Jean Nouvel of
Paris,
France has been chosen as the
2008 Laureate of the
Pritzker Architecture Prize. The formal ceremony for what has come to be known throughout the world as architecture’s highest honor will be held on June 2 in
Washington D.C. at the
Library of Congress. At that time, a $100,000 grant and a bronze medallion will be bestowed on the 62-year old architect.
Nouvel who came to international attention with the completion of his
Institut du Monde Arabe (usually referred to as
IMA) in
1987 as one of President
Francois Mitterand’s Grands Travaux in
Paris, now has several projects in the
United States, including the
Guthrie Theater in
Minneapolis completed in
2006, a 75-story tower (
Tour Verre) next door to
MOMA in
New York, and recently announced plans for a high rise condominium (
Suncal Tower) in the
Century City district of
Los Angeles. In
Europe, some of his other important works are the
Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art (
Paris 1994), the
Branly Museum (
Paris 2006), the
Agbar Tower (
Barcelona 2005), a
Courthouse (
Nantes 2000), a
Cultural and Conference Center (
Lucerne 2000), an
Opera House (
Lyon 1993), and
Expo 2002 (
Switzerland). Also currently under construction is a concert hall in
Copenhagen.
In announcing the jury’s choice,
Thomas J. Pritzker, chairman of
The Hyatt Foundation, quoted from the jury citation, “Of the many phrases that might be used to describe the career of architect
Jean Nouvel, foremost are those that emphasize his courageous pursuit of new ideas and his challenge of accepted norms in order to stretch the boundaries of the field.” And further,
Pritzker added, “The jury acknowledged the ‘persistence, imagination, exuberance, and, above all, an insatiable urge for creative experimentation’ as qualities abundant in
Nouvel’s work.”