OMA has renovated and expanded the New York studio of famed Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang, creating a subterranean library and tea room and enlarging a courtyard at the heart of the space (+ slideshow). More about OMA creates a light-filled New York studio for artist Cai Guo-Qiang
Rem Koolhaas' firm has revealed plans to overhaul continental Europe's largest department store, with the addition of a glass rooftop extension and a series of sculptural new staircases (+ slideshow). More about OMA unveils major renovation plans for Berlin's KaDeWe department store
Wooden hatches fold open to reveal a new loft room inside this former Victorian schoolhouse, recently renovated by London studio McLaren Excell as a holiday home. More about McLaren Excell creates "floating" loft room inside renovated schoolhouse home
Behind the traditional facade of this Spanish townhouse, Arrokabe Arquitectos has created a contemporary interior featuring a wave-shaped ceiling, a floating staircase and an attic music room. More about Arrokabe Arquitectos creates all-new interior for 18th-century Spanish house
Demolition isn't the only solution to the problem of the UK's troubled housing estates according to architect Alex Ely, whose firm Mae Architects is renovating a series of 1960s slab blocks in Norfolk (+ slideshow). More about Mae Architects gives second life to unloved Hillington Square housing estate
Satoru Hirota Architects has overhauled the site of a Buddhist shrine dating back to Japan's Edo period, adding a triangular reception hall and a priest's quarters with bare concrete walls (+ slideshow). More about Buddhist temple in Tokyo upgraded by Satoru Hirota Architects
Anne Rolland Architecte has transformed a ground-floor space in a 17th-century Parisian townhouse into a studio apartment with a secret underground room. More about Studio apartment in Paris by Anne Rolland Architecte has a hidden converted slurry pit
A curved wooden staircase connects the two floors of this penthouse apartment in Brussels, which architecture office B-ILD converted from two flats (+ slideshow). More about B-ILD combines two apartments in Brussels to create live-work penthouse
This two-storey house in Barcelona, renovated by local studio Nook Architects, features joined living and sleeping areas separated by stairs and mesh partitions (+ slideshow). More about Nook Architects uses mesh to divide open-plan Barcelona house
Johansen Skovsted Arkitekter has converted three 50-year-old concrete and brick pump stations along Denmark's Skjern River into events spaces with elevated viewpoints. More about Johansen Skovsted Arkitekter convert 1960s pump stations into river viewing points
Puzzles Architecture designed this weathering-steel extension for a barn in Belgium, converting it into an annex for the adjacent 18th-century farmhouse (+ slideshow). More about Puzzles Architecture adds rusty steel extension to an old Belgian barn
Swedish designer Richard Lindvall has created monochromatic interiors for a refurbished Stockholm factory that now houses a restaurant and conference space. More about Richard Lindvall renovates former Stockholm sausage factory for Usine Restaurant
Dutch firm van Dongen-Koschuch has converted an old maritime building in the Netherlands into a theatre with a glass auditorium (+ slideshow). More about Glazed theatre by van Dongen-Koschuch occupies former dockland buildings
Chinese architects Lee Chul and Liu Jing punched through the partitions of this small Beijing apartment to create a more open-plan layout with only one door (+ slideshow). More about Lee Chul and Liu Jing knock through walls to open up spaces in a Beijing apartment
Design Haus Liberty has converted a building with an triangular footprint in London's Shoreditch into rental apartments that fold around awkwardly shaped internal walls (+ slideshow). More about Design Haus Liberty squeezes three flats into angular period property in east London
London office Rick Mather Architects has completed an extension to the city's Lyric Hammersmith theatre, adding a new wing that houses facilities including studios for film, dance and theatre (+ slideshow). More about Rick Mather Architects refurbishes and expands London's Lyric Hammersmith theatre
A concrete window seat, geometric tiles and a storage wall made of wooden boxes feature inside this east London house that has been renovated and extended by local studio Mustard Architects (+ slideshow). More about Mustard Architects exploits corners and crevices in Nook House renovation
Paris studio Atelier 37.2 has added a multifaceted wooden volume to an apartment in the French capital to house two shower rooms. More about Atelier 37.2 installs sculptural wooden bathroom inside Haussmann-era apartment
Australian architect David Boyle chose recycled brick for this renovation and extension of a psychologist's house in Sydney, which creates a double-height living room, a mezzanine bedroom and a home office (+ slideshow). More about David Boyle uses reclaimed brick to build extension to a Sydney terrace
SOM's San Francisco office has transformed an abandoned cinema into a multipurpose performance and community venue for the American Conservatory Theater, a prominent arts organisation in the Bay Area (+ slideshow). More about SOM recasts old San Francisco movie house for new role as a nonprofit theatre