A distinctive residential block formed by unevenly cascading levels situated on a sloping topography in São Paulo, has been named the Overall Winner in the 10th annual MIPIM Architectural Review Future Project Awards. 

The project, which also won in the Residential Category, was selected by a panel of expert judges from among 143 entries submitted from all over the world as the overall winner of the competition.

Designed by Isay Weinfeld for Idea!Zarvos, the Girrasol Building is located on the edge of Vila Madalena, a suburb of São Paolo. The building is situated between two streets with a 19 meter displacement between them, and is designed to sit harmoniously within the area’s sloping topography. 

The unevenly cascading levels of the building are designed to follow the existing contour of the terrain, resulting in several configurations of floor plans and layouts suitable for a variety of different living options, each offering unimpeded views of the west side of the city.  

The Judges said that the Girrasol Building stood out “as an example of seemingly effortless architecture which nevertheless deals with a series of difficult universal issues. The result sings.'

Three other projects were Commended by the judges in the Residential category, including Cambridge Greens at Ramanujan IT City, Chennai, India by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill; Royal Road affordable housing, South East London by panter hudspith architects; and Wafra Living complex, Kuwait by AGi Architects. 

The MIPIM Architectural Review Future Project Awards, which mark their 10th anniversary this year, have this year named ten project winners across ten categories, with projects hailing from China, Turkey, Abu Dhabi, Brazil, Czech Republic, Poland and Denmark. Turkey was the most successful country this year, with no less than four winning projects all located in Istanbul, while Abu Dhabi saw two successful projects in the competition. A further 14 projects were awarded a “Highly Commended” prize. 

The awards programme uniquely focuses on building designs for projects awaiting construction or still on the drawing board, celebrating exemplar architectural design and impressive responses to the client brief. The awards now form the centrepiece architecture event during the annual MIPIM conference and exhibition.  

The judging panel was chaired by Paul Finch, Editorial Director of The Architectural Review; Roger Zogolovitch, Director AZ Urban Studios; Peter Stewart, Peter Stewart Consultancy; and Sutherland Lyall, author and critic.  

Paul Finch, the director of the MIPIM Architectural Review Future Project Awards, said, “It’s been another great year for the awards, and some very impressive high quality projects have been submitted.   It’s interesting that this year no less than four of the winning projects are intended for Istanbul, and two for Abu Dhabi.  It certainly seems to be the year of the Middle East in 2012.  Our overall winner is also a very impressive and imaginative residential scheme intended for a young and bohemian suburb of São Paolo.  However, UK projects have also fared very well in this Olympic year, with three great commendations for projects in London.”

This year’s awards will be presented during a gala ceremony and dinner held at JW Marriott, Cannes on 7th March during the annual MIPIM conference and exhibition. All award entries will also be featured on the Architectural Review area of the London Pavilion, and published in a special edition of the Architectural Review which is distributed to all registered MIPIM delegates.