From the world’s first “upcycled” skyscraper winning World Building of the Year to Burkina Faso-born Francis Kéré becoming the first African architect to win the coveted Pritzker Prize, last year in architecture will be remembered as a year of firsts.
In addition, it was a year in which we lost industry titans like Ricardo Bofill and Meinhard von Gerkan and gained long-awaited new landmarks like the Steinway Tower in New York and the Taipei Performing Arts Center.
With development extends frequently requiring a very long time to finish, delays brought about by Coronavirus are as yet being felt. However, whether it’s the world’s second-tallest tower or an Abu Dhabi interfaith religious complex, 2023 promises to be a year of remarkable new openings.
Ten of the architectural projects that will change the world in 2023 are as follows:

Jerusalem, Israel, National Library of Israel

The National Library of Israel and its extensive collection of books, manuscripts, and photographs are moving to a brand-new building next to the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, after outgrowing their previous location. The distinctive upper volume of the building resembles a massive block of carved rock. Local limestone was mixed into the cement as a nod to the historic color scheme of Jerusalem. Around the 50,500-square-foot reading hall, facilities like an auditorium, a youth center, and various exhibition spaces are arranged inside.
From the soaring circular skylight to the ground-level display cases that make items from the library’s collection visible to passersby, the design by Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron aims to reflect the institution’s values of openness and accessibility.

Copenhagen, Denmark, Nord

Copenhagen has been chosen by UNESCO to be the World Capital of Architecture in 2023, and the Danish capital is full of sustainable design examples.
The ongoing transformation of the once-industrial Nordhavn (or Northern Harbor) into a pedestrian-friendly “smart” district with green energy sources and a “super bikeway” connection to the city center is the most important of these. In recent years, vacant grain and cement silos have been converted into office and apartment buildings, and in 2013, UN City, a vast campus for the United Nations, opened there.
The most recent addition to the neighborhood by Danish architecture firm Henning Larsen, Nord, is a good example of the change that is taking place. The 115-home development promises residents an “island oasis” with easy access to the district’s growing collection of restaurants and public spaces. It has a redbrick facade that pays tribute to the site’s industrial past, large public gardens, and a rooftop terrace.

Argentine city of San Salvador de Jujuy’s Lola Mora Cultural Center

The late Argentine planner César Pelli might be most popular for milestone high rises like the Petronas Pinnacles in Kuala Lumpur and New York’s Reality Monetary Center, however his company’s most memorable new undertaking in South America starting around 2018 is an out and out humbler pursuit. The Lola Mora Cultural Center is dedicated to its namesake sculptor, one of the pioneering female artists of the early 20th century, and is situated in a forest with views of the city of San Salvador de Jujuy in northwest Argentina. The institution will house an interpretation center, restaurant, library, and atelier for visiting artists in addition to a selection of her works.
The building, whose shape was taken from a sculptor’s chisel, is “net-zero energy” according to architects Pelli Clarke & Partners, though it may go even further: The center is anticipated to generate 20% more energy than it consumes thanks to solar energy production and on-site wind turbines.

Abrahamic Family House, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (top photo)

Practically 80% of the Unified Bedouin Emirates’ populace is Muslim, yet at Abu Dhabi’s new interfaith complex the three Abrahamic religions (Islam, Christianity and Judaism) are of equivalent height. Possessing three indistinguishably estimated cubic structures on a “mainstream” guest structure, the venture’s mosque, gathering place and church stand as one.
Even though each of the three main buildings has a different orientation on the site, the Ghanaian-British architect David Adjaye’s firm, Adjaye Associates, said it looked to the commonalities between the faiths in its designs.
As well as offering spots of love, the complex is expected to energize discourse and social trade. According to the architects, a fourth space—an educational center—will serve as a location “for all people of goodwill to come together as one.”