Building studies and architecture reviews

Outside it looks like a modern fortress but inside, Shakespeare North Playhouse is all Tudor come Jacobean drama – with just a touch of Ken Dodd, writes Thomas Lane

Building study: Greenwich Design District

Mole’s Victorian warehouse-inspired timber buildings really stand out among the low-cost rental studio spaces designed for creative industries

Building study: West Hub by Jestico + Whiles

By Ben Flatman1 comments

A new hybrid building in Cambridge mixes academia with enterprise and hospitality to reimagine what a university should be in the 21st century, writes Ben Flatman

In Pictures: The Marlo by Barbara Weiss Architects

By Ben Flatman1 comments

This extensive refurbishment and restoration project in Marylebone provides impact without the need to shout about it, writes Ben Flatman

Building study: 111 West 57th Street by SHoP

By Ben Flatman2 comments

The world’s skinniest skyscraper gloriously embraces the rich legacy of Manhattan’s historic skyline, but it also raises awkward questions around sustainability and affordable housing, writes Ben Flatman

Building study: House in Leconfield Road by vPPR

By Matthew Lloyd

A private house extension revels in the play of light and materials and reminds us of the power architecture has to lift up our daily lives

Building study: Technique by Buckley Gray Yeoman

By Ben Flatman

Buckley Gray Yeoman’s refurb and extension of a former Clerkenwell gin distillery is a fine example of how to revitalise an old industrial building and repair the wider urban fabric.

Building study: A new campus for the RCA by Herzog & de Meuron

By Richard Gatti2 comments

In its scale and singularity this flagship building by Herzog & de Meuron strikes the right balance, writes Richard Gatti

Building study: the Elizabeth line – a welcome civic legacy designed to last 120 years

By Ben Flatman1 comments

From the contextual to the finely detailed, the new Elizabeth Line is an eclectic and ultimately uplifting addition to the capital’s ever expanding transport network, writes Ben Flatman

Building study: Homerton College Dining Hall by Feilden Fowles

By Ben Flatman

AYA Gold Award winner Feilden Fowles’ new dining hall at Homerton College, Cambridge signals a profound commitment to openness and diversity by both client and architect

Does the key to cutting carbon lie beneath your feet?

A new system aims to reduce the embodied carbon of a floor slab by up to 75%. But are other solutions already to hand?

Building study: Learning from Denise Scott Brown

By Elizabeth Hopkirk1 comments

As Selldorf Architects unveils £30m proposals to reconfigure the National Gallery and Venturi Scott Brown’s landmark Sainsbury Wing, Elizabeth Hopkirk meets the women leading the project

Building study: Marshall Building, LSE by Grafton Architects

By Thomas Lane2 comments

The brief called for sports and arts facilities, teaching space and research accommodation – it was a lot to fit in but inspired a highly innovative response, Thomas Lane finds

Technical Study: The Black & White Building by Waugh Thistleton

The Office Group’s first new-build project will be London’s tallest timber office building when it completes next year. And as for the reduction in embodied carbon compared with concrete – well, the numbers speak for themselves. Thomas Lane reports

Building study: St Hilda’s College, Oxford by Gort Scott

By Richard Gatti2 comments

The architect has capitalised on the project’s scenic location, opening up the site and using the river for passive cooling. Even the brickwork appears to dissolve, writes Richard Gatti

Technical Study: Restoring Birmingham Selfridges’ cladding

Future Systems’ Selfridges has donned temporary garb of greater gaudiness while faults are fixed in the glittering blue chainmail below. Thomas Lane explains the technical challenges. Photography by Oliver Lane

Technical study: Cutting 75% of emissions from Powell & Moya’s Wolfson College, Oxford

By Thomas Lane1 comments

Embarrassed by being one of the worst carbon culprits in the region, the college set out to be net zero by 2030. Retrofitting 763 windows was just the start of it, finds Thomas Lane

Technical Study: Kingston Cycle Hub, Sarah Wigglesworth Architects

By Thomas Lane

Kingston council has spent £32m upgrading the borough’s cycle facilities, including a storage hub beside the station that is no ordinary bike shed, finds Thomas Lane

Antarctica: Designing for the planet’s most hostile continent

By Elizabeth Hopkirk

A £100m Antarctic infrastructure programme presents some unique design challenges – like deflecting snow and elephant seals. Elizabeth Hopkirk hears about the hardships and rewards of building at the bottom of the world

One Triton Square by Arup: a refurbishment with a difference