Anne Lacaton

Anne Lacaton (born 2 August 1955) Lacaton graduated in architecture from the École nationale supérieure d'architecture et de paysage de Bordeaux and received a master's degree in urban planning from the University of Bordeaux in 1984. Lacaton often visited Vassal in Niger, who worked there as an architect and town planner; they built their first joint project, a straw hut.

Architectural practice In 1987, Lacaton formed the practice Lacaton & Vassal, with Jean-Philippe Vassal. Initially based in Bordeaux, the practice moved to Paris in 2000. Lacaton & Vassal's work focuses on reduced-cost construction. Many projects are hybrids between a contemporary building concept and more diverse techniques, upsetting building contractors' standard practices.

The practice has also worked on the École Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture in Nantes; the art collection project FRAC Nord-Pas de Calais in Dunkirk; the Cap Ferret residential building in Cap Ferret, and the Grand Parc Bordeaux (with Frédéric Druot and Christophe Hutin). This last project was the winner of the EU Mies 2019 Award, for the best contemporary architecture in Europe.

Lacaton & Vassal have worked with Frederic Druot on sustainable housing projects, reinventing old 1960s era social housing in a project called Plus. Plus is an initiative to upgrade old social housing into better living spaces. They've published literature on the project. EPFL (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne; 2004, 2006, 2010–11 and 2017–18); University of Florida (2012); State University of New York at Buffalo (2013); Pavillon Neuflize OBC-Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2013–14); and Harvard University.

Her academic teaching focuses on an ideological and socio-political approach to architecture. Lacaton's designs and constructions support human use rather than iconic display, concerned with the people involved. Her designs aim to promote user participation, such as residents in areas undergoing redevelopment.

Anne Lacaton served as a jury member for The Daylight Award in 2020 and 2022.

Awards

Lacaton & Vassal Lauréats des Albums de la Jeune Architecture, France – 1991 Grand prix national de l'architecture in 2008 Paris, France Equerre d'Argent Award (with Frederic Druot) – 2011 Life Time Achievement – Trienal de Arquitectura de Lisboa – 2016 Heinrich Tessenow Medal in 2016 Mies van der Rohe Award in 2019 Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2021 Soane Medal in 2023 Jane Drew Prize for Architecture 2025