designboom | architecture & design magazine
type: channel
description: designboom magazine | your first source for architecture, design & art news
date: 2026-03-21T00:21:59Z
update period: hourly
update frequency: 1
update base: 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00
items: recycled paper waste turns into a branch-like lattice in a living spatial installation
items: OPEN’s ‘shede culture museum’ is shaped from rammed-earth, glass and bronze
items: where future homes could be for SAGA space architects: on moon, mars and underwater
items: studio RE+N’s floating pavilion hovers like a thin white wing above chinese tea mountain
items: designboom takes over me milan il duca with ‘room for dreams’ at milan design week 2026
items: ‘we will survive this moment as well’: massimiliano gioni revisits history’s ‘new humans’
items: synthetic incubators reclaim LA’s inglewood oil field in a post-human landscape
items: venice biennale reveals renovated central pavilion ahead of 61st international art exhibition
items: searching for utopia, jane jacobs looked no further than the city sidewalk
items: five material-driven kinetic sculptures don’t just move, they respond

recycled paper waste turns into a branch-like lattice in a living spatial installation
type: item
creator: Raza Zahid
date: 2026-03-21T14:00:00Z
subject: art
subject: readers
subject: video
subject: flower and leaf art
subject: interactive installation
subject: materials
subject: paper design
subject: recycling
description: a lattice of hand-formed papercrete branches form a porous, tree-like spatial structure. The post recycled paper waste turns into a branch-like lattice in a living spatial installation appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: Papercrete Structure Defines a Porous Installation by Raza Zahid Morphosis by Raza Zahid is an experimental installation that transforms discarded paper into a living spatial system. Developed through research into paper waste and the cultivation of microgreens on paper substrates, the project explores how growth, decay and material reuse can coexist within an architectural framework. The installation occupies a 5 × 5 × 5 meter volume defined by slender powder-coated metal frames, each supporting clusters of hand-formed papercrete branches. Drawing from traditional paper-mâché techniques, shredded paper is reconstituted into a structural medium capable of maintaining form, texture, and the capacity to host plant growth. Collectively, these panels create a porous spatial envelope that reconstructs the visual and structural memory of a tree. Each component is unique, shaped by hand and marked by material traces, producing variation in density, light, and shadow throughout the volume. Spatial conditions within the installation vary as one moves through it: passages shift between compression and openness, light filters through uneven surfaces, and shadows interact dynamically across the structure. The resulting environment occupies a space between interior and exterior, evoking the scale and texture of a grove within an industrial setting. light and shadow weave a quiet maze on the floor | all images courtesy of Raza Zahid Biological Processes and Craft Activate a Living Material System Morphosis incorporates a temporal dimension by cultivating microgreens directly on the papercrete surfaces. The growth and eventual decay of vegetation introduce cyclical changes, making the installation responsive to time and biological processes. Surface becomes landscape, and structure functions as a host for life. The project by designer Raza Zahid also engages with craft and fabrication. It involves intensive manual processes and the training of makers to understand the behaviour of…

OPEN’s ‘shede culture museum’ is shaped from rammed-earth, glass and bronze
type: item
creator: kat barandy I designboom
date: 2026-03-21T06:00:27Z
subject: architecture
subject: architecture in china
subject: museums and galleries
subject: OPEN architecture
subject: rammed earth architecture and design
description: the shede culture museum by OPEN architecture in china rises from a water-based landscape of gardens, islands, and bridges. The post OPEN’s ‘shede culture museum’ is shaped from rammed-earth, glass and bronze appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: in a chinese garden, shede culture museum tops out Rising from a circular garden pond, OPEN Architecture‘s Shede Culture Museum has topped out in Shehong, China. The project is expected to complete in 2027, and will stand as a new threshold for a distillery along the Fu River. The project occupies a peripheral site that has long remained unused despite its proximity to the main entrance. OPEN identifies this edge condition as an opportunity. The museum draws visitors into a landscape that bridges production and public life, and uses land and water to create a tranquil arrival experience. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-1182700 size-full" src="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/OPEN-architecture-shede-cultural-museum-china-designboom-01.jpg" alt="" width="818" height="461" srcset="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/OPEN-architecture-shede-cultural-museum-china-designboom-01.jpg 818w, https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/OPEN-architecture-shede-cultural-museum-china-designboom-01-768x433.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 818px) 100vw, 818px" /> visualizations © OPEN Architecture A built landscape of pond and islands At the center of the Shede Culture Museum is a ninety-meter circular pond, which the team at OPEN Architecture inserts into the existing garden. Its geometry establishes a continuous field without corners, where a covered walkway traces the perimeter as a semi-transparent ring. Within this water surface, three volumes appear as separate figures. Their placement follows the classical principle of One Pond, Three Mountains, translating a historic garden composition into a contemporary architectural system. Mist and gentle water movement animate the surface, introducing shifts in atmosphere throughout the day. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-1182701 size-full" src="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/OPEN-architecture-shede-cultural-museum-china…

