World's 20 best architectural marvels

The World Architecture Festival is one of the world's largest global architectural awards programme.

It is a unique meeting point for architects, suppliers and clients, attracting hundreds of entries and visitors from all over the world, even as they discuss the creation of better infrastructure, greener and less energy-consuming buildings, etc.

Take a look at the amazing projects that won the World Architecture awards in 2011.

World Building of the Year

Media-TIC, Barcelona, Spain
Architect: Cloud 9, Spain

The Media-TIC building, a meeting point for companies and professionals is in the shape of a cube, covered in a plastic coating of inflatable bubbles, offering glimpses of the fluorescent structure of the building.

The attractive covering regulates light and temperature, primarily preventing 114 tons of carbon dioxide escaping from the building in a year and offering a 20 per cent saving on climate control.

Photographs, courtesy: World Architecture Festival

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Future Project of the Year

Hanimaadhoo International Airport, Maldives
Architect: Integrated Design Associates, Hong Kong

Maldives's second international gateway will be built on an island.

The concept of a floating terminal has been selected by the government for its innovative, exciting and eco-friendly approach.

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Structural Design of the Year

8 Spruce Street - Beekman Tower, New York, USA
Architect: Gehry Partners, LLP, USA

The 867 ft, 76-story iconic Beekman Tower is New York City's tallest residential tower. The tower offers 903 high-end residential units, luxury amenities and unobstructed 360 degree panoramic views.

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ONCE Foundation Award for Accessibility

Museum of Memory and Tolerance, Mexico City
Architect: Arditti + RDT arquitectos, Mexico

The Museum of Memory and Tolerance provides information on peaceful and respectful coexistence among all people. The museum is constructed using a mixture of reinforced concrete and steel in a seven level structure.

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People's Choice

Memorial house Todor Proeski, Krushevo, Macedonia
Architect: Syndicate studio, Macedonia

Located on the Gumenje settlement in Krushevo, Memorial House Todor Proeski is build in memory of late Macedonian singer who died in car crash 4 years ago.

Click NEXT to see the winners in the completed buildings category...

Civic and Community

Saint Nicholas Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church, Springdale, USA
Architect: Marlon Blackwell Architect, USA

The new church takes a unique and bold form.

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Culture

Shima Kitchen, Tonosyotyo, Japan
Architect: Atelier Ryo Abe, Japan

Shima Kitchen is a venue for arts and dinning in Teshima, a rural island in the Seto Inland Sea of Western Japan.

An old house was revamped into an open style kitchen, the warehouse turned into an art gallery and extended a sunshade has been built around the trees to create an outdoor theatre.

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Display

Norwegian Wild Reindeer Center Pavilion, Hjerkinn, Norway
Architect: Snohetta

The Norwegian Wild Reindeer Centre Pavilion is located at Hjerkinn on the outskirts of Dovrefjell National Park, overlooking the Snohetta mountain massif.

The building is open to the public and serves as an observation pavilion for the Wild Reindeer Foundation educational programme.

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Health

Rehabilitation Centre Groot Klimmendaal, Arnhem, Netherlands
Architect: Architectenbureau Koen van Velsen, Netherlands

The building is designed considering the well-being of patients. The design was not to create a centre with the appearance of a health building but a building as a part of the environment and the community.

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Holiday

Raas Jodhpur, Jodhpur, India
Architect: The Lotus Praxis Initiative, India

Situated in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, Raas is a 1.5-acre property located at the base of the Mehrangarh Fort. The idea was to create a luxury boutique hotel with 39 rooms.

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House

Small House, Sydney, Australia
Architect: Domenic Alvaro, Australia

This 'Small House' is an ultra-compact concrete vertical house.

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Housing

8 House, Copenhagen, Denmark
Architect: Bjarke Ingels Group, Denmark

The house offers residential and office spaces. The house will allow people to take the bike all the way from the ground floor to the top. It promises the tranquility of suburban life with the energy of a big city.

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Landscape

A Mother River Recovered - The Sanlihe Greenway, Qian'an, China

Architect: Turenscape, China

The Qian'an Sanlihe Greenway is transformed from former garbage dump and sewage drainage. It shows how a neglected landscape can be recovered as an ecological masterpiece.

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Learning

Sainsbury Laboratory, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Architect: Stanton Williams, United Kingdom

The Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge is an 11,000 sq.m plant science research centre set in the University of Cambridge's Botanical Garden.

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New and Old

Puzzle Piece, Canary Islands, Spain
Architect: Romera y Ruiz Arquitectos, Spain

At the Infant School 'La Herradura', an organic landscape transforms the building into a living landscape.

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Production, Energy and Recycling

Waste Treatment Facility, Valles Occidental, Spain
Architect: Batlle & Roig Architects, Spain

The Waste Treatment Facility is located on a hillside overlooking the Coll Cardus massif in Vacarisses. This site is currently taken up by a controlled waste landfill site nearing its capacity limit.

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Shopping

Decameron, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Architect: Studio MK27, Brazil

The showroom of the Decameron furniture store is located on a rented site in the furniture commercial alley in Sao Paulo.

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Sport

Speed Skating Stadium, Inzell, Germany
Architect: Projektarbeitsgemeinschaft Behnisch Architekten Pohl Architekten, Germany

The Bavarian town of Inzell hosted the World Single Distant Speed Skating Championships 2011.
The outdoor speed-skating track was upgraded to accommodate up to 7,000 spectators and offers maximum flexibility for large scale world class competitions and speed-skating training.

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Transport

Kurilpa Bridge, Brisbane, Australia
Architect: Cox Architecture, Australia

The Kurilpa Bridge is a pedestrian and bicycle bridge over the Brisbane River in Brisbane, Australia.

The bridge connects Kurilpa Point in South Brisbane to Tank Street in the Brisbane central business district.

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Villa

InBetween House, Karuizawa, Japan
Architect: Koji Tsutsui & Associates, Japan

This unique house is built on an artificially leveled area of the site created thirty years ago. The house has been designed as a cluster of small mountain cottages.