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China's twelfth 5-Year Plan (released in 2011) addresses the country's rapid urbanisation by including a target to deliver 36 million new social housing units by 2015. Shenzhen in southern China, located in the Pearl River Delta in the Guangdong Province, is one of the fastest growing cities in the world. It has a large stake in this project and is aiming to deliver 240,000 new units which will house approximately 800,000 people. At the vanguard of China's economic reform, Shenzhen has grown 400 times its original size in the last 40 years, following high levels of investment by the government and through mass migration of workers from all over China. The city has a huge transient working population comprising mostly young people, in particular single women. Most residents come to the city from various parts of the country, leaving family, friends and other support networks. Shenzhen is rapidly running out of space, with only limited land available to house future population growth.

In architecture,  it is a rare occasion that an image of a built structure is as striking as the concept drawings. It is a sad truth, but often the structure has to be walked in and felt in order for its true aesthetic to shine through. In fact, often the more innovative and arresting the concept image, the less chance that the building will even be built. However, there are the rare few that actually outshine their concept images and intrigue us as to how they were ever constructed. World-renowned architects Daniel Libeskind have done just that with the completion of the incredibly 'Reflections at Keppel Bay' development.

The city of Melbourne has just unveiled their latest industry show-stopper with the government announcing its Melbourne CBD expansion plan. The major redevelopment, announced by Planning Minister Matthew Guy, will see the city centre grow from 180 hectares to 900 hectares in an unprecedented growth spurt. Aesthetically, Melbourne will change. In the same vein as Sydney's Barangaroo, this latest southern development is going to change the face of a city that is growing in both size and popularity; with current population growth at an enormous 85,000 people per year. Named as the world's most liveable city in 2011, both the Melbourne industry, especially those in the architecture and construction facets, and government are standing behind this expansive redevelopment.

By Jharna Shahani Photography: courtesy the designers Dining at the Chor Bizzare chain of restaurants is a first-hand experience at pleasuring your senses - both visual and gustatory. 'Bizarre' - that's what we call something that is unusual or mystifying; and appropriate it is, in the case of 'Chor Bizarre' - chain of restaurants spread across India with an outlet in London.

Approach and skill sets are always unique. We profile a design firm that is spreading its wings at a fast pace with its idiosyncratic appeal. Read here and share with us other such examples...Click on the link to read more>>

Three buildings - one twenty storeys high - have collapsed in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, killing at least five people and injuring many others. The collapse occurred late on Wednesday (Rio time), near the municipal theatre on the city's Cinelandia square. The tallest of the buildings was twenty storeys high, says the city's mayor Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes, whilst the second tallest had ten floors and the third had three or four. The latest developments come as Rio remains under worldwide scrutiny in the lead up to host the World Cup soccer in 2014 and the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Queensland has seen some devastating effects as a result of natural environmental disasters such as the powerful floods they experienced at the beginning of this year. In light of the damage caused by the floods, both the federal government and Queensland state government have banded together in order to use the excess water more effectively. In the latest reports, the combined government entities plan to harness the wet season floodwaters and channel them into irrigation systems. In creating an irrigation system that puts the floodwaters to positive use, the government hopes to protect infrastructure from the effects of the environment, as well as harness the water efficiently.

Australian architecture has had an impressive start to 2012, already boasting a globally recognised industry award. The architectural firm in question is Australia's own HASSELL who have been ranked as the number one practice in all of Australasia at this year's BD World Architecture survey. Managing Director of the firm Robert Blackhouse indicated that the achievement is a testament to the works, both nationally and internationally, that HASSELL has been producing.

A Melbourne school is creating great industry waves for its mix of stunning architecture and environmentally responsible principles. Acting as an incredible promotion of green thinking to both the young students attending and the wider community, is the junior building at Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School (PEGS). While the striking building, transformed by architectural firm McBride Charles Ryan is completely passive in its design, an absolute feat in its own right, it is its aesthetic that truly stands out. Oftentimes in green building projects a building's visual appeal is ignored in order to focus on the sustainable building aspects. While environmental responsibility may be more important than design greatness, it is incredibly positive to see such a prime example of a culmination of these ideas executed so elegantly.

Arguably one of Melbourne's most controversial construction projects has been given final approval, leaving a trail of both dismayed and jubilant responses. The major architectural redevelopment project at the focus of this almost five year long drama is the Windsor Hotel, and its semi-demolition by the Halim Group in early 2013.  The project has been marked as one of Victoria's most prominent in the latest state analysis, and comes with a sizeable price tag. The $250 million redevelopment will see the refurbishment of the interiors of the building, which was built in 1883. The interior restoration will maximise the amount of rooms available, increasing the capacity from 180 to 300 rooms. The ballroom and other rooms will also be upgraded and redeveloped, with Heritage Victoria approving everything.

In the construction and design industry, architecture is one of the most complex and multi-faceted sectors. As we have stated previously, it encompasses a whole range of broad and varying components, from mathematics to the currently trending biology. At its most basic root though, architecture deals with form. It is for this reason that architecturally designed buildings are able to become art forms as one of the industry's most artistically based facets. It only makes sense then, due to the crossover and widely varied field, that some buildings would share these sculpturally formed aspects more than others. One such building that is due for completion this year and is an example of the aforementioned form is architectural firm Zaha Hadid's Performing Arts Centre in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Helsinki's Vantaa airport is taking the saying 'making yourself at home' to heart with the interior design for their newest travellers' lounge. No matter how hard airport designers try to make these international, heavy trafficked areas romantic and luxurious, there is no doubting the dread that most of us feel on a 6 hour lay over or extended visit. While there can be no denying the luxuriousness of this interiorly designed space, what the designers have cleverly done is steer away from the clinical coolness of traditional airport lounges and thrown a knowing look back towards creature comforts. The aptly named 'Almost @ home' lounge features interior aspects that have been chosen to most correctly reflect a Finnish, or any, home.

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At the refurbished Quique clothing store in Costa Rica, all common architectural elements turn into meaningful function, conveying key information to the visitor. Read here and leave us your views...

Icon of the Year 2014, Lighting designer Vibhor Sogani is an artist at heart. IAnD delves into a little into his personal life to understand his choices and ideologies. Click here to read more…

It's easy to forget that urban design is not a new concept. Ancient examples of carefully-planned and designed cities exist in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas, and are particularly well-known within classical Chinese, Roman and Greek cultures. The pioneer of urban planning, Hippodamus of Miletus, planned ancient cities of Rhodes, Miletus and the harbour-town Piraeus at Athens as early as the fifth century BC.  In England, many ninth century towns were designed on a grid plan, and by the twelfth century, urbanisation was seen as a means of stimulating economic growth and generating revenue throughout Western Europe. One of the earliest international contributions made by Australia to urban planning theory and practice sprang from the international competition held between 1911 and 1912 to design Australia's new federal capital, Canberra.

Form follows function at the new Zaanstad-Zuid sports centre by UArchitects. Read here and leave us your views…

With the onus on branded goods taking a mass leap, luxury retail and entertainment centres seem to be the trendy go-to places. Check out the newest one at Bangkok and leave us your views…