where future homes could be for SAGA space architects: on moon, mars and underwater
type: item
creator: matthew burgos I designboom
date: 2026-03-20T17:00:41Z
subject: architecture
subject: architecture on mars
subject: human fascination with the moon
subject: SAGA space architects
subject: underwater architecture
subject: utopia then and now
description: the studio has already built a moon habitat tested in the arctic, a mars shelter concept that runs on dust storms, and an underwater structure at the bottom of copenhagen harbor. The post where future homes could be for SAGA space architects: on moon, mars and underwater appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: Human homes on moon, mars, space and underwater The most frequent medicine taken on the International Space Station is sleeping pills because astronauts in orbit live in a light cycle that doesn’t match their biology. Their bodies don’t know when to sleep or when to wake, and the disruption lasts for weeks or months, affecting their performance, mood, and physical health. For SAGA Space Architects, the Copenhagen-based architecture and space studio founded by Sebastian Aristotelis and Karl-Johan Sørensen, this is not a spacecraft problem. It’s the home design’s fault, and for those who want to go to the Moon, Mars, and the ocean floor and live there, the structure has to adapt to their needs first. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-1182784 size-full" src="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/future-homes-SAGA-space-architects-moon-mars-underwater-designboom-01.jpg" alt="SAGA space architects" width="818" height="544" srcset="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/future-homes-SAGA-space-architects-moon-mars-underwater-designboom-01.jpg 818w, https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/future-homes-SAGA-space-architects-moon-mars-underwater-designboom-01-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 818px) 100vw, 818px" /> all images courtesy of SAGA Space Architects Saga space architects focuses on designs for well-being The Moon is the next nearest surface to Earth, and NASA’s Artemis program is building toward a permanent human presence there within this decade. Mars represents the longer horizon, a planet with a 24.6-hour day, evidence of past water, and enough distance from Earth that any mission there requires a home capable of sustaining life for years without resupply. The ocean floor is closer and already accessible, but less than 0.01 percent of it has been directly explored. Each of these three environments holds resources, research potential, and, in the case of Mars, the question of whether human …

studio RE+N’s floating pavilion hovers like a thin white wing above chinese tea mountain
type: item
creator: Yuting Zhang
date: 2026-03-20T13:39:04Z
subject: architecture
subject: readers
subject: video
subject: architecture in china
subject: observatory architecture and design
subject: rooftop architecture and design
subject: steel architecture and design
subject: temporary pavilions
description: the pavilion’s stepped platforms descend the slope in parallel with the tea terraces. The post studio RE+N’s floating pavilion hovers like a thin white wing above chinese tea mountain appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: a curved canopy tops the Floating white Pavilion in Songyang Studio RE+N introduces an open-air steel pavilion at the summit of a terraced tea mountain in Songyang County, Zhejiang Province, China. Positioned approximately 500 meters above sea level, the 85-square-meter structure operates as both a viewing platform and a rest point within an active agricultural landscape. Located within the Organic Tea Valley of Xinxing Town, the project engages with an environment shaped by tea cultivation and previously accessible only through narrow picking paths. The design adopts a minimal intervention strategy, placing a lightweight structure on slender supports to reduce impact on the terrain. The pavilion’s curved roof follows the contours of the hillside, establishing a formal relationship with the surrounding topography. A path of granite steps extends existing tea-picking routes, creating a continuous circulation path that connects the pavilion to the terraces below. The structure appears intermittently along this ascent, reinforcing its integration with the landscape. The spatial sequence is defined through a controlled transition from enclosure to openness. At the entrance, the roof edge limits outward views, creating a compressed condition. As movement continues downward along stepped platforms, visibility gradually expands. At the lowest point, the lifting of the roof reveals a wide view across the tea valley. This progression is achieved through the alignment of the roof geometry with the slope of the site. the Floating Pavilion hovers above the tea terraces with the village beyond | all images by Kejia Mei lightweight steel structure supports the pavilion by Studio RE+N The design team at Studio RE+N employs prefabricated steel components for the structural system. The roof utilizes a composite assembly consisting of a steel grid sandwiched between upper and lower plates, forming a tapered profile that integrates structural performance with drainage and visual conti…

