Discover the Champions and Contenders of the Architects of the Year (2013-2025)

Architect of the Year Award is an honorary title given every year to an individual who has either excelled or has consistently made significant contributions to the field of architecture, enhancing its overall reputation. This award isn’t meant to honor someone’s lifetime achievements nor celebrate a lifetime body’s work. Instead, the goal is to highlight remarkable contemporary architecture and to recognize notable buildings created within the last five years. The jury also ensures that recipients maintain a strong ethical reputation in the industry. According to Zdeněk Fránek, who was recognized as Architect of the Year 2020 and serves as one of the jury members, this award primarily targets active architects, though it is not limited to them. The winners can include anyone who, through their actions, aims for creating pleasant environments.

What is the Architect of the Year competition?

Each year, a panel of expert judges in the Architect of the Year competition selects five finalists who have significantly impacted architecture in the Czech Republic. This impact may come from their excellent work or their promotion of quality architecture and the profession. The names of the finalists will be released at the end of holiday season. The award ceremony where the winner will receive their prize happens in September, alongside the results announcement for the Architect of the Municipality award, which honors the collaboration between architects and municipalities aimed at quality building.

Architect of the Year 2025: Marek and Štěpán Chalupovi

The nominations for the winners of the Architect of the Year 2025 competition are traditionally determined by the previous year’s winners, which include architects Zdeněk Fránek, Roman Koucký, Ivan Kroupa, Petr Stolín, and Ladislav Kuba & Tomáš Pilař. After discussing each nominee’s contributions thoroughly, the jury identified five exceptional names in Czech architecture. As in prior years, the jury examined the overall quality and range of work, as well as the nominees’ moral integrity and professional standing. The jury selected Atelier 111 architekti and Sporadical for the final round, along with architects Jan Šépka, David Kraus, and the winning duo of Marek and Štěpán Chalupa. The Chalupa brothers are known for their minimalistic style, gaining recognition for projects such as the Kolbenova metro station, Hotel Metropol on Národní třída in Prague, and the Czech Republic Pavilion at the 2000 World Expo. Their projects also feature the renovation of the Grébovka vineyard arbour in Prague, as well as the roofing of the staircase at Orlik Castle.

The winners were revealed on September 15, 2025, at the Centre for Architecture and Urban Planning (CAMP) in Prague. The title of Architect of Communities 2025 was awarded to Lukáš Soukup, the city architect of Jindřichův Hradec. Additionally, the jury honored Petr Rezko, a philosopher and art theorist, with an honorary mention in memoriam.

Five finalists of the Architect of the Year 2025 competition

The finalists chosen by the jury this year include Atelier 111 architekti and Sporadical, along with architects Jan Šépka and David Kraus, as well as the brotherly team of Marek and Štěpán Chalupa.
Atelier 111 architekti (Barbora and Jiří Weinzettl) received praise for their thoughtful restorations of country houses, notably the House Na Kozině in Trhové Sviny, which won the Czech Architecture Award in 2022.
The Chalupa Brothers are recognized for their minimalist style, drawing attention with projects like the Kolbenova metro station, Hotel Metropol on Národní třída in Prague, and the Czech Republic Pavilion at the 2000 World Expo. They’ve also worked on the renovation of the Grébovka vineyard arbour and roofing of the staircase at Orlik Castle.
Among the finalists is also David Kraus, an architect, educator, artist, and publicist who founded Studio Architecture. His notable works include the award-winning concrete batching plant in Strančice and schools in Hradiště, recognized for their unique approach focused on material honesty.
The competition also includes Atelier Sporadical, known for its unusual projects like a sports hall in Dolní Břežany, and Gateway to Borský Park in Pilsen, along with several upscale family homes.
Rounding out the top five is architect Jan Šépka, who most recently received recognition for the Gočár’s Automatic Mills project in Pardubice. He also designed the notable Villa Hermína and proposed a Central European Forum in Olomouc.

