Cute urban infill housing in Tehran, Iran by Razigar Group

Want your building to look hot, but your occupants to stay cool? Add soft pink awnings! This is in Zurich, by Meier Hug Architects

Retrofit of balconies to turn them into a power station Has an amazing name in German - Balkonkraftwerk! Cooperative housing in Zurich, by Lutjens Padmanabhan Architects

Can you build a skyscraper from wood and straw? ETC Hyllie in Malmo is 12 storeys, with 65 apartments, built from a mass timber frame with straw infill panels. It is so light, a big structural challenge was to stop it lifting off in the wind. No little pig jokes please….

Such a shame Herman Hertzberger’s SoZa offices are set to be demolished in The Hague. Only 36 years old, it would be an enormous waste of materials, labour and embodied carbon. Also… just take a look at that plan!

Spain really is building the *best* social housing in the world right now. And here’s a great example. 24 apartments in Ibiza by 08014 Architects. A thread 🧵

There’s a lot of AI slop in architecture floating around… But I really like these AI visions of Iranian brick apartments by Pooriya Zamani

Collective housing in Munich. Designed for a Baugruppen: a collective, who directly commission their own housing Timber structure, insulated with cellulose and wood wool, and clad in local spruce By etal

“The ornaments are almost cartoonishly large, dwarfing the arch’s piers, and painfully literal.”  “Taken as a whole, it is, in effect, classical architecture translated into the idiom of contemporary political messaging.” www.archpaper.com/2026/06/how-...

Scalloped brickwork seems very much en vogue A new office building in Reutlingen, Germany, by Riehle Koeth Love the tone of the bricks here

72 social housing apartments, south of Barcelona Generous openable windows, treetop views, cross ventilation, shade… By Carles Enrich Studio

Two-storey timber extension added on top of a 1950’s concrete housing block in Geneva. Increasing housing while reducing demolition. By Lacroix Chessex

Effective and efficient apartment planning in Lucerne, Switzerland Dual aspect living spaces and a timber structure. Designed by Dolmus Architecture

I’m seeing more and more ambitious proposals to use timber structures in tall buildings 240 apartments (70 social housing), in Copenhagen, by Vilhelm Lauritzen Architects

92% of British homes will overheat in summer by 2050. Is air-conditioning part of the solution? Absolutely. But let’s not forget the passive elements that can assist us using *far less* air-conditioning and lower bills. External shading. Greenery. Reflective roof coatings.

Housing for Borsalino employees, Italy, 1952 A slim plan, with two apartments per core. This allows all four living spaces to be dual aspect and access cross ventilation Architect: Ignazio Gardella

Design for a new apartment building in Saman, Iran Love the combination of terracotta and turquoise! By Sahar Kamaluddin and Nima Safdari

14 apartments going up in the 14th arrondissement in Paris. Stone facades with a timber structure. Cost €2.7m. Interesting permeable stones for ventilation below the windows… By Minuit Architects

In unsurprising news, Saudi Arabia has halted work on the Line until after 2030 What a waste of money, time and emissions! www.semafor.com/article/05/2...

More beautiful apartments from Iran, this time in the city of Arak. Textured brickwork, recessed balconies, shade. Designed by A.P. Pars Architects and Associates

The future of housing! Mid-rise, prefabricated timber frame with straw infill insulation, and a lime render. Quick to build, and low carbon! By Atelier Schmidt, in Zurich.

