Articles by Andreea Cutieru

Construction broke ground on a new cruise terminal at Port of Miami designed by Arquitectonica for cruise operator MSC Cruises. With the capacity to process 36,000 passengers per day and simultaneously accommodate three mega cruise ships, the structure due for completion in 2023 will be the largest cruise terminal in North America. Located on the eastern end of the Port, the 4-storey structure makes the most of the long, narrow site by creating a layered embark and debark experience, expressed in its architectural image.

A new European architecture platform will launch in June this year, with the scope of supporting emerging architects and at the same time mobilizing the profession’s efforts in delivering a sustainable, circular built environment. Operating on a grant from the Creative Europe initiative, LINA brings together 28 European and Mediterranean organizations from 23 countries, among which are several European biennials, triennials and festivals, museums, research networks and laboratories, publishing houses and universities. A successor to the Future Architecture platform, the initiative will be coordinated by the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Ljubljana and directed by Matevž Čelik.

Architects Sevince Bayrak and Oral Göktaş from SO? Architecture&Ideas were attracted to the idea of having the opportunity to escape the urban bustle of Istanbul into a natural setting, and in 2017, they designed and built the Cabin on the Border. Since its completion, the project has undergone several changes, and the dwelling experience prompted the architects to re-evaluate their initial ideas and assumptions and change how they see the tiny house typology. Five years after the project’s design, the architects share what they’ve learned from living in a tiny house, providing valuable insight for the design of such projects.

HENN’s Zalando BHQ-Z Building topped out in Berlin and, once completed, will strengthen the city’s identity as a tech hub. The project is the last structure to be built within the HENN’s three-building headquarter complex for Zalando. The design reinterprets the traditional Berlin block through a Z-shaped plan that transforms the usually private, interior courtyard into an inviting public space. At the same time, the building’s voids create a dialogue with the surrounding built environment.

UNStudio revealed a mixed-use high-rise building design in Dusseldorf integrated within the new Belsenpark masterplan. The tower, designed in collaboration with OKRA Landscape Architects, results from an international architecture competition held by private developer Pandion and features a diverse ground floor programme tied together by a pocket park. The project integrates prefabrication and modular design, thus reducing the building’s environmental impact.

The upcoming exhibition in The Architect’s Studio series hosted by the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art presents the work of Forensic Architecture, a multidisciplinary research group operating at the intersection of architecture and investigative journalism. Led by architect Eyal Weizman, the collective of architects, artists, software developers, journalists, lawyers, and animators investigates and documents human rights violations across a wide range of global conflicts.The practice constructs models and virtual spaces to share a new perspective on specific events.

On February 24th, 2022, Russia launched the invasion of Ukraine, triggering the largest and most rapidly unfolding refugee crisis in modern-day Europe. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), nearly 6.5 million people were displaced within Ukraine, and 3.4 million fled across international borders into neighboring countries since the onset of the war. The humanitarian crisis united the world in protest against the military violence targeting civilians and triggered an unprecedented global response in support of the aid efforts. The architecture community has also rallied in support of Ukraine, condemning the war, halting work in Russia, and supporting Ukrainian creative professionals by hiring their services.

Aedes Architecture Forum recently inaugurated the “Jinyun Quarries – The Quarry as Stage” exhibition, which showcases the transformation of abandoned stone quarries in the Zhejiang Province, China, into a platform for cultural and social activities. Beijing architect Xu Tiantian and the team of DnA_Design and Architecture were tasked with developing a new public infrastructure inside nine of the mines in Jinyun County, thus opening up new economic perspectives for the local people. Running until May 5th, the exhibition highlights the extraordinary spatiality of the stone quarries while communicating the complexity of the structures through a series of models, plans and photographs of the interventions.

Providing an end-to-end design and construction framework for creating low-carbon workplaces, Canoa is a design tool with an embedded marketplace that aims to reduce the environmental impact of commercial interiors. Operating under the circular economy principles, Canoa seeks to keep goods in use for as long as possible, design out waste, and help preserve natural resources while supporting businesses, designers, and suppliers in carrying out commercial retrofits.

MVRDV, together with Spanish practice GRAS Reynés Arquitectos, is transforming the iconic El Terreno neighbourhood in Palma, Mallorca, into a vibrant residential area, through renovations and new additions. After decades of decline, a series of neighbouring plots in Plaza Gomila are to be redeveloped through a public-private venture, with the aim of restoring the essence of the bohemian neighbourhood. Each executed in a different colour and material, the seven diverse buildings form a recognisable district with a variety of typologies.