Dong Gong of Vector Architects awarded 2025 Marcus Prize by University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Beijing-based architect Dong Gong of Vector Architects has been named the winner of the 2025 Marcus Prize for Architecture by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Architecture and Urban Planning.

The $100,000 prize is one of the highest monetary awards in architecture and recognizes established architects who show future promise in the field. Gong is the Prize’s eleventh overall winner and will travel to Milwaukee to co-teach a studio alongside faculty.

“We believe in crafting specific architecture for a specific place and a specific way of life. The Marcus Prize is a profound encouragement for us to persist,” Gong said about the award.

Vector Architects has earned international recognition through projects such as Seashore Library (Qinhuangdao, Hebei, China), Yangshuo Sugarhouse Hotel (Guilin, Guangxi, China), and the renovation of the Captain’s House (Fuzhou, Fujian, China). The firm has been honored with awards such as the RIBA International Award for Excellence in 2021 and the Architects Regional Council Asia (ARCASIA) Gold Award in 2022.

“Vector Architects offers a statement about the value of the architect and of architecture to our contemporary condition,” said jury member Hans E. Butzer. “Their work appears to beautifully explore questions of tradition, place, and global drifts, while still being comfortably restless and aspirational.”

Gong joins previous winners of the prize, including Tiantian Xu (2023), Ensamble Studio's Antón García-Abril and Débora Mesa (2021), Tatiana Bilbao (2019), and Jeanne Gang (2017). Earlier this year, Archinect spoke with Tiantian Xu on her experience of teaching at UWM as part of the prize.