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The finalists
Architecture ◆ Multi-Unit Residential Buildings
Are
Finalist
Project
RISD North Hall
Location
Providence, U.S.
Firm
NADAAA, U.S.
Summary
For the RISD North Hall, a residence at the Rhode Island School of Design, NADAAA made the tiered rooflines level with nearby architectural masterworks — a nod to local design history. The perforated brick on the north and south walls of the hall evoke Pietro Belluschi’s iconic mid-century RISD dorm, while the slate cladding on the east and west walls resembles the roof shingles one sees across campus. Other elements, however — like the hybrid CLT and steel structural system and the multi-faceted building program comprising galleries and a studio — elevate the North Hall far beyond your typical student dorm.
Finalist
Project
Vancouver House
Location
Vancouver, Canada
Firms
BIG | Bjarke Ingels Group (New York City, U.S.) and DIALOG (Vancouver, Canada)
Summary
Each of Danish architect Bjarke Ingels’s projects — realized or not — is a spectacle in its own right. Vancouver House, his firm’s recently completed residential tower, is exemplary. With a twisting form that presides over the heart of the Canadian metropolis, it’s a landmark like no other.
Finalist
Project
NMBHD: 1 plex 3 noses
Location
Montreal, Canada
Firm
Jean Verville architectes, Canada
Summary
NMBHD takes the traditional Montreal triplex to the next level. The four-storey building — comprising two rental apartments, a family abode and a ceramics studio — is sited on a former mechanic’s garage. It embodies the scrappiness of its industrial context, with concrete floors, exposed ductwork and plumbing, and joists made of hardware-store lumber.
And
Architecture ◆ Multi-Unit Residential Buildings
The Winner
+ The Peoples Choice
Is
Project
Vancouver House
Location
Vancouver, Canada
Firms
BIG | Bjarke Ingels Group (New York City, U.S.) and DIALOG (Vancouver, Canada)
Kai-Uwe Bergmann: 2021 AZ Award Winner in Multi-Unit Residential Buildings
Presented By: Caesarstone
Internal link iconCaesarstone

Each of Danish architect Bjarke Ingels’s projects — realized or not — is a spectacle in its own right. Vancouver House, his firm’s recently completed residential tower, is exemplary. With a twisting form that presides over the heart of the Canadian metropolis, it’s a landmark like no other.


The high-rise’s distinctive design, however, emerged from a deft negotiation of contextual restraints, rather than pure geometric experimentation. Contending with a narrow triangular site (once thought unusable) framed by Howe Street, Beach Avenue and the elevated Highway 99, the architects, in collaboration with local practice DIALOG and engineers Buro Happold, created a 30-metre-deep setback to introduce breathing room between the heavy traffic and individual suites. Once the 59-storey residence has cleared the physical constraints of the Granville Street Bridge off-ramp, it begins to expand outward and twist gracefully, effectively reclaiming the space above the setback.

“Vancouver House is super-innovative, both technically and spatially, and really addresses the ground plane well.”
Barbara Bestor, AZ Awards 2021 Juror
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