CO Architects and Ayers Saint Gross have completed a copper-clad laboratory complex in downtown Phoenix that evokes jagged and striated rock formations found in the American Southwest. More about Sculptural Arizona research building takes cues from desert topography
Multi-tonal layers of concrete resemble bands of sediment on the walls of this visitor centre designed by Swiss architect Max Dudler for a medieval fortress in Germany (+ slideshow). More about Sparrenberg Castle visitor centre by Max Dudler boasts striated concrete walls
Japanese architect Kengo Kuma has layered wooden boards to create striations inside this workspace and cafe for an online restaurant guide based in Osaka (+ slideshow). More about Kengo Kuma stacks wooden layers inside office and cafe
London College of Fashion graduate Barbora Veselá has layered-up leftover scraps of leather to create striations based on rock formations on the surface of these shoes (+ movie). More about Geology of Shoes by Barbora Veselá
Dezeen archive: this week Zaha Hadid unveiled a pair of shoes featuring striations - parallel ridges like those carved into rock by a glacier. Striations and strata - horizontal layers of material such as sedimentary rocks - are common inspirations for today's architects, as this archive of geologically inspired projects shows (+ slideshow). More about Dezeen archive: strata and striations in architecture
Architect Zaha Hadid has designed a pair of limited-edition chrome-plated shoes with 16.5-centimetre cantilevered heels (+ slideshow). More about NOVA Shoe by Zaha Hadid for United Nude
Milan 2013: bamboo trees sprouted up around a topographical landscape of stone and water at this installation created by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma in Milan last month. More about Urban Stories: Naturescape by Kengo Kuma
Milan 2013: Zaha Hadid imagined a block of ice formed in the crevasses of a glacier for the design of this bench, launching this week in the Tortona district of Milan. More about Serac Bench by Zaha Hadid for Lab23
Belgian architect Vincent Callebaut has developed a concept to introduce natural ecosystems into cities with designs for "farmscrapers" made from piles of giant glass pebbles for a site in Shenzhen, China (+ slideshow). More about Asian Cairns by Vincent Callebaut
Jagged copper balconies emulate the topography of surrounding landscape as they fold around the exterior of this apartment block in north-east Italy by architects Plasma Studio (+ slideshow). More about Dolomitenblick by Plasma Studio
News: a building designed by Zaha Hadid for Beijing has been copied by a developer in Chongqing, with the two projects racing to be completed first. More about Zaha Hadid building pirated in China
Danish studio BIG has unveiled plans for two twisted apartment blocks in Coconut Grove, Miami (+ slideshow). More about The Grove at Grand Bay by BIG
Chinese firm MAD has completed a pair of curvaceous twisted skyscrapers in the growing city of Mississauga, Canada (+ slideshow). More about Absolute Towers by MAD
American firm Morphosis has completed a museum of nature and science in Dallas where visitors begin their tour by taking an escalator journey to the uppermost floor. More about Perot Museum of Nature and Science by Morphosis
When Zaha Hadid Architects' 330,000-square-metre Galaxy Soho complex opened in Beijing last month our readers were left guessing how it relates to the surrounding neighbourhood. This set of images by photographers Hufton + Crow shows just that (+ slideshow). More about Galaxy Soho by Zaha Hadid Architects photographed by Hufton + Crow
London firm Zaha Hadid Architects has completed a 330,000-square-metre retail, office and entertainment complex in Beijing (+ slideshow). More about Galaxy Soho by Zaha Hadid Architects
Horizontal grooves create tactile stripes across the plaster-covered walls of this house in Leiden, the Netherlands, by architects GAAGA (+ slideshow). More about Stripe House by GAAGA
Layers of sediment left by the gradual shift of the Yellow River inspired the facade of this arts museum that will be built near Yinchuan, China. More about Yinchuan Art Museum by WAA
Zaha Hadid has become the latest in a string of architects to design a car park for Miami Beach. More about Miami Beach Parking Garage by Zaha Hadid
Zaha Hadid Architects have released new renders of a 200-metre-high commercial complex designed for Beijing. More about Wangjing Soho by Zaha Hadid Architects