Architect of the Year 2024: Roman Koucký

The title of Architect of the Year 2024 was awarded to Roman Koucký, who is an architect, urban planner, and educator. His journey into the world of architecture started from a background in carpentry, and he later graduated from the Faculty of Architecture at the Czech Technical University in Prague. He currently teaches there and runs a studio. Koucký is particularly known for his innovative bridge designs, including the well-known Troja Bridge in Prague and the Mariánský Bridge in Ústí nad Labem.
Architectural offices such as Atelier bod architekti, Ellement architects, and Ehl & Koumar Architects, along with Tomas Hradecny, were also in the running for Architect of the Year 2024. The jury, consisting of previous winners of the Architect of the Year Award, included members like Zdeněk Fránek, Petr Stolín, Stanislav Fiala, Ladislav Kuba & Tomáš Pilař, and the 2023 winner, Ivan Kroupa.
Honourable mention from the jury was given to architect and conservationist Karel Kuča, who has authored numerous insightful publications about historical architecture, cities, and landscapes. Additionally, he was awarded the Architect of the Municipality 2024 title, which he received from the city architect of Kolín, David Mateásko. This award highlights his excellent collaboration with the city, which serves as a great example of effective urban architecture. Mateásko has played a significant role in enhancing Kolín’s public spaces, making them more enjoyable places to live.
The awards were distributed at the Centre for Architecture and Urban Planning (CAMP) in Prague.

Architect of the Year 2023: Ivan Kroupa

In mid-September 2023, the professional jury declared Ivan Kroupa as the Architect of the Year 2023. The panel, which comprised previous award winners including Stanislav Fiala, Petr Hájek, Zdeněk Fránek, Petr Stolín, and Ladislav Kuba & Tomáš Pilař, admired that each of Kroupa’s buildings has a distinct identity. The prestigious title recognized both his long-term contributions to the field and his unique aesthetic, sophistication, and ethical approach to construction.
Some of Kroupa’s prominent projects include the DOX Centre for Contemporary Art in Prague, the Ceremonial Hall in Týnec nad Sázavou, the Technological building of the University of Applied Arts, and the Hemodialysis Center in Prague, located in Bulovka, as well as the Karmášek print shop and print gallery in České Budějovice.
The finalists for the Architect of the Year 2023 competition included Roman Brychta, Markéta Cajthamlová, Marek Chalupa, and Roman Koucký. An honorable mention was given in memoriam to Jiří Zhoř (1974-2022). The jury praised his architectural work, particularly his interiors. They described it as “raw, revealing to the bone, articulate about all structural connections, brutal yet incredibly subtle and poetic.” In particular, they noted his work at the Komerční banka arcade in Brno.
The Architect for the community 2023 award was presented to Anna Šlapetová, the municipal architect of Dolní Břežany, in recognition of her ongoing contributions to the development of the municipality. The awards ceremony also featured the announcement of the INTRO Magazine Award, won by landscape architect Eva Wagnerová for her design of Zdeněk Kopal Park in Litomyšl.

Architect of the Year 2022: Ladislav Kuba and Tomáš Pilař

The prestigious award for significant contributions to architecture over the past five years was jointly awarded to Ladislav Kuba & Tomáš Pilař and their firm, Kuba & Pilař architects. These two have collaborated for three decades and their work can be seen in many cities across the Czech Republic.

Their first major public project was the Library of the Faculty of Arts at Masaryk University in Brno, completed in 1998. Their most recent undertaking, the Moravian-Silesian Research Library and Centre for Digitisation and Innovation in Ostrava, is still in development. Though this future landmark of the Moravian-Silesian metropolis currently exists only as a digital design, it has already earned the nickname Black Cube, and is expected to be completed by 2027.

The architectural studio formed by Ladislav Kuba and Tomáš Pilař is responsible for numerous projects, such as the extension of the South Bohemian Scientific Library in České Budějovice and the Faculty of Humanities at Charles University, which was renovated from a previous university dining hall. Their portfolio includes a variety of apartment complexes in Prague and Ostrava, as well as residential buildings, the Omega department store, and the Skácelova fountain in Brno’s Svobody Square, along with the City Park shopping center in Jihlava and the Chapel of St. Anthony of Padua in Černá. They have had five buildings nominated for the European Mies van der Rohe Award for Architecture and have won the Grand Prix of Architects award nine times. However, they are also recognized for smaller projects: experts mention their charming design of a small chapel in Jestřebí in the Highlands as one of their top works.