designboom takes over me milan il duca with ‘room for dreams’ at milan design week 2026
type: item
creator: claire brodka I designboom
date: 2026-03-20T11:58:28Z
subject: design
subject: Milan Design Week 2026
subject: Room for Dreams
description: this april, during Milan Design Week, designboom steps beyond the digital screen to host ROOM FOR DREAMS, a site-specific takeover of the ME Milan Il Duca. The post designboom takes over me milan il duca with ‘room for dreams’ at milan design week 2026 appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: DESIGNBOOM CHECKS INTO MILAN DESIGN WEEK 2026! We dream in hotels, jet-lagged, suspended between time zones, held in transient comfort. What if our dreams weren’t just nocturnal illusions, but blueprints for a better world? During Milan Design Week 2026, designboom checks into the ME Milan Il Duca hotel with ROOM FOR DREAMS, a site-specific takeover transforming the iconic Aldo Rossi-designed hotel into an immersive laboratory for creative hope. Through a series of large-scale installations, a dedicated cinema space, live talks, workshops and social encounters, the project interrogates the state of dreaming as a tool for architectural and social transformation. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-1182600 size-full" src="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/yfCRbQpc9wJy7S5HDhwhgR.jpg" alt="" width="818" height="1228" srcset="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/yfCRbQpc9wJy7S5HDhwhgR.jpg 818w, https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/yfCRbQpc9wJy7S5HDhwhgR-666x1000.jpg 666w, https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/yfCRbQpc9wJy7S5HDhwhgR-768x1153.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 818px) 100vw, 818px" /> our ROOM FOR DREAMS location: the iconic Aldo Rossi-designed ME Milan Il Duca ROOM FOR DREAMS: A MULTILAYERED TAKEOVER The project unfolds across the hotel’s public spaces, featuring a curated selection of designers, cross-disciplinary creators, and brand collaborators that come together to build a multi-layered, sensory exploration of dreams as design tools. In partnership with SolidNature, Ressence, La Marzocco, Oppo, and INDX|GLOBAL, designboom creates a layered landscape for visitors to experience live programming alongside interactive installations that shape an immersive cultural platform. The cinema space is shaped in collaboration with Paris-based PAF Atelier: a spatial system conceived as a journey through layers of the unconscious, where architecture guides the visitor through shif…

‘we will survive this moment as well’: massimiliano gioni revisits history’s ‘new humans’
type: item
creator: kat barandy I designboom
date: 2026-03-20T11:50:27Z
subject: art
subject: art interviews
subject: exhibitions
subject: massimiliano gioni
subject: new museum
subject: utopia then and now
description: curated by massimiliano gioni, the new museum's inaugural exhibition recalls visions of humanity that are both utopian and monstrous. The post ‘we will survive this moment as well’: massimiliano gioni revisits history’s ‘new humans’ appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: the new museum exhibits early visions of new humans Proposing an unsettling vision of humanity, New Humans: Memories of the Future takes over the New Museum‘s recently completed expansion. The museum’s Artistic Director Massimiliano Gioni curates the show by gathering more than a century of artists’ responses to moments when technology and society reframed the meaning of being human. Across four floors of the OMA-designed building, earlier visions of the future are presented alongside present-day questions that remain unresolved. For Gioni, this moment of change feels symbolic, and he tells designboom during an interview ahead of the opening: ‘We are living in a moment in which some changes in the world of technology are coming to an existential questioning.‘ He points to the experience of being asked by a machine to prove one’s own humanity, an uncanny reversal that has now become familiar. He suggests that, within that uncertainty, people turn toward myth. He explains: ‘We come to a place where science and technology are so mysterious they appear magical,‘ Within this frame, artists operate as storytellers who help make sense of the shifting and uncertain world around us. In some cases they imagine utopias — in others, they envision something darker. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-1182570 size-full" src="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/new-museum-expansion-massimiliano-gioni-new-humans-interview-designboom-02.jpg" alt="massimiliano gioni new humans" width="818" height="545" srcset="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/new-museum-expansion-massimiliano-gioni-new-humans-interview-designboom-02.jpg 818w, https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/new-museum-expansion-massimiliano-gioni-new-humans-interview-designboom-02-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 818px) 100vw, 818px" /> Klára Hosnedlová, Shelter. image © designboom monstrous and progressive humanity on display New Humans: Memori…

