The World Architecture Festival is the biggest international architectural event in the world. Held every year since 2008, the live three-day event awards amazing building projects and covers trends, important issues and news affecting the architect industry. Amsterdam with its artistic heritage had the honor of hosting the event and recognizing the winning projects for 2018.
The theme for this year’s World Architecture Festival was architectural identity. A group of more than 130 architects from 57 different countries reviewed and presented 535 shortlisted projects before the super jury of five to make their case for potential winners. The architect projects were divided into 5 different categories: completed buildings, future projects, landscapes, prizes and inside interior. By the end of the event there were a total of 48 projects receiving awards with one being the festival’s highest honor – Building of the Year.
2018 World Architecture Festival Top Winning Projects
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- Building of the Year = Kampung Admiralty by WOHA Architects in Singapore. This was the third time the highest award goes to a Singaporean project and for good reason. The beautiful retirement village brings together a mix of public facilities and services under the same roof.
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- Future Project of the Year = Medellin River Parks / Botanical Park Master Plan by Sebastian Monslave and Juan David Hoyos in Colombia. Rejuvenating Medellin’s extensive river corridor this project is set out to attract future residential developments near the water.
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- Landscape of the Year = Pedestrian Path by Battle i Roig Architects in Spain. Located in Barcelona which is known for having beautifully designed landscapes the judges were overly impressed by the projects brilliant re-use of materials that was previously a waste transfer station.
- Small Project of the Year = Piedras Bayas Beachcamp by Camilio Moraes in Chile. A tourist station in the middle of the Atacama Desert was praised by the judges for the projects originality and use of local techniques to create a building conducive to the environment.
- INSIDE World Interior of the Year = Yumin Art Nouveau Collection by JAC Studios in South Korea. Housing the collection of delicate glass produced during the Art Nouveau movement in the late 1800’s the architecture of the museum is in itself a piece of art.
- Use of Certified Timber Prize = International House by Tzannes in Sydney, Australia. This commercial building is made
from recycled hardwood timber and stands seven stories high. The project sets new standards for future workplace environments. - Use of Color Prize = Pálás cinema by dePaor in Ireland. The project was awarded for its unique design of painted windows that glow at night. Images are projected through the glass making it look like a magical lantern where it makes brilliant use of different colors.
- The Amsterdam Prize = North South Line by Benthem Crouwel Architects in Amsterdam. The downtown metro line opening up just this year was the winner for this years hosted city prize. A unique artwork that has different architecture for each station stop are all related to each other in one continuous movement.
The website for the World Architecture Festival has the complete list of all the winning projects for 2018. The event this year made history for having the most delegates and more projects submitted for awards than ever before. Architects from around the world came together to celebrate, learn and be inspired. The world architecture festival next year will definitely have some tough shoes to fill.