Respite Centre on the outskirts of Dublin as an example of an ideal relationship between architect and client.

"The process of design is a kind of mutual education between clients and architects," said McLaughlin. "I remember the best brief I ever got was from the head of the Alzheimer's Society who said, 'we'll teach you about dementia and you teach us about architecture'."

"It was such a nice contract, and we learned a huge amount from each other, and at the end of it, people feel as though they can see through that process how architecture can embody meanings and values that they have."

"A kind of continuity of performance across time"

Many of McLaughlin's buildings have been built in historic contexts and he aims to ensure that his projects have a relationship with the existing architecture.

"A lot of the buildings that we build, particularly here in the UK, but generally, are often being built cheek by jowl with buildings that have been there long before – following in the footsteps of other architects," he explained.

"You put your building beside theirs and hope that the two of them will glow together, and you hope that somebody in the future will come and do the same for you," he continued.

"It's that sense of a kind of continuity of performance across time, much more so than this idea of the unique bauble, or the unique shiny artefact."

Although McLaughlin designs his buildings to have a relationship with the surrounding buildings, this does not mean he believes they need to be either dull or subservient to the existing architecture.

"I think if you look at a lot of the buildings that we've done on historic sites – you might be surrounded by three or four grade-I listed buildings, or you might be working on an ancient monument – there's always this pressure to be contextual and deferential," he said.

"But we try to say that we can do something that is quite bold and singular, and yet will find itself comfortable in this situation," he continued.

"Generally speaking, the point is to enter into a dialogue with history. It's not a dialogue of subservience. It's a conversation with peers."

Buildings are "a sequence of performances over time"

Seeing architecture as a continuing evolution also extends to his own buildings, which McLaughlin expects to be added to and amended over time.

"I think that the idea of wanting to hold on to a brittle idea that what you're building is for a particular moment is exactly the opposite of what I think of buildings as being," he said.

"I see them as being a sequence of performances over time that are always making, amending, remaking, amending, remaking, amending – and you're just part of that continuity. It's a completely different way of thinking about architecture from, say, 100 years ago, when you had this notion of Zeitgeist and the author and the building was exact to its historical moment."

McLaughlin gave the example of a mobile architecture centre that was designed to move around sites in Hull as one of his buildings that has been heavily adapted.

"It is now a second-hand car showroom in Grimsby – that's quite a substantial change," he explained.

"I mean, it performed its first duty that was meant to be a mobile building, so it began in the house and Grimsby – so it can definitely move. And, in a sense, it was intended as a place of congregation and exhibition and it's still a place of congregation and exhibition," he continued.

"We have to anticipate that people will take our stuff and make something new out of it. Some of it will be awful, and some of it will be something we could never have imagined."

"Architecture is a discipline that requires a certain mastery"

Along with running his studio, McLaughlin has taught architecture for the past 35 years and is currently a professor at the Bartlett in London. He believes his own teaching has greatly impacted his work, describing building as "a kind of learning activity".

"One of the things that I really want to advocate for is for more people who are involved in building to also be involved in education, he said.

His recommendation for future architects is that they gain both a knowledge of construction and previous works of architecture.

"For me, architecture is a discipline that requires a certain mastery, and part of that mastery is understanding, fundamentally the processes by which things are made," he said.

"[Students and young architects should] develop a really exacting relationship with the idea of construction, so that when you go to a building site, the builders really feel that they know you, feel that you're rather coming in with ideas and no skills," he continued.

"I would also really encourage people to deepen and broaden their knowledge of the existing stock of buildings in the world," he added.

The photography is courtesy of Niall McLaughlin Architects, unless otherwise stated.

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Architecture studio David Chipperfield Architects and engineering studio Arup has revealed photos of the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics, which begin next month.

Taken at an ice hockey test event earlier this month, the photos show the building's three-tiered facade and the main ice rink arena.

Located in the Santa Giulia district of Milan, the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena is the only permanent venue being built for this year's Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.

Intended to have a capacity of 14,000, it will host the ice hockey events during the 2026 Winter Olympics, which begin on 6 February.

The arena is wrapped in three bands of vertical aluminium cladding separated by bands of glazing. Between these metal bands, LED strips were intended to turn the facades into a screen – although it is unclear if these are complete.

Within the arena the rink is surrounded by two tiers of seating, with corporate boxes above.

