JASGP proud to sponsor the 2026 Louis I. Kahn Award + Talk, honoring the visionary architects of SANAA — Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa.
Wednesday, May 6
5:30 – 8:00 PM
Pen Museum, 3260 South Street, Philadelphia PA 19104
Directions ->>
DesignPhiladelphia presents the 39th Louis I. Kahn Award to Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa / S A N A A, a renowned Tokyo-based architecture firm. SANAA is celebrated for its elegant, minimalist architecture that emphasizes light, transparency, and openness. Founded by Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, the firm creates buildings that blur the boundaries between interior and exterior, encouraging movement, interaction, and connection to the surrounding environment. Their work is defined by simplicity, clarity, and a deeply human-centered approach to space.
About S A N A A
Celebrated for its elegant and minimalist approach, S A N A A creates architecture that emphasizes light, transparency, and openness. The firm’s work often blurs the boundary between interior and exterior space, inviting movement and interaction while fostering a strong connection to the surrounding environment. Their projects are known for clarity and a deeply human-centered sensibility. Among SANAA’s most notable works are the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa, the Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion, the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, the Rolex Learning Center EPFL in Lausanne, Louvre-Lens in France, Grace Farms in Connecticut, Bocconi University’s New Urban Campus in Milan, La Samaritaine in Paris, the Art Gallery of New South Wales expansion in Sydney, Kagawa Prefectural Arena in Japan, and the Taichung Green Museumbrary in Taiwan.
About Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa
Sejima and Nishizawa have received some of the highest honors in architecture, including the Golden Lion at the Venice Architecture Biennale in 2004, the Pritzker Prize in 2010, the Praemium Imperiale in 2022, and the Royal Gold Medal in 2025.
Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa / S A N A A was selected for the 2026 Louis I. Kahn Award due to their profound contributions to contemporary architecture, and their ability to create innovative, sustainable designs that resonate both culturally and aesthetically. Their work exemplifies the spirit of the Louis I. Kahn Award, and DesignPhiladelphia is honored to present them with this prestigious recognition.
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