Hardly any winner of the DAM Prize has been as controversial as Peter Grundmann Architekten, whose ZK/U Centre for Art and Urbanism in Berlin was awarded the prize this year. The German Architecture Annual 2026 by Dom Publishers documents the shortlist for the award.
German Architecture Annual 2026, 2026 Deutsches Architektur Jahrbuch, Yorck Förster, Christina Gräwe, Peter Cachola Schmal (eds.), DOM Publishers, Berlin 2026. → order now now the castello books online shop
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The jury was particularly impressed by the approach taken to transform a former goods yard warehouse into an inviting meeting place: Working in close collaboration with the non-profit association KUNSTrePUBLIK e. V., the team at Peter Grundmann Architekten, with an above-average amount of their own manual labour and a modest (and adhered to!) budget, has enveloped the formerly single-storey hall in a lightweight steel-and-glass structure and added a second storey. The spaces on all levels, including the vaulted cellar and roof terrace, can now be used flexibly. Architectural standards are redefined here – or simply thrown out the window.
Peter Grundmann Architekten ZK/U Zentrum für Kunst und Urbanistik, Berlin Foto: Yizhi Wang
The Award
Since 2007, the DAM Prize has been awarded annually to recognise outstanding buildings in Germany. In 2026, the prize will be awarded by the German Architecture Museum (DAM) for the tenth time. All projects on the shortlist are documented in the German Architecture Annual, which has now been published by DOM Publishers. The Yearbook presents, through reviews by renowned authors, 22 buildings from Germany as well as two examples from abroad, selected by a jury for the 2026 DAM Prize for Architecture in Germany. Curators from the museum, alongside renowned architects and architecture critics, reviewed a field of around one hundred nominations for this year’s edition. In addition to the special recognition of the winner of the DAM Prize, the shortlist of finalists is also profiled in greater detail.
The exhibition DAM Prize 2026 – The Best Buildings in and from Germany is open until 10. May 2026 at Deutsches Architekturmuseum Frankfurt am Main.
German Architecture Annual 2026
2026 Deutsches Architektur Jahrbuch
Yorck Förster, Christina Gräwe,
Peter Cachola Schmal (Hg.)
220 × 280 mm, 240 pages
400 images,hardcover
DOM Publishers, Berlin 2026
ISBN 978-3-86922-955-3 (deutsch/englisch)
