The Pritzker Architecture Prize is an international prize awarded annually to living architects or a group of architects for significant achievements.
Everything you need to know about the Pritzker Prize and the winners of this and previous years.
The Pritzker Architecture Prize is an international prize awarded annually to living architects or a group of architects for significant achievements. The Pritzker family from Chicago established the prize in 1979 through their Hyatt Foundation. The foundation is still responsible for presenting the prestigious award today.
The Pritzker Prize is intended to honor contemporary architects “whose buildings demonstrate a combination of talent, vision, and commitment that have made enduring and significant contributions to humanity and the built environment through the art of architecture”.
The award consists of a bronze medal and prize money of USD 100,000. It is awarded during a ceremony at an architecturally significant location in the world. The prize, which is also known as the Nobel Prize in Architecture, is awarded “irrespective of nationality, race, creed or ideology”. The accompanying medallion bears a Latin inscription inspired by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius: firmitas, utilitas, venustas (firmness, utility and joy).
Manuela Lucá-Dazio is currently the Executive Director of the Pritzker Prize. The nominations come from architects, academics and critics. They must be submitted by November 1. The jury consists of five to nine experts.
In 2022, the Pritzker Prize was awarded to Francis Kéré, making him the first African architect to receive the award. Kéré was born in Burkina Faso. His work is highly regarded around the world. He has worked not only in his native country, but also in Africa, Europe and the United States of America. In his works, the 55-year-old often refers to his childhood, which was characterized by a strong sense of community. After studying in Germany, he fulfilled one of his dreams and designed an elementary school for his home village of Gando. This was his first building, which was completed in 2001. Many more buildings followed.
According to the Pritzker Prize committee, these are the questions that Francis Kéré answers in his work. “What role does architecture play in a context of extreme scarcity? What is the right approach to practice when working against all odds? Should it be modest and risk succumbing to adverse circumstances? Or is modesty the only way to be relevant and achieve results? Should it be ambitious to inspire change? Or is there a danger that ambition is misplaced and leads to an architecture of mere wishful thinking?”
The first winner of the Pritzker Prize was the architect Philip Johnson, who received the award “for 50 years of imagination and vitality reflected in a wide range of museums, theaters, libraries, houses, gardens and corporate structures”.
In 2004, architect Zaha Hadid was the first woman to receive the award. Ryue Nishizawa won in 2010 and, at the age of 44, was the youngest architect to receive a Pritzker Prize. Other prizewinners were:
- Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron in 2001
- Kazuyo Sejima and Nishizawa in 2010
- Rafael Aranda, Carme Pigem and Ramón Vilalta in 2017
- Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara in 2020
- Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal in 2021
The history of the prize
The idea for the Pritzker Prize came from Jay and Cindy Pritzker, who wanted to promote greater public awareness of architecture and at the same time encourage more creativity in the profession. The Pritzker name comes from the family, which has a reputation for its many international business interests. It is based in Chicago and owns the Hyatt Hotels.
The Pritzker family has long been known for its support of activities in the fields of education, science, medicine and culture. Today, Jay and Cindy’s son, Tom Pritzker, is Chairman and President of the Hyatt Foundation. He said, “As Chicago natives, it is not surprising that our family has a keen awareness of architecture, living in the birthplace of the skyscraper, a city filled with buildings designed by architectural legends such as Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies van der Rohe and many others.”
Many of the procedures and awards of the Pritzker Prize are modeled on the Nobel Prize, such as the prize money, the official certificate and the bronze medal. Prior to 1987, the winners received a limited edition Henry Moore sculpture instead of the medal.
The awarding of the Pritzker Prize
While the announcement of the Pritzker Prize winner usually takes place early in the year, in January or February, the official ceremony is held in May. The choice of location emphasizes the importance of the built environment and provides a unique setting for the ceremony, while recognizing historical, architectural achievements or works by previous Pritzker Prize winners. The sites are usually chosen before the winner is selected, meaning there is no connection between the two.
The invitation-only event is attended by international guests as well as guests from the host country. The event consists of a welcome by a dignitary from the host country, comments from the jury, the award ceremony by Tom Pritzker and an acceptance speech by the honoree.
In 2022, the ceremony will take place at the Marshall Building in London, designed by Grafton Architects. The 2020 winners, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, led the design. The Marshall Building is the London School of Economics and Political Science’s largest academic building to date. It was completed in 2021.
What the Pritzker Prize is for architects, the so-called “Nobel Prize of architecture”, the Pulitzer Prize is for journalists: however, the 2021 Pulitzer Prize was not awarded to a journalist, but to the British architect Alison Killing.
