German Architecture Award 2019 goes to reconstructed Dresden Kulturpalast

Red carpet, a sound absorbing folded ceiling: The public library housed in Dresden's refurbished 1969 Kulturpalast building, nicknamed "Kulti," invites visitors to study and read in a quiet, relaxed atmosphere. The architects' thoughtful approach to the historic monument from the East German era convinced the German Architecture Museum (DAM) jury to award the Hamburg-based firm the 2019 prize.

In the wake of the complete overhaul of Dresden's Kulturpalast, the architects at Gerkan, Marg and Partners (gmp) also devised a new, state of the art 1,800-seat concert hall that will be the home of the Dresden Philharmonic, and a theater stage.

The interconnected pavilions designed by Waechter + Waechter Architects huddle like honeycombs in a beehive. The new training center for members of the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) in Bonn is set up as an ideal site for open learning. The project was among the DAM finalists for the 2019 award.

Another runner-up for the 2019 DAM award, this clear-cut new building blends perfectly with Rottenburg's historic city center. The city library designed by the Stuttgart-based offices of Harris + Kurrle architects appears to have managed an urban development balancing act in the small town on the Neckar River.

Destroyed and rebuilt several times, Berlin's historic Staatsoper unter den Linden looks back at an eventful, tragic past. HG Merz architects, on the DAM's short list for the award, were behind the latest renovation and modernization. The revamped concert hall shines anew, and the sound, conductor Daniel Barenboim says, is "phenomenal."

Munich-based architects Auer Weber designed the new Arena du Pays d'Aix, a handball venue in the southern French city Aix en Provence that looks like a stack of huge white lids. The arena that is open to local sports clubs but is also used for concerts, exhibitions and trade fairs merits more than a mention in this year's DAM yearbook.

Modeled on Asian rice terraces, the Marina One complex in Singapore with its multi-story, three-dimensional gardens mirrors the diversity of tropical flora. Germany's Ingenhoven architects planned and designed the complex's four skyscrapers. The Frankfurt DAM exhibition that goes hand in hand with the annual prize is on until April 22.