The Kon-Tiki Museum in Oslo, Norway, will undergo a redesign and expansion expected to be completed in 2025. The ambitious works will transform the attraction, which charts the travels of Norwegian adventurer, Thor Heyerdahl. Located on the forested Bygdøy peninsula in Oslo, the Kon-Tiki Museum is already one of Norway’s most visited museums, with more than 70 per cent of its visitors coming from abroad. The museum houses a broad

Svart, the world’s first energy-positive hotel, has appointed award-winning Danish designers Space Copenhagen to lead the property’s interior design. Designed by the Norwegian architect firm Snøhetta, Svart will be located in Arctic Norway at the base of the Svartisen glacier and will house an indoor-outdoor spa – designed by spa and wellness consultant Felicity Leahy, as well as four restaurants, an education centre and a design laboratory. The glass-fronted, circular

The world’s first energy-positive hotel, called Svart, is due to open early in 2022. Designed by Snøhetta, the circular 99-room hotel will be situated on the Holandsfjorden fjord at the foot of the Svartisen glacier in Norway, raised up above the fjord on a wooden support structure. Developed by Miris, the hotel is located north of the Arctic Circle and is expected to use around 85 per cent less energy

The Snøhetta -designed energy-positive hotel Svart, which will be situated on the Holandsfjorden fjord at the foot of the Svartisen glacier in Norway’s Meløy municipality, has been given an opening date of 2022. The concept, which was revealed in 2018, is still on course to be completed in 2021. Developed by Miris and designed to the Powerhouse standard, it is expected to use around 85 per cent less energy than

Snøhetta have won a competition to create the Xingtai Grand Theater in China with a design that provides indoors and outdoors performance spaces, unites nearby cultural programmes and anchors a new masterplan for the region. The fast-growing city of Xingtai is one of a number in Hebei Province that is struggling to meet the demands of its development. The Grand Theater has been conceived as the cultural cornerstone of a

A new public garden, designed by Snøhetta, is being created at the prestigious 550 Madison tower in Manhattan, with the aim of introducing much needed green space to the area and honouring the vision of the building's original architects. Designed by Philip Johnson and John Burgee, 550 Madison was initially intended to be a community amenity with public open space, in addition to an office tower. Co-owner of the building

Werk and Snøhetta have won a competition to design a new maritime centre in Esbjerg, Denmark, with a design that will resemble a glowing lantern on the edge of the town's harbour. Lanternen (or "Lanterns") is designed to be a new landmark for the coastal community, providing a connection between the sea and the town and acting as a hub for the many activities that take place in and around

Snøhetta and Clark Nexsen have revealed their design for the new Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, with elements that help to achieve the mission of it being more than just a library and also serving as a public commons. Located in the US city of Charlotte, North Carolina, the building will cover an area of 115,000sq ft (11,000sq m). It is shaped with a curved prow at one of its corners, which

Snøhetta have designed a visitor centre for Arctic preservation storage called The Arc with an exhibition building that is towering and monolithic, but also curved and organic. The facility was commissioned by Arctic Memory AS to showcase content from the Svalbard Global Seed Vault and the Arctic World Archive, as well as to educate visitors and inspire innovative preservation solutions for the world's food and digital resources. Located 78° north

Integrated design practice Snøhetta have teamed up with AECOM and WCIT Architecture to redesign the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. The new masterplan will see the 22-acre cultural venue expanded to include a concert hall, exhibition centre, and sports pavilion. The complex will also feature a number of outdoor spaces – such as ponds, gardens, and rivulets – all of which will follow what the design team have

Architecture firms Snøhetta and Blight Rayner have won an international competition to design an AU$150m (US$103.8m, €90m, £81.4m) theatre for the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) in Brisbane, Australia. Set to open in 2022, the pivotal facility, which will turn QPAC into the largest performing arts centre in Australia, will feature two studios, foyer spaces, and an expansive glass façade. "The building will glow by night and sparkle by day

Sir David Adjaye has been selected to design the new Kiran Nadar Museum of Art and Cultural Center (KNMACC) following a global competition that brought together 47 of the world's most prestigious architecture firms. Planned for New Delhi, the attraction – Adjaye's first cultural commission in India – will house a 6,000-piece collection of South Asian contemporary art as well as facilities for music and creative education. Adjaye's "veil of

The Chinese government has commissioned Scandinavian architecture firm Snøhetta to design the Shanghai Grand Opera House. Described by the architects as an "accessible canvas for global visitors, local citizens, and artists", the new opera building, which will rise on the banks of the Huangpu River, will comprise a 2,000-seat auditorium, two smaller performance halls, restaurants, exhibition areas, libraries, and cinemas. Key structure elements of the future landmark will be its

Under – an underwater restaurant and research facility that evokes the romance and wonder of Captain Nemo's Nautilus – has opened in Lindesnes, Norway. Conceptualised by Scandinavian design firm Snøhetta, the grey-coloured building, which was shaped to appear like a sunken periscope, can accommodate up to 40 guests and is protected from sea waves by fortress-like concrete walls. Under's interiors, illuminated by greenish LEDs, also add realism to the space,

