Mapping the Present

International awards and regional architecture prizes are always a good way to capture the status quo of the construction world. Taken together, the projects evaluated not only provide a snapshot of current architecture, but also of our society and its development. Which typologies are being implemented? What design language, materials and attitudes emerge as recurring features? Are there unusual and creative solutions that successfully address the pressing challenges of our time?

The 2025 entries are strikingly unconventional and diverse. The era of classic cultural buildings, museums and concert halls seems to be over. A glance at the list of submissions and prizes for the ICONIC AWARDS 2025 underlines this: instead of striking solitary structures designed by star architects, it is above all clever conversion concepts and experimental renovations that stand out – with realistic usage concepts that are individually tailored to the fields of work, health, education or energy. This is new.

The waste recycling plant with photovoltaic power station in Emmenspitz-Zuchwill is a striking example of the ambitious design of a functional building. The Zurich-based firm Penzel Valier has reimagined the existing building as an impressive concrete sculpture and equipped it with a 5,000-square-metre photovoltaic façade. Here, architecture demonstrates more than just the courage to embrace large forms. The power plant has won one of the ‘Best of Best’ awards.

Building after the pandemic

Submissions to the ICONIC AWARDS 2025 must have been designed, planned or renovated within the last five years. It is clear that the global pandemic has also left its mark on architecture and urban planning within this five-year period. Many of the projects submitted for the Iconic Awards 2025 feature high-quality interior and exterior spaces from a variety of contexts and continents. These projects are united by a desire to combine architecture and nature to create spaces for communal use that fulfil individual needs.

The Korneuburg Social Education Centre in Austria, designed by Atelier Thomas Pucher, demonstrates how nature can be successfully integrated with built structures. The timber construction, completed in 2024, is based on a competition design from 2020 that reinterprets the traditional square courtyard as a contemporary round form. The centre forms a green patio, which is framed and protected by the oval building like a nest. This creates spaces that focus on people while promoting both community and privacy.

Commitment to materials

Circular construction methods with reusable elements and natural materials are becoming the new standard and a matter of course for many architectural firms. Construction projects involving existing buildings are a growing field of activity. However, the confident use of natural building materials is also striking. The replacement buildings in Buchs for the Haus der Freunde multi-family residential building are made of wood and clay, and do not use any artificial or composite materials. The pioneering project by Carlos Martinez Architects also impresses with prefabricated rammed-earth walls, which ensure a pleasant indoor climate.

The conversion of an agricultural cooperative into a multifunctional cultural centre by the studio Camps Felips Arquitecturia in Flix, Spain, stands out among the 2025 submissions with its particularly consistent use of materials. The unplastered brick surfaces create an all-encompassing terracotta surface with warm earth tones, both inside and out, supporting the regional economy and preserving building traditions through the use of local materials. Thanks to their excellent insulating properties, the handmade ceramic bricks also reduce the building's energy consumption. For the jury, this renovation is a clear candidate for a ‘Best of Best’ award.

Studio X+Living takes a similar approach in its project for the Tianjin Zhongshuge bookshop in a historic district of Tianjin, China, which brings architecture and interior design together through a deliberate use of materials. A total of 400,000 dark-red bricks form the extravagant façades and spectacularly staged steps, bookshelves and seating areas inside. The repetition of the bricks is effective.

From Europe to the world

Building culture in Asia has its own language and philosophy. The Pritzker Prize is not the only award to look towards Asia this year. After the most prestigious award in international architecture went to Japan for the eighth time in 2024 – to architect Riken Yamamoto – Chinese architect Liu Jaikun was honoured in 2025. The ICONIC AWARDS have also broadened their perspective beyond Europe to include Asia. In previous years, a number of high-quality architectural projects from China, Japan and Thailand qualified for the competition. In addition to the buildings by Vector Architects from Beijing, this year's ICONIC AWARDS were also enriched by elegant buildings from Studio HEMAA in Mexico.

Submissions of buildings and concepts from the African continent should definitely be the next step for 2026 to ensure that the results of this internationally oriented award are of an all-encompassing nature. After all, with the selection of Nigerian architect Mariam Issoufou Kamara (New York City and Zurich) as ‘Creator of the Year’ and Lebanese-French architect Lina Gothmeh (Paris) as ‘Architect of the Year’, the ICONIC AWARDS 2025 are making a clear statement in an industry that is currently reinventing itself.

Jeanette Kunsmann, Editor-in-Chief,DETAIL