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In Houston, Texas, you’ll find countless trees interspersed with buildings — a phenomenon that Rice University professor Lars Lerup calls “the zoohemic canopy.” With the Houston Endowment Headquarters, a suite of offices for one of the state’s largest private foundations, architect Kevin Daly sought to honour this distinctive geographic feature. The complex is sustainably built atop a hybrid steel–CLT frame; it’s energy-neutral thanks to geothermal wells and a solar array that harnesses natural light. The best feature is the louvred canopy suspended above the building, which filters sun, much like trees in a dappled forest.

Team: Kevin Daly with Luke Smith, Gretchen Stoecker, Phineas Taylor-Webb, Ryan Conroy and Casey Worrell (Kevin Daly Architects); Wonne Ickx and Nicolás Fueyo (Productora)

Award of Merit: Buildings Over 1,000SqM
Houston Endowment Headquarters

Architect Kevin Daly sought to honour the city’s distinctive “zoohemic canopy.”

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2023
WinnerBuildings Over 1,000SqM
Location
Ilulissat, Greenland
Firm
Dorte Mandrup, Copenhagen, Denmark
2018
WinnerBuildings Over 1,000SqM
Location
Copenhagen, Denmark
Firm
C.F. Møller Architects, Aarhus, Denmark
2015
Award of MeritBuildings Over 1,000SqM
Location
Ramboda, Sri Lanka
Firm
Palinda Kannangara