Trade show season has come to an end, the school year has wrapped up, and Azure’s Human/Nature climate conference is still a few months away, but there are still plenty of ways to engage with architecture and design through the summer. Here, we’ve rounded up 10 events around the world to consider adding to your agenda — from I.M. Pei’s monumental retrospective at Hong Kong’s M+ Museum to an intimate Kintsugi workshop at The Bentway in Toronto. Check out our events listings for more.

When: Until January 5

Where: M+ Museum; Hong Kong, China

Over his seven-decade career, Chinese American architect I.M. Pei became renowned for his distinctive use of geometry and masterful blending of global cultures. This new retrospective, the first of its scale, looks back at his defining works through six different lenses, such as his foundations in the progressive Modern Movement, his work in real estate development and his material and structural innovations. It also features newly commissioned photographs of Pei’s built projects, demonstrating their continued relevance. From July to September, the M+ Cinema will screen the documentary First Person Singular: I. M. Pei (1997), and fiction films featuring his architectural projects, like Woody Allen’s Sleeper (1973), shot in part at Boulder, Colorado’s National Center for Atmospheric Research. The Pei-themed programming will also include a workshop led by architect Wong Guan Nok Kenrick, which will guide both children and adults in creating structures using Pei’s design approach.

When: Until January 12

Where: Museo M9 Mestre; Venice, Italy

Another monumental exhibition, this show at Venice’s Museo M9 Mestre is the largest-ever dedicated to legendary Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky. Organized over three floors, the show features over 100 works — framed photographs, large-scale murals and an augmented reality experience — exploring the impacts of climate change and the role that human activity plays in it. The first floor hosts an immersive installation, called “In the Wake of Progress,” while the second floor provides an overview of Burtynsky’s career. But it is on the third floor where the exhibition design, by Alvisi Kirimoto, truly shines: An angular structure called the “Scheggia,” comprised of three folded sheets, stands out as a defining architectural element and an organizing framework for the exhibition. It divides the 1,200-square-metre space into three main sections: Abstraction, which examines the photographer’s techniques; Extraction, which looks at the themes that guide his work; and Archive of Progress, a deep dive into Burtynsky’s working methods and professional trajectory.

When: Until July 19

Where: Laun and Denvir Showroom; Los Angeles, USA

What happens when you get LA’s leading creatives in the same room? At Mind Meld, a group exhibition on view at Laun & Denvir’s joint Downtown LA showroom until July 19, you can find out. The show, which kicked off the inaugural LA Design Weekend on June 21, pairs visual artists and designers to foster exciting collaborations. Each designer selected an artwork as a departure point for a one-of-a-kind piece, which is displayed next to the original work that inspired it. Among the design duos are Adi Goodrich of Sing-Sing Studio and Debbie Bean, and AZ Awards winner Kalon Studios with Hopie Hill. “LA Design Weekend is all about collaboration, and MIND MELD is an amazing example of what can happen when we work together in spontaneous and unexpected ways,” says co-curator Holland Denvir. “It’s been fun and inspiring to matchmake duos, it’s not something we do as adults very often and I think there’s something magical about collaborating with folks you might not have met before.”

When: Until February 17

Where: National Building Museum; Washington, D.C., USA

As our recent coverage has shown, brutalism is having a moment right now. But the architectural style also has a long history — and this exhibition at Washington’s National Building Museum demonstrates that with the largest-ever survey of Brutalist architecture in the US capital. Focusing on seven polarizing buildings — including the Robert C. Weaver Federal Building and the FBI Headquarters — and the city’s Metro system, the exhibition uses archival documents, drawings and models to illustrate the emergence of Brutalism during the Cold War. Meanwhile, celebrated firms such as Studio Gang, Brooks + Scarpa and Diller Scofidio + Renfro, as well as students from the School of Architecture at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, offer speculative redesigns that reimagine the future of these historic structures.

When: Until July 17

Where: Toronto, Canada

This July, Toronto’s Italian Contemporary Film Festival (ICFF) puts an architectural twist on movie night with its Architettura & Design program co-presented by IDS. This week in the Distillery District, Azure’s Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Pagliacolo moderated a panel discussion following an open-air screening of Green Over Grey, a documentary about architect Emilio Ambasz and the green architecture movement. In case you missed it, there’s more on the agenda: On July 12, the screening of Archiwine, a film about architecture and viticulture, is paired with a wine tasting, while on the 17, NORR’s Silvio Baldassara will moderate a panel discussion with Michelangelo Sabatino about Italian architect Carlo Mollino.

When: July 15-19

Where: Online

School may be out for the summer, but that doesn’t mean learning is on pause. Open to current students or anyone with a relevant undergraduate degree, this online workshop offered by the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) will teach you how to leverage AI-driven tools — including infrared.city for real-time microclimate simulations, multi-modal large language models (ChatGPT vision), stable diffusion models (like Mid-journey) and advanced computer vision models (such as YOLO) — to design more sustainable buildings. Live lectures, mentoring and practice with exercises and reviews will help you gain hands-on experience applying these tools to analyze existing buildings and propose sustainable solutions.

When: June 22 to September 15

Where: Schindler House; West Hollywood, USA

Our bodies are the vessels through which we experience the built environment. This exhibition spotlights practitioners working to unpack this relationship and aptly takes place in the Schindler House, an early modernist experiment that sought to connect the body with the natural environment. Highlights include Unfinished Encyclopedia of Scale Figures, an index of over 2000 people found in architectural drawings, collages, sketches, and renders by New York firm MOS. These figures have been compiled into an accompanying interactive textile work called Selfie Curtain. The exhibition also includes an exploration of bathrooms as a site of protest and a research project that offers a queer understanding of generic fixtures in architecture, such as railings and door handles.

When: Until October

Where: Toronto, Canada

With warm weather finally upon us, what better time to take to the streets and explore the city up close? Whether you’re a Toronto local or just planning a visit this summer, consider checking out an architectural walking tour led by the Toronto Society of Architects (TSA). If skyscrapers are your thing, a walk through the Financial District runs every Saturday, visiting the city’s tallest towers. Other highlights include tours of the Spadina subway line, the Harbourfront neighbourhood and the University of Toronto’s St. George campus. Running until the last weekend of October, and offered at various times on Saturdays and Sundays, the tours are 90-120 minutes long and cost $15 per person. 

When: August 22-23

Where: University of Jyväskylä, Finland

“How much does architecture weigh when the future of the entire planet is at stake?” This is the central question driving the 2024 Alvar Aalto Symposium, taking place this August. Focusing on three themes — environment, resources and architecture — the program will consider architecture’s potential to address political and environmental crises across the globe. Alongside the discussions, which include a keynote by Grafton Architects’ Yvonne Farrell, the 15th Alvar Aalto Medal will be awarded on opening day. Guided tours of landmark Aalto buildings will also be offered throughout the symposium. The event is hosted onsite in Finland but can also be accessed virtually.

When: July 24

Where: The Bentway; Toronto, Canada

In June, Sephora debuted Beauty at The Bentway, an activation at the eastern edge of the underpass park’s first phase. Previously undeveloped, the site now features works by local artist Avril Wu, greenery from the Toronto Plant Market and ample communal seating. On the evening of July 24, the beauty brand is teaming up with Studio Mooi to host a free, three-hour Kintsugi workshop in this space. Attendees will learn more about the Japanese pottery technique, also known as golden joinery, before creating their own piece using modern methods (beginners are welcome, no previous experience required).

Visit our events calendar for more inspiring lectures, exhibitions and workshops. More information about Azure’s Human/Nature conference is available here.