It seems the best antidote to the "uglification" of monolithic mega apartment complexes is some artistic touch. French artist collective CitéCréation took upon themselves to give this 22,000 square meters apartment complex in Berlin a face-lift, and possibly become the largest apartment building mural in the world. This project that took 3 years to complete entered Wohngenossenschaft Soldaritaet Coop apartment complex in to Guinness book of World Records for the largest mural on an inhabited building. Photos by Sean Gallup via Getty Images [...]

In designing this ultramodern penthouse in affluent Shenzhen building, designers from Kokaistudios had goal to connect city living with the nature without sacrificing luxury and comfort. Original penthouse layout was significantly modified, and the end result is nothing short of awe-inspiring. Photos: Kokaistudios [...]

ecotechdesign has just completed a completely off-the-grid shipping container hybrid house and photo studio in Joshua Tree, which is located in California’s Mojave desert. The project combines high-efficiency construction methods with smart design, which means that consumers now have an option beyond prefabricated homes. ecotechdesign offers sustainable, recycled, and affordable habitats that are generally much more accessible than past prefabricated options. They like to call it “uncontained” living. Also known as The Tim Palen Studio at Shadow Mountain, the hybrid home is a 2nd generation kit-like house that is an alternative to pre-fab homes. The hybrid house design is based on the Prius automobile engineering concept: combining pre-engineered building and energy conservation with custom design options and flexibility. The basic home is made from recycled steel ISO containers, a Butler pre-engineered building, a 10,000 gallon steel water tank, and a metal shade canopy wi [...]

The spiral-shaped house designed by Olavi Kopose in Espoo, Finland is definitely something you don’t get to see everyday. Its curvy “silhouette” dominates every room in the house, “forcing” the inhabitants to adopt a …(let’s call it) twisty lifestyle. As expect, the furniture has its own particularities. The tables are curvy, the sofa, the kitchen furniture and of course, the stairs, they all are adapted to the house’s intriguing structure. There are no doors. This creates a special atmosphere, a living environment characterised by breeziness and fluidity. The exterior is wrapped in wood cladding. A large cut out defines the outline of the balcony, located at the upper floor. The spiral-shaped house comes also “equipped” with a small terrace, where you can sit and enjoy your morning coffee. There is no doubt that this is a unique living space, ideal for those who feel like regular can’t satisfy their outstanding tastes. The good news, for those in search of a dar [...]

When using new technologies and materials to preserve, extend, or otherwise replace existing architecture one is always faced with the question of how invasive the intervention will be. It is of particular interest because there are so many factors apart from the architect's own language that need to be considered: the state of the decrepit structure, the types of contemporary materials used, and the ideas the architect wishes to express with the melding of the two worlds. Spanish architect Ferran Vizoso recently completed the restoration of the town church in Corbera d’Ebre near Tarragona, Spain, whose roof structure was entirely non-existent. [...]

Human beings carry within them nostalgia of a primordial happiness from ancient times. The notion of a return to these origins of happiness is often associated with Nature. Our intention is to encourage inhabitants to participate in fun, uncommon events taking place within the urban landscape: an inflatable bridge equipped with giant trampolines rises above the Seine, a pavilion erected in a London park, a museum traversed by a roller coaster. These projects offer, in the heart of the city, new forms of Elysian Fields, given over not to the Champs-Élysées of shopping and strictly urban activities, but rather to fundamental human practices, which liberate strong emotions calling on all our senses. [...]

Rectangular volumes, a simple design line and a glossy interior. A one-of-a-kind home. This is how would I describe The Summit House, a residential project designed by Habitat Studio & Workshop in Edmonton, Canada. The house accommodates fine pieces of artwork, a wide relaxing terrace and a “recharge-your-batteries” type of back courtyard. The best thing about this house are definitely the views and the tranquil atmosphere. There’s a green turf in front and a few trees, guiding you towards the house’s entrance. [...]

The Prahran Hotel is a substantial two storey corner pub with a striking streamlined art deco facade. The rear of the venue had a poorly proportioned, internalised single storey extension and the clients brief for the project called to demolish and replace it with a dramatic double height space with a central courtyard. The use of large stacked concrete pipes for the street facade of the addition struck a chord for multiple reasons: they have a depth and can be interactive, they have a dramatic, sculptural quality, they reference existing internal circular motifs and they suggest stacked kegs or barrels. [...]