From Thailand to Mexico, meet the five finalists of the Début Award
We are pleased to announce the finalists for the Lisbon Triennale Millennium bcp Début Award – five emerging studios whose practice caught the jury's attention:
Bangkok Tokyo Architecture, Thailand;
Palma, Mexico;
ReSa Architects, India;
Robida Collective, Italy;
TEN, Switzerland;
All finalists from three continents will present their work during a public event at the Triennale 2025 opening days (02 to 04 October) – where the winner will be announced.
The 2025 edition received 75 eligible applications. In addition to the finalists, the shortlist comprised the studios: Atelier Local, Portugal; Avneesh Tiwari, India; Balsa Crosetto Piazzi, Argentina; Banga Coletivo, Angola; BeAr Arquitectos, Spain; Estúdio Flume, Brazil; Exutoire, Vietnam; Indalo World, South Africa; JQTS, Portugal; Juan Campanini – Josefina Sposito, Argentina; Juliana Godoy, Brazil; kera, Georgia; NUA arquitectures, Spain; Parabase, Switzerland; RC Architects, India. Previous winners were the Brazilian collective Vão (2022), Spanish studio Bonell+Dòriga (2019), Umwelt from Chile (2016) and the architect Jimenez Lai from Bureau Spectacular (2013).
The three Lisbon Triennale Millennium bcp Awards – Achievement, Début and Universities – aim to promote groundbreaking world architecture by recognising those who make it. From transdisciplinary research developed in an academic setting, to emerging talent and established practices. The Début Award is open to emerging professionals, either individuals or collectives, up to the age of 40. In parallel, dozens of figures from the field are invited to nominate up to three candidates. The eligible submissions are then assessed by the international jury in three selection phases: an initial shortlist of twenty, followed by five finalists and the winning studio.
The jury of the Début and Achievement Awards is comprised by architects Inês Lobo, Lígia Nobre, Samia Henni, Sandi Hilal, and Yuma Shinohara.
The Début Award nominations were submitted by: Alexandra Cruz, Alice Rawsthorn, Ana Dana Beroš, Bekim Ramku, Carlos Mínguez Carrasco, César Reyes Nájera, Christine Carboni, Chuka Ihonor, David Basulto, Ethel Baraona Pohl, Eva Franch i Gilabert, Fabrizio Gallanti, Francien van Westrenen, Gabrielle Shaad, Hanna Dencik Petersson, Herbert Wright, Ilka Ruby, Inês Dantas, James Taylor-Foster, Javier Peña-Ibáñez, Jimenez Lai, Joaquim Moreno, Josephine Michau, Katarina Siltavuori, Kenneth Frampton, Kieran Long, Léopold Lambert, Maja Vardjan, Marc Frochaux, Marina Otero Verzier, Martynas Germanavičius, Matevž Čelik, Mimi Zeiger, Nathalie Weadick, Nikolaus Hirsch, Paul Preissner, Paula Nascimento, Sevra Davis, Shumi Bose, Tau Tavengwa, Tinatin Gurgenidze, Tomoaki Shimane, Victoria Thornton, Vyjayanthi Rao.
Jury Statement
As a jury, we must acknowledge that we stand at a historical juncture—witnessing genocide in Gaza and wars in Congo, Ukraine, and so many other places in the world, while life for many continues as usual. In light of this contradiction, we must ask: What position do we take? How will history judge our choices?
We, the members of the jury, choose to recognize architectural practices that create spaces for life: practices that foster dignity, community, and grounded ways of co-existing. We must resist imposing a singular standard and instead support the diversity of architectural responses across different contexts. The submitted applications make clear that many young architects are shifting away from traditional models towards collective and decentralized practices, which respond to contemporary challenges in heartening ways. We also recognize a commitment to fostering existing structures of resilience, instead of an obsession with the “new.” Architects working in challenging political, social, economic, and environmental realities require different forms of acknowledgement.
Architecture’s role in creating spaces for life has never been more urgent. At a time when power is increasingly concentrated among the few, we uplift architects who use their practice to re-exist, reimagine, and resist.
Lisbon, 22 March 2025