A bold step towards co-branding Malaysia’s leading architecture exhibition

20 July 2025 

KUALA LUMPUR:  The inaugural Kuala Lumpur Architecture Week 2025 (KLAW 2025) was officially launched today with a lively city walk organised by Nga Kor Ming, Minister of Housing and Local Government. He toured specially curated installations across Petaling Street in Old Kuala Lumpur (the historic colonial administrative district west of the Klang and Gombak River confluence) to mark the start of this week-long celebration of architecture, art, and heritage. 

KLAW 2025, an initiative under ARCHIDEX 2025, Asia’s leading architecture business event, held under the umbrella of the annual Kuala Lumpur Architecture Festival (KLAF), represents the first time in Malaysia that a major trade exhibition is co-branded with the city to create impact beyond the confines of a convention centre and stimulate the visitor economy. With ARCHIDEX 2025 taking place at two iconic venues, MITEC (21–24 July) and KLCC (23–26 July)—KLAW 2025 bridges the event experience from business-to-business (B2B) to business-to-consumer (B2C), inviting visitors from the exhibition halls into the streets of Kuala Lumpur. 

Nga Kor Ming praised the initiative, stating, “The Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT) is proud to fully support this transformative endeavour. “With the launch of AREC and the 24th edition of ARCHIDEX this coming Wednesday, we are setting the stage for Kuala Lumpur to further establish itself as a regional leader in design and sustainable urban development. ARCHIDEX remains Malaysia’s largest architecture and building materials exhibition, welcoming over 50,000 participants from 110 countries this year.

“This momentum aligns with Malaysia’s role as ASEAN Chair, and ensures that KL Architecture Week becomes a prominent brand for our capital. I have allocated RM30,000 to the Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM), demonstrating our commitment to promoting Kuala Lumpur’s unique blend of innovation, heritage, and global appeal,” he added.    

Under the theme “Reviving the City’s Heartbeat,” KLAW 2025 sets a new standard in ‘festivalising’ architecture, transforming Old Kuala Lumpur, Chinatown, and surrounding areas into an immersive city-wide gallery. Visitors are invited to explore public installations, art, sketching walks, and curated food and beverage experiences, many highlighting the city’s often-overlooked charm and stories rooted in its history. 

Among these installations, there is “lepaX” at REX KL, designed by Ar. Idr. Ts. Afi Muhaimin Jamalludin and Ar. Ahmadkhairul Sabirin bin Ahmad Rosli, which explores structure and space by reimagining scaffolding, traditionally used for construction—as both sculpture and a moment to pause. It celebrates simplicity, transparency, and adaptive reuse.

Another is “Twist Potato” at Pik Wah Café & Bar, by Ar. Beh Ssi Cze and Ar. Firadaus Khazis, transforming an overlooked void into a playful, light-filled retreat that experiments with shape and contrast, encouraging quiet reflection through organic forms and honest materials. 

The installation “ngo-kha-ki” at Four Points by Sheraton Kuala Lumpur, Chinatown, by Ar. Quan Hwai Teng, is inspired by the traditional five-foot way of shophouses. Once vital to community life, these spaces are reinterpreted with urban urgency, framing past and present within social interaction, climate responsiveness, and cultural continuity. Meanwhile, “Prism of Merdeka,” situated opposite Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock and created by Ar. Rien Tan and TKCA Architects, reinterprets the triangle as a metaphor for challenge, ambition, and identity. A procession of angular portals forms a symbolic corridor through time, charting Petaling Street’s layered history and culminating in a striking view of Merdeka 118, Malaysia’s tallest tower, highlighting the dialogue between heritage and progress. 

A live Sketchcrawl with KL Urban Sketchers will take place, with selected artworks exhibited at ARCHIDEX KLCC. Additionally, there will be the KL Old City Sketch, a 10-metre hand-drawn panorama capturing the city’s evolving architecture and character across time. 

KLAW 2025 exemplifies how a business event can evolve into a citywide movement that fosters community engagement and economic growth. By attracting a segment of ARCHIDEX’s expected 56,000 international and local visitors into Kuala Lumpur’s streets, the initiative aims to stimulate economic activity across sectors—including food and beverage, retail, hospitality, transport, and culture, while repositioning the city’s historic quarters as vibrant creative and lifestyle destinations. 

Dato’ Vincent Lim, President of C.I.S and co-organiser of ARCHIDEX, remarked, “With ARCHIDEX and DATUM drawing thousands of professionals, KL Architecture Week adds an experiential layer, encouraging visitors to stay, explore, and return, not just for business but for the city itself. It’s about integrating Kuala Lumpur into the event, and vice versa.” 

KLAW 2025 forms part of a long-term vision to develop an architecture-led urban festival that celebrates Malaysia’s design identity and city narrative. As ARCHIDEX continues to grow, with over 850 exhibitors across two venues this year, KLAW 2025 marks a new chapter in how exhibitions can deliver value directly to streets, small businesses, and local communities. 

Situated near key landmarks such as Menara 118, KLAW 2025 positions the Old City as a bridge connecting Kuala Lumpur’s past with its future. Its success this year lays the groundwork for future collaborations with exhibitors, city makers, and creatives to expand the festival and deepen public engagement in the years ahead.