Vienna Exhibition "Mies van der Rohe Award 2009"

On June 23, the exhibition "Best European Buildings, Mies van der Rohe Award 2009" will be opened at the Vienna Center for Architecture Az W. The exhibition by the Fundació Mies van der Rohe will be inaugurated by the director of the Architekturzentrum Wien, Dietmar Steiner, and the exhibition curator, Diane Gray. The "Mies van der Rohe Award 2009" is a joint initiative of the European Commission and the Fundació Mies van der Rohe from Barcelona. It is awarded every two years, with the main prize amounting to 60,000 euros and a special mention for discovery of 20,000 euros.

The main purpose is to recognize, evaluate, and reward outstanding achievements in the field of architecture within the European Union. The award is also understood as a support for the architectural profession and for young architects at the beginning of their careers. Both awards are given for exceptionally outstanding performances in conceptual, technical, and construction aspects. From 340 nominated projects, five finalists were selected in 2009. Leading experts chose the Norwegian studio Snøhetta as the main winner of the competition with its realization of the National Opera and Ballet in Oslo. The special mention for "Emerging Architect Special Mention" was awarded to the studio "Studio Up" for the project of the school building and gymnasium "Gymnasium 46° 09' N / 16° 50' E" in Koprivnica, Croatia. The traveling exhibition is enriched by a presentation of fifteen Austrian projects that were nominated for the award. A comprehensive catalog was published as part of the exhibition.

Duration of the exhibition: June 24 - September 20, 2010
Opening hours: daily 10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Venue: Architekturzentrum Wien - Alte Halle
Museumsplatz 1, within the MuseumsQuartier, A-1070 Vienna
www.azw.at, www.mqw.at

Curators of the exhibition: Diane Gray, Fundació Mies van der Rohe - Barcelona
Project management for the Az W Architecture Center: Katharina Ritter
Exhibition system: Magatzem de Disseny
Design of exhibition panels: ACTAR

Winner of the competition:
Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, Oslo, Norway
Studio: Snøhetta / Kjetil Trædal Thorsen, Tarald Lundevall, Craig Dykers
www.snohetta.com

Opening of the exhibition:
Wednesday, June 23, 2010, at 7 PM

The exhibition will be presented by:
Dietmar Steiner, director of the Az W Architecture Center
Diane Gray, curator of the Fundació Mies van der Rohe