synthetic incubators reclaim LA’s inglewood oil field in a post-human landscape
type: item
creator: Zihua Mo
date: 2026-03-20T10:30:38Z
subject: readers
subject: video
subject: architecture in los angeles
description: architectural systems are positioned as agents of environmental regeneration. The post synthetic incubators reclaim LA’s inglewood oil field in a post-human landscape appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: Rock and Roll: Synthetic Incubators for a Post-Human Nature The project Rock and Roll proposes a system of synthetic incubators positioned within the Inglewood Oil Field, LA, reconfiguring a former industrial site through a combination of architectural prototypes and speculative ecological processes. The design by Zihua Mo and Chunyu Ma explores how constructed systems can operate as active agents within environmental regeneration, shifting focus from human-centered occupation toward autonomous, responsive infrastructures. At the core of the proposal is the development of ‘Homunculi,’ conceived as architectural entities with embedded sensing and reactive capabilities. These full-scale prototypes function as instruments for environmental interaction, generating data and spatial behaviors independent of human perception. Two primary components, the Rocker and the Roller, operate as an interdependent system. the Manimal Animal Incubator: synthetic embryos are cultured here to become leaders of new animal species, while treated waste is discharged into a ‘Waste Lagoon’ to nourish the site | all images courtesy of Zihua Mo and Chunyu Ma Architectural systems as agents of environmental regeneration The Rocker is a grounded structure composed of concrete and metal, designed to extract atmospheric moisture and redistribute it across the site based on humidity levels. In contrast, the Roller is a mobile, lightweight element that disperses biological material through irregular movement patterns. The interaction between these two elements is mediated through mechanical joints and double-pendulum systems, producing variable and non-linear motion trajectories that inform spatial organization. This operational logic extends to a larger network of architectural interventions distributed across the site. Four incubator types are introduced as part of a grid-based system, each assigned a specific role within a constructed ecological cycle. The Manimal functions as an animal incubato…

venice biennale reveals renovated central pavilion ahead of 61st international art exhibition
type: item
creator: thomai tsimpou I designboom
date: 2026-03-20T09:00:34Z
subject: architecture
subject: architecture in italy
subject: renovation and restoration architecture and design
subject: venice art biennale 2026
description: the intervention reorganizes the building into a flexible exhibition space where restored elements by carlo scarpa meet new spatial strategies. The post venice biennale reveals renovated central pavilion ahead of 61st international art exhibition appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: la biennale di venezia unveils reimagined central pavilion La Biennale di Venezia reveals its fully refurbished Central Pavilion at the Giardini, completing a 16-month intervention just ahead of the 2026 Art Biennale. The project reworks one of the exhibition’s most historically layered buildings into a spatially coherent and technically integrated environment. The renewed pavilion will host In Minor Keys, the upcoming exhibition curated by Koyo Kouoh, opening to the public on May 9th, 2026. The team approaches the Central Pavilion as a layered architectural organism. Through successive additions and modifications, accumulated over more than a century, are reorganized into a legible spatial system. The intervention clarifies circulation and hierarchy, positioning the Sala Chini as the primary distribution node from which exhibition spaces unfold. A ring of public-facing functions, including a bookshop, cafeteria, educational spaces, and technical areas, is arranged around the core galleries. These service spaces are treated as distinct elements, allowing the exhibition rooms to operate as flexible environments. Conceived as white box galleries, they are fully liberated from visible technical systems, which are now embedded within walls and ceilings. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-1182622 size-full" src="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/venice-biennale-renovated-central-pavilion-61st-international-art-exhibition-designboom-08.jpg" alt="" width="818" height="545" srcset="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/venice-biennale-renovated-central-pavilion-61st-international-art-exhibition-designboom-08.jpg 818w, https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/venice-biennale-renovated-central-pavilion-61st-international-art-exhibition-designboom-08-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 818px) 100vw, 818px" /> Central Pavilion refurbished with funding from the Ministry of Culture as part of the PNC under …

