During the 92nd academy awards ceremony, Tom Hanks announced that Renzo Piano’s academy museum for Motion Pictures in Los Angeles will open to the public on December 14, 2020. Billed as ‘the world’s premier film institution,’ detailed plans for the much-anticipated museum and theatre complex were first unveiled in late 2017 after construction began on site along Wilshire and Fairfax in 2015.

Major construction has been completed on the already iconic building designed by Italian Architect Renzo piano, the academy museum has recently announced that it has reached the 95 per cent mark in its $388 million pre-opening campaign, and installation of four floors of immersive, innovative exhibitions is now underway.

The Academy Museum director Bill Kramer states they cannot wait to welcome the whole world to the academy museum. When the doors open on December 14, the thrilling combination of exhibitions, screenings, and public and educational programs will create unparalleled experiences for movie lovers everywhere.
This is a museum that only the academy could create: exciting and illuminating; historic and contemporary. One should look forward to sharing the global reach of cinema.’

The dream of this museum will finally become a reality — a gathering place for filmmakers and movie fans from around the world, where we can share the Oscars legacy and further fulfil the academy’s mission to connect the world through cinema.’

A twisting tower clad designed by architect Frank Gehry, is taking form in the south of France. Constructed from a concrete core and steel frame, the scheme emerges from a circular glass atrium echoing the town’s Roman amphitheater.

The distinctive jagged form above the atrium echoes the region’s rugged mountain ranges, with glass boxes extruding from reflective aluminum panels. Due to be 56 meters high when complete, the tower is formed of a concrete core with a steel frame. Glass boxes and shining aluminum panels are stacked around this in an irregular formation above a circular glass atrium.

Gehry’s design for the facade is supposed to echo the craggy rock formations found near the city, the same kind that inspired sometime-resident Vincent van Gogh to paint them in 1888.

Inside, a vast circular atrium will recall the Roman amphitheater in Arles, part of the city’s designated UNESCO World Heritage site. Led by swiss collector Maja Hoffmann, LUMA Arles occupies a former rail depot with a campus designed to showcase some of the art world’s biggest names.

The Frank Gehry-designed tower will house a variety of different programs, including research facilities, workshop and seminar rooms, and artist studios. The entire site will be set within a public park. The tower’s opening date has been pushed back to spring 2020, but new photos show the irregular form of the metallic tower taking shape above the city of Arles.

Design practice LMN Architects have unveiled new details of the design for the Seattle Aquarium Ocean Pavilion. The $113 million project will include the 50,000-square-foot Pavilion sited adjacent to the existing Seattle Aquarium. The pavilion will link together the new Seattle Waterfront, downtown and the historic Pike Place Market.

As LMN explains, the new Ocean Pavilion will integrate a complex building program into Seattle’s urban context. Guided by Seattle Aquarium’s mission to inspire conservation of the marine environment, the new facility focuses on global stories like climate change and ocean acidification. Exhibits rooted in the ecosystem of the Coral Triangle and Indo-Pacific region highlight the interconnectivity of the ocean with local waters, inspiring visitors to connect the welfare of the Puget Sound to the greater Pacific Ocean.

Dedicated primarily to sharks and stingray, the pavilion will include a 325,000-gallon warm-water tank for a range of species. Adjacent to the large tank will be a flexible space capable of hosting events for up to 200 people. The program also includes gathering spaces for smaller groups participating in hands-on education activities and guided interpretation. Seattle Aquarium president and chief executive officer Bob Davidson said that, “The Ocean Pavilion will be at the crossroads of the city. It’s a gift, and it’s also a statement of the importance of Seattle’s relationship to the water and the ocean.”

The design also includes an oculus the “Sharkulus”offering views into the main exhibit from both the plaza level and rooftop terrace. Exhibits within the Pavilion are composed of four primary experiential zones. Circulation pathways through the Pavilion’s levels will offer both above and below-water views of exhibits, as well as views to the Aquarium Plaza and waterfront.

