The ICONIC AWARDS 2023: Innovative Architecture –awarded by the German Design Council– honors the best achievements in architecture, pioneering interior and product design, outstanding brand communication and a particularly innovative use of materials in the architecture sector. The winners are examples of design excellence and inspiring solutions for current challenges. The international jury of experts emphasizes the importance of visionary design that is not only aesthetically inspiring but also ecologically and socially influential.
From 620 submissions from over 30 countries, the jury selected 62 pioneering projects for the “Best of Best” award. In addition, the special prizes “Architects of the Year”, “Interior Designer of the Year” as well as the honorary prize “Architects’ Client of the Year” were awarded. The award winners were honored at the BMW World in Munich on 4 October, 2023.
Special winners of the ICONIC AWARDS 2023: Innovative Architecture
The special prizes worth 10,000 euros are awarded to personalities and companies who have distinguished themselves through exceptional achievements and innovative approaches. The prize money is donated by the company dormakaba Holding GmbH + Co.KG and AXOR, a brand of the Hansgrohe Group.
Architects of the Year Winner
The “Architects of the Year” award goes to the internationally renowned architectural practice Sou Fujimoto Architects from Japan. With this award, the jury honors the outstanding work of the internationally successful architecture firm from Japan.
Houses without walls, roofs that flutter over a landscape like ribbons, and facades that are surrounded by countless terraces, both small and large. Sou Fujimoto breaks with conventions – and in doing so creates something that contemporary architecture often lacks. Distinctiveness, exciting relationships of closeness and distance, contrasts of smallness and uniformity, architectural forms that could just as easily be read as sculptures. “Breathtakingly beautiful!” the jury wrote about Sou Fujimoto Architect’s projects such as “L’Arbre Blanc” and “Flowing Cloud Pavilion”. “If there is one thing that Sou Fujimoto Architects prove impressively again and again, is that architecture, in the best sense, cannot be seen as an opponent to nature, but as its ally. Architecture is nature. Nature is living space,” said the jury.
Interior Designer of the Year Winner
The German Design Council awarded the title “Interior Designer of the Year” to the interior design studio Holzrausch from Munich. With an impressive range of design projects that combine excellence in craftsmanship with innovative planning solutions, Holzrausch has proven that they have mastered the art of interior design at its best.
Whether it’s a single piece of furniture, kitchen planning or a holistic interior design concept, Holzrausch takes on all the development steps, covering everything from design planning to production and even the entire installation. The work results, which are characterized by functionality, aesthetics and market knowledge, are created in the company’s own joinery in Forstern, Bavaria, and a workshop in Nižná, Slovakia. The jury was particularly enthusiastic about the design expertise and perfect craftsmanship: “Their enthusiasm for the craft is catching, their artistry in design as well as in production makes natural materials appear alive and from the rigor inherent in Holzrausch’s projects unfolds a harmony for which this company is unique.”
Architects’ Client of the Year Winner
The “Architects’ Client of the Year” honorary award goes to the Norwegian furniture manufacturer Vestre, which makes a strong statement with its new factory “The Plus”, designed by the renowned Bjarke Ingels Group.
The building embodies sustainability and innovation in an exemplary way and impressively combines Vestre’s clear commitment to the environment, its employees and its brand identity. The heart of The Plus is the open courtyard with a maple tree in the center of the circular area. It not only connects facilities with the offices and the visitor center but also gives visitors and employees a glimpse into the production process. “With The Plus, Vestre paves the way for what is possible: economic growth: not in spite of, but thanks to a commitment to a green, climate-friendly future,” said the jury. “What has emerged is a unique typology resulting from logistical requirements, which is always in contact with the forest thanks to circumferential window strips. A real plus for nature, employees and the brand, which has earned the honorary award “Architects’ Client of the Year”.
The Trend Report: “Best of Best” Projects Reflect Impulses of the Industry
In addition to the special awards, the jury honored outstanding works in the categories “Architecture”, “Interior”, “Product”, “Communication”, “Concept” and the superordinate category “Innovative Material”. From the numerous entries, the best projects were awarded the top-class “Best of Best” label. These award winners show an exceptional spectrum of creative building solutions and innovative product designs and highlight trends that are driving the architecture and design world in their work.
The New Urban Spaces: Identifying Undiscovered Potential and New Uses
Many of the projects address the current challenges of urban life and produce impressive responses. They deal with social spaces in big cities and make it possible to rediscover cities through a change of perspective. An example of this is the “Rooftop Walk” by the Dutch architecture firm MVRDV in Rotterdam: a 600-meter-long and almost 30-meter-high bridge stages a spectacular, unexpected view of the city. The temporary installation draws attention to the unused potential of roofs and opens them up to the city’s inhabitants. According to the jury, the initiative created awareness and identification with the city in order to inspire long-term rethinking. In this way, green compensation areas for sealed soil could be created high up in metropolises where land is rare and expensive – to protect against heat islands, as a habitat for birds and insects, and as meeting places for people. The winners of the ICONIC AWARDS 2023: Innovative Architecture focus on flexible building structures in existing and new buildings as well as on dense living with lively open spaces. They enable new perspectives of the city through clever architectural solutions and focus on climate control in cities through multifunctional green spaces on creative, efficient use of space.
The Best of Both Worlds: How New Hotel Architecture Brings People Into Nature
Another trend that can be seen outside cities is hotel architecture in rural areas. In order to counteract the growing stresses of city dwellers –traffic, noise, density and everyday stress– hotels and wellness oases are being built in nature in many places. The award-winning projects in this category are united by the endeavor to fulfill guests' desire to experience nature and to obtain a change of perspective. The buildings are convincing in their choice of materials and design vocabulary and set the scene for places that are characterized by the experience of nature, including tranquillity and the reduction of stimuli. One example is the new spa "ATMOSPHERE by Krallerhof" in Leogang, Austria, designed by Hadi Teherani Architects. The architecture office's goal was to create a purist and reduced building that blends harmoniously into the landscape. Its roof picks up on the shapes of the hills and mountains that characterize the Krallerhof's surroundings. The new spa world adjoins the hotel and presents itself with a spiraling atrium and an Alpine Zen garden. A large glass facade that offers a view of the natural lake is a special highlight. It can be completely sunk into the ground so that the interior of the house merges with nature to form a single unit.
A comprehensive of all winning projects is available in the online gallery.
The selection of the winning projects and special prizes is made by a renowned international jury. It consists of:
- Ben van Berkel, Founder and Principal Architect UNStudio, Amsterdam
- Fabian Peters, Editor-in-Chief Baumeister
- Virginia Lung, Co-Founder One Plus Partnership, Hong Kong
- Wei Wu, Executive Partner gmp, Shanghai
- Lone Wiggers, Partner and Architect, C.F. Møller Architects, Copenhagen