This week on Dezeen, the Royal Institute of British Architects awarded Japanese studio SANAA its Royal Gold Medal for the firm’s “impactful leadership”.
SANAA was given the award for its contribution to the advancement of architecture.
“Exemplifying an unassuming yet impactful leadership in the evolving practice and theory of architecture, SANAA’s designs demonstrate that architecture can balance functionality with profound elegance,” said RIBA president Muyiwa Oki.
To celebrate the win, we rounded up 10 notable projects by the studio.
Stockholm Design Week took place this week and the Dezeen team reported live from the city, covering everything from designers’ pets to an office rollercoaster and terrazzo beer taps.
We also launched our first print magazine, Dezeen Dispatch, during the week, which has features on Swedish design and radical designers as well as interviews, Stockholm tips and much more.
In London, British studio Foster + Partners revealed a trio of skyscrapers that will overlook the river Thames. The office development is said to be “London’s lowest whole-life carbon high-rise development”.
The Albanian capital of Tirana is also focusing on skyscrapers, with a numerous high-rises currently under construction. Our roundup of the eight most unusual includes towers by MVRDV, Stefano Boeri and OODA.
A hanging piano that looks like it’s melting made an impact on Dezeen readers this week. Designer Maarten Baas’ Crescendo! exhibition showed pianos that were hung from butcher’s hooks and distorted to resemble how animals’ flesh stretches out after they have been slaughtered.
“The pianos are hanging almost like a piece of meat from a butcher,” said Baas. “Just like how an animal used to live and used to have a soul, it is now a few kilos of meat.”
Skyscraper Brooklyn Tower has “brought some heft to Brooklyn’s skyscape,” wrote Cara Greenberg in an opinion piece for Dezeen.
Greenberg argues that, while some compare Brooklyn Tower to the Tower of Sauron from the Lord of the Rings films, it and the numerous other skyscrapers that have started popping up in Brooklyn are what the borough needs to compete with Manhattan.
Popular projects on Dezeen this week include a house on a Scottish coast with views of the estuary, a raised steel cabin in Australia and an Italian-informed loft extension in London.
Our latest lookbooks focused on living rooms with Ligne Roset’s Togo sofa and well-designed dental clinics.
This week on Dezeen
This week on Dezeen is our regular roundup of the week’s top news stories. Subscribe to our newsletters to be sure you don’t miss anything.
