Kengo Kuma to Receive the Andrée Putman Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2027 Créateurs Design Awards
Born in Yokohama in 1954, Kengo Kuma founded Kengo Kuma & Associates in Tokyo in 1990 and opened a Paris office in 2008. Over more than three decades, his practice has advanced a synthesis of architecture and nature, reinterpreting Japanese tradition in a contemporary context. His landmark projects also include the FRAC in Marseille, the Cité des Arts et de la Culture in Besançon, and the Saint-Denis Pleyel station in Paris, delivered in 2024. A professor at the University of Tokyo since 2009, his recent honors include the Imperial Prize and Japan Art Academy Prize (2024), the Prix Versailles for Best Museum (2025), and the 38th Louis I. Kahn Award (2025).
“In my design practice, I consider myself a long-distance runner. I believe the most important thing is to keep running over the long term with a single goal in mind: achieving harmony between humans and nature. Writing is also a vital part of this journey; the ideas that come to me while running often take the form of essays and books. More than anything, I am honored that the Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes the entirety of everything I do,” said Kengo Kuma.
