Architectural achievements in the UK capital feature in a shortlist of six in this year’s Royal institute of British Architects (RIBA) Stirling Prize
The Elizabeth Line, the National Portrait Gallery, Chowdhury Walk social housing, and the King’s Cross redevelopment have made the grade alongside Sheffield’s Park Hill – you might know it from the musical Standing at the Sky’s Edge currently packing them in at the Gillian Lynne theatre in Covent Garden – and Wraxall Yard in Dorset.
Exemplary
The Elizabeth Line – an agonisingly long time in gestation – is described by RIBA judges as “a major infrastructure project that sets a new standard for inner-city transport.” The National Portrait Gallery (pictured) is praised for its “welcoming new entrance of bronze doors featuring hand-drawn portraits by Tracey Emin, along with a light-filled learning centre and accessible public space carved from former offices.” The King’s Cross development constitutes a “successful piece of city-making” while Chowdhury Walk is an “exemplary blueprint for social housing.”
Elevating
Commenting on all six projects on the shortlist RIBA president Muyiwa Oki said that they demonstrated “the ingenuity and diversity of architecture today. From major national infrastructure to brave and brilliant council-led housing, these varied schemes are united in making sensitive contributions to elevating everyday life.“
First awarded in 1996, the RIBA Stirling Prize is the UK’s most prestigious architecture award. Previous winners in the capital include Kingston University London – Town House by Grafton Architects (2021) and Bloomberg by Foster + Partners (2018), the latter in a space in the city previously occupied by LCCI.
The winner of the 2024 RIBA Stirling Prize will be announced on 16 October
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