A wheelchair user explores the Vatican Museums, highlighting the importance of accessibility at one of the world's most visited cultural landmarks

Andrea Stoler’s guide to an accessible Vatican

Practical advice for wheelchair users visiting the Vatican Museums and Saint Peter’s Basilica

15 JULY 2026, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

The Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel welcome all visitors with mobility issues and are committed to making their programmes and services accessible to everyone. Personal wheelchairs, both manual and electric, are allowed in the museums and the Sistine Chapel.

Exterior view of the Carson Pirie Scott & Co. department store building, located at the southeast corner of South State and East Madison Streets in Chicago’s Loop, decorated with bunting and flags in celebration of Abraham Lincoln’s 100th birthday (1909)

Chicago and the birth of modern architecture

Steel frames, glass façades, and the evolution of architectural thought in the industrial age

15 AUGUST 2026, 

BRENDA LEE BOHEN

 

The artist in this social context must not be a simple artisan, but rather an intellectual prepared in all disciplines and all fields.

(Leon Battista Alberti)

Biophilic design / A symphony of nature in architecture

 

Biophilic design architecture, Singapore, Changi Airport

Biophilic design

A symphony of nature in architecture 

26 AUGUST 2025, 

OGUZ ATAKAN GUL

In the heart of our bustling cities, where skyscrapers scrape the heavens and concrete jungles stretch to the horizon, a silent revolution is taking root. It's a movement that beckons us to rediscover our connection with the natural world—a phenomenon known as "biophilic design." As we step into these architecturally reimagined spaces, we embark on a journey where the boundaries between the built and the natural blur, creating harmonious sanctuaries that inspire awe and introspection.

Innovative architectural / Designing healthcare solutions for rural communities

 

Yves Marre's péniche, serving as a floating clinic in Bangladesh

Designing healthcare solutions for rural communities

Innovative architectural approaches to improve access, efficiency, and sustainability in remote areas

26 SEPTEMBER 2025, 

OGUZ ATAKAN GUL

Access to quality healthcare is a fundamental right, yet rural areas worldwide often struggle with limited medical facilities and resources. Bridging the accessibility gap in rural healthcare requires innovative architectural solutions tailored to the unique challenges of these regions. From modular clinics to community-driven healthcare hubs, the design of rural medical facilities can profoundly impact the well-being of underserved populations. Beyond addressing medical needs, these structures can serve as community anchors, promoting education, social interaction, and economic growth.

The rise of brain-responsive architecture

 

Modern office lobby with floor-to-ceiling windows, green chairs around round tables, and ribbed planters holding lush indoor plants. Bright and airy with a contemporary feel

The rise of brain-responsive architecture

A speculative but grounded vision of an architectural future where buildings don’t just shelter us

26 OCTOBER 2025, 

OGUZ ATAKAN GUL

Consider if your office could tell that you were losing focus and adjusted the lighting to revive you. Or if your home could notice tension in your body and muted its acoustics and temperature to relax you. This is the new universe of brain-sensitive design—a union of neuroscience, AI, biometric monitoring, and adaptive systems that has the potential to redefine our relationship with the built environment.

Biophilic design and the brain / Why we thrive in nature-inspired spaces

 

Fallingwater is a house museum in Stewart Township in the Laurel Highlands of southwestern Pennsylvania, United States. Designed by the architect Frank Lloyd Wright

Biophilic design and the brain

Why we thrive in nature-inspired spaces

26 APRIL 2026, 

OGUZ ATAKAN GUL

As we become increasingly urbanized, spending nearly 90% of our lives indoors, the divide between human beings and the natural world grows more pronounced. Yet, neuroscience tells us that our brains are still wired for nature. This is the premise behind biophilic design — a design philosophy that seeks to reconnect people with the natural environment through architecture. Far more than a passing aesthetic trend, biophilic design draws from evolutionary biology, cognitive science, and environmental psychology to create spaces that support mental, physical, and emotional health. It is one of the most potent tools in the emerging field of neuroarchitecture.

Heatherwick Studio’s works of emotion / Soulful design and architecture

 

Heatherwick Studio, Little Island, 2021, New York © Timothy Schenck

Heatherwick Studio’s works of emotion

Soulful design and architecture

16 MAY 2023, 

ALMA REYES

We are not making new buildings, but borrowing all the soulfulness from the past.

(Thomas Heatherwick (“The Science Behind our Emotional Connection to Architecture,” a+u No. 629))

Bitten House

 

BITTEN HOUSE

The Monumental Cemetery of Turin Interview with Manuela Vetrano

The Monumental Cemetery of Turin

The Monumental Cemetery of Turin

Interview with Manuela Vetrano

1 DECEMBER 2018, 

EMANUELA BORGATTA DUNNETT

In this in depth interview, the author talks about the new light she has recently been giving to the Monumental Cemetery of Turin. A taphophile who wants to accompany us in the discovery of famous personalities and – through her pieces of writing – towards unusual and apparently forgotten stories, too. 

The dark history of Frank Sinatra’s mansion

The 8,000-square-foot mansion sits on a three-and-a-half acre estate in the heart of the Chatsworth Nature Preserve. It has a splendid view of the San Fernando Valley, the Los Angeles foothills and the surrounding mountains. It also features gardens, terraces and an outdoor pool.SCOTT EVERTS PARA SOTHEBY’S INTERNATIONAL REALTY 

ARCHITECTURE

The dark history of Frank Sinatra’s mansion: The Rat Pack’s gambling and alleged encounters between Marilyn Monroe and John F. Kennedy 

Farralone was the name of the legendary singer’s home. It was designed by architect William Pereira with the assistance of his then-student, Frank Gehry. The house has just gone on sale for more than $8 million

MIQUEL ECHARRI

NOV 16, 2024 - 23:15 COT

Poker was played there until the early hours of the morning, while million-dollar rounds of bourbon and French champagne were served. The host — Frank Sinatra — and famous guests, such as Dean Martin, Angie Dickinson, Sammy Davis Jr. and Joey Bishop, all partook in the activities.

Casa Malaparte
Capri, Italy

 

ARCHITECTURE

SAINT LAURENT AT CASA MALAPARTE

Posted on by Annalisa Guerisoli

The Casa Malaparte in Capri has been chosen as the location for the new 2018 Spring/Summer Saint Laurent campaign starring the beautiful Kate Moss. The video was directed by Nathalie Canguilhem who places the top model on the villa’s iconic staircase, an architectural walkway that seems to lead directly to the sky.

Casa Malaparte and its particular thirty-three step staircase are an icon of rationalist Italian architecture. Created between 1938 and 1943 by Adalberto Libera, but showing signs of the influential relationship between the writer Curzio Malaparte and the builder Adolfo Amitrano, it stands on the almost inaccessible promontory of Punta Masullo, one of the most fascinating and mysterious places in Capri.

Casa Malaparte / The house that all fashion brands want

 

Casa Malaparte

CASA MALAPARTE

 THE HOUSE 

THAT ALL FASHION BRANDS WANT

BY NICOLAS LOIR

CAPRI, ITALY

NOVEMBER 23, 2019

[MUSIC VIDEO] BY NICOLAS LOIR [CAPRI] ITALY

METALOCUS, ANTONIO M. GARCÍA

From, Saint Laurent using the well-known British supermodel Kate Moss as the protagonist of the video, passing through Ermenegildo Zegna and the presentation of his UOMO fragrance, or the most recent one, this week, HEARTBEAT by Louis Vuitton, (made by Nicolas Loir) everyone wants to use the well-known house on the island of Capri, built in 1938 with the plans of the Italian architect Adalberto Libera.