As founder of the “Do Tank” firm ELEMENTAL, Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena (born on June 22, 1967) is perhaps the most socially-engaged architect to receive the Pritzker Prize. Far from the usual aesthetically driven approach, Aravena explains that “We don’t think of ourselves as artists. Architects like to build things that are unique. But if something is unique it can’t be repeated, so in terms of it serving many people in many places, the value is close to zero.” [1] For Aravena, the architect’s primary goal is to improve people's way of life by assessing both social needs and human desires, as well as political, economic and environmental issues.
The Berlin-based architect Francis Kere has become the first African to win the most important prize in architecture. By using local resources, he developed a pioneering style.
France s Jean-Philippe Vassal and Anne Lacaton win Pritzker Architecture Prize 2021
Dubbed the Nobel Prize of architecture, the Pritzker Prize recognizes the work of exceptional architects. Here are the past 10 winners.
2021: Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal
The Pritzker Prize was awarded to French architects Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal, renowned for their affordable, eco-friendly spaces. The modernist hopes and dreams to improve the lives of many are reinvigorated through their work that responds to the climatic and ecological emergencies of our time, as well as social urgencies, particularly in the realm of urban housing, said the jury.
2020: Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara