Projects by De Matos Ryan and Stonewood Design named buildings of the year in the two regions
Projects by De Matos Ryan and Stonewood Design have been named as the winners of RIBA’s latest two RIBA regional awards.
De Matos Ryan’s Wonderlab: The Bramall Gallery, an interactive exhibition at the National Railway Museum in York, is RIBA’s Building of the Year for Yorkshire.
The studio’s co-founder Jose Estevos de Matos also picked up the Project Architect of the Year award for the scheme, which offers a STEM-focused learning experience for young people.
Stonewood Design’s The Story of Emily, RIBA’s building of the year for the South West and Wessex, is a museum in Cornwall which celebrates the legacy of welfare campaigner Emily Hobhouse.
The scheme is a mix of restored buildings and contemporary interventions, including a striking curved building clad in metal fins.
Special award winners at the awards included The Cowshed by Design Storey, a conversion of a grade II-listed Gloucestershire barn into a private home, which scooped the Conservation Award.
Barefood Architects’ Hazelmead, Bridport Cohousing project in Dorchester was handed Client of the Year, while Shire End West by Rak Architecture won Small Project of the Year.
In Yorkshire, Arklboyce’s Young People’s Space, a timber pavilion intended as a social space for young people at St Gemma’s Hospice in Leeds, picked up both Small Project of the Year and Client of the Year.
The jury chairs for both regions said the successful qualities of the winning projects had been influenced by the pandemic, the period during which they had been under construction.
Rob Gregory, RIBA South West and Wessex jury chair and head of campus planning and design at the University of Bristol, said: “Almost without exception, each of the projects we visited were in some way impacted by the pandemic, and the intensity of that period was palpable.
> Also read: BDP’s Coventry arts building wins RIBA West Midlands building of the year
“Whether we were visiting a new neighbourhood of houses on the outskirts of a regional town, a new office in a busy city centre, or a private home on a remote site – there was clear evidence of a deep understanding of both place and purpose. Perhaps that was because many of these projects were prolonged, allowing both client and architect time to reflect and iterate.”
Gayle Appleyard, RIBA Yorkshire jury chair and director of Gagarin Studio said: “Amid these varied contexts, this year’s Yorkshire award-winning projects stood out for their quiet ambition.
“Many having been realised during the challenges of the Covid pandemic, yet they managed to do a lot with a little. These buildings don’t shout; instead, they quietly improve, enhance, and bring joy to the lives of the people who use them.”
RIBA president Muyiwa Oki added: “This year’s winners exemplify architecture’s power to transform—turning spaces into places of connection, creativity, and care.”
Regional award winners will now be considered for a RIBA National Award, which will be announced on 10 July.
The shortlist for the RIBA Stirling Prize for the UK’s building of the year will be drawn from the RIBA National Award-winning projects later in the year.
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