AZ Awards 2023

It’s the beginning of a new year – and that means that it’s time to kick off the 2023 AZ Awards. Now open for submissions, AZURE’s annual competition is accepting entries – until February 24 – into its eight major categories, from architecture, landscapes, and urban design to interiors, product design, and the A+ Award for best student work. Enter here!

AZURE’s annual awards program continues to evolve: In 2021, we added the new category of Urban Design, encouraging developers to submit their projects; in 2022, a spectacular infrastructural project – the Tintagel Castle Footbridge in Cornwall, U.K., by Ney & Partners and William Matthews Associates – graced the cover of the July/August issue, our awards-dedicated edition. It was but one of 24 winners from around the world, including the Hornets Huts learning center in Denmark by Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter, Stacklab’s Stackable furniture collection, and two standout projects by Omar Gandhi – the Peggy’s Cove promenade and his very own home in Halifax.

Additionally, our jury of internationally renowned practitioners in the areas of product design, architecture, landscape architecture, and interiors will convene virtually to evaluate all entries. Therefore, stay tuned to find out who the members of the 2023 AZ Awards Jury will be!

Moreover, winners receive the AZ Awards trophy, recreated annually by a prominent designer – in past years such luminaries as Luca Nichetto, Michael Anastassiades, Matt Carr, Philippe Malouin, Karim Rashid, and Ini Archibong have designed trophies for the AZ Awards. Look for announcements later this year about the 2023 AZ Awards trophy designer.

Azure and its partners encourage design and architecture professionals, developers, urban planners, students, and manufacturers to submit their work to the AZ Awards for an opportunity to step into the global spotlight, elevate their profile, and raise public awareness for their firm and their clients.

ELIGIBILITY

The 2023 AZ Awards are open to:

• Designers and design firms from all disciplines
• Architects, landscape architects, and architectural firms
• Developers
• Post-secondary students enrolled in design and architecture programs in 2022
• Clients and manufacturers
• Projects completed on or before December 31, 2022
• Products prototyped or in production
• Concepts developed or presented for the first time in 2022

THE CATEGORIES

Architecture: Residential buildings; commercial and institutional buildings over 1,000 square meters; commercial and institutional buildings under 1,000 square meters; temporary and demonstration projects; adaptive re-use

Landscape Architecture: Public and private landscapes

Urban Design: Built and unbuilt multi-building development projects (commercial, residential or mixed-use); infrastructure; urban interventions

Interiors: Residential spaces; commercial and institutional spaces

Design: Single-piece furniture; furniture systems and collections; lighting fixtures; lighting schemes; interior products; architectural products; *tech products (new!)

Experiential Graphic Design: Wayfinding; sign programs; information and map design; experiential brand identity

Concepts: Unbuilt competition entries and proposals; concepts/prototypes

A+ Award: Projects developed by a student enrolled in a post-secondary design or architecture program in 2022. The winner will receive a $5,000 cash prize.

Furthermore, all entries may be considered for the Social Good Award and/or the Environmental Leadership Award by election. A winner in each of these two categories will be selected. Projects may be entered into one or both categories.

For the Social Good Award, projects must advance social equity and have a positive impact on the collective realm.

For the Environmental Leadership Award, projects must show sensitivity and respect for the use and management of natural resources throughout their lifecycle, especially concerning materials and energy use.