Public Spaces That Pop.

Public spaces define the culture of a city and shape the way we all live. Well designed, they have the power to create a sense of community, belonging and identity. And the best part? Everyone can join in.

By contributing to the vibrancy of our cultural milieu, public space can promote happiness and foster a sense of well-being. It can also be almost anything, which is part of the fun.

Loud, subtle, permanent, ephemeral, awe-inspiring and quietly confident, we’ve gathered some of our favourite Public Spaces that POP to bring you a little sunshine. Check them out below.

Stories On Design: Nomadic Architecture.

For many people, the home is a symbol of permanence and the physical expression of stability and security. For others, there is less of an aspiration to put down roots and rather a desire to explore the natural environment.

Spherifications Installation in Altea, Spain by Conjuntos Empaticos.

Cuerpo Gris (Grey Body) by Martillo Neumatico. Photo by Antonio Bouzas Barcala.

Gold Digger Courtyard Installation in Tortosa Spain. Photo by Antonio Bouzas Barcala.

Temporary exhibitions often draw on-site specifics, forming a dialogue between a city, its heritage and the rise of contemporary architecture. Difficult to miss, Gold Digger by Nicola Dario Baldassarre, Salvatore Dentamaro, Francesco Di Salvo and Ilyass Erraklaouy was a glittering, large-scale public installation occupying the Patio de Sant Jordi and Sant Domènech, a 16th-century convent in the city of Tortosa in Catalonia. Designed for the 2021 edition of A Cel Obert, a festival of ephemeral interventions, the installation invited curiosity by the public and reclaimed the city’s impressive architectural heritage.

Similarly, Cuerpo Gris (Grey Body) by Martillo Neumatico is a site-specific installation in a cloister, with the imposing organic form affecting the surrounding space quite radically.

A World of Curiosity and Discovery: Gold Digger Courtyard Installation in Tortosa, Spain.

This glittering large-scale public installation was composed of golden thermal sheets, occupying the patio of a 16th century convent in Tortosa.

Golden Barnyard, Cockaigne Of Everyman by Wutopia Lab.

Edoardo Tresoldi's Site-Specific Installation 'Simbiosi' at Arte Sella Sculpture Park in Trentino, Italy.

Comprised of wire mesh and local stones, Edoardo Tresoldi’s ‘Simbiosi’ installation seemingly stands in suspension, challenging forces of gravity and weight...

Types Of Spaces installation by Palma & Hanghar in Logrono Spain. Photo by Luis Diaz Diaz.

'Types of Spaces' Installation by Palma and Hanghar.

With the factory’s arresting red-brick chimney, jammed between two colonial-esque buildings, passers-by are lured through a threshold of interlocking terracotta-coloured bricks mimicking the disposition of a typical house.

Photo: Bet Orten.

Photo: Josema Cutillas.

Photo: Josema Cutillas.

Photo: Bet Orten.

Prior Installation by Skull Studio. Photo by Bet Orten.

Palma and Hanghar joined forces for a temporary installation, Types Of Spaces, for Concéntrico, Logroño’s International Architecture and Design Festival. With the red-brick chimney standing tall as a totem, the designers have reconsidered what public space could be and how we interact with it, as they embody the festival’s mission to form a dialogue between the city, its heritage and the rise of contemporary architecture.

SKULL Studio participated in Concéntrico with Prior, a functional sculptural object and playground, that connects observations from neuroscientific disciplines to stimulate the brain. The studio chose a colourful composition arranged in an irregular rhythm to overwhelm the participant and take them out of the comfort zone which in turn multiplies the effectiveness of learning.

LESS in Dairy Road Canberra by Pezo von Ellrichshausen. Photo by Rory Gardiner.

Pezo von Ellrichshausen's First Architectural Commission in Australia Opens in Canberra.

Part public art work, part public space, LESS consists of 36 concrete columns and a circular ramp that leads to a viewing platform...

Tic Art Center by Domani Architectural Concepts. Photo by Vincent Wu.

Sydney Harbour Pavilion Made with Oyster Shells by SPRESSER + Peter Besley.

Made of recycled Sydney oyster shells, the Pavilion references human gathering by the sea. It is designed as a democratic gathering space under a landscape...

Concentrico Pavilion by Sauermartins + Mauricio Mendez. Photo by Josemas Cutillas.

TIC Art Centre by DOMANI Architectural Concepts and LESS by Pezo von Ellrichshausen create notable landmarks in their respective cities that speak directly to the cultural heritage they are sitting on.

Part public art work, part public space, LESS consists of 36 concrete columns and a circular ramp that leads to a viewing platform over a continuous, shallow stream, while playing host to 6,000 individual plants of over 50 different species, many of which are endemic to Canberra. The intentionally ambiguous structure will contribute to the site’s evolving social landscape by providing a landmark and gathering place, encouraging the evolving community to interact with and occupy its varied spaces as they see fit.

DOMANI Architectural Concepts’ TIC Art Centre is a monumental cultural hub that ambitiously champions innovation while honouring craft. The publicly engaging precinct is situated in an impressively paved landscape of terracotta bricks sharply contrasted with garden beds of ebony pebble, trees, and sculptures, the art centre stands as a distinguished monolithic glass box made of four levels clad predominantly in triangular tessellated brick latticework. The brief also allowed architects to sculpt the landscape, cementing the next visual attraction in which both tourists and locals can enjoy.

Terminal 2g Roissy Charles De Gaulle Airport by Studio Chzon.

At Charles De Gualle Airport Dorothée Meilichzon and Chzon Studio transformed the boarding hall at Terminal 2G into a dazzling ode to Paris. Nods to Parisian monuments and icons are seen throughout the interior, from a working fountain that mimics the same one in the Luxembourg Garden and its famous chairs, the arches of Paris and street sculptures by the Les Simmonets. Meilichzon wanted to pass on a mantra to the departing passengers—Paris loves you.

Staying within the transport theme, Wutopia Lab created a romantic and futuristic train station with a diorama-like skyline that celebrates Shanghai’s architectural and technological feats. Wuzhong Road Train Station is a space of optimism and hope—a place that aspires to make social interaction and gatherings vibrant.

Drama at the Gate: Terminal 2G, Charles De Gaulle Airport by Dorothée Meilichzon.

Charles De Gaulle Airport has received a dramatic overhaul by the je ne sais quoi queen of hospitality herself—Dorothée Meilichzon. No, not the lounge, but an actual boarding hall at Terminal 2G.

Shanghai In Tube by Wutopia Lab. Photo by Creatar Images.

Shanghai in a Tube: Wuzhong Road Train Station by Wutopia Lab.

Seeing stars? So are we, with Wutopia Lab’s breathtaking Line 15 Wuzhong Road Station on Shanghai. An impressive arch, that spans a whopping 21.5 metres ornamented with backlit perforated city-scape...

[Photography credits as noted.]