WORDS Gina Dionisio RENDERS Courtesy of SAOTA

While the annual World Architecture Festival (WAF) is best known for celebrating outstanding architectural and interior projects from across the globe, numerous talks, workshops and presentations also take place throughout the awards week.

One of these was delivered by SAOTA’s Senior Associate and Architectural Designer, Kerian Robertson, who presented Commune – a project that illustrates how design-led strategies can shape cities that are sustainable, connected, and socially vibrant.

Commissioned by the South African Design Indaba, Commune, which was shortlisted in the Future Projects – Civic category, is a transformative intervention in Cape Town’s CBD. The project reclaims a neglected urban site and introduces Africa’s first publicly accessible cross-laminated timber (CLT) structure, crafted from locally sourced invasive eucalyptus. This pioneering approach sets a benchmark for sustainable, low-impact construction while activating the city’s core as a vibrant hub for the creative industry, cultural production, and inclusive economic opportunity.

“Commune is rooted in the city’s broader urban strategy to strengthen pedestrian connections between key public institutions while attracting a diverse audience of locals and visitors,” says Kerian.

The design features layered, adaptable spaces that foster interaction and entrepreneurship. Elevated platforms create dynamic areas for commerce, performance, and social exchange, while sheltered spaces below offer subsidised opportunities for emerging designers, artisans, and food vendors, supporting small-scale creators who might otherwise struggle to gain visibility. saota.com | worldarchitecturefestival.com

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The post SAOTA Presents Commune at the World Architecture Festival 2025 appeared first on Visi.

Running alongside the annual World Architecture Festival, the INSIDE World Festival of Interiors recognises some of the most beautifully designed interiors from across the globe.

INSIDE World Festival of Interiors is the sister awards programme of the World Architecture Festival (WAF) and celebrates the finest examples of global interior design. From Hotels to Workplace, and Residential to Retail, the interior projects that have made the 2024 shortlist across 10 dedicated categories have now been revealed. 

The categories are:

• Bars & Restaurants
• Education
• Health & Fitness
• Hotels
• Public Buildings
• Residential
• Retail
• Temporary/Meanwhile Uses
• Workplace (Large)
• Workplace (Small)

Below in order of the categories are the selected shortlisted projects.

Bars & Restaurants

• 001, Canalside Studio, Hong Kong
• Chernyi Cooperative Coffee Roasters, Freya Architects, Serbia
• DOP Restaurant & Bar, Atelier Sergio Rebelo, Portugal
• Four Twenty Five, Foster + Partners, UK
• Le Du, Department of Architecture Co, Thailand
• Minthis, Woods Bagot, Australia
• Pang Mei Noodle Bar LFS, OFFICE AIO, China
• PEDET food hall, 3XA, Poland
• Purple Mountain Courtyard, Minggu Design, China
• Smith & Mills, Woods Bagot, United States
• The Mangrove Cafe, Kidzink, United Arab Emirates 

Education

• An Equatorial School of Architecture, Erik LHeureux FAIA / Special Projects, NUS, Singapore
• Children’s Library at The Western Academy of Beijing, studio vapore, China
• ILKON. Ilkeston Contemporary Arts, Chris Williamson RIBA, UK
• Midsommarkransen Elementary School, Tengbom AB, Sweden
• Shanghai Jingan Nanyang School – Special Education Classroom Renovation, Creative Crews in collaboration with Da Landscape, China
• UQ Brisbane City, BVN, Australia
• workspace & learning campus, Gayathri And Namith Architects, India
• WSU Bankstown City Campus, HDR, Australia
• Zhengze School, WIT Design & Research, China

Health & Fitness

• Doruk Nilüfer Hospital, Zoom TPU, Turkey
• ENHANCE INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL CENTER, Vermilion Zhou Design Group, China
• Goodlife Studio @ Bukit Purmei, DP Architects, Singapore
• Minthis, Woods Bagot, Australia

Hotels

• Fasano Itaim, Studio mk27, Brazil
• LYF Sukhumwit 8 Bangkok Hotel, THAT IS ITH INTERIOR, Thailand
• Manna, K-Studio, Monogon, Greece
• Minthis, Woods Bagot, Australia
• Moxy Bangkok Ratchaprasong, design worldwide partnership, Thailand
• Paje Beach Resort, SPECTRUM, Tanzania 
• The Blue by Just Inn, Tszwai So, Taiwan

