The B1M

Rising from the ashes. How the iconic Notre Dame cathedral was rebuilt 👇

When reality matches the render. Construction works are progressing at the Zaha Hadid Architects-designed Jinghe New City Culture and Art Centre in China. Once complete, the building will connect the city across eight lanes of traffic and nod to the region’s meandering valleys, carved by the Jinghe River. 📷 Zue Yumeng (construction images) and ATCHAIN (renders)

This massive $12.5BN new airport is currently under construction in Ethiopia. Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects for Africa's largest carrier Ethiopian Airlines Group, phase one of Bishoftu International is set to serve 60 million passengers a year, with capacity rising to 110 million passengers (through four runways) once all subsequent phases are built. The airport sits around 40km south of Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa and has been primarily designed as a transit hub – it's expected that some 80% of passengers arriving will board connecting flights without leaving the building. Phase one is targeting a 2030 completion date. 📷 ZHA

Vietnam is building a $16BN new mega airport in an effort to rival Singapore's Changi International 👉 bit.ly/4sBWY6L

Shenzhen is building a bold new art museum. Designed by Büro Ole Scheeren and currently under construction in the city's Nanshan District, the Róng Museum of Art will be focused on the visual culture of the 20th and 21st centuries: including art, design, architecture and film. The 4,500-square-metre museum has been commissioned by the founder of Tencent and will form the cornerstone of the Houhai Hybrid Campus, which was also designed by Ole Scheeren. "Architecturally, the Róng Museum of Art is designed to generate curiosity and invite movement and exchange between the museum, the Hybrid Campus and the surrounding city," Büro Ole Scheeren explained in a statement. "The exhibition spaces are lifted on five sculptural pavilions that touch the ground as slender structures and expand as they rise, forming a distinctive figure within the broader ensemble of Shenzhen’s towers. By suspending the building’s main body above the ground, Ole Scheeren’s design frees its base as a covered, naturally ventilated public plaza." The new museum is expected to open in 2027. 📷 Büro Ole Scheeren

Oklahoma City is building a $ 900M new NBA stadium. Designed by MANICA Architecture, the building is rising on the site of the city's former Myriad Convention Center and will become home to the Oklahoma Thunders when it completes in the summer of 2028. 📷 MANICA Architecture

You really didn't have to do that guys 🙏

The skyline of Paris had always been a work of art — until one building changed everything. Long labelled as the city's most hated skyscraper, the 210-metre Tour Montparnasse is now about to undergo a €300M overhaul. The aim? Not to celebrate it, but to make it disappear 👉 bit.ly/4quiUy7

Possibly one of the most beautiful staircases ever constructed. Snøhetta has shared some jaw-dropping images of Shanghai's new Grand Opera House nearing completion. 📷 Snøhetta / Tian Fangfang / Runzi Zhu

This 70-storey skyscraper could become the tallest building in Liverpool. SimpsonHaugh architects has unveiled its plans for the mixed-use tower which would form part of the city's wider £1BN Kings development. The skyscraper would contain 212 hotel rooms alongside 563 luxury apartments and a rooftop terrace. Commenting on the designs, Ian Simpson, co-founding partner of SimpsonHaugh, said: “This is a landmark intervention for Britain’s most dramatic waterfront skyline. It is rooted in the city’s architectural vernacular and its maritime history but offers a very contemporary expression of both. The tower’s setting optimises the high-quality public realm around it, whilst the soft corners maximise the panoramic views in every direction. I wanted to deliver a building that not only sat well with its neighbours, but also reflects the ambition of the city." 📷 SimpsonHaugh

Shenzhen's new natural history museum is taking shape. 3XN Architects shared this image of recent construction progress on the 100,000-square-metre building ahead of its completion later in 2026 🏗️ The project is designed by 3XN, B+H and Zhubo Design. 📷 3XN

Construction teams at India's newly-opened $2BN Navi Mumbai International Airport faced some serious site challenges. Crews had to flatten a huge hill, divert a major river and convert swamp land into a solid concrete platform that was strong enough for aircraft to land on 👉 bit.ly/4aGW4xF

These towers are set to form the gateway to a new city in Kazakhstan. Designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM), the Iconic Complex and Gateway District will create an entrance to Alatau City, a huge development planned near Almaty. The gateway district's design draws inspiration from the dramatic landscape of the nearby Trans-Ili Alatau mountains. The taller tower will rise to 272-metres and become the tallest skyscraper in southern Kazakhstan. Extending over 276,800-square-metres, the mixed-use complex will include offices, homes, a hotel, retail and cultural space. It’s planned as the economic and administrative hub of the new city — part of Kazakhstan’s push to create a major Central Asian business centre. 📷 SOM