The Seattle Aquarium Ocean Pavilion is scheduled for completion in 2023.

Architecture firms Selgascano and FRPO have been selected as finalists to design Spain’s National Pavilion for EXPO 2020 in Dubai. The winning proposal includes an inflatable canopy of nine yellow ETFE cylinders set within a steel framework. Reinterpreting the Spanish plaza, the design creates a new take on the public square. The pavilion was made to be ultralight as a more sustainable structure that could be easily removed and transported. Formed as a ‘breathing pavilion’, the design allows two inflatables to move up and down to respond to views, light and breeze.

As expo 2020 will be held during Dubai’s cooler months, selgascano and FRPO’s design takes advantage the lower temperatures with a generous amount of outdoor space.

The two cylinders at the front of the pavilion can move up and down, opening or closing the pavilion in response to climatic conditions and events beneath the dynamic canopy, a matrix of fans helps circulate air, while shade, ventilation, and micro-evaporation are used to ensure comfort. As with any other plaza, the idea of the square is linked to the presence of water, which is never wasted conceived as oases, three areas of native vegetation and moving water help temper the heat, while serving as sources of freshness, shade, and life. Meanwhile, a single-floor exhibition space joins other services beneath the pavilion’s elevated square.

Design team also suggests that the structure, particularly the inflatable deck, could be easily assembled in a second location, such as a fairground as more than 80 per cent of the material used will be certified recycled material, other elements could be recycled or reused independently.

Located on Wilshire and Fairfax in Los Angeles, the museum has three primary goals: to convey the power of movies, to give viewers a behind-the-scenes look into how films are made, and to explore their impact on culture and our lives.

Renzo Piano’s design comprises two distinct buildings that form the academy museum’s 300,000-square-foot campus. The six-storey Saban building designated at Los Angeles historic-cultural monument will feature more than 50,000 square feet of exhibition galleries, a state-of-the-art education studio, a 288-seat theater, a restaurant and café, a store, and public event spaces. Meanwhile, a soaring globe-shaped addition appropriately titled ‘the sphere’ will include a 1,000-seat theater and will host a range of performances, screenings, premieres, and events. At its top, an expansive terrace will afford sweeping views of the Hollywood hills.

Occupying two floors of the Saban building, the museum will open with a long-term exhibition that explores the evolution of film. The institution has also announced a temporary exhibition dedicated to Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki, which will be followed in 2020 by an exhibition that reveals the important and under-recognized history of African-American filmmakers in the development of American cinema. Meanwhile, the museum’s 34-foot-high project space will open with a major work by the Tokyo-based interdisciplinary art collective Teamlab.

Visuals have been released of Burj Jumeira, a 550-metre-tall split-volume skyscraper in Dubai that will rise from a lake shaped like the fingerprint of the emirate’s ruler. Unveiled by state-owned Dubai Holding, the supertall skyscraper has been dubbed as the “new icon in Dubai’s skyline”.

It will be located on the city’s waterfront opposite the Sheikh Zayed Road and form the centerpiece of the new Downtown Jumeira district. The Burj Jumeira tower’s oval-shaped base, which is patterned with Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s fingerprint, will form the heart of the project. It will be used to host “social, cultural and artistic events and activities”.

The tower will rise from one end of the lake, and comprise two connected, curved volumes that are modelled on desert topography and lined with digital displays. Burj Jumeira’s design is inspired by the harmonious ripples of the United Arab Emirates’ desert sand dunes and its flowing oases. The tower’s facade will be covered with digital displays that can be utilized for various occasions and celebrations, further reinforcing the tower’s role at the heart of Dubai’s community activities.

This deck will offer 360-degree panoramic views of Dubai and the opportunity to skydive and be accessed by lifts that are fitted with interactive and immersive digital screens. The Burj Jumeira will be connected to the Sharaf DG Metro Station by a covered pathway, which will also extend to the iconic Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, a hotel on an artificial island 280 meters from Jumeirah Beach.

