Caruso St John's Newport Street Gallery wins the 2016 Stirling Prize
The suspense kept us on the edge of our seat for months, but the votes have been counted and the results are now in – Damien Hirst's Newport Street Gallery by Caruso St John Architects has scooped the prestigious 2016 RIBA Stirling Prize, one of the country’s highest architecture accolades.
Announced this evening at a dedicated ceremony at the RIBA’s art deco HQ on London's Portland Place, and sponsored this year by Almacantar, the Stirling annually highlights buildings that represent a ‘significant contribution to British architecture in the past year’.
Picking this is never an easy task. Newport Street Gallery had to fight off stiff competition by a group of worthy nominees, including the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford, by Herzog & de Meuron; the City of Glasgow College's Riverside Campus, by Michael Laird Architects and Reiach and Hall Architects; the Outhouse, Gloucestershire, by Loyn & Co Architects; Trafalgar Place, Elephant and Castle, London, by dRMM Architects; and the Weston Library, University of Oxford, by WilkinsonEyre.
Preceding the announcement, Peter St John – partner at Caruso St John Architects – explained of the project: 'It's rare for architects to be given the opportunity to realise a personal vision of the quality of the Newport Street Gallery, and for that vision to have a generous public dimension. We see the building as a palace for direct, intimate and luxurious encounters with contemporary art, and we are very pleased that this award will bring more people to see this extraordinary collection.'
The Stephen Lawrence Prize and the RIBA Client of the Year were also revealed during the event, with gongs going to House of Trace by Tsuruta Architects and Westmorland Limited respectively. Meanwhile, the Outhouse won the BBC News public vote for the readers' favourite.
Now in its 21st year, a Stirling Prize book has also just been launched, celebrating its first 20 remarkable years. Published by Merrell, authored by former RIBA head of awards Tony Chapman and including a foreword by 2007 Stirling winner Sir David Chipperfield, the tome is an enthusiast’s feast; essential architectural reading at its best.
INFORMATION
The Riba Stirling Prize: 20, £40, is published by Merrell. For more information, visit the RIBA website and the Merrell website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
Technogym Home Bench 40 ways: designers interpret the home exercise classic
Technogym marks its 40 anniversary with 40 special editions of its Home Bench created in collaboration with international creatives
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
AHEC presents new works in American maple as part of the Wallpaper* Class of ’24
The American Hardwood Export Council takes part in the Wallpaper* Class of ’24 exhibition at Triennale Milano during Salone del Mobile (16-21 April 2024), presenting new pieces by Parti and Giles Tettey Nartey in American hard maple
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
Paris’s Musée des Arts Décoratifs celebrates avant-garde jewellery design
'Fashion, Design, Jewellery Exhibit' is the new transdisciplinary exhibition at Paris’s Musée des Arts Décoratifs
By Minako Norimatsu Published
-
Activism Award 2024 celebrates architecture’s passionate global champions
The shortlist for architecture’s Activism Award 2024 has been announced, highlighting the work of six nominees
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Timber-framed Wimbledon house is a minimalist, low-energy affair
A new timber-framed Wimbledon house is designed to blend into its traditional surroundings with a neat brick façade, careful massing and pared back interiors
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
London Science Museum’s Energy Revolution gallery champions sustainable exhibition design
The Energy Revolution gallery opens at London’s Science Museum, exploring decarbonisation through sustainable exhibition design by Unknown Works
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
This South Downs house stands as a testament to the value of quiet refinement
At one with the landscape, a South Downs house uses elements of quintessential country villas and midcentury gems with modern technologies
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Ash Tree House offers a contextual approach to a north London site
Ash Tree House by Edgley Design is a modern family home in a north London conservation area's backyard site
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
In memoriam: John Miller (1930-2024)
We remember John Miller, an accomplished British architect and educator who advocated a quiet but rigorous modernism
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
River Wing at Clare College responds to its historic Cambridge heritage
University of Cambridge opens its new River Wing on Clare College Old Court, uniting modern technology with historic design
By Clare Dowdy Published
-
Camden Workshop offers flexible family space in a transformed north London warehouse
Camden Workshop, a transformed industrial space in north London, was designed by architects McLaren Excell to combine residential space and a creative studio for its owners
By Ellie Stathaki Published