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Inside is a permanent exhibition gallery for the city's extensive archaeology collection, a temporary gallery to serve both the new museum and the neighboring Usher Gallery, an orientation hall to introduce visitors to the collections and other local attractions, and public amenities such as a cafe and museum shop. A theater will serve as a lecture hall for university and community groups.

The museum is located on the site of a former multistory parking garage; the existing structural slab was reused to minimize ground disruption, limiting harm to the archaeology below the site. The regeneration of this site is expected to help establish this area as an arts quarter for the city of Lincoln.

Residential Infill

Another of the top awards went to "Light House" in London, by Gianni Botsford Architects. The 9,250-square-foot (860-square-meter) residence was designed for a family that had previously lived in multistory townhouse and wanted their new house to be more horizontal and transparent.

The five-bedroom five-bathroom house also includes a suite of living rooms, a kitchen, two studies, a library, dining room, chapel, a swimming pool, courtyard gardens, garage, wine cellar, laundry rooms, and plant rooms.

The infill site is tightly surrounded by higher buildings, so maintaining privacy and daylight was difficult. The roof is completely glazed, and the living spaces encircle an internal courtyard. The architects placed the bedrooms on the ground floor and double-height living spaces above, carefully producing a series of spaces that relate to each other with varying degrees of light, views, and privacy.

Awards jury chair Deborah Saunt cited the house for its outstanding achievement in providing "a sense of openness in a really constrained site... it could serve as a [densification] model of backlands development for other potential uses."

Cancer Center

The third top winner is Maggie's Centre by Zaha Hadid Architects. The drop-in cancer care center in Kircaldy, Fife, Scotland is one of a series of such facilities — all by different architects — throughout the United Kingdom. The 2,690-square-foot (250-square-meter) building includes library areas, a kitchen, sitting room, office, flexible group room, counseling room, and therapy rooms.

Sited on the edge of a hollow, facing away from adjacent Victoria Hospital, the one-story center serves as a gateway to a natural landscape. Its stark, black exterior, an extension of the parking lot, contrasts with a warmer interior with Hadid-hallmark slanted walls. Statements from both jury and patients affirm these interiors are "uplifting, positive, and life-affirming."

Large protective roof overhangs extend from the building on both sides. On the north side, they protect the entrance doors; on the south, they provide solar shading for the glass elevation and partially cover the terrace that overlooks the hollow.

The jury said the design "raises awareness of the psychological needs of cancer care as well as the clinical," and recognized that "going there is something that takes you outside of your daily condition," citing the "user-friendly village-like spaces inside."   >>>

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SUBSCRIPTION SAMPLE Orientation hall of The Collection, in Lincoln, by Panter Hudspith Architects was one of the winners of the AIA/UK awards for design excellence. Photo: Hélène Binet The Collection, longitudinal section. Image: Panter Hudspith Architects The Collection, site plan. Image: Panter Hudspith Architects The "Light House" in London, by Gianni Botsford Architects, was one of the winners of the AIA/UK awards for design excellence. Photo: Aerolens Light House front courtyard. Photo: Hélène Binet Light House living room. Photo: Hélène Binet Light House entrance hall. Photo: Hélène Binet Light House first floor plan. Image: Gianni Botsford Architects   Click on thumbnail images to view full-size pictures.