According to the studio, the building's form was informed by the city's Colosseum.

"The elliptical form of the building is inspired by the archetype of the amphitheatre, being reinterpreted with modern tectonics and materials," said David Chipperfield Architects.

The photos were taken during a test event for the Olympics on 9 January, amidst concerns that the area would not be fully completed in time for the opening of the games. The arena was intended to have a cavity of 14,000 for the games, but according to International Ice Hockey Federation president Luc Tardif it will be "a little bit short" with 11,800 seats.

However, the Olympic organisers said the event was proof that the venue would be ready to host the games during the Olympics.

"We have always been convinced that we could do it and this is the proof," said Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026 chief games operations officer Andrea Francisi.

"​​It's an important test because it will allow us to replicate the Olympic days exactly, when we will have three games a day, and because it will allow us to understand how to improve the sporting elements and the organisation of the arena together with those who are working on it."

Also ahead of the games, Italian designer Marco Balich revealed a pair of cauldrons that will be set up in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo and we showcased the event's minimalist medals.

The photography is by Noshe.

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The Olympic Council of Asia has "confirmed the postponement of the 2029 edition" of the winter games, which were set to be hosted at the unbuilt Trojena ski resort in Neom, Saudi Arabia.

Earlier this week, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee jointly announced that the 2029 Asian Winter Games will be postponed for an unspecified period of time.

"The Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee and the Olympic Council of Asia have agreed on an updated framework for future hosting of the Asian Winter Games, confirming the postponement of the 2029 edition to a later date to be announced in due course," said the organisations in a statement.

No official reason was given for the delay, and it is unclear if the event will still be hosted at Trojena but at a later date, or if an alternative host will be sought for the 2029 event.

Saudi Arabia announced that the Trojena ski resort would host the 2029 Asian Winter Games in 2022.

Masterplanned by German architecture studio LAVA, the resort is currently under construction in the mountainous Tabuk region in the northwest of the country. It will be arranged around a giant artificial lake and contain buildings designed by UNStudio, Zaha Hadid Architects, and Aedas.

The project was planned to be completed this year, but has reportedly faced construction delays with a completion date now unclear.

Last year, news agency Reuters reported that OCA was looking for alternative hosts for the event and had formally contacted the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee (KSOC) to sound out the idea of the country hosting the event.

Trojena is one of the key elements of the Neom mega project, which will also reportedly consist of a 170-kilometre-long city called The Line, a port city designed by BIG and numerous hotels on the Red Sea.

It is the largest and most high-profile of 14 gigaprojects being developed in Saudi Arabia as part of the Saudi Vision 2030 plan to shift the country's economy away from a reliance on oil.

It has been criticised widely on human rights and sustainability grounds, and last year, Dezeen asked if it was time for architecture studios to walk away from the project in the face of mounting pressure from campaigners.

Neom is undertaking a broad review and is reportedly "considering significantly cutting its workforce".

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Jackson 5 member Jackie Jackson, who recently launched furniture brand Hayvenhurst with his wife Emily Jackson and Dutch designer Robert Milder, explains why he made the move from singing to sofas in this exclusive interview.

Jackie Jackson achieved global fame as the oldest member of the Jackson 5, one of the most successful recording groups of all time while more than 150 million records sold. But, he claims, he has long wanted to create furniture.

"This is something I've always wanted to do – be in the furniture business," he told Dezeen from his home in Las Vegas.

"I didn't know I was going to get there, but I've always wanted to be in this business."

He explained that founding Hayvenhurst was the culmination of an idea that gestated in his early days touring the world during the 1970s and 80s with the Jackson 5 alongside his brothers Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael.

"When my brothers and I would travel around the world doing concerts, we stayed in some of the best hotels you can ever imagine, and I used to look at the lobby in these hotels and see the furniture," he said.

"I would go out and buy all these magazines, I would travel with my brothers and look at luxury furniture and homes on the plane travelling to the next gig," he continued.

"I would just look at the fashion, furniture and design, I didn't know how I was going to do it, but I would just look at them all the time – you know, it was the dream."

Named after the Jackson family home in Encino, California, the Hayvenhurst furniture brand was launched last year with a strong focus on sustainability.

It is led by Jackie Jackson alongside his wife Emily Jackson and Dutch designer Milder.

"Hayvenhurst is the street we lived in Los Angeles and I thought it'd be a great name for a company for sustainable furniture," said Jackie Jackson.

