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In the most simplistic terms, the built landscape is a tactile, physical construct. It is real to us; we can reach out and touch it, feel its envelope, and affect our senses. Yet architects and designers are starting to shift their gaze beyond the tangible realm, pushing applications of architecture into new frontiers.

The term ‘metaverse’ first appeared in the 1992 dystopian novel Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. It refers to a virtual reality world that millions of people participate in via digital avatars, complete with its own economy. In more recent years, fiction has truly become (virtual) reality. The theoretical concept of the metaverse has spawned into a palpable world of its own — a three-dimensional digital playground where users can interact with each other in real time amid immersive, rendered environments.

As the industry navigates an untrodden and ever-changing digital terrain, architects eagerly explored the design potential of the metaverse. Accommodating everything from social events and virtual tourism to business meetings, marketing and educational endeavors, this new landscape has myriad functions. These six compelling projects recognized in the Architecture+Metaverse category of the 11th A+Awards demonstrate the creative possibilities of architecture untethered from the material world.

Yet, innovation is ever-accelerating, and architects are already focusing on the new frontiers of digital design (to reflect this, Architizer introduced the Architecture +AI category in the 12th Annual A+Awards). However, the following projects prove there may be life in the metaverse yet…

By XMArchitect

Jury Winner, 11^th Annual A+Awards, Architecture +Metaverse

Metacity by XMArchitect This metaverse masterplan is designed for a futuristic, dystopian world in which global warming has flooded the Earth, rendering it uninhabitable. The Metacity will consist of five cities, the first of which will take the form of a Möbius strip, hovering above the ocean. The city will function as a self-contained eco-system, featuring a gravity-coated surface that generates perpendicular gravity.

In this pioneering co-creation platform, users have free rein to build their own structures — it’s a malleable surface where imaginations can run wild. What’s more, the decentralized model rewards users who contribute to the construction of the Metacity through integrated Build2Earn and Design2Earn gameplay. This immersive, otherworldly environment challenges the parameters of space as we know them, encouraging users to build in extraordinary new ways.

By HOOMAN ALIARY X VELIZ ARQUITECTO

Popular Choice Winner, 11th Annual A+Awards, Architecture +Metaverse

THE AGENCY METAVERSE By HOOMAN ALIARY X VELIZ ARQUITECTO One of the unique draws of the metaverse is its ability to bridge the voids of geography. You can share the same virtual space as someone thousands of miles away — no arduous traveling required. It makes sense then to leverage this new realm as a business and networking tool.

Designed for global real estate brokerage The Agency, this ground-breaking commercial space is nothing short of astonishing. Embracing fluid, organic lines, the sinuous structure is a celebration of cutting-edge architecture, blurring indoors and out and experimenting with scale, light and porous materials. It’s an evocative backdrop against which the firm’s realtors can talk business and convene with clients and potential buyers.

By Unusual Design Studio

Finalist, 11th Annual A+Awards, Architecture +Metaverse

Unusualverse by Unusual Design Studio Defined by its amethyst hues and the glass globe at its heart, the Unusualverse is conceived as a plain of artistic community. A reaction to the The term ‘metaverse’ first appeared in the 1992 dystopian novel, but in more recent years, fiction has truly become (virtual) reality. of the physical world, this new virtual reality universe offers a space for creativity to flourish, at a distance from the pressures of society and day-to-day life.

The globe houses a tree of life, an anchoring force symbolizing rebirth, a stark contrast to the barren moonscapes outside. Within the globe are exhibition halls where artists can share their work, their spatial configurations morphing and shapeshifting as required. This virtual cultural hub is a portal to a realm of unfettered creative freedom.

By UKAssociate

Finalist, 11th Annual A+Awards, Architecture +Metaverse

Nature Bloom in Metaverse by UKAssociate A car showroom with a difference, this innovative concept space deftly combines reality and virtual reality. In contrast to the other projects in this round-up, the exhibition hall was designed for a real-world location: Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Created to promote eco-friendly vehicles, the metaverse fuses with the material fabric of the space, conjuring up new horizons of exploration.

The project has a streamlined spatial flow, seamlessly guiding users between various exhibition zones. Model cars merge with VR technology for realistic driving simulations, holograms illustrate materials processes and the infinite lifecycle of natural resources is brought to life through immersive 3D technology. This collision of worlds ensures environmental lessons, so vividly illustrated in the metaverse, resound across the physical realm too.

By HWKN Architecture

Finalist, 11th Annual A+Awards, Architecture +Metaverse

PAXTON by HWKN Architecture HWKN Architecture was chosen to design a virtual cultural hub by metaverse company Pax.World. Dubbed a metaserai, the concept was inspired by caravanserais, which were roadside inns and trading posts peppered along the ancient Silk Road.

Nestled within a rolling desert topography, the geometric structure is fantastically whimsical. Its architects were careful to pair the futuristic with the familiar — recognizable architectural elements ground users, while revealing an extraordinary new social plain. Checkered ramps traverse the levels. From the vast events amphitheater where virtual tickets can be purchased, to the glass-walled art gallery, open-air conference rooms, rooftop sports areas and gardens, the digital architecture elevates the experiential.

