Architecture

Top row: The Age of Magic by The Mouse Market, Gothic Bath by Samuel C. Miller III, Apartment 6D by Nix Gerber Studio. Bottom row: White House, White Room by J. Ford Huffman, Reverie of the Stars by Mars Tokyo Designs, My Castle and My Keep by Daisy Taint

Arts

When Your Dream House Is A Dollhouse, No Space Is Too Small

5:55pm August 10, 2016

by Gabriel Rosenberg

Two dozen American artists were asked to create their vision of a "dream room," in miniature form. They stuffed a lot into these small boxes: hopes, fears and some really tiny unicorns.

'The Battle For Home' Traces Syria's History Through Architecture

6:00pm July 20, 2016

NPR's Kelly McEvers speaks with Homs-based architect Marwa al-Sabouni, about her new book The Battle for Home, which traces Syria's past, present and possible future through the lens of architecture.

A "tiny house" in Richmond, Virginia in 2015.

#NPRreads: Simplify Your Weekend With These 3 Stories

9:37am July 09, 2016

Correspondents, editors and producers from our newsroom share the pieces that have kept them reading, using the #NPRreads hashtag. Each weekend, we highlight some of the best stories.

The Architecture Project Behind Obama's Chicago Presidential Library

8:52am July 02, 2016

The Obama Foundation named Tod Williams and Billie Tsien as the architects of the presidential museum and library. Scott Simon talks to Chicago Tribune architecture critic Blair Kamin.

Rolf and Daughters, in Nashville, Tenn., boasts exposed brick, bare bulbs and ceiling pipes.

Arts

Why Does Every New Restaurant Look Like A Factory?

4:58pm June 29, 2016

by Natalie Jacewicz

The stripped-down look of exposed brick, poured cement floors and Edison light bulbs is popular in restaurants across America. One reporter dares to ask, "Seriously, why?"

This composite of drone images shows architectural details and measurements (left) and a close-up view of a monumental structure near the center of Petra in Jordan.

World News

Massive Structure Found 'Hiding In Plain Sight' At Ancient Site Of Petra

3:27pm June 10, 2016

by Merrit Kennedy

Researchers using satellite images and drones discovered a structure the size of an Olympic-size pool near the center of the ancient city in Jordan. But what exactly it was used for remains a mystery.

U.S. Agency Tries Radical Rehab Technique On Aging Government Buildings

4:29pm June 02, 2016

by Mark Urycki

Love them or hate them, modernist buildings of the 1960s and '70s are beginning to need renovation, and the U.S. General Services Administration is trying something unusual — putting a 32-story office tower under glass. The double wall exterior will not only save energy but protect the inhabitants from a bomb blast. NPR explores whether the repairs are worth the $120 million and if the outer wall will ruin the original architecture design.

The Triborough Bridge is seen under construction in New York City on July 10, 1935. The bridge, now known as the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, connects Long Island with Manhattan. The Dutch Prime Minister is a fan of the biographer of Robert Moses, who was i

#NPRreads: Take A Tour Of These Three Stories This Weekend

9:19am May 21, 2016

Correspondents, editors and producers from our newsroom share the pieces that have kept them reading, using the #NPRreads hashtag. Each weekend, we highlight some of the best stories.

Architect Mark Kushner on stage at TED in 2014.

Arts

How Do Buildings Make Us Feel?

8:36am May 20, 2016

by NPR/TED Staff

Architect Marc Kushner explains why architecture tends to swing drastically between traditional and experimental styles — and why the future of building design is going to be different.

Queue Listen Now

National

Words You'll Hear: Gentrification

5:06pm May 01, 2016

This week is the 100th birthday of Jane Jacobs, who resisted gentrification in New York and became a respected thinker on urban planning. Author Roberta Brandes Gratz talks about Jacobs' legacy.