International High-Rise Award 2024/25

The finalists of this year's International High-Rise Award (IHA) have been determined.

The jury selected five buildings from Asia, Europe and South America from a total of 31 nominated high-rise buildings from 13 countries. Alongside the wealth of aesthetic and technical ideas, the jury also based its assessment of the respective project on its social value as a “good neighbor”, its sustainable characteristics, and whether it featured a good design with a strong future. The jury members concurred that the central challenges facing high-rise construction stem from the need for greening, for greater densities, and for maximum use of existing buildings. The task that architects and urban planners must in the future tackle is to combine all three aspects. Against this background, chaired by Kim Herforth Nielsen the jury selected a shortlist of five finalists from among the 31 longlisted projects.

The IHA is considered the world's most important architecture award for high-rise buildings. The winner will be honored on November 12th in Frankfurt's Paulskirche. In addition, the event will be broadcast via live stream. The IHA is presented by the City of Frankfurt am Main together with Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM) and DekaBank and is endowed with a statuette of the internationally renowned artist Thomas Demand and prize money of EUR 50,000.

The IHA 2024/25 finalists at a glance:

CapitaSpring, Singapore
Architecture: BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, Copenhagen, Denmark & CRA-Carlo Ratti Associati, Turin, Italy / New York, USA
IQON Residences, Quito, Ecuador
Architecture: BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, Copenhagen, Denmark / New York, USA
Shenzhen Women & Children's Center, Shenzhen, China
Architecture: MVRDV, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Valley, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Architecture: MVRDV, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Bunker Tower, Eindhoven, Netherlands
Architecture: Powerhouse Company, Rotterdam, Netherlands

The integration of a student center from the late 1960s into a high-rise

The fifth finalist is the Bunker Tower located in Eindhoven in the Netherlands and masterminded by Rotterdam’s Powerhouse Company. The architects have taken a low, brutalist students’ center from then late 1960s as the starting point for a high-rise that is primarily residential, transferring the striking formal language of the old structure onto the tower.

The jury liked the idea of deriving the project from the specifics of the site and at the same time preserving the local architectural heritage by skillful redesigning of the old built form. This sensitivity to the heritage is also reflected in the careful choice of materials.

The former student union building of Eindhoven University of Technology was built in 1969 in the Brutalist style, designed by Huig Maaskant, one of the most renowned Dutch architects of the 20th century. The building quickly developed into an important social center for students and soon became known as “De Bunker” because of its architecture. Thus, the structure combines significant architectural historical value with special social and cultural relevance. To save the aging building from demolition, Eindhoven University of Technology held a competition in 2016, which was won by the office Powerhouse Company. According to their winning design, the dilapidated concrete structure was carefully refurbished with sustainability in mind and complemented by a new residential tower providing 210 spacious rental and owner-occupied apartments. The construction of the tower not only created much-needed housing but also financed the elaborate restoration of the existing building.
The new high-rise echoes the sloping exterior walls and horizontal lines of “De Bunker’s” facade, as well as its color scheme, thus transforming the architectural language of the original structure into bold verticality. On the lower floors, solid bands of natural stone dominate the façade, which open up to allow for larger glass surfaces as the building rises. Simultaneously, the asymmetrical, slightly stepped volume of the tower tapers the higher it gets in analogy to the existing structure. The materials used in the high-rise, such as wood and glass, also reference Huig Maaskant’s design. The natural stone used resembles concrete, further enhancing the ensemble effect of the new and existing buildings. Following its transformation into a podium building, the former student union building (where Powerhouse Company founder Nanne de Ru also spent time as a student) now houses high-quality office spaces and a public restaurant, thus reviving one of the original social uses of the former student union building. Additionally, the underground parking garage built during the construction of the residential tower enabled the conversion of the adjacent parking lot into a public park that extends Eindhoven’s northern green corridor called “de Karpen.” The architectural language of the ensemble was also applied to the pathways, planting areas and seating in the design of the open spaces.