By ATRIUM

Special Mention, 11th Annual A+Awards, Architecture +Metaverse

ATRIUM Virtual Gallery by ATRIUM A virtual gallery showcasing the work of architecture firm ATRIUM, this dynamic, cave-like space envelops users with its curvilinear lines. Forming a rippling, multi-layered terrain, pale pink blurs into hot pink hues across the floor and walls, before cooling to white across the ceiling, where architectural elements hang in the air.

The walls’ irregular geometries ebb and flow around the exhibit pieces, which range from models of a skyscraper and a residential complex to intricate furniture designs. Ingeniously, users can view the furnishings in augmented reality through their phones, transporting items into their own interiors. An ingenious branding tool, the gallery expresses the firm’s architectural approach with captivating clarity.

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New technologies breed new behaviors, so it’s no surprise that real-time rendering software is being harnessed by some architects to create whole new design processes. Two such firms, Intelligent City and Viewport Studio, are using the real-time rendering capabilities of Enscape to produce high-quality building designs in a fraction of the time it takes with traditional working methods. Basing their workflows on AI-enabled algorithms and the experiential capabilities of virtual reality, they’ve created design processes that are more efficient, more productive, and arguably more effective than today’s typical design practices.

The Key to Low-Cost, High-Quality Urban Housing

Animation courtesy of Intelligent City

Intelligent City, a design-build firm based in Vancouver, has created a proprietary design process called Platforms for Life to develop high-quality, sustainable urban housing at low cost. Taking a tech-forward approach to architecture, Platforms for Life employs algorithms to create fully fleshed out iterations for the design of an entire building. Modifying an individual property on one iteration automatically updates all associated parameters to incorporate the change, allowing an infinite number of fully detailed design options to be generated instantaneously. When the desired iteration is reached, all required construction documentation and manufacturing instructions are created with the push of a button.

Platforms for Life achieves even greater cost and time savings by prefabricating the primary components of their buildings in a factory. Employing the precision and speed offered by the latest automated manufacturing techniques, on-site construction time of their buildings can be reduced up to 50% over fully on-site methods. Relying heavily on mass timber as a structural material and the principles of Passive House to guide their design algorithms, the Platforms for Life process results in low-cost, energy efficient buildings with minimal carbon footprint.

Monad Granville, Vancouver (concept); image courtesy of Intelligent City

Intelligent City brings Enscape into the Platforms for Life process to fine-tune their designs in real-time when collaborating with clients. “We were looking for a way to visualize the buildings quickly,” explains Intelligent City’s Computational Design Architect, Timo Tsui. “If we couldn’t keep up with the iterations of the generated designs, then we wouldn’t be able to visualize them properly for our clients.”

A simple way to do this in a collaborative working session is to pin the Enscape rendering window alongside whatever software is being used to design a building, such as Revit or Rhino. This allows a fully rendered view to be updated automatically as design modifications are being made. If something more portable is needed for a client to evaluate on their own time, then Enscape can generate an easily shareable, read-only 3D model rendered in a web browser, in addition to 360-degree panoramas, videos or still images.

Forging New Frontiers in Interior Design

Image courtesy of Viewport Studio

Viewport Studio employs Enscape’s next-generation virtual reality capabilities to take an innovative approach to creating highly detailed interior designs. Recently tasked with designing the interior of Virgin Galactic’s Spaceport America, the first commercial spaceflight facility in the world, Viewport Studio’s design team knew they had to utilize a truly groundbreaking design process to satisfy the client’s aspirations for an equally groundbreaking space.

“We were tasked with designing something that had never been designed before,” says Viewport Studio director Gautier Pelegrin. To meet the challenge, they used Enscape’s virtual reality feature as a primary design tool, conducting live sessions to view and change design elements in real-time. This workflow resulted in the design of the spaceport’s “Astrowalk”, where astronaut passengers are given a celebratory send-off by their friends and families before embarking on their journeys. A showcase experience enhanced by a mirrored ceiling covered with LED screens, Enscape’s virtual reality feature helped the design team determine if spectators could see the Astrowalk from their seats.

Image courtesy of Viewport Studio

Enscape was additionally used to determine the exact dimensions of a barista station, as well as the amount of natural light that would reach certain planters, guiding the choice of plants used in specific locations. “The virtual reality function quickly became a staple in all our meetings,” explains Pelegrin. “It helped to reduce testing iterations by at least 20 percent. It also allowed us to check the simple ergonomics of the bespoke furniture we designed, and we were confident with what we gave to the manufacturers.”

Able to integrate directly into all major design software, including Revit, SketchUp, Rhino, Archicad, and Vectorworks, the possibilities for creating your own pioneering design process with Enscape are endless. Head over to Enscape to see all its capabilities and start your free 14-day trial today.

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