The Pritzker Prize 2017 has been awarded to Spanish architects Rafael Aranda, Carme Pigem and Ramón Vilalta . It’s the the second time that the prize is in Spain,after Rafael Moneo, awarded the Pritzker in 1996, as well as the fact that the jury has Elected, for the first time, three architects as recipients of the award,which is given to their work and not to the studio they founded almost three decades ago and which today has 30 employees.

Spanish architects Rafael Aranda, Carme Pigem and Ramón Vilalta have been awarded the Pritzker Prize 2017,according to the jury’s ruling of the 39th edition of the award, whose announcement has been made in Chicago (USA) by the president of the Hyatt Foundation, Tom Pritzker.

The jury highlights “their uncompromising commitment to the place” in which they work for the creation of “spaces that are in relation to their respective contexts”. In their work they “seek connections between the exterior and the interior,resulting in an emotional and emotional architecture”. In Pritzker’s words, “Aranda, Pigem and Vilalta have had an impact on discipline beyond their immediate area. His works cover both public and private spaces, cultural centers or educational institutions, and his ability to intensely relate the specific environment of each place is a testament to his process and his deep integrity.”

Aranda, Pigmen and Vilalta created the RCR Architects studio in 1988, in Girona, and it has been “their way of working in collaboration where the creative process,the commitment to a vision and all Responsibilities are shared equally,led to the decision to select three individuals as this year’s winners,” according to Pritzker.

Among his most notable projects is the La Cuisine Art Centre (N’grepelisse, France), the Soulages Museum (Rodez, France) – in collaboration with G. Trégou-t-, the restaurant Les Cols (Olot), the winery Bell-Lloc (Palamós, Girona), or the Sant Antoni-Joan Oliver Library (Barcelona).

Carme Pigem has stated that “is a great joy and responsibility. We’re excited because this year three professionals, who work together and closely in everything we do, are the recognized.”

The three architects work locally, but at the same time evoke a universal identity through the creative use of modern materials such as recycled steel and plastic, the foundation’s statement stands out. “They have shown that the unity of a material can provide incredible strength and simplicity to a building,” said the jury’s chairman, British architect Glenn Murcutt, Pritzker Prize 2002.

The jury’s ruling also points out that because we live “in a globalized world in which we must rely on international influences,”more and more people have fear of “losing our local values,our local art and customs,” adding that Aranda, Cigem and Vilalta “show us that it is possible to combine both perspectives.”