As the global architecture and design community transitions into a new season, institutions worldwide are rolling out ambitious programming that bridges historic milestones with contemporary discourse. From major retrospectives celebrating twentieth-century masters to international expositions exploring the future of sustainable urbanism, this month’s cultural calendar highlights the enduring interplay between the built environment, society, and material culture.
For its flagship exhibition this fall, Finland’s Design Museum is presenting a comprehensive look at the remarkable creative output of the renowned designer couple Antti Nurmesniemi and Vuokko Nurmesniemi. Antti, an esteemed interior designer, and Vuokko, a visionary textile artist, worked both independently and collaboratively across the expansive disciplines of architecture, fashion, and interior design. Together, they emerged as monumental figures in shaping the trajectory and international reputation of the Finnish design industry throughout the late twentieth century. Their combined legacy underscores a distinct philosophy of functional elegance and material honesty that continues to resonate within contemporary Nordic design circles.
Building on this spirit of architectural innovation, the ZKM Center for Art and Media in Karlsruhe, Germany, is preparing a major winter presentation dedicated to the career of high-rise architect Ole Scheeren. Scheduled to run from December 10, 2022, through June 4, 2023, "Ole Scheeren: Spaces of Life" marks the first solo exhibition for the architect, who founded his eponymous firm in 2010. Born in Karlsruhe, Scheeren launched his professional trajectory at the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) in Rotterdam before earning global acclaim for spearheading monumental, highly experimental projects. Among his most celebrated works are the award-winning China Central Television (CCTV) Station in Beijing and the complex, interconnected volumes of the Interlace residential building in Singapore, both of which challenged conventional paradigms of vertical urbanism.
Ongoing Exhibitions
Across the globe, ongoing exhibitions are inviting visitors to reexamine pivotal moments in architectural history. In Los Angeles, the centenary of R.M. Schindler’s iconic West Hollywood home is being celebrated through an extensive exhibition entitled "Schindler House: 100 Years in the Making," on view through September 25, 2022. Constructed in 1922, the residence was originally conceived by Schindler as a bold experiment in communal living for himself, his wife Pauline, and their friends Clyde and Marian Chace. Since 1994, the property has functioned as the headquarters of the Museum of Applied Arts (MAK) Center for Art and Architecture, an independent satellite institution of the MAK Museum in Vienna. To commemorate the centenary, MAK Center director Jia Yi Gu, working alongside architectural historians Gary Riichirō Fox and Sarah Hearne, has curated a "gentle timeline" that traces the physical making and unmaking of the house over the past century. Historical artifacts and archival materials are displayed in direct dialogue with contemporary artistic interventions by creators such as Carmen Argote, Kathi Hofer, Fiona Connor, Julian Hoeber, and Peter Shire, offering a multi-layered exploration of domestic space.
In Milan, the Museo del Novecento is currently hosting a monumental retrospective dedicated to the Pritzker Prize-winning architect Aldo Rossi. Titled "Aldo Rossi: Design 1960–1997" and running through October 2, 2022, the exhibition brings together over 350 works spanning Rossi’s illustrious career. Renowned not only for his visionary architectural theory but also for high-profile product collaborations with prominent Italian and international brands such as Designtex, Artemide, Alessi, and Up&Up, Rossi left an indelible mark on industrial design. Curated by Chiara Spangaro with an interior layout meticulously designed by Morris Adjmi Architects, the exhibition unfolds across nine distinct galleries. It places special emphasis on Rossi’s experimental, poetic use of color and materials, illustrating how his theoretical foundations continue to influence contemporary design methodologies.
Meanwhile, in Vienna, the MAK Exhibition Hall is currently presenting "Missing Link: Strategies of a Viennese Architecture Group (1970–1980)," on view through October 2, 2022. This exhibition provides the first comprehensive institutional overview of the avant-garde architecture collective Missing Link, which was founded in 1970 by Angela Hareiter, Otto Kapfinger, and Adolf Krischanitz. The group’s diverse body of work encompasses everything from utopian proposals for collective living arrangements to rigorous research studies examining complex urban networks throughout Vienna. The presentation is further enriched by the inclusion of works from contemporary peers such as Hans Hollein and Joseph Beuys, alongside broader explorations into the rich history of Viennese coffeehouse culture and the sociopolitical housing initiatives known as Red Vienna.
Nature and the built environment intersect dramatically at the Floriade Expo 2022 in Almere, Holland, which remains open to the public through October 9, 2022. Held once every decade, this prestigious international horticultural exhibition gathers temporary pavilions from across the globe to showcase cutting-edge developments in landscape architecture, agriculture, and horticulture. For the current edition, architecture and urbanism practice MVRDV was commissioned to conceptualize a comprehensive 60-hectare master plan for the six-month event. The firm envisioned the site as a living model for sustainable urbanism, anchored by an innovative arboretum concept. Within this framework, an alphabetical library of trees and plants is arranged in a strict grid system, serving as the spatial organization for the national and international pavilions. Following the conclusion of the exposition, the site will transition into a permanent, ecologically integrated residential neighborhood for the city.
