Pritzker Prize goes to USI professors

This year, the most important award for architecture went to two professors working at the Academy of Architecture at the USI. According to the jury’s statement, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara received the Pritzker Prize 2020 “for their integrity in their approach to […] buildings” and “their generosity towards their colleagues, especially as evidenced in such events as the 2018 Venice Biennale.” The jury commended their “unceasing commitment to excellence in architecture” as well as their “responsible attitude toward the environment.” Finally, the jury also applauded their “ability to be cosmopolitan while embracing the uniqueness of each place in which they work.”  

The Director of the Academy of Architecture at the USI, Riccardo Blumer, is quoted in a press release, saying: “We feel honored that the Academy has Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara among its faculty.” He goes on to say that both professors are not only exceptionally talented architects, but also passionate, generous lecturers.

This is the Academy’s second Pritzker Prize, as Peter Zumthor received it in 2009. Boas Erez, Rector of the USI, says that this is “confirmation of a solid, consistent education model at a high level that has enabled young students to come into direct contact with the leading names in architecture for over 20 years. This new, prestigious, international recognition is an additional incentive toward improvement. It confirms our conviction that the USI is truly a project which we can believe in and invest in for the good of the entire territory.”