The first award winners of the 2023 World Architecture Festival have been announced, following Day One of live presentations at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, in which hundreds of shortlisted projects were presented by practices from around the world. Amongst today’s category award winners of the world’s largest international live-judged architectural event are MAD Architects, Woods Bagot and Nextoffice, and Studio of Architectural Research & Design, who won across three individual categories.

Category Award Winners: COMPLETED BUILDINGS

Civic and Community: Taiwan - Reyhanli Centre for World Citizens by Chen-Yu Chiu and the team of Studio Cho in Turkey

• Tower Hamlets Town Hall by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris in the United Kingdom was also highly commended in the Civic and Community category

Creative Re-use: Kaomai Museums and Tea Barn by PAVA architects in Thailand

Culture: Ravenscar House by Patterson Associates Architects in New Zealand

• Melbourne Holocaust Museum by Kerstin Thompson Architects in Australia and Art Museum of Fondazione Luigi Rovati by Mario Cucinella Architects in Italy were also highly commended in the Culture category

Display: Turrell Pavilion by Studio MK27 in the Maldives

House and Villa, sponsored by GROHE: Veil House by 5468796 Architecture in Canada

• Casa Ward by Carl Fredrik Svenstedt Architect in Italy was also highly commended in the House and Villa category

Housing, sponsored by GROHE: 547 West 47th Street - The West Residential by Concrete Amsterdam in the United States

• Ivankhaneh by the IDA office in Iran was also highly commended in the Housing category

Office: Surat Diamond Bourse by Morphogenesis in India

• Metallic Bellows by KSM Architecture in India and Montacute Yards by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris and Ben Adams Architects in the United Kingdom were also highly commended in the Office category

Production, Energy and Logistics: THE COURTYARD CCR LAB by SANJAY PURI ARCHITECTS in India

• CENTER OF EXCELLENCE FOR FOREST CONSERVATION by ARCHITECTS 49 was also highly commended in the Production, Energy and Logistics category

School: Huizhen High School by Approach Design Studio/Zhejiang University of Technology Engineering Design Group Co. Ltd in China

• Penna Foundation Rural School by CollectiveProject and Lapalala Wilderness School by Local Studio in South Africa were also highly commended in the School category

Sport: Quzhou Stadium by MAD Architects in China

• FERDINAND E MARCOS STADIUM by WTA ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN STUDIO in the Philippines was also highly commended in the Sports category

The judges of this year’s Completed Buildings categories praised the high quality of this year's projects. Overall, they were impressed with the level of local community enablement and client collaboration.

Judges felt that these exemplar projects sensitively referenced the history of sites and retained vernacular cues whilst giving thought to future development.?

Many winning projects considered the meaning of ‘waste’ through the use of found local materials, innovative recycled construction systems and even the transformation of ‘wasted’ time. 

Category Award Winners: FUTURE PROJECTS

Civic: Border Village Community Center by Nextoffice, Studio of Architectural Research & Design in Iran

• Pangasinan Barangay Centers by Buensalido Architects in the Philippines was also highly commended in the Civic category

Infrastructure: Shenzhen Airport East Integrated Transport Hub by Grimshaw in China

• Sinterbecken by Metaform in Luxembourg was also highly commended in the Infrastructure category

Leisure-led Development: Shiraz Cultural and Recreational Complex: The Thickened Earth by Nextoffice, Studio of Architectural Research & Design in Iran

• Flora – Street Market Reinvented by 3XA in Poland and White Roads Resort by EAA-Emre Arolat Architecture in Albania was also highly commended in the Leisure-led Development category

Masterplanning: Green City Kigali by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios in Rwanda

• we! Park by Shma Company Limited in Thailand was also highly commended in the Masterplanning category

Office: United Nations International Office of Migration by Sharon Davis Design, NOMOS, Marvel Design and Buro Happold in Switzerland

• The Code - Luxor Post office Adaptive Reuse by Verform & DMI in the United Arab Emirates was also highly commended in the Office category

Competition Entries: Hormuz Eco Resort by Nextoffice, Studio of Architectural Research & Design in Iran

Discussing the Future Projects, judges praised the consideration of social enterprise hand in hand with visionary applications of design ideas. This year’s category winners resonated with the jury as authentic solutions that would elevate the every day to create experiences. 

Category Award Winners: INSIDE – for Best Interior 

Health and Fitness: Murrenda Residential Aged Care Home by STH in Australia

Hotels: Royal Tulip Warsaw Apartments by Tremend Sp. z o.o. in Poland

• Boatyard Hotel by WJ Studio in China was also highly commended in the hotel category

Workplace (Large): M&C Saatchi by Woods Bagot in Australia

• Montagne du Parc by nCobhamin Belgium was also highly commended in the Workplace (Large) category

Workplace (Small): Link Lab creative offices by Stay - Markland - Link Lab in Belgium

• 35 by Shid Architects in Iran was also highly commended in the Workplace (Small) category

The judges were impressed by the level of care across the Inside category winners and highlighted the attention to detail and deep understanding of project briefs. Each winning studio approached their projects with refined skill and craft, with a particular focus on the use of materials and creating a sense of place.

World Architecture Festival Day Two and Three

Tomorrow will see another set of category winners announced at Marina Bay Sands, bringing the total to 44 category prizes. Category winners will then compete against each other on the final day of the festival, on December 1st, for the ultimate accolades of World Building of the Year, Future Project of the Year, and Interior of the Year.

All of the overall winners will be announced at a grand finale Gala Dinner, along with a host of Special Prizes, including the International Building Beauty Prize.