Scandinavian architecture practice Snøhetta have revealed the first renderings of their proposed design for the Bolzano Museum Quarter in South Tyrol, Italy. The cultural attraction, which – if greenlit – will be picturesquely situated atop Virgolo mountain, will also serve as a satellite facility, housing artefacts from the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology and the Municipal Museum of Bolzano as well as exhibition spaces for Otzi the Iceman – a

The Arts District in El Paso, Texas is to welcome a new addition in the form of the El Paso Children’s Museum, which will sit between the El Paso Museum of History and the El Paso Museum of Art. Norway-based architectural practice Snøhetta have been selected to design the new museum, which will aim to engage children and families from El Paso, Ciudad Juarez, the American southwest, and the nearby

Architectural firms Snøhetta and DIALOG have completed construction on Calgary’s New Central public library. The US$146m (€127m, £112m) building, has been created to "inspire Calgarians for the next 100 years", with an opening date set for 1 November. The city’s mayor, Naheed Nenshi, said the new centre, which is based at the intersection of downtown Calgary and the East Village neighbourhood, would have a "starring role" in putting Calgary on

Work is almost complete on what will soon be the world's largest underwater restaurant, with the Snøhetta-designed project in Norway on track to open next year. Called 'Under', work on the concrete, 600sq m (6,500sq ft) structure, reached a milestone in July when engineers began the “sinking process”, which saw the building lowered into the North Sea at the southernmost point of the Norwegian coastline by the village of Bål.

Norway’s Snøhetta and Melbourne, Australia’s NH Architecture have been appointed to reimagine the Arts Centre Melbourne in Australia. The building, originally designed by Australian modernist Roy Grounds and completed in 1984, will be redesigned with modern technological advances in mind. The development of the Arts Centre is being supported by the government of Victoria as part of the AU$208m (US$152m, €132m, £119m) first stage of the transformation of Melbourne’s art

International architects Snøhetta have designed a new planetarium and a visitor centre for Norway’s largest astronomical facility by studying the night sky for design inspiration. Nestled in the dense forest of Harestua, 45km north of Oslo, Solobservatoriet is the largest solar observatory North of the Alps. Its original observatory was built by the University of Oslo for the total solar eclipse of 1954, and a satellite tracking station was established

International architects Snøhetta have unveiled their kitchen extension and garden redesign for the world-renowned restaurant The French Laundry, in Yountville, California. The three-starred Michelin restaurant, which was founded in 1994 by American chef Thomas Keller and named after one of the building’s former uses, is regularly listed as one of the best in the world. Snøhetta – working in collaboration with San Francisco studio Envelope A+D and Keller – aimed

International architects Snøhetta have unveiled a concept design for the Arctic circle's first ever energy-positive hotel. Situated at the foot of the Svartisen glacier that runs through Meløy, northern Norway, the project, called Svart, will consume around 85 per cent less energy than a modern Norwegian hotel, and produce its own power. The design has been developed by Snøhetta in collaboration with sustainable tourism agency Arctic Adventure of Norway; engineering

A sinuous waterfront landmark has opened along the lively corniche in Muttrah on the coast of Oman, bringing together commerce and leisure at the nation’s largest harbour. Designed by architects Snøhetta, the Muttrah Fish Market is a hub for the local fishing industry but is also a focal point and destination for both the community and international tourists. Located close to the city’s original fish market, built in 1960, the

Three international architecture firms invited to submit designs for a new children’s museum in the Mexico-US border city of El Paso, Texas, will soon learn the outcome of a public vote. Three firms are competing in the contest: the Santa Monica, California-based KoningEizenberg; Norwegian firm Snøhetta; and Mexico’s TEN Arquitectos. El Paso Community Foundation says the new children’s museum will “spark imaginations, curiosity, creativity and critical thinking through immersive, experiential

Four international design firms are combining to create a new stadium for US baseball team The Oakland Athletics, better known as the A’s. Snøhetta – whose large-scale leisure buildings include the Norwegian National Opera in Oslo and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art expansion in California – will collaborate with stadium specialists HOK, US studio Sasaki Associates and local firm Studio T-Square. Together, the partners will design a new

Snøhetta have revealed designs for the international architects' latest leisure project – the first underwater restaurant to open in Europe. Located at the southernmost point of the Norwegian coastline, the restaurant, called Under, will double as an aquarium and marine research centre. Snøhetta's design is inspired by the country's rocky coast, with a monolithic structure breaking from the surface of the sea to rest on the craggy shoreline. The bottom

International architects Snøhetta have completed a new home of fine art, music and design in Bergen, Norway. The complex has been designed for the University of Bergen’s art and design faculty – previously scattered across six buildings – and will be open to the public so that “students, professors, and visitors will connect, discover, and learn from one another”. The 14,800sq m (159,300sq ft) structure is Bergen’s second-largest cultural building,