Chinese architect Xu Tiantian was awarded the Berlin Art Prize this year.

“Her projects encourage architects and non-experts alike in their important commitment to a new balance between city and country. The congenial combination of social commitment and design quality represents a prototype for the future of contemporary architecture”—the jury (Marianne Burkhalter, Regula Lüscher, Ulrich Müller).

The Kunstpreis Berlin - Berlin Art Prize was originally established by the City of Berlin in 1948. Since 1971, it has been awarded by the Academy of Arts (Akademie der Künste) on behalf of Berlin. Every March, six individuals are awarded the Kunstpreis Berlin for being high performers in the fields of the Visual Arts, Architecture, Music, Literature, Performing Arts, and Film & Media Art.

Founded in 1696, the Akademie der Künste in Berlin, is one of the oldest cultural institutes in Europe. It has more than 422 members in its six Sections (Visual Arts, Architecture, Music, Literature, Performing Arts, Film and Media Arts). The Berlin Art Prize is the most important prizes awarded on behalf of the Federal State of Berlin.

Following the rotation of the six sections of the Akademie der Künste, this year the Grand Art Prize Berlin was awarded in the Film and Media Arts Section and went to Norwegian film director and screenwriter Joachim Trier.

The prizes were awarded by Klaus Lederer, Senator for Culture and Europe and Jeanine Meerapfel, President of the Academy.

Xu Tiantian is the founding principal of DnA _Design and Architecture. She is a professor at Tsinghua University School of Architecture, and a Davenport Visiting Professor at Yale University School of Architecture. Xu received her Master of Architecture in Urban Design (MAUD) from Harvard Graduate School of Design, and her Baccalaureate in Architecture from Tsinghua University. She has received numerous awards such as the Moira Gemmill Prize for Emerging Architect in 2019, the 14th International Prize for Sustainable Architecture Gold Medal, the 2022 Swiss Architectural Award and the 2023 Kunstpreis Berlin Art Prize. In 2020, she was appointed an Honorary Fellow of American Institute of Architects. Xu has engaged extensively in the rural revitalizing process in China. Her groundbreaking “Architectural Acupuncture” is a holistic approach to the social and economic revitalization of rural China and was selected in 2019 by UN Habitat as the case study of Inspiring Practice on Urban-Rural Linkages.

Editor: Li Han