International 2018 Piranesi Award

From the 63 nominated projects culled from 9 countries in the Alpe Adria region and Central Europe (Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia), the Piranesi Award was given to Galerie n09 - z33 in Hasselt, Belgium, designed by architect Francesca Torzo. The jury* commended the inventiveness of the art gallery's spatial sequences and the experimental approach to materials. The project, an extension of the existing Z33 Gallery, is accessed through an opening in a brick wall aligned with adjacent facades. Inside are, per the architect, "an ensemble of simple rooms that vary in size, proportion and light atmosphere and that overlook each other through the others." These photographs capture the drama, complexity, and quiet of the gallery extension.

Two honorable mentions were given, including the Basilica and spiritual house in Mariazell, Austria, designed by Feyferlik / Fritzer. A series of interventions realized over more than two decades, the jury appreciated how each piece was "treated with the same attentiveness," be it a gallery, corridor, visitor study room, or some other function.

The other honorable mention was given to the Workshop Garage in Suzzara, Italy, designed by Studiospazio. The jury described it as "an elegantly simple solution ... an iconic object well beyond the ordinary ... [and] an ingenious structural solution."

From the 22 nominated student projects hailing from 12 european faculties of architecture (Graz, Vienna, Spittal, Split, Zagreb, Pescara, Trieste, Budapest, Ljubljana, Maribor, Thessaloniki, and AA London), the student honorable mention was awarded to Terrain Anamorphosis designed by students Antonia Gerogianni and Zoi-Niki Eleftheriadi from Thessaloniki, Greece, under mentors Aleka Alexopoulou and Anastasia-Sasa Lada. Depicting industrial brownfields given back to nature, the jury liked the way the scheme created "the capacity to dream" and commended the outstanding artistic representation.

*The 2018 Jury:

• Valerie Mulvin (president)
• Matteo Bolgan
• Eduard Callís
• Aljoša Dekleva
• Tina Gregorič
• Gernot Hertl
• Palmar Kristmundsson
• Niall McCullough
• Guillem Moliner
• Amir Vuk Zec