"Hayvenhurst sounded epic to me, so we decided to take that name and use it for our company."

"Jackie always wanted to do his own furniture line"

The impetus for creating the brand came when Jackie and Emily Jackson couldn't find suitable sustainable furniture options when they were updating their own home.

"Jackie always wanted to do his own furniture line," explained Emily Jackson. "Then when we were remodelling our home in Las Vegas there were very few choices, if any, for sustainable solutions for your home."

"So we noticed there was a gap in the market for sustainable, luxury furniture."

Emily Jackson contacted Milder, who previously founded sustainable furniture brand Van de Sant, to develop the idea as she was aware that he was creating furniture with frames made from recycled plastic.

"I happened to hear about a Dutch company that was sustainable and took rebound ocean plastics to use in their frames," said Emily Jackson.

"And so I contacted him, and we put two and two together. Jackie has a passion and a lot of design ideas so let's be future forward and do something the right way for our children and the next generation."

Havenhurst's founders even believe that making sustainable furniture contributes to the legacy and values of the wider Jackson family.

"It fits beautifully with the what the Jackson family has always stood for: peace, unity and a more positive future," said Emily Jackson.

"You know, Michael had his songs about the Earth, about healing the world – and fans can really appreciate that too. When you do something, do it right and see the longer-term benefit in healing in the world."

Sofas made from recycled plastic, sheep wool, horse hair and natural latex

Hayvenhurst designs sofas and armchairs, which are all made predominantly from "recovered" materials, with frames made from recycled plastic.

Unlike most sofas, the brand's products do not use plastic foam, instead using a combination of sheep wool, horse hair, natural latex rubber and bio-based synthetics covered in natural materials, including linen and hemp.

"We use recycled plastic from the land and ocean, collaborating with recycling companies, and we press it in sheets to make the frame, so the frames are completely made from recycled content," explained Milder.

"Then depending on the designs, we use layers of sheep wool, coconut hair and horse hair, plus a layer from natural latex rubber – so it is foam, but natural," he continued. "Also in some pieces there's a layer of recycled jeans."

Hayvenhurst calculated that its No.1 Loveseat armchair utilised 25 kilograms of recycled plastic. By utilising recycled materials and renewable energy, the brand estimates that manufacturing the chair uses around 50 kilograms less CO2 than a standard armchair.

The brand also claims that selecting less water-intensive materials has reduced the amount of water consumed by the supply and manufacturing process.

It estimates that producing the No.1 Loveseat armchair consumes around 1,600 gallons of water, which is around 2,000 gallons less than the industry average.

"We can deconstruct completely, so it's completely circular"

According to Hayvenhurst, all of the materials are sourced transparently, with origin, processing, and environmental impact tracked from source to final production.

The sofas are designed to be disassembled and the brand will buy back the products at the end of their life, with the aim of returning the materials into its manufacturing cycle.

"I tell people after the end of lifecycle, we take it back, we buy it back from the from the customer, and use every part again in our manufacturing process," explained Milder.

"We can deconstruct completely, so it's completely circular. We already think that on the designs when we make it, that we always make sure that the infrastructure can be used."

Although the core emphasis for the founders is sustainability, they believe that a strong design focus will allow them to sell their furniture to customers who may not necessarily care about sustainability.

"Hayvenhurst has to become a brand that is known for being sustainable, but design is the most important, because we realise that sustainability is a thing that floats away," said Milder.

"Just before Covid, everyone was talking about sustainability, but now it is floating away," he continued. "So Emily, Jackie and I are really thinking about what market we can go for and that's design, and if it's sustainable then this is a plus, because everything adds up."

Along with aesthetics, the founders are aiming to create sofas that are extremely comfortable, as they believe that too many sofas are not designed to actually be sat on.

"It's about style and comfort," said Jackie Jackson. "Comfort is really important, you can sit on a couch and it doesn't feel right – well, that's a different story."

"People are always surprised when we when we show them the cut through of the sofas that there is Dutch wool inside and recycled jeans – all components that are atypical," said Emily Jackson.

"Most of the time, it's all man-made materials, but in our case, what makes it so extra comfortable is the natural materials."

Jackie Jackson believes that there are similarities between making music and designing furniture, and hopes his latest venture will add to his impressive musical legacy.

"It's true, this is creating in the same way," he said. "This is the future, sustainable furniture for our kids and family."

