The winners of the Aga Khan award for architecture were announced today in a ceremony in Al-Ain. The venue for the winners’ ceremony, the Al Jahili fort in Al-Ain, was also announced by His Excellency Awaidha Murshed Al Marar, Chairman of Department of Municipal Affairs and Transport and a member of the Executive Council of Abu Dhabi.
The US$1 million Aga Khan Award for Architecture is awarded every three years to projects that are judged to set new standards of excellence while addressing the needs of communities in which Muslims or Islamic heritage have a significant presence.
The winners are:
BANGLADESH
- Bait Ur Rouf Mosque, Dhaka (Architect: Marina Tabassum)
A refuge for spirituality in urban Dhaka, selected for its beautiful use of natural light.
- Friendship Centre, Gaibandha (Architect: Kashef Chowdhury / URBANA)
A community centre which makes a virtue of an area susceptible to flooding in rural Bangladesh.
CHINA
- Micro Yuan’er Children’s Library and Art Centre, Beijing (Architect: ZAO / standard architecture / Zhang Ke)
A children’s library selected for its embodiment of contemporary life in the traditional courtyard residences of Beijing’s Hutongs.
DENMARK
- Superkilen, Copenhagen (Architects: BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group, Topotek 1 and Superflex)
A public space promoting integration across lines of ethnicity, religion and culture.
IRAN
- Tabiat Pedestrian Bridge, Tehran (Architect: Diba Tensile Architecture / Leila Araghian, Alireza Behzadi)
A multi-level bridge spanning a busy motorway has created a dynamic new urban space.
LEBANON
- Issam Fares Institute, Beirut (Architect: Zaha Hadid Architects)
A new building for the American University of Beirut’s campus, radical in composition but respectful of its traditional context.