In Scotland, the rural grounds of Mount Stuart—a nineteenth-century neo-Gothic mansion on the Isle of Bute—provide the scenic backdrop for "Sitting Pretty," on view through October 15, 2022. Organized by Design Exhibition Scotland following an open call launched the previous September, the exhibition showcases innovative park bench prototypes created by selected architects, designers, and artists from across the country, including Rekha Maker, C.A. Walac, Chris Dobson, and the collaborative team of Dress for the Weather and Stefanie Cheong. Utilizing a diverse palette of local and unconventional materials, such as Scottish sandstone, marble, regionally sourced timber, and recycled plastics, the resulting seating installations pay homage to the rich material history and palatial context of the estate.
London’s Building Centre is currently hosting "The Garden of Privatised Delights" through October 15, 2022. Originally developed for the Venice Architecture Biennale, the exhibition was commissioned by the British Council and curated by Madeleine Kessler and Manijeh Verghese of London-based practice Unscene Architecture. Taking its evocative title from Hieronymus Bosch’s famous triptych, the exhibition critically examines the proliferation of privately owned public spaces throughout the United Kingdom. It issues a compelling call for fresh architectural approaches to resolve ongoing conflicts between private commercial interests and the broader public good. To explore these themes, several prominent British architecture practices—including the Decorators, Studio Polpo, and vPPR Architects—have contributed seven distinct, inclusive conceptual reimaginings of everyday privatized civic zones, ranging from local pubs and high streets to children’s playgrounds and public restrooms.
In New York, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is presenting a landmark retrospective dedicated to Bernd and Hilla Becher through November 6, 2022. Marking the first major posthumous exhibition for the influential German photography duo, the display features over 200 works that document the rapidly disappearing industrial architecture of the twentieth-century postwar era. Armed with a large-format view camera, the Bechers systematically captured structures such as grain silos, blast furnaces, and water towers, which they famously referred to as "anonymous sculptures." Their meticulous methodology involved organizing these architectural portraits into "typologies"—structured grids typically comprising between four and thirty photographs—that emphasized both the standardized utility and the sculptural sculptural qualities of industrial engineering.
Events
As the exhibition season unfolds, several upcoming conferences, festivals, and symposia will convene design professionals to discuss pressing industry trends. In Los Angeles, the inaugural LightSPEC West event is scheduled for September 21–22, 2022. This new professional gathering is dedicated entirely to showcasing design and technical innovation in architectural lighting for the built environment. Over the course of two intensive days, the program will address critical subjects for building designers, owners, and operators through a combination of site tours, product showcases, and continuing education units (CEU) accredited seminars. Keynote addresses will be delivered by Lawrence Scarpa of the architecture firm Brooks + Scarpa and Thomas Paterson of the lighting design practice Lux Populi.
Further international dialogue will take place at the ninth edition of the Arquiteturas Film Festival, which runs from September 27 to October 1, 2022, shifting its venue from Lisbon to the historic Portuguese city of Porto. Under the overarching thematic banner "Slow Down!", the festival organizers have invited international filmmakers to submit projects—ranging from animated shorts to immersive feature-length documentaries—that critically investigate practices of reducing, reusing, demolishing, or otherwise subtracting from the built environment. This year’s programming emphasizes the moving image as an essential critical tool for expanding public comprehension of the interdisciplinary architecture and design sectors. Award categories for submitted films encompass documentary, fiction, experimental works, new talent recognition, social awareness, and audience choice.
In Scandinavia, the Copenhagen Architecture Festival prepares to launch its latest edition from October 6 to 16, 2022. Recognized as the largest architecture festival in the region, this year’s program addresses the thematic focus of "Sense of Place." The festival challenges architectural practitioners to investigate the critical threshold where physical space transitions into meaningful "place," and where mere construction evolves into enduring cultural architecture. Encompassing a diverse schedule of public lectures, curated exhibitions, dynamic debates, and film screenings distributed across Copenhagen, the festival has established a collaborative partnership with the Danish Architects Association to host parallel events at cultural institutions throughout Denmark.
Closing out the autumn event calendar, the Neon Museum in Las Vegas will host "Duck Duck Shed: Celebrating Las Vegas Architecture, Design, and Culture" from October 27 to 30, 2022. Housed within a structure originally designed by architect Paul Revere Williams and dedicated to preserving the city’s iconic neon heritage, the four-day event honors decades of radical architectural innovation, particularly within the hospitality sector. The program features prominent guest speakers such as urban planner Alan Hess and architect Jon Sparer, figures instrumental in designing legendary properties including the Mirage, Paris Las Vegas, and the Bellagio. The event takes its conceptual inspiration from the seminal volume Learning from Las Vegas, co-authored by Denise Scott Brown, Robert Venturi, and Steven Izenour, which famously categorized commercial architecture into "ducks"—buildings whose structural forms express their specific functions—and "decorated sheds," structures that rely on applied signage and surface ornamentation.
Competitions
For design teams seeking new professional challenges, active competitions offer significant opportunities for civic engagement. In the Czech Republic, a real-estate development group known as 4th Quadrant has launched an international architecture and design competition focused on the redevelopment of the area surrounding Victory Square in Prague. The initiative seeks innovative proposals to address a local deficit in civic amenities, retail spaces, and essential services for residents of adjacent neighborhoods, while carefully respecting the historic 1924 urban master plan designed by Antonín Engel. The initial application phase requires portfolio submissions, from which a select group of six to ten firms will be chosen. Selected participants will then develop comprehensive design proposals in close coordination with the 4th Quadrant development group, the City of Prague, and the Prague University of Chemistry and Technology, with financial compensation distributed across multiple competitive design phases.