"That's where I think it's heading right now and we are able to jump on it right at the early stage, but this is where it's going."

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The only building attributed to Roman architect Vitruvius, who wrote the first book on architecture, has been identified in Fano, Italy.

"Certain identification" of the remains of a 2000-year-old building as one designed by Roman architect Marcus Vitruvius Pollio was confirmed at a press conference in Fano.

The building is believed to be the only structure claimed to be designed by Vitruvius that has been discovered. It is described in his book De Architectura, written in the 1st century BC, which is the first known book on architectural theory and a foundational text of Western architecture.

An archaeological team first discovered the remains of a large basilica – a type of Roman public building – in the Piazza Andrea Costa square in the city of Fano on Italy's eastern coast in 2023.

Believed to have been completed in 19BC, the form, location and dimensions of the basilica correspond to a building described in Book V of De Architectura.

The building has a large interior space surrounded by 18 columns. The bases of several of these columns, which have a diameter of 150 centimetres and are estimated to have been 15 metres high, have been unearthed in recent years.

According to the team, it was the discovery of the final corner column in a location that "matched the exact centimetre" described by Vitruvius that confirmed the identity of the building.

The team hailed the discovery as a significant moment for both architectural history and the city of Fano.

"Today's discoveries, with the certain identification of the location of the Vitruvian Basilica, are of extraordinary importance: not only for the history of scholarship and the scientific community, but also because they open new and concrete perspectives on the archaeological heritage of the city of Fano," said Ancona and Pesaro-Urbino head of archaeology Andrea Pessina.

"A considerable heritage, long awaiting investigation and valorisation. And today, finally, we have a crucial key to interpret evidence known for years, such as the building beneath Sant'Agostino, and to more clearly connect traces, structures, and testimonies of our past."

Following the discovery, the city is planning to continue its evacuation efforts and form a long-term plan for conservation and public display.

The photo is courtesy of the Italian Ministry of Culture.

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Italian designer Marco Balich has revealed a pair of cauldrons that will be set up in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo during this year's Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Set to be lit and extinguished "in perfect synchrony", the pair of cauldrons will be placed in Milan and nearby ski resort Cortina d'Ampezzo to mark the fact that the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games will be hosted across both locations.

"For the first time in history, the cauldrons will be lit and extinguished in perfect synchrony, in two different cities, symbolizing a widespread edition of the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games that brings territories and communities together," said the Olympic organisers.

Designed by Balich, chief creative officer of Balich Wonder Studio, in collaboration with Lida Castelli and Paolo Fantin, the pair of cauldrons was informed by the sun, the work of Italian Renaissance designer Leonardo da Vinci and expanding plastic ball toys.

Made from aeronautical aluminium, the kinetic structures will expand and contract to evoke the "natural cycle of the sun".

Each cauldron will be made from 1,440 components with 244 pivot points, allowing it to expand from a diameter of 3.1 meters when closed to 4.5 meters when open.

A glass-and-metal container at the centre will enclose the Olympic flame.

"The cauldron of Milano Coutino starts from the beautiful genius of Leonardo da Vinci," explained Balich. "Leonardo da Vinci lived in Milan a long time and he developed many, many new things and one of them was his study of geometry.

"But, I got inspired by this very simple game that you see in the toy store, which is this plastic ball that opens up and closes," he continued. "So we took that inspiration and we put it in motion and added some technology to it to celebrate his great genius."

In Milan the cauldron will be raised on a frame within the Arco della Pace triumphal arch, while in Cortina d'Ampezzo it will be supported on a tripod in the town's central Piazza Dibona.

The designs are the latest Olympic cauldrons to incorporate movement, rather than being a typical reciprocal for flame. For the Paris 2024 Olympic Games French designer Mathieu Lehanneur created a flame that floated under a hot air ballon, while the Tokyo 2020 Olympic cauldron, designed by Japanese studio Nendo, was wrapped in aluminium panels that unfurled to reveal the flame.

In 2016, American artist Anthony Howe created a large kinetic sculpture to complement the Rio Olympic cauldron and the London 2012 Olympic Cauldron, designed by Thomas Heatherwick, was formed of 204 copper petals that were raised to form a central flame.

The images are courtesy of Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026.

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Dutch studio MVRDV has unveiled its design for the Inaura skyscraper in Dubai, UAE, which incorporates a "jewel-like orb" on its upper floors.

