Brick Award 24 winners announced

Discover this year’s winners of the prestigious Brick Award, celebrating the very best in brick construction design.

wienerberger is delighted to announce the winners of the eleventh biennial Brick Award, showcasing the most innovative brick architecture from around the world. Created in 2004 by wienerberger, the international awards received a total of 743 entries from 54 countries this year, competing across five categories and for an overall grand prize.

The jury, consisting of internationally renowned architects, selected the winners from a shortlist of 50 projects, based on criteria such as aesthetics, sustainability and innovation.

This exhibition and events centre in Limerick, Ireland, showcases the beauty of red brick in all its glory. Inspired by the grandeur and heritage of Limerick’s historical churches, the building effortlessly complements its surroundings without compromising on a bold modern aesthetic.

“We were inspired by pictures of red-clad Munster rug­by team fans flooding the streets after winning a game,” says Tom McGlynn, partner at Níall McLaughlin Architects. “We loved the idea of a cup-winning team standing on that balcony at some point showing off the trophy to the crowd.”

Towering above the neighbouring houses like a cathedral of sport, the International Rugby Experience puts red brick at its heart, emphasising the dominance of this material with red steel elements. Nearly half a million bricks brought the architects’ vision to life, mixing three hand-moulded brick types to achieve the appropriate colour tone to match the neighbourhood. The theme runs through the entire building, from the “Grand Portico” to the two-story foyer, from the exhibition spaces to the educational rooms, and ultimately into a public event space, the glazed crown of the building with a panoramic view over the whole city.

A single family home in Asunción, Paraguay, the Intermediate House is a masterclass in turning architectural challenges into beautiful solutions, compounded by a harmonious interchange with nature.

Built on a narrow lot with a neighbouring property pushing up close, the house makes ingenious use of a restricted space, using compressed soil blocks which allow for low-emission temperature control. There are no window openings, but instead – on the inside of the walls – storage space in the form of wall boxes. This becomes a key element in the play of light and shadow, in the zoning of communal and private areas and in the low-tech approach to climatic conditions.

With simple materials, climate-friendly construction and a thoughtful interplay of different spaces, this house dialogues with nature and climate. On the street side, the house is set back with another brick wall, designed as a light- and air-permeable filter layer. This creates a transition area acting as a reception space, followed by a courtyard with a mango tree around which the house was designed. At the further end are the kitchen, living area and bedroom, plus a hidden garden.

The award for best multi-residential project went to M 5605 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Despite a narrow corner plot, the building achieves a powerful elegance, with ten compact units, each with its own private outdoor space.

Like curious neighbours leaning out of the window, periscope-like balconies grow out of the facade and stretch out in different directions. This expressive element not only gives the house a unique identity, but also offers residents a shaded outdoor area and weaves it into the public space. Large windows round the corners of the building, articulating the boundary between inside and outside. On the ground floor, however, this effect is reversed – the entrance is set back under the corner, creating a threshold from the resulting overhang. The facade brick continues in the foyer as interior wall cladding and the car parking space is demarcated by lattices intertwining the exterior and interior space.

This modern office space in Dublin brings together modern building standards with the city’s historic aesthetic. Set in a partially listed Georgian neighbourhood in the centre of Dublin, this project replaces a 1960s office complex. The new ESB headquarters are designed to pay homage to local architectural tradition and at the same time set an example for modern office architecture in terms of spatial configuration, resource usage and the development of a high-quality working environment.

The design interweaves a series of slender buildings and planted courtyards for natural ventilation and daylight. Passages have been created between the streets that border the block, allowing access to the public, both spatially and metaphorically.

Exposed brick facades and colonnades, made using traditional 18th-century craftsmanship methods, establish an immediate connection to the neighbourhood. When walking down Fitzwilliam Street, one can feel both familiarity and forward-thinking.

Designed as part of the Concéntrico architecture and design festival, Types of Spaces is a temporary construction in a narrow passageway in the Spanish town of Logroño which leads visitors through several architectural styles in a poetic journey.

The installation is just 40m long, located on the site of a former tobacco factory. The short, narrow passageway – previously barely noticeable in the urban fabric – became a sequence of six geometric spatial structures constructed entirely from clay blocks. Architects HANGHAR and PALMA create a journey that sharpens perception of space, light and air in a labyrinthine progression through the courtyards.

In contrast to the perfectly constructed walls is the floor, covered in brick chips. It also contributes to the variety of sensory sensations – walking requires attention and slowness. “We see something powerful and playful in it,” says Diego Escamilla from PALMA.