Pritzker 2025 Honors Liu Jiakun for His Humanistic Architecture

Pritzker 2025 Honors Liu Jiakun for His Humanistic Architecture

Chinese architect Liu Jiakun has been awarded the 2025 Pritzker Architecture Prize, the highest honor in the field of architecture.

Known for his minimalist, humanistic, and context-sensitive approach, Liu has created a body of work that celebrates the everyday lives of citizens and redefines Chinese architecture.

The Pritzker Prize jury praised Liu’s remarkable consistency and the enduring quality of his work. Rather than adhering to a fixed style, Liu has developed a design strategy that adapts to each project, responding to its specific cultural, social, and environmental context.

An Architect Who Adapts “Like Water”

Liu’s design philosophy resembles the adaptability of water, integrating seamlessly with its surroundings without imposing preconceived forms. His buildings emerge from their context, engaging with local customs, climatic conditions, and human dynamics.

This versatility is evident in his extensive portfolio, which includes museums, cultural institutions, public spaces, commercial buildings, and urban developments. His architecture fuses seemingly incompatible concepts—idealistic aspiration and earthly life, historical legacy and contemporary innovation, a sense of community and individual uniqueness—resulting in spaces that enrich the experiences of everyday people.

The Importance of Local Context

Born in Chengdu in 1956, Liu has maintained a deep connection to his roots. His projects often incorporate local materials and traditional craftsmanship, reflecting a commitment to sustainability and the local economy.

Following the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, Liu developed “Rebirth Bricks,” made from recycled rubble mixed with local wheat fiber and cement. These bricks, stronger and more cost-effective than conventional materials, were used in projects such as the Novartis Campus building in Shanghai and the West Village in Chengdu.

Novartis Shanghai Campus C6 Building. Shanghai, China – Photo courtesy of Arch-Exist

West Village – Basis Yard. Sichuan, China – Photo courtesy of Arch-Exist

Liu is renowned for his work in densely populated cities, where public space is often scarce. Instead of segregating urban functions, as is traditionally done, Liu creates integrated environments where different activities coexist harmoniously. His projects prioritize pedestrian accessibility, gathering spaces, and shared resources, offering an alternative vision for urban planning that values people and social interaction.

The Impact of BIM on Liu Jiakun’s Work

While there is no specific information about Liu Jiakun’s use of BIM in his projects, his design approach—which seeks “appropriate” technology based on local knowledge and available materials—aligns with the principles of this methodology. His emphasis on local context, collaboration with local artisans, and adaptation to each project’s specific needs suggest a holistic understanding of the design and construction process, similar to the one promoted by BIM.

For example, the renovation of the Tianbao Cave district in Erlang, with its complex integration of existing structures and new interventions in a historically sensitive site, could have benefited from BIM for the planning and coordination of its intricate topography and heritage preservation. Likewise, the integration of the “Rebirth Bricks” in projects like West Village demonstrates a concern for sustainability and resource optimization, key aspects of BIM methodology.

The Renovation of Tianbao Cave District of Erlang Town, China – Photo courtesy of Arch-Exist

A Legacy for Chinese Architecture

Liu Jiakun becomes the third Chinese architect to receive the Pritzker Prize, following Wang Shu in 2012 and I.M. Pei in 1983. His work represents an evolution of Chinese architecture, blending tradition with modernity and addressing the needs of a constantly changing society. His humanistic approach and commitment to sustainability offer a model for future generations of architects.

In addition to the Pritzker Prize, Liu Jiakun has received numerous awards throughout his career, including:

• Far Eastern Architectural Design, Outstanding Award (2007 and 2017)
• ASC Grand Architectural Creation Award (2009)
• Architectural Record China Awards (2010)
• WA Awards for Chinese Architecture (2016)
• Building with Nature, Architecture China Award (2020)
• Sanlian Lifeweek City for Humanity Award

Liu is also a prolific writer, author of books such as I Built in West China?, where he explores his experiences working in western China, and The Conception of Brightmoon, which delves into his architectural ideas.

The 2025 Pritzker Prize recognizes the career of an architect who has dedicated his life to creating spaces that enhance people’s lives. Liu Jiakun has demonstrated that architecture can be functional, poetic, and socially responsible—integrating tradition with innovation and responding to the needs of the local context.

His body of work, characterized by consistency, sensitivity to its surroundings, and the pursuit of “appropriate” technology, is a testament to architecture’s ability to create a more humane and sustainable world. It offers a valuable contribution to contemporary architectural discourse, especially in the context of rapid urbanization and the need to preserve cultural identity.