The Kino Babylon is a cinema in the Mitte neighbourhood of Berlin and part of a listed building complex at Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz opposite the Volksbühne theatre. The building was erected 1928–29. It was designed by the architect Hans Poelzig in the Neue Sachlichkeit style. In 1948 the theatre was heavily renovated and served afterward as a speciality cinema for the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). After the auditorium was closed due to risk of collapse, it was restored between 1999 and 2001 in accordance with conservation guidelines. In 2002 the restoration was awarded the “German Award for Monument Protection”. read more…
Mudéjar architecture of Aragon is an aesthetic trend in Mudéjar style in Aragon, Spain, and has been recognized in some representative buildings as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. read more…
The Huajiang Canyon Bridge is a suspension bridge in Guizhou in China. The bridge crosses the Beipan River as it passes through the deep Huajiang Canyon and is the world’s highest bridge, measuring 625 metres (2,051 ft) from the bridge deck to the bottom of the gorge. It surpasses the previous highest bridge, the Duge Bridge, which crosses the same river 200 kilometres (120 mi) upstream. The bridge was opened to the public on 28 September 2025. read more…
A riad or riyad (Arabic: riy??) is a type of garden courtyard historically associated with house and palace architecture in the Maghreb and al-Andalus. Its classic form is a rectangular garden divided into four quadrants by two paved paths intersecting in the center, where a fountain is typically situated. The planted areas are usually sunken below the level of the paths. Its origin is generally attributed to traditional Persian gardens whose influence spread during the Islamic period. The term “riad” is nowadays often used in Morocco to refer to a hotel or guesthouse-style accommodation with shared common areas and private rooms, often within a restored traditional mansion. read more…
Between 1900 and 1913, Hector Guimard was responsible for the first generation of entrances to the underground stations of the Paris Métro. His Art Nouveau designs in cast iron and glass dating mostly to 1900, and the associated lettering that he also designed, created what became known as the Métro style (style Métro) and popularized Art Nouveau. However, arbiters of style were scandalized and the public was also less enamored of his more elaborate entrances. In 1904 his design for the Opéra station at Place de l’Opéra was rejected and his association with the Métro ended; many of his station entrances have been demolished, including all three of the pavilion type (at Bastille and on Avenue de Wagram at Étoile). Those that remain are now all protected historical monuments, one has been reconstituted, and some originals and replicas also survive outside France. read more…
