An emphasis on materials often coincides with an interest in the local and primitive, suggesting resistance to globalisation. However, proximity and the use of traditional materials in fact moves beyond the local, into the universal realm. Selected here are eight works from diverse cultural and climatic contexts that share material as a central theme. These include Kengo Kuma’s Yusuhara Marche in Kochi, Steilneset Memorial in Norway by Peter Zumthor, Ghent’s Market Hall by Robbrecht en Daem, and the Kantana Institute in Thailand. Also in this issue: Japan after Fukushima, the restoration of the Madrid Hippodrome, Segovia’s new University Campus, and more.

An emphasis on materials often coincides with an interest in the local and primitive, suggesting resistance to globalisation. However, proximity and the use of traditional materials in fact moves beyond the local, into the universal realm. Selected here are eight works from diverse cultural and climatic contexts that share material as a central theme. These include Kengo Kuma’s Yusuhara Marche in Kochi, Steilneset Memorial in Norway by Peter Zumthor, Ghent’s Market Hall by Robbrecht en Daem, and the Kantana Institute in Thailand. Also in this issue: Japan after Fukushima, the restoration of the Madrid Hippodrome, Segovia’s new University Campus, and more.