Set to be built in Downtown Dubai, the 210-metre-high skyscraper was designed by MVRDV to stand out from the numerous tall buildings being built in the city.

"The project finds itself among taller neighbours, which all compete for attention," said the studio.

"The design therefore takes a different approach to claiming its place in the city: a luminous, jewel-like orb nestled in between the building's floors, creating a novel and curious way to steal the attention of onlookers."

Being built close to the Mercedes-Benz Places in Dubai skyscraper, the Inaura skyscraper has a standard, rectangular shape. However, the top quarter of the building appears to be sat on a giant, pearl-like form.

Within the pearl will be a VIP space, while the surrounding area, which will be enclosed by glazing, will contain a residents' lounge and viewpoint with views of the Burj Khalifa – the world's tallest building.

"Inaura brings a new character to the Dubai skyline that hasn't really been explored before – something that is exquisite yet simultaneously demure, in a way," said MVRDV founding partner Jacob van Rijs.

"Beyond its visual affect, however, it is also a tremendously practical design: the tower has efficient, rectangular floorplans, and there is no wasted 'vanity height' that you see in towers with intricate crowns," he continued.

"The Sky Lounge instead serves to organise and communicate the building's programme, attuned to the city at its lower levels and to the skyline at the top, with its signature feature forming a horizon in between."

Designed for UAE developer Arada, the tower's lower and middle floors will contain 105 one- to three-bedroom apartments and a 101-room hotel. The seven floors above the pearl-like form will contain nine larger penthouse apartments.

The skyscraper will stand on a four-storey plinth that will contain the hotel's and apartment's entrance lobbies, restaurants, a gym and spa.

The Inaura skyscraper is the latest distinctive building to be unveiled in Dubai. Other recent attention-grabbing projects include a pair of skyscrapers linked by penthouse swimming pool by Foster + Partners and an "unusually narrow" skyscraper by RCR Arquitectes.

The images are by The Boundary.

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This week on Dezeen we unveiled the design for a colonnade-wrapped stadium in Washington DC for NFL team the Washington Commanders.

Designed by architecture studio HKS, the stadium will have a "monumental" form and a seating capacity of more than 70,000.

"Every design decision is guided by the significance of place – shaped by its local, regional and national history and generations of memories rooted in RFK Stadium," said HKS global venues director Mark A Williams.

"Monumental in presence, grounded in the L'Enfant Plan and scaled to the urban fabric of the district, the stadium design will be a bold civic landmark that carries the city's architectural legacy forward in a way that is confident, dynamic and unmistakably Washington, DC."

We also took a look at the upcoming stadiums set to complete this year, including another NFL stadium for the Buffalo Bills and a venue for David Beckham's MLS team Inter Miami.

Other stadiums set to open this year include a home for the Turkey national football team and the first of the Saudi World Cup venues.

Also looking ahead to 2026, we looked at the 10 most interesting skyscrapers that are due to complete later this year.

Also in the USA, a time capsule designed by British architect Norman Foster to mark America's 250th anniversary celebration was revealed.

The time capsule will be buried under the plaza at Washington Monument and is destined to be reopened on 4th July 2276, for the USA's 500th Independence Day.

In other design news, musician Will.i.am unveiled a three-wheeled electric vehicle made by his new company Trinity.

The single-passenger vehicle was designed to combine the agility of a motorbike with the stability of a car.

Popular projects this week included a Japanese tea room topped with a sloping earthen roof, the renovation of a mid-century bungalow in Ghent and a hotel at Chester Zoo.

Our lookbook this week featured minimalist living rooms where less is more.

This week on Dezeen

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This year will see high-profile stadiums for football, rugby, American football and ice hockey complete in countries including USA, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, New Zealand and Kenya. Here are eight of the most impactful.

New Highmark Stadium, USA, by Populous

Nearing completion in Buffalo, New York, the new Highmark Stadium will become the home of NFL team Buffalo Bills.

One of several high-profile stadiums designed by US studio Populous completing this year, the 62,000-seat venue was informed by the architecture of Buffalo and was designed to have an "intimate yet intimidating" atmosphere.

"[It] merges their projection of strength with modern materials and a building form that is set to create an intimate and intimidating football-first environment," said Populous senior principal Jonathan Mallie.

