zaha hadid named juror to pritzker architecture prize jury

thomas j. pritzker, chairman of the chicago-based hyatt foundation has announced the selection of london-based architect zaha hadid, the 2004 pritzker architecture prize laureate and U.S. supreme court justice stephen breyer to join the pritzker architecture prize jury. zaha hadid has become of one the world’s busiest architects, building her intrepid designs in the united kingdom, united states, china, germany, spain and italy.

U.S. supreme court justice stephen breyer’s long-standing interest in the arts and architecture resulted in his authorship of the novel ‘celebrating the courthouse: a guide for architects, their clients, and the public’. his receipt of the first ‘leonore and walter h. annenberg award for diplomacy through the arts’ from the the foundation for art and preservation in embassies in 2009 recognizes his dedication and contributions to advancing the integration of art into the discipline of architecture in civic buildings.

now consisting of eight individuals, the jury includes: lord palumbo of the united kingdom; chilean architect alejandro aravena; yung ho chang, beijing-based architect and educator; australia architect and 2002 pritzker laureate, glenn murcutt; finland-based architect, professor and author, juhani pallasmaa; U.S. based writer, editor and architectural consultant karen stein; and martha thorne, associate dean for external affairs at the ie school of architecture in madrid, spain.

justice stephen breyer | image © steve petteway | photographer, supreme court of the united states

‘the members of the pritzker jury are now, and always have been thoughtful, outstanding individuals from diverse backgrounds providing sometimes surprising insight to architectural achievement in our time. our family is constantly proud and honored that these individuals are willing to give of their time in choosing architects to be singled out for excellence.‘ – thomas j. pritzker, chairman of the hyatt foundation

‘london aquatics centre’ by zaha hadid architects located in london, england
image © hufton + crow (also main image)

‘zaha hadid is one of the most gifted practitioners of the art of architecture today.‘ – ada louise huxtable, architecture critic and previous pritzker juror. jo carole lauder, chairman of the foundation for art and preservation in embassies speaks about U.S. supreme justice stephen breyer: ‘his passion for ensuring that federal buildings—where our country’s democratic principles are upheld—represent modern day thinking and culture is truly admirable. since the birth of our nation, america’s ever changing democracy has been captured through art and architecture and, thanks to justice breyer, this legacy will continue.’

‘guangzhou opera house’ by zaha hadid architects
image courtesy roy zhuang