International Union of Architects

Non-governmental organization

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages)

This article may be written from a fan's point of view, rather than a neutral point of view. Please clean it up to conform to a higher standard of quality, and to make it neutral in tone. (December 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

This article relies excessively on references to primary sources. Please improve this article by adding secondary or tertiary sources.
Find sources: "International Union of Architects" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (December 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

(Learn how and when to remove this message)

The International Union of Architects[1] (French: Union internationale des Architectes; UIA) is the only international non-governmental organization that represents the world's architects, now estimated to number some 3.2 million in all.

## About

[edit]

The UIA was founded on 28 June 1948 in Lausanne, Switzerland, following the merger of the Comité permanent international des Architectes and the Réunion International des Architectes. Its General Secretariat is located in Paris. The organisation is recognised as the only global architecture organisation by most United Nations agencies, including UNESCO, UNCHS, ESOSOC, UNIDO and the World Health Organization as well as the WTO. The current (2023–2026) president is Regina Gonthier from Switzerland.

Through its Member Sections, the UIA is represented in over 100 countries and territories, geographically grouped into five regions:

* Region I: Western Europe
* Region II: Eastern Europe
* Region III: The Americas
* Region IV: Asia and Oceania
* Region V: Africa

## Governing bodies

[edit]

The governing bodies of the UIA are:

* The Assembly: the supreme body of the UIA composed of delegates from UIA Member Sections in addition to Council members.
* Council: between meetings of the Assembly, the Council is responsible for managing and directing the affairs of the Union. It is composed of 4 elected members from each of the UIA's five regions in addition to the Bureau members.
* Bureau: composed of the President, the Immediate Past President, the Secretary General, the Treasurer, and a Vice-President from each Region

## Presidents

[edit]

* Sir Patrick Abercrombie, United Kingdom (1948–1953)
* Jean Tschumi, Switzerland (1953–1957)
* Hector Mardones Restat, Chile (1957–1961)
* Sir Robert Matthews, United Kingdom (1961–1965)
* Eugene Beaudouin, France (1965–1969)
* Ramon Corona Martin, Mexico (1969–1972)
* Georgui Orlov, USSR (1972–1975)
* Jai Rattan Bhalla, India (1975–1978)
* Louis de Moll, USA (1978–1981)
* Rafael De La Hoz, Spain (1981–1985)
* Georgi Stoilov, Bulgaria (1985–1987)
* Rod Hackney, United Kingdom (1987–1990)
* Olufemi Majekodunmi, Nigeria (1990–1993)
* Jaime Duro, Spain (1993–1996)
* Sara Topelson, Mexico (1996–1999)
* Vassilis Sgoutas, Greece (1999–2002)
* Jaime Lerner, Brazil (2002–2005)
* Gaetan Siew, Mauritius (2005–2008)
* Louise Cox, Australia (2008–2011)
* Albert Dubler, France (2011–2014)
* Esa Mohamed, Malaysia (2014–2017)
* Thomas Vonier, USA (2017–2021)
* José Luis Cortés, Mexico (2021–2023)

## Congresses

[edit]

The UIA World Congresses are key events for professional and cultural exchange among all the world's architects, bringing together thousands of participants from around the globe. Each event focuses on a different architecture-related theme, developed by eminent personalities from the international architectural, planning and construction fields. Debates, exhibitions, tours and networking events make the UIA Congresses the perfect meeting place for experts, colleagues, friends, and students of architecture.

UIA Congresses are organised by a host UIA Member Section. Congress bids are submitted to the UIA General Assembly and selected by vote six years in advance of the event.

List of congresses from 1948 to 2026

USSR stamp and souvenir sheet of 1958 dedicated to the 5th World Congress of Architecture

