Weekly Picks

Set at the entrance of Lihua Village, the project is a lightweight pavilion housing a bakery, café, and cultural space, inspired by the imagery of fallen pear petals resting on valley stones. The structure is a minimal steel system of five slender circular columns, a single shear wall, and a petal-like steel roof clad in double-layer galvanized panels with integrated insulation, maintaining a roof thickness under 160 mm. Its curved, near-elliptical plan and enclosed roof form not only respond to site orientation and climate but also generate distinctive acoustic qualities, enhancing spatial experience.

Designed over two decades, Monte Sant’Angelo Station in Naples is both architecture and sculpture through Anish Kapoor’s exploration of form. The station’s dual entrances; one rising from the ground in weathering steel, the other a smooth and tubular aperture, transform the threshold space into an architectural experience.

Located on the shores of Lake Geneva, the new headquarters for Lombard Odier, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, consolidates over 2,000 employees into a single, flexible and transparent workplace organized around a central light-filled atrium. The facade is articulated by a dense rhythm of slender vertical columns, acting as structure, solar shading, and visual filter. The columns create depth and modulate light while allowing flexible, open floor plates behind.

The ICON Douro Building in Porto, designed by Luís Pedro Silva Arquitecto Lda, has a curvilinear form that responds to the movement of its urban crossroads setting. Its strong horizontal lines, inclined roof, and layered facades soften the building’s mass while emphasizing motion. The result is a dynamic volume that balances corporate presence with a sculptural profile.

Part of Tehran’s Meydangah initiative, Jahad Metro Plaza by KA Architecture Studio transforms a former transit station into a pedestrian-oriented public space through an assembly of interlocking brick barrel vaults. The varying vault heights allow light and air to permeate the structure while buffering traffic noise, creating a sequence of shaded indoor–outdoor spaces for rest, gathering, and informal activity.

Duonos Kalnas in Vilnius is a sculptural residential ensemble by Dominykas Kalmatavičius and Gintautas Natkevičius, composed of eight homes conceived as dynamic, D-shaped volumes embedded in the terrain. Monumental curved masonry walls in textured clinker contrast with flat, fully glazed façades, while a subtle rotation between floors gives each house a shifting, kinetic silhouette. The interplay of heavy, tactile brickwork and transparent glass creates a cohesive architectural landscape that balances sculptural form, light, and material depth.

Nestled in the Tokaj-Hegyalja wine region, the Sauska Tokaj Winery, is a floating architectural landmark that lightly touches the landscape. Two intersecting, lens-shaped volumes hover above ground on slender steel columns, housing visitor functions, while temperature-sensitive winemaking spaces are embedded underground within the volcanic terrain. This clear separation of structure and program enhances environmental performance and reinforces the building’s sculptural, weightless presence within the UNESCO-protected setting.

Casa Riba, located in the Puembo Valley in the Andes, is organized as a two-level linear volume that curves around and frames an existing carob tree, which acts as the project’s axis. The house is structured from the inside out, with all rooms maintaining a direct relationship to the tree, while public spaces open toward a central courtyard. A light, permeable facade with vertical elements defines the curved geometry, balancing transparency and rhythm.