The WMAIA Design Awards program is held every two years, in even-numbered years. This awards program alternates with the Green Giants Award program, which is held every two years in odd-numbered years.

The most recent WMAIA Design Awards was held in 2018; the entries and winners are shown below.

The competition is open to any building type or landscape anywhere in the world completed at any time in the last ten years, by any architect or landscape architect whose principal office is currently located in Western Massachusetts (Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire counties), or who is a member of WMAIA.

The sole criterion of the program is design excellence.

View 2016 WMAIA Design Award entries and winners.

WMAIA Design Awards entries and winners from years prior to 2016 are not available on the website.

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards

All the submitted projects for 2018 are displayed below, and can be sorted.

The WMAIA 2018 Design Awards program was held in conjunction with the Western Massachusetts Section of the Boston Society of Landscape Architects, and was sponsored by Pella Products and Keiter Builders. The Awards were juried by AIA Maine.

The competition was open to any building type or landscape anywhere in the world completed at any time in the last ten years, by any architect or landscape architect whose principal office is currently located in Western Massachusetts (Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire counties), or who is a member of WMAIA.

The sole criterion of the program is design excellence.

The WMAIA received 23 entries.  One Honor Award – the highest award – was presented; 2 Merit Awards were given, and 4 Citation Awards were presented.

Student Scholarships

This is the 10th year that we have been able to offer scholarships to local students, with the support of AIA National.
Submissions are judged for design excellence, clarity of presentation and community and/or University engagement by the applicant.
The 2018 WMAIA/AIA National Student Scholarships were presented to two UMASS Amherst students in the M. Arch program. A scholarship of $1,000 was awarded to Kinsey Hinrichs Diomedi, and a scholarship of $500 was awarded to Ashley Lepre.
Scholarship Winners

Honorary Memberships

Every two years the WMAIA awards an honorary membership to a person who otherwise would not be eligible for membership, but who has made significant contributions to architecture, design and/or environmental causes in Western Massachusetts.

This year, honorary memberships were presented to Jonathan Lash, former President of Hampshire College, for a career devoted to environmental and climate advocacy and for supporting green building initiatives in Western Massachusetts; and Julianna Waggoner, Principal of graphic design and marketing firm MicaBlue Creative, for her long-term engagement with and service to the architectural community in Western Massachusetts.

2019-01-14T14:10:36-05:00

A Thin Red Line

A Thin Red Line

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards HONOR AWARD Burr & McCallum Architects, Great Barrington, MA The pencil-thin house slices through the top of the hill, Michael Heizer-style, leaving the surrounding hayfield virtually untouched.  This surgical slice [...]

2019-01-14T14:06:15-05:00

Photo Studio

Photo Studio

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards MERIT AWARD Naomi Darling Architecture, LLC, South Hadley, MA A 700 sf photo studio and dark room addition to a historic 1750 home in Stony Creek, CT. The inspiration for [...]

2019-01-15T18:34:28-05:00

Crotty Hall

Crotty Hall

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards CITATION AWARD Miller Pollin Architects, Amherst, MA This net-zero building produces as much energy on-site as it uses in one year. Crotty Hall is equipped with many sustainable features, including [...]

2019-01-14T14:06:58-05:00

South College

South College

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards CITATION AWARD Kliment Halsband Architects, Northampton, MA & New York, NY This beloved campus landmark at UMASS, Amherst was brought back to life, joined to a new addition that provided [...]

2019-01-14T14:05:39-05:00

East Meadow School

East Meadow School

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards CITATION AWARD Jones Whitsett Architects, Greenfield, MA East Meadow Elementary School is a Pre-K to Sixth Grade Elementary School designed as a cost-effective add/reno project to a well-built, but non-descript [...]

2019-01-14T11:43:57-05:00

WeAVES

WeAVES

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards Entry Carolina Aragón, Michael Choudhary, Christopher Rucinski, Andrew Lab @ UMass Amherst Our proposal investigates ways in which textiles can harness energy from the environment and from people’s interaction to [...]

2019-01-10T12:00:44-05:00

Farm Barn

Farm Barn

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards Entry Fitch Architecture & Community Design, Amherst, MA Kroka Expeditions in Marlow, NH provides wilderness education programs for children, teens, and adults in rock climbing, white water canoeing, and expeditions. [...]

2019-01-10T11:20:45-05:00

Kasa Pavilion

Kasa Pavilion

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards Entry Naomi Darling Architecture, LLC, South Hadley, MA Unbuilt. A folding portable structure for use as a market stall, outdoor performance space or picnic and gathering place. Back to WMAIA [...]

2019-01-10T10:21:30-05:00

Solar Time

Solar Time

WMAIA 2018 Design Awards Entry Naomi Darling Architecture, LLC, South Hadley, MA At Umass, Amherst on the Fine Arts Center Plaza: a shipping container adapted for use as a solar clock - a place [...]