{"id":475313,"date":"2026-06-13T11:16:44","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T11:16:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/475313\/"},"modified":"2026-06-13T11:16:44","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T11:16:44","slug":"brick-awards-2026-the-worlds-best-brick-architecture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/475313\/","title":{"rendered":"Brick Awards 2026: the world\u2019s best brick architecture"},"content":{"rendered":"

The brick: the most humble and commonplace of objects. Yet this unassuming building material is also the foundation \u2013 literally \u2013 of some of the world’s most extraordinary structures.<\/p>\n

The brick has its moment biannually at the Brick Awards<\/a>, a ceremony held in Vienna<\/a> and presented by building solutions company Wienerberger, which brings together the finest examples of brick and ceramic architecture from around the globe. This year’s six winners were selected from a shortlist of 50 projects across 21 countries \u2013 and together, they prove that one of humanity’s oldest building materials remains as vital and versatile as ever.<\/p>\n

Grand Prize award: \u0110\u1ea1o M\u1eabu Temple and Museum, Vietnam <\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Trieu Chien)<\/p>\n

The evening’s highest honour went to this 5,000-square-metre temple and museum in Soc Son, designed by ARB Architects for folk artist Xu\u00e2n Hinh. A carbon-negative project, it upcycled approximately six million clay tiles sourced from more than 500 local homes \u2013 forging a literal connection between the building and its community. Spiritual tradition meets contemporary design here with striking results. The project also makes a powerful statement about sustainable architecture’s capacity to serve the present while honouring the past.<\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Trieu Chien)<\/p>\n

Feeling at Home award: Ca na Birgit, Mallorca, Spain <\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Luis Diaz)<\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Luis Diaz)<\/p>\n

This prize went to a compact 194-square-metre home perched on the cliffs of Ses Penyes Rotges, designed by TEd’A Arquitectes. Using locally sourced brick, the architects solved a seemingly impossible brief \u2013 face the sea but remain hidden from neighbours \u2013 with elegant simplicity: two deep parallel walls that frame the view while ensuring complete privacy.<\/p>\n

Living Together award: mixed-use residential development, Barcelona, Spain <\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Jose\u0301 Havia)<\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Jose\u0301 Havia)<\/p>\n

Peris+Toral Arquitectes created 54 social rental apartments centred around a bioclimatic \u2018Social Atrium\u2019 connecting homes with ground-floor communal amenities. Biomass-fired brick on both interior and exterior facades acts as a natural thermal regulator \u2013 warm in winter, cool in summer.<\/p>\n

Working Together award: La Hacienda Jalisco, Mexico <\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Ce\u0301sar Be\u0301jar)<\/p>\n

Atelier Ars designed a warehouse and office complex for tequila producer Clase Azul using local ceramics and stone excavated from the site itself. Viewed from the east, the building rises as a ‘ceramic horizon’, its clay-clad roof dissolving into the volcanic terrain.<\/p>\n

Building Outside the Box award: Endless Brick Playground, China Academy of Art, Hangzhou, China <\/p>\n

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(Image credit: China Academy of Art)<\/p>\n

Perhaps the most unexpected winner was not a single building, but the cumulative result of a decade-long undergraduate masonry course. Since 2014, nearly 80 students have constructed 48 brick structures on the same site \u2013 some dismantled each year to make way for new ones \u2013 creating a shifting, collaborative environment and a living exploration of brick\u2019s material possibilities.<\/p>\n

Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.<\/p>\n

Special Prize: urban infill project, Belgium<\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Stijn Bollaert)<\/p>\n

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(Image credit: Stijn Bollaert)<\/p>\n

In a first for the awards, the jury introduced a Special Prize, presented to Maker for reimagining a neighbourhood of 54 homes in Kortrijk, Belgium<\/a>, as a contemporary garden city, using reclaimed bricks and tiles throughout.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Wienerberger CEO Heimo Scheuch reflected on the evening: \u2018Tonight’s winners show the versatility of these timeless materials to address the most pressing needs of climate change and modern living \u2013 while still creating wonder and beauty.\u2019<\/p>\n

TOPICS<\/p>\n


\nBrick architecture
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