The Aga Khan Award for Architecture announced the Master Jury that will select the 2020-2022 cycle winners. The jury, among which are Anne Lacaton, Francis Kéré, Nader Tehrani, or Amale Andraos, will look for projects that respond to the cultural aspirations of their social context and show innovative use of local resources and building technologies. Founded in 1988 by Aga Khan IV, the award covering three-year cycles aims to highlight projects of relevance and positive impact for Islamic communities.
One of the particularities of the award lies in its focus on honouring the built project rather than the design practice, thus acknowledging the contribution of all parties involved in the realization of an architectural object, from the client to the various engineers, planners, contractors and craftsmen. In the words of Farrokh Derakhshani, Director of the AKAA, “ The achievements of no project are the result of the work on an architect or architectural firm. Architecture is not a piece of art that has an artist « creating » a masterpiece.”
In January 2022, the jury will select the shortlisted projects, which will be rigorously reviewed on-site by a team of independent experts comprising architects, conservation specialists, planners and structural engineers. Based on this evaluation, the jury will then select the final recipients of the award, to be announced in the summer of 2022. The designated winners will share a 1 billion dollars prize between them.
The nine jury members who will select the recipients of the fifteen Aga Khan Award cycle are:
- Nada Al Hassan, conservation architect, specialized in international cultural and sustainable development policies.
- Amale Andraos, Dean of Columbia GSAPP and principal of WORKac
- Kazi Khaleed Ashraf, professor and director-General of the Bengal Institute for Architecture, Landscapes and Settlements
- Kader Attia, artist
- Sibel Bozdogan, visiting professor of modern architecture and urbanism at Boston University
- Lina Ghotmeh, founder and principal of Lina Ghotmeh – Architecture in Paris
- Francis Kéré, professor of Architectural Design and Participation at the Technical University of Munich
- Anne Lacaton Founder and Principal of Lacaton & Vassal Architects
- Nader Tehrani, Dean of The Cooper Union’s Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture, New York and Founding Principal of NADAAA
The winning projects of the 2017-2019 cycle included the revitalization of Muharraq in Bahrain, the Palestinian Museum, the Alioune Diop University Teaching and Research Unit in Senegal or Wasit Wetland Centre in UAE.
