Nicolas Vaucher is an architect and office partner responsible for the development of architectural projects in western Switzerland.
Design Without Users: Creating the UCCA Clay Museum
The design of the museum began with a largely cleared site, yet without an operator. Yutaka Terasaki and Bao Mengxian report on how Kengo Kuma & Associates planned the building without needing a detailed briefing.
Museum of Ceramic Art in Yixing
The new UCCA Clay Museum advances the millennia-old tradition of artisanal ceramics the Chinese metropolis Yixing is renowned for. An armour of red clay tile encloses the exhibition spaces and the open timber roof constructions above them – an expressive space for the presentation of modern ceramic art.
Glasshouse Theatre in Brisbane
The Glasshouse Theatre adds a fifth venue to the heritage-listed Queensland Performing Arts Centre. It can be flexibly used for concerts, operas, and dance and theatre performances. The glass facades of the deeply cantilevered foyer visualise the theatrical art of illusion on the exterior.
Monastery of Santa María of Sijena
In their restoration of the Monastery of Santa María of Sijena, Pemán y Franco and Sebastián preserve traces of destruction, rebuilding, and decay spanning 800 years. Recently, they remodelled the east and north wings into an exhibition space for the convent’s valuable artworks.
"We Wanted to Showcase the Illusionary Art of Theatre to the Outside World"
Brisbane is set to host the 2032 Summer Olympics. However, the city is also preparing for the future in cultural terms. In early 2026, Blight Rayner Architecture and Snøhetta completed the Glasshouse Theatre. Peter Brown and Michael Rayner explain the design.
"Opera Houses Are Places of Learning"
In 2008, Snøhetta redefined the opera house in Oslo. How has this building type evolved since then? Cofounder Kjetil Thorsen discusses the new opera house in Shanghai, time-tested floor plans, new roles for cultural institutions, and the responsible use of public funds.