From plywood to crowdfunding, they're being hailed as the next big thing – but how long will that fuzzy feeling last?

An unlikely government agency, involving a Belgian design studio and a Rotterdam research institute, is hoping to restore order to Tirana after decades of architectural anarchy

From “artisanal” and “timeless” to, erm, "iconic", these words are the most slippery and overused in the design industry. Of course, we haven’t used any of them in our latest issue ...

Serious money is moving into the city’s old shipyards, now one of Europe’s most vibrant creative quarters. For ICON 150, Enya Moore went to find out whether the area's rapid transformations means the designers will eventually be moving out. These photos, by Raoul Kramer, accompany the article

On the occasion of our 150th issue, we have totally rethought the content and design of the magazine. The new Icon is all about the objects and architecture of everyday life – whether innovative tech and fashion, or cities pushing up beautiful skylines. Take a look inside...

Beyond the A13, the staid seaside towns and the flat, muddy fields of its heartland lies an alternative Essex – an unlikely hotbed of radical modernism, writes Charles Holland

A new London vernacular has emerged over the past five years – but is the moral laziness it represents an omen for the city’s future?

The absence of a “Bond Villain’s Lair” aesthetic in Spectre, the latest instalment in the James Bond franchise, reveals the disconcerting state of London's corporate architecture, says Edwin Heathcore.

The hostess bars of Tokyo’s hedonistic Shinjuku district have an unlikely neighbour: Amorphe’s vast, futuristic Buddhist temple

Rem Koolhaas mixes preservation and provocation in Moscow, turning a Soviet-era workers’ canteen into a contemporary art space, says Edwin Heathcote

In the Home issue, Charles Holland took a trip down memory lane to rediscover a series of modernist gems in villages around Essex. We asked Catherine Hyland to take some photographs to accompany the article – see them here and follow @iconeye on Instagram for more

Democratic, inclusive and grounded, Chicago’s inaugural architecture biennial distinguishes itself from its more established counterparts through its ambition to make a lasting contribution to the host city, says David Michon

The worlds of art and architecture exist in a constant state of mutual jealousy. As the Turner prize exhibition opens, we consider whether the nomination of architectural collective Assemble for this year’s award is likely to bring them any closer together

“Home” is a hard concept to pin down in design terms, but in our new issue – available now – we try to do just that, looking at Barbara Bestor’s Dutch woonerf in LA, modernist villages in Essex and the details that bring a house to life

The Norwegian architect gets in touch with its inner child to create a six-storey glass playground at Swarovski’s curious Alpine tourist attraction

Most nations ignored the organisers’ brief for Milan Expo. But then, the vision of a “global botanical garden”, all under one roof, ignored the competitive spirit that has underpinned Expos for the past 160 years. It is time, at the very least, for a fundamental rethink, argues Tim Abrahams

The Art Institute of Chicago
19 September 2015 – 3 January 2016

A 50m-long courtyard surrounded by monolithic concrete walls creates an air of mystery around Valerio Olgiati’s retreat in rural Portugal

By avoiding “African issues”, Vitra’s pair of exhibitions present a far more compelling portrait of a multi-faceted, multi-vocal continent, writes Debika Ray

The Cuban capital, as captured by photographer Nigel Young, is a curious slice of classic America spared capitalism’s built-in obsolescence, writes Owen Hatherley