Marina Tabassum receives 2021 Soane Medal
Bangladeshi architect Marina Tabassum scoops the 2021 Soane Medal, as announced today in London

The 2021 Soane Medal has been announced today, naming Bangladeshi architect Marina Tabassum this year's winner. The prestigious architecture award, presented annually by Sir John Soane's Museum in London, celebrates a leading architect's career and body of work so far – previous winners are Rafael Moneo, Denise Scott Brown and Kenneth Frampton. The 2021 award represents its fourth iteration, and it will be, as always, accompanied by the Soane Medal Lecture, which will be given tonight, 16 November 2021, by Tabassum at the museum’s Lincoln’s Inn Fields home.
Born and based in Dhaka, Tabassum has been prolific in her country since the mid-1990s, when she set up her eponymous practice there. She talks about ‘the architecture of relevance’, a topic she discussed with us more this summer, when invited by Mexican architect Frida Escobedo, who nominated her among her chosen ‘five creative leaders of the future' in our celebratory 25th anniversary October 2021 issue of Wallpaper*.
Marina Tabassum: 2021 Soane Medal winner
Marina Tabassum.
Creating work that feels in tune with its context – in environmental ways, but also socially – is crucial in the Bangladeshi architect’s approach. Critical examples include the mesmerising minimalist architecture of the 2012 Bait Ur Rouf Mosque in Dhaka; and ongoing work at Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, in south-east Bangladesh. She considers the design for Dhaka's Independence Monument and Liberation War Museum as her breakthrough work.
‘I consciously moved away from real estate – and profit-driven work – in my practice,' says Tabassum. ‘We are a local, very “Dhaka” practice. There is so much to do in Bangladesh.'
Khudi Bari, a modular mobile house for the Climate Victims of Bangladesh.
The studio also does a lot of self-initiated research. It may be small – just ten people strong at the moment – but the architect hopes to keep it that way, focusing on work that feels meaningful to its community, such as Tabassum’s research work on coastal areas of Bangladesh, for which she raised funding, and which is now becoming a series of modular homes on coastal sites. And while she doesn't take part in many big, international competitions, Tabassum is open to opportunities and what the future might bring. ‘I take the opportunities that come my way and follow my instinct,' she says.
Independence Monument and Liberation War Museum, Suhrawardi Uddyan, Dhaka.
Back in London, the architect is preparing for her evening lecture, which promises to be a bit ‘autobiographical', discussing her journey in life and architecture to date.
‘I am honoured to have been chosen to receive this recognition from such a distinguished institution as the Sir John Soane's Museum,’ Tabassum says. ‘Winning the Soane Medal means a great deal to me. My current work is focused on the twin crises of Bangladesh: the plight of refugees, and the heightened threat to our population of flooding, exacerbated by global warming. Both factors have led me to focus on prototyping low-impact, mobile housing that can be delivered at the lowest cost possible for those in need. Our goal is to make it an open source knowledge that can help people build their own houses, with the help of a manual with detailed instructions.'
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Resilient Landscape, Rohingya Refugee Camps, Ukhiya.
Bait ur Rouf Mosque, Faidabad, Uttara, Dhaka.
INFORMATION
mtarchitekts.com
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).
-
A hidden Gio Ponti illustration comes to light for ‘Dezza’ armchair’s 60th
Poltrona Frau brings a lost Gio Ponti illustration to life in leather for the designer’s ‘Dezza’ armchair’s anniversary celebration
By Ali Morris Published
-
This Rocky Mountains house is a ski-lover's dream escape
Bozeman, a Rocky Mountains house by Frederick Tang Architecture, is a contemporary retreat that sits low in its natural, Montana setting
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Tour the Albuquerque Foundation, Portugal’s new ceramics hub, where the historic and contemporary meet
A new cultural destination dedicated to ceramics, The Albuquerque Foundation by Bernardes Arquitetura opens its doors in Sintra, Portugal
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Young Climate Prize 2025 winners: the creatives designing for a better tomorrow
The winners for the Young Climate Prize 2025 cycle by The World Around have been announced, crowning a new generation of changemakers; we go behind the scenes and reveal the process and winners
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
And the RIBA Royal Gold Medal 2025 goes to... SANAA!
The RIBA Royal Gold Medal 2025 winner is announced – Japanese studio SANAA scoops the prestigious architecture industry accolade
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
The RIBA House of the Year 2024 winner is a delightful work in progress
The winner of the RIBA House of the Year 2024 is Six Columns in south London – the home of architect and 31/44 studio co-founder William Burges
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
RIBA International Prize 2024 goes to 'radical housing' in Barcelona
RIBA International Prize 2024 has been announced, and the winner is Modulus Matrix: 85 Social Housing in Cornellà, designed by Peris + Toral Arquitectes in Barcelona
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Meet the 2024 Royal Academy Dorfman Prize winner: Livyj Bereh from Ukraine
The 2024 Royal Academy Dorfman Prize winner has been crowned: congratulations to architecture collective Livyj Bereh from Ukraine, praised for its rebuilding efforts during the ongoing war in the country
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
RIBA House of the Year 2024: browse the shortlist and pick your favourite
The RIBA House of the Year 2024 shortlist is out, celebrating homes across the UK: it's time to place your bets. Which will win the top gong?
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
2024 Obel Award goes to 36x36 by Colectivo C733 in Mexico
The 2024 Obel Award winner has been announced, crowning 36x36 by Colectivo C733 in Mexico as this year's recipients
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Shigeru Ban wins 2024 Praemium Imperiale Architecture Award
The 2024 Praemium Imperiale Architecture Award goes to Japanese architect Shigeru Ban
By Ellie Stathaki Published