THE PLAN 161, the second issue for 2025, features a special section dedicated to architect-designed homes. The cover features Casa Itambe, designed by Mexican studio 304 Arquitectura, which won the House category award in the latest edition of THE PLAN Award.
The issue opens with the special feature, “The Value of Trust and the Art of Building Museums,” a conversation between Philip Jodidio and David Chipperfield. The English architect, the 2023 Pritzker Architecture Prize winner, is renowned for his iconic museum projects around the world, which balance modernity with respect for historical context.
In the Viaggio in Italia column, Valerio Paolo Mosco profiles Piraccini+Potente Architettura. Drawing on the words of Italian travel writer Guido Piovene, who praised Italy’s Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna regions for their connection to the land, he identifies a restrained and sustainable approach in the studio’s work that draws inspiration from rural traditions, reinterpreting them through a contemporary lens.
In Portland, Oregon, Hacker designs the Ellen Browning co-housing project, achieving a balance between privacy and community in a sustainable, light-filled building conceived for communal living and inspired by historical housing models.
In Toronto, Canada, the Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus, designed by Weiss/Manfredi, is an innovation hub that combines academic research and entrepreneurship in an iconic, permeable building distinguished by sculptural volumes, extensive glazing, and flexible spaces designed to encourage collaboration and integration with the city.
Still in North America, the Resnick Sustainability Center at Caltech, designed by Yazdani Studio of CannonDesign, is a research and education hub that promotes sustainability and scientific transparency through innovative, flexible, and biophilic architecture. It’s a symbol of commitment to combating climate change and misinformation.
The Architecture section continues with a selection of six architect-designed homes. The first, the Hudson Highlands Residence designed by Susan T. Rodriguez, is a house immersed in nature that fuses architecture and landscape through the use of local materials, transparency, and sustainable solutions, offering a harmonious and contemplative retreat just a short distance from New York City.
Designed by Freecell Architecture + Gia Wolff, Pompey Estate is a retreat nestled in Jamaica’s wild landscape that merges architecture and nature through sustainable solutions, local materials, and open spaces that inspire creativity and a connection with the tropical setting.
Mellieha House, designed by MYGG, is an innovative spin on Frank Lloyd Wright’s approach to getting away from it all and reconnecting with nature, as reinterpreted by architects such as Neutra, Aalto, and Holl. The tension between closed and open forms creates a dynamic architectural narrative, albeit with some material inconsistencies. The project is located on the Maltese island.
Quern Design Studio’s Ottumpura House updates the thinnai – a covered, porticoed space typical of traditional southern Indian homes – to create a versatile, sustainable residence that blends entertaining spaces, natural light, and passive ventilation in a harmonious dialogue between tradition and modernity.
Initiated by the Modernist Movement, the industrialization of architecture posed the challenge of balancing technical expertise with creative authorship. This is on show in Casa Curva, a home in Chile designed by Guillermo Hevia García and Catalina Poblete, in which essential structures engage with the context through the considered use of materials and prefabrication.
Born from a fusion of pre-Hispanic traditions and European influences, Mexican architecture finds contemporary expression in projects such as Casa Itambe by 304 Arquitectura. Through floor planes that seem suspended in mid-air, natural light, and organic materials, the project creates an interplay between reality and abstraction to establish a deep connection with the landscape.
THE PLAN 161, the second issue for 2025, opens with the Special Editorial Feature “The Value of Trust and The Art of Building Museums,” a conversation between Philip Jodidio and David Chipperfield. It also features a special section dedicated to ... Read More