Asia has four of the six winners of 2019 Aga Khan Award for Architecture

The winners of the 2019 award (AKDN)

Kazan: Four of the six projects that won the 2019 Aga Khan Award for Architecture are located in Asia, in a new triumph for the continent.

Bangladesh, Bahrain, Palestine and the United Arab Emirates were the winners of the global award presented once every three years. The other two countries are Russia and the Senegal.

The announcement was made on Thursday in Kazan, Russia, which will also host the ceremony to present the awards to the winners. The six laureates will share $ 1 million between them.

Winners:

Bangladesh:

Arcadia Education Project (AKDN)

Arcadia Education Project, in South Kanarchor, a modular structure – incorporating space for a preschool, a hostel, a nursery and a vocational training centre – that takes a novel approach to a riverine site that is often flooded for five months every year.

Rather than disrupting the ecosystem to create a mound for building, the architect devised the solution of an amphibious structure that could sit on the ground or float on the water, depending on seasonal conditions.

Bahrain:

Revitalization of Muharraq (AKDN)

Revitalization of Muharraq, which highlights the World Heritage site’s pearling history, was the first initiated as a series of restoration and reuse projects.

The project evolved into a comprehensive programme that aimed to re-balance the city’s demographic makeup by creating public spaces, providing community and cultural venues, and improving the overall environment.

Palestine:

Palestinian Museum in Birzeit (AKDN)

Palestinian Museum, in Birzeit, which crowns a terraced hill overlooking the Mediterranean, is the recipient of the LEED Gold certification because of its sustainable construction.

The zigzagging forms of the museum’s architecture and hillside gardens are inspired by the surrounding agricultural terraces, stressing the link with the land and Palestinian heritage.

Russian Federation

Public Spaces Development Program (AKDN)

Public Spaces Development Program, in the Republic of Tatarstan, is a program that, until date has improved 328 public spaces all over Tatarstan.

The ambitious program sought to counter the trend toward private ownership by refocusing priorities on quality public spaces for the people of Tatarstan. It has now become a model throughout the Russian Federation.

Senegal:

Alioune Diop University Teaching and Research Unit (AKDN)

Alioune Diop University Teaching and Research Unit, in Bambey, where a scarcity of resources led to the use of bioclimatic strategies, including a large double roof canopy and latticework that avoids direct solar radiation but allows air to flow through it.

By employing locally familiar construction techniques and following sustainability principles, the project succeeded in keeping costs and maintenance demands to a minimum, while still making a bold architectural statement.

United Arab Emirates:

Wasit Wetland Center in Sharjah (AKDN)

Wasit Wetland Centre, in Sharjah, a design that transformed a wasteland into a wetland and functioned as a catalyst for biodiversity and environmental education. While its indigenous ecosystem has been restored, it has also proven to be a popular place for visitors to appreciate and learn about their natural environment.

The Award

The award recognizes all parties involved in the conception, design, and realization of a built project.

It is given in three-year cycles, allowing time for the rigorous on-site reviews by experts in architecture, engineering, and conservation, that the award has become known for.

The Aga Khan Award for Architecture not only rewards architects, but also identifies municipalities, builders, clients, master artisans and engineers who have played important roles in the realization of a project.

Prizes have been given to projects across the world, from France to China.

Architects and planners from New York to Dhaka have received one of 122 awards.

During the nomination process, more than 9,000 building projects have been documented.

Founded in 1977 by Aga Khan IV, it aims specifically to highlight projects of relevance or significance to primarily Islamic societies. This focus may seem paradoxically broad, but it is geared toward elevating projects that not only adeptly meet their functional requirements but also “stimulate and respond to cultural aspirations.”

Projects that inventively make use of local materials and/or appropriate technologies are given particular attention in the hopes that they inspire creative efforts elsewhere.

Venue for the Award:

The venue for the Award ceremonies to announce the winning projects and mark the close of each triennial cycle are always held in settings selected for their architectural and cultural importance to the Muslim world.

In 2019, the ceremony will be held in Kazan, Russia, which contains, in its Kremlin, a World Heritage Site.

Previous venues for Award ceremonies encompass many of the most illustrious architectural achievements in the Muslim world, including Shalimar Gardens in Lahore (1980), Topkapi Palace in Istanbul (1983), the Alhambra in Granada (1998) and Emperor Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi (2004).

Jury:

The master jury for the 2017-2019 award cycle comprised:

Kwame Anthony Akroma-Ampim Kusi Appiah, an Anglo-Ghanaian American philosopher and cultural theorist recognized for his work in 2012 by President Obama

Meisa Batayneh, founder and principal architect of maisam architects & engineers in Amman and Abu Dhabi

Sir David Chipperfield, founder and principal of David Chipperfield Architects in London and Berlin

Elizabeth Diller, co-founder and principal of Diller Scofidio Renfro in New York

Edhem Eldem, a Professor of History at Boğaziçi University (Istanbul) and International Chair of Turkish and Ottoman History at the Collège de France

Mona Fawaz, Professor in Urban Studies and Planning, and the director of the Social Justice and the City research programme at the American University of Beirut

Kareem Ibrahim, Egyptian architect and urban researcher who worked on UNDP’s Historic Cairo Rehabilitation Project

Ali M. Malkawi, professor at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design and founding director of the Harvard Center for Green Buildings and Cities

Nondita Correa Mehrotra, principal of RMA Architects in India and the United States.