A design for the Shenzhen-Hong Kong International Center, a 700-metre tall glass tower in Shenzhen, China. The megatall skyscraper is set to become the tallest building in China, and the world’s third tallest building. It will be built between the foothills of Longcheng Park and the Dayun National Park, and form part of the Chicago-based architect’s wider masterplan for the Longgang district in the east of the city.

The visuals released by the practice show the skyscraper’s twisted, “anthropomorphic” form, designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill in reference to its proximity to several major sporting venues in the district.

Shenzhen-Hong Kong International Center will be topped with one of the world’s highest observation decks, alongside a restaurant, night club, spa facilities and a swimming pool. In the evenings, the tower will become “a visual, sound, and light show”, reinforcing the district’s athletic and entertainment purposes. It will be wrapped by landscaped promenades, which are designed to withstand Shenzhen’s heavy rainfall and flooding in the summer months.
Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill’s environmental goal for the Shenzhen-Hong Kong International Center, and the surrounding landscape, is to obtain LEED Platinum certification – one of the most popular green building certification programs used worldwide. Shenzhen-Hong International Center will be constructed using high-performance glass to reduce heat gain, the entire development will be orientated to optimise solar gain and natural ventilation. The architects have also incorporated a large public transportation centre and bus terminal into the masterplan.

Qatar’s Al Wakrah Stadium – the 2022 world cup venue was designed by late Zaha Hadid. The 40,000 capacity arena, which will host games up to the soccer tournament’s quarter-finals stage, was first unveiled back in 2013.

The structure itself is now complete and work is progressing on the internal finishes, the roof, and the façade. the energy centre that will serve the venue has also been built, while the precinct infrastructure and hard landscaping are also advancing.

Located in one of Qatar’s oldest continuously inhabited areas, the Zaha Hadid-designed venue has been described as ‘an extraordinary stadium for an adventurous city’. The stadium will also have a retractable roof that will be able to close in approximately 30 minutes. A light sleeve, made of steel wires brought together at an oculus, will also provide shade to the entire pitch and contribute to the efficiency of the cooling system before the match. Resembling curved hockey sticks, a series of 540-tonne pillars are the main support for the arena’s retractable roof. the roof steel elements for the columns originated in China and were fabricated in Italy and later shipped to Qatar.

The venue will also comprise schools, a wedding hall, tennis courts, basketball courts, restaurants, a swimming pool, gyms, and marketplaces amenities designed to be used by the community for years to come. After the tournament, the region’s local team — Al Wakrah Sports Club — will stadium the venue as its new home.

The new Kaohsiung Station is the crowning achievement of the massive Kaohsiung Metropolitan Area Underground Railway Project, which, includes seven subterranean stations along a 9.75 km railway tunnel. It will be a true transportation hub integrating train, metro, local and intercity bus services, taxi and bicycle.

As a key project for the city’s transformation, the above ground station has been designed to add valuable public green space, and, activate the local community. Kaohsiung Station’s central hall unfolds underneath a bright ceiling of oval-shaped lights. Arriving from the underground platforms, the immersive space will make people feel instantly familiar.

The station’s large curvilinear shaped canopy reaches out to the city in a powerful gesture, acting as a green connector that unifies different modes of transport, and represents Kaohsiung’s vision for the future as a sustainable city. With a cycling path running east west on top, the station’s multi-layered landscape introduces a generous amount of public space into the city centre. Designed as a destination rather than merely an efficient mobility hub, the station offers a myriad of facilities for the local community and travelers.

The sprawling landscaped canopy protects the open public plaza underneath from Kaohsiung’s tropical climate like large trees would do. Here, people can meet, enjoy a refreshing breeze, or visit events that take place at the station, like a farmers’ market, second-hand market, traditional open-air opera or a mobile library. The colonial Japanese station building, which will be relocated to its original site, is embraced by the canopy and symbolically reconnects the old and new Kaohsiung.