How Minecraft is helping shape real cities, Aalto’s modernist masterpieces earn UNESCO status, and the daybed’s stylish comeback continues. All that and more in this week’s Five on Friday.
UNESCO anoints 13 Aalto projects
Aalto Atelier, completed in 1955, in Munkkiniemi, Helsinki; photo courtesy of Alvar Aalto Foundation
Thirteen projects designed by 20th-century modernist masters Alvar, Aino, and Elissa Aalto have officially been inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The Aalto designs are among 25 new properties added to the list during the 48th session of the World Heritage Committee last week in Busan, South Korea, The Architect’s Newspaper reports. Collectively inscribed as the Aalto Works, the landmarks include 10 individual buildings and three campuses or multi-building structures all across Finland. Standouts include the Sunila Pulp Mill residential concept, the Paimio Sanatorium, and the recently renovated Finlandia Hall in Helsinki. Studio Aalto and the Aalto House have been added to the list as well.
Kids are using Minecraft for good
Photo courtesy of DenPhoto/Adobe Stock
In case you’re unfamiliar, Minecraft is one of the world’s most played video games, comprising an open-ended design format and building tools that invite users to redesign urban areas. The PC game also serves as a platform for teens and tweens to reimagine the cities they live in. The New York Times reports that organizations like the Block by Block Foundation and UN-Habitat have supported the building of more than 150 urban structures across 55 countries thanks to more than 30,000 Minecraft users participating in the design process. Such projects have also spurred the development of the new UN-Habitat initiative Games for Urban Futures, which wields the Block by Block methodology as well as infrastructure from other games. In dedicated workshops, both children and adults collaborate via Minecraft to design urban planning projects in service of local organizations and community stakeholders worldwide. The kids are alright!
Dua Lipa launches library of banned books
Dua Lipa; photo by Tyrone Lebon
One of the world’s favorite libraries just got even more enticing thanks to pop star and cultural curator Dua Lipa. Thought Catalog (yes, we’re citing Thought Catalog in 2026) reports that Livraria Lello in Porto, Portugal is newly endowed with a permanent collection of 100 books that have each been banned, censored, or challenged at some point in their publication history. Titles from Margaret Atwood, Salman Rushdie, Olga Tokarczuk, and more are organized into categories of Power, Control, Voice, and Memory as well. If you’re still looking to compile your summer reading list, we recommend you do start now.
The daybed reigns again
The Lily daybed from the NKYINKYIM A CASA collection by Armando Cabral for USM; photo by Inês Silva Sá
Some things really never go out of style. Case in point: the daybed. An embodiment of versatility, the indoor and outdoor design fixture is experiencing yet another rebirth with new modernist forms eclipsing the fainting sofas of the past, The Spaces argues. Works by Jean Prouvé and Donald Judd have never been more covetable, and contemporary designers are looking to these classics for inspo in both private and public spaces. From sculptural straight lines to spacious, regular old beds, the sleek shapes of the masters are more ubiquitous than ever. Chart the stylish legacy of the daybed.
Deadline extended! Submit to the 2026 Gold Key Awards
The Manola Studio-designed Hotel Wren in California, a 2025 Gold Key Awards finalist; photo by Ethan Jones
It’s a Leo season miracle! The submission deadline for the 46th annual Gold Key Awards for Excellence in Hospitality Design has been extended to Friday, August 7th. You’re still invited to enter outstanding design projects across 24 categories from restaurants and wellness venues to cruise ships and senior living facilities. Submit today and join us for the Gold Key Awards gala on Monday, November 9th at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York. Buy tickets now.