The winners of the 2019 Aga Khan Award for Architecture have been announced and include a Palestinian museum, a bamboo preschool and a nature reserve built on an old rubbish dump. Heneghan Peng Architects designed the zigzagging Palestinian museum, which is one of four new builds to have won a prize this year. The six winning projects of the award were selected from a shortlist of 20 buildings from 16 countries, which was revealed in April of this year. The other winning projects include the Arcadia Education Project by Saif Ul Haque Sthapati, Wasit Wetland Centre by X-Architects, the Revitalisation Of Muharraq in Bahrain, the Public Spaces Development Programme in Tatrstan and Alioune Diop University Teaching and Research Unit by IDOM.
The Aga Khan Award for Architecture is a triennial award established in 1977 to celebrate architectural projects that “successfully address the needs and aspirations of communities in which Muslims have a significant presence”. This year marks the fourteenth cycle of the programme, with winners chosen by a committee including David Chipperfield, Elizabeth Diller, David Adjaye, headed by Aga Khan – a Muslim spiritual leader. The winners will each be awarded a share of a $1 million (£774,000) jackpot, which makes it one of the most lucrative architecture prizes in the world.
Denise Maguire
Editor of Irish Construction Industry Magazine
Email: denise@mcdmedia.ie