Find out more about New Highmark Stadium here ›

Inter Miami Freedom Park Stadium, USA, Manica Architecture 

Also in the US, Miami Freedom Park will open as the home of Major League Soccer team Inter Miami, which is co-owned by English footballer David Beckham, later this year.

Designed by US studio Manica Architecture, the 25,000-seat stadium will be located near Miami Airport to the west of the city. It will sit within a 58-acre parkland site designed by architecture studio Arquitectonica containing hotels, restaurants, soccer fields and athletic courts.

New Ankara Stadium, by Bahadır Kul Architects, Turkey

Set to be the home of the Turkey national football team and host games during Euro 2032, New Ankara Stadium in the country's capital is also set to complete later this year.

Designed by Turkish studio Bahadır Kul Architects, the 58,000-seat stadium will be topped by a steel roof that was informed by the "form of the soccer ball".

Talanta Sports Stadium, Kenya, by Fu Yizhi from Beijing Institute of Architectural Design

Currently being built by Chinese contractor China Road and Bridge Corporation, the 60,000-seat Talanta Sports Stadium in Nairobi will be the largest venue in the country when it is completed.

Officially named the Raila Odinga International Stadium after Kenya's former prime minister, the covered stadium will be almost entirely wrapped in a white steel mesh. Supported on the decorative facade will be eight giant shields that match the motif from the country's flag.

The stadium is being built ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, which will be hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and will host the tournament's final.

Te Kaha' – One New Zealand Stadium, New Zealand, by Populous and Warren and Mahoney

Nearing completion in Christchurch, New Zealand, Te Kaha' – One New Zealand Stadium, will be a multi-use venue for rugby union, rugby league and football, as well as music events.

Being built as part of the Christchurch Central Recovery Plan, the 30,000-seat stadium will replace the Lancaster Park stadium, which was damaged in the 2011 earthquake.

Aramco Stadium, Saudi Arabia, by Populous

As Saudi Arabia prepares to host the World Cup in 2034, the first of a slew of new stadiums for the tournament is set to complete this year in Khobar, on the country's eastern coast. Designed by Populous, the 47,000-seat Aramco Stadium was informed by whirlpools.

"The stadium's architecture celebrates the sea's dynamic nature and its profound influence on the local community," said a description in the official World Cup bid document.

"Its whirlpool-shaped design mimics overlapping sails and draws on graceful, natural wave motifs, to blend seamlessly with the coastal landscape."

Find out more about Aramco Stadium here ›

Etihad Stadium, UK, by Populous

Another project by Populous that is set to complete this year is the expansion to football club Manchester City's stadium in England.

Populous's redevelopment of the Etihad Stadium will increase the seating capacity of the North Stand by more than 5,000 by extending it upwards. Attached to the stand will be a building containing a 400-bed hotel, museum and club shop.

Find out more about Etihad Stadium here ›

Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena, Italy, by David Chipperfield

Set to host the ice hockey matches at the 2026 Winter Olympics, the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena was designed by David Chipperfield Architects. The 14,000-seat arena was designed to reference traditional amphitheatres.

"The elliptical form of the building is inspired by the archetype of the amphitheatre, being reinterpreted with modern tectonics and materials," said David Chipperfield Architects.

The arena is set to open at the beginning of February when the 2026 Winter Olympics begins, however, last week International Ice Hockey Federation president Luc Tardif revealed that the venue will not be fully complete when the tournament begins.

Find out more about Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena here ›

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International Ice Hockey Federation president Luc Tardif has suggested that the David Chipperfield-designed Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena will not be fully complete in time for the 2026 Winter Olympics, which begins next month.

Speaking at the ice hockey World Junior Championship, Tardif reassured journalists that the tournament would take place in the building, but did not guarantee it will be fully complete.

"We are going to have a tournament in this building," said Tardif.

"The infrastructure for the ice hockey – I'm talking about the dressing room, I'm talking about the practice area and the field of play – that's going to be ready. We can be confident on that – you are not going to go to Milano for nothing."

"Not exactly what I expected"

However, he said that the seating capacity for the games would be "a little bit short" at 11,800. According to the Olympic website, the planned capacity for the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena during the tournament was 14,000.

"[It] will be not exactly what I expected, because for a tournament of the level that we have organised 11,800 is a little bit short, but that is what it is."

Designed by David Chipperfield Architects, the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena is in the Santa Giulia district in the southeast of Milan, and is set to host the men's and women's hockey games during the Winter Olympics.

