Architecture
The Only Material That Already Belongs
Every building material makes an argument about where it comes from. Concrete says it came from industry. Steel says it came from somewhere far away
June 3, 2026
Every building material makes an argument about where it comes from. Concrete says it came from industry. Steel says it came from somewhere far away
In Freeport, Maine, students and researchers now gather in a building that was designed to do more than shelter them — it was designed to
Last fall, Smith College opened Kathleen McCartney Hall — a 15,000-square-foot mass timber hub on its Frederick Law Olmsted–designed campus in Northampton, Massachusetts. Designed by
What Your Grade Stamp Is Actually Telling You. Part 1 of 3: How Lumber Gets Graded This is the first in a three-part series from
In 2018, NELMA challenged architecture and design students to imagine a lunar colony built with wood. At the time, it read like creative speculation —
The lumber industry has long supplied the raw material for civilization — framing homes, shaping skylines, furnishing interiors. But raw material alone doesn’t drive innovation.
