The XIV Florence Biennale of Art and Design announced that Santiago Calatrava will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award, a "tribute to one of the most influential architects of our times and a recognition of your audacious experimentation, extraordinary talent, and ingenious ability to combine architecture and art in projects imagined and designed in harmony with nature and oriented towards the ideals of beauty.”
The award ceremony is scheduled for 19 October in the theater area of the Spandolini Pavilion of the Fortezza da Basso, where the architect, engineer, and artist will give a speech. From designing and constructing the Ponte della Constitution in Venice, the World Trade Center Transportation Hub in New York, the UAE Pavilion at the 2020 Expo, and the Zubizuri Bridge across the Nervion River in Bilbao, Spain, amongst many other infamous works, Calatrava is one of the most influential architects of the past 50 years, establishing himself as a pioneer in the industry, from architecture, and engineering, to drawing, and sculpting.
Last January, Santiago Calatrava revealed the design for a new retail and office complex in Düsseldorf, Germany. The complex, Calatrava Boulevard, offers restaurants, a variety of shopping, and workspaces. Moreover, in 2022 Calatrava, the artist, had his first exhibition showcasing his sculptures and paintings inspired by Greek antiquity. Finally, the Spanish architect and engineer is rebuilding the World Trade Center St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine in New York City. The church was destroyed during the 9/11 attacks and began renovation in 2015.