Around the World in 80 Buildings: North America’s Landmark Projects

To celebrate the opening of our 5th Annual A+Awards, we’re taking a look back at 80 winning projects from around the world. Want to get in on the action? Check out the A+Awards page to find out how to enter.

TO CELEBRATE THE OPENING OF OUR 5TH ANNUAL A+AWARDS, WE’RE TAKING A LOOK BACK AT 80 WINNING PROJECTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. WANT TO GET IN ON THE ACTION? CHECK OUT THE A+AWARDS PAGE TO FIND OUT HOW TO ENTER.

Architizer’s A+Awards program was created to recognize the world’s best designs. Now open for its fifth year, the program has honored projects in over 100 countries. To celebrate this fact, we’re taking inspiration from Jules Verne’s classic adventure novel Around the World in Eighty Days and touring the globe through 80 extraordinary projects across common geographies. As A+Award-winning designs, the projects span seven continents and multiple categories.

We’re now on the final leg of our journey, an architectural showcase spanning across the world. After exploring projects in Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe and South America, we’re finally arriving in North America. Comprised of 23 countries, North America is home to architecture that has dramatically impacted design the world over. Encompassing both buildings and landscape projects, this collection expands our focus to cover some of the world’s most influential designs. From the High Line in New York to the Soumaya Museum in Mexico City, the projects explore urbanism and civic life through expressive forms and public space. As our grand tour comes to a close, we reflect on the architecture of our time; these 80 projects represent how far we’ve come and show us what the future holds.

Philadelphia Navy Yards Central Green by James Corner Field Operations, Philadelphia, Pa., United States

James Corner’s design for Philadelphia’s Navy Yards was made to unite the cutting edge urban potential of the site with its native habitat. The project features a 20-foot-wide Social Track that organizes the site’s circulation while framing immersive interior park spaces.

Uber Headquarters by SHoP Architects, San Francisco, Calif., United States

Designed in the Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco, Uber’s new headquarters will be an office building designed specifically for the company itself. The project will be formed around the Commons, a network of circulation and gathering spaces that negotiate the human scale with the urban scale.

National September 11 Memorial by Handel Architects LLP, New York City, N.Y., United States

As one of the most iconic and enduring projects in modern times, the National September 11 Memorial was designed to foster the democratic values of public assembly and the resiliency of public space. The project centers on two reflecting pools that puncture the flat plaza. Delineating the location of the former towers, the voids are absence made present.

Cineteca Nacional Siglo XXI by Rojkind Arquitectos, Mexico City, Mexico

Rojkind’s Cineteca Nacional is located in a development-dense area of Xoco. As an expansion and renovation, the design includes four additional screening rooms, as well as both vault and public space. Connected to Real Mayorazgo and Av. México-Coyoacán, the project embraces pedestrian access to promote social and cultural exchange.

Columbia Building by Skylab Architecture, Portland, Ore., United States

Portland’s new Wastewater Treatment Plant Engineering Building was created to foster collaboration, achieve LEED Gold, and return storm water to the Columbia Slough. A folded saw-tooth roof drains roof runoff into a berm and bioswale. The building’s entrance was modified to provide an adaptive and native environment, while a public space was also created with views to a nearby pond.

James B. Hunt Library by Snøhetta and Clark Nexsen, Raleigh, N.C., United States

Snøhetta created the James B. Hunt Library as the social heart of North Carolina State University’s Centennial Campus plan. With spaces designed to democratize access to technology, the project employs the use of an automated book delivery system for the library’s two million volume collection.

Soumaya Museum by FR-EE/Fernando Romero Enterprise, Mexico City, Mexico

FR-EE’s Soumaya Museum was designed as a new cultural institution for the public and the city. Housing 70,000 works and the world’s largest private collection of Auguste Rodin sculptures, the museum rises over 150 feet in Plaza Carso. The rotated rhomboid form is clad with 16,000 hexagonal mirrored-steel tiles.

Milstein Hall by OMA, Ithaca, N.Y., United States

Designed by Rem Koolhaas and OMA and completed in 2011, Milstein Hall is an addition to the architect’s alma mater, the College of Architecture, Art and Planning at Cornell University. With a program that includes studios, auditorium, crit spaces and public spaces, Milstein Hall provided a needed connection between two existing buildings on campus.

Tongva Park and Ken Genser Square by James Corner Field Operations, Santa Monica, Calif., United States

Corner’s design for the Tongva Park and Ken Genser Square transformed a derelict and flat parking lot into a landscape of swales, Mediterranean meadow gardens and active urban spaces. Redefining the center of Santa Monica, the project’s SoCal inspired arroyo landscape aimed to reconnect the city fabric and create a unique identity.

WMS Boathouse at Clark Park by Studio Gang Architects, Chicago, Ill.., United States

Studio Gang’s recent Boathouse project has quickly become emblematic of Chicago architecture, especially within the design community. The project was designed to transform the Chicago River into its “next recreational frontier” by creating a series of public access points. The boathouse explores the motion of rowing through its unique roof form.

The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts by Studio Pali Fekete architects [SPF:a], Beverly Hills, Calif., United States

The Wallis Annenberg Center was designed to help revitalize a dormant Beverly Hills post office. Built on a historic site, the project includes a 500-seat theater building and an outdoor sculpture garden. Transforming the physical building and its process of mail distribution, the new center aims to process and distribute culture.

Glacier Skywalkby Sturgess Architecture, Jasper, Canada

This 1,500-foot-long walk is carved and folded into the Jasper National Park landscape. Cor-Ten steel and glass cantilevers outward, overlooking the valley and glacier below. The design centers around the idea of cropping out and extending from the landscape.

Wild Turkey Bourbon Visitor Center by De Leon & Primmer Architecture Workshop, Lawrenceburg, Ky., United States

Sited on a bluff overlooking the Kentucky River, this visitor center houses offices, interactive exhibits, a gift shop, event venues and a tasting room. The design was formed around a simple barn silhouette and clad in a chevron pattern of stained wood plank siding.

© Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Field Operations

The High Line by James Corner Field Operations and Diller Scofidio + Renfro, New York, N.Y., United States

The High Line has quickly become one of the most famous projects of our time. The project embraces hybrid programming along its linear sequence through the city. Created as a new park that interprets and reclaims a piece of urban infrastructure, the design mixes open expanses, gathering nodes and linear circulation.

Author: Eric Baldwin

Based in New York City, Eric was trained in both architecture and communications. As Director of Communications at Sasaki, he has a background spanning media, academia, and practice. He's deeply committed to trying as many restaurants as possible in NYC.