The Driver’s Room: Architecture’s Forgotten Space
Ibrahim Fawakherji — ArchUp There is a room that appears in almost every Gulf villa built in the last four…
Architecture
Architecture: A Living Archive of Global Design Thinking
This section of ArchUp brings together global perspectives on design, construction, and sustainability through the lens of contemporary and historical architecture. From iconic buildings and landmark structures to cultural shifts in urban development, our coverage explores the core principles shaping today’s built environment.
Discover a selection of architectural projects, deep-dive research papers, and coverage of cutting-edge building materials. Stay informed on the latest design competitions, explore career paths in architectural jobs, and follow our curated news from architecture headlines worldwide.
Whether you’re an architect, planner, interior designer, or student, this space is designed to expand your architectural thinking. For more insights, meet our editorial team or reach out via our contact page.
AI Interviews Fawakherji
Ibrahim Fawakherji — ArchUp A few months ago, ArchUp published an imagined conversation with an AI model about the future…
A Conversation with AI from 2035
Ibrahim Fawakherji — ArchUp Today we are breaking from our usual format at ArchUp. For years, our conversations have been…
When the Builder Becomes the Hesitator
There is an old rule in financial markets that traders repeat to each other so often it has become almost…
Cabane 7L: Ecological Intelligence in Villa Medici Gardens
Geometric Rigour and the Spatial Experience The spatial experience in the Villa Medici gardens is founded on a precise kinetic…
Exploring Spatial Duality and Mountain Context in Cut Out House
Spatial Duality and Site Responsiveness The user moves through the dwelling across two distinct levels of visual and spatial perception….
Architecture in the Prophetic Tradition: When Space Entered the Text
When the conversation turns to Islamic architecture, the mind moves immediately toward the visible: domes and minarets, geometric ornament, the…
When Your Army Fights Your Project
In the early twentieth century, Sigmund Freud proposed one of the most contested theories in the history of psychology. The…
Rosa Jamaica Beach Club: Massing and Coastal Topography
Mass Dynamics and Living Topography The project engages the site’s topographic character as both a structural given and a primary…
Valaya House: Balancing Climatic Protection and Spatial Openness
Dialectic of Openness and Protection: Massing Articulation and Climate Management The architectural composition of the Valaya Projects emerges as a…
The Real Opium: Ibrahim Fawakherji on Why Writing Was Always the Other Practice
ArchUp — Ibrahim fawakherji There is a particular kind of regret that has nothing to do with failure. It is…
The Last Drawing: Why Architectural Photography Matters More Than Most Architects Think
A building’s public life begins not at completion but through its photograph. Most people will never experience a project in person, making architectural photography a final act of authorship rather than passive documentation. From the narrow windows of golden-hour light to post-production refinement, the image ultimately determines how a building is understood, remembered, and judged by the discipline for generations.
Beyond the R-Value: Why Smart Walls Are No Longer About Insulation Alone
Building envelope performance can no longer be reduced to a single thermal metric. Climate zone, wall orientation, material embodied carbon,…
If Kant Were an Architect
Architecture has always recorded what a society truly values, and Kant’s philosophy reveals why. Drawing on his concepts of a priori spatial cognition, the Categorical Imperative, and the sublime, this essay argues that every design decision operates as an involuntary psychological transaction. In 2026, when capital pressures eliminate ambition, spatial ethics demand treating occupants as ends, never means.
SE House: Restraining Tropical Openness
Departure from the Open Tropical Model Most homes in tropical environments tend to rely on visual and spatial openness, such…
The Geography of Stigma: When Architecture Inherits the Narrative of Trauma
Buildings carry more than structural and material value — their histories shape how people perceive and occupy them. A property…
The Manufacture of the Icon: Architecture, Algorithms, and the Archival Void
Reflecting on two decades of architectural practice and media evolution, this piece examines how documentation, curation, and critical platforms shape which buildings and architects achieve lasting historical significance. From pre-digital library research to algorithm-driven feeds, the author argues that rigorous documentation is architecture’s true foundation, warning that viral celebrity and superficial promotion ultimately undermine the discipline’s intellectual legacy.
Timber Temple: Reinterpreting Traditional Timber Architecture
Reinterpreting Traditional Timber Architecture The Timber Temple project is located on a sloped site in the Sennes area of Norway,…
The Taptab Illusion: Rushed Construction and the Defiance of Building Physics
A personal reflection on navigating a grueling sixty-day construction emergency involving a fifteen-thousand-square-meter commercial project. The author examines the collapse of standard building sequencing under extreme deadline pressure, exploring where material science allows tactical flexibility and where the laws of chemistry remain absolute, ultimately questioning the human cost of trading structural patience for the speed of completion.
Gable Villa Royan: Climatic Logic and Structural Hybridization
Gable Roof as a Climatic and Historical Solution The gable roof is considered one of the oldest elements used in…
House 17-JB: Forest and Topography Integration in Architecture
Architectural Concept Context In most cases, an architect is given a defined site to be developed within a construction project….
