Are these the best brick and ceramic buildings in the world?

The shortlist for the Brick Award 26 has been announced. The biannual celebration is a platform to showcase innovative buildings that have been constructed using timeless brick and ceramic materials while embodying forward-thinking architecture. All 50 nominees will be included in Brick 26, a book dedicated to this year's standout designs.

The award is divided into five categories: Feeling at home (single houses and small projects); Living together (urban residential developments); Working together (commercial and industrial buildings); Sharing public spaces (public buildings and spaces); and Building outside the box (innovation).

Since 2004, the award has spotlighted outstanding brick buildings around the world, with this year's shortlist spanning five continents and 21 countries. A pre-jury panel whittled through 849 submissions before selecting the final 50 designs.

Shortlisted entries from the Middle East include the Shafagh Tomb in Iran, by 35-51 Architecture Office, a contemporary take on a mausoleum that doubles as a cemetery gateway.

Among those representing Asia, there’s the Aga Khan Academy in Bangladesh, a four-storey brick-clad residential school arranged around a green outdoor space, designed collaboratively by Shatotto Architecture for Green Living, Rafiq Azam and Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios; Metallic Bellows, a factory office in India, by KSM Architecture that was inspired by local brick kilns; Kengo Kuma’s UCCA Clay Museum in China, shortlisted for its distinctive roof, which references a nearby mountain; and the Tianjin Zhongshuge bookstore by X+Living Architecture and Interior Design, also in China, noted for its ‘wave’ design, comprising bricks and ironwork.

In Europe, another wave-like façade is seen on Amsterdam’s historic Hooftstraat shopping street. Designed by Dutch architecture practice Studio RAP, the effect was achieved with 3D-printed ceramic tiles. Meanwhile, the Leipzig Cogeneration Plan in Germany, by Atelier ST, features a fired-clay curtain façade; and a former industrial hall-turned-temporary theatre in Slovenia, by Vidic Grohar Arhitekti, which incorporates both permanent and temporary elements, the latter designed to be reused elsewhere.

Brutalist haters look away as Park Hill in the UK’s Sheffield – Europe's largest listed building, where a second phase of regeneration, completed by Mikhail Riches, preserved infill brickwork – has been shortlisted.

Noted from Oceania, Kerstin Thompson Architects’ Melbourne Holocaust Museum in Australia, an expression of remembrance and resilience, saw the use of some 25,000 bricks.

In North America, the hand-laid brick masonry façade and arched windows of 64 University Place in Greenwich Village, New York, captivated the pre-jury. Mexico’s Clase Azul La Hacienda Jalisco warehousing and offices, by Atelier ARS, use local ceramics and stone to reference the location's volcanic context.

In Africa, Cape Town’s Mountain House, by Chris van Niekerk, is an expression of the earth’s colour and textures.

In South America, White Bricks House in Brazil, by Bloco Arquitetos, is a case study of brickwork used to produce intricate patterns resulting in a unique handcrafted character.

These are just a few examples of the shortlisted entries. See the full Brick 26 shortlist below, and expect the winners’ announcement following the official awards ceremony taking place on 11 June 2026 in Vienna.

brickaward.com

Brick Award 2026 Shortlist

Feeling at home

• Blockmakers Arms, London, UK, by Erbar Mattes
• Ca na Birgit, Calvià, Spain, by TEd'A arquitectes
• House 1616, Barcelona, Spain, by Harquitectes
• Kurth Residence, Liege, Belgium, by Olivier Fourneau Architects
• Los Guayabos, Cuernavaca, Mexico, by Rodriguez + De Mitri
• Manel and Montse House, Sant Esteve de Palautordera, Spain, by Obo Estudi Arquitectura
• Mountain House, Cape Town, South Africa, by Chris van Niekerk
• Valley House, Torres Vedras, Portugal, by Volume - Architecture Lisbon Studio
• Verandah House, Nhavi Sandas, India, by studioPPBA
• Villa BW, Vught, Netherlands, by Mecanoo
• White Bricks House, Brasilia, Brazil, by Bloco Arquitetos

Living together

• 11 social housing units, Palma, Spain, by Carles Enrich Studio
• 64 University Place, New York, USA, by Kohn Pedersen Fox
• Social and urban infill project, Kortrijk, Belgium, by Maker architecten
• Fixfabriken Spanjoletten, Gothenburg, Sweden, by Olsson Lyckefors Arkitekter
• Luise 19E, Werder, Germany, by undjurekbrüggen
• O 14, Madrid, Spain, by Burr Studio
• Park Hill Phase 2, Sheffield, UK, by Mikhail Riches
• Social Atrium - 54 dwellings in the Besòs, Barcelona, Spain, by Peris + Toral Arquitectes & L3J

Working together

• Leipzig Cogeneration Plant, Leipzig, Germany, by Atelier ST
• Firemen tower in Vall d'Hebron, Barcelona, Spain, by Carles Enrich Studio
• Håndværkskollegiet i Horsens, Horsens, Denmark, by Cubo Arkitekter & Danø Architecture
• Lindemans Brewery, Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, Belgium, by A2D architects
• Metallic Bellows Factory Office, Chennai, India, by KSM Architecture
• Mezcal Production Palenque, Jiquilpan de Juárez, Mexico, by Estudio ALA
• Recast | Lao Ding Feng Beijing, China, by Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
• Sara Weill-Raynal nursing home, Paris, France, by Avenier Cornejo Architectes
• Substation Ijburg, Amsterdam, Netherlands, by Powerhouse Company
• Warehouse/offices for Clase Azul La Hacienda Jalisco, Tepatitlán, Mexico, by Atelier ARS

Sharing public spaces

• Academia Atlas, Zapopan, Mexico, by Sordo Madaleno
• Aga Khan Academy, Dhaka, Bangladesh, by Shatotto & Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios
• Đạo Mẫu (Mothergoddess) Museum & Temple, Hanoi, Vietnam, by Arb Architects
• District school Kirchwerder, Hamburg, Germany, by Thomas Kröger Architekten
• Het Steen Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium, by noAarchitecten
• La Chênaie Public School, Saint Etienne de Montluc, France, by Raum
• Melbourne Holocaust Museum, Melbourne, Australia, by Kerstin Thompson Architects
• Mercado Nicolas Bravo, Quintana Roo, Mexico, by Aidia Studio
• Park Brialmont Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium, by Cluster landscape & urbanism
• Performing Arts Centre Brighton College, Brighton, UK, by KRFT
• Primary School Edison Antwerp, Netherlands, by Korteknie Stuhlmacher Architecten
• Schoenenkwartier Shoe Museum, Waalwijk, Netherlands, by Civic Architects
• Temporary space for Slovenian National Theatre, Ljubljana, Slovenia, by Vidic Grohar Arhitekti
• UCCA Clay Museum, Yixing, China, by Kengo Kuma and Associates

Building outside the box

• Ceramic House, Amsterdam, Netherlands, by Studio RAP
• Endless Brick Playground, Hangzhou, China, by China Academy of Art
• La Cruz 13-40, Cuenca, Spain, by Taller Alexis Schulman & Surreal Estudio
• Mary‘s Mantle Chapel, Freising, Germany, by Brückner & Brückner Architekten
• Shafagh Tomb, Ardakan, Iran, by 35-51 Architecture Office
• The Lady, Amsterdam, Netherlands, by Dok architecten
• Tianjin Zhongshuge, Tianjin, China, by X+Living Architecture and Interior Design