Hochparterre presented the rabbits in 2025.

11.12.2025

Architecture and design shape our everyday lives; we are constantly confronted with them – at home, in our neighbourhood, at work and in our leisure time. And the projects we encounter are not always a feast for the eyes. With the aim of improving the quality of public buildings and design, Hochparterre magazine awards gold, silver and bronze rabbits to the “best” solutions in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture and design every year.

The Best in Architecture, Design and Landscape Architecture and the Kaninchen – Senn Award for Young Architecture – are on display at the Museum für Gestaltung Zürich until 4 January.

Why Hochparterre holds this competition.

The unifying theme for the “Best of 2025” awards is the public sphere. While the initial 70 nominations showed a balance between private and public tasks, the final ten winners (nine Hares and one Rabbit) reflect a significant shift: seven of the awarded projects address public spaces or public interests – a record high. This highlights a clear focus on design responsibility and civic spirit rather than purely formal excellence.

In this context, “public” is defined as spaces or objects accessible to everyone without barriers, cost, or permission. The jury prioritized projects that are eco-socially effective, exemplary, and process-oriented. Furthermore, the text underscores the vital role of journalism as a critical companion. Its purpose is to translate expert discourse in architecture and design into accessible content, thereby fostering societal relevance and contributing to democratic debate.

The “Hasen 2025” in gold, silver and bronze, as well as the “Kaninchen 2025”

Here are the winners (Hasen) in the three categories, as well as the “Kaninchen”:

Architecture

This category has a particularly strong focus on public institutions and infrastructure.

Hase in Gold: Zurich Children’s Hospital
Architecture: Herzog & de Meuron, Basel.

A huge infrastructure project that combines healing and architecture. It is a classic "public object" in the service of healthcare.

Source: Hochparterre; © Maria Mezulis

Hase in Silber: Office for Consumer Protection, Canton of Aargau
Architecture: Markus Schietsch Architects, Zurich.

An administrative building that proves that even functional government buildings for safety and consumer protection can offer high architectural quality and sustainability.

Source: Hochparterre; © Christian Senti

Hase in Bronze: Phare Ylliam, Cologny (GE)
Architektur: Bureau, Genf/Lissabon.

An "anti-monument" on Lake Geneva. It is a playful structure that addresses issues such as transparency and visibility in public spaces.

Source: Hochparterre; © Dylan Perrenoud

Landscape architecture

In this category, almost all projects are traditionally public, but this year protection and conversion stand out.

Hase in Gold: Protective structures Bondo II (Graubünden)
Planning: Mavo and Müller Illien, Zurich.

Following the devastating landslide in Bondo, this is a project that demon-strates landscape architecture as an existential protective measure for a village – radically public and vital.

Source: Hochparterre; © Donat Caduff

Hase in Silber: Überlandpark, Zurich
Planning: Krebs und Herde, Winterthur.

A noise protection project above the motorway was transformed into a new public park. It creates green space for the local population where there used to be only a traffic corridor.

Source: Hochparterre; © Kuster Frey

Hase in Bronze: Weg Wüehr, Fiesch (VS)
Planning: Extrā, Bern/Brig.d

A hiking trail along a historic water conduit (suone/Wüehr), which has been gently renovated to keep the tourist and historical infrastructure accessible to all. (This project also won the audience award in landscape architecture).

Source: Hochparterre; © Stephanie Würsch

Design

In this category, too, the spectrum extends far beyond classic furniture into social discourse.

Hase in Gold: ‘EMpower’ jersey
Design: Naomi Eggli and Dagna Salwa.

More than just sportswear – a statement for visibility and equality that uses design as a vehicle for political and social messages.

Hase in Silber: Room divider ‘Meander’
Design: Carlo Clopath.

A modular furniture system that flexibly divides rooms.

Hase in Bronze: ‘Eternal Us’ (speculative object & film)
Design: Hanieh Rashid.

An exploration of artificial intelligence, death and grief. A topic of great public interest.

Winner: Multi-family house Sittertalstrasse, St. Gallen
Architecture: Studio Romano Tiedje, St. Gallen.

Awarded as the best debut work. The winners show how young architects can create strong, expressive architecture with limited resources, even in classic residential construction.

The fact that seven of the ten prizes (particularly in architecture and landscape design, as well as the gold design project) directly address public space, public safety or socio-political issues clearly shows that the jury’s decisions were entirely in line with the competition’s objectives.