Nr. | Year | Location | Theme

|
|
|

1st | 1948 |  Lausanne | Architecture Faced with its New Tasks
2nd | 1951 |  Rabat | How Architecture is Dealing with its New Tasks
3rd | 1953 |  Lisbon | Architecture at the Crossroads
4th | 1955 |  The Hague | Architecture and the Evolutions of Building
5th | 1958 |  Moscow | Construction and Reconstruction
6th | 1961 |  London | New Techniques and New Materials
7th | 1963 |  Havana | Architecture in Underdeveloped Countries
8th | 1965 |  Paris | The Training of Architects
9th | 1967 |  Prague | Architecture and the Human Milieu
10th | 1969 |  Buenos Aires | Architecture as a Social Factor
11th | 1972 |  Varna | Architecture and Leisure
12th | 1975 |  Madrid | Creativity and Technology
13th | 1978 |  Mexico City | Architecture and National Development
14th | 1981 |  Warsaw | Architecture, Man, Environment
15th | 1985 |  Cairo | Present and Future Missions of the Architect
16th | 1987 |  Brighton | Shelter and Cities - Building Tomorrow's World
17th | 1990 |  Montreal | Cultures and Technologies
18th | 1993 |  Chicago | Architecture at the Crossroads - Designing for a Sustainable Future
19th | 1996 |  Barcelona | Present and Futures. Architecture in Cities
20th | 1999 |  Beijing | Architecture of the 21st Century
21st | 2002 |  Berlin | Resource Architecture
22nd | 2005 |  Istanbul | Grand Bazaar of Architectures
23rd | 2008 |  Turin | Transmitting Architecture
24th | 2011 |  Tokyo | DESIGN 2050 Beyond disasters, through Solidarity, towards Sustainability
25th | 2014 |  Durban | Architecture otherwhere
26th | 2017 |  Seoul | Soul of City
27th | 2020 |  Rio de Janeiro | All Worlds. One World. Architecture in the 21st Century.[2]
28th | 2023 |  Copenhagen | Design for a Sustainable Future[3]
29th | 2026 |  Barcelona | One day, One tomorrow[4]

## World Capital of Architecture

[edit]

On 23 November 2018, the UIA published a Memorandum of Understanding[5] with UNESCO on the new joint label World Capital of Architecture. The title is awarded every three years, according to the rhythm of the UIA World Congresses. Since 2020, the world congress has always taken place in the respective world capital. There is a formal application process for this. The World Congress selects the World Capital for the year of the next World Congress from the shortlist of applications, the formal announcement being made by the Secretary General of UNESCO. In 2020 Rio de Janeiro was the world capital of architecture, 2023 Copenhagen[6] and 2026 Barcelona. A program and a series of major events take place in the respective world capital throughout the calendar year.

## UIA Gold Medal

[edit]

Since 1984 the organisation also awards the UIA Gold Medal to honour an architect (or group of architects) having distinguished themselves through their work and professional practice by the quality of services rendered to man and society. Past recipients of the award were:

Year | Architect | Country

|
|

1984 | Hassan Fathy | Egypt
1987 | Reima Pietila | Finland
1990 | Charles Correa | India
1993 | Fumihiko Maki | Japan
1996 | Rafael Moneo | Spain
1999 | Ricardo Legorreta Vilchis | Mexico
2002 | Renzo Piano | Italy
2005 | Tadao Ando | Japan
2008 | Teodoro Gonzalez de Leon | Mexico
2011 | Álvaro Siza Vieira | Portugal
2014 | Ieoh Ming Pei | USA
2017 | Toyo Ito | Japan
2021  | Paulo Mendes da Rocha | Brazil

## UIA Triennial Prizes

[edit]

The UIA also awards the following five prizes:

* The Patrick Abercrombie Prize for Urban Planning and Design
* The Auguste Perret Prize for Technology in Architecture
* The Jean Tschumi Prize for Architectural Writing & Critique
* The Robert Matthew Prize for Sustainable & Humane Environments
* The Vassilis Sgoutas Prize for Implemented Architecture Serving the Impoverished

## International design competitions

[edit]

The UIA manages international architecture competitions.

* Georges Pompidou Centre, Paris
* Indira Gandhi Centre, New Delhi
* Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris
* National Museum of Seoul
* Prado National Museum, Madrid (rehabilitation and extension)
* Opera House, Sydney

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Website. "UIA – INTERNATIONAL UNION OF ARCHITECTS". UIA - INTERNATIONAL UNION OF ARCHITECTS (in French). Retrieved 2021-09-02.
2. ^ "The IAB presents the official logo of the 2020 UIA congress in Rio | INTERNATIONAL UNION OF ARCHITECTS". 2017-11-13. Archived from the original on 2017-11-13. Retrieved 2019-10-22.
3. ^ "Homepage". UIA 2023 CPH. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
4. ^ "UIA" (in Spanish). Retrieved 2021-09-02.
5. ^ About the World Capital of Architecture, at: official webpage, consulted 1 August 2023.
6. ^ * Munk Beilin, Sarah; Dahl, Ellen; Brams, Rikke. Guide to New Architecture in Copenhagen. Copenhagen: Danish Architecture Center. p. 4\. ISBN 978-87-90668-71-6.

## External links

[edit]

* UIA official website

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* Germany
* United States
* France
* BnF data
* Japan
* Czech Republic
* Israel
* Finland

Other|

* IdRef