PRITZLER ARCHITECTURE PRIZE

Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, partners in the architectural
firm, SANAA, have been chosen as the 2010 Laureates of the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

The purpose of the Pritzker Architecture Prize is to honor annually a living architect whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment, which has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built environment through the art of architecture.

Pritzker Prize jury chairman, The Lord Palumbo quoted from the jury citation to
focus on this year’s selection: “For architecture that is simultaneously delicate and powerful, precise and fluid, ingenious but not overly or overtly clever; for the creation of buildings that successfully interact with their contexts and the activities they contain, creating a sense of fullness and experiential richness; for a singular architectural language that springs from a collaborative process that is both unique and inspirational; for their notable completed buildings and the promise of new projects together, Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa are the recipients of the 2010 Pritzker Architecture Prize.”

While most of their work is in Japan, Sejima and Nishizawa have designed projects in Germany, England, Spain, France, the Netherlands and the United States, under their combined name SANAA. The first SANAA project in the United States began construction in 2004 in Ohio—a Glass Pavilion for the Toledo Museum of Art. Completed in 2006, it houses the museum’s vast collection of glass artworks, reflecting the city’s history when it was a major center of glass production.
While that building was still under construction, the New Museum of New York City broke ground in 2005 at 235 Bowery. Completed in 2007, the building has been described as “a sculptural stack of rectilinear boxes dynamically shifted off-axis around a central steel core.”

Sejima and Nishizawa explore the ideas of lightness and transparency and pushes the boundaries of these concepts to new extremes.”

O-Museum Nagano, Japan

The Ogasawara Museum was one of their first projects together, begun in 1995 and completed in 1999. Built on an isolated plateau on the side of a mountain, the site is an important heritage site where a castle from the 14th and 15th centuries once stood. The building’s shape follows the contours of the land, and is raised off the ground to keep the remains of the castle in sight, and also minimizes problems with rising damp from the ground. The entrance is from a square and ramp to a large lobby with a large window that frames the castle remains. Exhibition rooms and service area are in line with the lobby.

21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art Kanazawa Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan

Located in an historic city on the north coast of the Japan, this circular building completely within a glass envelope can be viewed from all angles. There are central exhibition spaces of different proportions surrounded by areas for municipal services such as a library, a workshop for children and a conference room. There is space around the perimeter inside the glass to walk completely around the building. There are four inner courtyards enclosed by glass, and many of the rooms have skylights to provide diffused natural light where needed. This project began in 1999 and was completed in 2004.

Christian Dior Building, Omotesando \ Tokyo, Japan

Completed in 2003, the Christian Dior store on Omotesando Avenue in Tokyo called for four retail floors and one multifunctional level. The building could have a maximum height of almost 100 feet so it was decide to achieve the maximum volume and then divide the horizontal spaces of variable heights into retail floors alternated with spaces used for utilities, and all enclosed in glass. Translucent acrylic screens behind the glass can soften the building. At night, the building glows like a jewel in the urban landscape that surrounds it.

Zollverein School of Management and Design Essen, Germany

This project, begun in 2003 and completed in 2006, is located on the site of an old coal mine, near a carbon factory in a suburban area. Designed as a cube, approximately 115 feet to a side, it is a contrast to the large industrial buildings as well as the smaller scale residences around it. Divided into four floors of varying heights, windows of varying dimensions provide natural light and views of the surrounding areas. The first floor is a common study area completely open with no partitions.

New Museum of Contemporary Art New York, New York

In the heart of lower Manhattan, this high rise exhibition space increases the amount of wall space and keeps the building within local planning limits by staggering the different levels which makes possible skylights and terraces where the floors overlap. Begun in 2003, the building opened in 2007.

Rolex Learning Center, EPFL (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne) Lausanne, Switzerland

This project, begun in 2005, is designed to house a library, a center for the study of languages, offices, a cafeteria, restaurant and lobby. The roof and floor have a slightly undulating form. The main entrance can be approached from four sides by walking under the undulating floor slab. There are seven courtyards of varying sizes and shapes. These along with the variations in the space heights and sizes helpcreate different atmospheres for different functions. This project was completed in 2009.


Naoshima Ferry Terminal Naoshima, Kagawa, Japan

Begun in 2003 and completed in 2006, this building is a ferry terminal on a small island in the Inland Sea of Japan. A large (approximately 39,000 square feet) roof covers most of the site, and encompasses several glass enclosed areas that function as visitors center, cafe, event hall, and waiting area, as well as space for parking and bus stops and is described as an entrance hall of the island to accommodate the people together.

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Partenaires au sein de l'agence SANNA, les lauréats du prix 2010 ont notamment conçu le O-Museum de Nagano et le Musée d'art contemporain du 21e siècle de Kanazawa.

Ils sont également les créateurs du Théâtre et centre culturel De Kunstlinie à Almere, aux Pays-Bas, du Nouveau musée d'art contemporain de New York et du récent Centre d'études Rolex de Lausanne, en Suisse.
C'est la troisième fois seulement que le Pritzker, connu comme "le Nobel d'architecture" et doté de 100.000 dollars, est attribué à deux lauréats la même année.
"Les constructions de Sejima et Nashizawa donnent l'illusion d'être simples", a souligné le jury.
"La cérémonie de remise du prix, connu à travers le monde comme la plus haute distinction en matière d'architecture, se tiendra le 17 mai sur l'île Ellis Island à New York", a indiqué la Fondation Hyatt, qui attribue la récompense.
Kazuyo Sejima, une femme de 53 ans, et Ryue Nishizawo, 44 ans, ont également travaillé sur un pavillon temporaire pour la Gallerie Serpentine de Londres aujourd'hui démantelé, le terminal de ferries de Naoshima et l'immeuble Christian Dior de Tokyo.
Ils ont été choisis pour bâtir l'annexe du Musée du Louvre à Lens, dans le nord de la France et ont créé un immeuble sur le site d'une ancienne mine de charbon à Essen, en Allemagne, pour l'école Zollverein de management et de design.