Teaching and Learning Space for Waltham Forest College / Studio DERA

Studio DERA has transformed a former school swimming pool into a sustainable multi-purpose learning and wellbeing space for Waltham Forest College. With the college rapidly expanding its student body, finding new ways to accommodate educational and extracurricular needs was a priority. Studio DERA had already run a sustainable materials workshop for WFC students while building a hempcrete and timber community center and nursery in nearby Higham Hill. College Principal & CEO Janet Gardner then invited Studio DERA directors Max Dewdney and Marcel Rahm to reimagine the long disused swimming pool site and do a feasibility study.

In the west of Berlin, nestled between the historic Grunewald forest and the old AVUS route, lies the Eichkamp estate, designed by Bruno Taut - a residential neighborhood that was conceived as a forest estate in the early 1920s. The plot is one of the last undeveloped plots in this unique ensemble. The special character of the estate, characterized by old deciduous trees, small detached houses, and an almost village-like atmosphere, despite its proximity to the ICC, can still be clearly felt here. The immediate neighborhood is heterogeneous, combining public buildings such as daycare centers and schools with private single-family homes from different eras. A new residential building has been created in this evolved context, which blends in respectfully and only catches the eye at second glance.

With Palazzo, Benthem Crouwel Architects completes the Paleiskwartier in Hertogenbosch – a robust, warm, and open residential building that literally embraces the city. Commissioned by BV Ontwikkelingsmaatschappij Paleiskwartier, Palazzo marks the culmination of more than thirty years of urban development around the Central Station – an area where living, working, and meeting converge. Palazzo brings the whole together and gives new life to the district. The building deliberately faces the city, creates space for the square, and invites people to connect.

The Temple of Darkness Bakhoor Bakhoor by Bunga Design Atelier is an outdoor experiential installation – a contemporary temple born from smoke, scent, and silence. Inspired by the ritual of burning bakhoor, where fragrant wood releases sacred fumes into the air, the piece reimagines the temple as a space of reflection rather than worship, of darkness rather than light.