EUmies Awards: Belgium expo renovation and Slovenian theater win 2026 top prizes

The European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Awards winners for 2026 have been announced. The projects were chosen from 410 nominated works, reduced over time to 40 shortlisted projects, and ultimately seven finalists.

The main Architecture Prize was awarded to the renovation of the Charleroi Palais des Expositions in Wallonia, Belgium, by Brussels-based AgwA and Ghent-based architecten jan de vylder inge vinck. The project reworks a 1950s convention center through a strategy of adaptation rather than replacement, focusing on reuse, material efficiency, and spatial transformation.

The former closed central hall extends the public space inside the building, making it more accessible and easier to move through. Outside, hard-paved areas are replaced by a continuous green park, improving the environment and reconnecting the building with its surroundings.

The Emerging Architecture Prize was awarded to Temporary Spaces for Slovenian National Theatre Drama in Ljubljana, designed by Vidic Grohar Arhitekti. The project transforms an abandoned industrial site into a flexible cultural venue through low-cost, temporary interventions.

Located within a complex of 1960s industrial halls on the city’s fringe, the scheme establishes a new programmatic center. A series of low-budget interventions carried out in a short period transformed the abandoned industrial hall into a vibrant new public building.

The EUmies Awards Days including the awards ceremony, will take place on May 11th and 12th at the Mies van der Rohe Pavilion and Palau Victòria Eugènia in Barcelona.