French architects Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal have been named recipients of Le Prix Charlotte Perriand 2027, the latest honor for the Paris-based practice. The award recognizes Lacaton & Vassal’s contribution to contemporary architecture and, in particular, their approach to the transformation and preservation of existing buildings. It adds to a record that already includes some of the profession’s most visible prizes.
Image via Archinect
The prize will be presented on January 16, 2027, at the Shangri-La Paris during the eighth Créateurs Design Awards ceremony. It was established in collaboration with the family of Charlotte Perriand and goes to practitioners whose work has advanced architecture and design. Lacaton and Vassal join earlier recipients including Jeanne Gang, Frida Escobedo and Tiantian Xu, which places them in a list that spans several generations and regions of practice.
Transformation de 530 logements, Cité du Grand Parc, Bordeaux, France. Image credit: Philippe Ruault
Lacaton and Vassal founded their practice in Paris in 1989, after both studied at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Bordeaux. Their work has centered on spatial generosity, environmental responsibility and improving the quality of everyday life through architecture. Those aims run through the projects that have defined the firm, which include the transformation of the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, undertaken in 2002 and 2012, and the Nantes School of Architecture, completed in 2009.
Read more:
- Lacaton & Vassal Receives the 2027 Charlotte Perriand Award
- Major architecture awards
- FRAC Dunkerque | Lacaton & Vassal
Their housing work has drawn the widest recognition. The transformation of the Cité du Grand Parc housing development in Bordeaux, carried out with Frédéric Druot and Christophe Hutin, received the 2019 Mies van der Rohe Award, and the project covered 530 homes. Two years later the architects received the 2021 Pritzker Prize, so the Perriand award arrives after the two honors most often cited in a career of this kind. Other works associated with the firm include the FRAC in Dunkerque and the Pôle Universitaire de Sciences de Gestion in Bordeaux.
Ecole d’architecture, Nantes, France. Image credit: Philippe Ruault
The architects responded to the news by pointing to the figure the prize is named after. “Charlotte Perriand’s tireless pursuit of comfort, well-being, and the pleasure of the inhabitant and of everyday life, her modernity, and her political commitment to exposing poor housing conditions and to transmission and education remain profoundly relevant today and are a source of inspiration,” said Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal. “Her manifest spirit of openness and freedom touches us deeply. We are very happy to receive this distinction.”
Jane Doe is an American architectural editor with a deep-rooted passion for design and the built environment. She holds a degree in Architecture from Columbia University, where she developed a strong foundation in both architectural theory and urban studies. With over a decade of editorial experience, Jane specializes in shaping content that bridges architecture, urbanism, and cultural discourse. Her work spans leading design publications, exhibition texts, and digital platforms, where she is known for her clear, engaging narratives and her ability to translate complex spatial ideas for a broad audience. Jane is particularly interested in issues of equity, sustainability, and the evolving role of cities in a changing world.