Architecture: Powerhouse Company, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Client: RED Company; Being Development
Main use: Residential, offices, gastronomy
Height: 100 m
Completion: October 2022
Location: Sydney, Australia

The jury of the International High-Rise Award 2024/25

The international jury is made up of experts from architecture and engineering practice, education and the partners of the IHA, namely DekaBank, the City of Frankfurt, and Deutsches Architekturmuseum.

Kim Herforth Nielsen, Founding partner 3XN, Copenhagen – jury chairman
Yasmin Al-Ani Spence, Direktorin WilkinsonEyre, London Roland Bechmann, Partner Werner Sobek, Stuttgart
Jürgen Heinzel, Associate Design Director UN Studio, Amsterdam
Christopher Lee, Managing founding partner Serie Architects, London
Mari Randsborg, CEO Cobe Architect, Copenhagen
Dr. Ina Hartwig, Deputy Mayor in Charge of Culture and Science City of Frankfurt / Main,
Peter Cachola Schmal, Director Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM), Frankfurt/Main
Victor Stoltenburg, Managing Director Deka Immobilien Investment GmbH, Frankfurt/Main

Deputy jury members:

Andrea Jürges, Deputy Director Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM), Frankfurt am Main
Horst R. Muth, Head of Real Estate Project Management, Deka Immobilien Investment GmbH, Frankfurt am Main

IHP 2024/25 jury meeting; Photos: Kirsten Bucher

Committed to architecture since 2004

The IHA is the top prize for highrise buildings worldwide. Since 2004, it has been awarded every two years by the City of Frankfurt am Main at a ceremony in the Paulskirche. The award is promoted, curated and organised in cooperative partnership with the Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM, German Architecture Museum) and Deka. Since its launch at the beginning of the millennium, it has accompanied the ongoing global boom in high-rise construction, a prime architectural discipline.
The goal of the IHA is to create public awareness of the importance of architecture. Responsible planning and a design that prioritises social and environmental sustainability criteria are important factors for the IHA. As co-founder of the award, Deka therefore supports the role of the winning buildings as models for construction in the future.

The International High-Rise Award is considered one of the word´s most important architecture awards for high-rises. In cooperation with our partners, Deka proudly present the award for 20 years to exceptional buildings that combine sustainability, external design, and internal use of space. The award also holds significant value for the participating firms due to its external impacts.

Victor Stoltenburg Managing Director at Deka Immobilien

The first high-rise award worldwide

The IHA is awarded every two years for a high-rise building that combines exemplary sustainability, external design and internal spatial qualities as well as social and urban planning aspects to create an exemplary design. Further criteria are innovative construction technology and economic efficiency. The IHA is recognised as one of the world's most important architecture awards for high-rise buildings. It is aimed at architects and clients whose buildings are at least 100 metres high and have been completed in the last two years.

The prize is awarded jointly to the architect and the client. They receive a sculpture by the renowned artist Thomas Demand and prize money totalling 50,000 euros, which the winners donate to institutions in the field of architecture and urban development.

Previous recipients of the International High-Rise Award:

2020: Norra Tornen, Stockholm, Sweden, Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA)
2018: „Torre Reforma“ in Mexiko City (Mexico), BR&A Arquitectos as architects and developer.
2016: „VIA 57 West“ in New York City (USA), BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group and The Durst Organization as the developer.
2014: „Bosco Verticale“ in Milan (Italy), Boeri Studio and Hines Italia as the developer.
2012: “1 Blight Street” in Sydney (Australia), a cooperation between ingenhoven architects in Düsseldorf and Architectus in Sydney with DEXUS Property Group; DEXUS Wholesale Property Fund, Cbus Property as the developers.
2010: “The Met” in Bangkok (Thailand), WOHA in Singapore and Pebble Bay, Thailand as the developer.
2008: “Hearst Building” in New York (USA), Foster + Partners and Hearst Corporation as the developer.
2006: “Torre Agbar” in Barcelona (Spain), Ateliers Jean Nouvel and Layetana as the developer.
2004: “De Hoftoren” in The Hague (The Netherlands), Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (International) PA, London and ING Vastgoed as the developer.