searching for utopia, jane jacobs looked no further than the city sidewalk
type: item
creator: kat barandy I designboom
date: 2026-03-20T06:30:07Z
subject: architecture
subject: architecture in new york
subject: utopia then and now
description: activist jane jacobs rejected the masterplanned 'ideal city', framing utopia instead as an ever-evolving place shaped by its sidewalk life. The post searching for utopia, jane jacobs looked no further than the city sidewalk appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: jane jacobs’ utopia is community There is a moment, early in The Death and Life of Great American Cities, when activist Jane Jacobs describes a city sidewalk in use: ‘People get advice from the grocer and give advice to the newsstand man, compare opinions with other customers at the bakery and nod hello to the two boys on the stoop.‘ The scene seems trivial, but she explains its importance: ‘The trust of a city street is formed over time from many, many little public sidewalk contacts.‘ It’s this accumulation of daily moments that shapes her version of utopia. Unlike the modernist masterplans and megastructures of Le Corbusier and Paul Rudolph, or the invasive urban interventions of Robert Moses, her vision builds itself over time and trust between people. During the modernist movement, Jacobs pushed back against the idea of the ideal city as something to be reduced to binaries and managed by experts, arguing instead for an understanding of it as an ever-evolving place shaped by those who inhabit it. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-1182533 size-full" src="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/jane-jacobs-death-life-great-american-cities-utopia-designboom-02.jpg" alt="jane jacobs utopia" width="818" height="534" srcset="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/jane-jacobs-death-life-great-american-cities-utopia-designboom-02.jpg 818w, https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/jane-jacobs-death-life-great-american-cities-utopia-designboom-02-768x501.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 818px) 100vw, 818px" /> Jane Jacobs handing out brochures and speaking with neighbors on Hudson Street about the proposed West Village Houses affordable housing project, West Village, 1963 | photo courtesy Bob Gomel an ideal city planned from above? For centuries, utopia existed as a projection. In Thomas More’s Utopia, published in 1516, the city is a complete and ordered world that’s already resolved. The appeal comes from it…

five material-driven kinetic sculptures don’t just move, they respond
type: item
creator: Nadya Suvorova
date: 2026-03-20T03:00:47Z
subject: design
subject: readers
subject: video
subject: kinetic installations
subject: materials
subject: sculpture
description: material interactions a series of kinetic objects that explore the role of materials as active components within design systems. The post five material-driven kinetic sculptures don’t just move, they respond appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.
encoded: how can materials generate movement, behavior, interaction? Material Interactions is a collaborative project by Nadya Suvorova and Heidi Jalkh, presenting a series of five kinetic sculptures that explore the role of materials as active components within design systems. Rather than treating matter as passive, the project investigates how materials can exhibit responsive behaviors, contributing to form, movement, and interaction. The sculptures integrate experimental materials developed in Swiss and Argentine laboratories, combining approaches from materials science, biology, engineering, and design. Each object is conceived as a system in which material properties and embedded technologies generate specific reactions. Interaction is triggered through proximity, enabling the works to respond to the presence of visitors through movement and spatial shifts. This framework positions materials as agents within a dynamic environment, extending beyond conventional mechanical systems. The project proposes an expanded understanding of design, where behavior emerges from the intrinsic qualities of materials and their configuration. By embedding responsiveness directly into material systems, the work reconsiders the relationship between users, objects, and environments. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-1182552 size-full" src="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/material-interactions-nadya-suvorova-heidi-jalkh-five-kinetic-sculptures-responsive-designboom-818-1.jpg" alt="" width="818" height="409" srcset="https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/material-interactions-nadya-suvorova-heidi-jalkh-five-kinetic-sculptures-responsive-designboom-818-1.jpg 818w, https://www.designboom.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/material-interactions-nadya-suvorova-heidi-jalkh-five-kinetic-sculptures-responsive-designboom-818-1-768x384.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 818px) 100vw, 818px" /> all images courtesy of Material Interactions – Nadya Suvo…