Critics Alexandra Lange and Mark Lamster hand out their annual awards for architecture and design, with welcome focus and studied opinions on what make great cities great.
2016 marks the seventh consecutive year that Alexandra Lange of Curbed and Mark Lamster of the Dallas Morning News have released a list of architecture awards for "the ups and downs, triumphs, and tragedies of the year in design."
The post has changed venues since Lange became architecture critic for Curbed (the post was published by Design Observer when Planetizen last picked it up in 2014), though the balance of snark and celebration found on the list remains constant.
Without even teasing the joke, the list begins by giving Donald Trump ten awards, varying from Best Developer to Best New Building to Best Building Ever.
Among the many "lesser" awards offered, Lange and Lamster include:
Jacques Cousteau Award for Civic Design: Miami, soon to be America’s first casualty of sea-level rise.
The Jack Torrance Shining Award: Museum Tower in Dallas, still reflecting light onto its neighbors, and potentially sending the entire city of Dallas into bankruptcy.
Shut Our Mouths Award: Los Angeles, for opening the Expo line and voting in a tax increase toward further transit expansion. We’ll never make traffic jokes again.
Yeah Right, Award: The mesmerizing video of the 405 backed up to eternity in both directions over the Thanksgiving holiday. What, you thought we were serious? Get real, Los Angeles.
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