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AIA San Francisco Announces 2021 Design Awards Recipients

(SAN FRANCISCO, CA) July 1, 2021 | AIA San Francisco (AIASF) announced the 2021 AIASF Design Awards recipients on Wednesday, June 30, 2021, in a virtual awards ceremony. This year’s award recipients include YKH Associates, Mark Cavagnero Associates, HGA, JENSEN Architects, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, David Baker Architects, MAK Studio, Montalba Architects, AÇA, Aidlin Darling Design, ELS Architecture and Urban Design, Kuth Ranieri Architects, Yi-Hsien (Rachel) Wang, and Robert Nebolon Architects.

The 2021 program featured a diverse range of project types that highlighted the Bay Area’s rich history of design leadership and was juried in a full-day virtual session by five esteemed leaders in architecture and design. The 2021 Design Awards jurors included Barbara Bestor, FAIA of Bestor Architecture, Vishaan Chakrabarti, FAIA, of PAU, Annabelle Selldorf, FAIA of Selldorf Architects, Brigitte Shim, Hon. FAIA of Shim-Sutcliffe Architects, and Julie Snow, FAIA, of Snow Kreilich Architects.

The virtual celebration welcomed an insightful lineup of speakers with appearances from AIASF’s Historic Resource Committee, Equity by Design Committee, and Charles Higueras, FAIA on behalf of the Center for Architecture + Design. The ceremony also featured work from Spirit of Space, a group of filmmakers creating stories for architects, designers, and artists that reveal why design matters.

This year, AIA San Francisco launched the inaugural AIASF People’s Choice Awards in Architecture in collaboration with the Center for Architecture + Design. The new People’s Choice Awards expands the AIASF Design Awards program to provide the public the opportunity to recognize excellence in architectural work in and by the San Francisco Bay Area design community.

“2020 was a catalyst for many architects and firm members of AIA San Francisco. In addition, the transformative year shed light on how the built environment plays an important role in our health, justice, and everyday life,” commented AIASF Deputy Director Amy Ress, “By expanding our Design Awards program to include the People’s Choice Awards, we’re pleased to engage the public to recognize a broader definition of design excellence in the built environment.”

The AIASF Design Awards submissions are divided into three main categories—Architecture, Interior Architecture, and Unbuilt Design—with three optional concentrations for Commendations that give special acknowledgment to projects that further encompass the values of good design within the context of Historic Preservation, Social Responsibility, and Urban Design. The Design Awards program incorporates the fulfillment of sustainable design principles into all categories.

“The level of design sensitivity that we see in the work, despite the challenges we have collectively faced this past year, demonstrates the resiliency of our community,” noted AIASF Executive Director Stacy Williams. “The projects honored by the AIASF Design Awards address the full range of design excellence from supporting underserved neighborhoods and integrating environmental stewardship to demonstrating an exemplary approach to equitable design,” she added.

This year’s AIASF Design Awards program was made possible by the generous support of sponsors including Sixteen5hundred and Tipping Structural Engineers at the Bronze Level, and XL Construction and Nibbi Brothers General Contractors at the Copper Level, as well as the contribution of v2com as the International Newswire Partner.

In existence for nearly half a century, AIA San Francisco’s Design Awards program recognizes the outstanding achievements in architecture and design of Bay Area individuals and organizations. It celebrates exceptional architectural design as well as the work of allied professionals from afar who contribute to our local built environment’s framework. The program serves to inform the public of the breadth and value of the architectural practice.

The 2021 Design Award Honorees are featured in an online gallery that includes project images. A full list of AIASF’s 2021 Design Award recipients can be found in the table below.

 

AIASF 2021 DESIGN AWARDS RECIPIENTS

Category	Award level	Commendation	Project	Honoree
Architecture	Honor		Sebyeol Brewery	YKH Associates
Architecture	Merit	Public Design	Oakland Museum of California	Mark Cavagnero Associates
Architecture	Merit		Westwood Hills Nature Center	HGA
Architecture	Merit		Stanford Residence	JENSEN Architects
Architecture	Merit		49 South Van Ness	Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Architecture	Citation	Social Responsibility	222 Taylor	David Baker Architects
Architecture	Citation		San Francisco State University George and Judy Marcus Hall for the Liberal and Creative Arts	Mark Cavagnero Associates
Architecture	Citation		Natoma	MAK Studio
Interior Architecture	Merit		Nobu Hotel Palo Alto	Montalba Architects
Unbuilt Design	Merit		The Courtyard House	AÇA
Commendation		Historic Preservation	Geneva Car Barn & Powerhouse	Aidlin Darling Design
Commendation		Social Responsibility	Balboa Park Pool Renovation	ELS Architecture and Urban Design + Kuth Ranieri Architects
People’s Choice	Over $10M		Outer Mission Ramp Library	Yi-Hsien (Rachel) Wang
People’s Choice	Under $10M		Tiny House in West Marin County	Robert Nebolon Architects

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About AIA San Francisco | www.aiasf.org Instagram Facebook Twitter LinkedIn
Serving the Bay Area for over a century, AIA San Francisco (AIASF), is committed to enhancing the quality of life in the Bay Area by promoting excellence in architecture, design, and the built environment. AIASF represents members practicing architecture, as well as allied community professionals in San Francisco and Marin counties. As a resource for our members and the public, AIA San Francisco strives to improve the quality of life in the Bay Area through community involvement, education, advocacy, public outreach, and member services.

About the Center for Architecture + Design | www.centersf.org, https://aiasf.org/futurehq | Instagram Facebook Twitter LinkedIn
The Center for Architecture + Design (the Center) is a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to creating a public-focused dialogue on architecture, design, and the built environment in the San Francisco Bay Area. Established in 2005, the Center enhances public appreciation for architecture and design through more than 400 virtual and in-person exhibitions, lectures, tours, film series, and other programs, including the annual Architecture + the City festival and San Francisco Living: Home Tours. Located within a 10,000 square foot storefront in the historic Hallidie Building designed by an exciting “Community of Builders,” spearheaded by Aidlin Darling Design, BCCI, and Salter, AIA San Francisco’s new Center for Architecture + Design will inform, educate, and inspire new ideas about architecture and design in the Bay Area.