Architect wins prestigious Andrew Doolan award for the best building of the year

Nord Architecture’s South Block small business development in Glasgow has been named the best Scottish building in 2013.

The project has been awarded the Andrew Doolan award for 2013 by the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland, which picks one project as the best in Scotland each year.

The development by Wasps Studios includes 96 studios for visual artists, social enterprises and creative businesses.

Nord’s scheme saw off competition from rivals including Simpson & Brown Architects, Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects and Patience & Highmore to take the prize.

The judges said the building “defined a new set of principles where the architect is” and was “peppered with moments of generosity that delight and enchant”.

They said: “Nord has crafted and choreographed the renovation of this existing building with extraordinary rigour. With great sensitivity and the slimmest of budgets, the architects have produced a specific environment for creative industries.”

Full shortlist of projects

Simpson & Brown Architects- The Chapel of St Albert the Great, Edinburgh

Reiach and Hall Architects - Forth Valley College of Further and Higher Education (Stirling Campus)

Edo Architecture - The Ghost of Water Row, Govan

Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects - Sir Duncan Rice Library, Aberdeen

Patience & Highmore - The Thomas Telford Parliamentary Church, North Uist