Award Categories
Design
This juried award recognizes informed, thoughtful and creative design efforts to preserve, restore, or adapt a modern building, structure, or landscape of local, regional, or national significance, securing its presence for future generations. Design Awards are recognized in the following subcategories:
- Residential
- Commercial
- Civic/Institutional
Documentation
This juried award recognizes exceptional efforts to document modern buildings, structures, landscapes, or neighborhoods of local, regional or national significance. Documentation efforts can also include significant individuals within the Modern Movement such as architects, designers, landscape architects, artists, photographers, and more. Nominations may be submitted in the form of a website, book, publication, or exhibition.
New this year: book submissions and student research projects will be considered as their own subcategories within the Documentation category.
Advocacy
Presented by the Docomomo US Board of Directors, this award recognizes outstanding efforts to preserve and advocate for threatened modern buildings, structures, or landscapes of local, regional, or national significance through advocacy efforts. This award seeks to recognize preservation and advocacy organizations and other groups (including Docomomo US chapters) who have gone above and beyond to work collectively and collaboratively to advocate for a modern site or structure.
Students who have been involved in research or advocacy are encouraged to nominate their projects in the appropriate category.
Eligibility and Guidelines
All projects must have been completed between January 1, 2020, and May 30, 2025, with an allowance for advocacy efforts that are ongoing.
All Submissions
- Buildings, structures and landscapes must be located in the United States or on U.S. territory and have originally been completed between 1940 and 1980. If you would like to nominate a building or site that falls outside of these parameters, please email awards@docomomo-us.org.
- Nominations must be the work of architectural design teams, preservation and/or advocacy organizations and persons located in the United States or its territories.
- All submissions must demonstrate significance if the site is not listed on the National Register of Historic Places or recognized by local landmarking laws.
- Submissions should have preservation as a core component of the treatment, design concept and/or strategy.
- Special consideration will be given to submissions that showcase an informed, well-executed, thoughtful, creative and holistic approach to the preservation of modern architecture.
Design Submissions
- For design projects, original construction materials and/or design intent must have been retained and/or restored. A significant loss of such may cause a submission to be deemed void.
- It is strongly recommended design submissions include before and after photographs taken from the same vantage point.
- It is strongly recommended design submissions include before and after floor plans where an addition or alteration has occurred. A site plan and/or section drawings can be included if relevant.
Documentation Submissions
- Documentation projects can include, but are not limited to: inventories, surveys, historic structure reports, conservation plans, design guidelines, exhibitions, books, publications, student thesis projects, mapping projects, apps, documentaries, grassroots initiatives, and projects using other forms of media to document modern resources. Contact awards@docomomo-us.org if you are not sure if your project is eligible.
Advocacy Submissions
- The building(s), structure(s), landscape(s), or neighborhood(s) that are the focus of the advocacy initiative must have been threatened with demolition or significant alteration.
- Advocacy efforts of multiple partners, persons, or organizations that have gone above and beyond to work collectively and collaboratively are encouraged.
Materials Needed
A nomination is considered complete once the below materials and the submission fee are received.
1. Project Detail Form
Name(s) and contact information of the nominator(s), design team(s), client, and owner.
Download below.
2. Narrative
The narrative should address the significance of the building(s), structure(s), or landscape(s), and the character-defining features that influenced the content or design of the project.
Please note: The narrative for Design and Documentation must be ANONYMOUS – please EXCLUDE the name of the firm or design team responsible for the project from the narrative description. The narrative for Advocacy submissions may include identifying information. All narratives must be submitted as a Word document, regardless of category.
Design projects (up to 1,000 words)
Describe the team's design process and approach; considerations, challenges or opportunities that influenced the project; as well as the treatment of materials, assemblies, finishes and interventions related to the preservation of the integrity of the historic fabric. The narrative should also include a clear description, illustrated by corresponding images, of the defining features and materials of the original design, additions (if applicable), and current design. Projects featuring lesser-known or regional architects or designers (original design team) should include a minimal amount of biographic background information.
Documentation projects (up to 1,200 words)
Describe how the project contributes to the advancement of knowledge and awareness of modern resources; the realized and potential impacts of the project in regards to furthering the understanding and awareness of the contributions of modern resources to history.
New this year: Context Statement
All documentation projects should provide a context statement explaining how the work fits within the broader body of literature on the topic and what knowledge or research gap it fills. For example, a book submission might include a list of other books on the topic and explain what sets this project apart. The context statement can be up to 200 words.
Advocacy projects (up to 1,000 words)
Describe the scope of the advocacy efforts, impact on the site and community and the result of the work. Advocacy efforts will be given equal consideration in the case of preservation, demolition and on-going efforts.
3. Photo Release Form
A photo release form and project detail form are required for a complete nomination.
Download below.
4. Images
- Minimum of six (6) images of the project subject, project itself, or a combination of the two. Image size must be at least 1MB.
- The first image is the project lead image. The lead image will be used by Docomomo US in all material related to the project. The image should be horizontal and at least 1MB.
- It is strongly recommended that design submissions include photographs comparing the original design, modifications made over time, and the project's current state taken from the same vantage point. You may combine multiple images on one page.
- It is strongly recommended that photographs of design submissions correspond with the description of the project in the narrative.
- At least one image should be a relevant historic image.
- Descriptions of the images and image credits should accompany the files as a Word document.
- In addition to images included in project PDF/submission, images must also be submitted as individual files (at least 1MB and 300dpi).
- Floor plans
- For design nominations, original and current floor plans where an addition or alteration has occurred are strongly recommended. A site plan and/or section drawings can be included if relevant.
- Additional Images
- A nomination may include more than the 6 images required below.
5. Nomination Fee
The nomination fee can be submitted online or by check. Checks should be made payable to Docomomo US and sent to PO Box 230977 New York, NY 10023. The name of the project must be included on the check.
$125 – Early Nomination Fee (must be submitted by April 25, 2025, at 11:59pm Eastern)
$175 – Nomination Fee (must be submitted by May 30, 2025, at 11:59pm Eastern)
