We call it ‘plus’ that means we should never demolish.

The duo Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal, the founders of the Lacaton and Vassal architecture office firm based in Montreuil, France – have been granted as winners of The 2021 Pritzker Architecture Prize, an international architecture’s highest honor.

With their consistencies on adding more values on the existed buildings, keeping the transformation from the inside, and developing the quality of human life in social housings transformations in many countries for three decades, the duo have been honored as the 49th and Philip Vassal as the 50th Laureates of the 2021 Pritzker Architecture Prize.

According to ArchDaily, Lacaton and Vassal duo have completed over 30 architecture projects, ranging from private cultural and academic institutions to public spaces, social housing, and urban developments – throughout Europe and West Africa, with their “never demolish” principle.

“When we are thinking, designing a project, when we are starting to work on the site, we never think in terms of forms. So it’s what we call ‘From The Inside Out’, it means that we think the project from the inside. Of course, it’s important this project of looking on what we have in hands and what we could do with it,” said Anne Lacaton during the interview with the ArchDaily team.

“We are all talking about the existing cities, the existing situations, and we are inside the situations. It’s a different approach to urbanism. Not from above, but from inside with this curiosity and this precision,” added Jean-Philippe Vassal on their architectural principles.

Well known with their transformative social housing projects, they have been awarded the Grand Prix National de L’Architecture in 2008, The Heinrich Tessenow Medal in 2016, and The Global Award for Sustainable Architecture in 2018. Also won the 2019 EU Prize for Contemporary Architecture with Mies van der Rohe Award after their transformation on 3 modernist social housing’s buildings, fully occupied, in Bordeaux city, France.

So, what is The Pritzker Architecture Prize?

It’s an annual international prize which was established by the Pritzker family of Chicago through their Hyatt Foundation in 1979. It is the architecture’s highest honor and the purpose of the award is: to honor architects with consistent commitments and contributions to humanity and significant vision on building the environment through the art of architecture and their qualitative talent as an architect.

The prize consists of US$100,000 and a bronze medallion. The award is honored on the laureate/s number in order, Anna Lacaton as the 49th and Philip Vassal as the 50th Laureates of the 2021 Pritzker Architecture Prize.

For more information about Lacaton and Vassal office: Website lacatonvassal.com

Sources: Transformation of 530 dwellings / Lacaton & Vassal + Frédéric Druot + Christophe Hutin architecture — Why Lacaton & Vassal Won the 2021 Pritzker Prize — Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal Receive the 2021 Pritzker Architecture Prize — The Pritzker Architecture Prize — Anne Lacaton Interview: Always Add, Never Withdraw.