Architizer has announced the finalists for the 5th Annual Architizer A+Awards, which honours the world’s best architecture, spaces and products. Over 5,000 entries from 100+ countries were submitted, and jurors from the fields of design, technology, art, media and more, have chosen more than 500 finalists to move on to the next award phase: public voting.
Entrants in the Awards competed in 102 categories, including 21 new awards that highlight technological advances and design innovation, such as Apps & Digital Tools and Co-Working spaces. As in previous years, entrants were judged by a panel of judges from a variety of disciplines, including Cynthia Rowley (Founder, Cynthia Rowley), Neil Blumenthal (Founder, Warby Parker), Bjarke Ingels (Principal, BIG), Jane Chu (Chairman, National Endowment for the Arts), Robin Chase (Founder, Zipcar), and Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy (Academy Award-winning Documentarian).
Several Canadian projects were recognized, including:
- Atelier Paul Laurendeau in the Architecture+Colour category for Cogeco Amphitheatre
- Ema Peter Photography in the Architecture+Photography & Video category for Grandview Heights Aquatic Centre by HCMA Architecture and Design
- RDH Architects in the Libraries category for The Waterdown Library and Civic Centre
- MGA | Michael Green Architecture in the Mixed Use category for T3
- OCAD University Environmental Design students and alumni, under the direction of Environmental Design Assistant Professor Mark Tholen in the Pavilions category for Steam Canoe
- Atelier Kastelic Buffey Inc. in the Pop-Ups & Temporary category for Story Pod
- Superkül in the Private House category for Compass House
- Hariri Pontarini Architects in the Religious Buildings and Memorials category for The Bahá’í Temple of South America
- Float4 in the Shopping Centre category for City Walk
- MoDA in the Unbuilt – Multi Unit Housing category for VILLAGE
- Leckie Studio Architecture + Design in the Unbuilt – Private House category for Backcountry Hut
- TBA in the Unbuilt – Private House category for House on Helby Island
The two-stage voting process is an integral part of the Architizer A+Awards program, which is designed to “break architecture out of its echo chamber” and bring the spaces that are shaping our world to the forefront of the public imagination. In 2016, more than 400,000 votes were cast to determine Popular Choice winners, providing exposure to over 4,000 Architects, designers, and technologists around the globe.
Public voting, which can be accessed here, will run through March 30th, 2017. The 2017 winners will be honoured at the annual Architizer A+Awards gala at Highline Stages in New York City on May 11, 2017.