Construction of the arena began in 2023, with David Chipperfield Architects stating that the arena was planned to complete at the end of 2025.

Delays to the construction of the arena have been well publicised, leading to the Olympic organisers warning in November that there was "no plan B" if the venue is not ready in time.

An International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) U20 world championship tournament was planned to take place at the stadium in December as a test event, but was moved to another venue.

However, the arena's operator, CTS Eventim, issued a statement assuring that the venue would be ready to host events during the tournament.

CTS Eventim has been contacted by Dezeen, but did not respond in time for publication.

NHL concerned over rink's size

Venues are often completed months or even years before Olympics take place to allow for test events and safety inspections. This was highlighted by National Hockey League (NHL) commissioner Gary Bettman at a press conference in December 2025.

"In all of the prior Olympics, whether they built permanent or temporary facilities, it's never been this late for a completion and the building of ice, and so that's why we are cautious," he said.

The NHL, which is allowing its players to compete at the Olympics for the first time since 2014, has expressed concern about the quality of the ice and the dimensions of the rink, which will not match the standard size used in the NHL.

The Olympic ice rink will be 60 metres by 26 metres, which is slightly shorter and wider than an NHL rink. According to sports website ESPN, this does not adhere with an agreement made between the NHL and IIHF.

However, the dimensions are in line with IIHF regulations and the same size as the rink used at previous Winter Olympic Games in Beijing.

Last month, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said that the league's ice experts were being sent to Milan.

"If the players believe that ice isn't safe, then we're not going to play," said Daly. "It's as simple as that."

"We're basically moving everybody there to try to help get this done in a way that's acceptable for NHL athletes. And I'm cautiously optimistic it will be fruitful."

The opening ice hockey game at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games is scheduled for 5 February.

Another building created for the event was the 2026 Winter Olympics Athletes' Village in Porta Romana by SOM, which will be turned into student housing after the games.

The image is by Onirism Studio.

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Media brand Sandow Companies has acquired Canadian magazine Azure and product directory Architonic.

Sandow Companies announced the acquisition of Architonic today, while it added formerly independent Canadian architecture and design publication Azure to its portfolio at the end of last year.

The acquisitions of Architonic and Azure expand Sandow Companies' portfolio of built environment publications, which include architecture magazine Metropolis, architecture website Architizer, interior publications Interior Design and Luxe Interiors + Design and design magazine Design Milk.

Sandow Companies also owns materials website Material Bank.

Respected global platform in architecture and design

Architonic was acquired from DAAily Platforms, which continues to own architecture and design publications ArchDaily and Designboom.

"Architonic is one of the most respected global platforms in architecture and design, with an extraordinary community and a deeply trusted brand," said Sandow Companies founder Adam Sandow.

"Bringing Architonic into the Sandow ecosystem is a natural and strategic step as we continue to build connected platforms that support the design industry across the world. We are excited to invest in Architonic's future, expand its reach and elevate its experience for the global design community."

Sandow Companies announced that it had acquired Azure on 17 December 2025.  The magazine was founded in 1985 by Sergio Sgaramella and Nelda Rodger and recently celebrated its 40th anniversary.

Sandow Companies to steward Azure into its next chapter

"First and foremost, I want to honor the extraordinary visionaries who built Azure into one of the most admired voices in global design,” said Sandow at the time.

"Sergio Sgaramella and his late wife, Nelda Rodger, created a publication defined by curiosity, intelligence, and an unwavering belief in the cultural impact of design. We are incredibly proud to steward Azure into its next chapter."

Sandow established his self-named firm in 2003 and founded Material Bank in 2019. The group purchased Metropolis in 2019 and Design Milk in 2023.

Architonic purchased ArchDaily in 2020 with the group acquiring Design Boom in 2022.

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Carmaker BMW has unveiled a logo for its newly launched, standalone brand BMW Alpina, dedicated to high-end performance vehicles.

Originally founded as a BMW tuning business in 1965, Alpina was acquired by the German car brand in 2022 and will now form a distinct brand with its own logo as part of BMW Group.

"The transfer of the Alpina trademark rights on 1 January 2026 marks the launch of BMW Alpina as an exclusive standalone brand under the BMW Group umbrella," said the company.

Alpina made a name for itself by creating modified, high-performance versions of BMW's production vehicles and continued to make its own vehicles up until last year.