Architect and award-winning colleague Zdeněk Fránek, who was Architect of the Year 2020 and currently serves as a judge, describes Kuba & Pilař as a phenomenon of Czech architecture. He notes, “They were among the first to adapt minimalism and take it to new heights. They consistently win competitions and likely have a strong system in place for that. Their attention to detail is remarkable. Their buildings embody grandeur and significance while remaining economically feasible. Any investor who chooses them is sure to be satisfied. Their designs are integral to the story of Czech architecture.”

The expert jury, consisting of previous award winners, including Stanislav Fiala, Zdeněk Fránek, Petr Hajek, Petr Stolín, and Kateřina Šedá, determined the winners of the Architect of the Year 2022 award from five finalists. The winners Ladislav Kuba and Tomáš Pilar were joined by finalists Mirko Baum, Roman Koucký, Ivan Kroupa, and Jan Magasaník, who is associated with the renowned Danish architectural studio Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), which has plans to construct the Vltava Philharmonic Orchestra in Prague.

The competition organizers also gave a honorable mention from the jury to Naděžda Goryczková, the Director General of the National Heritage Institute, for her advocacy of quality architecture and cultural advancements in the Czech Republic. An essential part of the awards is the Architect for the Municipality 2022, which celebrates collaborative efforts between architects and municipalities. For 2022, this award was given to architect Daria Balejová for her longstanding contributions to the development of the town of Řevnice.

Architect of the Year 2013 to 2021

• • Architect of the Year 2021 is Petr Stolín (*1958), who collaborates with Alena Mičeková. Together, they create remarkable zen houses that are simple yet uniquely impressive, with one such house serving as their residence. Their design for a kindergarten in Liberec-Vratislavice nad Nisou won the Czech Architecture Award 2019 and was nominated for the prestigious Mies van der Rohe Award.

• • The title Architect of the Year 2020 was awarded to Zdeněk Fránek (*1961), known for his work on several modern churches, such as those in Litomyšl and Prague, as well as his creation of the Trails in the Clouds located in Lower Moravia and the Durch observatories.

• • The Architect of the Year 2019 award went to Stanislav Fiala (*1962), who is recognized for his numerous original designs. Some of his most noteworthy buildings include Spork Palace and Drn Palace on National Avenue in Prague and the Devil’s Burden Golf Club in Alenina Lhota, where the clubhouse and restaurant received the title Building of the Year 2011.

• • Architect of the Year 2018 was awarded to Petr Hajek (*1970). His most celebrated structures include the Archdiocesan Museum in Olomouc, the revitalization of Jiří Square at Prague Castle, modifications made at Castle Hill in Litomyšl, and the Krkonoše Centre for Environmental Education in Vrchlabí.

• • The 2017 Architect of the Year was Kateřina Šedá (*1977), an artist whose work focuses on social architecture. She has created many public projects in both the Czech Republic and abroad.

• • In 2016, Marcela Steinbach (*1975) was named Architect of the Year. She is the founder of the Kruh association, which has organized the national Day of Architecture festival since 2010.

• • Architect of the Year 2015 was awarded to Adam Gebrian (*1979), an architect, theorist, promoter, and critic of architecture. Instead of creating buildings, he focuses on promoting architecture through television shows, articles, and books.

• • In 2014, the title of Architect of the Year went to Josef Pleskot (*1952), known for his project of the Sonberk wine house in Popice and for revitalizing the Dolní Vítkovice industrial area in Ostrava, which includes the multifunctional Gong Auditorium, as well as the World of Technology and Bolt Tower.

• • The 2013 Architect of the Year was Antonín Novák (*1963), who is associated with the Atelier D.R.N.H. design office. His work includes the reconstruction of the Reduta Theatre in Brno.