Japanese firm famed for ‘sustainable’ design receives top architecture honour

A Japanese architecture firm which has pioneered “sustainable, user-centred design” has been awarded one of the world’s highest honours for architecture.

The Royal Institute of British Architects (Riba) has announced that SANAA, a collaborative practice of Japanese architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, has received the 2025 Royal Gold Medal for architecture.

The award, which is presented on behalf of the King, recognises their work which the Riba Honours Committee praised for shaping “a universal language of architecture that resonates with people everywhere”.

The architects said they were “delighted and very honoured” to receive the honour, describing it as a “very happy moment” for the firm.

“We have always believed that architecture can transform and repair environments, helping us to relate to our surroundings, nature and each other,” they added.

“Throughout our careers we have tried to make spaces that bring people together, inviting them to imagine new ways of living and learning collectively.

“Architecture is always teamwork, and we are very grateful to everyone that has given us opportunities to develop these ideas over the years, and to all those people that have worked tirelessly with us to realise them.”

Their architectural projects have sprung up across the world from the New Museum in New York, distinctive for its stacked, cubic design, to the Rolex Learning Centre that ‘flows’ alongside the shores of Lake Geneva in Lausanne, Switzerland.

The firm also created the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London, which features floating aluminium that is meant to drift “freely between the trees like smoke”.

Other notable works over the course of their nearly three-decade career include Dior Omotesando Store in Japan, the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa, Japan, the Zollverein School of Design in Germany, the Louvre-Lens in France and Sydney Modern Museum in Australia.

Riba president and chairman of the 2025 Riba Honours Committee, Muyiwa Oki, said: “Exemplifying an unassuming yet impactful leadership in the evolving practice and theory of architecture, SANAA’s designs demonstrate that architecture can balance functionality with profound elegance.

“True pioneers in the field, their unwavering commitment to sustainable, user-centred design has quietly blazed a trail for others, setting an inspiring standard for the future of our built environment.

“Showing remarkable clarity and consistency over the decades, their work serves as a lasting testament to the transformative power of architecture – to inspire joy, create a sense of belonging, and connect us to the environments we inhabit.”

A public celebration will take place for SANAA in London on May 1.