The European Commission and the Fundació Mies van der Rohe have announced the names of the works competing in the 2019 European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award. The Mies van der Rohe Award, often shortened to MIES, is one of the most well known and significant awards for contemporary architecture in Europe. 

The award's website explains that "The Prize objectives aim at promoting and understanding the significance of quality and reflecting the complexity of Architecture's own significance in terms of technological, constructional, social, economic, cultural and aesthetic achievements. Architecture's significance —linked with the construction market— has a social Impact and transmits a cultural message. Quality therefore refers to universal values of generic buildings, independent from their programmes: the essence of things rather than their formal values."

383 projects were long listed for the 2019 award from across Europe, including eight in Georgia.

Buildings related to culture continue to form the biggest group of works with 15% of the total, followed by mixed-use buildings with 14%. These two groups are followed by collective and single housing and education facilities, which represent 10% each. Collective housing has increased 2%, a substantial increase with regard to the previous cycles of the Prize. 

The Jury, formed by Dorte Mandrup, George Arbid, Angelika Fitz, Ștefan Ghenciulescu, Kamiel Klaasse, María Langarita, and Frank McDonald, will shortlist 40 projects and select the 5 finalist works which they will visit in April. The process will culminate with the Award Ceremony on May 7, 2019 at the Mies van der Rohe Pavilion in Barcelona.

By Samantha Guthrie

Photo: Zooey Braun