Picasso Museum Renovation Shortlists Ghotmeh, RCR and Torzo Teams

Lina Ghotmeh, RCR Arquitectes and Francesca Torzo are among the leaders of five finalist teams selected for the transformation of the Musée national Picasso-Paris, with a winner expected in January 2027.

The Picasso 2030 project combines a new sculpture garden for Pablo Picasso with a contemporary wing for temporary exhibitions and the reconfiguration of the ground floor and basement of the historic Hôtel Salé, which will remain open to the public during construction. The shortlisted teams are Antoine Dufour (ACMH) with Wagon Landscaping; Lina Ghotmeh with Pierre Antoine Gatier and Florence Mercier; NeM / Niney et Marca with RCR and Jacqueline Osty; Stanton Williams with Atelier PNG and Vogt; and Francesca Torzo with Dubrigny Architectes and Sarah Price Landscapes.

The proposed garden will accommodate around ten of Picasso's bronze sculptures while drawing on classical French gardens, Scandinavian landscapes, and climate-responsive spaces. The new exhibition wing must meet the requirements of an international museum within a protected heritage context, and the Hôtel Salé's existing public facilities will be reorganized to include visitor services, educational spaces, and areas for events and screenings.

Portland narrows waterfront park competition to three teams

Portland Parks & Recreation has selected three teams to advance to the second stage of the open design competition for the transformation of Governor Tom McCall Waterfront Park. The shortlisted teams are BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group with Jennifer Bonner / MALL; Studio Egret West with West of West; and SWA Group with PLACE and Thomas Phifer and Partners.

A first stage attracted 50 submissions from more than 150 firms across six continents. The three teams will now develop concept designs for the entire 30-acre park, with a particular focus on the Bowl area. The brief calls for enhanced river access, ecological restoration, and inclusive design, while strengthening the park's role as a civic anchor and year-round destination. Proposals must build on existing features such as the Japanese American Historical Plaza, mature cherry trees, and the Salmon Street Springs Fountain, while rethinking underused areas. The shortlisted concepts will be presented through a public exhibition in Portland and online in early 2027, with the winning team announced in spring 2027.

SOM suspends Dubai Holding headquarters from steel cables

SOM has designed a new headquarters for global investment company Dubai Holding, positioned adjacent to the Jumeirah Emirates Towers and the Museum of the Future. The building combines a compression-based lower structure with an upper structure suspended from steel cables, creating column-free spaces at the center and allowing the building to appear to hover above the landscape.

Circular floor plates organize around a central sequence of garden terraces, with an open-air atrium extending through the building's height and bringing natural light into the interior. The façade uses sculpted vertical glass fins calibrated to solar exposure. Gardens, sculpted landforms, and pedestrian walkways designed with Field Operations connect the headquarters to its surroundings. The project also incorporates energy-efficiency measures, renewable energy generation, elevated garden terraces, and outdoor workplaces.

Foster + Partners reuses unfinished structures for Ellison Institute in Oxford

Foster + Partners has revealed the design of the Daubeny Buildings, a component of the Ellison Institute of Technology's Oxford campus, comprising three buildings that will house the Plant Biology Institute and the Generative Biology Institute. The project adapts structures that were previously under construction, retaining a substantial portion of their existing superstructure while introducing new interventions to meet the institute's operational, scientific, and architectural requirements.

Two new atria connect the three buildings through shared spaces. The western atrium incorporates meeting rooms, seminar spaces, a café, and a 175-seat auditorium, while the eastern atrium features stepped terraces, collaborative workspaces, and a 250-seat auditorium. At roof level, a greenhouse provides a defining element for the Plant Biology Institute, expressing its research focus. Flexible laboratories and support spaces are organized around specialist research requirements.

Reuse and renewal define the week's wider news

The European Citizens' Initiative "Right to Housing! Now and Forever" is now open for signatures, calling for affordable, sustainable, and fair housing across the European Union through measures that start from the existing building stock, alongside financing tools and protections to ensure access.

In Chicago, Google unveiled new renderings for the redevelopment of the Thompson Center, Helmut Jahn's postmodern landmark, developed with Architecture Plus Information (A+I), now part of Perkins&Will. The project marks the building's escape from demolition and aims to integrate it into the life of the Loop as a space for work, culture, and community. In Accra, the African Futures Institute, founded by Lesley Lokko, completed its new headquarters in a former warehouse.

Landmark projects also advanced. MAD Architects' Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opened to the public in Los Angeles on September 22. At Trinity College in Toronto, Mecanoo and RDHA completed the Lawson Centre for Sustainability, the college's first new building since 1979, built around a farm-to-table concept combining a rooftop urban farm, a community kitchen, and student housing. In Spain, a team led by Sener with RSHP and ERRE was selected to design the new Valencia Central Station, an underground rail hub that includes the refurbishment of the historic Valencia Nord Station. BIG opened Macondo Park in Madrid, a temporary cultural landscape created around Shakira's residency and designed to be dismantled and reused once the concerts conclude.

With two major design competitions reaching decision points in early 2027, and heritage-driven reuse projects multiplying from Paris to Oxford, the coming months will test whether adaptive transformation can keep pace with the Global North's appetite for new landmarks.