Public voting for the 2015 A+Awards is now open, which means that YOU have the power to select the very best architecture in the world. With the A+Awards, recognizing the best projects is no longer domain of a small group of judges — everyone gets a say in who will be crowned victorious in over 90 categories, and your opinion counts! Check out all of the finalists and cast your vote here
Each year, a number A+Award Finalists stand out for their innovative contemporary applications of traditional materials, and this year, several projects have utilized timber in extraordinary and inventive ways. Here are five projects that have plied wood into inspiring places to live, work, worship, and play: take the tour and then make sure to jump over here and cast your votes!
Malboro Music: 5 Cottages by HGA Architects and Engineers
Category: Private House (1000-3000 sq ft)
This cluster of musicians’ retreats in rural Vermont are clad in red cedar, blending into the surrounding woodland. Internally, the timber walls and exposed rafters offer an ideal acoustic environment for musical creativity.
Hotel Hotel Lobby and Nishi Grand Stair Interior by March Studio
Category: Hotel and Resorts
The light flooding into this hotel entrance in Canberra is diffused with a vast agglomeration of suspended timber, which provides a riot of textures and ever-changing shadows across the interior.
Grotto Sauna by PARTISANS
Category: Health Care & Wellness
This sauna in a remote part of Ontario, Canada, is a study in contrast: Straight-edged charred timber forms the exterior, while warm, sculpted timber provides an organic, cave-like sanctuary within.
Aspen Art Museum by Shigeru Ban Architects + Dean Maltz Architect
Category: Museum
Shigeru Ban weaved strips of timber veneer together like a basket around Aspen’s new art museum, forming a permeable skin that emanates light like a paper lantern at dusk.
Community Church Knarvik by Reiulf Ramstad Architects
Category: Religious Buildings & Memorials
This place of worship in Norway is inspired by traditional Norwegian stave churches, but with a modern twist — its exterior is clad in pine heartwood, broken up by a rhythmic set of slit windows that emit a warm, welcoming glow by night.
Like what you see here? Check out all of the 2015 A+Awards finalists and vote for your favorites!
