The Final Entry Deadline for the 9th Annual A+Awards is April 23rd, 2021. Get published in print and gain global recognition for your work: Click here to begin drafting your submissions now.
There are fewer more important architectural typologies than housing. The home is the foundation upon which people build their lives, and as a consequence, it holds an intimate association with people’s most treasured ideals: Comfort, calmness, security, and even love. It is therefore vital that architectural qualities of housing foster these feelings and help sustain them, for individuals and families alike.
In the last year, the concept of home has become even more expansive and complex, thanks to the global pandemic. An ever-growing number of people now work at home, as well as grappling with remote education and a heightened need for social interaction within their personal space, given the limited options for engagement with the wider world. The programmatic requirements for housing grow further still — home gyms, improved kitchens, and more flexible social spaces are all in demand.
The future of housing may still be emerging, but it is vital that high quality precedents are given the recognition they deserve, setting a benchmark for architects and designers in the years to come. Now open for entries, Architizer’s iconic A+Awards invites residential architecture firms and interior designers to submit their recent home designs for the program, helping to showcase how contemporary housing can improve the lives of people around the world.
There are a total of 32 residential A+Awards to be won (a Jurors’ Award and a Popular Choice Award in each category), catering for the wide variety of scales and types of housing being designed today. These include categories for private residences, public housing, multi unit housing and interior design, as well as low cost design and many more categories related to details and the use of specific materials.
Residential projects completed in the last 3 years are eligible, and there are also dedicated categories for unbuilt works. Here’s a brief rundown of categories that are available to enter during this prestigious program.
Best Apartment
Featured winner from 2020: Downtown Loft by BDA Bushman Dreyfus Architects (Jury and Popular Choice winner)
Urbanization has increased at a rapid rate since the turn of the century, and with increasing density has come an explosion in demand for apartment living. But people living in big cities don’t want to compromise — they seek smart layouts, ample natural light, and high quality finishes to provide them with a quality of life equal to those living in privating houses. Architects are rising to this challenge through both innovative renovations and new build apartments, and the A+Award for Best Apartment is one of the most hotly contested. Last year’s double A+Award winner in this category, BDA’s Downtown Loft in Charlottesville, VA, will take some beating — does your firm have a project to compete?
Best Private House
5 A+Award Categories by Size
Featured Winner from 2020: Casa Mi by Daluz Gonzalez Architekten (Jury Winner in the Large Private House category)
Given the continual evolution of private housing needs in different parts of the world, the award categories for Best Private House have expanded in number, providing more opportunities for firms creating housing at every scale. The new XS (extra small) award category will recognize architects designing highly compact homes, increasingly in demand in today’s market, while the categories for larger scale homes set the stage for the world’s most stunning and expansive modern residences to achieve worldwide recognition. The winners in Private House categories are traditionally among the most popular of all A+Award recipients, such is their beauty — and this year’s residences look set to take the spotlight again.
Submit a Private House Project
Best Multi Unit Housing
3 A+Award Categories by Size
Featured Winner from 2020: XS House by Interface Studio Architects LLC (Jury Winner in the Low Rise Multi Unit Housing category)
Multi unit housing has witnessed an incredible boom as cities increase in density, and with it has come increasing innovation. There is a diminishing appetite for cookie-cutter apartment blocks and standard “glass box” condominiums, with people looking for more flexible layouts, accessible amenity spaces and a greater connection with the outdoors. The A+Awards categories for Multi Unit Housing celebrate designers working at the cutting edge of this crucial sector, highlighting projects that form positive case studies for the future of urban living. Architects that are rethinking the multi unit typology and breaking with convention stand the best chance of success — could that be your firm?
Submit a Multi Unit Housing Project
Best Public Housing (NEW for 2021)
Featured Project from 2020: RISD North Hall by NADAAA (Finalist in the Mid Rise Multi Unit Housing category)
New for 2021, the Public Housing category awards the best overall architecture for projects including public housing, government housing, social housing, low income housing, student housing or other development incorporating any form of public or institutionally funded housing. The need for affordable housing in many metropolitan areas has never been higher, and architects are being challenged to design developments on a tight budget — without compromising on the details. If your firm has managed to deliver a successful housing project in the public sector in the last 3 years, this is the ideal category for you.
Submit a Public Housing Project
Residential Interiors
2 A+Award Categories by Size
Featured Winner from 2020: The Garden House in the City by Christos Pavlou Architecture (Popular Choice and Jury Winner in the Residential Interiors category)
The work of interior designers also deserves recognition, particularly in 2021, as the world has been spending more time than ever indoors throughout the pandemic. This year, the A+Awards is inviting interior residential projects at both small scale (less than 3,000 square feet) and large, and both renovations and new build projects are eligible. There are also dedicated interior categories for offices (small and large), as well as transport, which includes airports, railway stations, bus stations, ferry terminals and more.
Submit a Residential Interiors Project
Unbuilt Housing
4 Award Categories by Size and Type, including Private House and Multi Unit Housing
Featured Winner from 2020: Nonagriam Twins by A31 Architecture (Popular Choice Winner in the Large Unbuilt Private House category)
During 2020, it proved a challenge for architects around the world to get projects fully completed due to the pandemic. The good news is that there are a whole range of A+Award categories for conceptual and under-construction works, including the ever-popular Unbuilt Housing category, in which some of the most striking submissions are showcased each year. Whether your residential project is still on the drawing board (or in rendering form), or it’s halfway to completion on site, it is eligible for submission into the Unbuilt Housing category. Submit your best architectural visualizations depicting what the future of housing could look like, and spark the imagination of people around the world.
Submit an Unbuilt Housing Project
Now it’s your turn — select your best residential projects for consideration in one or more categories. Don’t forget, all built projects are also eligible for the Plus Categories for concepts and details, such as:
- Architecture +Color
- Architecture +Sustainability
- Architecture +For Good
- Architecture +Wood
- Architecture +Stairs
- Architecture +Façades
You can see all the available award categories on the official A+Awards site. If you need any help with your submission, including category recommendations, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team at awards@architizer.com.
Good luck from all of us at Architizer — we can’t wait to share your work with the world!
The Final Entry Deadline for the 9th Annual A+Awards is April 23rd, 2021.