A restored Irish seaside destination wins the 2024 AR Public Award

The winner of this year’s AR Public Awards from The Architectural Review has been announced as the Dún Laoghaire Baths from DLR Architects Department and A2 Architects in Ireland. 

The project restored a spa resort originally built in 1843 with a new engineered jetty feature, including built-in seating and a walkway connecting the adjacent town of Newtownsmith to swimming areas on the Irish Sea.

Jury member Günther Vogt commented that the project was "powerfully designed to resist an unrelenting force of nature: the sea." 

"The buildings and promenade nevertheless convey an inviting atmosphere," he added. "The materials seek a dialogue with the rocks in the surf cast from gravel, water and cement, they appear like geological formations, both materially and in terms of the dimensions of the individual parts."

The winner was joined by two other highly commended projects selected by Vogt and his peers: the Ger Innovation Hub in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, by the University of Hong Kong-based collective Rural Urban Framework, and seven interventions in Monte by Studio Ser in Monte, Switzerland.

Speaking of the Ger Innovation Hub, jury member Ricky Burdett said it is "a powerful reminder of the potential of socially and ethnographically aware architecture to create the conditions of community engagement and mutual support. Its success is contingent on a deep understanding of the social dynamics of the district, and the ways in which its residents live, work and move around."

Speaking to the merits of the other Highly Commended work, jury member Aziza Chaouni added: "The seven interventions in the Swiss village of Monte are a great illustration of minimal intervention with maximum impact. Discussions with residents led the research process, revealing the stories and uses that have defined the village and its community. The project’s restraint is a testimony to the fact that small-scale, low-budget interventions in historic fabrics can be transformative."

Three additional projects, Muelle de San Blas by Colectivo C733 in San Blas, Mexico; the Border Library and Sports Center by Fernanda Canales Arquitectura in Agua Prieta, Mexico; and the National Portrait Gallery in London by Jamie Fobert Architects and Purcell Architects, were also commended by the jury. 

You can see the results from the previously announced AR Public Awards shortlist for 2024 here.