Seven mosques in different countries were named the winners of this year’s award for their special and attractive architectural designs.
A total of 201 mosques in 43 countries had been nominated for the international award, of which 27 were shortlisted and ultimately seven were announced as the top winners.
Abdullatif Al Fozan Award for Mosque Architecture, according to its website, addresses new ideas for mosque design around the world and encourages the innovations in planning, design and technology that can form the identity of mosque architecture in the twenty first century.
The candidate mosques this year were categorized into four categories of central mosques, Jumaa’ mosques, local mosques and community mosques.
The motto of this year’s award was “Mosque Architecture in 21st Century”.
The seven winners of the third edition were the King Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh, Basuna Mosque located in the village of Basuna in Egypt’s Sohag, Al-Ahmar Mosque in Bangladesh, West Java Mosque in Indonesia, Sancaklar Mosque located in Buyukcekmece, a suburban neighborhood in the outskirts of Istanbul, Turkey, Amir Shakib Arslan Mosque in Lebanon, and Great Mosque of Djenné in Mali.
Addressing the ceremony, Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, an adviser to the Saudi king and a member of the award’s board of trustees underlined the importance of paying attention to mosques and their architecture as well as their role in developments in local communities.
King Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh
Basuna Mosque in Egypt’s Sohag
Al-Ahmar Mosque in Bangladesh
West Java Mosque in Indonesia
Sancaklar Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey
Amir Shakib Arslan Mosque in Lebanon
Great Mosque of Djenné in Mali