BusinessWeek & Architectural Record 2007 Awards

There are many architect awards each year but the BusinessWeek & Architectural Record Awards actually awards not only form, design, and beauty but also awards based on contribution to business. The 10th year winners were recently announced. There were over 100 applicants this year from worldwide teams of architects and their business clients so the jury; a mix of editors from BusinessWeek and Architectural Record had a tough job I bet.

According to BusinessWeek, “The strategic impact of these designs can be seen in everything from higher ticket sales at the theater to improved employee retention, better brand awareness, and even increased productivity.”

True; how much importance do we place on aesthetics? Quite a bit. People forget, I believe, how much your structure can represent you, whether a home or multi-million $ business, how people see things and the environment surrounding them affects feelings, drive, passion, all sorts of emotions. There were four Award of Excellence winners chosen and six other finalists this year which received a Citation of Excellence.

Here are a few of this year’s winners.

The Gardiner Museum in Toronto:

The Hubbell Lighting Headquarters in Greenville, S.C. — seriously how gorgeous is this structure. It’s completely amazing.

The U.S. Census Bureau Headquarters in Suitland, Md.

To see all the lovely winners and to learn the back story about each of them visit Business Week.

Don’t forget to gather points for the December Offbeat Homes Contest.