Crimped and folded like the tectonic plates of the nearby Papago and Camelback Mountains, the roof that tops the Tempe Center for the Arts in Arizona provides the facility with its signature element.

A library in China adopts a minimalist design plan and embodies the ideals of the region.

Only in China, perhaps, is it possible for a private academy serving grades pre-kindergarten through 12 to construct an innovative 64,600-square-foot elementary school and a richly appointed 24,000-square-foot performing arts center in 18 months and for a scant $15 million.

After-school activity at Betty H. Fairfax High School, located in Laveen Village on the southwest edge of Phoenix, includes the usual practice sessions and tutoring. But there’s also a good deal of hanging out.