Presentation

A new event hallmarked by quality for the "International Award Architecture in Stone" at Marmomacc, now celebrating its eleventh edition.
Since its institution in 1987, it has been a fundamental reference for architects, engineers and the university world involved in research into the use of stone materials in harmony with constructional disciplines but equally open to innovation.
The sequence of works selected in more than 20 years of history of the Award clearly demonstrates the extraordinary flourishing of languages in stone architecture all over the world: from refined, thin cladding to the imposing and massive walls experimented by the great masters of contemporary architecture. More recent editions have widened the viewpoint to other areas of quality that are less exposed to media limelight, to the extent of even focusing on vernacular architecture, one of the fundamental paradigms of current architecture that has inspired the work of many architects.

The 2009 edition of the Award, curated in continuity with previous events by Vincenzo Pavan, boasts a high quality international jury of historians, critics and professors of architecture to ensure pluralist yet at the same time rigorous decisions.
The jury especially privileged public works concerning major institutions in important European cities, as well as small urban spaces or even tiny educational structures in remote rural areas. While in the private sector, the choice went to a significant and exemplary task of urban re-utilisation and re-qualification.
Every work selected communicates the capacity of stone not only to create a strong bond with tradition but also to represent a material capable of inspiring essential and evocative relationships with nature. The two special prizes not focusing on the contemporary world as such but substantially linked with it are particularly important: The “ad memoriam” Award and the "vernacular architecture" Award: the first is dedicated to one of the most representative buildings of the Modern Movement in Spain; the second to the great rural building tradition in the Atlantic area of the Iberian peninsula.

The Award esentially involves the publication of prestigious book with extensive documentation of the award-winning projects complemented by critical and historic essays by eminent personalities in the world of architecture.
During the 44th Marmomacc, the International Award Architecture in Stone will be one of the main cultural events scheduled for "Marble Architecture Design" involving two shows: The exhibition of award-winning works and the official Ceremony announcing the winners.