The results of the 2011 Emporis Skyscraper Award are now in: 8 Spruce Street in New York City is the winner of the renowned architecture prize for new skyscrapers. Every year, Emporis' international jury (www.emporis.com) rewards ten skyscrapers completed in the previous calendar year. The award is being given for the 12th time.
The winners were chosen from over 220 skyscrapers completed in 2011. 8 Spruce Street, the first skyscraper by the architect Frank Gehry, and also known as The Beekman or New York by Gehry, won over the jury with its magnificent undulating stainless steel facade.
The sculptured form of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill's Al Hamra Tower earned it second place in the ranking. Despite its great height, the skyscraper fits harmoniously into Kuwait City's urban landscape. The tower is engineered to take account of climate conditions: the south facade, with limestone elements cladding a concrete wall, protects the building from the searing desert sun and impressed the jury from both architectural and functional points of view.
DBI Design's Etihad Towers were voted into third place, the jury praising the complex as a particularly harmonious ensemble of buildings. Critical to the decision were the soft, curving contours of the towers: these suggest the shape of sails and are intended to evoke Abu Dhabi's history as a port. The jury of experts also singled out the exceptional facade of silver and blue glass.
8 Spruce Street is now the third New York tower to win the Emporis Skyscraper Award. The very first award (2000) went to Sofitel New York Hotel, while Hearst Tower won the coveted architecture prize for 2006. That makes New York City, the world capital of high-rise architecture, the city to which the Emporis Skyscraper Award has most often been awarded.
Click here to view photos of the winning projects. +
Related Stories
Building Team Awards | Apr 10, 2015
New arts venue reinvigorates Virginia Tech's campus
The STV-led Building Team creates a world-class performance and arts venue with learning and entrepreneurial dimensions.
BIM and Information Technology | Apr 9, 2015
A carboard box by Google can bring virtual reality to architecture
The global search engine giant has launched a new product, Google Cardboard, that easily allows users to experience virtual reality.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
Multifaced fitness center becomes campus landmark
A sloped running track and open-concept design put this Building Team to the test.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
Nation's first LEED-certified bus depot
A bus garage in Harlem shows that even the most mundane of facilities can strut its environmentally sensitive stuff.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
Setting the bar for port-of-entry design
Whenever you eat a tomato from Mexico, there’s a one-in-three chance it came through this LEED Gold gateway.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
Big D’s billion-dollar baby: New Parkland Hospital Tops the Chart | BD+C
Dallas’s new $1.27 billion public hospital preserves an important civic anchor, Texas-style.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
IPD-driven fusion facility serves science and student life in Chicago
In dire need of modern science labs and a student union, North Park University built both—in the same building.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
‘Prudent, not opulent’ sets the tone for this Catholic hospital
This Building Team stuck with a project for seven years to get a new hospital built for a faithful client.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
9/11 museum triumphs over controversy
The Building Team for this highly visible project had much more than design, engineering, and construction problems to deal with.
Building Team Awards | Apr 7, 2015
Unique test facility will help make wind power more feasible
A new facility at Clemson University makes it possible to test the huge stresses that large-scale wind turbines must be able to withstand.
