On November 7, 2024, the World Architecture Festival (WAF) announced its second round of award winners following Day Two of live presentations at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.
The event, known as the world’s largest international live-judged architectural competition, saw hundreds of shortlisted projects presented by practices from around the globe.
Among the notable winners were RSHP, Woods Bagot, The Grid Architects, and SAOTA.
Australia led the pack with seven projects either winning or receiving high commendations across various categories, followed by the United Kingdom with four.
Additional Australian Achievements:
- CSL Global Headquarters by COX Architecture received the Inside Award for Workplace (Large)
- The new Footscray Hospital (designed by COX and BLP) was Highly Commended in WAF Future Projects — Health
Standout projects in the Completed Buildings category included the Paula Fox Melanoma and Cancer Centre in Australia by Lyons, which won in the Health category, and the Rhodes House Transformation in the United Kingdom by Stanton Williams, which took the top spot in Retrofit.
In the Future Projects category, Woods Bagot’s University of Tasmania Forestry Building won in Education, while SAOTA’s Meru project in Kenya clinched the House category.
The judges were particularly impressed with the “rigorous research backing design processes” and concepts that aimed for “expansion of public spaces and inclusion of communities”.
The INSIDE category, focusing on interior design, saw Bates Smart’s Embassy of Australia in Washington D.C. win in the Public Buildings category, while Klein Dytham architecture’s Fender Flagship Tokyo took the top spot in Retail.
On November 8, 2024, the festival announced its ultimate accolades.
The prestigious World Building of the Year award went to Darlington Public School in Australia, designed by fjcstudio.
This marks a historic moment for fjcstudio, as they became the first practice in WAF’s history to win this award twice.
The jury praised the project for its seamless connection to its surroundings and strong ties to the Aboriginal community.
Paul Finch, Programme Director of the World Architecture Festival, described the winning project as “poetic” and “an inspirational proposition about the acknowledgement and reconciliation of historic difference”.
Other major awards included the Landscape of the Year, which went to the Regeneration of Vitality – Shenzhen Guanlan Riverside Plaza in China by LAY-OUT Planning Consultants Co., Ltd.
The WAFX award, recognising projects that tackle major world issues, was presented to Knowledge Economic City in Saudi Arabia by DLR Group.
The 2024 World Architecture Festival has once again highlighted the innovative and socially conscious direction of contemporary architecture, setting the stage for the industry’s future developments.
