The Greek word “Τόπος” [topos] reveals a remarkable flexibility when it comes to its applications. While at its core it symbolizes a physical place or location, its exact meaning can vary depending on the context. In literature, it symbolizes a recurring theme, in rhetoric, it equates to a commonplace—a widely accepted idea that builds the base of an argumentation. In all of its nuances mentioned above, however, topos embodies a given and a point from which further dialogues and ideas can emerge. Topos is also the term guiding the creative approach of the Athenian architecture and design studio Block722.

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In a 497-acre wild forest, among rolling hills, creeks, streams, and wetlands, New York-based architecture studio Marc Thorpe Design has created ‘Crystal Lake Pavilion’: a stunning concept for a meditation sanctuary in the middle of a sublime, motionless lake.

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In Xi’an, the capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi, the Shanghai-based architecture studio Neri&Hu has designed a dramatic yet minimalist extension in red travertine to the Qujiang Museum of Fine Arts. Bold and arresting, it marries lightness and solidity seamlessly, as well as different, intriguing geometries.

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Deep beneath the ground in the Berici hills of the city of Vicenza, northern Italy, sits the dramatic Cava Arcari, a former quarry reimagined by David Chipperfield Architects into a multipurpose minimalist event and cultural space.

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The post High Drama, Visual Spectacle, And Versatility Combine At Cava Arcari By David Chipperfield Architects appeared first on IGNANT.

Demonstrating their unparalleled design intelligence, the Japanese architecture firm led by seminal architect Kengo Kuma is designing a contemporary gallery addition to protect the western portal of the Angers Cathedral, in the city of Angers in western France.

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In a dramatic and compelling example that weaves together nature, architecture, and spirituality, the ‘Hometown Moon’ by Syn Architects is a stunning ceremonial hall and chapel, with a glowing semicircular window—set against the dramatic landscape of Mount Tai in China.

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The post A Brilliant Half Moon Forever In Illumination: Syn Architects’ Evocative Hometown Moon Chapel appeared first on IGNANT.

In Greenland, Swedish architect Konstantin Ikonomidis has designed and built a circular, site-specific glass pavilion in cooperation with the municipality of Qeqqata. Set among stunning surroundings, the permanent landmark ‘Qaammat Fjeld’ acknowledges the beauty and rich history of the natural site as well as the spiritual sensibilities rooted in the local community.

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In one of Italy’s most important Medieval cities, Gubbio, Italian architect Andrea Dragoni has extended a monumental local cemetery complex, introducing courtyards and site-specific installations to help define a new space for silence and reflection within the city.

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The post Andrea Dragoni’s Extension Of Gubbio Cemetery Is A Meditation On The Spatial Embodiment Of Spiritual Experience appeared first on IGNANT.

Positioned along the banks of Taizhou’s Yongning River in Zhejiang Province, China, architecture firms Wutopia Lab and Office ZHU have designed the ‘Duoyun Bookstore in Huangyan’ to be a maze-like building reminiscent of clouds. The aim was to create an inspiring venue that “calmly and slowly rises over the river”, with the readers of the bookstore in the metaphoric cloud.

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The post For Lovers Of Books And Architecture, Wutopia Lab And Office ZHU’s Futurist Bookstore appeared first on IGNANT.

With its curving, concrete arches and abstracted, geometric volumes, the ‘Qinchang Village Town Hall’ by Shenzhen-based architecture practice Studio 10 is a playfully hybrid community center for cultural and recreational programs.

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The post Studio10’s Qinchang Village Town Hall, An Architectural Playground For Its Community appeared first on IGNANT.

On the outskirts of Norway’s Dovrefjell National Park in Hjerkinn, renowned Norwegian practice Snøhetta has designed a minimalist viewpoint with stunning views of the surrounding mountains. Named ‘Tverrfjellhytta, Norwegian Wild Reindeer Pavilion’, the building provides a sheltered gathering place for visitors interested in the local fauna and flora.

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The post Tverrfjellhytta, The Observation Pavilion Enriching Norway’s Unique Landscape And Fauna History appeared first on IGNANT.

Positioned in the middle of the mystic Thar Desert in Rajasthan, India, New York architect Diana Kellogg has designed the ‘Rajkumari Ratnavati Girl’s School’, an oval sandstone structure that will serve more than 400 girls in the region.

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The post With The Symbolism Of Empowerment, Architect Diana Kellogg Designed This Oval-Shaped School In India appeared first on IGNANT.

After years of renovations, the Neue Nationalgalerie, first conceived of by seminal architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (1886-1969), will reopen to the Berlin public this summer—having been meticulously remodelled by renowned firm David Chipperfield Architects.

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The post Berlin’s Iconic Neue Nationalgalerie, Renewed For Art In Modern Times appeared first on IGNANT.

Castelgrande, the medieval castle built in the 13th century in the Swiss Alps, received a bunker-like entrance designed by Swiss architect Aurelio Galfetti—the subject of which is the focus for architectural photographer Simone Bossi’s below series.

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The post Simone Bossi Photographs Castelgrande, In The Alpine Hills Of Switzerland’s Bellinzona appeared first on IGNANT.

Directly opposite a cemetery in the northeast of Tokyo, Japanese firm Toru Kashihara Architects designed ‘Shoraku-Ji’, a contemporary Buddhist temple that moves completely away from the aesthetic of traditional temple architecture.

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The post In Tokyo, Toru Kashihara Architects Design Shoraku-Ji As A Modern Concrete Temple appeared first on IGNANT.