Brooklyn studio SO-IL has stretched a thin layer of white film over the facade of the Storefront gallery in New York, giving the building a vacuum-packed appearance (+ slideshow). More about SO-IL wraps white plastic around New York's Storefront gallery
News: NASA is testing an unmanned aerial vehicle that would scope out the terrain of the red planet to decide the best routes for rover vehicles to explore (+ movie). More about NASA plans to use drones for exploring Mars
Maison&Objet 2015: hand-cut patterns cast shadows from within these blown-glass lampshades by London designer Benjamin Hubert (+ slideshow). More about Benjamin Hubert experiments with glass blowing to create Beacon lamps
Lego bricks could be used to transfer design models into real-time digital files with this prototype system by London studio Gravity (+ movie). More about Lego X turns toy building blocks into a digital modelling kit for designers
Business news: designer Marcel Wanders and entrepreneur Casper Vissers have regained complete control of Dutch design brand Moooi, buying the remaining 25 per cent of the company they co-founded in 2001. More about Moooi co-founders buy remaining stake from B&B Italia
This weathered steel-clad artist's studio by architect Christian Tonkin has an angled body that follows the slope of the hill, but one end projects out to frame views out over the rooftops of nearby Bregenz (+ slideshow). More about Tick-shaped art studio by Christian Tonko follows the slope of an Austrian hillside
News: the cost to build a new outpost of the V&A museum in Dundee, Scotland, has almost doubled to the sum of £80 million – a figure that architect Kengo Kuma has claimed is "surprisingly high" (+ movie). More about Kengo Kuma "surprised" after V&A Dundee costs rise to £80 million
Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa has created a new version of his simple smartphone for telecommunications company KDDI. More about Naoto Fukasawa designs streamlined Infobar A03 smartphone for KDDI
A tapered column of cast concrete supports the underside of a dark oak staircase inside one of the residences that occupies this converted London garage by Patalab Architecture (+ slideshow). More about Single concrete leg props a staircase inside converted Primrose Hill garage by Patalab
Harp strings fixed across the facade turn this hotel chapel on a lakeside site in Shiga Prefecture, Japan, into a huge musical instrument when the wind blows (+ slideshow). More about Lakeside hotel by Ryuichi Ashizawa adjoins a wedding chapel with a musical facade
Stockholm 2015: Stockholm-based Note Design Studio has created a series of lamps wrapped in pastel-coloured textiles for Swedish brand Zero (+ slideshow). More about Note Design Studio encases Elements lights in soft-hued fabric shades
Behind the Georgian facade of a historic London property, architecture office Cullinan Studio has overhauled living spaces to create an oak-framed family room that opens out to the garden (+ movie). More about Cullinan Studio transforms Hampstead house with glazed garden room
Fashion designer Rick Owens has updated his collection of shoes for Adidas, adding three new models including a knee-high boot (+ slideshow). More about Rick Owens extends footwear range for Adidas
News: London mayor Boris Johnson has approved plans to create Europe's longest segregated cycle lane through the city centre. More about London mayor backs new cycle superhighway
Maison&Objet 2015: Japanese studio Nendo has surrounded a lounge area with a cascade of 2,000 chocolate-coloured pipes for an installation at this year's Maison&Objet trade fair (+ slideshow). More about Nendo creates chocolatey waves for Maison&Objet installation
Dezeen is launching in North America! We are opening an office in New York and have hired an editorial and sales team to help us grow our audience and business in the USA. The team will be temporarily based in the new Moooi Brand Store at 36 East 31st Street, New York, NY 10016.
We'll be going live with enhanced editorial content covering cutting-edge architecture and design the USA from May and we will be hosting a launch event in New York during NYCxDesign.
More about Dezeen is coming to New York!
News: construction is now under way on a public square underneath Richard Seifert's iconic Centre Point tower in London, as part of a major redevelopment by Rick Mather Architects and Conran & Partners (+ movie). More about Work starts on public plaza beneath Richard Seifert's Centre Point
Comments update: inequality in architecture was back on the agenda this week, as readers responded to Dezeen columnist Alexandra Lange, who argued that sexism and prejudice were still a deep-rooted problem within the industry. More about "Giving a prize to a woman purely because she is female is insulting"
Japanese studios Rhythmdesign and Case-Real came up with the design for this nursery school in Kumamoto after being given a brief to create "not a small school, but a big house" (+ slideshow). More about Hakemiya Nursery School is designed to remind children of their homes
Shoppers are encouraged to get hot under the collar while perusing the erotic products on offer at this Munich sex shop, with a curvaceous interior by New York designer Karim Rashid (+ slideshow). More about Karim Rashid's sex shop interior "satisfies primal desire"