Saudi Arabia's Jeddah Tower has now reached 93-storeys in height. This image, shared by SBG's Executive Director Ian Miller, captured the latest construction progress on the structure as it moves towards its 2028 completion date. If fully constructed, the megatall skyscraper will stand 1,000-metres high and become the new tallest building in the world, overtaking Dubai’s 828-metre Burj Khalifa. Construction works originally began in 2013 but were paused twice for extended periods: once following Saudi Arabia’s anti-corruption purge in 2017 and again at the start of the pandemic. Prior to works restarting last year, the project had sat largely dormant since 2020 with only around 300-metres or 68-storeys of its superstructure built. The development is being led by the Jeddah Economic Company. The project team includes Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, Thornton Tomasetti, Langan Engineering and Environmental Services, RWDI, Dar, Saudi Binladin Group (SBG) and Turner International. 📷 Ian Norman Miller

Hangzhou’s epic Golden Sands Lake Grand Theatre👌 Designed by CCTN Design, the building features a 1,400-seat auditorium, alongside a smaller 500-seat multipurpose hall. CCTN said: “[The building’s] perforated architectural skin creates a continuous open gray space between the exterior and the internal functions, casting delightful moments of light and shadow at different times. As people wander through, they can experience the charm of the architectural space and appreciate the beauty of Golden Sands Lake.” 📷 Pei Wen

Singapore’s epic Pan Pacific Orchard Hotel 🌿 Designed by WOHA Architects and built by Shimizu Corporation, the 350-room hotel features large voids cut into its form that create space for lushly planted sky terraces. These in turn offer outdoor amenities to guests on the site’s constrained footprint. The tower’s huge “living columns” are covered with creepers and are intended to visually connect the building across its 23-storeys while “lending the urban hotel a touch of resort”. In total the project replaced 200% of its site area with greenery. 📷 Darren Soh / WOHA

One of the most anticipated new buildings of 2026 🔥 The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art at LA's Exposition Park justifiably looks like it belongs on another planet. Co-founded by Star Wars creator George Lucas, the centre will be dedicated to the power of visual storytelling in all its forms. Now nearing completion, the 300,000 square foot structure designed by Ma Yansong of MAD Architects will showcase more than 40,000 works of narrative art – from children’s book illustrations and comics, to murals and cinematic artifacts like movie posters. The museum is due to open to the public on September 22. 📷 1: Alamy under licence to The B1M 📷 2-3: Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

Dubai's supertall Burj Al Arab hotel was damaged when authorities intercepted an Iranian drone on 28 February. It is understood falling debris caused a fire at the base of the 321-metre skyscraper, which crews quickly brought under control. Dubai's Media Office stated that no injuries were reported. The sail-shaped Burj Al Arab stands on a manmade island offshore and was once the tallest hotel in the world. Both Dubai and Abu Dhabi's international airports, and a luxury hotel on the Palm Jumeriah, also sustained damage in Iranian retaliatory strikes launched after the US and Israel began Operation Epic Fury against Iran on Saturday. Despite the shocking scenes over the weekend, and the sights and sounds in the sky — which the Dubai Media Office states are due to air defence interception operations — the emirate attempted to return to business as usual on Monday. The media office issued a statement saying that Dubai’s private sector "continues to operate normally, with most commercial activities running without disruption" and UAE President and Hamdan bin Mohammed undertook a walkabout in Dubai Mall.

Vietnam is building a $16BN new mega airport in an effort to rival Singapore's Changi International 👉 bit.ly/4sBWY6L

These residential towers in Seoul are inspired by the undulating forms of the mountains surrounding the city. Designed by Heatherwick Studio, the Daegyo Apartments in Yeouido would replace existing a structure dating from 1975 with four residential buildings, a sky garden and ground floor space open to both residents and the public. "We want this design to spark a fundamental rethink of how apartment living in Seoul should look, feel, and support everyday life" said Stuart Wood, Executive Partner at Heatherwick Studio. "For too long, residents have had to accept endless repetitions of anonymous high-rise blocks. The need for change is now unmistakable. We believe people are ready for places that are more soulful, more unique, and deeply human.” Thomas Heatherwick, founder and design director of Heatherwick Studio, presented the Daegyo scheme to the Residents’ Union earlier today at a meeting of their General Assembly. 📷 Heatherwick Studio

Gently re-upping our plans to fill Oxford Street with trees now that the pedestrianisation plan has been approved 🌳