Dezeen Magazine

Museum Voorlinden, Wassenaar, The Netherlands, by Kraaijvanger Architects. Photograph is by Ronald Tilleman

RIBA honours 20 of the world's best new buildings

A forest home for an art collector in Canada, and a Budapest metro station are among 20 buildings to receive RIBA Awards for International Excellence 2018 – and to be shortlisted for this year's RIBA International Prize.

Studio Dwelling at Rajagiriya, Colombo, Sri Lanka, Palinda Kannangara Architects. Photograph is by Mahesh Mendis

The winners of the RIBA Awards for International Excellence 2018 were drawn from the longlist of 62 projects vying for the RIBA International Prize 2018, which Dezeen is media partner for.

The 20 projects located in 16 countries are now also automatically shortlisted for the biennial architecture award that seeks out the "most significant and inspirational building of the year".

"The RIBA Awards for International Excellence 2018 are a testament to the breadth and quality of architecture being created around the world," said RIBA president Ben Derbyshire.

Children Village, Formoso do Araguaia, Brazil, Alephzero with Rosenbaum. Photograph is by Leonardo Finotti

"These 20 outstanding projects were selected for their architectural ambition, design ingenuity and excellence of execution," he continued.

"Importantly, they demonstrate the significant and far-reaching contribution that architecture makes to our daily lives."

The prize, now in it's second edition, went to Grafton Architects in 2016 for its UTEC building in Lima, Peru. The founders of the Irish practice, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, are the curators of the forthcoming Venice Architecture Biennale.

The Ancient Church of Vilanova de la Barca, Spain, by AleaOlea architecture&landscape. Photograph is by Adri Goula

The institution also drew the winner of the ​RIBA International Emerging Architect 2018 from this list – a prize given to a studio under ten years old.

Gustavo Utrabo and Pedro Duschenes of Brazilian architecture firm Aleph Zero were selected for their project, Children Village in Formoso do Araguaia, which provides accommodation for 540 boarding students at a school for disadvantaged children.

"We were impressed by the way the architects embraced the question of how architecture can stimulate its users, as well as the surrounding community, in a region rich in natural resources but poor in opportunities, education and economic resources," said ​Julia Barfield, chair of the RIBA Awards Group.

"Aleph Zero are philosophical, reflectful and thoughtful architects who are reinterpreting the Brazilian vernacular using the abundant natural resources that surround the site in an innovative way which inherently promotes both economic and environmental sustainability."

Sancaklar Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey, by EAA-Emre Arolat Architecture. Photograph is by Cemal Emden

The list will be further whittled down to four finalists in September, with the overall winner announced in November.

See the 20 recipients of the RIBA Awards for International Excellence 2018 and shortlist for the RIBA International Prize 2018 below:


› Audain Art Museum, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, by Patkau Architects
› BBVA Bancomer Tower, Mexico City, Mexico, by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners with Legorreta + Legorreta
› Buendner Kunstmuseum Chur, Chur, Switzerland, by Barozzi Veiga
› Captain Kelly's Cottage, Tasmania, Australia, by John Wardle Architects

M4 Metro Line Budapest, Budapest, Hungary, by Palatium Studio, with Budapesti Építőművészeti Műhely, Gelesz és Lenzsér Építészeti, Puhl és Dajka Építész Iroda, sporaarchitects, VPI Építész Studio and Palatium M4 Projekt. Photograph is by Tamás Bujnovszky

› Central European University – Phase 1, Budapest, Hungary, by O'Donnell + Tuomey with M-Teampannon Kft
› Children Village, Formoso do Araguaia, Brazil, by Alephzero with Rosenbaum
› Lanka Learning Center, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, by Feat Collective
› M4 Metro Line Budapest, Budapest, Hungary, by Palatium Studio, with Budapesti Építőművészeti Műhely, Gelesz és Lenzsér Építészeti, Puhl és Dajka Építész Iroda, sporaarchitects, VPI Építész Studio and Palatium M4 Projekt

Xiao Jing Wan University, Shenzhen, China, by Foster + Partners with GDI. Photograph is by Nigel Young

Mount Herzl Memorial Hall, Jerusalem, Israel, by Kimmel Eshkolot Architects in collaboration with Kalush Chechick Architects
› Musee d'arts de Nantes, Nantes, France, by Stanton Williams
› Museum Voorlinden, Wassenaar, The Netherlands, by Kraaijvanger Architects
› Sancaklar Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey, by EAA-Emre Arolat Architecture

Tatsumi Apartment House, Tokyo, Japan, by Hiroyuki Ito Architects. Photograph is by Shinkenchiku Sha

› Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, Athens, Greece, by Renzo Piano Building Worskhop with BETAPLAN
› Studio Dwelling at Rajagiriya, Colombo, Sri Lanka, by Palinda Kannangara Architects
› Tatsumi Apartment House, Tokyo, Japan, by Hiroyuki Ito Architects
› The Ancient Church of Vilanova de la Barca, Spain, by AleaOlea architecture&landscape

Vertical Forest, Milan, Italy, by Boeri Studio with Studio Emanuela Borio and Laura Gatti. Photograph is by Paolo Rossell

› Toho Gakuen School of Music, Tokyo, Japan, by Nikken Sekkei
› University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands, by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris
› Vertical Forest, Milan, Italy, by Boeri Studio with Studio Emanuela Borio and Laura Gatti
› Xiao Jing Wan University, Shenzhen, China, by Foster + Partners with GDI

More images

Audain Art Museum, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, by Patkau Architects. Photograph is by James Dow
Toho Gakuen School of Music, Tokyo, Japan, by Nikken Sekkei. Photograph is by Harunori Noda
Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, Athens, Greece, by Renzo Piano Building Worskhop with BETAPLAN. Photograph is by Michel Denancé
Musee d'arts de Nantes, Nantes, France, by Stanton Williams. Photograph is bu Cécile Clos
Mount Herzl Memorial Hall, Jerusalem, Israel, by Kimmel Eshkolot Architects in collaboration with Kalush Chechick Architects. Photograph is by Amit Geron
Lanka Learning Center, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, by Feat Collective
Central European University - Phase 1, Budapest, Hungary, by O'Donnell + Tuomey with M-Teampannon Kft. Photograph is by Tamás Bujnovszky
Captain Kelly's Cottage, Tasmania, Australia, by John Wardle Architects. Photograph is by Trevor Mein
Buendner Kunstmuseum Chur, Chur, Switzerland, by Barozzi Veiga. Photograph is by Simon Menges
BBVA Bancomer Tower, Mexico City, Mexico, by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners with Legorreta + Legorreta. Photograph is by Mark Gorton
University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands, by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris. Photograph is by Tim Soar