this week, plans were unveiled for a major new entertainment, sports, and arts district in saudi arabia. masterplanned in conjunction with bjarke ingels group, the ambitious project is called 'qiddiya' and is currently under construction just 45 kilometers outside of riyadh, the country’s capital city. the masterplan offers visitors a range attractions, including a theme park and a potential formula 1 motor racing circuit.

 

in other news, morphosis architects, the firm founded and led by pritzker laureate thom mayne, revealed the new design for the korean american national museum. to be located in LA’s koreatown district, the two-story building has been conceived as 'a lifted, displaced landscape — a piece of korea grafted onto los angeles — containing the museum within.' the building will be crowned with a terrace and sculptural roof garden featuring plants native to the korean landscape.

researchers at MIT senseable city lab, in collaboration with the amsterdam institute for advanced metropolitan solutions, developed a dynamic bridge concept made of autonomous boats. dubbed 'roundAround', the project uses roboat units to connect one of the main waterways in amsterdam, transporting hundreds of people per hour across the water and reducing journey times between the city center and marineterrein from 10 minutes to 2. 

 

meanwhile, lifestyle brand FFORA is dedicated to designing fashionable everyday accessories for people with disabilities, after they noticed the lack of fashion-forward and innovative products available. their accessories are meticulously crafted, with extensive feedback from wheelchair users, as well as the broader disabled community. the essentials suite comprises a proprietary wheelchair-attachable dock, a versatile unisex leather bag offered in two sizes, and a cupholder – all designed for easy installation and effortless use.

this week we featured designer mohammad hassan forouzanfar, who created a series of photomontagesthat fuse icons of contemporary architecture with ancient sites in iran. similarly to his previous projects, which have included introducing skyscrapers to iranian villages, 'retrofuturism' considers how to restore the historic buildings with additions from world renowned architects such as zaha hadid, daniel liebskind and norman foster.

 

elsewhere in the art world, cake artist leslie vigil has a knack for baking, topping her multi-tiered masterpieces with a variety of nature-inspired buttercream frosting designs, including woodland animals, cacti and even crystal formations. for her most recent colorful collection however, vigil has mastered the art of embroidery, using piped icing to create 'stitched' floral designs.

researchers at keio university in japan have developed a robotic tail that humans can wear to improve balance. called 'arque', it was inspired by the way animals passively use their own tails to improve mobility by shifting their center of gravity.

 

in other news from japan, electronics giant NEC corp could help the country become a leader in the passenger drone industry after demonstrating its flying car by hovering it 10 feet off the ground for a full minute. the battery-powered vehicle, which is basically an oversized drone with four large propellers, is designed to carry people inside its compact cabin. tethered with a rope, and tested in a giant mesh cage at a tokyo suburb on monday, this time round it didn’t actually have a passenger inside.

designboom reader karina wiciak of wamhouse studio envisioned 'greenhouse' – a modern cottage and holiday home inspired by the traditional barn architecture of polish villages. as the name suggests, the house is designed for a rural location, with grass covering parts of the walls and roof structure, seamlessly blending into the countryside context. the conceptual project also makes reference to deconstructivism, much like pentahouse (the previous work from wamhouse studio).

 

finally, floating in the sky yet strung together in place, pamela tan's 'projection: kite' is a spatial installation that symbolizes life and festivity, crafted for the good vibes festival in malaysia. the designer took from her architecture background to create an immersive environment where viewers experience a common object in a massive, exploded perspectival play.

the designboom shop is a curated-commerce-space by designboom magazine, offering exclusive products and collectors items, for sale directly from both new and established designers and brands. creators and makers from across the world can sell their original products directly to our 4 million monthly readers, reaching not only other members of the design community, but an international host of curious and creative individuals.