More apartments in Iran, this time in the city of Maku Strong vertical elements, breaking down scale, but also celebrating height. However instead of the usual brick, a mix of timber and stone cladding By White Cube Atelier

Cooperative courtyard housing, in Hradec Králové, Czechia Designed with a prefabricated timber structure, with steel balconies. Access is via an internal walkway, meaning all homes are dual aspect. By the amazingly-named Oh Boi Studio

Balconies in Tehran, Iran Architecture by Takbiri Studio

Brick as shading and privacy filter Arghavan apartments in Tehran, Iran, by Alidoost & partners

88 social housing apartments and terraces in Paris Built on the edge of the city, near the airport, with a budget of €11.6 million (€132,000 / home). By Palast, Echelle Office and Guinee*Potin

Really interesting plan for a tower in Malmo, Sweden. Four, family sized apartments per floor, all with three bedrooms. Living space on the corners. Two winter gardens per home. Plenty of storage. Single stair!!! By Christoph Hilger

This is *such* a simple and effective apartment plan. East-west facing, with each living space spanning the full width. Means morning sun, afternoon sun, cross ventilation. Clear delineation between living and private spaces. In Paris, by Architectures Raphaël Gabrion

82 affordable rental homes built from chunky mass timber, in Rotterdam Deck access means all apartments are dual aspect, and each gets a generous 14m2 timber balcony Designed by Powerhouse Company

Cute design for terracotta apartments in Tehran, Iran By Mohsen Kazemianfard

Design for new housing in Basel, to be built from 1,500 tonnes of reclaimed concrete components from a dismantled freight hall. The balconies will be made from upcycled train tracks! By Dorsa Collective

Another case of MAGA (Make Awnings Great Again) Loba House, 1952, Stuttgart, by Rolf Gutbrod

Mamdani takes on embodied carbon “By reducing embodied carbon in our construction materials, we’re lowering emissions, using resources more efficiently and bringing down costs,” www.wsj.com/pro/sustaina...

Common traits of apartments built at the edges of Zurich - carefully planned within existing trees - irregular apartment shapes - strong mix of unit sizes (1-4 beds) - brightly coloured shading Villa Verte by Studio Sintzel

Mass timber living The 15-storey SAWA Building in Rotterdam, with 109 apartments. By Mei Architects.

Stunning adaptive reuse of a former rolling mill and seed warehouse to create new housing Apostelhof by Schenker Salvi Weber, Vienna

This is *not* in Iran! 20 apartments in Campana, Argentina, with many qualities of Iranian buildings - one main material done well (brick) - textual elements for visual interest - recessed balconies with shade Designed by Francisco Cadau Oficina de Arquitectura

19 social housing apartments in Paris with a stone facade, and timber structure Budget €2.6m (though I doubt this includes everything!) By CQFD Architecture

Beautiful new social housing in Brisbane by Vokes and Peters, and Rothelowmann Can we have more of this please?

Design for student housing in Limassol, Cyprus An interesting plan with ‘pill shaped’ elements containing service functions such as the bed, bathroom, cooker and storage. This keeps the living space flexible, and maximises cross ventilation. By AREA

Design for 70 social housing apartments in Barcelona (2nd place, so alas this won’t get built) Spent *a long* time looking at the plan. I think I like it! By Bajet Girame

Adaptive reuse of a former industrial building to create a new cultural centre and community hub in Madrid. I think you could call this “timbermaxxing” By Husos, Elii and Ultrazul

Peter Zumthor’s new LA gallery. Concrete walls, floors and roof. Four times the amount of concrete compared to a ‘normal’ building its size, and twice as much steel as the Eiffel Tower! Are the societal benefits worth the environmental costs?

Blurring the boundaries between inside and outside 50 social housing apartments in Barcelona by Miel Arquitectos + Marmolbravo. A short thread 🧵

A stunning little brick infill apartment building in Tehran, Iran, designed by Hooba Design. Total dedication to brick throughout. A short thread 🧵

Barcelona is offering incentives of €70,000 to install windows and even balconies on blank party walls I guess the question is… what happens when a building is planned next door? www.elperiodico.com/es/vivienda/...

Design to refurbish affordable (HDB) housing in Paris, by Julian le Mentec Architecte

China’s high speed rail infrastructure is mind blowing Chongqing East train station (worth noting the metro population is 32 million!)

Design for 47 apartments in Paris. Very few places in the world where you can have a single spiral escape stair like this… By ITAR Architectures

Horrific. And a reminder that access to decent housing is a public health issue www.theguardian.com/society/2026...