The International Union of Architects (UIA) awarded Renzo Piano, Hon. FAIA, the 2002 Gold Medal at its World Congress in Berlin last month.

The jury citation lauded Piano's contributions to architecture and society. "His work is both personal and varied; it illustrates his sensitivity to cultural diversity and his intimate knowledge of the milieu of which it is part.

"His realizations reflect the orientations developed by the Union of Architects in their global dimension and their respect for cultural identities. Renzo Piano's work associates advance technological research with the lessons of traditional economy. It provides a top quality architectural response to evolving social needs. In this way, his work is particularly representative of the role of the architect and the contribution he can make to the sustainable development of our planet."

Established in 1984, the UIA Gold Medal is presented at the organization's World Congress every three years to a living architect. The UIA has awarded medals to Hassan Fathy, Hon. FAIA (Egypt); Reima Pietila, Hon. FAIA (Finland); Charles Correa, Hon. FAIA (India); Fumihiko Maki, Hon. FAIA (Japan); Rafael Moneo, Hon. FAIA (Spain); and Ricardo Legorreta, Hon. AIA (Mexico). The UIA Gold Medal honors architects for their contributions to humanity, society, and the promotion of architectural art.

Piano's wide-ranging projects include the Georges Pompidou Centre in Paris (with Richard Rogers, Hon. AIA); the Kansai Air Terminal in Osaka; the Museum of Modern Art in Varnamö, Sweden; the Museum of Sciences and Technologies in Amsterdam; and the Jean Marie Tjibaou Centre in New Caledonia.

The Italian-born architect is the recipient of many other international accolades. Among his honors are the Pritzker Prize in 1998, the RIBA Royal Gold Medal in 1990, the Neutra Prize in 1991, the Kyoto Prize in 1990, and the Royal Gold Medal for Architecture in 1989. Piano became an honorary fellow of the AIA in 1984.

Born in Genoa in 1937 into a family of builders, Piano pursued his own path in architecture. He graduated in 1964 from the Polytechnical School of Architecture in Milan. He worked at his father's construction company and then in the offices of 1953 AIA Gold Medalist Louis Kahn, FAIA, and Z.S. Makowsky. He now heads the Renzo Piano Building Workshop, which has offices in Genoa, Paris, and Berlin.

The UIA awarded four other themed prizes:
• Sir Norman Foster, Hon. FAIA, received the Auguste Perret Prize for technology applied to architecture.
• Group 91 Architects (for the Temple Bar district in Dublin) received the Sir Patrick Abercrombie Prize
• Portugal's Maneul Tainha (architectural education) and Greece's Elias Zenghelis (architectural criticism) received the Jean Tschumi Prize
• Ireland's Justin Kilcullen and Brazil's Jaime Lerner, Hon. FAIA, received the Sir Robert Matthew Prize for the improvement of the quality of human settlements.

Copyright 2002 The American Institute of Architects. All rights reserved.