The 2018 ICONIC AWARDS: Innovative Architecture

Sixty-one Best of Best awards in the categories Architecture, Interior, Product, Communication and Concept showcase the latest trends and developments in contemporary architecture and design concepts. The lucrative special prizes »Architects of the Year« and »Interior Designers of the Year« are regarded as prestigious international awards in these disciplines.

The »Architects of the Year« award for 2018 went to Asif Khan’s London-based firm, which recently caused a sensation with its filigree, open spatial structures such as the Tempietto nel Bosco (2018) in Milan or the Serpentine Summer House (2016). The design collective WGNB Wallga Associates from Seoul was named »Interior Designer of the Year« for its manifold spatial presentations ranging from exhibition architecture to retail stores.

The increasing importance of architecture as a sign of identity worldwide is underscored by the growing internationality of the winners. China ranked second after Germany, with seven architecture and design studios among the Best of Best award winners, accounting for over 15% of all winners.

Naturally, European designers also impressed the jury with their creative achievements: The Hamburg studio Besau Marguerre succeeded in doing so with its open-space interior concept and striking colour highlights for the About You retail store, as did the Norwegian architects Stinessen Arkitektur AS with their Malangen Retreat, a private lodging made of wood and raw concrete, spectacularly embedded in the untouched landscape of the island of Tromsø in the Norwegian Arctic Circle.

With the ICONIC AWARDS: Innovative Architecture, the German Design Council takes a holistic view: this unrivalled competition unites the disciplines of architecture, interior design, product design and brand communication, recognising visionary buildings and innovative products as well as sustainable communication from all fields of architecture, the construction and real estate industries and the manufacturing industry. The jury takes aesthetic design quality, innovative materials, functionality and sustainability as well as together with social and environmental compatibility into account in their assessment.

The award-winning projects all bear witness to the high bar that the ICONIC AWARDS: Innovative Architecture applicants set for themselves.
The awards are conferred granted by a jury composed of experts from the fields of architecture, interior design, design and brand communication. This year the jury included the following members: Susanne Brandherm (brandherm+krumrey interior architecture), Michel Casertano (Atelier Brückner GmbH), Marco Dessí (Studio Marco Dessí) Silvia Olp (Phoenix Design), Linda Stannieder (GRAFT BRANDLAB GmbH), Stefan Weil (Atelier Markgraph) and Andrej Kupetz (CEO of the German Design Council).

The official awards ceremony will take place on 8 October 2018 at the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich. All projects presented will be made accessible as a virtual exhibition on the ICONIC WORLD online platform at en.innovative-architecture.de.