Author: Isha Chaudhary
Isha Chaudhary
Isha Chaudhary is an architecture writer who follows and writes about current trends and emerging discussions in architecture, with a focus on design, technology, and place-making.
Vietnamese architect Trần Thị Ngụ Ngôn, co-founder of Tropical Space, has been awarded the 2025 Diversity in Architecture (DIVIA) Award for her distinctive contributions to environmentally friendly structures that seamlessly mix traditional Vietnamese features with modern design concepts. The DIVIA Award, designed to raise the profile of women in architecture, recognizes architects whose work symbolizes cultural inclusiveness and diversity. Ngôn’s design concept, which is firmly entrenched in Vietnamese culture and climate, stands out among the six finalists chosen from 25 candidates globally. Her designs, which include local materials such as terracotta bricks and are sensitive to the tropical environment, have…
In May 2025, the Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam opened Architecture and Emotion, a solo exhibition tracing the arc of Ma Yansong’s career and the philosophy behind MAD Architects. It was a moment of convergence of place, purpose, and timing. Just days earlier, MAD unveiled the Fenix Museum of Migration, its latest international project, just across the Maas River. Both the exhibition and the museum explore architecture as an emotional experience rather than just spatial design. Ma Yansong, who was just named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2025, has long pushed against the gridlocked logic of conventional…
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) annually establishes an international standard for outstanding architecture through its famous awards program. The RIBA Awards system is precisely designed and includes numerous degrees of distinction. It starts at the regional level, where excellent structures in the UK are recognized for their architectural integrity and native significance. This year, 38 London projects were recognized with RIBA London Awards 2025, selected from a shortlist of 78. Among these, Allford Hall Monaghan Morris’ renovation of Tower Hamlets Town Hall stood out as the London Building of the Year, recognizing both architectural brilliance and civic reform.…
In May 2025, celebrated architect Yasmeen Lari, Pakistan’s first woman in the field, was awarded the prestigious Lisbon Triennale Millennium bcp Lifetime Achievement Award. With a career spanning over 60 years, Lari has become a global figure in socially responsible and climate-conscious architecture, known for her commitment to empowering marginalized communities through sustainable, low-carbon design. When Yasmeen Lari began her architectural career in the 1960s, she was already stepping into uncharted territory, Pakistan’s first woman architect, trained at the Oxford School of Architecture (now Oxford Brookes), and eager to shape a modern architectural identity for a newly independent nation. Her…
Venice, May 2025, With the opening of the Venice Architecture Biennale, curator Carlo Ratti sets a stage defined by fluid thresholds: “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective.” Until November 23, professionals from around the world will gather at the Venice Architecture Biennale to demonstrate innovative concepts that analyze, encourage, and rethink the world of architecture. ETH Zurich is distinguished not only as a participant thus also as an innovator of technological advancement in architecture. The Swiss university’s Department of Architecture defines its role as both a creator and innovator of architectural possibilities via a series of research-driven projects. The narrative goes behind…
The Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) has released the shortlist of projects for the 2025 NSW Architecture Awards, which will acknowledge the extraordinary breadth of creative architecture and expertise from around New South Wales (NSW). This year’s choice of projects provides insight into the unique and powerful designs that inspire new houses, commercial and community structures, educational institutions, and beyond. The 137-powerful selection was chosen among the most outstanding collection of potential entries thus far, with 280 submissions across 13 different categories. The shortlisted buildings range from innovative community centers and advanced academic institutions to mindfully planned houses and regenerated…
The ruins belonging to what looks to be a 13th-century fortress where popes resided before moving to the Vatican were uncovered in Rome ahead of repairs for the 2025 Catholic Holy Year, or Jubilee, the Italian Culture Ministry announced on Wednesday. According to the Italian Ministry of Culture, the edifice was expanded and repaired on numerous occasions throughout the Middle Ages before becoming the papacy’s formal home. Over 35 million people will be heading to Rome in order to cross the barrier of these Holy Doors and participate in a variety of religious and historical endeavours held across the entirety…
At the 19th Venice Architecture Biennale, the Kingdom of Bahrain’s national pavilion, ‘Heatwave,’ was awarded the Golden Lion for the Best National Participation. The pavilion presents workable solutions during extreme hot weather and addresses rising global temperatures. The Bahrain Pavilion was designed by Andrea Faraguna, architect, curator, and Head of Design and Research, who suggests that public spaces with climate comfort are a form of social equity. The pavilion, authorized by Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed bin Abdullah Al Khalifa of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities, provides an authoritative and appropriate answer regarding one of the current most significant…
Created by Martha Schwartz Partners (MSP) for the 2026 Shanghai International Flower Show, Pollinator Machine is a floral installation rising within Taipingqiao Park in Shanghai’s Huangpu District. The 90-square-meter installation transforms the city’s official flower, the Magnolia denudata, into a monumental symbol of resilience, adaptation, and ecological intelligence. The installation explores how one of Earth’s oldest flowering plants has survived catastrophic environmental changes for millions of years. Through its scale, form, and scientific narrative, Pollinator Machine encourages visitors to reconsider humanity’s relationship with nature at a time when biodiversity faces unprecedented decline. Reimagining Shanghai’s Official Flower At first glance, the…