In the words of BIG Founder & Creative Director, Bjarke Ingels: “Designing a home for a family is like painting a portrait. A portrait’s success lies not only in the artists’ ability to express themselves – but rather in their ability to capture the expressions, character, personality, or even the soul of those being portrayed. As an architectural portrait, the home is about creating a framework for interests and needs, wishes and dreams, requirements and criteria – in short – the life the family wants to live.”

BIG’s design for the A’s new home at the heart of Oakland’s revitalized waterfront seeks to return the game to its roots as the natural meeting place for the local community. An elevated tree lined promenade frames the ballpark on all sides, dipping down to meet the public square and open the field to the water and city views. The perimeter park connects a cascade of social spaces for the fans to enjoy the sport on game days and extends the urban fabric with a neighborhood park to be enjoyed all days a year. In other words – bringing the “park” back in” ballpark”.

After over a year of close collaboration, the first passengers trialed this new form of transportation at Virgin Hyperloop’s m DevLoop test site in Las Vegas, where the company has previously run over tests in un-occupied pods. The demonstration was overseen by the industry-recognized Independent Safety Assessor (ISA) Certifier, and its success marks a historic moment in transportation as Pegasus becomes the first manned and fully functional system for Hyperloop travel.

Toward the top, the towers erode in a similar way by creating a landscape of terraces for the people living and working there. The resulting complex provides a new park with a more than threefold increase in public green space, and an alpine architectural silhouette on the city’s skyline. In a synergy of public and private interest, by offering the space to the public where it is the most in need, we earn the freedom to redistribute the lost density above.

The Gare du Pont de Bondy continues the Parisian tradition of utilizing bridges as social spaces and cultural landmarks. Located at the encounter between the communities of Bondy, Bobigny and Noisy-le-Sec, the station is conceived as both bridge and tunnel wrapped around a giant atrium, connecting the riverbank to the train landing. The deepest train tunnels will now open directly to the Parisian sky, and all three surrounding neighborhoods will be united in a single inclusive loop – a new architectural hybrid of urban infrastructure and social space.