Current issue

News and observations

• The Rotterdam, Rotterdam (NL) by OMA
• Young Architects Program competition winners in Rome and Istanbul
• Book: Concrete Mushrooms: Reusing Albania's 750,000 Abandoned Bunkers
• Swimming pool, Herceg-Novi (ME) by Studio GRAD
• Archiprix utopias 5: Durable eco-societies (RU)
• George Square redesign, Glasgow (UK)
• Update: Balancing buildings
• and more…

New projects

• Conference and education centre, Brno (CZ) by ARCHTEAM
• Floating island pavilion, London (UK) by Erkko Aarti & Arto Ollila
• 'Waalse Krook' multimedia site, Ghent (BE) by Coussée & Goris and RCR
• Sustainable housing complex, Crissier (CH) by Bauart Architectes et Urbanistes

Architecture in action

• Stone Opera's life-size cardboard building block kit for children at the 2012 Venice Biennale of Architecture and in Glasgow (IT/UK)
• The National Style: Culture and Politics exhibition design by A1 Architects and OKOLO, Prague (CZ)

New buildings

• Library, Seinäjoki (FI) by JKMM
• Private art gallery and residence, Bolzano (IT) by Walter Angonese and Andrea Marastoni
• Refurbishment and extension of a historical archive, Assen (NL) by Zecc Architects
• Cultural centre, Oostende (BE) by B-architecten
• Nature and culture interpretation centre, Sabayés (ES) by Sixto Marín
• Laboratory for the living arts, Brno (CZ) by ARCHTEAM and RadaArchitects

Focusing on European countries

Construction in Russia nowadays is not limited to stadiums for the 2014 Olympic Games and the World Cup in 2018. There are grand plans around Moscow: Skolkovo, a huge area for high-tech research and activity that is set to become the Russian equivalent of Silicon Valley, plus a new financial centre west of the city and a huge expansion to the south where, among other things, the Russian government intends to relocate. However, what has thus far been realized are primarily the luxury villas and penthouses of new billionaires and cheap housing for the masses. It is difficult for young architects to manoeuvre amidst these developments. Without an established network, they are finding it problematic to realize projects and, as a result, it is even harder to procure construction contracts. Here, A10 and Bart Goldhoorn explore the status quo of architecture in today's Russia.

Metal melange

Section deals with current trends and relationships in technology and materials. In each issue, A10 chooses one project to be the subject of a more in-depth analysis, exploring the connections between concept and result, innovation and use, corporate and social identity, and so on. In this issue, Sophie Roulet reports on the new Science and Technology Library by architects Marie-Hélène Badia and Didier Berger. The library, built in a heritage-listed park in the Paris (FR) region, has been open to students of the University of Versailles Saint-Quentinen-Yvelines since the beginning of this year.

Barcelona, a case study boomtown

The city of Barcelona is considered one of the most culturally relevant urban centres in Spain. Currently, it represents an intercultural hub where a robust exchange of ideas and identity continually thrives. Individuals with highly creative backgrounds are migrating to its enriching and inspirational setting to further develop concepts and projects. In this second edition of the MI Tour Guide, a collaboration between A10 and MIMOA, A10 correspondents Gonzalo Herrero Delicado and Maria José Marcos point out why, in terms of contemporary architecture, the Catalonian capital is the heart of talent in Spain.

Buildings from the margins of modern history

Built between 1967 and 1975, this group of six high-rise buildings on Plac Grunwaldzki in Wrocław is the work of Jadwiga Grabowska-Hawrylak, who trained at Wrocław Technical University. Slim, striking and now sadly grey with dirt, their quality is beyond doubt. The six towers were clearly planned as part of a much larger ideal city, modelled on Le Corbusier's Ville Radieuse. Today, the grande dame of Wrocław modernism is fighting for the survival and renovation of these ageing apartment blocks on Plac Grunwaldzki.