Architecture

Mecanoo's proposed design for the Library of Birmingham

Birmingham's £6bn makeover

Britain's new architectural hot spot is Birmingham and it's handing £6bn to a thundering horde of architects to prove it. First up, in a £193m scheme, Europe's biggest library, care of the acclaimed Dutch designers Mecanoo. And even the sky isn't the limit for Birmingham's architectural ambitions. The mere ether above the Bullring is not good enough for Brum's director of planning, Clive Dutton: "We're going to illuminate Spaghetti Junction – you'll be able to see it from space!"

Inside Architecture

The Big Question: Why is Prince Charles angry about a development at Chelsea Barracks?

Tuesday, 21 April 2009

Why are we asking this now?
The Barracks is a dream site for any developer who might be a descendent of Croesus, the fabulously wealthy king of Lydia, circa 550BC. The site covers more than five hectares of one of London's fanciest sites, close to the river and directly opposite Wren's Royal Hospital. In the Croesus stakes, few families are wealthier than the royal clan of Qatar, one of whose companies, Qatari Diar, bought the Barracks jointly with CPC Group, operated by the Candy brothers, for £950m last year. Prince Charles dislikes their scheme for the site, designed by Lord Rogers' practice, Rogers Stirk Harbour, and has apparently quilled a note to Qatar's rulers, asking them to use another architect.

A very peculiar practice: How Amanda Levete is slowly finding her feet following her ex-husband's death

Sunday, 19 April 2009

They were British architecture's best-known couple, whose fiery relationship at Future Systems created the funkiest buildings of the past decade: the Selfridges 'blob' in Birmingham and the Media Centre at Lord's. But since the sudden death of Jan Kaplicky in January, Amanda Levete has been accused of exploiting the good name of her ex-husband. Here, she tells Leo Burley about divorce, bereavement and fighting for her reputation.

The evolution of seaside architecture

Tuesday, 7 April 2009

Rick Mather's stunning new art gallery in Eastbourne is just part of a brilliant architectural revival on the south coast. Jay Merrick pays a visit

Serota has to tone down Tate Modern extension

Thursday, 2 April 2009

Gallery secures planning permission for expansion after first design was blocked

A bigger, better British Museum

Thursday, 2 April 2009

The Victoria and Albert Museum has got one, so has Tate Modern, and now the British Museum has revealed its own plans for a large extension.

After 650 years, the wisdom of the Alhambra is revealed

Tuesday, 31 March 2009

Granada's fortress-palace built by Spain's medieval Moorish rulers, has always fascinated visitors. But what messages do its intricately carved walls hold – poetry, philosophy or piety? Elizabeth Nash reports

Alvaro Siza: Gold medal for architecture

Tuesday, 24 March 2009

The Queen has awarded the 76-year-old Portuguese architect a Riba gold medal – and rightly so, says Jay Merrick

Frank Lloyd Wright - unforgettable buildings, unforgettable life

Sunday, 8 March 2009

While Frank Lloyd Wright designed some of the most beautiful buildings of the 20th century his personal life was falling down around his ears.

Architects face jobs ‘bloodbath’

Sunday, 22 February 2009

Members of the the architecture profession have said they are experiencing a “bloodbath” as the latest victims of the recession. New research reveals more than 65 per cent of practices in the UK have seen workloads drop and half have had to lay off staff, according to a survey by The Architects’ Journal.