Public Buildings

• Yueji Library & Bookstore, Enviro Tec Creatives, China
• Embassy of Australia, Washington D.C., Bates Smart, United States
• Jade Apartment, Matrix Design, China
• Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra Hall, MAMA architects, Lithuania 
• New Taipei City Circular Metro Line – The Moving Craft, JC. Architecture & Design, Taiwan
• REEF, C&C DESIGN CO.,LTD., China
• TARANG, tHE gRID Architects, India
• Terminal 2 at Kempegowda International Airport Bengaluru, Grant Associates, India
• Tree O’clock — Villa Qabalah, Studio Locomotive, Thailand
• Villa Mundi, NOMADESSENCE, Switzerland 
• Young V&A, AOC Architecture and De Matos Ryan, UK

Residential

• 6×18 Slender House, Spaces Architects@KA, India
• Canopy House, Studio mk27, Brazil
• Ishavasya, Where the Lord Resides, Spellbound, India
• Meditation Duplex, Sim-Plex Design Studio, Hong Kong
• Middle Envelope Apartment, CROSS ARCHITECTURE, Iran
• Sol Royal, Danielle Interiors, Spain
• Sunny Side Up, Rogan Nash Architects, New Zealand
• Back to Front House, Ian Moore Architects, Australia
• twentyfour, 3DM Architecture, Malta

Retail

• All In One – Banco BPI, Broadway Malyan, Portugal
• Apparatus, BGY ID, UK
• Arches and Portal, SAGA Bakery, Upper Room Collaborative Studio, Indonesia 
• D.S. & Durga Abbot Kinney, Woods Bagot, United States
• Fender Flagship Tokyo, Klein Dytham architecture, Japan
• Foodie Social at Hong Shou Fang, Linehouse, China
• House of Porcelain, Dar & Wagh, India
• Hysan Place, Woods Bagot, Hong Kong
• La Manso flagship Store, External Reference, Spain
• Melt Season Flagship at Taiyuan, mlkk studio, China
• Qing Dynasty Post Office Renovation, More Design Office, China
• The Fennia Block, Olla Architecture, Finland

Temporary/Meanwhile Uses

• Algae Sips and Java Brews: A Digestive Food Truck, Hayley Eber & Lydia Kallipoliti, China
• Backpack Housing, HKU/ Superposition, Hong Kong
• Melt Season Shenzhen Installation, mlkk studio, China
• Neural MONOBLOC Black, Artificial-Architecture, Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore
• “Sydney Opera House: A beautiful idea” exhibition at Utzon Center Aalborg, JAC studios, Denmark
• Through the Looking Prism, TAKANAO TODO DESIGN, Thailand

Workplace (Large)

• 70 George_Cox Sydney Studio, COX Architecture, Australia
• Alibaba DAMO Nanhu Industry Park, Matrix Design, China
• ANADOLU AGENCY ISTANBUL HEADQUARTERS, BAB ARCHITECTS, Turkey
• Architecture Firm Stockholm Office, Tengbom AB, Sweden
• CSL Global Headquarters and Centre for Research & Development, COX Architecture, Australia
• Good Job Games, Jeyan Ulku Architects, Turkey
• Google Flour Mills, Henry J Lyons, Ireland
• HKS Atlanta, HKS inc., United States
• InnoDom Cologne, kadawittfeldarchitektur gmbh, Germany
• OFFICE INTERIORS OF THE CITIBANK HEADQUARTERS BUILDING, SAAN architekci, Poland
• Panasonic XC KADOMA, Takenaka Corporation + Nikken Sekkei Ltd, Japan
• Precinct Properties Workplace, Warren and Mahoney, New Zealand

Workplace (Small)

• 743 Art Lab, College of Design and Innovation, Tongji University & NONG STUDIO, China
• CFE, LOCAL, France
• DOSHI TECHNOLOGIES, Art and Architecture Associates, India
• From Zurich to Montevideo, BVO/ARQ, Uruguay 
• HKS Mexico City, HKS inc., Mexico
• Penn Color Technology Center, DP Design, Singapore 
• The Hub, GHD Brisbane, GHD Design, Australia

World Architecture Festival and Inside World Festival of Interiors will take place at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore, on 6 – 8 November 2024. | worldarchitecturefestival.com

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The post INSIDE World Festival of Interiors 2024: Shortlist Revealed appeared first on Visi.

The winners of the 2022 World Architecture Festival (WAF) have been announced and the list includes two outstanding South African projects which took top honours in the Completed Buildings category.

This year, the prestigious World Building of the Year award went to Quay Quarter Tower in Sydney, Australia. The 206-metre tower, designed by 3XN A/S, is comprised of five shifting volumes stacked on top of each other. Each volume is arranged around an atrium facing the iconic Sydney Harbour to the north.