It will now be a high-end performance line for BMW, led by former Polestar design head Max Missoni.

The brand's new logo is a simple word mark, which according to BMW, was designed to be simple and demonstrate confidence.

"Given the storied history of the brand, the BMW Group is aware of its tremendous responsibility and committed to making the new BMW Alpina chapter one that meets the highest expectations," said BMW.

"The new wordmark provides a first indication. It radiates clarity, calm and confidence."

The angled wording was also designed as a nod towards Alpina's history, with the logo informed by the brand's "asymmetrical wordmark from the 1970s".

"Positioned at the centre of the rear, it underlines the standalone character of the new exclusive brand and its independent personality within the BMW Group," said BMW.

"It is consciously inspired by the brand’s asymmetrical wordmark from the 1970s," it continued. "The elegant, contemporary design provides a link between history and future."

BMW revealed a minimalist, flat logo in 2020 as part of its first rebrand in 20 years. It is one of numerous car companies to have adopted a 2D logo in recent years.

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American fashion brand Kith has collaborated with Porto Architecture to create the interiors for its flagship store on London's Regent Street, complete with a classic New York bistro.

For Kith's first standalone store in the UK, founder Ronnie Fieg aimed to create a space that showcased the brand but was unique to London. It also includes the brand's first restaurant, named Ronnie's after its founder.

"With every new space, I want to evolve and elevate our design language while maintaining a red thread through all of our flagships," Fieg told Dezeen.

"The experience you have in our London store will feel distinct from the one in New York, Seoul or Paris, yet each will still feel distinctly Kith. Most importantly, it's the best of everything we have to offer in one space."

The Kith store occupies two floors of a large, neo-baroque building on Regent Street that dates from the 1920s. New York firm Porto Architecture and Fieg were informed by the block's remaining original fixtures for the design of the flagship.

"When I first walked into the unfinished space almost two years ago, I immediately fell in love with its existing elements and how the interior resonated with the history and architecture of the street it was on," he explained.

"So the core concept of the design was rooted in working backwards from the beautiful trims and bones of the raw space, and figuring out how to incorporate our palette and materiality into the history of the building."

Each of the store's main spaces was defined by its own material and colour palette, with Kith's crest integrated throughout the interiors along with satin brass trimmings.

"Existing elements like the ceiling gave us the opportunity to design into the foundation in a way that makes it feel like we've always been there," said Fieg.

"Incorporating our K&K crest into the ceiling and adding brass inlays along the moulding are examples of how we were able to weave our DNA into the space in a cohesive and seamless way."

The store's main entrance is flanked by a pair of original, curved glass windows that overlook the Kith Kids and Kith Treats spaces on either side.

Both spaces are united by a custom fan mosaic, with the children's areas arranged around an Estremoz marble seat and lit with cloud-like lamps. Kith Treats has a muted pastel palette with a Volakas marble-topped bar.

The ground floor contains the bright Kith Women area and dark spaces for seasonal collections and jewellery.

The Kith Women space combines an oak herringbone floor, Estremoz marble-lined walls, white oak millwork and Crystal Tiffany marble. In contrast, the other space combines dark herringbone floors, Belvedere marble walls and walnut millwork.

"Our men's section blends dark and light with black and white marble, which then transitions into the women's section – a much brighter area that pairs white oak with shades of pink, blue, and white marble," explained Fieg.

Accessed from the street and from the store, Ronnie's is the brand's first restaurant. Designed to have an "elevated bistro atmosphere", it is lined with booths and features red marble and fabric paired with dark wood.

"As a born-and-bred New Yorker, the city is woven into the fabric of the brand and shapes my perspective on everything," explained Fieg.

"You can feel that through the product, but I wanted to connect with London on a deeper level and let people experience that influence through food and culture."

"Ronnie's is the culmination of this idea," he continued. "The menu is inspired by all of my favourite hometown and childhood dishes, reimagined through a fine dining lens."

"The space reflects that by elevating a classic New York bistro into what I believe is one of the most beautiful restaurant spaces to open in London in recent years."

"I can't wait to see Londoners enjoying a New York-style pastrami sandwich," he concluded.

Other stores on Regent Street featured on Dezeen include a gallery-like store for luxury luggage brand Carl Friedrik, Swiss brand On's first UK store and an Apple Store by Foster + Partners.

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