Here, in no particular order, are the winner’s from the 2022 Completed Buildings category:

Completed Buildings

Culture

Sara Culture Centre by White Arkitekter AB (Sweden)

Housing

RAS HOUSES by SANJAY PURI ARCHITECTS (India)

Civic and Community

Denis Goldberg House of Hope by Noero Architects (South Africa) – Read the VISI Feature, here.

New and Old

British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA) Headquarters by Benedetti Architects (UK)

Sport

SoFi Stadium by HKS (USA)

Heath

The Alder Centre by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (UK)

17th Ave Clinic by 5468796 Architecture (Canada)

Production Energy and Recycling

Agrotopia by van Bergen Kolpa architects + META architectuurbureau (Belgium)

School

Meadowbank Schools by Woods Bagot (Australia)

House and Villa (Rural)

The Flowing Garden by More Than Arch Studio (China)

Office

Quay Quarter Tower by 3XN A/S (Australia)

Display

Digital Phyllotaxy by Jason Bruges Studio (South Korea)

Religion

The Chapel of St. Peter by Stevens Lawson Architects (New Zealand)

Hotel and Leisure

ANNA Stay (Model 2022) by ANNA (Netherlands)

Transport

Paddington Elizabeth Line station by Weston Williamson + Partners (UK)

Higher Education and Research

Auditorium Building by URBA Architects and Urban Designers (South Africa)

Mixed Use

80 Collins by Woods Bagot (Australia)

House & Villa (Urban)

Villa B by OOPEAA Office for Peripheral Architecture (Finland)

Shopping

ganghui tiandi by JZFZ Architectural Design Co. Ltd (China)

For the full list of winners of the Future Projects (which includes South African Savage + Dodd Architects earning a Highly Commended for their entry) and INSIDE category, plus special awards winners , visit worldarchitecturefestival.com

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The post World Architecture Festival Winners 2022 appeared first on Visi.

The World Architecture Festival has released its 2019 shortlist of buildings up for an award this year.

Below, in no particular order, are 16 outstanding examples of projects from the Completed Buildings category.

Civic and Community: Raleigh Campsite in Guizhou, Zhenfeng County, China (Design: Architectural Design Institute of South China University of Technology)

Image credit: Yao Li via worldarchitecturefestival.com

Civic and Community: The Evans Tree House at Garvan Woodland Gardens, Arkansas, USA (Design: modus studio)

Image credit: Timothy Hursley via modusstudio.com

Display: Swirling Cloud: Bulletin Pavilion for BJFU Garden Festiva, Beijing, China (Design: SUP Atelier)

Image credit: Su Chen, Chun Fang via worldarchitecturefestival.com

Higher Education and Research: Future Africa Campus, Pretoria, South Africa (Design: Earthworld Architects cc)

Image credit: Dook

Hotel and Leisure: PINE VILLA, Huangshan, China (Design: SHANGHAI JUND ARCHITECTS)

Image via worldarchitecturefestival.com

House: Welcome To The Jungle House, Sydney, Australia (Design: CplusC Architectural Workshop)

Image credit: Michael Lassman via cplusc.com.au

House: EQ House, Tokyo, Japan (Design: TAKENAKA CORPORATION)

Image via worldarchitecturefestival.com

Housing: Freebooter, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (Design: GG-loop)

Image credit: Francisco Nogueira via gg-loop.com

Mixed Use: Arc, Sydney, Australia (Design: Koichi Takada Architects)

Image credit: Tom Ferguson via koichitakada.com

Religion: Qasr Al Hosn: Al Musallah, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (Design: CEBRA)

Image via worldarchitecturefestival.com

Religion: Mary Help of Christian Church (Chaweng), Suratthani, Thailand (Design: Juti Architects)

Image credit: Peerapat Wimolrungkarat via worldarchitecturefestival.com

School: Park Legend Kindergarten, Chengdu, China (Design: Challenge Design)

Image credit: Prism Images/Lujing/Xionghuan via worldarchitecturefestival.com

Shopping: Coal Drops Yard, London, United Kingdom (Design: Heatherwick Studio)

Image via heatherwick.com

Sport: Irina Winer-Usmanova Rhythmic Gymnastics Center in the Luzhniki Complex, Moscow, Russia (Design: CPU PRIDE)

Image via prideproject.pro

Transport: Jewel Changi Airport, Singapore (Design: Safdie Architects)

Villa: St Andrews Beach House, St Andrews Beach, Australia (Design: Austin Maynard Architects)

Image credit: Derek Swalwell via maynardarchitects.com

The winners will be announced at the Festival in Amsterdam from 4 – 6 December. View the full shortlist at worldarchitecturefestival.com. You can also view last year’s shortlist and winners.

The post World Architecture Festival 2019 Shortlist: 16 Stand-out Buildings appeared first on Visi.